Monday, July 27, 2009

Kathryn...

Oh, I have been so terrible lately at updating! I apologize! Anyway, the fact that Jackson was 10 months old last week and I haven't posted about it is bothering me, but I also realized that I hadn't taken many pictures lately, so am waiting to get some more recent pics of him before posting (which of course means also loading them on the computer). But, for now, I figured an update on our sweet girl was in order, since she was officially two-and-a-half on July 5th!. I am not even sure where to start with her. She is growing so much now, and is officially a little girl (no baby!). Here is a creation of hers I came upon the other day...her imagination has really taken off, and although I'm not sure what all these characters were doing here, I know that she was intention in their placements. Oops, this pic is sideways. But here she is in her first "dress-up" clothes. Well, her first official ones, at least. She felt so pretty! (Notice the fancy high heels too!)
She has also taken to one of her baby dolls. She has named her Elizabeth, and carries her around in a little backpack/sling thing. She takes such good care of her. Her other baby's/friend's name is Kaya.

Swinging with daddy on the tire swing.

A few weeks ago, we were in Harrisonburg for a visit. On Sunday, my sister Ali was in a horse show at my Aunt Darlene's farm. So, we went by to watch her show. They opened a Tot Lead Line class, so Kathryn got to participate. It was her first show. Can you tell if she liked it or not?

My/our cousin Joey led the pony while I walked with her. He did a great job! Kathryn won a blue ribbon! The judge said the class was too close to call, so all riders walked away with blue ribbons. Kathryn was soooo proud of herself!
Showing it off for all to see...
Her cousin Payton was in the class as well. How cute is that?!?
Wee, no hands!

It was so cool to watch Ali show. She did a great job! She won a blue ribbon in this jumping class (that had tons of riders in it!)!!
I love this photo of her...look in the direction of the next jump. Great job!

Kathryn has been working out. Gotta build up those muscles so she can hold her own as Jackson gets bigger!
Showing her muscles. She's so strong!!

Some other fun/random facts:
-She is a pickier eater than she ever has been, but still loves more foods than most kids her age. Some of her favorites include: peas, black olives, cherry tomatoes, grilled cheese, spaghetti (with the sauce), sweet tea (the kid chugs it when she gets the chance), popsicles, strawberry ice cream, oatmeal, raisins, and cinnamon raisin bread.
-She loves to sing. Her two favorite songs right now are Amazing Grace and Jesus Loves Me. She will randomly break into song throughout the day, and I love it. She also amazes me at the songs she knows.
-She can quote a few Bible verses from memory: Eph. 6:1 and Prov. 3:5-6
-She loves to teach Jackson new things (as well as to boss him around and tell him when he's not supposed to be doing something).
-She still sleeps with her lovey, whom she loves dearly. She also likes to have blankets to snuggle with when she sleeps.
-She loves to play with other kids, and gets really excited when we go somewhere that has a nursery/childcare.
-She loves it when mommy and daddy go on a date!

Friday, July 24, 2009

Thirty-one eighteen giveaway



Check out http://blog.thirtyoneeighteen.com/ for some fun, awesome totes, purses, burp cloths, onesies, and other cute things, and while you're at it, enter the contest for a giveaway! Kimberly is super talented, and makes fun and useful things for mama and baby! If you're in need of a fun gift for a baby shower, she's got some great products, and even does custom orders. So, check out the website, enter the contest, and order some stuff!

Friday, July 10, 2009

Thoughts: "stay at home" mom

I thrive on productivity. Just ask my husband. As soon as I/we start cleaning or organizing, my energy levels soar! So, I have been struggling lately with feeling like the life is sometimes sucked out of me as a "stay at home" mom. I put that in quotations, because in reality I do work part-time (still at the Acts 2 Ministry, for those that are curious, going in one day a week and doing some work at home). As a SAHM, you'd think I'd get tons done during the day. But the reality is, I just get bare minimum done, and that's on a good day! So, when I get to the end of a day, and realize that "nothing" was accomplished, I am zapped. Not because I am necessarily physically tired (which I am), but because mentally, there was nothing to pick me up. I don't see anything checked off a list, I don't see any previously undone projects accomplished. Instead, I see a house with toys strewn about, dishes in the sink, laundry sitting in piles, mail stacked up, and wonder what I did with my whole day, anyway.

As I was walking with the kids this morning, I saw a woman heading out to her car with coffee mug and tote bag in hand, dressed nicely, obviously off to work. And I envied her. And then I felt immediately guilty. But for a moment, I remembered what it felt like to have somewhere to be, to have people who were counting on you, to have adults to speak with, to have challenges before you to master, to get to the end of the day and feel like you then had a chance to go home and relax or change your environment at least and ready yourself to face a new day.

But then, I decided I would choose to view the positive. After all, I was walking in the cool morning air with my kids. I didn't have anywhere I needed to be, and could decide my own schedule for the day. Even though I don't get much accomplished, I am making a long-term investment in my children, in my family, in my community, and in the world. (No, I am not blowing that out of proportion; I truly believe that.) I often have to remind myself that playing with my children is an accomplishment, not one that I can physically "see", but one that is felt. I am so blessed to be able to pour my time and energy into training them, to teaching them, to loving them, to running our home the best it can be (mess and all!). And for that, I am thankful.

Monday, July 06, 2009

Quotable

We went out to eat with Johnny's parents tonight at a pizza place called Humble Pie. On the way out, there were some wine bottles on the counter.
Kathryn: "Grandma, what's that?"
Grandma: "Wine."
Kathryn: "Yeah, I like wine!"

While I was rocking her to go to sleep tonight:
Kathryn: "Mama, where's Cindy?"
Me: "She's on a mission trip."
Kathryn: "Cindy come over, stay here, mama and daddy go on a date!"
Me: "Sounds good to me!"

Friday, July 03, 2009

ok, easier to compare

UPDATE: We showed this to Kathryn, and asked her "Where's Buddy?". She pointed to the first picture and then the second, and said, "Buddy here, and Buddy here!"

Just because it's fun to see, here are Kathryn and Jackson, both at 9 months old. Can you tell they're siblings? Do you think they look alike? Leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Jackson at 9 months

So yes, Jackson turned 9 months old a couple of weeks ago, and I'm just now getting around to blogging about it. I'm sure nobody is complaining, though, especially after getting to see all these cute pictures and hear about what our little man is up to these days. (In case you are curious, you can compare Kathryn and Jackson by looking at Kathryn's 9 month post here.)

Jackson is a mover in his sleep, just like Kathryn was and is. He is always sure to be cuddling up to something, though, like his lovey.
A few weeks ago he was having troubles getting to sleep at naptime. He now stands at the corner of his crib, which is right at the door, and cries there because he knows that's where we come in his room. Well, after he realized it wasn't going to work, he apparently sat right now and fell asleep, sitting in the corner of his bed! Don't worry, I moved him after I took this picture!
Regarding sleep, he is finally doing much better! He goes to bed around 7:30 0r 8:00 (unless we're out late, which occurs more often in the summer), and sleeps until about 6:30 or 7:30. He is definitely more of an early riser than Kathryn ever was. He still naps 2-3 times a day, depending on how early he wakes up and how long his naps have been for the day.


He still laughs all the time, sometimes at simply nothing! He is hilarious, and has such a funny laugh! We see faces like this from him all the time:
He is crawling all over the place, and fast! He especially loves going after things he knows he shouldn't have, like his sister's cup.
Laughing again...
He woke up from a nap the other morning looking a little rough...!

He also makes this face a lot, while sucking in his bottom lip.
Some other fun facts:
-He can pop with his mouth really well too.
-He loves to give zverberts (sp?). He will do it over and over again, especially on his mama!
-He is still nursing about 4 times a day (every once in a while 3 times a day).
-He loves to eat, and eats a lot. His favorites are avocados, Cheerios, puffs, and shoes.
-He still waves bye-bye very enthusiastically.
-He has two teeth.
-He reaches out for anybody to hold him.
-He loves to cuddle.
-He loves his big sister!
-He weighs 19lb 3oz (only the 25th percentile!) and is 29.3 inches long (79th percentile!). The weight really surprised me, but the doctor wasn't concerned. He really does eat a lot; he's just very active as well!
-He still loves to babble a lot too. His most common word: "dada".