Good News Bad News

The boys have had this yucky cold that just won't go away. This weekend we decided that they needed to go back to get checked again, but the problem was that I have not been happy with their doctor and I wasn't sure where to take them. Thankfully, I had many great recommendations and chose one close by that came highly recommended. So I called this morning and after talking to the receptionist I had a good feeling. We went in this afternoon, and I was very pleased with the doctor and the entire staff. After the nurse finished with Isaac he said, "That nurse is nice!" Wow, even he could tell a difference between this nurse and our old nurses. I am so thankful the visit went so well. Unfortunately, we did leave with medicine...both boys have an ear infection. It's a first for both of them, Isaac made it almost three years! I'm sad they have to go through this, but I know they will recover and be fine. They have both been real troopers, they didn't show any signs of an ear infection and have both been in great moods. Luke was definitely a little more off today, but not horribly, and now I know why. I pray that they feel better really soon and that we don't have any more illnesses anytime soon.

Growing too fast

Luke is growing too fast! Even though the first year of life is hard on the parents, it is also filled with so many sweet and exciting moments, and I am sad about how fast this year is going. My little guy seems to be learning something new daily. This week he has learned to...

• give kisses...big, slobbery, open mouth kisses. It seems more like he's trying to bite, but it's his way of kissing and it's so sweet!
• pull up, and he pulls up on everything! He crawls to toys to pull up on - dump trucks, toy tables, toy shopping cart, exersaucer, etc. - he also crawls to me whether I am sitting or standing and he will use me to pull himself up. Just yesterday he pulled himself up in his crib after his nap.
• crawl everywhere! He used to say in the room where I put him down, but now if I put him down and quickly step out of the room to do something, he will follow. It's pretty funny watching him crawl on the wood floors, he slips and slides around, like the cars on the icey roads today.
• talk on the phone. As soon as I pick up the phone and begin dialing he comes over to me and reaches for it. He fusses until I bring the phone to his level and put it on speakerphone, then he proceeds to "talk" to the person on the other end.
• drop his toys off of his highchair so we can pick them back up, over and over. It took me a little bit of time to realize he was doing it on purpose, but he definitely is. He drops whatever is on his tray, and just stares at us until we pick it up, Isaac says, "Uh-oh!" as soon as it hits the floor...I think he likes the reaction he gets from all of us.
• love Cole! Cole is his best friend, he smiles when Cole walks in to the room, and he crawls to him as soon as he sees him. If we're holding him and Cole comes over he tries to dive bomb out of our arms to get to him. The love is returned, too, Cole gives him kisses and checks on him constantly. It's so neat to see that relationship form between a boy and his dog.

My little one may be little, but his full of spunk and joy! I am so thankful to be his mama and to be able to be home with him to watch him learn all of these things!

Thoughts

My big guy is really growing, even his vocabulary and thoughts are flourishing! I love hearing his thoughts these days, and that's the great thing about two year olds, they tell you exactly what they are thinking...

• Today Carl was playing with Isaac and teaching him to flex his muscles, he then came in and was showing me his muscles. I said to him, "Wow, you are so strong!" He quickly responded to me saying, "Like Jesus!!!" One of his current favorite songs, and one they sing at school, is "Jesus Loves Me" and as you know one of the lines in the song says, "He is strong." Apparently that verse has made an impact on him.
• Last week one day while eating dinner and talking I called him Sweetheart. I say this often to both of my boys, but I guess he really heard it that night. He looked at me and repeated it, so I said, "Yes, you are my sweetheart." I could see the wheels turning in his head, and then he said, "Sweetcircle?"
• Isaac has become obsessed with singing the ABCs, and any toy that sings the ABCs. Luke got a little "CD" player that sings it, and Isaac has stolen it, put it in the back of his car and made it his radio. He turns it on, then starts driving, and has to stop immediately when the song is over to restart it, he cannot drive without his radio on. Speaking of driving his car, he also has to unlock the door before he gets in it, start the engine before driving, and turn it off when he stops. The other day we were trying to get out of the house and he was procrastinating, he was playing in the car and not cooperating. I finally got him to drive into the dining room to park it, and then made him get out quickly to get out the door. We loaded into my truck, started driving away, and he said, "Mama! My auto is still on!!!" He was very upset about the fact that he didn't turn off his auto before he got out of it. I tried to convince him that Cole would turn it off, but he didn't buy it.
• One of his favorite books at the moment is a book about sharing. He makes us read it over and over and over! This evening he convinced Carl to read it, again, and so to be silly Carl was using the wrong names for characters and changing some of the other main parts of the story. Isaac caught on to every mistake and told Carl what he should have said. I think he has the book memorized.
• He loves reading, "The Very Hungry Catepillar" and today he couldn't find the book, he said, "Mama, where's the "Looking for Food" book?
• Today we were playing a little game of hide and seek; it was Isaac playing against me and Luke. He hid in the same spot every time, sitting on his chair in his room...I think we need to work on what hiding means. When Luke and I were hiding and he was looking for us he would say, "Mama, UkeyPoo, waar ben je?" (Waar ben je is Where are you in Dutch.)
• A few days ago I put on a polo shirt, when Isaac saw it he said, "You have a shirt like Ms. Marlo!" His teacher at school wears a polo everyday because they wear a uniform. Funny that he noticed that.
• He yelled a really high pitched yell today, and I said, "Please don't do that it hurts my ears." He then said, without hesitation, "It hurts my ears when the policeman turns on his siren."

He keeps me on my toes all day long, and even though there are days that I'm not sure how we will make it through the day, he always manages to bring me so much joy and make me laugh so quickly after he's made me mad. I love my crazy, fun, 2 year old!

The last week...

Mr. Active...pulling up on the table!

Sleeping when he was sick...poor little guy.

My big guy sleeping late this morning...the camera didn't even wake him!

Crawling, crawling, and more crawling!

This past week was not a fun week around here, all four of us got sick with the yucky flu like illness. Thankfully it wasn't the flu, Luke was tested and he was negative for the flu, so we decided that none of us had the flu. Thank goodness! We are all on the upswing now, the boys are still snotty and coughing a little, but the fever is gone and both boys are full of energy and happy!

The last two days Isaac has slept in late in the morning, yesterday he slept until I woke him up at 10:10 am and today I had to wake him up at 8:00 am so he wouldn't be late for school. Speaking of school...he loves it! He is happy to go every time and can't get out of the car fast enough. I'm so happy that he is enjoying it so much and that he transitioned so quickly! He says a blessing before we eat, that he learned at school, and he sings two new songs that he learned there (the Good Morning song and Jesus Loves Me). Today was pizza and pajamas day, which means he got to wear his PJs and they are eating pizza for lunch; all to help learn the letter P!

Luke is developing so well and so fast, I can't believe all the things he's doing! He is crawling everywhere, really everywhere! He started pulling up on the tables and toys this weekend, he has crashed a few times, but it doesn't phase him! He is still a peanut, so it's really cute to see this little bitty guy standing at a table. He is also doing better about letting others hold him...as long as I stay close by. ;-)

I am so thankful my boys are feeling better, it is so hard to see them sick! I pray that we can avoid any more sicknesses this winter.

1st Day of School

Today was a BIG day for my big boy! I'll start from the beginning...

Last week Carl and I went to tour a preschool to decide where we wanted him to start in the fall. While touring we found out they had an opening now, and we were intrigued. We came home with lots to talk about...by the end of the day we knew this was the school we wanted him to attend, but when should we start him. After much prayer and thought we decided to start now. Eeekkk! You know this was a tough decision for me; of course I'll enjoy the time with just one son at home, and I know Isaac will benefit hugely from attending school, but it's a HUGE step in his life, and it's me giving up my boy to someone else for a few hours each week. Anyways...fast forward to today...the first day!

He slept in today, he didn't get up until 8:00, which was good because it meant he would be well rested, but also meant the morning was quick! He had his breakfast and we talked about the day. He seemed excited about school and was ready to go! After breakfast, getting dressed, and a short photo shoot we (Daddy, Mama, Luke, and Isaac) headed out. Isaac was quiet on the way there, but smiled whenever we looked at him. Once we got there he was ready to go in! He was the first one in the classroom, so it gave him a few minutes alone with the teacher. She showed him where to put his bag and lunch, then sat down with him to play a little. We talked some, shared a little information, and then came in the first student. I saw him clam up when she came in, he looked down and didn't look up again until the teacher told them to say good morning...he turned his head and said it! I was proud of him because I could tell he was nervous. We decided that we should leave, so I knelt down to say bye and he rushed over to hug me. He held on tight to my shirt, and I could see him fighting back the tears. He didn't cry, but was sad...it was hard to see him sad, but I had a good feeling about the day and him being there. After filling in some paperwork I peeked back in the room, he was sitting at a table playing.

Luke and I went back to pick up Isaac, and in my attempt to be on time and make sure not to get caught in any construction traffic we ended up getting there really early...about 30 minutes early. Haha! Obviously I was excited to see my big guy! After waiting in the car, then walking around outside, it was time to go in! I walked in to the room where all the kids were waiting, and there was my big guy, sitting so perfectly with his back pack on, looking so cute! He got up immediately when he saw me and said, "Mama's here!" But then he hesitated and sat back down...I was proud of him because he was following directions. A teacher told him he could get up and he ran to me. Big Hug! He was all smiles! His teacher came over and said that he had a great day! She said there were no tears all day, and that he had fun! She told me about a policeman coming to the school with his motorcycle and upon seeing that was the only time Isaac showed any sadness, she said his bottom lip came out. They held him during that time and she said he did fine! He played with the other kids and behaved well all day!

Even though he was scared of the motorcycle it definitely made an impact on him, it's the only thing he will tell us about. He doesn't seem to remember or care about anything else they did. That's my boy! =)

As we were walking out he said to me, "I had fun here today!"

8 months

My baby boy, Luke, is 8 months now, gosh, I think each month goes by faster than the last! He is doing great, and is such a fun boy! I'm going to do this update in list form, just for a change of pace:

• He has two teeth, both on the bottom. His second tooth came through on Dec. 26.


• He still needs to nurse, it's a comfort for him, but he is also eating more solid foods everyday! I think his favorite is bananas. He will eat an entire banana if I let him!


• His naps are getting shorter, and ihe s starting to nap in his crib instead of his swing...yay!


• He loves his pacifier, I think he's getting more attached to it by the day. In some ways I like that because it keeps toys out of his mouth, but I also dread the day we have to take it away.


• He LOVES his big brother! While playing on the floor he always makes his way over to Isaac to see what he is doing. His face lights up when he sees Isaac after a nap or in the morning, whenever they've been separated for a while.


• Peek a boo is his favorite game, the boy belly laughs when you play that game!


• Kisses are also a favorite, they make him smile and he always wants more.


• He is ticklish! Under his neck and on his legs are the best spots!


• Inchworm! He is my inchworm...he doesn't officially crawl, he inches his way across the floor, getting everywhere he wants to go!


• This week we started taking away the 10:00 PM feeding, and so far he is doing just fine without it!


• When playing, he prefers to be on the floor rather than in his exersaucer or contained in something.


• If there are people over to play with he will fight his naps, he does not want to miss a thing!


• He can say, Dada! I am waiting anxiously for him to say mama, but I sure love hearing his little voice say Dada!


• He is very observant, he watches everything very closely. And when someone new comes around he studies them intensely, before he will relax and smile.


• He knows what he wants, and is sure to tell you about it.


• When he wants to play or is having a great time he shakes his head back and forth with a huge smile on his face! I can't help but smile when I see this!

I love my little guy so much, he brings me such joy! I am so thankful that God has trusted me to be his Mama!

No More Mama and Me Class

Singing/Dancing to Wheels on the Bus (one of his favorite songs).

Stretching...uh oh, I'm scared he has inherited my flexibility or should I say my lack of flexibility.

Learning to walk in line was a little difficult, he is used to running freely to the next station.

A BIG smile after class when I asked him if he had fun.

Yesterday was my big boy's first gymnastics class all by himself; not only his first gymnastics class all by himself, but his first any kind of class all by himself. We talked a lot about it in the days leading up to the class because he also had a new coach, and I didn't want him caught off guard by that. Isaac never had any concerns about me not helping him in the class, but he did say multiple times that Kristin, his best friend's (and classmate's) mom, was going to help him. I think that's so funny, he sure loves her!
Well, my big boy was just that, a big boy! He didn't hesitate a bit when it was time to start class; he walked right over to the coach and started doing what she said. He didn't even look back...tear. I was so proud of him for not hesitating, I'm so glad he felt so comfortable and confident, but also a little sad that my big boy was so grown up. He had moments of disobeying, he would randomly run off a little bit, but he always came right back when called. He did so well listening to the coach and her instructions, he watched intently as she spoke. He was fearless and full of joy!
It was hard to sit back and watch, not being able to step in to help, encourage, or discipline, but I know he needs this, and I'm SO proud of him for doing so great! After class when I'd ask what he did in gymnastics he always mentioned that whatever he did he had done it all by himself. It is so fun watching him grow up and become confident and independent. I'm so excited for my little gymnast and the fun times that lie ahead for him.