My Little Big Boy is at such a funny age! Oh my gracious, he keeps us in stitches! I absolutely love this age where they understand enough of the world around them to articulate the thoughts in their heads, but they still say it in such a way that their "baby"ness shines through. It's such a cute in between stage. :)
Here are a few things that Drew has said lately that I want to remember:
* One Sunday after church, we were all in the car driving home. Drew raised his hands dramatically high above his car seat to get our attention. When we were all looking at him, he said, "Let me tell you a question, my friends!" We all started laughing so hard that we never did find out the question that he had to "tell" us. ;)
* We had a big Sunday this past weekend (post coming soon), and we all dressed up more than usual for church. Wade wore a suit and tie. When he came into the kitchen after getting dressed, Drew said, "'Dat a cool ascot, Dad!" We literally laughed until we cried! I guess that can be expected from a 2 year old with an older Scooby Doo loving brother. Ha!
* Drew says things like, "Oh, Brudder...," "Here we go again...," "I have a plan...," and "I can't say it better myself." Those phrases sound so funny coming out of his little mouth.
* A couple of weeks ago, Clayton told Drew "Thank you." for doing something. Drew replied, "My pleasure!" We laughed and laughed. Then yesterday I told him thank you for something and he said, "No problemo!" Just when you think he couldn't possibly top himself, he says something even funnier!
* The video below is from a wedding that we went to a couple of weeks ago. Drew was a maniac out on the dance floor. I have no clue where he got his moves! It was 10:00 by this point and he was in overdrive just trying to stay awake.
This was the same wedding where the best man gave his toast and the crowd applauded. As everyone was clapping for the happy couple, Drew said loudly, "Way to go, Babies!" Lovely.
Our Drew keeps us on our toes these days, for sure! He is the life of the party and the funniest member of our family currently. Life wouldn't be the same without is full of life personality. I'm so glad he's ours!
The moms in our Sunday School class get together once a month for a little playgroup. Yesterday we met up at a splash pad. It was super fun! There were a few short showers, but that didn't keep our kiddos from having a blast. We were the only ones there, so it was pretty perfect for our group.
I love this picture of Sadie Lady smiling with glee while her sweet sister holds her hand. Too cute!
Drew loves Maggie - we all do!
This picture almost made me cry... why does my baby look so grown up???
I was thinking that these last 6 months have gone by so fast and that Clayton hasn't really changed all that much. That is, until I looked back at his Clayton Version 6.0 post. Wow - he is like a totally different kid now!
* I weighed Clayton and measured his height today - 49 pounds and 48 inches. He has gained a pound and an inch since his birthday.
* Clayton is the "Star Student" this week at school. That worked out perfectly, because I got to ask him all of my traditional interview types of questions to make his All About Me poster. Two birds, one stone - that's good for me. :)
Every "normal" picture is followed by a silly picture, of course. As a bonus, you get to see what his 6 1/2 year old tonsils look like. Ha!
Here are some of his answers from his poster: Favorite Color: Light Blue Favorite Animal: Tigers Favorite Food: Pizza Favorite Book: Eliot Jones, Midnight Superhero Favorite Sport: Basketball Favorite thing to do at school: Math Favorite thing to do at home: Play Uno with my Mom
* Clayton's favorite subject is still Math. His favorite part of our school days at home is our "Math Meeting" time. He especially loves filling in the weather graph and always asks me to video his "weather report" on my phone. The kid is a total ham! Here is the video from today:
Maybe he will end up being a meteorologist! He is definitely the cutest weather man that I've ever seen. ;)
* He is a crazy good reader! I always thought that it must be really hard to teach a child to read, but, with Clayton, it just came to him. I have joked with Wade that it was infinitely harder to potty train Clayton than it was to teach him to read. Ha! However, C doesn't love reading, which makes me super sad. He would prefer a timed math test any day over reading a book aloud. He will listen to us read all day long, but just doesn't want to read himself. Such a shame... I'm hoping that he will come to love getting lost in a good book very soon.
* Clayton is really into games right now. He especially loves checkers and Uno. He also loves his DS and would play on it nonstop if we let him (which we don't, of course).
* Clayton's most prized possessions at the moment are his shark's tooth necklace that he bought on our trip to North Carolina, his wallet, his Ironman watch, and his Nintendo DS.
* He seems so old and mature at times, but there are a few words that he says incorrectly that make him sound like he is still little. He still says, "the cation" instead of "vacation." He also says "crayons" funny. It sounds like cree-yons with the accent on yons. It's very cute, and I can't bear to correct him. He also calls his friend "Benjamin" "Ben-german." ;)
* My mom will be happy to hear that Mrs. T. has already got the class diagramming sentences, and it is only the 4th week of 1st grade. He can tell you the subject noun, verb, and adverb in any sentence. Kids learn so much faster than they did when I was 6. Geesh!
* When Clayton accepted Christ our pastor told us that we wouldn't see big dramatic changes that would indicate a change in his heart, but that we should be on the lookout for little changes. Wade & I have been talking, and we definitely see Clayton's desire to be a servant to others blossoming right now in his little life. It has been amazing to see that virtue come to fruition. The other day at Hobby Lobby he asked me if he could round up all of the shopping carts in the parking lot and take them inside so that the cars in the parking lot wouldn't get dented. It was a small act, of course, but it thrilled my Mama heart to see him thinking of others.
* Clayton and Drew are still sharing a room. Those two adore each other. They really do. However, one day last week Clayton said that he didn't like Drew waking him up early and asked if he could sleep in the guest room. I told him that he could. That lasted 5 minutes before they were both sobbing and begging to be back together. I hope that they are always best buddies. :)
* He hasn't lost any more teeth since March. His bottom middle incisors have fallen out and been replaced by his permanent teeth. All of his other baby teeth are intact. Oh, how I dread his top teeth falling out. Then his little smile will look completely different. I'm so not ready for that!
My Sweet Clay-boy,
You are 6 and a half years old! Half birthdays are still a BIG deal to you (and to me, too!). You have been telling people all day that you turned 6 1/2 today. I don't think that many people care anything about half birthdays, but I will jump at any chance to celebrate you. :)
You are something else, my little Mister. We still definitely have our days where we go 'round and 'round, but the days of us butting heads are getting fewer and farther between. Today you said, "Mommy, I love you being my teacher. I could never do my work without you." It melted my heart and made me feel like you really appreciate me. Those few words filled my cup and made my day. Thank you for saying that to me. It meant more than you will ever know.
You are a Christian now, and I love being able to relate to you on a spiritual level. I love that you ask me really hard questions about heaven and hell, why people treated Jesus the way that they did, why Eve brought sin into the world, etc. You challenge me to know exactly what I believe and to be able to back that up with scripture. I hope that you never stop craving knowledge of the Word. I pray that you always have questions and seek out the answers. That's how you grow and learn!
I read a verse the other day that made me think of you. "Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving." Colossians 2:6-7That is my prayer for you, Dear Child. I pray that you walk in Him. I pray that you are rooted and built up in Him. I pray that you are established in the faith. And I pray that you are abounding in thanksgiving. Those are my deepest wishes for you.
I know that God has big plans for you, Precious Boy. I hope that He continues to transform you into exactly who He wants you to be. I am blessed to be a part of the process.
Well, I held true to my word and laid Owen down on his play mat while I worked with Clayton on schoolwork this morning. I laid him down on his back and then walked away for just a few seconds. When I came back, he was on his tummy!
I asked Clayton if he had flipped Owen over. He said, "No, he just rolled over." He had no idea that it was a big deal. Ha!
That little stinker - wonder how long he's been waiting to show off that trick! He did it over and over and over again all day today.
At one point Drew said, "Good job, Baby Owen! You get a trophy!" It was so cute to hear him so proud of his brother. :-)
I feel like this is the first big milestone. Sitting, crawling, furniture cruising, and walking - they're all going to happen before I know it. It's just crazy how fast that this first year goes by!
Our sweet little Sugar is 4 months old! I can hardly believe it... What a month this has been! Here's a summary of life with our little O:
* Owen had his 4 month well check this morning. He weighed 14lbs. 1oz. (34%). He was 25.5 inches long (73%). His head circumference was 41.5 cm. (31%). Owen weighs less than either of his brothers did at 4 months (Drew was 16 lbs. 13oz. and Clayton was 14 lbs. 4 oz.), but Dr. P. reassured me that he is growing just fine. He doesn't look skinny to me, he's just going to be long and lean, I guess. :) He got a clean bill of health and did well with his immunizations. He hardly fussed at all!
* Owen is wearing size 2 diapers and 3 month clothing. He still wears some of his 0-3mth things and is starting to wear some 3-6 month.
* We took our trip to the Carolinas in August, and Owen did so well! He was awesome on the plane and did great on all of our adventures. However... his sleeping schedule definitely took a turn for the worst. :( He was sleeping 10-11 hours at night before we left, but started waking once in the night while we were gone. We're slowly, but surely, getting back on track. He's sleeping 8-9 hours right now. During the day his is still nursing every 3 hours and sleeps for 1.5-2 hours between each feeding.
* Owen found his thumb and fingers this month. He will just suck away whenever he manages to get one in his mouth. It's pretty cute. ;) * Owen is a happy, smiley baby 95% of the time. That makes the 5% of the time that he is sad so stressful. I kind of panic when he cries, because that is not his norm. His crying is almost always due to being overtired at the end of the day. Poor little Third Baby gets woken up from naps and is on the go more than I would like. Thankfully, he goes with the flow pretty well and can miss naps here and there. * O found his feet this month, too. * He is starting to look A LOT more like Clayton did as a baby. I see it more and more. He has those beautiful blue eyes - just like his Daddy and both brothers. Just dreamy... * Owen still sleeps swaddled tightly in his miracle blanket. Yes, I know that people think that I am a Looney Tune for swaddling him. One of my pals that works in the church nursery asked me last week, "Do you still have that sweet baby in that straight jacket????" Ha! He loves it, though. I swear. * O is a fan of tummy time. Neither of my other babies cared for being on their belly much, but Owen is content doing baby push ups and watching the world around him. * He's also a Bumbo Rockstar. Seriously, he does awesome in that thing! * Owen hasn't rolled over yet, but he honestly hasn't had much of an opportunity to learn. Wade, Clayton, Drew, and I all love to hold our Baby, so he is held a lot. :) If he isn't being snuggled by one of us, then he is usually in his swing or Bumbo. Note to self: I need to make a conscious effort to let him spend some time just laying on a blanket. Those milestones kind of fall off of your Mommy Radar by the time the third baby comes along. Ha! My Darling Boy,
Owen, my Owen... How I adore Thee! This month has been a doozy! Your first big trip, first airplane ride, school starting, new church activities, etc. Your poor little schedule has been turned upside down! Gone are the lazy days of summer. Boo!
While we were on vacation, you had your longest sleeping stretch yet - 11.5 hours! I commented to Daddy that I was sad that I would never be up in the night feeding a baby again. Ha!!! You were quick to remedy that. ;)
I am getting less sleep now, but I really do enjoy the quiet night time feedings. Two nights ago you woke up at 5 a.m. I was sooo tired, and could barely muster the energy to get you and head to the living room to feed you. While I fed you, though, I had a "moment" with you. You looked so sweet and innocent with your almost bald head and big blue eyes. I just prayed and prayed for you while you ate. I thanked God for giving you to me. I'm so glad that you're mine!
You are going to do big things, Precious Boy. I know that is true. I will always be your biggest cheerleader and #1 fan, and you will always be my Baby.
Welcome to our little corner of the web! We are a family of 5 - Daddy, Mommy, Clayton (age 8), Drew (age 5), and Owen (age 2). We are blessed beyond measure...
