17 months

Every month, when the day flips to the 28th and Lincoln turns another month older, I'm reminded just how quickly he is growing up. This past weekend I got to lay my eyes on a tiny 2 month old and I was re-wound to our past. Lincoln sure has grown and developed over these past 17 months. He's our precious-destructive-sweet baby boy and we love him so very much. 

It's been a busy month for him, as I look back. Another ear infection, a trip to the audiologist and another to our beloved ENT, then back to the pediatrician for pre-op all to prep for his upcoming surgery later this week. 

In between all the racing around town, he spent as much time as possible playing outside. He has a love for fresh air like none other. He also still loves books and balls. He is my little helper and often follows me around with his pint sized Swiffer or mini vacuum; and sits perched beside me in the kitchen as I cook. I will make a good husband out of him someday! 

Other tidbits of life at 17 months: 

*he's lacking a lot of talking, though we have been assured this is most likely due to fluid build-up. His mama/dada is often "ya-ya". He can say "hot" and "cuck" (aka: truck) which pretty much refers to anything that moves. Despite this, he gets his needs wants. He does a lot of pointing, a lot of grunting and even a lot of whining. He's got a pretty obvious head shake "no" and uses it constantly!
*he's a terrible sleeper, many nights we see every hour on the clock because he's rolling around and fussing. Again, I'm pretty hopeful this will improve after the next surgery. We haven't let him sleep a full night in his crib because I'm certain he would wake up the entire house at 1 hour intervals. No thank you.
* he can throw a pretty good temper tantrum and responds pretty well if we prepare a transition with warnings (ie: 1 more time), distraction (snacks work well) or a lot of laughing/giggling.
* he is sweet and snuggly and loves to tease us. He will run towards us for a hug and then just before he gets to our arms, he will quickly turn around and laugh as he runs the other direction.
* he is in LOVE with being outside. I cannot say it enough. He loves the sandbox, the slide, the swing, balls, the neighbors dogs, ride on trikes, his red car and just letting the sun hit his face. He could live every waking hour outside. And I am in love with the way his sun-kissed cheeks smell after hours in the fresh air.
* he eats what he wants and is constantly demanding jelly bread (thanks Grandma Jan for that one!). I fondly remember my own grandmother serving me jelly bread so it makes me smile to know my mom introduced him to the same yummy treat. Unfortunately, it's often what he wants at meal times too.
* motor skills-wise he can climb stairs (and down just a few going on his bottom), move the giddy-up horse back and forth, dance by spinning in circles and just recently shaking his hips sideways, and move a ride-on toy backwards (not forwards yet). His short chunky legs haven't allowed for him to climb up onto the couches or chairs yet and for this we are thankful because if given the chance, he opts to stand on this furniture and would for sure tumble off.

We love you messy face! 

Happy 17 months! 

belly belly belly

Our pediatrician has done this thing with our kids for as long as I can remember (over 9 years now!). Whenever she has to check out their bellies, she will say "belly belly belly", in a silly quick voice. It always makes them giggle and she can finish her check-list of their head to toe assessment. Now, as Lincoln is working towards learning his body parts and he was really gaining interest in his "belly belly belly". The other night, he darted off when I was trying to get his jammies on so we let him run for a bit in just his diaper. Soon, he came around the corner, trying to look over his big belly to find that belly button. 

And boy was he curious! He stood with his finger in there for a very long time, going back and forth from looking at his belly to smiling back at me. I love watching his face as he discovers something new, even if it is something so everyday like his "belly belly belly". 

Ice show debut

Regan and Sidney have been taking ice skating lessons for a few sessions now. Last year they came in on the tail end and when the ice show time came, we opted out because of over-scheduling. Fast forward to this year, when both girls got wind of the show again and just had to give it a try. And so, we obliged, paid the outrageous fee for 3 extra classes (only THREE to learn an entire song) and a couple of adorable costumes. 

Sidney was in the "Frozen" number and Regan in "Aladdin". They were most adorable and skated their best. Unfortunately, Sidney and her class couldn't get Olaf to stay built and spent the bulk of the song arguing over what to do with him. Watch it, and I'm sure you'll get a sweet chuckle. Sid on the other hand did NOT think it was funny and insisted I talk with her coach afterwards or she wasn't going to finish out the rest of the shows. 

Click HERE to watch Sidney.
Click HERE to watch Regan.

When dad is away....

...the rest of us shall play!

Ryan had to take a week long trip to Atlanta for work last week. When I told my friend at work about his trip, she had this secret idea. And so we started making plans for a BIG surprise for the kids. The only people that knew were her, me and my mom (had to let her in on it because she was spending the week with us). My friend has an incredible service dog and she was going to trust us with him on a sleepover!!! 

Oh my, if I could have figured out how to capture the kids' faces when I walked in, you would have heard the loudest screams imaginable! Regan was on the couch and leaped off to greet us and then screamed for Sidney to come see. Oh boy was it the best scene ever. Lincoln quickly woke from his nap and all three of them raced around the house chasing Baylor as he got acquainted with his surroundings. 

Click HERE for a quick video as they went round and round in circles.

We spent the evening going for short walks outside (it was cold I'll tell you), playing catch in the back yard and eventually moved our play indoors. Baylor spent his evening following Lincoln around, catching fallen snacks and licking his fingers after dinner was done. If only he didn't shed so much, he would be our house keeper! I am so thankful that Angie trusted us to have her precious-most well behaved service dog for a sleepover. You can't ask for a more well-behaved dog!

Now why did this all happen when Ryan was out of town you ask? Well....if he was writing this post, you would get a whole different perspective. Let's just say he's not quite the dog-lover that the rest of us are :) His reaction when we sent him selfies with Baylor? Not blog appropriate. Good thing he had 4 days to get over it before we saw him in person! 

For the love of outdoors

Our little guy just loves to be outside! And good thing too because we are kind of an outdoor living kind of family. But seriously, he takes it to another level. While daddy was in Atlanta last week for work (another post), he gave Grandma Jan a run for her money begging and pleading to spend hours outside. 

The girls have asked to take him in their pink car for a few days now and we finally gave in....the verdict, he LOVES it! I think he prefers Regan behind the wheel...let's face it, Sidney is a wild driver. She and a friend crashed into the fire hydrant just down the sidewalk; a fire hydrant that hasn't moved in the 5 years we lived in this house!

Oh I can't even get over this cute-ness! 

And when he's finished in the front yard, he moves to the back yard and it's more of the same. Pointing and begging to be placed in the play set (we do not have a climber on our hands) so that he can take a slide down our super-ultra-crazy-fast slide. 

His laugh is contagious and the smile across his face is simply the BEST! He's eaten sand, dug in dirt and kicked balls around. I'm patiently waiting for him to pick up the rabbit turds spewed around the lawn and offer them as a treat! 

Yea for spring time! 

Minihaha Falls--frozen edition

Among the chaos of life, we are really trying to find the balance between moments with electronics and moments with each other. I realize that we can't go days without computers, iPods, iPhones or iPads. (well we could, but it's not very practical). And so lately, I've tried very hard at deliberately putting down my phone during family time. If I take it out, it's usually for a quick picture and then it goes back away again. 

Last weekend ,we put down all of our gadgets and headed over to Minihaha to see the frozen falls before the big melt came our way. And the falls did not disappoint! Gosh almighty it was a sight to be seen.

Regan had a friend tagging along for the afternoon and she was impressed, having never seen them flowing or frozen. The girls had a great time exploring the muddy mess. 

They tried to convince us to let them step across the ice, claiming "it's frozen!"  Not so fast girls. We could just see their shoes pushing through the ice and turning into a wet mess. 

Instead, they were content jumping from rock to rock. 

And Lincoln had oodles of fun pointing out the plethora of dogs walking the park. We love the falls and are eager to see them flowing again and head over for a picnic. 

Yea for family time! 

#5

This sweet face is on another round of antibiotics. For his FIFTH ear infection since the beginning of the year. We're in line to see his ENT again very soon. At this point, the concern is that his hearing might be affected, so we will see audiology for a hearing test first. 

But in the meantime, his adorable sisters will put flowers in his hair for as long as he will allow :)

Party day round 2

The older kids have been blessed to have both a friend and a family birthday party. And this year, Regan asked to wait on her family party so Grandma Jan and Papa would be back from Texas. She was so happy with her decision; and to be reunited after 2 l---o--n--g months apart.

And seeing as though they were coming from a warm(er) location, they brought some decorations back that just happened to fit with her luau theme....leis, flower clips and fancy surfboard shirts! 

She is pretty lucky to have had a houseful of guests all ready to celebrate her big day. More grandparents, 

a set of Godparents, 

a wild group of cousins, 

(sorry Ash, but isn't this a perfect depiction of the chaos at these parties!)

and let's not forget, a picture with mom and dad. 

We can't believe how fast she is growing up and are thankful to everyone who came to celebrate!

16 months

16 months and never slowing down. 

Seriously! 

We aren't supposed to compare our children, I know this. But in this instance, we had to pause and reflect. 

Were the girls like this?

This has to be a boy thing!

He is best described as busy, destructive. But then we know that he is feeling healthy. So it is all worth it.

One of his favorite things to do is help empty the dishwasher. He will hand you silverware piece after piece, with a grunt of "ahh" as if to say 'here you go'. But in the same moment he can empty his own kitchen tossing each item and in the blink of an eye, has created this mess.

He is so very sweet. He gives snuggles on demand or just for the love of it. And I love the way he picks at my fingernails when I hold him. Flicking them back it's like he relaxes, knowing all is right as he is held and loved. No matter the scenario, he still prefers me. The girls often whine that he needs to learn to share me. If they try to sit on my lap, or play tickle monster, you can bet he will scream and cry until they get out of his way and allow him the sole spot on my lap.

One of his favorite activities is reading books. We love how he backs up into our laps when we are sitting on the floor. Oh my this is cute. He starts off walking towards you, then at about 1-2 feet out, he turns backwards and backs up before plopping down onto your lap. And if you are lucky, he might start to read to you too...loudly uttering sounds and talking complete gibberish.

He also still loves being outside. The cold doesn't bother him much, he just wants the fresh air. We are slightly worried how he will handle spring/summer with his wild demeanor and a big body of water in our back yard. I sense it will be life vest on, all day, every day. 

He plays hard, and many days will sleep hard. We are still in the midst of twice daily naps and another 11 hours at night. When he isn't suffering an ear infection (and currently on #4 in ~2 months) he sleeps good. But when he has something causing pain, all bets are off. 

He's growing like a weed and keeping us on our toes. He is a boy in every aspect. But he's still a toddler. Our growing baby boy is doing typical toddler things too: throwing tantrums and balls, eating what/when he wants and currently includes a box of goldfish per day, saying 4 words (mom, dad, hot and truck) and laughing each and every day. 

He completes our world and we love him to pieces!

Angelica scholarship concert

Regan is loving her time in Angelica Cantanti Youth Choir. This past weekend was the big ACYC Scholarship concert. As it turns out, this organization won't turn away any child due to inability to pay tuition. Last year, they gave out over $15,000 in scholarships. And to raise this amount of money, they hold a yearly scholarship concert (with a pricey ticket fee) and silent auction. We opted for just me to go to the concert, knowing I would have a greater appreciation than Ryan and that neither Sidney nor Lincoln would be very entertianed.

I was so excited to sit and take in 2 solid hours of some really amazing singing. The kids sing their hearts out and it truly is entertaining. I'm surprised that the little ones are just as fun to watch as the high school kids. Their faces and bodies just gleam with energy as the words flow from the hearts!

Regan made the front cover of the program and it just made me smile to see her shining in that picture (upper left). Sadly, photography and videos were not allowed in the concert hall, but I was able to secretly get some audio :) Shhhh. It's from my phone and pointed at the ground so don't expect to see anything, but click HERE and HERE (the lyrics of this one is my fav and got me teary) and HERE to listen (note: The MC was a professional actor/singer and is singing along at times which is the strong adult voice heard). The full choir clip is HERE and boy is it incredible. I simply cannot wait to hear them at the Ordway this spring! She feels pretty lucky to be a part of this choir and we are so proud of her for spreading her talented wings and taking a leap by joining this amazing group of singers.