Happy fall :)

(This irks me to No End that I cannot center these pictures... I am hitting publish reluctantly just to overcome.  This silly blogger app....)

18 months!

Yep, he seems to have forgiven me for failing to post diligent updates of his growth and development.  Thanks, Bud.  I could blame you for my failure to blog, but that wouldn't be fair.  I'll blame me.  You are a firecracker, for sure, little man!  I can't believe what a little boy you've grown into.  You will be 18 months on the 3rd, but I'm posting early because I'm on a roll.

At 18 months, you have ALL your teeth and your 1 year molars.  In fact, you've had all these teeth for a month or two.  It still startles me to see ALL your pearly whites when you smile.  I've given you one hair cut, and I should probably think about a second ;)  You are a very good eater if you don't snack.  If I give you a snack, you're AWFUL.  You throw food, squeal, goof off... Then I wonder why I gave you a snack...  Oh, yea, it was because you're always STARVING.  Vicious cycle that Mommy has yet to beat.  In the mornings, you eat two to three servings of oatmeal and a whole banana.  Sometimes I feed you eggs, but serving you three eggs doesn't scratch the surface.  You really dislike meat, rice, pears, and peaches, but you'll chug a green smoothie and beg for more.  

You talk SO much.  I can't seem to keep up with all the new words.  You point to "boo-boo's" all over and ask for kisses... You ask for "crackers" and "cookies" all. day. long. :)  See above.. You talk on your play phones to Daddy all the time, and those were the first two words you put together: HI DADDY!  If your window is open in your room, you yell and wave at anyone passing by.  You say, Mommy, Emmie, Leese, Bye bye!, happy, obey, water, milk, and you will repeat just about anything I ask you to... albeit poorly :)

You love to put things in the trash... that might be your only chore as of now.  You find fuzzies on our floor, crumbs, rocks, etc... and get thrilled when I ask you to put them in the trash!  Your vices are light switches, buttons (STILL!!), toilet water (splash, splash..), pens/highlighters, playing in the trash, and just general disobedience.  Haha.  Seriously, though, you can be a stinker...  You sure are snuggly when you want to be, though, but unless you're sick, you'll sleep 12-13 hours at night and still take at least one 2 hour nap a day.  We're in the process of dropping your morning nap, but we're not getting very far. I think you will still need an hour morning nap for at least a couple more months.  You're favorite crib pastime is looking out your window at "car!"s and staring intently when they drive around.  Who knows how much sleep you get after all...

I love the way you play with your sisters... you LOVE to be in the mix.  You'll put up with them jumping on you and wrestling, then you'll move on to something safer.  You're very mobile, and though you crawl onto chairs every so often, you're fairly cautious.  Though you're ALLLLL BOY and can walk barefoot in rocks and mulch without a qualm, you don't seem to like mosquitos at all (NASTY reactions), but you're tough.  I love that about you!  You've outgrown the extreme sensivity to dairy, and now you're just semi-sensitive... I don't give you cow's milk, but every once in a while you can tolerate small amounts of cheese and butter without hating me.  

I love how playful you are- you love to have fun and giggle, yet you love to build towers and drive your cars around.  You really love to pick on Emily, Mister.  You know it drives her nuts, but you love it :)  Every little brother has to have someone to pick on, right?  

We love you, Jakob Henry- happy 1.5 years!  You've changed our home and given us lots of reasons to smile!  

Well, it's been a while.

Yea, this hasn't come as a surprise, but our summer disappeared!   The kids enjoyed it, we enjoyed it, but something about Fall brings a new resolve to find routine and embrace normalcy.  We're trying, but it's hard!  Three little ones in the house keep a normal routine somewhat of a mystery.  We haven't had all that many "happenings" around here that are super noteworthy, but the kids are always keeping me entertained with their goofiness, so here's a little of the fun that's been a part of life here:

Emily:

It's all I can do to keep a straight face with this girl.  She. cracks. me. up.  I don't know how to describe her at age 3.5 other than CRAZY.  She is goofy, stubborn, exuberant, hilarious, emotional, playful, shy, outgoing, ... :)  Yes, she's schizophrenic?  She wants to pray often before a meal, and this was one prayer I was thankful I wrote down:

"Dear Jesus, Thank you that I did two eyes with Minnie mouse {she had been working on putting together a Minnie Mouse puzzle before lunch} and then mommy said, let's eat!  Then we were fighting and guess what? She said we couldn't have gummy worms.. Then I got to wear a shirt and leggins.  Amen!"

Leggings (leggins) are STILL her favorite thing.  We have tears and despair when I haven't done laundry.  I don't know how this girl will survive winter!!

I love when Em says, "Mama, I had a bless you!" (A sneeze)  After several tantrums in a week, she and I had a big talk on her bed.  We talked about self-control and sin, and how we need Jesus to help us control our emotions.  Emily's response?  "But my heart is breaking!"  Aww...   

She brushed her teeth and exclaimed that her teeth were as shiny as a buffalo.  She entertains us over breakfast with her elaborate dreams... This one started with, "When I was a puppy, I ate butterflies, mosquitos, bugs, butterflies, mosquitos, bugs,..." REPEAT 10xs.

 

My husband resigned last week from his job at Capital One and started a full-time position with Cornerstone.  We had a talk with the girls about this change for us, and Emily's response was, "Is Daddy going to work for Capital 2 now?"  <insert smug smirk>

Emily's emotions are contagious.  I'm pretty sure she wants to pass on whatever she is feeling, and she does a pretty good job.  Inside is a precious little girl who is amazed at the big, beautiful world around her... she's captivated by nature, animals, tiny things, smoothies... leggins... :)  She is precious. We often say, "What would life be without Emily?  BORING."

Elyse:  

Well, this girl is ready for school.  Not literally, mind you, but she is so eager to learn.  She loves to write and "ATTEMPT" to read.  Pretending to do school is so fun for her, and the small amount of preschool that we do together leaves her hungry for more.  It makes me excited to think about sending her next fall, but I know I'm going to struggle with sending her off!  How I will miss this chatty little girl around the house.  She has blossomed into a sweet little lady.  She's eager to please, but seems to hold to her personality strong enough that I don't fear she'll be lost in the crowd.  She has a very tender heart, and she enjoys spending time with me in the kitchen, which is fun.  Elyse makes me laugh with the way she observes the world around her- always searching for the "why?" behind everything.  She is aware that she asks the same questions over and over again, so she will say, "Mommy, I KNOW you are going to tell me the same thing, but how old were you when you had me?  Were you a little girl?"  As with most 4year olds, the concept of time is painfully missing in her thought processes :)  

She moved out of her "toddler" class on Sundays, and it's so strange to see her in with the "big" kids. Friendships take on a new dimension as she gets older, and we have our moments of hurt feelings and hurting others feelings, but we're learning and growing together.  As of today, she wants to be an artist when she grows up, so much of her free time is spent painting, coloring, and drawing.  We'll see what tomorrow holds.  I think my favorite things about Elyse these days are the fits of laughter she gets into...  JUST like her mama.  She will get giggling and laughing over the silliest little thing, and in minutes, Jordan and I are in stitches with her!  I am really enjoying watching this little girl grow.  She's pretty special.

Jakob:

Well, then there's Jakob :)  I will save a whole post for him...

Jakob's World

I can't believe this boy.  Seriously, he is growing like a weed!  He's 15.5 months and is officially a toddler.  He started taking steps at 13ish months, and he's getting better all the time.  He still drops to his knees every once in a while for a quick crawl, but it's becoming less and less frequent.  He still has that hilarious wide-stanced-T-Rex pose, which just cracks us up.  His hair has grown so much, but the curls manage to keep it out of his eyes most days, thankfully.  I'll delay that decision as long as I can, thank you very much.  

(Jakob and his punch-drunk expression, courtesy of Pops)

Jakob loves water.  We spent last week up at the Lake, and by the end of the week, he was crawling in deeper water, holding his breath at times, and just crawling right out like it was a game.  Terrifies me!  But, he's cautious and adventurous at the same time, for which I am thankful.  I love his toughness (a very welcome new trait to this girl-majority home).  He falls and tumbles often enough, but it has to REALLY hurt to elicit a wail.  

Speaking of wailing, we are starting to see more of this dude's temper!  His new favorite trick is refusing to walk when he's mad.  Quite funny by the third time around, I must say.  I usually just let go and let him wallow for a moment.  Then he turns to look up at me with a little smirk.  Stinker :)  He also loves to screech, get our attention, then smile and clap.  I guess that alone proves he's expecting a rebuke, right?  He isn't nearly as bad at throwing/dropping food right now, mostly because his appetite seems to be returning after a few weeks of teething/cold discomfort.  

As for teeth, he has all but three... He  is cutting his last two molars now, so that will leave just three small vacancies in his mouth until 2 year molars.  Boy, that went quick for him.  He seriously seems to be getting them all at once.  Teething seems rougher with him, probably because my girls just cut them one or maybe two at a time, all nice and spaced out :)  Jakob- he loves to get them all out of the way and make us all suffer. 

Jake's dairy "allergy" is definitely easy to manage, for which I'm grateful.  These infant allergies often just end up being an intolerance, so I've been able to quit reading labels (which is especially helpful on vacation!) and just give him everything we are eating,minus the obvious culprits (butter, cheese, cow's milk, yogurt).  I have tried introducing yogurt and cheese with no success (he ends up with nasty diapers and wakes up in the night feeling miserable...).  A little butter in his veggies might only give him a bit of eczema, but lest you think I torture him just so I can put butter on his plate, I promise it was an experiment :)  He is not a fan of meat these days (minus "faux" meats like hot dogs and sausages- thanks, vacation food).  That's a pain, but he loves a green smoothie now and then, so I'll pretend he's a raw foodie.  

(Jakob with his cousin Owen... and Emily trying to photo~bomb)

Jake still takes two naps, but I am starting to cut down his morning nap.  If I nap him from 8:30 - 10, he will usually sleep from 1-3 in the afternoon.  He's never been like clockwork on his naps, but I am thankful he will still take them and allow us a little flexibility.  

I just love this kid.  There's nothing like hearing him yell "mommy!" as he toddles towards me and hugs my legs when he arrives.  His favorite word by far is "daddy!" and we also hear lots of his other words: car, fire (points to anything under the sun and calls it fire), hi!, bye!, side (for outside), stay (for stairs), cracker, cheese (ironic), cookie, Leese (for Elyse), Emmie, luh loo (love you), night.  His only animal noises are a growl for lion and a grunt for pig :)  Love those two little noises.  He loves animals.  We took him to the zoo last week, and he would just sit in his stroller and stare at monkeys (his favorite), bears, and lions.  He jabbers all day, sounding much like a little German boy, all gutteral and throaty.  

This boy gives big hugs, kisses, smiles, and even the occasional temper tantrum, and we love him to pieces.  I have called this the best and worst of ages... so incredibly fun, yet so incredibly exhausting!  I'm reminding myself to be persistent in these small battles (believe me, they are small compared to the battles with the older ones) so I won't make those big-toddler battles much worse.  Funny little guy- he still has me wrapped around his finger.  I'm sure I'll stay there, too.  Love you, Jakob Henry.  

10 years.

We've had two ten year anniversaries within the last week or so... Our tenth anniversary of marriage, and our tenth anniversary of living here in VA.  Seriously, a decade has flown by.  But, our wedding anniversary took the cake.  I'm SO THANKFUL we pushed to take a real "TRIP" for this anniversary. In fact, I'm pretty sure we talked about it before our 9th anniversary.  Yep, I guess that would have been about the time I was experiencing sleepless nights post Jakob.  Pretty sure that's when I planned out EVERY detail of our trip.  But, I digress...

We both wanted to relax in the mountains, and we'd heard that Asheville was a great place for that.  So, Jordan found a charming, rustic cabin on the side of a mountain, and we made it a real plan.  Four days with just my man, thanks to the amazing aunts and uncles who sacrificed to house our children!  Would we do it again?  Yes, we will do it again.  Do we have to wait till 15 years?  I hope not!  Quiet conversation, quiet meals, rediscovering what we had in common before children :) and reminding ourselves that we have a relationship that runs deeper than just common responsibilities.  I am so thankful for a husband who is willing to drop everything for a few days to hang out with me.  I'm so thankful we made this happen, even though there were a million reasons not to.  I'm so thankful for this amazing gift of marriage, one that the Spirit is using to sanctify us and to bring us more joy than I ever thought imaginable.  I can't wait to see what this decade will hold.  I love you, Jordan.

Em turns three

Sweet Emily, you are now three!  You are such a ray of sunshine to our family.  You are typically the first to giggle, screech, or boisterously laugh at the good, and you are typically the first to pronounce the bad.  You say it like it is because you are three - and because you are Emily Mae.  I feel like you have been three for a while, actually, but let's make it official today, kiddo!  

I love so much about you, but I have to keep it concise...  I love your chuckle.  Seriously, it draws a crowd.  When you get excited about something, it's hard to ignore my own excitement.  You make me care about the itty bitty spiders in our yard and the teeny tiny ant that lost his mama.  You are passionate about everything you do, from food to leggins'.  Yes, you are obsessed with your leggins'.  I love your piercing blue eyes and they way you charm us with your quick smiles.  I can almost always snap you out of your tears and get a giggle. Em, you dream of being a ballerina, but you can get as dirty as a pig during both mealtime and playtime.  Oh, you will make a fun ballerina!  Your taste for fruit far outweighs your taste for cake, and for that I am jealous.  You love puppies and kitties like crazy, but do not get your hopes up: no.  You have a soft spot for just about anything that looks pitiful, and you love making people happy.  You are the sweetest little Emily I know, and I treasure your spirit.  I pray your spunk will work only to your advantage in life, but I'm sure it will cause you a few scrapes along the way...  

We love you so much, Emily.  Words cannot express it all, but I had to try.  Happy third birthday!  May all your precious wishes come true...