ONE

ONE.  Our Haddon is 1!  I can hardly believe it.  This year has gone by so quickly.  On one hand I am always a bit excited to be exiting the baby phase as it can be a bit on the stressful and tiring end of the spectrum :)  However, Haddon has been one of the absolute sweetest babies I have ever met and I can tell by his more recent demeanor that our cuddling days are numbered, so I am bit sad.  Hopefully he will still have cuddling moments with me, even as he grows older.

At ONE year Haddon is so sweet and happy, a great sleeper and really starting to interact and truly play more.  He loves dumping things out, banging things together, bouncing to music, books, playing peek a boo, being tickled and watching his big sister.  We have a long way to go on his mobility, but he is so good at manipulating things with his hands and Adam is having visions of him being a star Hawkeye basketball player in the future. :)

He weights 18 lbs and is 29.8 inches long and loves to eat.  In fact, he has still never rejected a single thing I have given him to eat which amazes me. He is also starting to sign "more" to me when I am not feeding him fast enough.  The amount to which he eats amazes me as well….maybe it's a boy thing?! We tried out whole milk yesterday and he was a big fan! Though the cup is a big change for him that is taking some getting used to.

He is a great sleeper as well.  He sleeps from about 8:30 at night until 8:30 in the morning.  His morning nap is starting to get shorter (he only needs a half hour to an hour now) and sleeps from 2-5 in the afternoon along with his sister.   He has one bottom tooth and two on top that are just starting to poke through.

Basically, he brings me immense amounts of joy and is all the best things for our family all rolled up into one sweet guy.

Happy birthday Haddon!!  Mommy loves you SO much!

Fall Catch Up

Ahh!!  I can't believe it has been so long since I posted last.  It makes me sad because I love looking back on the past years and scrolling through such sweet memories.  So this is going to be a bit of catch up of random instagram pictures quite possibly for my enjoyment only :)

Amaia and I have several outfits that match unintentionally.  I guess you can tell who picks out both of our outfits :)  However, I did buy these shirts for us to intentionally match.  Someday I hope Amaia has a sister to match with, but until then this is pretty fun too.

I call Amaia my "love bug", she has lady bug sheets on her bed and loves all things ladybug, so it was only fitting that she was a little ladybug for halloween this year.  We loved night eyes.  I can't wait to do it every year.

 Amaia is an excellent big sister and mommy in training.  She "reads" to Haddon, brings him toys, feeds him, gives lots of hugs and kisses and likes to tell him "no" as well.

We hosted our first holiday at our house for Thanksgiving this year.  Amaia and Haddon were at the head of the table, naturally :)

It is starting to get cold out, but our zoo attendance has still been going strong.  

We play at home a lot too especially now that it is getting cold now.  I just love Haddon's face in this picture. It shows off his fun personality very well :)

Cuddling on a cold night.  Haddon has no choice but to cuddle with me as he is not mobile yet and Amaia is actually starting to want to cuddle with me!!!

Amaia is starting to be able to really help out in some kitchen activities and it is pretty fun to have a cute helper in the kitchen.  She tends to lick the bowl a lot, but I can't saw that I always have the best self-control in that area either :)

All bundled up to go out in the cold and we match again :)

Pre-school Light: Creation Day 1

I decided to a light version of pre-school with Amaia this year.  She knows almost all of her letter/colors/shapes already and soaks up so much from everyday life, but learning is always a good thing and I happen to love structure, so a plan was hatched!

I perused some curriculums and other ideas that I found online and ultimately mish-mashed some of the ideas I found along with ideas of my own.  SO, our first unit is going to be the days of creation.  Each day of creation is the theme of our week.  This week was day 1: light and darkness.

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said 'Let there be light' and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God seperated the light from the darkness.  God called the light Day and the darkness Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day." Genesis 1:1-5

Throughout the week we read the beginning of the creation story out of her Jesus Storybook Bible (which I love so much!!),  read the same verses out of my bible and learned a little song.

We made a light box as a way to demonstrate what the Earth was like before God created light. We painted the inside of a shoe box black.  As a side note I have to say I was so impressed with her painting skills.  I had her do this half-dressed and outside because I was pretty certain she would get paint everywhere, but she did an awesome job listening to my instructions and painting only in the box.  So proud of her! I then cut two holes in the box: one for her to look into and one for me to shine a light into.  I had her look into the hole and describe what she saw: "black" "darkness".  Then I turned the light on and explained that God created light.

I made a little "sun" out of a paper plate and clothespins to practice matching lower and uppercase letters.  You can't see if very well here, but the lowercase letters are written on the plate and the capital letters are written on the clothespins.  The coordination of opening up the clothespins and putting them on the plate was actually a bit of a challenge for her, so we will be continuing to work on this one.

She also had a lot of fun playing with the flashlight and turning a lot of lights on and off throughout the week.  Overall it was a really fun week and I think we both totally enjoyed our first week of "school"...if I can even call it that :)

AND Haddon did some learning of his own this week!  I gave him some cheerios to see how he would do with them and I was so impressed with how quick and determined he was to pick them up.  I had to assist in actually getting them in his mouth, but he definitely has that pincher grasp down.  Also, I love his sweet baby cheeks!

Haddon: 8 Months!

8 Months OLD!  Ugh, 8 months truly does sound so old to me.   Haddon continues to be the absolute best! He makes me want to have a bunch more babies just like him. Ha :)  He is so sweet and smiley and lovable.

This month we have been working on eating a wider variety of foods and he is now eating oatmeal, applesauce, carrots, sweet potatoes, avocado, peas, peaches, green beans and mixed veggies.  He actually eats anything I give him.  I do have some suspicions that applesauce is not favorite due to the sour face he makes, but he still eats it with no problems.  Haddon really only protests if I am not feeding him fast enough :)

We are still on a (mostly) 4 hour schedule with 3 solid food feedings a day.  Haddon usually wakes up around 7am at which time I feed him and he goes back to sleep until 9 when we have breakfast, lunch at 12:30 or so, dinner at 5 and another feeding at 8 before bed.  He naps from about 11-1230 and 2-5 in the afternoon.  He sometimes wakes up early from that afternoon nap, but most days he is totally cool with hanging out in his crib until 5, which totally amazes me!  He has also figured out how to push the button on the music player in his crib to turn it on, so I am pretty sure that helps :)

We have also been working on Haddon's sitting skills this month.  He still falls over (and smiles about it I might add) quite frequently but he is getting much better.  I have been working hard with him on this still because I am anxiously awaiting the day that he can sit up in the grocery cart!  I have a feeling it's going to be a life changer for the both of us!

I have strong suspicions that Haddon is going to have a very laid back personality.  It just amazes me how much things do not seem to bother him. It shocks me that he does not seem to mind when he falls over or his big sissy "hugs" him or occasionally lays on top of him.  I am so excited for him to grow into his sweet personality and participate in more and more adventures with Amaia and I.

Amaia, Daddy & the Zoo: A Love Story

I have mentioned here before that Amaia is totally head over heels in love with zoo this summer.  She craves it and asks me if we can go all the time!  Conveniently, Adam also loves going to the zoo.  I don't think he is quite as crazy about it as Amaia, but he loves her and he loves his lemurs so it's a win, win situation.  Personally, I cannot say that I love the zoo, but I certainly don't mind it and I certainly do like doing things that my family loves.  Thus, we have spent many Sunday mornings at the zoo this summer.

Amaia is at the point now that she walks around as if she owns the place.  She knows our usual route and what animals are coming up next.  Her favorites have changed over the course of the summer, but I believe we have firmly settled on sea lions now.  She could stay down there all day and watch them.

She also loves "driving the car"

And climbing the in the "tunnel"

And generally acting like all the animals throughout the zoo :)  

Okoboji!

Last week my parents graciously took us on a mini-vacation to Lake Okoboji.  Sleeping with two kiddos in a hotel room is always....interesting :)  But all in all it was a truly wonderful trip!  

First off, I would just like to say that every time we visit a smaller town in Iowa I am always so impressed!  We stayed in Spencer because all the places in Okoboji were booked and it was such a lovely town!  They had an awesome fro-yo shop, awesome coffee shop and a nice shopping street and that is really all you need right?! That is all I need to have a wonderful vacation.

On our first day we rented a boat and Amaia had the time of her life.  She had already been asking me to ride on a boat a couple of weeks before our trip...little did she know it was already in the plans!  As you can see here, she had the time of her life.  She even got to "drive" the boat for a little bit, with daddy very close by of course.

Our boat ride was a lot of fun but it was a chilly day.  Haddon was my lil' trooper.  He barely protested one bit about the chill in the air or in the life jacket that was quite snug around his cheeks.  He is such a wonderful guy.

Here is at the beginning of our trip.

And here he is towards the end of the trip...starting to get a bit annoyed perhaps?? :)

The weather was so much nicer on our second day.  It was perfect out! Amaia greatly enjoyed the sand and water and destroying the sand castles her grandparents were trying to teach her to build :)

She is such a beauty.

The other thing that we did a lot of on our trip was eat!  Ha. Going out to eat has the potential to be a bit stressful with the kiddos, but that were both superb restaurant-goers.  Amaia learned the ropes and began immediately asked the waiter "I need chocolate milk please" first thing :)

It was a wonderful first trip with my family of 4!  It just reinforced my sentiment that these three and simply the greatest!

My Girl

Oh this girl.  She has my heart.  She is becoming more grown up by the day.  Speaking in sentences, becoming a great helper, singing and dancing and testing boundaries a bit :)

  

Just a few things that I want to remember about Amaia at this age.

She thinks every song is about God. (as it should be!)

Making animal sounds is one of her favorite pastimes

She sings all day long!  Almost literally.

She has named one of her dolls "Jenna" and if Jenna enters the room and I don't say hello to her I am reminded to do so by Amaia.

If we haven't been to the zoo in a week or so she starts asking over and over to go again. She's obsessed :)

If we go shopping for clothes, she walks around saying "Oh, that is so cute!"

She greets her daddy upon his arrival home with "Hi stinker!" 

Basically she oozes cuteness all day long :)

Haddon at 7 Months

Our sweet Haddon is 7 months old!  Actually, he was 7 months old over a week ago, but I am running a bit behind due to the fact that moving is A LOT OF WORK :)

I don't know how many more ways to say that I love Haddon!  He is simply the best little guy.  He melts my heart over and over again.  He is such a happy, sweetheart of a guy.  He did have a bit of a whiny phase this past month (though it was a crazy month for us all).  I was just sure that he would be getting some teeth, but none have appeared yet.

This month we have been working on Haddon's sitting skills.  We still have some work to do, but he is getting better and looking good doing it.

And his eating skills...

The squeals of delight really start coming out when he is in his high chair.  He loves banging his spoon around and probably just having a new perspective on the world in general. So far we have mastered peas and carrots.  We have also ventured into applesauce, peaches and sweet potatoes but Haddon does not seem to be a fan.  

Haddon continues to adore his sissy.  Oh how he loves her.  Amaia can't sit next to me while I am feeding him because he will just stare over and her and smile and not eat :)  I don't blame him, she is a pretty awesome big sister.

He is officially on a longer schedule now eating at around 6:30 in the morning, 9am, 12:30, 5, 8 and then bedtime.  He is also taking a 3 hour nap that coincides with big sissy's 3 hour nap in the afternoon. I have been working on making that happen for awhile and it is so worth it!

My favorite little guy in the world!

The Good Life

Summer life is the good life - can I get an amen?!?  Don't get me wrong fall is totally still my favorite season, but there is something about summer that is sweet and relaxed and wonderful.  We have been busy with a lot of home selling/buying and packing type activities this summer, but we have been also been doing much more fun things life going to the pool and listening the country music :)  So here is an update of what we have been up via the pictures from my phone!

We are an ice cream loving family!  Amaia particularly loves ice cream and knows just where we are when we pull into the orange leaf parking lot.  The night that we bought our new home we went out for an ice cream celebration.  Haddon was there too, though he did not get to partake in the ice cream.  Next summer buddy!

We have been loving the zoo this spring and summer!  Amaia is ALL about the zoo right now.  Seriously, if it is getting close to a week since we have been she starts asking me over and over again if we can go to the zoo, so we have been going most Sundays as a family.  She also loves to talk about the sounds that different animals make or runs around the house acting like different animals.  Her current favorite animal is the flamingo and of course she has inherited a love for lemurs from her daddy.

Is it strange that Mexican food makes me feel like summer??  Well it does.  We took Amaia out for her first mexican food experience last weekend and she was so cute!  I could tell she was observing us eating our chips and salsa and then she just took a chip and slid a bowl of salsa close to her and started dipping.  She just kept eating the salsa though and not the chip.  She was double dipping over and over :)  It was the cutest thing!  Also, as you can see from this picture, Amaia is starting to really enjoy accessorizing.

Haddon has been being his cute, cute self this summer.  Here we are hanging out at the splash park together.  We have been going the pool/splash park a lot this summer.  Amaia loves it SO much! She, however doesn't have a lot of fear so I must have my eyes on her and hands available at all times while we are at the pool...thus I don't really have any good pictures of her in the pool.

Haddon has also been entering the wonderful world of solid food this summer.  So far he has had rice cereal, which was not really a hit and peas, which are going much better.  Next up - carrots!!  He has also been lengthening out his eating schedule, which is exciting for me!  We still have a lot of work to do on his spoon/swallowing skills, but I can confidently say that he has actually ingested some peas.  Amaia is slightly confused about why Haddon is sitting in "her" chair now :)

Just a little bit of what we have been up to so far this summer!

Happy 6 months to my blue-eyed boy!

Haddon is officially 6 months old! I know that I say this every month, but he is seriously the sweetest little guy.  So full of smiles and such a happy boy.  He brings so much joy to our family and oozes cuteness all day long! The past couple of months have been crazy at times as we have been selling our current home and looking for a new one, but holding him and seeing his sweet smiles make me calm down just like that.

Haddon continues to take after his sister by being long and lean as well as having a big head :)  Here are his current stats from our doctor visit this morning:

Weight: 15 lbs. 13 oz. (18%)

Height: 27.75 Inches (91%)

Head: 17 1/2 Inches (82%)

Haddon adores his sister!  He is happiest when she is around and surprisingly doesn't seem to mind when she pokes at him, lays on top of him or drops things on him :)  You can't tell from this picture (Amaia isn't the best at smiling for the camera at this point in her life) but she adores him too.  She is beyond sweet to him and it makes my heart melt.  She greets him the in the morning, sings him lots of songs, always gets his toys out for him and gives many hugs and kisses throughout the day.

She loves to do tummy time with him too!

Haddon is quite proficient at rolling over nowadays!  Though he still does not enjoy being on his tummy for very long.  We are making progress on sitting up but aren't quite there yet. He mostly likes to roll around on the floor and check out what is going on.  He loves shaking his rattle around and playing peek-a-boo with him is a sure way to get him to giggle.  He is starting to become more easily startled lately.  His lower lip comes out and it is so cute and sad at the same time.  He typically recovers pretty quickly but he doesn't like anything too loud or to much in his face.

We started on the some rice cereal a couple of days ago.  He is doing well and opening his mouth for food, but I don't know if he has actually swallowed anything yet.  I plan on making some peas and carrots for him in the upcoming weeks, so that he start his journey into the world of big people food!  He looks so tiny in that chair!  And yes....I need to get him some non-girly bibs :)

Haddon is sleeping wonderfully.  He goes to bed between 8 and 8:30 and sleeps until 6:30 or 7 in the morning, eats and then back to sleep until 9.  After that he is still eating every 3 hours during the day and taking 3 naps a day.  I do think he is ready to go a bit longer between feedings so we need to try that soon as well.  He is so easy going that I often go in his room to get him up and he is awake just patiently waiting for mommy.  

Aaahhh!  I just love my Haddon.  It is simply a privilege to be his mommy and spend my days with him.