Growing and Learning

Isaac perfecting his handstand at gymanstics. =)

His first taste of cereal...not sure what to think.

This is how I find him now every morning.

Exersaucer (also known as toy overload)!

The boys are growing, learning, and changing daily! Luke has had quite the week of firsts around here...his first cereal, rolling over in his bed and now sleeping on his tummy, and his first time playing in the exersaucer. He's not convinced yet that the cereal is something he should eat, but we're trying it daily in hopes we can change his mind. He seems to really like laying on his tummy in bed, multple times last week I went to get him in the morning and found him on his tummy. Then this weekend he started rolling over as soon as I put him in bed. I tried rolling him back to his back, but that only lasted about 20 seconds and he was back to his tummy. After trying 3 times I gave in and let him sleep on his tummy. Now, the fun, the exersaucer...he loves it! He is doing great in it, too, I can't believe how strong he is!

Isaac is doing great, too! He is learning new things daily; including counting, spelling, days of the week, and so many new words in English and Dutch. His words are becoming more clear everyday, which is great because it means I don't have to translate everything he says any more. He is still loving his gymnastics class...he even knows that Wednesday is gymnastics day, so he can't wait for it to come each week.

I am so blessed to be the mom of these two wonderful boys, and the wife of such an amazing man! I know I never write about Carl, but he is doing great, too! He has been traveling a lot, but thankfully will be home now for a while. He is Isaac's favorite playmate...they have a blast together no matter what they're doing. And he is the best at making Luke laugh, I love when he makes him bellylaugh like that!

The little ones

Emmy, Gumby, and their three youngest grandchildren

Yesterday was a special day for us...we got to meet our newest niece, Mariah. She is six weeks younger than Luke, and is just precious! I am looking forward to watching her grow, and watching she and my boys play together.

We had a great day today with our friends Kristin and Taylor. Isaac finally gave in and decided to go for a ride with Taylor, as you can tell it didn't work out so well. He refused to get back in with her! Ha! Daddy has warned him about women drivers, I guess maybe he will start listening to him now. =) We love you TayTay!

28 months...what a big boy!

Kissing his sweet girlfriend.

Riding in Daddy's hotrod...one of his favorite things to do!

He's my little tool man.

He has recently discovered finger painting!

Isaac is now 28 months, and wow what a big boy he is becoming! He's constantly growing, learning new things, and changing! I think his vocabulary multiplies daily and his sentences get longer everyday. He is also speaking more and more Dutch, which is so exciting! He loves to speak it and understands every bit of it! I sure wish I could pick up two languages that quickly.

Here are a few memorable things from the recent months:
- He still doesn't like to sleep during nap time, but every now and then he does fall asleep. When laying in bed not sleeping he does all kinds of things, includingg couting to ten in Dutch!
- He loves going to the library for story time, he is not as rambuctious as some of the kids, but he does get into the stories and songs.
- He enjoys helping Daddy set up the sprinklers in the yard, and water the plants/trees with the watering can.
- He is still a great eater, but is more hesitant with meat lately...maybe it has to do with his 2 year molars coming in! Ouch!
- He is becoming more adventurous...although still pretty timid compared to most 2 year old boys. I won't complain about that though, it means less scary moments for mama!
- He plays independently very well, and even tells us to leave sometimes when he's playing alone and we come to check on him.
- He has to "make dirt" in private, he always runs off to do it. The other day I was in the kitchen with him and heard him whisper to himself, "Isaac go playroom, Isaac make dirt." Then he ran off to the playroom. Ha!
- He LOVES to do forward rolls and go to gymnastics class! The other day I was feeding Luke, and could hear Isaac in his room, he said to himself, "Isaac do forward roll, Isaac stand up and say TaDa." I then heard him roll, then say, "stand up say TaDa." I heard him stand up, then "TaDa!!!" I couldn't help but laugh, it was so cute!
- I can tell he enjoys when Luke tries to interact with him, and so he tries to interact more with Luke. He likes making him laugh, which he did the other day by hitting a balloon. Unfortunately the balloon ended up hitting Luke in the head, and then Isaac accidentally hit him with his hand, too. Oops! Thankfully Luke was not phased by either hit. Whew!
- He is becoming very independent...he has to climb into the truck himself, buckle his carseat himself, take off his diaper himself before bathtime, throw away his dirty diapers himself, and he sometimes helps me carry things out to the car when we're leaving.
- He definitely has some terrible two moments, more than I'd like, but he is also still very very sweet. He gives lots of hugs and kisses during the day! He is also very friendly to everyone we see when we're out and about.
- He becomes ecstatic when we tell him people are coming over! We can't tell him until just before they are to arrive otherwise he'll drive us crazy talking about them coming over.
- He has become very attached to mama lately, and is always concerned that I'm going to leave him. Before going down for a nap, before going down at night, he always says multiple times, "Mama stay Isaac's house." And when we go to someone's house he always asks me many times if I am staying, and tells me to stay and not go. I'm not sure if this is just a phase for this age or if it has to do with his baby brother...I hope it passes soon, I don't like him always worrying.

4 months

Today is Baby Luke's 4 month birthday! He is really changing and joining the world, as some would say. He has qutie the personality now, he laughs and is so happy! When he smiles and giggles his entire face lights up! You can't help but smile back at him when you see it! He has become incredibly observant; he notices everything! He has started holding toys, rattles, and such, he likes to hold them and try to put them in his mouth. He constantly has his hands in his mouth...maybe he's teething already. He likes to lay on his back and kick, Isaac says he's swimming because his legs and arms never stop moving if he's laying down. He also enjoys tummy time! He picks his head way up and looks all around, "talking" the whole time. Today while on his tummy he reached forward and grabbed his rattle, then brought it to his mouth. That reminds me, he knows what he wants and he makes sure he gets it. We have a balloon in the house that was left after the party we had on Monday, and although it was left for Isaac, I think Luke likes it just as much! He laughs so hard when Carl or Isaac hit the balloon; and when he gets near it he reaches for it and talks to it.

He is getting into a routine, which is so great! He usually gets up between 5 and 6 am to eat, but then goes back to sleep. If he's wide awake after eating I just put him in his swing, he quickly falls aslep, and he'll sleep for another 3 or 4 hours. If he falls aleep after eating I put him in his bed and he usually sleeps until about 8. He eats again after wakes up, and is then up for 1-2 hours, then goes down for a nap (in his swing). He usually sleeps 2-3 hours during his morning nap. Then he eats, and he's up again for 1-2 hours. Then back in the swing for another nap, which is anywhere from 1-3 hours normally. After that nap he eats again, and depending on the time he stays up until bedtime or he takes another short 30-45 minute nap. He eats around 6:30-7:00 pm and then goes down for a few hours (in his swing). I wake him up at 10ish, feed him, and put him in his bed for the night. If we stay home all day and stick to his schedule he is the happiest baby, but if we go out and mess up the schedule a bit then he tends to get a little cranky. It's kind of tough because he wants to stay home and Isaac wants to go out, oh boy! He is still nursing, and doing really well with it...he is fast, too, which I love, he is done in 8-10 minutes. I still haven't been able to get him to take a bottle, which is tough sometimes, but I'm trying to not get frustrated. =) I think we'll start cereal soon, so I'll let you all know how that goes!

Playtime video

Luke got this new toy from his Great Aunt Stephanie, and he absolutely loved it! I didn't expect him to react to it, but I was wrong...he couldn't get enough of it! It was precious!

Let's Celebrate!

Isaac sitting with Emmy while she read her Tribute to Dr. Ana.

Isaac, Luke, and their Great Grandpa!
So special!

Aunt Jean and Luke, playing with Luke's new toy, which he loved!

Dr. Ana and Luke

Isaac and Annie

Carl's cousin's daughter, not sure what that makes these two little ones, but that doesn't matter, they had a blast playing together. When she was leaving she said, "Do you want to go with me?" He quickly replied, "Yes!"

Sweetness! He loves his Ana!

Today we celebrated Ana's (Aaron's girlfriend) graduation. She graduated with her PhD in geology! Wow, she's a doctor; that is so impressive! In honor of her we had a party here at our house with all of the family...grandpa, aunts, and uncles. It was a special day, and I'm so glad we were able to celebrate this accomplishment with her!

CONGRATULATIONS ANA!