Raising Fig

We're Back!

2012-01-21T11:16:00.002-06:00

We are here. This blog has not been abandoned forever.

Where to start... The holidays? That seems overwhelming. Smush hitting the 8 month mark? Now he's closer to 9. Really, just a few days away. Crawling? Oh, yea. That happened. Maybe that's why I haven't blogged. Nah... G hitting 2 and 1/2. That post is definitely coming.

So just to get the blog rolling... A tiny holiday recap.

It was amazing. It was busy. Really busy. We took naps in the car between stops. We played games, loved on family and ate lots of delicious sweets. Nolan ate wrapping paper. G loved looking at Christmas lights, reading Christmas stories, opening gifts and drinking hot chocolate. G thought Jesus' mom's name was Mary Christmas. So sweet!

New Years Eve. It was low key. We went to church and then had a party of four. We bought a party pack for 75% off at the grocery store on the way home. We made salad, steaks, and mac and cheese. We blew horns, wore silly hats and I sang Auld Lang Syne (which Matt claimed he had never heard). We FaceTimed with friends who were doing the same thing at their houses. I cherish that night.

Life has been moving at a crazy fast pace. We are always jetting from one place to the next between friends and family. Laundry is constantly piled and the dish washer always humming along. The blog sitting dormant for a month... or more. I don't always operate well at this kind of pace. I do know that the reason for this pace is that we have an amazing group of friends and sweet family that we are surrounded by. So much so that even though this pace is fast there are still some that I am sad I don't get to see more.

There are no signs of stopping so hopefully this isn't the only post for another month. I have so much more I want to share but I wouldn't recommend holding your breath.

Seven

2011-12-06T15:42:00.001-06:00

7. Seven. Closer to 1 than birth. 7. Yes, I am still letting it sink in. Smush is now 7 months old.

Seven Months Feels Wiggly and Frustrating

Smush is trying so hard to be mobile. He is starting to see things that he wants then try his hardest to get to them. This often finds him in all kinds of funny positions and sometime frustrated when he can't get out of them. His body is quickly catching up to his mind and I have a feeling he will be crawling and successfully pulling up to standing in no time.

Seven Months Sounds Joyful
Nolan is babbling all the time. He has recently turned it up a notch from the dadadas to mamamas, nananas and even some bababas. He loves to laugh and giggle and we love it when he gets so excited that he just goes silent. Sure smiles and giggles come from his big brother running around him, kisses on his cheeks and getting ice from the ice maker. I know the last one is kinda weird but he loves it every time.

Seven Months Smells like Antibiotics

This last month has been a rough one on him. He started it out with an ear infection at his 6 month well check. I had seen a few signs so I wasn't suprized in the least bit. After one round of antibiotics the ear infection was still winning. On to round two of antibiotics. This time the antibiotics won! But after a few short days off all antibiotics a cough and mega congestion set in. When the wheezing started it was back to the doctor. This time RSV. So now he is doing breathing treatments and some more meds. The good news is through ALL that yuck our little Smush has remained in super sweet spirits. He had one really crummy I just want to sleep on momma all the time day, but after that it was back to playing. If he didn't have such an awful cough and constant stream of snot you'd never know he was sick.

Seven Months Tastes like Plastic or Wood or whatever else he can get those two little teeth on. EVERYTHING is in the mouth these days. Of course, most of the things he gets are designed for that kind of abuse.
His first tooth broke through right at Halloween and then he popped another one for Thanksgiving. Maybe we will get a Christmas tooth too? Speaking of Thanksgiving, isn't he a cute lil turkey?

It also finally tastes like food! After weeks upon weeks of offering food everyday Nolan finally decided to give it a try. Once he opened his mouth he loved eveything he tried. Then came the sickness and now meals are a little hit and miss. In true Nolan fashion though he still loves his milks. Although, we have had more success this month with formula when mommy must be away. He is still a big fan of whole foods like bananas, apples, sweet potato and eating through his strainer thing-a-ma-jig.

Seven Months Looks Smushy

You knew I was going to say that at some point, right? My littest man is one handsome Smush. His blondish brown hair is maxing out on the fluff. His dimple just gets deeper and his eyes are still an intoxicating blue. He is almost up to 20 pounds and I still haven't asked the doctor about his 6 months height. Oh well, we have yet another follow up appointment on Friday, so maybe I will remember to ask then.

FALLing

2011-11-22T15:40:00.000-06:00

So fall is here. Well, it's been here. As usual I am late to the game. We have been so busy in real life that I have hardly had the time to keep up here in blog world. We've been busy and a little allergy ridden. Allergies mean early bed time for momma. So here is a catch up post of all the fun that we have been having since fall fell and I fell behind.

We visit the pumpkin patch, over and over again. G actually calls it the pumpkin farm and for a few weeks he asked if we could go every day.
It is such a fun place to take hay rides, play in the village of wooden cut outs, tractors and trailers, run through the pumpkin house, see a pig, a really old turtle and have a picnic lunch.

We are fortunate that a fabulous patch is really close to our house so we are able to visit often and even have picnic dinners there when Daddy gets home from work early.

Then came Halloween. We had a halloween play date with my beautiful college friends and all of their charming little ones.

It is always total madness when we all get together since there are a dozen little ones between us. So needless to say this was a good as it got when it came to a group shot.

We also went to several fall festivals where the boys got to try out their costumes, play games and G even got to ride a fun little train.
Please allow me to introduce you to the Fire Chief and his trusty Fire Rescue Dog.

G really loved his costume. Well, let me be clear... He loved being a fireman. He loved the hat. He loved his fire boots. He didn't really love wearing the pants or jacket. He wore it around the house like this for a week before halloween and is still loving playing in the parts of his costume.

I started writing this post on the 10th and here I am 12 days later finally pushing publish on my Falling Behind post. I guess not much has changed over the past 12 days. Still terribly behind...

6 and Fluffy

2011-11-03T15:53:00.006-05:00

Days keep coming, like it or not, and my little babe is already 6 months old. It happened over a week ago and I am still not believing that he is really 1/2 a year old. Where did it go? All I know is that it happened quickly, very, very quickly.

Six months finds our little Smush sitting well on his own, cutting teeth, slobbering like mad, talking for hours on end like a teenage girl and still perfectly smushy.

He jibber jabbers so much that most of the pictures from our little 6 month photo shoot look like this with his mouth wide open dadadadain away.

Here is a little more proof and evidence of his adorable squeals and razzes too.

His growth is evening out and slowing down a bit on the charts. He is now between the 80th and 90th percentile for height, weight and his head measurement. His head is going up and his height and weight are slowing down making him a perfectly proportioned little Smush. He weighed in at 18 pounds 11 ounces at his well check, but I some how failed to get his length.

His hair just keeps growing too and following a very similar pattern to G's. He has definitely entered one of my favorite stages, The Fluff. It is lightening up and getting those red undertones like G's did too.

He has proven this month that he definitely prefers breast milk to every other possible form of food including fruits, vegetables and formula. Really saying prefers is putting it nicely since most other encounters are flat out refusals, but we are working on it. Our best successes are coming from whole pieces of skinned fruit or well cooked chunks of vegetables that he can safely gnaw on.

As for sleep, he is still waking once, typically in the early morning hours. He often finds his way into our bed around this feeding and stays cozied up next to mom and dad until morning comes. It is such a hard habit to break me him of when you get to wake up to this sweet face smiling at you.

It is hopeless! I adore him like crazy. Only six months in and he has already gained control. Between him and his brother, they have me smitten and completely wrapped around those dimpled little fingers.

I know the next 6 months are going to fly by equally as fast and will hold just as many changes for our little Smush. I will just be here soaking up snuggles, still trying to slow things down and enjoying this beautiful ride.

Brothers

2011-10-26T21:03:00.000-05:00

My hope is that these two grow into a deep and sweet understanding of what it means to have a brother. An understanding that they live out through out their lives. I know that they will fight hard and play rough, but my hope is that we can model for them how to also love deeply.

They are already off to such a good start.

I love this outtake because it their faces are funny and what in the world was G doing with his leg? But also because you can see their hands. When they are near they are often holding hands. Nolan is in that grabbing stage where he is always looking for something to hold onto or chew on and his brother's hand seems like a good choice. G also reaches for Nolan too. When we are laying on the floor reading books or snuggling up on the couch he takes hold. Heart Melt. Every time.

Sous Chef

2011-10-24T21:19:00.000-05:00

I have one darling little chef in training. Almost every night he accompanies me on the counter as we make dinner. He tastes as we go ensuring all of the ingredients are to his liking.

Since he loves to help cook we often find ourselves baking in the afternoons too. You know, if the sweet tooth starts aching. He has already figured out how to clean the mixer by tasting.

Funny thing is that these were all taken on different days, but his wardrobe or lack-there-of is the same.

I have to be careful when cooking broccoli because it often sneaks away. He loves raw broccoli. Not sure if it's because he loves the taste or just thinks it's fun to eat.

My hope is that he loves being my little sous chef for years to come!

5.

2011-10-11T14:57:00.001-05:00

My whole hand, I now have to use my whole hand to count my little Smushers age in months.

The transition between four and five months seems to have been a big one.
What's new? Well, Nolan is now rolling over from both his tummy to his back and from his back to his tummy. He started rolling very stealth-like. He had been stuck on his shoulder for months, but all of the sudden he figured it out and if you looked away for one second he would roll. It took several days of knowing he could do it before anyone actually saw it happen. Now he is our little Rollin' Nolan constantly flopping back and forth to while paying on the floor or in bed.

In just the last few days, he is even sitting up unassisted for a few seconds at a time. What a whole new world this opens up!

He has pretty much given up sucking his thumb, but loves to chew on his fingers and can often be found gnawing on his right foot. Yep, he definitely prefers the right foot over the left.

He is wearing mostly 12 month clothing and at a very estimated weighing on the home scale weighed in at 18.5 pounds. He is trying to catch up to his big brother and has even started sporting outfits G wore when he was already walking.

We had to get in our picture in Daddy's outfit before Nolan grew out of it. Here he is at 5 months, G at 7 months and I am not sure about Matt. We will have to ask Nonnie.

At 5 months our Smushers still has that Jackpot Baby disposition, even strangers comment on his sweet temperament. You laugh so easily and it is a favorite past time of the whole family to get your belly laughs going. All it takes is a kiss on the cheek or G jumping up and down and then we melt at that sweet sound.
Somehow that sweetness seems to disappear when you are away from momma. You don't always have the easiest time in the church nursery or when left with family. It makes it rough to leave you.
Your a good sleeper and can nap when we are on the go. You still wake during the night to eat but I enjoy the sweet snuggles while the world is quiet.
You have had tastes of food but still prefer milk to solids for the time being. You watch us eat like a hawk but when it comes to purees you aren't sold quite yet. I think you just want to wait for teeth so you can skip to steak.
Speaking of teeth those two little buds on the bottom seem to be getting bigger by the day. I bet that we see some pearly white soon!
You are reaching for anything and everything but especially love to reach for faces. G is always saying "Nolan got me!" because every time he leans in you grab him. It just gets sweeter and sweeter seeing the two of you interact.
It is hard for me to believe that in a few short weeks you will be 6 months old, half way to one. How did it go by so fast? I wish we could just stall every time my heart gets that flutter so I could always remember exactly the way you are at that very moment. Yet I know we can't so I will take hundreds of pictures and videos and try to be in the moment in all of the little moments that we have.

BOYS

2011-10-09T13:10:00.002-05:00

I absolutely love having boys.

With boys catching frogs in double underwear is just a typical Saturday afternoon.

Out of the Sand

2011-10-03T14:57:00.010-05:00

While in Galveston we spent much time on the beach but some of my favorite moments were just conversations in the car, silly or cuddly moments in our condo and a few of the sand-free tourist stops.

We had a blast touring the rain forest at Moody Gardens, especially the butterfly exhibit.

G could have stayed there for hours just trying to catch one.

The animals were amazing, terrifying, interesting and beautiful all at the same time.

Since it was a week day and school is back in session, we were one of the only families there that day. We got lots of attention from the staff. It was neat to learn fun facts about the animals and to have someone point out some of the harder to spot creatures. After a lesson on bats, G decided he wanted to try doing things upside down for a while.

He kept assuming this position and announcing, "I'm a bat!". Funny kid!

We even got to see a Dora movie in 4-D! It was a new experience for all of us and I think we were all caught off guard at the first blast of mist in our faces as Dora flew her plane under a waterfall.

G also took his first swing at Putt-Putt Golf in Galveston.

Yep, Hole-in-One on his first swing! He's a natural!

After playing one round he asked to "Play Putt-Putt right now?" repeatedly. Even at 8 am the next morning he was asking me if we could go play putt-putt. The last night of vacation we obliged with a trip to another one of the local putt-putt courses. Although there was no hole-in-one that night, we still had lots of fun.

Yep, that is the best the lady at the course could do.
Yep, I played putt-putt like that.
Yep, G has started saying yep. He draws is out. It's hilarious.

It was memorable family vacation. A week together, uninterrupted is a beautiful thing. We are all looking forward to future family vacations, possibly even back to (as G calls it) our little yellow Galveston house.

The Beach

2011-09-29T13:51:00.008-05:00

We did it! We timidly ventured out on our first family vacation. Turns out there was nothing to be timid about because we had a blast!

We made the 6 or so hour drive to Galveston to play amongst the waves and soak up the last few official days of summer. Since having G we hadn't really ventured out, unless it was to visit family, so we weren't really sure what to expect or if we would regret the whole thing.

6 days of vacation later, we have no regrets, tons of memories and far too many pictures to show for it. So many pictures in fact that I am going to have to break this up to share it all.

The Beach:
Introducing G to the beach was fabulous. I have long been a lover of the beach or any place near water and I hoped that he would too. We had been talking it up for weeks and although he had no idea what he was in for her was excited none the less. Upon actually seeing the beach and putting his toes in the sand, well, we was a little timid at first, but he embraced it quickly.

He now loves to build sandcastles, search out seashells, jump over and run from waves, and to just sit and let the water wash over him.

Nolan took to the beach quickly too. He felt so at home there that he spent most of the time sleeping. He did wake up long enough to get his toes wet a couple of times and to join us at the tail end of our last night dinner picnic in the sand.

More of our fun away from the sand to come...

Challenge

2011-09-22T14:36:00.004-05:00

I dare you to watch these videos and not smile! Think you can do it?

How this? If you make it through all 3 videos without cracking a grin I'll buy you a coke. Better yet, I 'll buy you a pawscable.

Now that I think about it, if you watched and didn't smile then you certainly have no heart, therefore you have no life to sustain with pawscables or cokes.

Sounds like a win, win since you are most certainly smiling and I won't go broke on cokes or pawscables.

School Days

2011-09-20T15:47:00.004-05:00

Our little G started school this year! He has gone for 2 days a week for 3 weeks now and is absolutely loving it, like I knew he would.

He has such a social personality, just like his dad, and I am pretty sure that when I say "school" he actually hears "friends". This kid loves him some friends! To him a friend is anyone even remotely near his age. Including the little girl who was probably 8 at the play ground the other day. As she approached with her mom, G got so excited he exclaimed "Look Mommy a friend!". And no we had never met her before.

He adores his teacher and has even started including her in the things that he is thankful for at night. Melts my heart!

I love our conversations after school and trying to decipher what he learned or did during the day. It is a puzzle to put together and leads to some funny quotes.

Our latest exchange went something like this...
Mom: G, did you color this picture (showing him the picture of Noah and the ark that he colored)
G: Yep
Mom: Who is this? (pointing to Noah)
G: God
Mom: Really? What is he doing?
G: Saying Ho! Ho! Ho!

So we obviously have a long way to go if he thinks that he colors pictures of God and that Noah or God is Santa. Hopefully we can get that sorted out!

It's so sweet to see him continue to develop into his own person. A person that is independent from me. The first day of school was strange. For the past two years I have known what he was doing almost every moment and then he went to school. And he ate lunch at table with other kids. And someone else took him potty. And someone else read him a book. And he made friends. And he sang songs. And I kept checking his daily schedule to try and envision what he was doing at that moment. And he survived. And he thrived with out me.

His teacher must have known about my seperation anxiety because she sent pictures of what they were doing that first day. I was thankful to have the opportunity to see what that fly on the wall was seeing.

What I love so much about the school dynamic is that he is super excited to go on the mornings he goes, leaves me with a kiss good-bye and no tears yet, but as soon as it's time to go he is ready to go home too. He thanks his teacher, waves good-bye and is just as eager to be back at home with mom.

I am so thrilled to see what this year has in store for him, especially his first Christmas pageant!

Silly Side Note: In the picture he was trying on his back pack that I made him. He was super excited about it and loved wearing it around the house before school started. On the first day when it was loaded up with supplies he strapped in on, only to proclaim "Too Heavy!" and take it right back off. He hasn't worn the thing since, although it doesn't house any supplies any more, only a change of clothes and lunch. Maybe he needs some motivation from Dora.

Hiccups

2011-09-12T12:50:00.006-05:00

Wait for it....

I feel it coming....

There it is!

HICCUP!

They are so much fun sometimes you have to fake them.

Four

2011-09-06T07:37:00.000-05:00

This is going too fast! Didn't I just post a 3 month update?

Like it or not, Smush went and turned 4 months old. He is the same sweet, happy, smushy baby he has always been just gaining new skills everyday.

I adore how he wakes up this happy each and every morning! It's a treat to see him in the morning.

He still isn't rolling quite yet. That blasted broad shoulder just gets in the way. Instead he has opted for baby break dancing, as I like to call it. He just spins on his back, twisting and turning his way across the floor.

He is starting to reach out for things and loving toys like tag blankets and his Texas teether. Speaking of teeth, his bottom gums are getting awfully thin and showing two little bumps. The drool has picked up to a bib wearing pace and he has traded that sweet little thumb for a full fist most of the time.

His stats at 4 months are 16 lbs 10 ounces and 26 inches long. Still hanging out in between the 90th and 100th percentile. Remember how I was going to take a picture of him in the same onesie for his monthly pictures? Yep, thats a 12 month onesie he is wearing! If he keeps up this pace he will outgrow it long before he gets to 12 months.

He still falls asleep holding on and surely loves his momma best of all. He gives us smiles and giggles all the time! I can not get enough!

All the Muches

2011-08-27T15:23:00.004-05:00

In one of my outpourings of "I love you so much, much, much, much, much!" to the boys this summer my mom's sweet teenage neighbor said "My mom used to tell us I love you all the muches in the world". I thought it was so sweet, so I made this for my boys today.

I'm going to hang it somewhere as a sweet reminder that Momma loves you ALL the muches in the world!

Not for the Faint of Heart

2011-08-17T21:47:00.005-05:00

Here it is people. You see, I am a Stay-at-Home Mom, Domestic Engineer, Mistress of My Domain, Child Developement Director, whatever you want to call it, but something new has been added to my job title (if there ever really was one). With two small changes I have officially become a HAZMAT Specialist.

Change #1 was the addition of this little Smush.

Change #2 was G leading the way to being potty trained.

These two things upped my contact with HAZMAT liquids exponentially. In all seriousness, this is not a job for the weak of stomach or faint of heart. Just ask Matt. On any given day, I make contact with up to 7 types of bodily fluids from 2 different little boys. I won't list them out because talking about stuff like this makes my stomach turn, but cleaning it off my floors, that I can do. It's business. You just GET. IT. DONE.

G is doing a great job with potty training and I won't go into details because this is a blog and I am sure he wouldn't want me posting about his business sometime down the road. I will say that I have learned a lot, including that my life is at a point where progress in potty training makes me want to do back flips and call every one I know. Sad, right?

Good thing that at the end of the day sweet baby coos and an adorable toddler hiney in big boy undies erase all images of HAZMAT encounters.

This moment

2011-08-12T21:43:00.002-05:00

G,
There are so many little things that I want to remember about you at this moment. At two you are so funny and continuously silly.
You make us laugh constantly.
You love to hide and to be chased.
You can turn anything into a phone or hat. Most of the time you are calling Nonnie.
You repeat things you hear in the exact context you heard them, making you sound so old and enlightened. Just today you asked me to "Hold On" like I am sure you hear everyday. Luckily, it was in a sweet and patient tone.
You love cooking with me, sitting on the counter and tasting everything as it goes in, yes everything, even things like peppers and raw flour. You add commentary like "Mix, Mix, Mix" and have the sweetest accent when you say cookin.
You have started to really play pretend with your toys. I love how the characters are often sweet to each other. I even caught you having the big bad wolf and a little pig kiss the other day. Such a tender heart you have G. There is always a daddy in your cast of characters. You even had me make a daddy snake out of play dough today. Yes, you LOVE your daddy.
I love how you say thank you. So many mornings I hand you your milk and you say "Thank you so much mommy". It warms my heart I pray that you are always truly grateful.
You still love your bed and naps.
You say prayers.
You adore Mickey Mouse and Elmo.
You love trucks. We have even hit the truck trifecta and seen the garbage truck, recycle truck and mail man in one day!
You break out in song randomly when in the tub, car or just while playing. Today you even made up your own song "Tinkle, Tinkle, Little Boy" of course, to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.
You love people and bring up names of people you love randomly everyday.
You can really wing the ball and love playing catch with your dad. Swinging the golf club is a close second to baseball. You have several toys that you turn into golf clubs when we are playing inside.
You are incredibly smart. You talk in almost all broken sentence, can count to 14 and can count backwards from 10. You know all of your basic colors and shapes. You can sing the alphabet and can identify all uppercase letters. You often call out letters you see on the sides of buildings like IKEA. You can do puzzles SO well. You know more animals than I can count. You can "read" a dozen books because we have read them so many times you have them memorized. You know how old you are and what state we live in.
You light up a room. I know that sounds corny, but I have witnessed it so many times. You sweet smile and cheerfulness really make people happy.
Your mommy adores your soul. Completely. 100%.

N is 3M

2011-08-10T20:45:00.006-05:00

So I am not going to consult the calendar to figure out exactly how late this post is, but Nolan is 3 Months old! He actually might be closer to 4 now, but again I am not getting the calendar out.

3 month olds are fabulous! Or at least this one is. He has the sweetest personality and has let us in on his laugh. Hearing that first laugh is such a big moment. Is there any sweeter sound than your baby laughing? Only thing I can think of is your babies laughing. And like I said before, this little family works to hear that laugh every day. Even G loves to make his brother laugh and smile.

Nolan is trying hard to roll over but just gets stuck on those broad shoulders. It won't be long though.

We don't have any official stats since we don't have a 3 month well check but my guess is he's staying right on that big baby curve. His 6 month clothes are getting seiously tight so it's mostly 9 month and even some 12 months clothes for this big guy. Which works out perfectly for the hand-me-down situation since it was summer again when G fit into 12 month clothes.

He still sleeps great and has regulate to a schedule that includes a nap between each feeding during the day and sleeping from 8 pm to 8 am most days. He is still holding tight to his 4 am feeding. I love the sweet snuggly time with him, so I haven't really worked to break him of it.

Something sweet I don't want to forget is how he always falls asleep and nurses holding on to something. Usually it is my shirt, but he will accept a lock of hair, burp cloth, blanket or anything that he can get that fist around. He has also found his thumb/hand/fist. He would prefer that over the pacifer most of the time. Although I have heard the thumb is a harder habit to break, watching him find and suck his thumb is the sweetest.

Bright Spots

2011-08-07T20:55:00.006-05:00

I have so much to catch up on here on the ole blog, but I am not finding the time or the energy at the end of the day to come up with the words. Although, I collapse in bed drained of energy I go to sleep with these imprints. These thoughts of the day. These amazing bright spots. This love so incredibly intense it is impossible to describe.

These spots are my boys.

It's when we all cuddle up on the couch with a single goal to make the baby laugh. His laugh is so new and infectious to the rest of us. We are addicted and will go to lengths to hear it again and again.

It's morning cartoons.

It's being reminded of how much fun laundry can be.

It's a spontaneous run through the sprinklers.

It's a rare afternoon nap nose to nose with this face.

It's wanting to be just like Daddy.

It's a chalking up the porch after a lazy weekend breakfast.

It's G's request for a Daddy, Mommy, Baby and Brother snake out of Play-Dough.

It's Matt's funny text messages trying to fill the void I feel when I am away.

It's deciding we love Daddy's cooking "This Much!".

No matter what trouble the day held this is what remains. Tonight I am beyond thankful for these bright spots. For this love. For these boys.

Celebrating Two

2011-08-01T15:56:00.000-05:00

He's 2!

See we have our 2's up!

How did he wake up looking older? Seriously? Look at that picture. Don't you feel like it's a glimpse of him at 3 or maybe 5. That's it, we are going to start swaddling him again and giving him bottles. I feel better already, like time is slowing down. On to the rest of the day...

The day couldn't have been more perfect! G woke up to balloons (like last year), a star shaped doughnut, very special cookies and cream milk straw and new coloring books. We had been talking about his birthday, celebrating several other birthdays and reading birthday books for at least a week, so he was excited that it was finally here. It is so neat to see him actually somewhat understanding celebrations.

After breakfast we head out to the backyard so G could see what Mommy and Daddy had been working on for weeks. His new play area; including a sand table, water table and pots of dirt for digging and burying! He loved it and did not want to go back inside.

That morning several friends came over to play in the backyard and enjoy popsicles. It was small, simple and just perfect for our little 2 year old.

That afternoon we rested up for our big date. Nonnie and Papa came over to watch Nolan while G enjoyed some special time alone with Mommy and Daddy.

We went to a hibachi grill so you could enjoy some of your favorite foods like edamame, rice, and grilled veggies. You can eat edamame faster than we can shell it for you, so you are already working on how to get the peas out yourself.

You also love the hibachi restaurant because you get to eat with "sticks". At dinner, they sang you happy birthday and brought out a special birthday ice cream. You loved it and after learning how to lick the good stuff off the bottom of the candle proceeded to eat the rest of your dessert by way of candle.

After dinner we head to Toys R Us for you to pick out a special toy. You wanted the Little People Rocket Ship and Astronaut and have been playing "blast off" ever since. Since it was your birthday they gave you a special crown and balloon too.

It was an incredibly special day, intended to be filled with all the simple things you love at 2 years old.

When I stop to think about how much you have grown and changed in this last year it is overwhelming. You are my little buddy and we chat all day long. I adore your tender spirit and wish that I could freeze time. I wish that I could memorize exactly who you are today because you are growing and changing all to fast.

Happy Birthday G! I can't wait to see what 2 has in store for us. You are adored little man!

**In case your interested, our favorite birthday books were The Birthday Box and The Birthday Fish. We checked them out from our favorite library!

Smiles

2011-07-14T14:26:00.006-05:00

I am so thankful for all the reason I have to smile today.

Especially this one.

**Warning - This could very well be one of those videos that only a mother loves. I am risking your boredom and posting on.**

I just adore how he gets so excited and smiles that big open mouth smile. Or how when you talk to him he will smile and turn away, like he is flirting or being bashful.

G and I could just sit and talk to him forever. We say "a-goo" and then get really excited when he says it back to us.

We try to come up with songs and funny things we can do to make him smile, like playing This Little Piggy on those sweet toes.

I absolutely adore spending time with both of them and seeing how their interaction has increased and changed in 11 fast weeks. Nolan loves his big brother and it is evident by that sweet grin that crosses his face when he sees him. G loves his little brother too. As soon as he wakes up in the morning or after nap, he has to locate Nolan. Every time I am loading or unloading the car he always wants to know Nolan's where abouts. He keeps close tabs on the little guy.

These brothers give me countless reasons to smile. And seeing them smile at each other is one of the biggest ones.

Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a super hero.
- Marc Brown

We've Been...

2011-07-11T21:45:00.011-05:00

Well folks, we have just been to busy to blog about it.

In the last few weeks...

We visit a farm. G got to hold a chicken, plow the field, water vegetables and ride on a tractor. It was a blast!

G took swim lessons.
He LOVED them. He learned a few new skills like monkey crawling along the walls and jumping in to add to his bubble blowing, kicks and scoops.

We have laughed with friends.
I just adore watching G develop friendships. He loves Jamison! He will often tell me "Mommy, JJ funny!". They sure so share a lot of laughs.

We have celebrate.
We had a crazy busy 4th of July weekend that was highlighted by G's first parade. He loved the fire trucks, horses and waving his American flag.

Nolan enjoyed the parade too.

It's hard for me to believe this was our little patriot last year.

We have discovered a new love. After a visit to the fire station, G has not stopped talking about firemen and fire trucks.

We've got some new shades.

We've been singing and dancing too. G loves to sing. And sing. And sing. The same songs over and over.
After the 5th or 20th rendition I usually suggest a different song and then we sing that one over and ove again. My favorites are the ones with hand motions and how could you not love his Justin Beiber.

We've experienced Play-Dough. It sure does smell funny.

We've read some books. G joined the library's summer reading program and after having 24 books read to him he got a bucket of loot! He was really excited, especially about "dinosaur bird" tattoo. We finished 24 books in one week and that's not counting the massive number of times we read his favorites on repeat.

We started a family band.

We've been cooking and making lots of cookies. This recipe has us hooked.

We visit the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History. G got to see dinosaurs, play in a pretend doctor's office and grocery store and even watch a movie in the planetarium.

Sweet Nolan has been along for the ride. Joining us on all our adventures and blessing us with sweet smiles and coos along the way!

Two, 2, Too

2011-06-30T20:21:00.006-05:00

Well our little Smush is two months old! He is still a total Jackpot baby and as you have read here before we just adore every little thing about him.

Some of the fun things he has been doing this month are giving us easy smiles. Just talking to him brings on sweet coos and grins. My favorite is when he smiles at G. The first time I thought my heart was going to stop right then and there. But thankfully it kept ticking and I have now witnessed it dozens of times.

He is still a big, big boy! Weighing in at 13 pounds 13 ounces and already 24 1/4 inches long. That is in between the 90th and 100th percentile in both areas. The only down side is that he is so much bigger than G was so the hand-me-down situation isn't working very well. The seasons just aren't right. I just can't bring myself to put him in fleece PJ's or long sleeves and pants. He is already fitting comfortably in 9 month onesies!

We get our tummy time in when we can. Usually G and I are cheering him on with fun chants like "GO, Nolan, Go" or G's favorite "Nolan Strong".

Hi Buddy, yes I see you have your momma's chin. It looks cute on you!

He has also gotten his pout worked out. I caught the very beginning of it in this shot. So sweet and pitiful!

Nolan is 2 months and in just 2 weeks my little G will be 2 years old. It all happens too fast! Time please slow down. I want to drink in every moment with these two. They bring me joy that is beyond what I could have ever expected. These two are just too much!

More on that {Father's Day}

2011-06-27T06:54:00.007-05:00

After celebrating only two Father's Day's it has already become one of my favorite celebrations of the year. There is hardly a thing in the world that is more tender to my heart than seeing the man I love with the babies we share. As G grows so does his obviously adoration of his Daddy. And as he grows the number of things that the two of them can share in grows as well.

This past Father's Day, Matt wanted to start the morning at the driving range trying out his new driver. So after breakfast we all loaded up and headed out with a few extra plastic clubs in the bag.

I am not sure how Matt envisioned the trip going, but he hardly got to hit a ball. Most of the morning looked like this...

The sweet thing is, whether he envisioned it or not, I don't think he would have had it any other way. G was in heaven getting to hit the ball a few feet and learning to use the tee. He would come back and sit with Nolan and I and count as Daddy hit five balls and then it was "my turn" again.

I think it was a perfect picture of Father's Day. The selflessness that being a Father brings and the joy that being selfless miraculously gives you in return.

See before kids I imagine there were a million things that Matt never imagined that he could do, would want to do or would even love doing
Like sharing his last bite of pudding or even his cherished lick of the lid,
Singing the ABC's softly on repeat to calm a fussy baby,
Reading the same book 5 times (or more) in a row because that sweet "again daddy" is just so irresistible,
kissing boo-boo's,
wiping snot,
making diaper changes a count down game to distract a squirmy toddler,
sitting in the little chairs at the library watching a production of the Tortoise and the Hare,

driving to the call of every bus, plane, horse, or cow, buying knee pads just so he could give G horsey rides on the wood floors
or spending your morning at the driving range like this...

Our boys are so blessed to call him Daddy and the sweet thing is I know at such young ages they already feel it.

Matt, you are the boy's hero and my rock and we love you always!

See last Father's Day here.

Everything

2011-06-23T15:53:00.003-05:00

I adore everything about him. Everything! Really, every single thing.

How could I not?

I especially adore his sweet baby smell and the way my lips have a magnetic attraction to his cheek. It is powerful. I can't pick him up with out my lips immediately finding that sweet spot. You know that one where his skin is perfectly soft and my nose nuzzles right into that smushie spot.

Every bit of him is sweet smushie goodness!

In Celebration

2011-06-18T14:59:00.006-05:00

Sunday, as we celebrate our Father's, I gave much thanks.

Thanks for this man. My Father.

And this man. My Father-In-Law.

And this man. My husband and the Father of our boys.

What an amazing, difficult and unique task it is to be a father.

To my Dad, Spud and Matt,
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for being men that my boys can look up to and learn from.
Thank you for loving them so profoundly.
On Father's Day and every day I am thankful you are a part of our story.
So Much Love to you ALL.

**I noticed while browsing through pictures of the grandfathers and our boys there is not one picture where Pepaw or Papa is looking at the camera. Just another sign of their deep and incredibly endearing love for our boys. Heart Melt!

"Again, Mommy"

2011-06-17T22:31:00.002-05:00

Oh! Those sweet words I hear so often. Especially when it comes to his long list of favorite books to read.

How many times do you think we have read this one?

Ahhh! I was caught video taping! Luckily, he let me pick it up again...

He calls this book "Me!".

Love, Love, Love HIM!

This Week

2011-06-11T21:53:00.005-05:00

I stared while my Smushers napped

and delighted in his new and ever present social smiles.

I laughed as G amused me by trying on everything as a hat,

continued his love of salsa,

and as he got ready while I did.

Cousin's played

and daddy mowed.

And when the week was over, we rested.

Watch Nolan Grow

2011-06-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

Hard to believe that our little Smush is already a month old. It's hard for me to believe that he has been here that long and it is hard for me to believe that we ever lived with out him.

He is still a little Jackpot baby, sleeping and eating great! G is still loving being a big brother and smothering him with kisses everyday.

At one month he is 11 pounds 2 ounces and 23 inches. He is a big boy in the 90-100% for height and weight. This smushy baby is gaining about 2 ounces every day! He just gets smushier and smushier!

For Nolan's year in pictures we are going to watch him grow into (and probably out of) his 12 month onesie!

A few more fun shots for reference

This is BIG!

2011-06-01T14:33:00.007-05:00

I wasn't ready for it to happen. I didn't want it to happen at all. I actually thought about throwing a fit. A full on fit, you know, where I would throw my fists at the ground, scream "No!" over and over again, while my legs spasmed out of control. But, you would be proud, I held it together mostly and just let this happen.

That's right! He's in a Big Boy Bed! Why? Oh! Because after hearing him scream, then running to his room only to find him stuck straddling the crib rail stuck in utter fear we decided this was the better option.

As I should have known, when this guy is ready for something he handles it with ease. I was afraid of sleepless nights and a rough transition. I had nothing to fear. G loves his bed, whether it has a front or not and he has been handling naps and bedtime like a pro. The first time he saw his crib with out the front he was so excited and ran to it to climb in. And after that first nap he was so proud of himsself. It was darling!

Now we are only a week in and things could go horribly downhill, but I am not counting on it.

The next big thing will be getting rid of that night time pacifier. Another thing that will probably be harder for Momma than it is for him.

You Name 'Em

2011-05-31T12:33:00.000-05:00

What a weekend! (Or at least it was when I started writing this 2 weeks ago) We were paid a special visit from Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle Eric. Well, that is what they were called before this weekend anyway. G has now affectionately renamed them Pepaw, Memaw and Unc, Uncle, or Uncle E. I find it really sweet and special that he has come up with his own names for them but I have also found that when it is coming from the sweet lips of G, most people will answer to anything.

The weekend was spent just playing around the house and boy did G play. He has loved having all of the visitors since Nolan was born and he definitely soaked in the family this weekend.

G is still recovering their visit with an almost 3 hour morning nap. Morning Nap, what? Exactly, what I thought when he asked for a nap at 10 am. He is usually an afternoon napper. But between the weekend activities, late bed time and gloomy weather I guess he figured a nap was in order.

We had so much fun and can't wait to see Memaw, Pepaw and Unc again!

Last week...

2011-05-25T14:22:00.004-05:00

It seems like it took forever but last week the Smush finally lost that oogey little umbilical cord stump. And you know what that means! He got to enjoy a real bath! The kind where a good portion of your body is fully submerged in warm soothing water. No more one body part at a time, freezing and uncomfortable sponge baths for this guy. Those are a thing of the past.

One of the only new things Smush has is his sweet little fishy wash cloth. It keeps him perfectly warm and looking incredibly cute. Or at least his completely unbiased mother thinks so!

The bath and several since then have been a hit! It's amazing how much more enjoyable it is when you can actually get in the water.

Last week was also my birthday. My 30th Birthday. I thought 30 might make more of an impact, but instead it felt mostly like a normal day. It felt normal because the boys still pooped. I was hoping for a poop free day, but alas there were still diapers to be changed. It was not normal in the fact that friends called and text all day long, a few even brought flowers, and Matt spoiled me all day long. I guess I thought I would spend the day reflecting and get really introspective about time and what not, but it just didn't happen. I woke up with the same stray gray hairs and wrinkles I had when I was 29 and no deep, meaningful thoughts about turning 30.

Maybe that will happen at the 40th birthday?

What I did do was love on my babies, make myself Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Sheet Cake (which you should go do now), enjoyed a sushi dinner date with my husband and went to bed feeling full. Full of love and of an everyday not so glamorous but exactly what I have always wanted and couldn't ask for one thing more life. Mostly due to the love and belonging I feel with these three boys!

Okay, I did it. I got a little mushy. It happens! Speaking of mushy, G actually told me "Night, Night mommy. Love you" as I laid him in bed that night. He has said all of these things before but saying them all in conjunction, right when I was laying him down, my heart melt! Such a sweet gift!

Nolan on the other hand was quite shocked when he heard I was 30! Sweet boy told me I didn't look a day over 25.

Love these boys!
Side Note: Start wiping G's face better. He has food on his cheeks and chin in every shot!

Snippets

2011-05-20T08:55:00.001-05:00

Recently I have caught G being G with ALL that personality! I have been working on using my stealth like camera operating capabilities, so that he doesn't immediately stop the funny thing that he was doing.

Without further ado here are two of my favorite snippets of G just being silly G.

Where is Thumbkin?

No idea where he got this from, but it was and still is hilarious to him when he rubs his ear.

Sweet G you make my heart smile.

My Boys

2011-05-18T08:52:00.000-05:00

Smush-a-Lump

2011-05-16T20:47:00.002-05:00

That's our Nolan. He is a total smush-a-lump. Yes, I know I made up that term, but it fits him perfectly. He is just a precious lump of sweet baby smushy cuteness. Makes total sense to me.

So he is already affectionately called Smush-a-lump, Smushie, the Smush and Smushers. Daddy also calls him The Express. This one makes sense if you know anything about Nolan Ryan. And possibly his delivery, at least in comparison to G's.
After spending two weeks with you Smush, here are a few things we know about you...

You are a total Jackpot baby (so far)! Meaning you sleep all the time, day and night, nurse well and are easy to please.

You were born healthy and just keep growing! You were back to your birth weight in just 5 days and have already gained another pound and grown another inch since then.

You don't particularly like a pacifier, but when you find your thumb you sure do like it.

You hiccup. You hiccuped daily during your last trimester, if not multiple times a day and you continue to hiccup almost daily now.

Your brother adores you! He asks dozens of times a day to hold you and most of the time I have to tell him that you are sleeping. He loves to kiss your head, rock your cradle, give you raspberries on your belly, and pat your back. If you cry he runs to see if you are ok and will even try to calm you with a sweet shhhhh or "ok Nolan". He even wakes up asking about you in the morning.

After G goes to bed, you don't leave my side. Since I am juggling the two of you during the day, evenings are our time to cuddle. I usually feel like I should be cleaning, but right now nothing could pry you from me from 8 pm to whenever I go to bed. You are even sleeping on my chest as I type.

It's amazing how you have changed everything in an instant, yet feel like you were here all along. We love you sweet boy and are so excited to watch you grow! Just do it slowly and stay smushy for a while, please!

It's a Boy!

2011-05-09T15:24:00.005-05:00

Thursday, April 28th we welcomed our son, Nolan James, into the world! He was a day late according to his estimated due date but his arrival was a sweet testimony to the Lord's perfect timing.
Leading up to his birth I had become a ball of anxiety. This pregnancy was so different from G's and I was having a hard time putting all of the signs of labor into place with the fact that I wasn't actually going into labor. After having G a week and a half early, watching my due date come and go was something I didn't think I would see happen. But it did. And the anxiety grew.
We had a doctor's appointment scheduled for Thursday morning and would have to decide if and when the right time to induce might be. For me this just meant more anxiety. Early Thursday morning I was lying in bed, holding on to my sleeping hubby and praying. It was all I knew to do. I felt incapable of making a decision, the anxiety was rising and my discomfort was growing, so I prayed. And prayed. And in the middle of all that praying my body was growing increasing more uncomfortable in the position I was in. When I went to roll over my water broke.
What sweet, sweet timing, right?!
It was about 4:50 am, so I woke Matt, made the phone calls to get G taken care of and to the hospital we went.
That afternoon we welcomed another sweet baby boy to our family.

Nolan James
April 28th
8 pounds, 8 ounces
21 inches

Nolan,
With your arrival we have fallen head over heels again. You have already taught us that our capacity to love is greater that we could have imagined. When I hold you and your brother I know the meaning of my cup runneth over. We are so happy that you are here.
Momma

Busy Bunny: Part Two

2011-05-03T15:15:00.003-05:00

The Easter festivities continued on to Easter Sunday at Lola's house. We started the morning with a big breakfast and soaking in the hot tub. Mommy's 40 week pregnant body needed the relief. And since I had done water aerobics the day I went into labor with G I figured a little exercise in the hot tub couldn't hurt, right?
Well we ended up doing lots more playing with the water toys from G's Easter basket than water aerobics and it turns out playing with water toys doesn't induce labor like water aerobics might have?

My favorite part of the morning was watching G discover the bugs. These beetley June bugs were everywhere and G was loving them. Such a boy!

The rest of the afternoon was spent with extended family and the most delicious hamburgers (thanks babe!). G hunt, rehunt, rehunt and rehunt his Easter eggs crying out an enthusiastic "Alright!" each time he found one. His personality is a constant thrill for this smitten momma!

Busy Bunny: Part 1

2011-04-27T21:47:00.008-05:00

Our Easter weekend was busy and fun filled. Saturday we went to church and afterwards G got to participate in his very first egg hunt.

The company, the weather, our sweet boy in his bow tie, it was all perfection! The whole Coker family is so dear to me and I always love spending time at their family and friends who are like family events. They have one of those houses that feels like home to everyone. They have created this sense of belonging that is hard to find the right words for, it just exists around them. We were thrilled that this year we were going to be able to make their Annual Egg Hunt.

After visiting and eating way to much yummy food it was time to hunt. G caught on quickly to the idea of finding eggs and filling up his Easter basket. He even developed a little victory cheer of "Alright!" with a fist pump each time he found one. And that was all before he realized that there was candy and money in the eggs!

The kicker to the Coker Egg Hunt is that after the kiddos are done hunting the adults make their way onto the egg hunt stage. Only this time the stakes are much higher. Waiting in the lucky golden and silver eggs is some cold hard cash. It was hilarious seeing the adults race into the yard with much more excitement than even the kids had shown.

Look at these people! They are hungry for that golden egg!

G preferred hanging with Mr. Coker during the craziness. He was perfecting his magic "Where Did the Egg Go?" trick.

Isn't that the sweetest? He is going to be such a wonderful Grandpa, whenever that time comes! As a parent it is such a sweet feeling to see someone else genuinely enjoying your child. G is such a light to me, but when he provides that for someone else, gosh, melt my heart. This picture, their eyes, their smiles it just screams light to me!

What a blessing it is to have friends that are like family in our lives, to share traditions with, to love on us, to help us grow and what better to time to celebrate this than Easter.

Sunday's Events are coming up next!

Oh Yes We Did

2011-04-22T21:22:00.005-05:00

A few things can make a girl a little loopy. And a more than a few of those things have been happening around here lately.
The main issues 1. Our AC has been out since Tuesday. 2. Labor signs all over the place yet no labor.
I am trying to stay sane people!

But might have fallen off my rocker tonight when we did this...

I found the golden egg. Now we are just waiting for it to hatch!

Credits
Painting by Dad and G

Did I Mention?

2011-04-18T14:24:00.007-05:00

Seems crazy that I am just now mentioning here that we are adding a fig to our family. Yep, that's right, another baby and soon! Soon, like maybe, today?
Well, probably not today but most likely sometime within the next week.
This pregnancy has flown by, from keeping up with G, holidays, then enjoying the arrival of three other new babies in our close friends lives it seems crazy that D day is almost here. Since I am horrible about keeping up the week to week stuff here is a pregnancy summary.

Gender
We don't know and won't know until our little one makes his/her grand arrival. Based on a home gender test and the guesses of most friends it's another sweet baby boy. Either way we will be thrilled!

Movement
This babe seems to like the same places that his/her older brother did. Always sticking a back or bottom out on the right side of the bump. This little fig does hiccup quite a bit. I only felt G hiccup once or twice. This babe often hiccups twice a day.

Craving
This is hard. I crave food pregnant or not. It is hard to tell which are because of the pregnancy and which are just because I would like queso with every meal. I have notices a strong desire for Dr. Pepper in the last few weeks. I like Dr. Pepper but have never had a craving for one or rarely ever drank one in my life before. No worries I keep the caffeine to a minimum. Only a few sodas a week.
I have also noticed a desire for fried chicken, strips or the whole chicken. Yummy! Maybe one more trip to Babe's before the baby arrives?
I also seem to crave foods of my childhood when I am pregnant. Sugary cereal, pop tarts, oreos. Things that I allowed myself back then, or I guess my mom allowed, every once and a while at least. Foods that I allow myself to buy once a year now.

Aversions
This is hard too. I like most food and it has stayed pretty much the same. In the beginning I was definitely more nauseous than I was with G and the smell of most any food turned me off. Luckily, I was cured of that around week 14.

What I Miss
My body. Following after G has gotten harder and harder. It seems as soon as I sit on the ground to play he wants me to move to another room to play with something else. It's hard to resist his sweet request "c'mon mommy". He has learned that it takes mommy a minute to get back up. And as anyone who has been pregnant knows, it just gets uncomfortable at a point. The discomfort makes suggling hard. I miss snuggling with my boys!

Maternity Clothes
Oh My! This might just be the hardest part this time around. Nothing Fits. All the clothes I wore with G are just too small. I am carrying the baby lower which made all my pants seriously snug. By week 30 I was wearing them out and ripping them off to be replaced by seriously over sized yoga pants as soon as I got home. I am sure Matt will enjoy me dressing like a normal person soon!

Sleep
Hallelujah! I have been able to sleep during this pregnancy. Of course, there are sometimes four or five trips to the bathroom during the middle of the night but I think I can pee in my sleep at this point. TMI?

Symptoms
Other than having every possible sign of labor for the past few weeks this pregnancy seems to have been relatively symptom free. A little nausea in the beginning, some ligament/ groin pain in the end, and rounds and rounds of braxton hicks for the past two months.

Best Moments
The best moments of this pregnancy have been with G. He often talks to the baby, cuddles up with the bump, and has given many a kisses to this little one. I can't wait to see how he loves his little fig. I am prepared for jealousy and hard times but he is such a caring boy and I think he is going to love being a big brother!

All the pictures are by Raspberry Rain Images. Check them out! These gals are fabulous to work with and captured some sweet moments of this quickly growing family of three.

I heart Pinwheels

2011-04-11T20:45:00.004-05:00

G has a deep love for pinwheels. I can't really blame him. They really are fun when the wind or a cute little toddler gets them going. Usually that cute little toddler adds a sweet sound effect of "Wheeee!" with the spin.

I imagine that is exactly what the pinwheel is thinking too. Or maybe "Get me off this ride. I'm gonna puke!". Either way "Whee!" is probably the better choice.

Well, thanks to Grandma Julie we have a garden of pinwheels to admire and love in our backyard. Recently, G and I took one of those little pinwheels on a hike up to the top of the Mound to see how the pinwheel would work up there. Maybe his first science experiment, if you will?

See the look of determination?

It needed a little help. But it turns out pinwheels are as much fun on the Mound as they are in the backyard! Our experiment was a success!

As a treat for all of that hard work and hiking we had Sonic drinks waiting for us at the bottom!

Anyone know how long I can get away with a water from Sonic as a treat?
I will take it for now, because something about the straw and then getting to munch on the fabulous Sonic ice makes this little boy a happy camper!

Quirks

2011-04-03T08:00:00.001-05:00

I am absolutely loving so many things about our little man at this age, especially his silly quirks and the funny joking things he loves to do these days.
I want to capture all of them along with his sweet voice on video, but if I don't have someone else distracting him all he wants to do is look at the video.

Exhibit A.
Hiding things behind his back

He will usually do this 10 or 15 times in a row, but as soon as he figured out I was videoing it was over! Boo!

The only other quirk I have been able to capture is his new funny dancing along with a silly song.
Watch in the middle for his Itsy Bitsy (spider that is) request and try not to notice the scattered laundry and box that needs to go to the attic. My house is usually spotless. Ha! Just typing that made me laugh out loud.

One more thing... I think he shares this quirk with most toddlers, but he LOVES to dip. If food comes with dip, he is ALL in. I sent this picture to Matt at lunch today and said yes in fact, G is still in his PJ's at lunch and dipping his whole sandwich into his yogurt.

Matt's response was "I want to be him when I grow up". I loved that response for so many reasons. Now, I finally know what I want to be when I grow up too!

More Than Words

2011-04-01T14:05:00.001-05:00

Let me start by saying I am well aware that I am writing this as a completely biased, over the moon in love with her toddler mom. Now that it's out of the way...

In the past 20 months, I have been blown away just watching my little man learn. From the first reflexes and turning to hear our voices until now it has me baffled at how that amazing brain works and puts things together so quickly. And sometimes so uniquely!

Most recently, it has been the words. Seriously, this kiddo learns a new one(usually more than one) every day. And then he puts them together and communicates with us. It's amazing! How huge is that, to be able to communicate your wants and needs. And to top it off he is constantly doing a bunch of other ridiculous and funny things with words!

I am not sure of why, but I know that I was not expecting him to communicate so well at this age. I should have known since I was a talker from early on that I would get one too, but I just wasn't expecting it. And then overnight he went from mama and dada to well over 100 words. (Yes, I counted and the list is in his baby book now)

The funny part is that as he builds his vocabulary he is also building his jabber. He makes more noises now and talks more gibberish than before too. It is like he is trying to build sentences, but only knows a few of the words so babble and some great expressions make up the rest.

A few of Mommy's favorites.

I love you - A given right? If you tell him I love you he will often respond with I love you or just say too! Melt my heart!

Buggy - We have called him Bug, bugs, bugger, and buggy from early on and he has recently picked up on it saying buggy, usually in a voice like he is calling out to himself from another room. Like he is saying "Where are you?"

Names - He has caught on to so many familiar names now, both family members and friends. Matt and I have been jokingly teaching him our real names, not mommy and daddy, and sometimes he even uses them! Funny now but I really hope it doesn't stick!

I do - He can say yes, but his usually response when asked a question and the answer is yes is either "I do" or "Peeees". No ranks right up there with mommy and daddy in words used with the highest frequency. The joy of toddlers!

I don't really have any pictures that actually relate to this topic, so here are a few of my random recent favorites.

Playing on the computers at the library

One of his newest quirks - requesting a hat or shoes first thing in the morning

Anyone have the 90's Hit - More Than Words, by Extreme running through your head during this post? Sorry!

New Kid on the Scene

2011-03-21T14:05:00.003-05:00

You have heard of them before, the upcoming hot guys, AKA Joe Cool. Well I am here to introduce you to a new one...

Watch out ladies. He is coming to playground near you!

Sick and Hard

2011-03-16T20:00:00.001-05:00

So the past 5 days have been interesting around here. The two best descriptors - sick and hard.

We came home from celebrating a great friends 30th birthday Friday night to our sweet boy with a stomach bug and 102 degree temp. Into Saturday morning, we snuggled, ate ice chips, accumulated amounts of laundry our household has never seen before and watched a Disney movie at 5 am. It was a long night. Even longer for the sick babe.

I know he was horribly sick and it's not the best time to start taking pictures. I just couldn't help myself. Some moments are too tender to pass up. Seriously? Look at these two! These are the only two I took - Promise!

The rest of the weekend was spent in recovery. G slowly regained his appetite and spent a lot of time being cuddled or asleep.
Then Monday morning hit. I am still not sure what happened or if this is just how the terrible two's start but whatever it was, we are in it - full throttle. Since then our little boy just hasn't been the same. Our days are filled with hitting, tantrums and I swear I have now seen projectile tears. If you have spent time with G, you know this is NOT anywhere near his normal temperament.
Yes, he is 20 months old and has had his fair share of breakdowns, limp noodle moments and fits of rage. But they are rare. This week has been FULL of them, day in and out, top to bottom.
I've cried, he's cried! This would be the hard part I was speaking of. I am hoping that this passes soon, but in the meantime we are getting down a solid discipline strategy and rolling with the punches (sometime literally).

As of post time, I have to say today has been MUCH better. Only a few fits, a long play at the park, and a visit from one of G's favorite gals, Bentley. Now I am off to knock on all the wood I can find and cross every thread, finger, limb in the house, in hopes that I didn't jinx it!

Snapshots

2011-03-09T14:24:00.007-06:00

These pictures are all recently taken from my phone. I love that I have this camera that is almost always available. Currently, my phone is home to 1,265 pictures and all but one is G. Honestly, it's more like ten, but I will probably delete those tonight. No wonder he already says cheese and sports a big fake grin!

These are some of my favorites.

You sure are up early! Now come to Mommy and Daddy's room for cartoons and snuggles.

My little photog, just like Mommy! He is really into imitating what ever it is that Matt or I do these days. Keeps us on our best behavior :)

Naptime is over. Wake Up!

Bubbles! This has become an regular activity everyday after nap.

New Chair = New Box = Loads of Fun!

Time to wind down. Why don't you let Daddy read you a book?

Renaissance Man

2011-02-26T09:00:00.000-06:00

In one day this boy goes from

Piano Man

To Golf Prodigy

All in true toddler fashion with a Snotty Nose

A true renaissance man in the making!

Sharing Life

2011-02-24T09:00:00.001-06:00

This is Kristin.
She is the best when it comes to many things, but friendship being at the top of that list.
She is an inspiration. Bringing out the best in those around her.
She is an ear. A soft place to land when it feels all else has failed.
She is a challenge. Never letting you settle.
She is a caretaker. Looking out for others (especially me) and never expecting the gesture to be returned.
She is genuine. Just listen to her laugh and you'll know what I mean.
A few weeks ago she was waiting...
Now, she is a mother and it suits her like she was never meant to be anything else.

This is Asher. Her son. What a gift they have in each other.

I am blessed. I have spent 12 years as her friend. We have shared apartments, clothes, laughs, drinks, meals, countless memories and our lives. For the past year and a half, she has shared in G's life too. Not just as a by-stander or on-looker. She has truly loved him well. And you can tell by the way her loves her.

Over the last 9 months I have been able to share in her pregnancy. Now, I get to love her and Asher through the long nights, hard choices, and sweet firsts. Just like she has done for me. I get to share in his life and even though he is only a few weeks old it has already brought tremendous joy.

Although this post is for Kristin, I would leave a terrible gap if I didn't mention her amazing husband. Austin has been a large and wonderful part of mine and my family's lives since they began dating almost 10 years ago. Truthfully, seeing him become a father and the subtle changes and softness it has created in him is equally beautiful to me. I am so proud of you both.

The past few weeks have brought at times sweet, hot, unexpected tears. The kind of tears only overwhelming joy can bring. The kind of tears that I am blessed to experience because I share life with you. And what a blessing it is!

So Much Love Now and Always to you, Kristin, Austin and Asher!

For more pictures of this sweet boy and her pregnancy progression visit It's A Jones

Be Mine

2011-02-22T12:50:00.007-06:00

This might have been my favorite Valentine's Day yet! G and I spent the day together enjoying the spoils of 2.14 all day long.

To start...
Strawberry crepes, G's first taste of strawberry milk and two new books! We opened our Valentine's Day cards and some special treats sent from Grandma and Grandpa.

Then...
We ran our normal Monday errands but we shared Candy Hearts and played with our Valentine's Day balloon all along the way.
It was a gorgeous day so we even enjoyed a patio lunch date, just the two of us!

After Nap...
Daddy came home early and we gave him his present. A new Elmo shirt!

Then...
We headed out for dinner at the Purple Cow and to see the Pioneer Woman at her book signing!

Our spot in line ended up being way too far back to actually wait and meet her. Unless we wanted to reschedule G's bedtime for 11 pm! It was great fun just being with my boys. G certainly makes holidays much more fun, especially the cheesy ones that we never really celebrate before anyway!

Ham for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

2011-02-08T14:54:00.004-06:00

This kid is a Ham! But especially during meal times he loves to test out his new faces. It's very Zoolanderish, although he has never seen the movie and doesn't have any notion of what a male model is. Lately, he is all about the eyebrows and squinty eyes. I think he learned it from his friend B.

I love having my little Ham at every meal!

G version 1.5

2011-02-05T14:20:00.000-06:00

He's one and a half. Seriously? Where does it go? These last few months seem to have brought on a wealth of change. But I guess I could say that about every month, week, day since birth at this point. G, here is just a bit of what you are up to...

These days you are running, throwing, and climbing the day away. You find new ways to climb on things and will move objects to make steps. Very clever sweet G, but you scare your momma! You have an always growing collection of balls and have a solid overhand throw down pat. We gets lots of comments on what an arm you have.

Your vocabulary is growing exponentially! A few of your words: Mom, Da, Ball, Bubble, Tiger, Turtle, Go, Back Dog, Ice, Thank You, No, Cheers, Cheese, Nonna, Papa, Me, Shoes, Hi, Hello, Eyes, Mouth, Bye, Yes, All Done and so many more. It seems like at least once a day your surprise us with a new word.

You still LOVE animals!
You will sit for long periods of time just identifying them, having mommy or daddy identify them, and making all of the animal noises/motions you know. You love to: Bark, Moo, Baa, Swing your trunk, hide in your turtle shell, stretch you neck like a girafee, roar, oink, squeek like a mouse, make claws like a crab, Meow, fishy faces, hiss like a snake, fly like a bird and hoot like an owl.

A little distracted but here are a few animal favorites

Putting it together!
You love to play with your puzzles and legos. Taking them apart and putting them back together again and again. Mommy is so impressed with how quickly you picked up on how to do puzzles. Of course, you love them because the several we have are all animals.

Reading.
You still LOVE to read. You will bring me book after book, after book. We have your books in almost every room of the house. Sometimes we even have to stop in the middle of doing dishes or laundry just to read a book. I am a sucker! How could I say no to a book, even if it is in the middle of the kitchen floor? I can already tell you are going to be like your mom and want 10 bedtime stories a night. Right now, daddy and I read you one or two, sometime three but you always ask for another. Your favorites are Quick as a Cricket, Anything by Sandra Boynton, and your Zoo-ology book. You also really enjoy visit the library to check out new books and listen to Mother Goose time.

The Arts.
You love to break out the finger paints, crayons, or colored pencils and create a masterpiece. When it comes to fingerpaints the masterpiece is usually your painted up body. But it is so fun watching you explore that all the mess is definitely worth it.

The ugly. To be completely honest the past month has brought out a bit of the ugly in you. We have started with small tantrums and hitting when you don't get your way. You have experienced your first (and many since) timeouts. It broke our hearts to do it, but we couldn't resist laughing at the same time. That cute little diapered booty sticking out from the corner was irresistable. I know this is all normal for your age and thus is one of the major challenges of parenting - discipline.

G, we are so enamoured with watching you grow and you fill our house with so much laughter. On top of all of these things you are gentle and sweet, still loving to cuddle and giving drive by kisses to your momma when you play. You are funny and already know it. You love to make people laugh and have already perfected your fake cheeseball smile. You have rhythym in your heart and the slightest beat can make your little diaper booty sway. Watching you change and grow has been the greatest joy of my life. I can't wait to see what tomorrow holds.

A 70 year old Spud?

2011-01-31T14:14:00.010-06:00

First, let me say this year has been busy. I mean bizzzz-Eeee! I have gotten so far behind I don't even know where to start. This includes taking pictures of my little man. So I am just skipping over a few things like the fact that he is now 1 and a half and talking like crazy and jumping to what I do have pictures of. On to the post...

Turning 70!
What an occasion to celebrate. Especially when it is someone as special Spud or Papa to G. I don't know if I have said it here before, but I seriously hit the in-law jackpot. They are beautiful people, who thankfully taught my husband how to be an incredible man, husband and father. I am beyond thankful for them and the cherished role they play in our and our little man's life.

More about Spud...
Spud is a loved guy. Not just by his family, but by his enormous group of friends, business community and seemingly everyone he comes into contact with. If you have met him this is no surprise. He is easy to love for one simple reason... he loves. He truly loves people. Spud is the kind of man who keeps his word and will ALWAYS be there if you need him. His character bears the meaning of wearing your heart on your sleeve. If he loves you, you know it. And with loving comes giving. He gives tirelessly to causes he feels worthy and passionate about, including our little family.

In order to celebrate...
It had to be big right? A man as loved as Spud has to have a grand 70th. So Jeanie, his wife, got to work. Along with the wife of a dear friend who Spud shares a close birthday with, she planned an enormous party. She sneakily got family and friends in town from as far as Seattle and Boston and schemed a great surprise. He showed up at one of his favorite restaurants thinking they were having a small dinner to celebrate and the entire restaurant was shut down, on a Saturday night, and filled with over 150 friends and family. He saw his brothers and sisters and the tears came quick. Mine were quick to follow and a quick glance around showed I wasn't alone. Then we celebrate. Late into the night and early the next morning there was drinking, eating, roasting and toasting, dancing and a few more joyful tears.

To continue celebrating...
All of the Newton's got together on Sunday to just enjoy each other in the small time we had since most of the out-of-towners were leaving on Monday morning. It is precious to see G play with all of his gorgeous girly cousins. He LOVES them. They follow him around like a herd, then rush back to report what funny non-sense he is babbling or antic he pulled. It is also precious to see family together in such great numbers. Although, we were missing a few, having this group together was precious time that couldn't be better spent.

Happy 70th Papa! We love you!

Skipping Rocks

2011-01-19T14:57:00.006-06:00

The very first thing that we did this year, seriously bright and early January 1st, was head to my dad's house down in the Texas Hill Country. G started off the trip in grand fashion with a mild case of road sickness, followed by a lightning fast clean up in a gas station parking lot in the 30 degree morning weather. Yikes, but we hopped back on the road and hoped for the best.

The visit was quick and low key but G had a great time playing with his Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Eric and all of the trucks they gave him for Christmas. Eric even taught him how to ride on one of the bigger Tonka trucks.

Turns out I was horrible at taking pictures, but managed to capture some of G at the lake. As we do each and every visit, we headed down to visit the lake which has been low for a decade it seems.

Last time G enjoyed the trip from his Baby Katan, but this time he got to experience the walk, rocks, sticks, water and all. G really enjoyed Eric teaching him to skip or as G does it throw rocks into the water.

The trickiest part was keeping him from trying to retrieve the rocks that he had thrown. Lake was a little too cold for that buddy, but maybe next time!

The Sweetest Moments

2010-12-30T12:06:00.001-06:00

I saved a few of the sweetest moments from our Christmas adventure for their very own post.

This Christmas we had the treat of having G's greatgrandmother, aka BizNonna, visiting from Boston. She loves watching him run around and he is equally thrilled by her songs and sweet games. At the end of the night on Christmas Day, she was playing a game with G and this little cat. She would stroke the cat while saying something in Italian and then she would make the cat bounce. G thought it was hysterical and would have sat there and watched until BizNonna was blue in the face. Everytime the kityy went flying he was equally surprised and attached by laughter.

The other moment I loved was the day after Christmas. I had been in an extreme organization mode since we got home on Christmas night, so I had left the boys to fend/ relax by themselves while I scurried all around the house. Mid-morning I walked back through the living room to find them fast asleep.

A little over a year ago this would not have been such a shocking site, but since becoming increasing more mobile our little man typically will not fall asleep outside of a crib or car seat. If you try to get him to snuggle or go to sleep while you are still there he wants to play, poke your nose, or climb the bed. So when I saw them there on the couch, I knew how exhausted he must have been. Christmas is tiring sweet G!

Sweet memories in of a busy, busy Christmas!

Christmas in Pictures

2010-12-29T11:13:00.007-06:00

The celebrating started on Christmas Eve with my side of the family gathering at our house to play for the afternoon. We exchanged a few presents, but mostly just played and enjoyed good food and good company.

G loved playing and reading with his Uncle Kyle and was caught red handed asking Grandmommy for more and more reindeer food.

We went to Christmas Eve service at church and since there was no child care G joined us for the service. Although he was seriously tired by the end, he did remarkably well. Only making himself known by saying "Mom, Mom, Mom" during the service. His voice was so precious I couldn't even begin to shush him!

The next morning G opened a few presents from Santa, Mom and Dad.

Then we headed out to Grandmommy Lola's for breakfast and fun with Lola, Kyle and Ashley. I didn't get many pictures because our sweet little bug was too tired to even open a present.

After his nap, we headed over to Nonnie and Papa's for lunch, family fun and more gift exchange.

G loved playing with his new Duplos and racing cars with Addie.

We had a wonderful time squeezing in as much family as possible and even have one more celebration to go this weekend!

Outtakes

2010-12-18T12:49:00.000-06:00

So in trying to get a cute picture of G for the Christmas card I ended up with nothing. Not one single Christmas card worthy picture! But I do find my attempts and the results entertaining. Hopefully you will too.

First Idea - Christmas PJ's, Christmas Tree and a big ole Christmas lollipop

Results - Sticky house and sticky kid too interested in lollipop to smile

On to the Second Idea - Christmas PJ shirt (he had already changed into his pants for the day), coffee cup full of marshmallows to keep him interested

Result - nearly broken coffee mug and mouth full of marshmallow pics

This is when I knew my attempts were over...

One darling moment - G has started hugging his stuffed animals. He also tells me shhh! sometimes when he is holding them. It is so sweet! Although this monkey was in need of a bath following this sticky hug.

Oh Well! Going a different direction with the Christmas card, but at least we got a good laugh at how uncooperative a 1 year old can be.

Santa Part Deux

2010-12-16T11:14:00.006-06:00

This past weekend we got together with my girlfriends from high school and their sweet babies. Well now that I think of it, none of them are really babies anymore. Dang it time! Slow Down already!

I always have a great time with these gals. There is just something about being with people who have known you through it all. Some of us go back further than high school and even at our young age that means I have known them for the majority of my life. Weird to think about...
Luckily, we see this crowd pretty regularly and our kids are the sweetest of friends. It is such a blessing to watch our kids together, even the occasional push or toy snatch.
The big treat of the party was that Santa showed up! He even had a gift for each child and two elves to help him deliver!

We had already established that G was fond of Santa at our last encounter, but Saturday night was special. You see, there is a story within the story. Here is the plot. G fell in love. He fell hard. And yes, she is an elf.

Here is where it all started... She walked in the door.

It might have been that fact that she had candy canes or her stunning good looks but he spent the vast majority of the visit like this...

Only occasionally turning around to see what Santa was doing.

When it was his turn to sit on Santa's lap he did so happily, but when I retrieved him, he asked to go straight back to her.

Really! I am your MOM and you are picking this girl you just met! Ahhh! It starts already!

When she left he even blew her kisses. Sheesh Kid!

After Santa left and the commotion died down all the kiddos played with their new toys and shared their excitement that Santa had come to the house.

While the girls were off playing princesses and lady bugs we put the boys in their Christmas PJ's. Aren't they cute? They played ball and dance to footloose.

Having kids really does make the holidays special. Great friends and family to share it with doesn't hurt either!

Spaghetti Night

2010-12-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

G loves him some spaghetti and doesn't every baby need at least one covered in spaghetti shot?

He is actually signing "more" in this picture even though I had just given him another meatball. As you can tell he is serious about his meatballs.

And when he gets a good bite, now that is something to cheer about!

Kick Off

2010-12-08T15:32:00.000-06:00

Here it is... our kick off to Christmas with a visit to the jolly ole guy!
I went expecting the worst, but G actually liked him and really warmed up to him by the end of the event.

Santa was visiting a local restaurant to raise money for Meals on Wheels and Daddy was volunteering so G got to visit with him several times as he worked the crowd. He was even patting his beard and furry coat by the time we left.

I am not sure what it is but doesn't he look way too old in that last picture. I asked Santa for a life remote for Christmas. I am hoping that I can just pause time, just for a moment. G is getting the hang of this growing thing way too fast!

Up To

2010-12-07T15:15:00.002-06:00

Our little man is up to 16 months now! (Well when I started writing this blog he was. Now he is almost 17 months.)

A few other things he is up to...

14 teeth!

Making animal sounds... horse, elephant, dog, owl, cow and just this morning a cat

Pretending to be a monkey, elephant, frog, fish, turtle, giraffe, dancing machine

Making funny faces... 1, 2, 3... Funny Face! This is the usually result.

Helping around the house

Repeating words all day... shoes, off, door, thank you, good job, catch, touch down

Running, kicking and throwing like a champ!

Having a ball with friends

Talking on the phone and by phone I mean anything, really anything, that he can make into a phone. Some recent examples are a rice cake, calculator, octopus, and baseball game ticket. Love his imagination!

He really is a little sponge these days and although he doesn't say a ton of words he is always talking to us and the amount of things/requests he understands blows us away. He is still an unusually goofy kid and LOVES to make people laugh, like someone else I know. He has also started screaming with laughter when something is really funny, like Daddy trying to juggle. We are totally smitten with his precious, quirky soul!

Our Little Turkey

2010-12-01T20:57:00.005-06:00

We had a great time celebrating Thanksgiving this year with both sides of the family. We turkeyed (or is it turkied) on Thursday and we turkeyed on Friday. Two turkey dinners for us! Wahoo!
But I have nearly zero pictures to show for it... G did enjoy his first Thanksgiving dinner, especially the cranberry sauce. Possibly because it matched his freshly busted lip, ouch!

I love this time of year when we really make the time to pause and think on the things that we are thankful for. I feel extraordinarily blessed to have such a loving and supporting family, both blood and those that came with the vows. Spending the day(s) with them laughing and eating was perfection!

It is so fun to see how much these girls love our little G and equally (if not more) fun to see how much he ADORES them. His face truly lights up the moment he sees them.

Didn't Rachael get lucky? Right as they went in for the cousin kiss G turned to smooch back!

G with Lola - what a happy shot!

I am looking forward to many more relaxing family and friend filled days in December!

Wake-Up Little Guy

2010-12-01T07:22:00.003-06:00

I know I have a lot to catch up on Thanksgiving, but I only have a minute and just wanted to share one thing I absolutely love about my little fig (of course there are thousands more).
He wakes up just like his mom!
That is usually I hear him in his room wiggling or running his foot down the side of his crib. I turn on the video monitor and can see that he is awake, but just relaxing and tossing around. This goes on for 10 to 15 minutes.
Some days he will getup and start waking around the crib, so I go in to get him. When I go into his room I sit in the rocker near his bed and we chat. He points out his animal picture and a ball he would like to play with or a book he wants to read, while I ask him about his dreams and if he rested well. He is in no hurry to actually be removed from his crib. He will actually walk to the other side of his crib if I hold my hands out too early.
But some days like this morning, he goes right back to sleep. Almost like, I thought I was ready, but really I could use another 15 minutes.
On either occassion, as soon as I pick him up he tucks he head into my shoulder for a quick snuggle.
I just love him! I love how I get to see his personality develop in little ways. Since he is way past those sleepy baby picture age I will leave you with a reminder of this time last year...

Cookies

2010-11-17T15:59:00.001-06:00

G and I had the urge to bake this weekend, so we tried this pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe that had been haunting me since the moment I saw it. Although we may be a little early for the chefs hat and apron, I do love having a little kitchen helper. G has become a pro at watching dinner cook in the over, stirring when appropriate and always wanting to be held so he can see what I'm cooking. I think his favorite job is being my taste tester.

What do you think future chef in the making?

**Disclaimer** I realize almost nothing about this cooking experience is sanitary. Eat items from the Newton household at your own risk. It just may have been cooked by a chef in his diaper.

And if you were wondering the cookies are delicious! We made two small substitutions dark chocolate chips in the cookies and almond extract instead of vanilla in the icing. All the Newton's gave them two thumbs up!

With the Fishes

2010-11-09T09:00:00.001-06:00

Last week Daddy spent a few days at home just relaxing and loving on his family. G and I soaked up every minute of having him home with us for four days in a row (including the weekend)! One of the few planned activities on our list was to take G to the Dallas Aquarium.

See G LOVES the piddly little aquarium at his pediatricians office and he also LOVES making fishy faces, so we were sure it would be a hit.
Here he is practicing.

We were right. He did love it! I loved that all of the animals are close enough that he could actually tell that they were there and much of the aquarium looks like a rain forest with waterfalls and birds chirping all around so there was something fun to see every where he looked. The added bonus was that since we went on a cold rainy day during the middle of the week no one was there

Here are a few, ummm ok maybe a lot, of the highlights...

G checking out the ginormous snakes, yikes!

I fell in love with these monkeys. Of course I have already forgotten what kind they are, but they were only 5 inches tall. The sweetest thing is the teensy tiny baby monkey who was crawling all over his momma. I feel ya momma monkey!

Checking out the jaguar

Showing Daddy the shark

I know this picture is terrible, but I just love these little penguins and how one is looking right at G. I think he wants to play ball.

The number of things I love about this picture could fill a whole post. To sum it up I ADORE these faces and the sweet souls they carry!

So endearing how G kept pointing out all of the animals to us.

I am looking forward to the next staycation already!

Halloween was Genius

2010-11-07T21:04:00.005-06:00

Halloween couldn't have been more fun. G's friends came over for a pumpkin shaped sandwich and monster bones picnic and ghost bowling before the big trick-or-treating event. With five kids and all the parents our house was quite chaotic but full of laughs and fun.

G and Colt toured the neighborhood in their wagon and the girls had a blast ringing doorbells and explaining their costumes. They were precious running back from each doorway yelling "Mommy, look what I got!" with their bags wide open.

When we got back to the house they loaded up on candy and G broke out the straw flute to entertain everyone.

I absolutely love watching these little ones grow up together (like their mom's did). Their interactions only get more precious and priceless over time. Oh, look at those faces, I just adore them all!

Our Halloween Genius - Baby Einstein

Patches

2010-11-02T10:24:00.000-05:00

All the beautiful weather we have been enjoying had the pumpkin patches calling our name this year. We visit our local patch twice and made a trip down to the Arboretum to play amongst their pumpkin and gourd houses. G had so much fun on each trip and has developed a love for pumpkins. He found out they make great drums, some of them are hard to pick up, the little ones are fun to play with and even throw. Oops!

Here is a just a sampling of the hundreds of pumpkin patch pics we have collected.

Andrew and G at the pumpkin patch 2009 v. 2010

Last year we spent most of the time propping them, feeding them and just strolling quietly. This year we could hardly get a picture that wasn't on the move. We oh so cleverly stuck them in between hay bails to corral them, if only for a minute. The rest of the time they ran...

Next up... Halloween!

Sharing

2010-11-01T10:23:00.001-05:00

It's a Tradition

2010-10-30T13:58:00.005-05:00

Yup! We get to decorate these bad boys every year!

The process starts weeks before the decorating as the family searches for the correct cinnamon imperials and my grandmother's incredibly vague recipe that we have used all the years before. For example the icing recipe just list ingredients - no measurement. Every year we end up winging it so we have no idea what we did to make a note and remind ourselves next year. It is all part of fun, part of the process. The day before the dough is made and 100 sweet little pumpkins, bats and ghosts are rolled and cut. Seriously, it's a workout. But oh so worth it when you are lying on the couch sick from consuming your weight in candy corn the next day and laughing remembering making candy corn vampire teeth with your grandmommy!

It was G's first year to help decorate and as you can tell from his face he loved eating all the goodies, I mean decorating too!

Fourthversary

2010-10-22T11:51:00.004-05:00

Today marks four years, four glorious trip around the sun for the Newton's. I love that birthday's and anniversary's always make me pause for a minute to appreciate the person or event being celebrated.

Today, in the midst of all the monotony of life (i.e. laundry, dishes and runny noses) I am so thankful for the man I married. I am thankful for the person he was four years ago and the growth and change that the past four years brought.

I am thankful for our unforgettable wedding weekend, the family and friends that joined us,the fantastic wine we shared and the beauty that is California Wine Country.

When I think back to that weekend I feel full. Full of laughter, gratitude, love and hope for a brilliant future.

Happy Fourthversary babe! I am blessed to be doing life with you.

Here's to many, many more!

Cold Feet

2010-10-15T08:40:00.002-05:00

Good Morning World! Just going to get the paper this morning and got cold feet. Brrr!

More Park

2010-10-10T20:09:00.000-05:00

G wants more park! More Park! More Park! He chants it! He demands it!

Okay, he is only one and thankfully doesn't demand anything quite yet. But this weather we have been enjoying demands that we be outside to soak it up and G seems pretty happy about that. So back to the park...

Our little toddler really can not get enough of the outdoors these days. Anytime a door opens he sees it as a chance to escape to his favorite place... Outside. He loves it all - drive-way, backyard, and park play. Unluckily, when it is time to go inside the fit begins. A serious fit, legs and arms flailing, a big I don't want to go inside cry and all. It's ugly! Then he sees a ball inside or I get him a snack and he is over it.

These pictures are all from last Sunday. We chalked up the driveway, took a wagon ride to the park and finished it off with a game of hoops and frozen yogurt.

I love the way he always holds on to the sides of the wagon and looks all around!

Watching the big kids play takes real concentration and yes holding your tongue out helps

His first dunk!

Even helped daddy pull the car back into the driveway

For our little family this is as good as it gets!

He Made the Cut

2010-10-06T09:20:00.000-05:00

We finally did it...

After much discussion and baby hair debate in the Newton household our little man finally got his first little trim. We went to the children's hair salon Hair Diddle Diddle and Janet did the quick work of trimming him up.

I miss the messiness and innocence of a baby with hair the exact way it nature intended it to grow, but he does look like a handsome little man now.

As you can see from the pictures G was a little unsure, but in the end no tears were shed (me included).

Fall in the Mound

2010-09-27T20:45:00.007-05:00

Fall is here according to the calendar and it actually feels just like fall here in the Mound. We are enjoying the time to play outside with no fear of triple digit temps.

Today G and I ventured out to the park after lunch. That's right people, I said after lunch, not 7:30 in the morning. Since G is walking we aren't limited to just the swings and a few trips down the slide with mom or dad anymore. Although, he does still enjoy a good swing.

He actually goes down the slide by himself. What a big boy!

It seems G, along with every child, has the innate desire to slide down then immediately climb back up.

He wasn't a huge fan of walking on the uneven mulch. After a few steps he kept saying up.

The only bad thing about an afternoon at the park -Unfortunate Slide Static

The shadow of his hair cracks me up! Love this sweet boy and his crazy baby hair!

Shoes in the Dryer

2010-09-14T10:37:00.004-05:00

Our little G is all over the place these days practicing his walking skills. This toddler in the house has create quite a few funny finds including shoes in the dryer. We have also found parmesean cheese in the TV stand, a snack bowl on the book shelf and bouncy balls in the sock drawer.

We are absolutely loving this stage and the constant entertainment that he brings. Such an adventure!

From Stepping

2010-09-03T15:05:00.006-05:00

to WALKING!
Yup! It's true. My baby walks! G, yes, our sweet G, he walks almost everywhere he goes. See...

Told Ya! Took him 13 1/2 months, but he figured it out. He's pretty darn good at it too. He can even stop to pick up a toy, walk and drink at the same time, and can change directions on a dime.

He can also get into things. Although, this is nothing new.

I figured if he was going to play with them he ought to know how to use them.

He might also need a hair cut, but that is still up for debate.

Does a Body Good

2010-08-31T09:51:00.005-05:00

Milk.
G loves Milk.
He even loves to play with the empty carton.

As much as he loves milk sometimes he is just in the mood for a beer.

One of them is doing that cute little body a lot of good.

Grandmommy

2010-08-25T11:10:00.005-05:00

G and I absolutely adore visiting my grandmother, know as Grandmommy to her grand kids and even the great grand kids. She most assuredly reciprocates our love for visits.

About a month ago Grandmommy moved and G has loved visiting her new place. He always finds himself the center of attention and has made lots of new friends. On our last visit we sat out in the courtyard and G was up to his usual antics.

Drive by kisses! One of my favorite parts of being with him all day is when he comes by while playing and leans in for a big kiss. Such a sweet boy! But this time Grandmommy was the recipient and I think she was pleased.

And then he was on to more peeking. Up and down, up and down, each time more pleased than the next.

There are few things that bring me greater joy than watching the pure delight on Grandmommy's face when she is with him.

Just one of the many gifts of parenthood!

And on a side note - Isn't my Grandmommy gorgeous? Here's to hoping we all age that well!

Short but Sweet

2010-08-21T20:21:00.008-05:00

Grandpa, Grandma and Uncle E came in town last weekend for a short but oh so sweet visit. We spent most of our day together playing in the backyard with the new toys they brought for him.

While they were here..

G learned Grandpa's will do silly things to make their grandbaby smile.

He learned how to play with the boys... or maybe get left behind

He tried to teach Grandma that he is always on the move.

And showed grandpa how to sort shapes.

He even taught Uncle E that Scout is good for a snuggle.

G especially enjoyed the constant playmates and getting Grandma kisses. He keeps telling me that he hopes they come back soon!

Peekin'

2010-08-13T22:03:00.006-05:00

I actually was scolded today for the extended blog absence. Wow! Somebody is reading all my babble. So with out further delay...

G LOVES
to chase and be chased
the anticipation of counting to three and the surprise at the end
and to peek!

He has been doing a lot of peekin' these days. He goes behind a wall, pillow, door, or tree to then peek out at me. This process of course cracks him up and must be repeated over and over.

Isn't that the cutest peek you ever saw?

2010-08-01T09:00:00.002-05:00

Intended Use?

2010-07-31T09:00:00.000-05:00

Step One

2010-07-27T20:50:00.004-05:00

The milestone is here. Our sweet G is walking or stepping as I am calling it for now. Although it won't be this way for long. Yesterday, while the coffee table was pushed back he discovered that he could take a couple of steps in between the couch and table. Today, that is his favorite thing to do! In just one day he can consistently take 4 to 6 steps upright and balanced. I am sure he will have all of the kinks worked out in no time.

Walking from Callie Newton on Vimeo.

I just finished crying about having a one year old... not so sure I am ready for a walker. Ready or not, right?

Potty Training?

2010-07-25T21:37:00.000-05:00

Celebrating One... Still

2010-07-20T11:23:00.000-05:00

G- As your Dad put it "this first year of your life has been the best of ours". I am so tremendously thankful for you. You are an absolute light to our lives and strangers as well(another story to tell). What a blessing it is that I have been able to spend this year watching you grow and learn. You hardly resemble the newborn you were 365 days ago. Today when I look at you my eyes are filled with tears of gratitude and all consuming love.

I keep thinking about the days and weeks leading up to your birth and that moment you took your first breath. The whole room felt completely overwhelmed with love.

I remember your Dad saying that our lives were changed forever, as he put the pediatricians number on favorites before we left the hospital. He was right. Our lives barely resemble what they were on July 14, 2009.

We loved before, but now we are full of love in an unconditional way I couldn't comprehend then.
We laughed before, but when we share a deep belly laugh it is rich beyond measure.
We were happy before, but being with you has been a constant string of moments that are absolute bliss. Moments that create glassy eyes and an extremely tender heart.

As you start your next trip around the sun, these are some of things that make you uniquely and perfectly you...

Tricks - You love to clap, wave, making a silly sniffing face and fishy face, blow bubbles/raspberries and tickle your lips to make funny sounds
Pointing - You are always pointing. Sometimes it seems you are asking "What's That" other times it seems you are making a proclamation and sometimes it even seems like you are tattling.
Play - Your favorite toys are things that you can push, balls, your new tool set and tupperware. You could play catch/fetch all day!
Eating - you are still an adventurous eater although we have seen our first rejections in the past few days. You seem to like things that are flavorful and reject bland food like Cheerios.
Walking - You are so close! Within the past two days you have started to let go of all supports and just stand perfectly balanced. You are trying to master standing up with out pulling up on a support.
Water- You still love all forms even getting hands and face cleaned after meals.
Sleep - You are a great sleeper. Taking two naps a day and sleeping for about 11 hours a night.
Teeth - You have 7 today but they are popping up quick
Stats - 21 lbs 4 ounces, 29.5 inches long

Happy Birthday Sweet G! Thank you for the best year of our lives... so far!

Celebrating One

2010-07-13T10:15:00.006-05:00

This weekend we celebrate G's first birthday! I really can't believe that those sleepless nights trying to figure out a newborn were a year ago. I know this shouldn't be shocking to me since I have spent all 365 days with him. Really, this should come as no surprise, yet I am shocked at just how fast a year can be.

G was a real sport at his birthday party. He played with friends and performed all of his latest tricks from waving to blowing bubbles, clapping, sniffing and even climbing. The rain poured down, so he didn't get to swim, but I think he enjoyed his party just the same.

*Look for one last sappy I can't believe my baby is one post coming soon! I am finally waking up to the reality and will be over it shortly. Or at least I won't cry about it here.

Not For Hire

2010-07-06T14:44:00.003-05:00

We were looking to get some work done around the house and found what we thought to be a great contractor. Turns out we knew nothing about his work, only that he was really cute!

He showed up and didn't even know how to work the ladder. He kept barking out incoherent demands for goldfish and strawberries. When he left no work was accomplished and we had a lot of drool to clean up.

Needless to say this contractor is no longer for hire!

I have a sneaking suspicion that we will try out his services again. Say maybe when he is a teenager.

Little Patriot

2010-07-05T20:23:00.002-05:00

Just Playing

2010-07-01T14:34:00.004-05:00

Wondering what we have been up to? While G has been recovering from a double ear infection we have just been playing. Lots and Lots of playing! You probably shouldn't walk in our house barefoot. I would hate for you to step on a rogue toy.

Today was a Fairytale

2010-06-17T16:28:00.007-05:00

Just like the approach of Mother's Day and G's first birthday, Father's Day has me all a mess too. A good mess, that is.

All I can think about is that when I fell in love with this man, he was kind to others, funny as all get out, honest to the core, giving to a fault, and so openly loving. He was everything I wanted in a husband.

Today he is still all of those things, but over the last year I have had the privilege of watching him become a father. Today I can't imagine a role more perfectly suited for him. When G crawls up to him and says "dada" my heart melts thinking that dada is exactly who he was always meant to be, even if he didn't always know it.

The last year has been our toughest yet, but even on the worst days I am living my fairytale thanks to him. Happy Father's Day Matt! G and I are so blessed to call you ours!

Eleven

2010-06-15T21:33:00.005-05:00

One month from today my baby will be a year old. There I said it. I don't believe it, but I put it out there and deep down I know it is the truth. In my mind, I feel like we just brought him home from the hospital a few weeks ago. The idea of sweet G being a year old is really hitting me hard. I want to soak up every last baby detail about him, but they are vanishing quickly.

A few details about my not so babish baby
-About 28 inches long, 20 pounds and 5 teeth
-Hair so long it is starting to curl
-Still love to travel along the furniture and are testing out your balance for walking all the time
-Rather play with a household items than a toy, coasters are your favorite
-Only food you dislike = pickles
-Love playing jumps and hide and seek/peek-a-boo with mom and dad
-Stranger attention seeking and you almost always find it from your cart seat
-Talk, talk, talk, but no real words other than dada or dad
-Climb - you have already mastered the fireplace and are working on the bathtub
-Still use all of your hundreds of expressions, most of them involving your eye brows
-Water baby - you love it any way you can get it, bath, shower, pool, river, or sprinkler

One of the things I love most about our days are our after nap chats. You wake up and I open the door to this face greeting me.

You tell me about your nap and I tell you what I have been up to and what is up next for our day. Usually the first thing on your mind is a snack.

See Momma that's what I want.

Please!

Yummy! Thanks Mom!

Eleven months has gone by so fast. You change and find new ways to amaze me everyday. I am so blessed and thankful to be your momma.

**If you see me with tear stained cheeks in the next four weeks no worries, it was probably just a my baby is going to be one breakdown.

You Can Look

2010-06-12T20:37:00.007-05:00

But Honey whatever you do please don't touch!

G surely loves his Uncle Kooter it is just his beard that he is not so sure of.

A Little Help Here

2010-06-04T10:00:00.001-05:00

As you have seen here before, our sweet G is such a big help. This week he decided to try his hand at dust busting.

You see, he was doing great until he accidentaly turned it on!

After a brief questioning look, he quickly moved into full blown panic, get me the heck outta here mode! I guess we should try out some chores with out on switches next time.

Babies

2010-05-30T15:46:00.003-05:00

You heard it hear first. The Newton family is growing! Nope no human babies here, but the babies in my garden are bringing me almost as much joy. Everyday I go out and tend to them, just checking on them, making sure a weed or pesky rabbit hasn't tried to invade their space. And how do they repay me? With sweet little babies like this.

I am just giddy. Well, I was until I spot a little garden snake hanging out with my zucchini. Didn't think to snap a picture of him.

Since I simply can't push publish with out a picture of G here is he.

Ok, forget what I said about the garden bringing almost as much joy. It is really no where close!

That's My Boy

2010-05-30T15:19:00.006-05:00

It starts early... the moments when you look at your child doing something the exact way that you would do it and say "That's My Boy!". It is moments like these that you know that your DNA is certainly a part of theirs. In case you had any doubt after the 40 weeks of new symptoms and continual growth followed hours of joyful labor pain.

We had one of these such moments today. I gave him a piece of toast with cream cheese, which he has had before, but this time he went cheese side first. To heck with the bread. I want the cheese!

Now this is no longer the way I eat things spread with the ever tasty cream cheese. Through my years I have learned restraint and a few manners. But isn't it a joy to watch children who haven't learned that quite yet. To see what is innate in us and the pure joy that acting without restraint can bring.

Next time I am eating cream cheese alone, I am going at it just like G.

We are saving our Nonnie Manners for another day.

Unassuming

2010-05-25T20:33:00.005-05:00

He seems unassuming sitting there with that sweet little grin, but don't let him fool you.

He can do this all in a days work...

**Disclaimer** I accept full responsibility for each of these messes, as I watched him create them all. He was enjoying it, so I was too.

Splish, Splash

2010-05-18T09:34:00.003-05:00

Our little man is defintely a water bug. He loves to splash in the water and make a huge mess of the bathroom. How could we stop him when he is having this much fun?

So fresh and so clean!

It Takes a Village

2010-05-07T14:26:00.004-05:00

This week, as my first Mother's Day as a mother approached, I found myself thinking a lot about motherhood. For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a mother. Since having G, I can be moved to tears hearing him laugh, watching him play or just thinking about the gift he is and how honored I feel that God put him in my care. I believe that motherhood is a beautiful calling and an incredible responsibility. The great thing about the responsibility part is that I am not raising him alone.

Of course I have an amazing husband, but Mother's Day has me thinking about all of the women that G has in his life. He is surrounded by grandmothers, aunts, cousins, teachers and a multitude of friends who love him. These women that will help us to shepherd our sweet boy, each of them with unique stories to share and lessons to teach. They will help us to teach him right from wrong, how to tie his shoes, how to treat a lady, how to make biscuits, how to read, about respect, family, friendship, his need for a Savior and countless other life lessons that will make him the man he is growing be.

Tonight, I am especially thankful for our village. I am thankful for the village of women who helped to raise me and if I am being truly honest still are. I am thankful that I have been called to be G's mother and the incredible gift it is. I am thankful for the village of mothers that G has today and the mothers that he has not yet met. Today is for you, Happy Mother's Day!

Dance Baby Dance

2010-05-07T14:23:00.011-05:00

Sometimes when the music hits you, you just have to give in and dance.

*It's about 40 seconds in when the music takes control. I know, right after my photography skills I will work on video editting.

Untitled from Callie Newton on Vimeo.

Still going...

Still Dancing from Callie Newton on Vimeo.

Sweet G, I know the feeling. You get it from me. It is such a pleasure to watch you figure out your newest moves.

On His Level

2010-04-28T16:10:00.000-05:00

Traveling Man

2010-04-26T15:46:00.009-05:00

It has only been a few short weeks since G learned to crawl, but he is taking up traveling in so many ways...

His new favorite past time is traveling right down the fireplace. When at home all roads lead to the fireplace.

He also discovered a new mode of transportation last week on our trip out to Cornerstone to visit Aunt CC - The Wagon! We could tell he loved it by the smile plastered on his face.

His also has a new ride in the car. A big boy car seat! He was such a help putting it together and loved his first ride.