One Year

Dear Sophia,

It is hard to believe a whole year has passed since you came into our lives. I don't even know where to begin to tell you just how wonderful this past year has been. I just hope your Daddy and I can show you how much we love you everyday. You have made our world so much better, Sweet Girl!

You are getting closer and closer to walking every day. You have stood on your own and even taken a step or two, but then you sit right back down. I am not rushing you to walk at all. I know you will do it in your own time, when you are ready. For now, I am enjoying getting to carry you everywhere with us. I know once you start to walk, you won't want to be held as much. You are an expert crawler and cruiser. So, for now, you get where you want to go on your own, and it doesn't bother you that you aren't walking.

I don't know what your height is yet, your one year check up is next week. You went to the doctor yesterday because you are sick, and your weight was 17lbs 14oz. You are usually in the 25 percentile in weight, so I imagine that is where you are at. Developmentally, you are right on track and I just praise God for your good health!

You make lots of noise all the time, and you know a few words. You can say, "dada", "mama", "Aiden", "Jenny", "uh-oh", "baby", and you recently started saying "Grandpa" too. Your brother and sister are quick to give you whatever you need/want, so there really isn't much reason for you to talk just yet. I have to remind them to be more patient, and wait to see if you can say the word for whatever it is you want at the time.

You are really good at giving us kisses when we ask for them. You are such a sweetheart! Sometimes you will come up to me and just lay your head in my lap. It is the sweetest thing! You are such a love bug! You have also started trying to blow kisses at us. You have been waving bye-bye for several months, but sometimes you are so funny about it. A few days ago you crawled over to your car seat, climbed in, and then waved bye-bye at me. Silly girl! You also love to put your hands over your face and then I will say, "where's Sophie?" and you will uncover your face and I'll say, "there she is!". After you uncover your face you will also try to say "there she is!". It is precious!

You love to dance! Every time you hear music playing, whether it is on the TV, the car radio, our phones when they ring, or even if someone is singing, you bob your little head and shake your hips. If you are standing up, you will move your whole body up and down along with the music. It is the cutest thing! You also love when we sing to you. Your favorite songs I sing are: Jesus Loves Me, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Mary had a Little Lamb, and The Itsy Bitsy Spider (you are learning the hand movements to this song). Sometimes you even try to sing along.

You also love books! I usually read to you every night before bed, and sometimes during the day. You like to look at the pictures and I point stuff out to you in the book. I love reading, and I hope you will always have a passion for books.

You are getting really good at "Pat-a-Cake". Grandma started teaching it to you a few months ago, but lately you have gotten really good at doing the hand movements. Sometimes you'll be doing them even when we aren't singing the song. Cutie pie!

You have been drinking milk for several weeks now. Occasionally you still get formula, but not very often. You are still taking a bottle, but you can also drink from a sippy cup. We will probably take your bottle away soon. Right now you usually only get it at nap time and bedtime. You are a great eater! You love all kinds of foods, and so far, you haven't been allergic to anything. Your favorites are: scrambled eggs, hot dogs, chicken nuggets, spaghetti-o's, cheetos, cereal bars, bread, apples, mandarin oranges, strawberries, and bananas.

Jenny loves to take care of you. She helps me out a lot! She loves to carry you around and teach you things. She reads to you a lot, and is so caring with you. Aiden just adores you! He loves to play with you. You like to chase him, and you like when he chases you. He has so many nicknames for you: Soph-a-loaf, Sophie Girl, Sophie Baby, and Soph. They both think you are the best little sister! They are both genuinely happy when you learn new things, and genuinely upset when you are upset. Every time they go to your doctor appointments when you get vaccines, they cry right along with you! I just love watching the bond between the three of you develop and flourish. You have an incredible bond with Jenny and Aiden, and I pray that it always stays that way. I hope that the three of you will grow up to be best friends.

You are just the sweetest little girl, and you are so petite. I just love spending day in and day out with you. I cannot describe what a blessing you are to our family! We all just love you so much, you are every one's little baby.

God has amazing things in store for your little life, Sophia. I pray that you will seek Him, follow Him, and live out all of the big things He has in store for your life, sweet baby. You are a masterpiece, created for your Daddy and me right now, but for the rest of the world later. I love you so much, you will always be my baby girl.

Love always,

Mama and Daddy

Sophia's First Haircut

Last weekend we had Sophia's hair cut for the first time. She and Aiden both had the same lady cut their hair for the first time - she is also the same lady who cut mine and my brother's hair for the first time. Sophia did pretty well. She didn't like to sit still for that long so at times she moved around a little. 

Sophia is 11 Months Old!!

Dear Sophia,

I can hardly believe I am even typing this, but....you turned 11 months old last week!!! You are getting so big! I can't believe you will be one in less than a month!

You weigh 17lbs 14oz. You wear 12 month clothes, a size 5 shoe, and a size 4 diaper. You get 3 8oz bottles a day, and lots of table food. You very rarely ever eat baby food anymore. Not because I don't give it to you, but because you don't want it. Your favorite table foods are: Mac n Cheese, pancakes, hot dogs, and diced fruits and veggies. You prefer anything you can feed yourself.

You are love for us to hold your hands and let you walk. You cruise all over the place and I think you will start walking soon. I'm not sure if I'm ready for that!

You love to sing and dance! Anytime you hear music playing, you dance. I've even heard you sing a few times. You are saying a few words now: dada, daddy, mama, hey, hello, uh-oh, and bye-bye.

You are hearing the word "no" a lot lately. You love to play with things you aren't supposed to. Your favorite thing is the cords by the TV and the Wii controllers. You are very curious! :)

You have started playing the harmonica when we are at Grandma's house, you finally figured out how to make it make noise! You also love books! I read to you every night before bed, and you just listen so closely. I hope you will always love books!

Your first birthday party is in the works! I have decided on a theme, a date and time, and a guest list. I'm still working on decorations and other details. I can't wait!!

You get prettier every day, and we are so blessed by you! It is getting difficult to remember what life was like before you were born. We can't imagine our lives without you in them!

All About Aiden

Isn't that a catchy title? Original, I know. Just like my "Just Jenny" posts, I am planning to do "All About Aiden" posts as well. So, here goes....

Aiden is four years old. I will be registering him for Pre-K soon, and he will start Pre-K in August. I'm not sure how he has grown up so quickly. I heard someone recently say, "the days go by slow, but the years go by fast." Anyone who has children will tell you, that is so true!!

Aiden is my wild child. He is ALL BOY! He loves Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, and Batman. He would play video games all day if I let him. His favorite game right now is his newest one, Lego Batman 2 on the Nintendo Wii.

Aiden recently started playing pre T-ball. It is almost the same as T-ball, but they don't keep score. It's just for fun. He has been to several practices and his first game was supposed to be last Saturday, but it was cancelled because it was too cold.

Aiden knows his ABCs, counting, and colors. He is learning to recognize letters and can recognize most numbers up to 10. His favorite letter is the letter A, which he points out whenever he sees it! He can also write his name. We are working on forming the letters better.

I feel like Aiden is going to do great in school! He learns quickly, and behaves well (especially when I'm not around). We are looking forward to seeing how he grows and develops!

On the Go!

We better watch out! Pretty soon we are gonna have a walker on our hands!! There she goes....

 

Pushing her baby doll in the stroller!!

 

I guess she really wanted to go bye-bye, because she even put herself in her carseat! This child keeps me on my toes, that's for sure! But, seriously, have you ever seen anything cuter in your entire life??? Her smile just makes me melt....and she knows it, too!!! :)

Just Jenny

As I said in one of my previous posts, I am going to try and document each of my kids' lives a little better. Lately my blog has turned into "The Sophia Show". Which is great that I am documenting her milestones and her growth, but I have two other children who also need their lives documented. So, I am hoping to do a post about each child at least once a month. I'm starting with Jenny, since she is the oldest.

Jenny will officially be 7 1/2 on February 30 (if February 30 actually existed). It's a good thing we don't celebrate half birthdays, because I'm not really sure when we would celebrate hers.

Anyway.... She is in the 2nd grade. She is a wonderful student, and almost always does very well! She got all A's and one B on her last report card, and she also got a 100 on her last math test! She just finished addition and subtraction of 2 and 3 digit numbers, and she just started adding and subtracting money. She is also learning about complete sentences, punctuation, and parts of a sentence. She is reading above her grade level. In science she has learned about states of matter, animals, and outer space.

She is currently involved in a program at church called Awana. She is also involved in Girl Scouts. This is her third year. She completed her first two years as a Daisy, and she is almost finished with her first year as a Brownie. I am the co-leader of her troop. We are going on our first camping trip in May, and we are both very excited!!

Jenny is a very sweet, loveable young lady. She is also an AWESOME big sister!! Seriously - she is probably the best big sister I have ever seen. She helps Aiden, as much as he will let her, and she is great with Sophia! She and Sophia already have a very special bond that only sisters can have. I pray that they will always be close and that they will grow up to be best friends.

Out of all three of my children, Jenny is the most loving. She loves attention, and loves to be hugged and loved on. She also likes when I do things like write her a special note in her school agenda or send notes with her snack at school.

Jenny isn't at our house all the time, but she is just as much a part of our family as Aiden and Sophia. We love, love, love having her here at home! We all miss her so much when she is not here - especially Aiden and Sophia.

That is pretty much everything going on in Jenny's life lately. I am looking forward to documenting her life more often!

Sophia is 10 Months Old!

Dear Sophia,

You turned 10 months old yesterday!! Oh my goodness, I can't believe how close you are to turning one! I already have a date set for your birthday party, I just have to start planning!! :)

You have grown up so much this month, you seem like less like a baby with each passing day. You are all over the place, and there is no stopping you! I can't leave the room without making sure you are in a safe place or that someone is there to keep and eye on you. You still army crawl, but you have started crawling the regular way too. You are getting closer to walking on your own. It's just a matter of getting over the fear of letting go of the table or whatever you are holding onto.

You wear 9-12month clothes, a size 4 shoe, and a size 3 diaper. I think you weigh around 17lbs. You have 4 teeth, and you are getting 4 more. 4 teeth at once seems rough, but you handle it well!

You had a double ear infection this month, but antibiotics cleared it up. You ended up being allergic to the antibiotic (Augmentin), and you got a rash. Benadryl cleared it up.

You got a first cousin this month! Your cousin Allie was born just a few days ago! You haven't met her yet, but you will tomorrow. We have already decided you will have to look at her from a distance since you LOVE babies so much! I think you might be too rough with her given the opportunity. I can't wait for the day y'all can play together!

You are so sweet! You love to give us kisses and hugs. Sometimes you even do it without us asking. You wave bye-bye and try to say bye-bye anytime you hear the word bye. You also love music! If music is playing you will sing and dance. It's so cute! You say "Dada", "Daddy", "Mama", "Aiden", "Baby", and "Bye-Bye".

 

 

You sleep every night from 9:00pm-9:00am. You usually take one nap a day, between 1:00-3:00pm. You have decided that you don't like baby food anymore. When we give it to you, you usually only take a few bites and then you get mad. You have had lots of table foods so far, but your favorites are: peas and diced carrots, brown rice, asparagus, avocado, Cheerios, graham crackers, mashed potatoes, and of course, anything sweet.

You are really starting to get to such a fun age! We are just having so much fun watching you grow up!

Love always,

Mama and Daddy

Sophia is Nine Months Old!

Dear Sophia,

You turned 9 months old on January 4, 2013!

You weigh 16lbs 5oz and you are 28 inches long. You are in the 25th percentile for weight and 75th percentile for height. You have gained a little more than 2lbs since your 6 month check up, so you are doing well.

You are pulling up on everything you can, and you have started taking steps around tables and the couch. You also reach from the coffee table to the couch. You love for us to hold your hands and help you walk. Your brother was 10 months old when he started walking, and it looks like you will be close to that age when you start walking too.

You wear a size 3 diaper and 9 month clothes and a few things that are 12 months. You wear a size 4 shoe. You got your first pair of real walking shoes for Christmas. You weren't crazy about them at first, but they don't bother you anymore.

You can clap your hands, and you love to dance. Anytime you hear music you move your head and body like you are dancing. If we sing to you, you will "sing" with us. You are trying so hard to talk to us!

Aiden can make you laugh more than anyone else. You love to watch him and play with him. Sometimes he gets too close or starts bothering you and you will get mad.

Jenny is your best friend! You just love to be around her. I can already tell that when you are older you will follow her around and want to do everything she does. I hope that y'all will always be best friends.

You have 4 teeth: the two bottom middle, and your incisors on top. You are still missing the top middle two, but you have the ones on either side of those. We say you look like a vampire.

You usually take one nap a day, and occasionally you doze off in the afternoons for a little while. You are sleeping 10-12 hours overnight, usually from 9pm-9pm. Your nap is usually from 1-3, but sometimes a little earlier.

You are such a blessing to us and we love you more each day! You have the sweetest personality and you are the happiest baby I have ever seen. You very rarely cry, and you are almost always smiling. We are so thankful that God chose us to be your parents!

Love always,

Mama & Daddy

Sophia is 8 Months Old!

Sophia, you are 8 months old! You turned 8 months old on December 4, 2012. 8 months just seems so big! You are doing so much, and it is very bittersweet.

You are very mobile! You crawl anywhere and everywhere. I can't keep you in one room for very long! You love to follow people around - especially Aiden and I.

You have started to pull up on things. You love to stand up. We had to lower your crib mattress because every morning we find you standing up in your crib. It looks like you will be walking before you turn a year old, just like your big brother!

We have started giving you table foods. You love mashed potatoes! You have also tried oatmeal, and sweet potatoes.

You have two teeth on bottom, but I know there are some on top that have been bothering you. You are chewing on things like crazy, and slobbering everywhere.

You wear 6-9 and some 9-12 month clothes. You wear a size 3 shoe and a size 3 diaper.

You are still a very happy baby. I am so lucky to have such an easy-going child. I can take you anywhere and you are almost always good. You just go with the flow which works out great with our schedule (or lack of a schedule).

I can't believe how fast you are growing! I am going to start planning your birthday before I know it! Your Daddy and I love you so much, and we are so Blessed by you!!

Love always,

Daddy and Mama

First Day of School 2011

Aiden waiting on the bus.... wishing he was going to school, too.

My first grader!

Getting on the bus!

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First Grade

Dear Jenny,

Tomorrow you start your first day of the 1st grade. How did it get here so fast?? It seems like just a few weeks ago that you were starting Pre-K. Now, here you are, two years older, and two years smarter. You have changed so much in the past two years!
We couldn't have asked for you to be any smarter, you amaze us everyday with your intelligence! I love watching you work in the first grade workbooks we bought you. You do them so well, and you hardly need help. I know you will do great in the first grade!!
Your teacher's name is Mrs. Robertson. We took you to meet her a few days ago. You were very shy upon meeting her, but I know that soon you will warm up to her. I'm sure she will adore you just as much as we do.
I know that you are nervous about starting the 1st grade. After we met your teacher you told me that you want to go back to kindergarten and be in the same class again. I wish I could take your nervousness away, but I also know that nothing I say or do will stop that feeling completely. I can only hope that I can help you to feel less nervous.
When I was in school, my parents always told me to do my best. As long as I did my best, it didn't matter what my grades were, they were still proud. So, I'm going to tell you the same thing. In everything you do, do your best. If you always do your best, you will never have to second guess your efforts. You will always know that, no matter what, it was the best you could do.
So, tomorrow when you get on the bus and go to school, know that we are so proud of you! Know that we are so blessed to have you in our lives. Know that we love you more than you can imagine, and know that we are always on your side. Have fun, and good luck!!

Love you forever,
Daddy, Katie, and Aiden

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Potty Training - It Isn't For Whimps

As many of you with children over the age of three or four know, potty training is hard work! It is not something to be taken lightly. It will teach you a lot about your child and yourself. It will definitely keep you on your toes!

I am in the process of potty training Aiden. We originally started back in April, and after a few weeks with no sign of success in sight, I gave up. I convinced myself that he just wasn't ready. Looking back, I think it was me who wasn't ready.

I didn't realize what a responsibility it would be. I helped Jaime potty train Jenny when she was two, but at the time we weren't living together, so it wasn't my responsibility all of the time. My biggest downfall was that I wasn't consistent. I'd put him in underwear and then after he peed in them and I changed him (over and over again), I'd stick him in a Pull-Up and call it a day.

Obviously, we didn't get very far. He would go potty (only #1) when I would take him. But he had more accidents in his underwear than he went in the potty. He would tell me he needed to potty, but he'd wait until after he wet his pants. Of course, none of that is Aiden's fault, and it is a pretty normal part of potty training. I'm not sure what I expected, but potty training doesn't happen over night or even in a few days (or at least in my case it hasn't).

After about a month of giving up on potty training, I decided to start again. Given what I knew from my mistakes the first time, I had a game plan.

We started again about a week ago, and this time I feel like we are making real progress. Aiden is in underwear from the time he gets up until right before he goes to bed. When he sleeps he wears a Pull-Up. I also put a Pull-Up on him if I know we are going to be in the car for a long time, or if we are going somewhere where I won't be able to take him potty every 30 minutes or so.

We started out taking him potty every 30 minutes. He went almost every time, and wasn't having any accidents. After a few days of that, we bumped it up to every 45 minutes to an hour. He was still going almost every time, and only had one accident a day (most days no accidents at all).

A few nights ago, a few minutes after we put Aiden to bed, he got up and told us he needed to potty. We took him and he went, his Pull-Up was also dry. A few minutes after he went back to bed, he again told us he needed to go potty. Obviously he thought going potty was an excuse to get out of bed. Haha!

Other than that one time, he hasn't ever told me he has to go. He also hasn't gone #2 on the potty yet - which are mostly why he has accidents.

I can tell that he is "holding it" longer periods of time and he is starting to show signs of when he needs to go (potty dance, holding himself, etc.). He also tends to "hide" when he has to go #2.

We are only a week in and I think he is making a lot of progress. We aren't finished potty training by any means. In fact, it may be weeks or even months before we are done. I intend on hanging in there this time though. Aiden will be potty trained sooner or later (hopefully sooner), even if it gives me gray hair in the process!

.......

By the way, I am much too young to have gray hair! :-)

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Aiden

*I am writing this post mostly for myself. So that years from now, I will remember how silly Aiden was at this age.*

First of all, can someone please tell me, when did my itty bitty, baby boy turn into a full fledged, wild and crazy, big boy!? He will officially be 2 1/2 on the 29th of this month. I can't believe he is already so close to turning 3!! :(

Anyway, here are a few things that Aiden has been up to lately...

• Aiden has said to me several times this week, "I'm NOT a baby, Mama. I'm a big boy!".

• After successfully using the potty he says, "Good job Aiden! You're a big boy!".

• One of his new favorite things to do after I tell him I love him is to say, "I love you more". He and I go back and forth several times "arguing" over who loves who more. I don't care what he says, I still love him more. :)

• He is becoming more of a daddy's boy everyday. He gets so excited when he knows it's time for his daddy to come home from work. Sometimes during the day he will ask me when daddy is coming home, and then when I tell him he'll say, "I miss my daddy".

• Not only is he becoming closer to his daddy, but he is also becoming more and more like him everyday. Sometimes when he throws something into the trash can he will say, "Gooooolllll!!!" He hears his daddy say that when he watches soccer on TV.

• Aiden has really started using his imagination lately. He pretends to be Buzz Lightyear, and will jump off of our furniture and tell me he is Buzz Lightyear and he can fly. He also says "To infinity and beyond!" all the time. Another character he likes to pretend to be is Woody (also from Toy Story). It is hilarious to watch him pretend to be characters he sees on TV. He takes it very seriously.

• As he gets older, his bad behavior has gone from bad to horrible. He isn't bad all the time, but when he is, it's BAD. Just today, he got into the fingerpaint. When I went into his room, there were four blobs of yellow, blue, green, and red fingerpaint on the carpet. His TV was also covered in fingerpaint as well as his face, arms, and the door to his room. All of it except for the stuff on the carpet was easy to clean up, and I think the carpet cleaner will take the rest out of the carpet. It was Crayola Washable fingerpaint, so hopefully it will all come out.

• The child is obsessed with Monkey Joe's. He has only been twice, but I think he'd walk to Monkey Joe's if I'd let him. He tells me everyday that he wants to go to Monkey Joe's for his birthday. Poor kid, he doesn't realize that is birthday is still six months away. We are going to take him to Monkey Joe's soon. :)

• Today was the first time that he cleaned up his room all by himself. I asked him to go clean it while I was cleaning the rest of the house. He went into his room, and was in there for about 20 minutes. When he came out he said, "I'm done!". I really thought he was just kidding, I was very surprised to walk into his room and find that he really had cleaned it. That will probably be the only time that happens. Haha!

• Everytime I drop Jenny off at Awana, he wants to go so badly. Poor kid. I didn't think he was old enough to go, but after going to the Awana awards ceremony the other night, I saw several kids his age in Awana. He will be going next year. He will be a Puggle. He is very excited about going to Awana!

We love you, Aiden!! We love watching you grow and change into a little boy, but at the same time we wish you could stay this age forever. It is such a fun age! We love you more!

Love,

Mama and Daddy

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Potty Training Newsflash!

Just so I will remember this years from now, and to give any of you who are interested an update, I wanted to quickly post about how potty training is going.

We started potty training on April 1st. At first, I started out strong. Aiden wore underwear all day, I took him potty every hour, and diapers were only used at night. After about a week of that, I didn't feel like Aiden was making any progress. Have I ever told y'all that I'm a very impatient person? I wanted Aiden potty trained ASAP, and so after a week with no progress, I slacked off. Aiden wore underwear sometimes, but once he started having accidents, I'd put him back in a diaper.

Fast forward to about a week ago....

I decided to start being more consistent, and to try and be more patient. After all, this is a huge change for Aiden. What seems so simple to me, is a very difficult task for Aiden. So for the past week, I have tried to keep Aiden in underwear as often as possible. I have even taken him to the park in his underwear and let him take naps in it a few times.

Fast forward to today....

Today was what I like to call a "potty training success"! Aiden had 0 accidents in his underwear today!! None! Not one! Zero! Woohoo! Not only that, but TWICE today he said, "I need to go big boy potty". That was the first time he has ever told me he had to go, BEFORE he peed all over himself.

We are definitely making progress! Of course he is still in the beginning stages, and he still has a long way to go, but at least he is making progress!

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