Catching Up

Man, keeping up on the blog is sure a lot harder than it used to be! Most days I feel like every minute of every day is filled with doing something, but oh how I LOVE these hectic days (most of the time)!

I'm always amazed by the number of comments I receive from complete strangers when I'm out and about running errands with the 3 kids. It's usually Moms that stop me and tell me how much they miss those "early years", and then proceed to tell me how old their children are now and recollect with me about the past. The Moms tell me how fast the years go by and how they remember them just like it was yesterday.

These comments just remind me that time is not going to slow down, no matter how much I wish is would sometimes, and that I need to cherish these precious days at home with my kids.

Here are a couple of pictures of Tatum enjoying the beautiful sunny weather we've been having lately.

Sitting All By Himself

At just 8 months, Isaac is now able to sit by himself for an extended period of time and play with his toys. Every day he seems to be getting stronger and is able to sit for longer lengths of time. It amazes me how quickly an infant can go from barely being able to hold up their head to sitting and holding up their entire upper body.

Mommy was having lots of fun making Isaac smile!

I love my boys!

Isaac's Eating Solids

It's taken a bit of practice, but Isaac has recently become more comfortable with solid foods. Most days he will take two good meals, however, we still have days (like yesterday) when he's not interested in eating anything from a spoon.

I love this picture...it reminds me of a baby bird.

Isaac loves his thumb!! In fact, it is just one of very few things that can soothe him when he's super upset. Here he is sneaking it into his mouth between bites of squash.

Owen is 3 today!

We celebrated Owen's third birthday today at home with several of his buddies. Here are a few pictures from the festivities.

My friend Lindsey helped with face painting

Owen with his good friends Ryan and Caitlin

Owen requested a 'CARS' theme for his birthday party

Tatum at Preschool

Last week I volunteered in Tatum's classroom and was able to snap a few pictures of the kids in action.

Tatum, decorating her cookie for the Valentine's Day Celebration

Kayleigh, Tatum and Sean playing "house"

Isaac's Favorites

Both Isaac and I love his exersaucer! When he's well fed and rested he will play in this contraption for up to an hour, especially when his big brother and sister are around to keep him company.

Isaac HEARTS Sophie the giraffe!! This is by far his favorite toy to chew on.

Isaac also enjoys his bouncy seat and has become quite skilled at bouncing himself by pumping his legs up and down.

Owen's Little Gym Celebration

Owen's Little Gym class recently celebrated the end of the semester. The kiddos showed off their skills, while the parents were invited to take pictures. It was fun to see how much Owen has improved behaviorally and skill-wise since early September.

Owen demonstrated doing a somersault in front of the class. He's still working on tucking his chin to his chest :-).

Receiving his award from teacher Charlene

Owen's favorite skill is probably Monkey Jumps

A Day In The Life

A couple nights ago when Isaac was chatting up a storm and practicing his newly discovered "cough", I whipped out my camera to capture him on video. As soon as I started recording, Isaac went completely silent, however, attention starved (not really) Tatum and Owen decided to jump in front of the camera. I'm not sure if my favorite part is when Owen flashes me a close-up of his smile, or when I ask Owen to make his brother laugh and he decides to loudly yell in Isaac's face. Anyway, here is the end result!

5 Months Already?

How can this be? Isaac hit the five month mark on the 29th of December. Our little guy continues to grow before my eyes! He's doing very well, especially now that he is over his Christmas vacation cold. As Isaac has gotten older, he's definitely become a less fussy baby. When we first brought him home, he would scream over every diaper change, outfit change and when putting him in the bath...he has since outgrown that, but looking back it was an early indicator of his personality. Isaac, like his older sister tends to have sensitive senses. He has a very tough time napping when we are on the go (there's just too much external stimulation), and with two older children were are on the go frequently. For Isaac, I think not having a consistent schedule during the day is contributing to our inconsistent sleeping pattern at night. On a good night I get about five hours straight. I'm really not bothered by this though....I know his crazy sleeping pattern will work itself out. He's also recently decided not to take a pacifier or bottle. He'll only nurse, suck on his fingers or thumb or suck on my fingers. I'm hoping with the introduction of rice cereal, he might change his mind about a bottle. At the very least, once he starts on cereal, I'll be able to get away for longer periods of time on my own!

In five short little months Isaac has brought an abundant amount of joy to our lives. His bright smile and sweet laugh is incredibly contagious. As I carry him around on my hip I can't help but kiss his little bald head. We are so blessed!

Isaac and Laine. His very first solo play-date with my good friend Amanda's first baby, born in October.

December 2009 Recap

Wow! Is it really January already? What a whirlwind the last month has been! As much as I love the holidays, I must admit I'm ready to move forward and start fresh in 2010. The following posts are a few highlights from the past month.