busy...busy...busy...

a quick photo update on our busy,busy, busy boy!!

Taking daily baths like a good boy who plays so hard all day!

Loves opening and closing doors in all of his free time!

And we are.....

Off!!! Walking like a champ!

Spending lots of time reading. This boy loves books!

And of course, climbing on everything!

 

 

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Update Status, What's on your mind?

Facebook. Status Update. How many times do you update in one day? Totally random but I was thinking about this in the shower today. Some days I want to update my status like 296 times with all of the remarkable things that happen to me. Talk about "You're so vain" you probably think Facebook is about you.

Here is the thing. I have settled on the following status "...is blessed." It fits the space that the 296 updates would have. But what I really mean is:

• My baby is so freakin' cool!!! He sleeps 15 hours at night and cuddles and talks and says mama when he wants to talk to me and rocks my face off. I love him a million gagillion times to infinity and back and I live for the time we spend together.He is SO cool.
• My husband works so hard for our family and is an incredible provider. Even though we are a total team, I appreciate how much he goes above and beyond for us. We are so lucky.
• They ran my credit at the car dealership and it was top tier! Hell yeah!!! Talk about battling back to the top of the ranks after years of bad financial decisions. If that doesn't make you feel like an adult, I don't know what will!
• My job is incredible. I could not ask for a better place to work.
• This mom of a very busy one year old is in the pool close to five days a week and stronger than ever.
• My sister lives with me. So cool. Ace gets extra love and attention all the time!
• I am down 30 pounds!
• one two Kalamazoo
• Proud Democrat! Thank goodness for my Midwestern friends who are updating their statuses as is too! Sorry Mittens, I have Barak's back.
• Has the most rockin support system of a family. Couldn't ask for better.
• Food allergies and vomit...who cares. Things could be so much worse. Thanking God for good health and praying for all of those who are suffering.
• Pinterest causes me anxiety. I can't be perfect and I don't have time to do all of the projects that I have pinned. But, I do have time to read to my son, hug my husband for longer than two seconds, and I work full time and manage to get dinner on the table by six at least five nights a week.
• I am a good mom.  Scratch that. I am a GREAT Mom.

So...I can be vain and make this blog about me. After all, it is mine. I took the time to write it. And, the thing is, we are all blessed. We just need to take the time to stop and realize it sometimes. Write it down and feel good about it.

That's all.

Eleven Months!

Ace,

In just four days you will turn a year old. Today is actually the day you were due to arrive last year. I can hardly believe a year has almost gone by! This past month has been fantastic! You had so many milestone moments take place and we have been super busy doing all kinds of fun things!

A tropical storm passed by Savannah but that didn't stop us from having fun! We took you out to to Tybee for your very first trip to the beach! With 30 seconds of sitting down you were already eating sand. You loved the water, loved the waves and loved Huca Poos pizza even more! The next weekend, the same thing happened! Another tropical storm passed through. We took you to the beach and you played in the water! Even though it was really windy, we still had a great time!

Your one year molars made their appearance this month! Miss Penny noticed them first and then before we knew it, two were popping through! This brings your tooth total to 10!! You have way more teeth than about 90% of the other babies in your room. This has been a huge challenge this month because you are biting up a storm! We have tried separating you, giving you something you can bite and telling you no. Nothing is really working. You did get bit last week though and I am hoping a taste of your own medicine might help this problem out!

Ace, you finally started crawling this month! I came to see you in your classroom and it was almost as if on cue you just started to go. No army crawling for you, little fella. You were up on all fours like a little bear cub trying to walk for the first time. It was adorable. Within a week and a half of your first try, you turned into a little speed racer. You are all over the place now. You can crawl, roll, and sit up and pull up to get anything you want! Dixie is thrilled!! The other day I came to get you after work and when you saw me you sprint crawled across the room!! So cool!

We have been taking you swimming at the pool every chance we get. We actually joined the pool in our neighborhood so you can play with the other little buddies who live close to us too! You and Garrett are going to have such fun there this summer! We got you a float to sit in and you walk all around the pool like you are in a walker. Mr. Social Butterfly visits all of the other people in the pool and talks and plays. You also have a love of the big pool and know to kick when you are on your back and belly! I just know you are going to be a great swimmer! Seeing you swim might be my most favorite thing ever!

You mastered the sippy cup this month and love eating dinner at the table with Mommy and Daddy. You spend the time telling us all about your day. You say "na-na", "daaaaa", "da-da", "ba-ba" and "zz-ZZZZ!!!" You can guess that the last sound you make is what you do when you are trying to get Dixie's attention. You love her more than anything else! She loves you in her own way but especially loves you now that you purposefully drop food down from your highchair for her! That only took 361 days!!

Ace....I am going to always treasure all of these milestones and firsts! I live for the weekends when we get to hang out all day and play! You sleep a lot on the weekends to make up for your lack of naps during the week but when you are awake, you are such a joy! Everyone compliments how happy you are and how cute your smile is! You make me so proud everyday.

I love you so much, angel!

Love,

Mommy

Ten!!

Ace,

You are ten months old! Ten fingers to show how many months old!

Your tenth month was full of challenges and firsts. First, you got a really bad ear infection. We tried two types of antibiotics and then antibiotic shots. This meant you had a really upset tummy and bad diaper rash too. After the shots failed to work, we tried yet another antibiotic and an ENT appointment. During all of this, mommy had to go out of town for work and you and Daddy stayed back. You were so sick!! For almost five days your threw up after you ate, would hardly eat or drink and were pretty miserable. Daddy had to take  you to work with him at 4:30AM because you were too sick to go to school and Mommy wasn't home.

Finally, we got in to see an ENT. Dr. Poole saw us on Thursday and scheduled you to get tubes on Friday. Your ears were so bad!! We went to Memorial Hospital early Friday morning  and you were so brave! The nurses fell in love with you and walked you up and down the hallways greeting everyone! Your little surgery took about 8 minutes. Dr. Poole said your ears were so bad that they looked like bagels and that if we had waited any longer your ears drums might have burst! The morning was a little rough and you were uncomfortable but by the afternoon, you were a new kid!
Within a week of getting the tubes you could sit up by yourself and even pull up! It was obvious you were just miserable before the tubes went it! Your smile got brighter and you seemed so much happier!

This month we took you to the Tall Ships Festival downtown and you even got to tour a tugboat! The captain let you sit in the big captain's chair and get your picture taken! You started sitting up in your crib and when I pick you up in the morning you are usually in there clapping and playing!  You started eating lots of big boy meals like pancakes, grilled cheese, quesadillas, steamed veggies, avocados with beans and so much more! You are super adventurous eater and will try anything! We went to Charleston to celebrate Spencer's 3rd birthday and you went on your first pony ride too! Your best friend Garrett turned one and you also had a great time at his party! 

This month has been so much fun! You have been biting kids at school, which is a major problem, but I think it is just your way of communicating that you don't like people in  your space. Your social skills are incredible and you smile and talk to everyone. You LOVE to read!  I really love to watch you sit and flip through the pages of a book and talk about it as you go!

Ace, you are getting more awesome by the second! I can't wait to see where month eleven takes us!

I love you a bushel and a peck!

Love,

Mommy

How to Miss a Childhood...

I came across this blog tonight during my evening Pinterest exploration. Needless to say, it made me want to go "bump the crib" and cuddle my sweet Ace. I am guilty of checking email, Facebook or other distractions during the precious time my sweet angel is awake and it makes me sad. This mom makes some really good points. Points I am promising to listen too.

http://www.handsfreemama.com/?p=3942

this summer vs. last summer

i was just working on uploading some photos of Ace's first trip to the pool at the Y and came across this picture. it makes me smile because it makes me look like a total mom. last summer Ace was in my tummy in the big pool swimming laps and this summer we are going to be sitting together in the baby pool. i love being a mom and i will take looking like a mom any day!

Last summer's mom picture...

9 and oh so fine...

My Sweet Angel Ace,

Tomorrow you will turn ten months old. Double digit months. Two number months. How did this happen??? You were so tiny and new and brand new just yesterday. Someone must have accidentally hit the fast forward button because there is no way that time can possibly go this fast!

The month you were nine months old was one of my favorites. Your little personality is developing more and more each day and you are the absolute best thing in mine and daddy’s lives. You greet us each morning with  a full body dance party and a belly full of giggles. This is the same smile, giggle, body dance that you share with others all through the day. You bring smiles and joy to every person you come in contact with. It never fails that when we take you out shopping or walking or really anywhere that you make new friends and people want to hear all about you. You even had a sweet lady call you “Juicy” this month! Our encounters with strangers usually go like this; “Oh he is so cute! How old is he?”. This is followed by our response, “Thank you! He is nine months old.” Their response, “Ohhhhhhhhh he sure is a big boy!!”  This has earned you some new nicknames this month including “Juice” and “Baby Giant”.

You got two more teeth this month taking your grand total up to 8! I have to schedule a dentist appointment for you in the next few weeks because you have SOO many teeth. Like all of your other teeth, you barely made a peep as they were breaking though the surface. You are pretty tough! Although you still aren’t crawling, you manage to get all around by rolling over and over to get what you want. You have also managed to learn how to scoot yourself around in a circle if you need to change directions with your roll. You spend a lot of time trying to roll under furniture. I don’t think it will be long before you actually get up and go but for now we are ok with your rolling.

This month you completely mastered patty cake. Spent a whole week with Gigi while she was here for a visit. Got your first ear infection which has been really AWFUL.  Went to your first football game and loved it. You clapped and watched the whole game. Uncle Stu said we need to start shopping you around to schools already! Tried watermelon, pineapple and cheese for the first time. Went through four different types of sippy cups and you still don’t like any of them. Celebrated your first Easter and loved the plastic Easter eggs in your basket. Weighed 25.2 pounds and measured 30 inches in length at your well baby visit. And…the highlight for mama, learned to waive bye-bye. Your bye-bye is the best best best best best thing in the world! I think I love it so much because it is your own little way of communicating.

Your ninth month was one of the best ones ever! As you learn more things and pay attention to more and more things I know they are only going to get better. You are so smart and silly and have the best qualities from your dad and me. You have a little temper which I am sure came from me but you rarely throw fits, cry or give anyone any trouble.

I almost forgot. I want to remember how you stretch your neck to see things that are just almost out of your line of sight. And how you peek around the walls to see who is coming in the room. And how you open your eyes real big while you are doing these things as if that will help you see a little bit better.

I love you so much, Ace! Here we go to the 10^th month!

Love,

Mom

8 and oh so great!

Ace,

Here we are at the beginning of the last week of you being 8 months! Time is FLYING by and we are enjoying every minute of it.

You are such a social, happy little person. You giggle with your whole body and laugh at the most random things. Last week  you learned how to fake cough and every time I faked your cough, you cracked up! Your smile lights up a room and you smile at just about everybody who looks at you. You even had your picture taken with Mr. Randy for the YMCA Annual report. Ace, you are all business when it comes to being cute!

You are eating finger foods now and are a pro at getting food into your mouth. You have mastered puffs, mum-mum cookies, bananas and most recently toast. You like to hit the food and move it all around your tray before trying to eat it. We will work to add more and more things to your list of foods since you are so good at eating just about anything. This morning we weighed and you are a solid 25 pounds which is larger than several 2-year-olds we know!

For the last few weeks you have been sleeping mostly on your belly. This created a new problem because now you wake up with wet jammies after 12 hours of sleep. Even when we change your diaper at 10 you fill it up before morning. We had to buy you size 5 night time diapers and they seem to be capable of keeping you dry until morning. I have also found you peeking over the bumper and under the bumper of your crib when you are waiting for mommy or daddy to come and get you out of bed.

You are still not crawling but you are rocking. You even started rocking in your jump jump which makes me worry that it is going to collapse! When you can't reach something that you want you will roll to it but you are starting to not hate being on your tummy so much. I bet by this time next month you will be crawling.

Ace, you are quite the little talker, too. You jibber jabber to yourself in the mornings and I really enjoy listening to you through the monitor. You say "ma ma ma mama" and "buh buh buh" and "ba ba ba". I told daddy today that I am positive that "da da" will be next. On the way to work the other morning you were even singing along to the radio in the backseat. You don't seem to be identifying anyone with your little words but they sure sound cute coming out!

The weather is getting warmer so we will be spending more and more time outside in the coming months. We spent pretty much all day outside on Tybee yesterday for the parade and you loved it. I am looking forward to watching you explore the world!

I love you so much, Ace!

Love,

Mommy

7

Ace,

Here we are at seven months. This is really bad but I actually got really behind writing your monthly letters and now here we are, the night before you turn eight months old, and I am finally catching up. There is so much I want to capture about you at this age. Thank goodness I write in your journal every night to help us remember!

You are such a big boy, Ace! At seven months old, you are wearing 12-18 month clothes and size 4 diapers! You only have two sizes left before they don't make diapers in your size so I hope your growth slows down soon. Last week you weighed 23.5 pounds and you are solid. You are a super good eater and you now eat broccoli, carrots, blueberries, avocados, mangoes,summer squash and so much more. You love Mum Mum cookies and can pick up the little puffs like a pro. You are so big that you now sit in the big boy car seat in the car because your feet were hanging over your baby seat! Daddy also hung a really fun swing in the backyard for you and you love that too! See, being big has some advantages!

When 7:00 PM rolls around, we had better be near your bed. Like a little clock, you are ready to sleep at 7 and have been sleeping until 8-8:30 am! I still get you up for your night time bottle and to change your diaper but you go right back to sleep. You can also sleep anywhere. We had an overnight in Spartanburg, SC this month for Paige and Austin's wedding and you let Aunt Pat put you to sleep without a problem.  Napping is still a challenge to you and you have been taking more naps this month with mom and dad holding you than ever before. There have also been a few times when we have found  you asleep on your tummy so you are starting to roll around at night more. When we go to get you out of your crib in the morning you are all smiles and make a dance party with your whole body in excitement to see us! This is my favorite part of the day.

As far as your mobility goes...well, let's just say that your whole world is about jumping. If you could get around the rest of your life like a kangaroo, you would be set! Anytime your feet are touching something you can get leverage from, you jump. This includes the bathtub, mom and dad's lab, etc! You even bounce in the sitting position. You even think your walker is for jumping and jump and move backwards all over the house! You are also a really good roller and will roll to get what you want. I think you might be one of the kids who skips crawling all together.

This month you had really bad diaper rash that required you to have a lot of pants off parties. We still are not sure what caused it but we found out about clemoseptine so we are armed and dangerous now! You also got RSV which is a really dangerous cold for a little person. Dr. Stone let you play hooky from daycare for a whole week! You are still recovering but I am glad it wasn't any worse.

Ace, you are such a super fun kid. Your smile is contagious and you laugh from your belly. Your personality is huge and your character is sweet and charming. Each day you are learning and doing more and more new things. Watching you watch the world is the coolest thing in the whole world! I live for the weekends when we get to spend two whole days together.

Daddy and I love you so much, Ace!

Love,

Mommy

Halfway to a Year!

Ace,

You are a half of a year old. How did that happen? It seems like we just blinked our eyes and here we are a half of year as  your parents. Honestly, it has been the best six months of our lives.

This month was very very busy for you. On top of it being busy, Savannah has been experiencing record breaking heat! There have been days when you were just in your shirt sleeves and we have had to turn the air conditioning on. It has been so warm that even OG and Grampy are having a lack of snow at their house. So much for your snow suit!

During your sixth month we celebrated your very first Christmas. We made the long drive to Indiana/Michigan for the second time in your short life! We spent time with all of our great grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles and cousins. You were such a good boy and enjoyed all of the attention. You and I spent an extra week in Michigan and you got to meet lots of my friends, too. You were asleep at midnight on New Year's Eve but enjoyed playing with your cousins that night before you went to bed. We had a great visit and Aunt Biz even came back to Georgia with us!

You got not one, not two, not three but FOUR of your top teeth in the same week while we were in Michigan. True to your sweet and laid back self, you never let out a peep. With all of these teeth you now require a tooth brush!  We have to get you off on the right foot with  your dental hygiene. You are also a big growing boy! At your sixth month appointment you weighed in at 21 pounds 13 ounces and were 28 inches long!

Daddy started a new job this month which will for sure make a huge impact on your life. Not only is it a big promotion for him but he will be home a lot more than he was before. This is awesome! Right before he started this new job he got really sick and Uncle Stu had to babysit  you so mommy could take Daddy to the hospital. You were a really great little buddy for your very first babysitter!

The highlight of this month for me that stands out above everything was your very first swim! We took you to the pool at our hotel on Christmas Eve and your LOVED it. It was as if you knew that all the time I was pregnant with you that we were swimming. We laid you on your back you were not even scared. I know this will be the start of a life long love of the water and that makes me so happy!

Can't wait to see what the second half of this year brings us!

Love,

Mommy