Spring is almost here!

It’s time for a ride on the scooter…

to enjoy the blooming dandelions….

and find a puddle or two  to jump in!

The little things

Good friends!

Weekend in Georgetown

We spent the past weekend in Georgetown with family. It was a busy but fun-filled weekend. We went to Kayla’s final soccer match where Jonah had fun participating in drills with Kayla before the game. Afterwards the team had a final game celebration at the park. Then we took the kids to a new jump house where we had the whole facility to ourselves. It was really nice. Meredith played in ball pit for the first time. She had a “ball”. (Sorry I had to!) I rode down one of the slides with Jonah and I was a little unprepared for how fast I would slide down! I think everyone in the building heard me scream for my life!

 

  

French Fries are the best!

I don’t know why my Mommy has been holding out on me all these months. If I had known that there were these little sticks of yummy potatoe goodness I would have started eating solid foods a long time ago!

These are healthy right? I mean they are potatoes and potatoes are a vegetable!

Reunited

Jonah and Isabelle got to spend a little one on one time during a recent play date at the park.

These two just really love each other. It’s so cute!

 

Meet me at the corner

Jonah’s friend Jordan lives down the street and Jonah always wants to have Jordan over to play. Everyday he asks me “Can we meet Jordan at the corner” So, that’s our routine. We call up his mommy and if she says it’s okay for him to come over, we meet them at the corner and walk back to our house.

I really wish growing up that I had lived close enough to my friends that we could just meet at the corner but we lived on nine acres so it was more like “can your mom drive you over to my house” or vice versa.

These two have a lot of fun playing together. They both share the same interests – dragons, knights and baseball. It’s so nice having someone on our street that is same age as Jonah!

Exciting Eleven

11 months old today

Trying to walk

Loves French fries and feeding Riley

Says dada but not mama

Will not keep bows in her hair (makes me want to cry)

Enjoys taking off her diaper

Loves raspberries on the belly

Wants to feed herself

We must be doing something right

Jonah has always been a picky eater.

He would only take one specific type of formula as a baby. He does not like red meat and will only eat chicken if it is accompanied by a nugget. He will eat turkey and ham but only if it's between two pieces of bread. He will only eat the "dog" part of a corny dog. He likes "pepperoni pizza" minus the pepperoni. You get the picture.

When he turned three he decided that he really liked crackers. For a month all we could get him to eat were crackers. We begged, we pleaded, we rewarded, we disciplined, we called his pediatician. We tried everything to get him to eat something besides saltines and wheat thins.

Then one night at dinner as his peas and carrots sat untouched and cold on his plate, Josh casually said, "Jonah if you don't eat your vegetables, you will not get bigger or stronger. Healthy foods like fruits and vegetables help you to grow big and strong."

This was something we all heard growing up and why we had not thought to say it before is beyond me but that simple and rather obvious statement completely changed Jonah's view on food. So much that he no longer wants french fries from McDonalds. Instead he requests apple dippers. He no longer wants fresh baked chocolate chip cookies from Starbucks. He wants the "healthy snack pack". He requests a vegetable and a fruit at dinner. Now he only snacks on string cheese, apple slices, or yogurt. Occasionally he will ask for crackers with one of the other snacks but at least he is no longer asking for them for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Since he is eating so healthy these days, I thought it would be okay to bring him a Hershey bar now and then as a little surprise when I pick him up for school.

Today was one of those days. I picked Jonah up from school and we headed to the mall with Meredith to do a little shopping. I handed him his chocolate surprise after he got in the car. He took one bite of it and said, "Will you wrap it up and save it for me?" When I asked why he said "It's not really a healthy snack and candy makes you little so I don't want to eat it right now" I quickly explained that we should not eat candy all the time but that it was okay every once in a while. That was the end of the conversation.

So as we were walking out the door of Neiman Marcus, Jonah tried pushing on the handicap door which of course would not open until you pushed the button on the side. But before I could explain, Jonah threw his hands up in the air and yelled "This is why I cannot eat candy! It makes you not strong!"

XOXO

Tenacious Ten

10 months old today!

Beautiful smile

Loves to give kisses

Has decided she likes her brother’s Fruit Loops

Broccoli and Cheese soup is a favorite

Enjoys being chased

Nifty Nine

Nine months old today!

She is pulling up on EVERYTHING!

Crawling everywhere

Loves Avocados and Mashed Potatoes

Really likes reading the Karen Katz books

Loves taking “Big Girl” baths in the bathtub with lots of bubbles

Does not like to be left alone

* This time last year I was checking into the hospital for two months of bed rest to ensure that a year later I would be able to take a picture like this!

Christmas Eve Traditions

Now that we have a family of our own we started a new tradition that we always spend Christmas Eve at our house with our family. We attend Christmas Eve service at church, eat Christmas Eve dinner, open presents, and watch our favorite Christmas movies – It’s a Wonderful Life and Love Actually while we eat the treats I make earlier in the day and drink homemade hot chocolate. Afterwards we prepare for our visit from Jolly Old St. Nick! We write a letter to Santa, set out a plate of milk and cookies, and say our goodbyes to "Nose" the Elf. We check the Santa Tracker and when we see he’s in Texas we put out the reindeer food and then hurry off to bed to read the Night Before Christmas. Afterwards it's lights out and time to close our eyes so that Santa will be sure to stop at our house and leave us lots of goodies for Christmas morning.

You Raise Me Up

One of my favorite pictures of my Dad with Meredith. She was so happy! This picture reminds me of all the times he carried me around on his shoulders when I was a little girl. The funny thing is, his hair is the same shade of white as it was back then.

Another cute picture I took of Meredith in my parent's yard.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Riley really gets into the holiday spirit. Can't you tell?

Off to Opa and Oma’s house he goes…

Jonah went and spent a couple of nights with his Opa and Oma. This was his first trip to a grandparent’s house without us! He was very excited especially since his cousin Kayla was also going. They played and even took a trip to the Zoo.

*Thanks Oma for the Zoo pics*

Monkeying Around

My sweet little Christmas monkeys.

Ice Ice Baby

We took Jonah to visit the Ice exhibit at the Gaylord Texan. It was amazing and very COLD! This year’s theme was How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Jonah really loved going down the ice slide. So did his dad and uncle!

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It’s Gettin’ Hot in Here

We took a tour of the fire station with our MOPS group. The highlight of the tour was the fireman demonstrating how they slide down the pole when the alarms go off! The boys loved it!

 

Why you should not let children dress themselves

Jonah’s Self Portrait

Jonah loves taking photos with my camera. Here is his self portrait.

It snows in Texas??

Yes, sometimes we get snow. It’s rare but it does happen occasionally. We had our first taste of true winter weather with a mild snow storm the other day. Jonah was so excited. I could barely get him dressed fast enough before he was running out the door!

Christmas Card Time

Just to give you an idea of what parents go through to get that “picture perfect” pose for the family Christmas Card.

Picture number 27

 

Picture number 53

Picture 89

 

and finally a picture with both of them smiling!

Picture 105

Exceptional Eight

Eight months old today.

Two front teeth. (just in time for Christmas)

Loves Puffs and Earth’s Best Organic Gourmet Meals.

Started sitting up on her own.

Falls asleep listening to Lifescapes Lullabies. (so does Mommy)

Cries when Jonah leaves the room.

Her favorite games are Peek-a-boo and “Super Merdi.”  Josh flies Meredith around chasing Jonah while yelling, “It’s Super Merdi to the rescue!”

Nose “Knows”

Our Elf showed up the day after Thanksgiving. After brief introductions Jonah decided to name him Nose and when I asked him why the name Nose he said, “Because he “knows'” if you’ve been bad or good!” I can’t argue with that.

Every night while they are asleep, Nose will leave our house and fly to the North Pole to tell Santa if Jonah and Meredith have been good or bad during  the day.  The next morning he will return and find a new spot to watch from.  And if Jonah has been good the day before there will be a small surprise in his old spot.

I’m wondering if I can talk Nose into staying all year.