One Year (a few days late)

G turned one on Saturday and Ivan and I spent the whole day whispering to each other "can you believe we have a one year old?",  "How did he get this big already?", "Weren't we just taking him home from the hospital yesterday?"

G has changed so much in the last year and even in the last few months. He's definitely changed from baby to little boy.  Here are some of his recent endeavors:

• G weighed in at a whopping 24lbs and 32.5 inches at his 1 year appt.
• G is eating mostly table food, although he still struggles with fresh fruits and veggies, his favorites are cheese, rice and waffles.
• He has recently learned how to throw things, which is great when you're talking about balls, not so great when you're talking about lunch.
• G loves to climb...the stairs...the furniture....his toys, even over you if you so happen to be in the middle of floor between him and whatever toy he wants. 
• G has 8 teeth and could possibly be working on a 9th given the buckets of drool he produces each day.
• He hasn't quite taken his first steps yet, but is getting better and better at walking behind his push toys and standing on his own.  (the Dr. attributes this with him being a boy, he says males typically tend to develop slower, which I find hard to believe since G has busted through the all other developmental milestones, he's just decided to take his time with this one)
• And lastly my favorite!  He's started to enjoy books!  and most importantly he'll sit still long enough for you to get through a few pages as well as point to various pictures on the pages.

 not so sure about this whole birthday thing

"hey it's actually kind of good!"

it's not so bad being one!

On Younger Siblings - Having Them and Being One

I received a frantic text from a friend the other day:

"Whats this about you moving to England?? How could you? Don't make me come over there and stop you!!" I responded with a "what are you talking about?  who told you that?" 

Turns out she was hanging out with my younger siblings and had been told some bad information.  I sighed and thought..."darn those kids, misinformed as usual".  I pictured them in my head, spouting off random bits of half truths and wondered where in the world they came up with this stuff.  But the more I thought about it over the next few days I wondered really...where did they come up with this stuff?  It is something I once said to them?  are they really that out of touch with my life?  Wait a minute....am I really that out of touch with my younger siblings? 

To be honest I don't keep in regular contact with my youngest siblings (or any siblings for that matter) I love them all dearly, but now that we're all grown up it seems that life gets in the way.  The funny thing is that I remember how it feels to be in their shoes.  To be always one step behind your older siblings, you finally get to a point in your life where you feel you've caught up, only to realize they've already moved onto the next step.  Yay! I graduated highschool....what? you're in college now?  ok..college done...wait a minute..married? ok married check!  what! kids?  oh man this is gonna take a while.  and so on and so forth.  

I used to crave the attention and time of my older brothers.  Considered any quality time spent with them super cool, I would hang on every word and nothing would make me prouder than a compliment from them.  I respected them and looked up to them (and still do for that matter)

Now I know what you must be thinking....I am awful vain if I think that my younger siblings think of me this way.  If anything I feel myself viewed as the older sister who has no time for them.  So why is it that time spent with older siblings is a prize and time with younger siblings a burden?   What is it about younger siblings that makes them "less cool" than older siblings.  Is it the lack of experience?  The fact that their bedtime is earlier than yours?

That's the great thing about growing up, the playing field is leveled and now everyone has the same curfew and rules and everyone has their own life experiences to bring to the table.  As adults we finally realize that a few years age difference has no significance whatsoever and that people younger than us can actually be smarter (or cooler) than us. 

So please excuse me while I go get over myself and finally call my younger siblings.

Chapstick

I cleaned out my bathroom/bedroom today and discovered I may have a slight addiction.....

Photo Shoot Fail

we attempted to get G's one year photos done today.  We had never gone and gotten them done professionally before and figured now that he was a year it was about time. However between a cranky nap-deprived baby and a pushy photographer things went down hill quickly.  Here are my words of advice to those of you considering a photoshoot.

1.) Schedule the first appointment of the day.  Even though we scheduled an appointment we had to wait almost an hour to get in.  They're were only two studios and several people in line before us.  Needless to say G was already cranky by the time we started shooting.

2.) Schedule your photoshoot inbetween naps, or make sure you're baby is well rested.....enough said

3.) Tell your photographer not to dangle toys in front of your baby's face in an attempt to get him to smile.  It's only going to make him crabby because he can't actually get his hands on those toys.

4.) If your photographer is going to stick your baby in a chair, make sure they are close enough at all times to catch your child if they suddenly fall out of said chair....yes this happened...lets just say things went to pot quickly after that.

5.) Know when your baby is done, don't try to get him to take anymore pictures, otherwise you'll find yourself staring at proof sheets of lots and lots of tears.

6.) skip the studio and take your pictures at home where your baby is comfortable and happy...that's how you want to remember them right?

anyways, enough of my ranting, we did get a few decent shots...something that will make the grandparents happy :) 

isn't his little sweater vest adorable?  he's going to wear it to his 

dedication this month so it wasn't a complete waste :)

Cake Pop Fail

 sad sad cross-eyed little monkey

 The Motley Crew

Cake Pops are apparently all the rage in the baking world, so I of course had to try them, and of course for my first attempt I couldn't go for an easy option.  I had to go all out and try to make monkeys.......sigh.  Perhaps I won't be serving these at G's party next month. (if you want to see what a really good cake pop looks like go here)

April Update

A few recent happenings....

Ivan - applied for a Lead's position at work and got it! which means that instead of being responsible for just himself each night he will be supervising ~ 25 guys and their work.  This position comes with a lot more responsibility and stress, a slight pay increase and a whole lot of good experience.  At the moment his schedule is still the same but could change come May (still 3rd shift though...boo)

Lisa - while Ivan is progressing in his career I will be taking a break from mine!  I've been planning on quitting my job for some time now and finally came to a decision that I feel at peace about.  I will be leaving in either May or June (depending on Ivan's schedule) and I am so looking forward to taking the summer off and spending a lot more quality time with my boys!  The plan is to spend the summer chilling, traveling and visiting family and then come the fall, look for something part time.

G - will be one in two weeks!  How did this happen?  I feel like I blinked and he went from this little baby to a little boy!  He constantly amazes us with things he's learned and is always making us laugh.  This little guy is only still when sleeping, learning to feed himself with a spoon, and almost walking,

In General - in a few short weeks we will be blessed with visits from not only my parents but Ivan's as well!  we are looking forward to three full weeks of grandma's homemade food and lots of chilling with the grandpa's.  During this time we are also planning a small birthday bash for G and hopefully getting him dedicated while both sets of grandparents are here. 

well that's all for now

Lisa


p.s. I finally got my ergo!! I am so excited to try this out!  so far we've only taken it out twice and we're still learning which position works best for G and I as well as how to work out all the straps, I'm hoping it will help us out this summer on our vacation.  I'll let you know how it goes.....

Growing up too Fast

4 Months

5 Months

7 Months

Today - 11 Months