Happy 1 year to Christian

Christian is 1 year old, wow that went by fast. Over the past two weeks he has changed so much. He looks older and acts older. More like a toddler, less baby. Here are some of the things that we have learned about him over the last year.

-He is so independent. Now that it is cooler outside he wants to spend all his time in the backyard, even if it is just him. He loves playing in the sand box and running the grass. Lizzy loves being outside as well so most of the time it is the two of them roaming around the backyard together.
-He is talking a little, just a few words like dada, mama, boo, and bye bye.
-He loves the doggies. He climbs in their beds and into their crate snuggling up to them.
-He also loves to climb all over the couches and pretty much everything in the house.
-Christian is very feisty, he likes to do things himself like eating, drinking, and walking and doesn't ever want help.
-He loves his brother and sister, following them around the house and always playing right next to them.
-He is smart and a quick learner. It only took him a day to master going down the stairs.
-He follows most commands and recognizes his favorite people in pictures or real life.
-He is curious, constantly investigating the house and finding new things to play with.
-He loves to smile, a very happy little guy
-He loves to take baths and swimming in the pool
-His favorite game is peek-a-boo
-He loves playing with dad's ties

We love him so much and are so grateful to have in as part of our family.

 Peek-a-boo with the bowl

 

 

CAKE FACE

Playing with the baby in the mirror

Hanging out with the puppies

Peek-a-boo in the closet

Daily Activities and a Busy Life

Well we made it through August and into September. It is still blazing hot here in Phoenix (105 every day). It is time for the endless summer, I loath this time of the year. Everywhere else in the country is cooling down, the leaves are changing colors, there is a brisk crispness to the air, and fall colors are making an appearance. But not in Mesa. We are still spending most of our time in the air conditioned house or swimming in the pool. Thankfully the nights are cooling down and I am sure relief is on the horizon.

September is the month of birthdays in our family. Grandpa John turns 90, Elizabeth turns 4. Grandpa Tim, Grandma Sandy, Aunt Kailey, and of course my love Brandon. So many birthdays it is never ending. Plus Christian turns one at the beginning of next month so right now we are in celebration mode. Last week we celebrated Elizabeth's birthday with a family party and cupcakes for her preschool class. She didn't mind not having a big birthday bash and I was just fine with that!

We have been so busy with other things I really didn't have time to plan a big party. Right now the kids are both in karate and soccer. Elizabeth is also doing dance classes once a week. They have been doing karate for about 3 months now and loving it. They tested for their orange belts last week, both passing and moving up to the next level where they get to break boards and punch/kick targets. It is very exciting. I have seen such an improvement in Jackson especially. His attention span has increased, he is more confident in himself and he has gained a more respectful attitude towards me as well as others. I am so happy to see him enjoying himself. Lizzy likes it too and she has changed her attitude as well but she is a bit more reserved.

Actually it is really funny because I always thought Lizzy would be my athlete. She walked at such a young age and is so firey. But after watching her at karate and in soccer I am beginning to realize she doesn't have a competitive bone in her body. She is just happy to be with the other kids and wants everyone to do well. It is really sweet. I was trying to encourage her to get after the ball in soccer and she came over to me and said, "mom, it doesn't matter who scores or who wins. All that matters is that we have fun." What do you say to that sweet little 4 year old? I just smiled and told her she was right.

Christian has been walking for about a month now. He is really fast, toddling through the house, crawling into the doggies crate, climbing on all the couches and up the stairs, and pretty much into everything. He is curious and feisty. And when he smiles he smiles with his whole body. I can't believe he is almost 1. My baby is not a little baby anymore. And he doesn't look like a little baby anymore. He has these little curls on the sides of his head that are so irresistible. I just want to kiss his cheeks all day. His face is so beautiful and sweet that strangers always think he is a girl. A beautiful baby boy who loves me and adores his dad and siblings. He always wants to be in the middle of what the other two kids are doing. They are very patient with him and loving towards him. I am so lucky to have such wonderful, loving children.

Lately I have really been working and focusing on not yelling at them. It has been such a blessing in my life. I have made it a whole week without losing my temper and I have noticed that our entire family is more loving and patient and peaceful with each other. I know that the Lord is helping me with this and it is making me into a better mother. I feel so much more joy in my days and seem to have more time to get the things done that I need to, even if it means taking more time to serve my children. I am so blessed to be able to stay at home with them and be there for them at such a crucial time in their lives. They grow up so fast and I don't want to miss a signal minute.

Beginning of a New Phase

Man the time is just flying by. I barely know what day it is lately. It's Saturday night and I am thinking I should write on my blog when I realize the last post was nearly 3 weeks ago. Wow.

So here is what has been happening around our house.

Jackson started kindergarten. I was nervous but not sad. On the first day my thought was, there he goes off into the world. This is the first of many steps away from my protection. One day it is kindergarten the next it is college. But I am so excited for him to learn and meet new people. He loves it. He rides the bus to and from school every day. Then he comes home and tells me all about his day, he finishes eating his lunch because he never eats all of it at school, and he always asks me for water right when he walks in the door. Apparently going to school and riding the bus makes one super thirsty.

 

I just pray that I am teaching him well at home. I hope that he has the right principles to stand up to the world and all the evil it in. He is an amazing kid. He is sweet and smart and I don't want outside influences to drive those characteristics out of him. He has really matured over the last 6 months. He no longer throws tantrums or whines, he helps around the house, and he isn't afraid like he used to be of new situations. He seems to take things head on these days.

He also started karate. I love this. He is learning discipline and confidence. I have seen major improvements in his shyness especially towards people he does not know. It has even helped his concentration and focus.

Elizabeth is also doing karate. She doesn't need the confidence (spunky little Lizzy) but her concentration has increased and her attention span. It is also helping with her coordination, she is a bit clumsy like her mom. I love hearing he sweet little voice yell commands in the class like YES SIR.

I think she misses Jackson when he goes to school more than anyone. She looks out the window every afternoon waiting for the bus to bring him home. Thankfully she is going to preschool 3 days a week for 4 hours and making lots of new friends. I think she and I would go crazy if it was just us at home alone all day. She is one of the younger children in her class but the teacher says she is very smart and is included in the activities for the older kids like reading and letter recognition. I am always telling everyone how smart she is but for some reason they all just look at me like, "sure she is, that is what every mom thinks about their kids." Not that it matters what other people think.

Christian is walking at 10 months already. He is so athletic and strong. He loves chasing the kids around the house and crawling into the dog's crate to hang out with the puppies. He is a very smiley baby and loves to follow commands like "clap your hands" or "wave bye bye." He doesn't eat baby food at all but loves all the food we eat including steak (I know crazy!) He also loves cars. He has a few little cars that he pushes around the kitchen floor. And my favorite personality quirk he has been doing lately is clicking his tongue. He walks around the house click click clicking. It is really cute.

 

 

Sunny in Seattle

Our summer in Seattle kicked off with a bang. This was a quick trip. Really quick. We only spent a week in Seattle this year due to our busy schedules. But we made the best of the time we had. I flew by myself with all 3 kids. Thankfully Christian slept about 1/2 the time and the remainder of the trip went fairly smoothly. There were a lot of kids on the plane so mine were not the only ones who squawked a bit.

We got in late Tuesday night and were greeted by my mom, Derek, Sarah, and Steve. The kids were so excited to see them again. The next day I met my dear friend Jeremy at the park for lunch. We chatted while the kids played. Then off to Seattle to stay the night at Steve and Sarah's house. Both Jack and Liz thought staying at Aunt Sarah's house was a real treat, Jackson even told
me, "I've always wanted to have a sleepover." All his 5 years of life, haha.

It is a little apartment but we managed to make it through the night and were rewarded with a beautiful day in Seattle the next morning.

We met up with Adam and spent the day at the beach throwing rocks and wading in lake Washington. It was amazing. I miss the water so much and being on the beach I was surrounded by it. The smell is divine, by far my favorite smell in the world. And so refreshing, like the rain and ocean washed all my stress away. While exploring the beach and the docks we found a crow tangled in some fishing line hanging from a tree branch. Thankfully Adam climbed the tree and rescued the crow, Super Adam to the rescue. The only mishap of the day was Elizabeth losing one of her jelly shoes when Adam was dropping her feet into the water. She was very distraught but her mood quickly changed when we suggested shopping to buy some new shoes. (She is definitely my daughter, lol).

After shopping we spent the afternoon at the playground. An amazing playground. I didn't know Seattle could be so family friendly. I always think of it as a singles town with no community atmosphere but I was enlightened and happy to spend a relaxing day with my family.