Thanksgiving 2012

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with food and family. This was Matt and my fourth year to host Thanksgiving in our home. It's a tradition we plan to continue. My parents were out of town this year, but we still had a house full of family. My grandparents and aunt drove up on Wednesday. I was glad they could come a little early and entertain Nathan so I could get some last minute cooking done.

Thursday morning, Matt's parents and sister drove up to join us. It was weird not having my mom around to help with the cooking- the turkey especially, but Granny was a big help, and I was able to do a lot of prep work the day before, so all the cooking went smoothly. I miss Granny being around though. I'd throw dirty dishes in the sink, and they would magically disappear :).

We watched the parade and played with Nathan Thursday morning.

Matt did a great job carving the turkey for the first time.

We had lots of yummy food, and Nathan and I are still finishing up the leftovers.

Nathan enjoyed his first Thanksgiving feast since he wasn't eating table food last year.

And he loved trying cheesecake for the first time.

We spent the rest of Thursday relaxing. We worked a puzzle, played with Nathan, took naps, and watched some football.

Friday morning Matt made breakfast for everyone

Nathan was cute eating his breakfast burrito like a big boy.  My grandparents and aunt had to leave shortly after breakfast.

Later that morning we headed to the zoo for a little bit.

I think the zoo is one of Nathan's favorite places in the world. I'm glad we get to take him fairly often.

Matt's parents headed home after lunch, and Matt and I relaxed for a while Friday afternoon and then picked up my parents from the airport that night. We had a great Thanksgiving. It's crazy that next year there will be another high chair at the Thanksgiving table! We have so much to be thankful for.

Missing Daddy

Matt is in France this week for work. We have been trying to stay busy while he is gone, but Nathan and I are both missing him a lot. Matt traveled quite a bit this summer, and while I could tell Nathan knew something was different, he was really too young to know what was going on. This week though, Nathan definitely knows that Daddy is gone, and I can tell he misses him so much, and it just breaks my heart.

Every time we pull into the garage, Nathan sees Matt's car and smiles, points at it and says Daddy. He thinks Daddy is home since his car is. He's even gone looking for Matt all over the house after he sees his car. It's so sad, but at the same time, my heart is full of thankfulness that Matt is such a good Daddy to his little boy and that Nathan loves him so much.

As a wife and a mother it is a joy to watch their relationship. Matt makes so many sacrifices for both of us everyday and I'm even more aware of those when he is gone for the week. He's never too tired after work to push Nathan on the swings, give him shoulder rides and piggy back rides, read books, and spin him around in circles.

In my career field, I've seen too many children without an involved father or any sort of male role model in their lives, and I'm just so grateful that Nathan has such a strong, godly role model in his Daddy, and I'm blessed to be walking through this journey of parenthood with Matt by my side.

I appreciate everything Matt does for our family everyday of the year, but especially when he is away, I realize even more what a gift he is to me, Nathan and Baby Brother.

We are all ready to be reunited.  I can't wait to see Nathan's face light up when he sees his Daddy at the airport on Saturday.

18 Months Old

Nathan, You are 18 months old... halfway to 2! You continue to bring such joy to our family. Every night when Daddy gets home from work, I have lots of stories to tell him about you and all the funny and sweet things you are doing.

Being outside is definitely one of your favorite things. I know you're going to have a rough time this winter when we can't go outside as often. You love to slide and swing. You figured out how to slide on your bottom and do it a million times a day when we are outside.

During our walks in the evenings, we almost always stop at the neighborhood playground and let you swing. You look so big swinging in a big kid swing. Whenever we walk past the path leading to the playground, you'll point and get so excited about swinging.

Your favorite toys right now are books and puzzles. I'm always impressed at how much better you are getting at putting puzzles together by yourself. I rarely have to help you. You love reading books and we read them often throughout the day. You are also really into bubbles and we blow those everyday too. We keep them in a bucket in your room, and you'll find them and bring them to me when you want to play with them. You go straight to the kitchen and even pull out the kitchen chair I sit in when we blow bubbles.

Mommy and Daddy's bed is such a fun place to play. I usually turn on one of your shows in the morning and you'll watch it and drink your milk while I get ready for the day. You look so sweet with your head propped up on our pillows cuddling your Elmo and watching TV in the mornings.

Our daily routine varies throughout the week, but we try and keep a pretty consistent schedule. You'll wake up around 7:00 and drink a cup of milk and watch TV for about 30 minutes, while I get ready. You eat breakfast between 7:30 and 8:00 and we usually have a little down time to play before I get you dressed for the day. We usually have some sort  of activity or errands in the mornings so we can get out of the house.
On Mondays we usually grocery shop in the morning and then go to Storytime at the library.
On Tuesdays we leave the house around 9:00 for Bible study and get home at lunchtime.
Wednesdays we go to Storytime again at the library.
You have school all day on Thursdays.
Fridays we usually have errands to run and sometimes have lunch out with friends.
You eat lunch around 11:30 and then go down for your nap between 12:30 and 1:00.
You wake up around 3:00 or so and have a snack. The time between when you wake up from your nap and Daddy getting home is sometimes an awkward time of day. Sometimes you'll watch Sesame Street and we'll play outside or in your room. It always just feels like a waiting game for Daddy to get home. You are usually hungry and sometimes not in the best mood.
We eat dinner shortly after Daddy gets home and then go for a walk each night. Then it's time for a bath, and we'll play in your room after your bath (usually puzzles and books) until bedtime which is around 8:00.

You are continuing to become more verbal and are starting to use your words to communicate your needs to us. This month you started saying Papa. I love the way you say it, and Papa Joe just glows whenever he hears you. Grammy is still jealous you haven't said her name yet. Whenever I ask you to say it, you just put your hands up like you are saying, "I don't know" or you'll point to her. You also started saying bye-bye, banana, and juice. You favorite words right now are Momma, ball, bubbles, and up.

You are a climber. Whenever I have the step stool out, you head right for it and climb up and down countless times. You know how to climb on the couch and onto our kitchen chairs too.

At your 18 month checkup you weighed 25lbs 12oz (50%) and were 31in long (25%). You are wearing 18-24month clothing and a size 5 diaper.

Your sleep schedule continues to be consistent sleeping about 11 hours each night and taking a 2 hour nap in the afternoon. You fall asleep really well by yourself. I LOVE bedtime with you. It's always been one of my favorite times of the day, even when you were a tiny baby. You are just so sweet in your jammies and we cuddle and read books and pray together before I put you in your crib. I let you choose a book to take to bed with you and leave the lamp on so you can read before you fall asleep.

Elmo goes most places with us. You carried him all over the zoo on Saturday. You clap his hands together and I caught you giving him a drink of your milk the other day too. I think it's precious how you carry him around and cuddle with him.

You also love to throw balls. You squeal and say "ba, ba" every time you see one. You started kicking your soccer ball this month too. You throw Rhapsody's balls for her to fetch too

You are such a sweet boy, and I find myself constantly feeling so blessed to be able to stay home and spend so much time with you each day. I've realized just in the last month how quickly you are growing up and changing. It's a joy to get to experience all the milestones with you, precious boy.

Halloween 2012

We had such a fun Halloween! Children make holidays so much more special and fun.

Nathan got to wear his costume to Storytime at the library on Monday. I was thankful he got several opportunities to wear it, especially on Wednesday night when I got a little sad putting it away in his closet.

For Halloween my parents church hosted a fun Trunk or Treat, and we decided to take our little puppy dog there. He's still a little small to go door to door, but the Trunk or Treat was perfect for him. We snapped a few pictures before we left.

I know I'm biased because he's mine, but I just can't get over how adorable he is. He melts my heart.

Nathan wanted to play in the Jupiter Jump at the church. We got there before it was really crowded, so he could play and not be overrun with older kids. He kept pointing at it all night wanting to get back in.

He got lots of candy to put in his pumpkin and even played a few games (well, sort of). He had a great time.

After the Trunk or Treat we stopped by a couple of friends' houses who live close to us, and let Nathan trick or treat. Once we got home, we also went to a couple of neighbors who we knew would want to see Nathan. He was a worn out puppy dog by the end of the night, but we all had a great time and made some sweet memories.

Fall Weekend

 We had a great weekend full of so many fun things!

Friday, Nathan helped me bake a birthday cake for Papa Joe. 

He is such a good helper :). We also went out to lunch with a friend, and I baked a batch of cookies during his nap. It was a fun Friday.

That night, my parents' neighborhood hosted a fun Halloween event for kids and we took Nathan. It was pretty chilly, but thankfully his adorable puppy costume kept him warm.

We laughed at him all night. He is just the cutest little boy  :). He had fun trying to play all the games. They had bean bag tosses, fishing, duck pond, golfing, and a few others. Nathan did his best at all the games. He was proud of himself for putting the bean bags in the bucket and loved picking up the ducks and getting to pick out candy to put in his pumpkin.

I bought him that pumpkin at Target last week, and it has become his favorite toy. He carries it around everywhere and puts all his toys in it.

Papa Joe was proud of his golfing skills

 

Saturday morning, my sweet husband got up with Nathan and let me sleep in. Then he offered to take Nathan and me out to breakfast. He earned major brownie points Saturday morning :). We went out to eat at one of our favorite breakfast places and then ran to the mall to pick up a couple of things. We let Nathan play at the play area too. We got to the mall just as it opened and the play area was nearly empty, so Nathan had a great time. Usually it's packed with a lot of older kids, so it's stressful for everyone, but this time Nathan played for a long time. He is getting so independent and just does everything by himself. We've been noticing how he'll take more time trying to figure out how to do something himself before he comes and ask for help.

 

We went over to my parents' house for lunch on Saturday to celebrate Barry's birthday and watch the OSU game. Barry grilled steak for lunch. They were delicious, and the OSU game turned out pretty good too!

Saturday night after the game, we invited some friends over to play games. We had a fun night playing Cranium and Apples to Apples and visiting with our friends. We watched the end of the OU/Notre Dame game too.

Sunday was a pretty normal day- church, lunch, and naps. We needed milk, so we ran to Braums for dinner and spent the rest of the night playing with Nathan. After he went to bed, Matt and I got caught up on a few of our favorite TV shows from the week.

I love Fall weekends with my little family!