Happy Third Birthday Parker!

Parker

My sweet baby, you are now three years old.  Everyone keeps saying, "Can you believe he's three years old?"  I think my answer is supposed to be, "No, it seems like just yesterday he was born!", but it's just not.  Truthfully, to me, it seems like you've been here forever.  I can hardly remember what life was like before you got here three years ago.  That's not to say that Daddy and I didn't have a great time together before you were born, but you completely changed our lives and hearts that day.  Three years later, you bring us more smiles and laughter than we ever could have imagined.  You have so many facets to your personality.....

• You are so loving.  You tell us all the time how much you love us, that you miss us when we're away from you, and that "we're a family."  I think you love your sister more than anything else in the world, though.  Your face lights up every time you see her in the morning, when we pick you up from daycare, or when she wakes up from a nap.  She literally could not ask for a better big brother than the one she has in you.  I can't wait to watch your relationship with her grow.

• Not sure of the best way to put this, but you are a very emotional and sensitive boy.  You cry every day when I drop you off at school.  I think there has been literally one day that I have dropped you off where you did not cry.  You tell me when I pick you up, though, that you had fun at school.  You cry when we leave you in the nursery at church if Audrey isn't with you, and you cry when I leave you in the daycare at the gym.  If we go out without you and Audrey on the weekends, you often get upset when we leave the house.  This makes you sound like a big crybaby but it's really just these goodbyes that get you.  We like to think that it's just because we have so much fun together!

• Tied in with this, you're kind of a shy boy.  You do not like tons of attention.  When we are with a big group of people, which is usually in a family situation, you do not like when everyone asks you questions or wants hugs or even to say goodbye.  If we're around people we don't know and they ask you a question or talk to you, you do the classic "hide-behind-mom/dad" move, and then ten minutes later you'll say, "When we were at church, I was bein' shy," with this sly grin on your face.

• You are doing so well with your manners.  You say, "Please,"  "Thank you!", and "Excuse me," all the time now without prompting (most of the time).  You are getting much better about saying, "Yes Ma'am," and "Yes Sir," on a regular basis.  You sometimes remember that ladies go first when we're coming in the house.  We will make you into a little gentleman eventually! 

• You're very smart.  You know your ABC's and numbers up to 20.  You recognize your name.  You know all of the "main" colors and shapes.  You are SO good at puzzles.  You know your right from your left.  You remember EVERYTHING and remind us of the weirdest things.  Like, "Hey, remember when I went to the beach with Mona and NayNay and I played with Elijah?" (some random boy they saw at the beach ONE time). 

• You love to sing, and you sing well.  You can actually carry a tune and like to sing the theme songs from your Disney shows as well as "Old Alabama", "Nothin' but a Good Time", "Rolling in the Deep", and "Wild Man."  If we try to get you to sing in front of people other than us, though, you won't do it!  So a future in show business is not looking so bright at this point.  It's okay, though, you can stick with the private performances for now--we love them! 

• You really like to watch TV.  We have to put limits on how much you watch because you would probably watch it all day if we let you.  Your favorite shows are Little Einsteins, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Sophia the First, and Doc McStuffins.  Basically we are a Disney Junior house at this time.  Daddy and I actually enjoy all of them, so it's okay with us!  

• Here is how your current bedtime routine goes.  Daddy gives you a bath and gives you the chance to sit on the potty.  Then Daddy gets you dressed and sits in the rocking chair with you to give you your inhaler medicine.  When you're done with that, he gives you your milk and reads you a story.  Your current favorite is Curious George.  We have three books that have about eight stories each, so you have plenty to choose from.  You guys usually read two stories, and then Daddy "cracks your toes."  Then he brushes your teeth, and we all lay on the floor to "sing some songs."  Usually they're the theme songs to the shows you watch.  We also just talk a little bit.  Then we turn out the light and give you kisses and hugs before we leave the room.  We don't usually hear another peep out of you until morning!  

• You are not potty trained at all.  You will go pee-pee on the potty at bath time, but not every night.  You are well aware of when you're peeing and pooping in your diaper, but you just don't want to sit on the potty and do it.  I usually know when you're pooping and ask you all the time if you want to go sit on the potty and do it, and you tell me, "no!  I don't want to sit on the potty!"  It's very frustrating, but I guess you just aren't "ready."  I am not going try to force it, and I know that when you're really ready, it will happen.
• Your favorite foods are waffles, pancakes, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, grapes, grilled cheese, peanut butter and jelly, yogurt, chicken nuggets, and cheese.  You also love pretty much any dessert or snack-type item (chips, pretzels, crackers, etc).  Your eating habits are a major source of concern and worry for me, but I am really hoping that it's something that you'll grow out of in the next couple of years.  You need more variety! 

The only thing I can say to you that sums it all up is that your Daddy and I love you so much.  You are definitely a three year old and can have your trying moments, but they are all worth it.  Thank you for being such a good, fun, sweet little boy, and.......HAPPY BIRTHDAY!   

Love,
Momma

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

Valentine's day was so fun this year because Parker had a party at school and actually got to hand out valentines to his friends.  Also, I had a sweet baby girl to dress up this year!  On Sunday, she wore her red dress with her monogram on it.  I meant to get a few "good" pictures but didn't.  I did, however, get a few pictures of her eating a banana all by herself.  Just as good, right?

 

Obviously, I thought it was super-cute.  It was funny to watch her because she was being so aggressive with it! 

I signed up to make the "sweet treat" for Parker's class and decided to try out a new cookie recipe that I thought sounded delish.  They definitely were really yummy, but they were a little tedious in terms of the assembly and preparation!  Once I was about halfway through, I just kept thinking, "these are preschoolers--why are you going through all this trouble?"  I definitely enjoy baking, though, and Parker ate his whole cookie, so it was worth it to me in the end.  

 

  Parker's first valentines!  Gotta love etsy.... 

  Sitting on his mat waiting for the valentines to be passed out!  Such a sweetheart.

When we got home, I wanted to try to get a few pictures and asked Parker if he would take one with me.  At first he said no, then he said yes, then he changed back to no, and finally agreed to take a couple.  This is the best that we got:

This is his, "(gasp) I hear a noise!" face.  He heard Audrey crying inside.  

I also wanted to try to get a sweet picture of the two of them.  Here's the best of that bunch:

He did such a great job holding her but all she wanted to do was crawl away.   

I was glad that I did at least get this gem.  She is such a doll baby!  Can you see how crazy her hair is?  Haha.

Audrey is Eight Months Old!

Audrey

You are now eight months old, and you have been for almost two weeks.  We have been busy busy busy since the 29th and I couldn't get the balloons together on a day where we could actually take good pictures in daylight.  SO we did them yesterday.  The other pictures were taken this past Friday.  Here is what you've been up to this month:

• Size 3 diapers are still fitting you really well.  I finally changed your cloth diapers over and you are back to wearing them again.  I am glad because disposables sure are expensive!
• You are still wearing 9 months in most of your clothes and they're all fitting you pretty well.

• You have been eating all different kinds of baby food.  You've had puffs and "baby cheetos" and a wide array of fruits and vegetables.  You are really getting the hang of it and have not really refused much.  You weren't too fond of peas the last time we tried to feed you those, but that's about it!  
• Your first tooth has broken through your bottom gums!  It is barely sticking out, but it sure is sharp.  I had forgotten that baby teeth are the same as mini razors.  You seemed to do okay with this tooth, so maybe the rest will also be a piece of cake?  Not likely, but we shall see.

• Your mobility has really developed over the last month.  You are now a majorly fast crawler, and you pull yourself up to stand.  You will also creep around this way, as in, standing up holding on and moving around your pack-n-play or along the couch.  You will even use your walker and take a few steps!  I am interested to see when you'll start walking on your own.  
• Your sleeping patterns have not changed.  So you still wake up at about our bedtime and once each night.  Nothing more to say about that!  Haha. 

• Your favorite toys are still the teethers.  You really enjoy playing with Parker's old music table and musical house, too.
• You stayed in a hotel for the first time last weekend!  We went to Ikea and Short Pump with Mona and NayNay and stayed at Short Pump.  You did not do so hot with the pack-n-play there and I ended up having you in the bed with Parker and I most of the night.  Ah, memories!

• You aren't saying any words yet, but you looooooooove to "growl."  There's no other way to describe the noises you make.  Literally you growl as a way of communicating your excitement with us.  It is the funniest thing and I never want to forget it. 
• Your hair is getting longer, but you still have your mohawk.  I am interested to see how it will look when it finally lays down a little.  You look like a completely different baby when your hair is wet.  
• I'm pretty sure your best friend is your brother.  The two of you have such a good time playing together.  He loooooooooooves you and you love him back.  He loves to get in your pack-n-play with you and play.  I hope your relationship only grows as you get older! 

Throwback Friday

Nope, not Throwback Thursday.  Today I am throwing back to before Christmas because I realized I had a few pictures from making Christmas cookies with Parker that I never shared.  He really enjoyed helping me and was so sweet.  I also wanted to share a few Parker-isms since the last time I shared them.

•  Disclaimer for the first one:  I am NOT pregnant nor do I plan to be in the near future if  ever again.  It's something I think about a lot--that is, whether or not we'll ever decide to have another baby.  In the car one night, just to see what he'd say, I asked Parker if we should have another baby.  His response was, "No, Momma!  I like sissy!"  He totally thought I was referring to "sending her back" to get another one.  
• We will be in the store looking at clothes or something girl-related for Audrey, and Parker will grab it and say, "This is really cute, Momma."

 

• Instead of saying "Abracadabra", Parker says "Abracadoobie."
• There have been a few times when he's been playing with Ryan's phone in the evening after Audrey has gone to bed and said that he needed to turn it down because she was sleeping.  Sweetie.
• One morning, when talking about having breakfast, he said, "Do you guys have any blueberries or waffles?"  Yes, us guys do. 

• We were talking about the show Little Einsteins and Parker said, "We should go there one time." 
• We have to spell things a lot to keep him from knowing what we're talking about.  He has started asking often if he can play with the h-i-j-k-phone or watch the h-i-j-k-tv.  It's pretty funny.  Last weekend when we were out of town with my mom and sister, the first thing he whispered when he woke up was, "h-i-j-k are Mona and NayNay still asleep?"
• When I put carrots on his plate a couple of weeks ago, he said, "But Momma....I like Mickey cheese better!!!"  Trust me Parker, I am aware.

 

• We were practicing writing the letter P and I told him to go look at it on his alphabet picture.  He came back and said, "It kind of looks like a circle and an 'I'!"  Correct!
• Parker came up to me one day and said, "I need you to take me to the doctor, Momma."  When I asked him why, he said, "Because I have hiccups!"
• He was watching TV in the playroom one day and started saying, "Momma, I'm scared!"  He came downstairs and I asked him what was wrong.  He explained that there were cats on the TV, and he was scared because he's allergic to cats.  

 

• We were talking about what we were going to do one day and he said, "I just want to spend time with you."  Hello...heart melting.  He also says all the time, "I love my sister." 

 

 

I think all the time about how I could just never fully explain how much I love him and his sister!  They both just make my heart burst and melt all the time!