Play Time with Justin

Mom and I hosted play group at our house on Friday. We had 8 kids total--lots of fun! We played with all my new toys, including my rock climbing set outside. Mom even let us have popsicles out on the deck! Afterwards, Justin stayed over while his mom went to the doctor. Justin is just 1 week older than me, but is always quiet at playgroup. Not this time--after all the older kids left, he really came out of his shell. We had so much fun wrestling, reading, and just being boys. I hope he can come over again soon. Here are some pictures. Hope you all have a great Memorial Day weekend. I've also included a photo of me in my famous Uncle Sam hat. It's a little small on me this year. Of course, when I wore it last year, I was only a week old!

Birthday/Baptism Pictures

More Birthday Pics

The Big One!

Well folks, it's official--I'm one year old! It was one continuous party this weekend, starting with the arrival of all the Arnolds early Friday afternoon. Ma and Pa from MO, Uncle Jas, Aunt Jen, and cousins Sarah and Hannah came, then late that night all the Kenessons--Grand Dad, Grandmother, Laura and her friend Reeve, Uncle Jay, Aunt Liz, and cousins James and Claire. Mom made Tex-Mex Friday night--Grandpa Glen's favorite, then we all convened at our house on Sat for party preparations. While I took a nap on Sat afternoon, Mom took all my cousins for a swim at the pool at my gym, the Coppell Aquatic and Rec Center. They were really impressed with the facilities and understand why I have so much fun there. My Noah's Ark cake was delivered, balloons were hung, and all my friends started arriving around 5:00. We had lots of fun playing outside on my new play gym that my parents gave me for my bday. Dad picked up barbeque for everyone to grub down on. It was pretty good, but not nearly as good as dessert. Everyone gathered around my cake, sang happy birthday, and all my friends and cousins helped me blow out the candles. I LOVED my cake. It took me a little while to really dig in, but once I got comfortable with the texture, I had blue icing all over me! After that, I opened all my presents. Wow, everyone was so generous. I got tons of good lookin clothes, and of course lots of really cool toys. I slept well on Saturday night for sure after all the hooplah. . .but the party continued on Sunday! My whole extended family came with me to my church to see me baptized. All the kids, including my cousins got to come up to the front of the sactuary for the big event. It was very special. Afterwards, everyone came back to my house for more family fun time and a quick brunch. It was quite an event. We had so much fun, it was sad to see everyone go. I doubt I will ever have another birthday celebration quite like this one. Thanks everyone for all the memories together that I will treasure always! I love you. JACK

Derby Time!

Our annual Kentucky Derby part was a huge success. The mint juleps were plentiful, and the food was delicious. We had quite a mix of guests including neighbors, moms club friends, hometown friends, college friends, and co-workers. In total, we had 23 partiers. Unfortunately, I was not a big winner. Dad and Uncle Jason had small wins, but mom's friend Leanda (shown in the black hat) was the big winner with a win bet on Barbaro! She said she just had a "feeling" about that horse. Here are some pics of the big event.