35 Months - May 2010

Not a whole lot must have gone on this month - I can tell by the number of pictures I have - not very many. We did take a funny one of me and you goofing around with my cell phone camera. you love to take pictures and always say "cheese please!" or make a monster face. This looks like kind of a mix between the two.

You did help daddy build our table this month. I think my most favorite part about that table isn't how it looks but more the fact that WE built it. Daddy, me, you, Tessa, were all there and have memories of making the table where I hope we will spend years eating dinner together, doing homework, frosting Christmas cookies, etc. Maybe you'll even be reading these letters at this table one day. With that said I had to include one of the pictures of you crawling on the table during construction.

You've started to have some bad dreams in the last month. We went to Cedar one weekend to help Uncle Dusty and Uncle Derick put in their lawns. While we were there you played with Quade at his house and apparently he has some kind of racecar that scared you. One morning you woke up, walked out to where daddy was eating his breakfast and yelled at him for not closing the door so that Quade's racecar couldn't get us. We laughed but I have to admit I wasn't ready for the bad dream stage. Then another morning you had a long story to tell me about the scary lion in your dream. A few times since then I've had the chance to lie down next to you at bedtime and make up stories about Prince Logan and his dog Toby and I've tried to tell stories about lions or racecars so if you dream about them they might not be so scary. This little experience with has me worried about other parenting milestones we still have yet to reach with you as you grow out of the toddler stage and into the "kid" stage way too fast.

Earlier this week me you and Tess made a trip up to Northern Utah to visit some of my old roommates and friends from Snow. I wasn't sure how we were going to make it seeing as how the farthest trip you'd ever made before that was from Cedar to Manti last year before Tessa was born, but it wasn't too bad. We did okay on the way there until we stopped in Beaver. After we visited some friends there and stopped for lunch I bet we made 6 more stops between there and our destination. First you had to pee so I took the exit at Manderfield and let you go on the side of the road. Then Tessa had finally fallen asleep and had only been sleeping for about 10 minutes before you decided you needed to do some more serious business. I carefully got Tessa's carrier out of the car at a gas station in Meadow only to have her wake up screaming while we were in the bathroom. She didn't sleep again either. By the time we made it all three of us probably looked like we'd been beaten for the last 5 hours (yes 5!) instead of just sitting in a car.

You had a good time (for the most part) playing with the kids that were there. You and Parker got along pretty well and I know you liked Brielle because I had to chase you out of her room twice while she was trying to sleep. You didn't quite know what to think about Eli chasing you down trying to hug you but I thought it was pretty cute. There were some fights over toys of course and by the time we tried to get this picture of you and Parker you had had enough for the night...

We did manage to get a picture of the group (minus baby Adam) before Kiki and her boys had to go home. Aunt Taren had a feature on her camera that takes 10 pictures on a timer which was SO nice when trying to get 6 kids to sit still and maybe even smile!

I think you had a good time though and I was so proud of you for how well you shared and interacted with so many other kids while being away from home in a strange place. The ride home was much better too since you and Tess decided you would actually sleep for half of it. I had debated whether or not to take you guys but I am glad I did, and the trip went better than I expected. Hopefully we can continue to get together and you kids can be friends.

I can't believe you are going to be 3 next month, even though you are big enough that you have been mistaken for a 3-year-old for months now. But I guess I'll cross that bridge next month when we come to it - and with LOTS more pictures.

Love you buddy,

Mom

New Table

So remember when I posted about wanting to use these plans to build a table like this one from West Elm?

Well we started out with this...

Then Dave did a LOT of this...


and Logan did some of this...

and then Dave did MORE of this...

and then I did a LOT of sanding, staining, and topcoating to get this...

Without the $599 price tag for the table and $299 a piece for the benches. Now we just need to find about 10 guys to help us get it in the house cause it is HEAVY!

Check out www.knock-offwood.com!

11 Months - May 2010

I don't even want to think about the fact that you are 11 months - 1 more month before you are a toddler. It has crept up on me more with you than with Logan, mostly because you are still wearing some 3-6 month clothes and wear mostly 6-9 month stuff. By this time Logan was in 18-24 month clothes so there is definitely a difference.

You went to your first Easter Egg hunt earlier this month and had a pretty good time crawling around in the dirt and charming everybody there. Even cousin Brent couldn't resist your little black eye and held you for quite a while. You got the black eye without help from anyone which is kind of surprising the way Logan and you "fight". You were sitting on the floor playing with one of his toys when I heard you tip over. I turned around right as you turned to look at me with tears rolling down your face and a little bruise already showing up - which turned into a black eye. It just made you look tough during the candy hunt so no one would mess with ya.

See, no one's messing with you and your candy.

You LOVE being outside and get pretty upset when I let Logan go out without you if it is too cold of if you have been sick. The water table he got for his birthday last year is your favorite and you splash and splash in it. I think you are going to be a water girl. We took you guys swimming earlier this month and you kept dunking your face. Even now in the bath tub you dunk your face or even try to get water from the tap and end up drenching your face.

You've discovered Logan's sandbox too and love to crawl over and see what he's got going on in there, even if it means getting sand dumped on your head or in your face. I've got you wearing socks on your hands again in this picture, but I think it was the last time. You just crawled right up in the back of that dump truck too, it was pretty impressive. You don't seem to care much about walking, although you have started doing more standing in the last few days. If anyone tries to get you to take a few steps on your own though you drop to your hands and knees before we have a chance to catch you and off you crawl. I guess that means you'll walk when you decide it is faster than crawling.

You got, or I guess I should say are still getting, two more teeth this month. Finally. You started getting them in March and although they have finally come through a few times this month they also keep going back in. And yeah, that means you are 11 months old with 4 teeth, another big difference from Logan who had I think 10 or so by this time.


You are kind of a momma's girl lately and while sometimes it is nice it can get kind of, hard? I can't do much without you attached to my leg screaming at me or putting some food down in front of you and running out of the room before you notice. You're pretty spoiled. And speaking of eating, it would be nice if I didn't feel like I spent my whole day trying to get you to eat. You still love chicken nuggets but you have also added strawberries, grilled cheese sandwiches, White Cheddar PastaRoni (and ONLY that kind, I've tried others - fail), pancakes, and a few other things. It all depends on the day though because as soon as I find something you like you decide you won't eat it for a few days and throw me off the trail. We're wasting a lot of food on your petite little frame.

You are mischievous and love to do the baby/toddler things like taking stuff out of drawers and cupboards as well as picking on your brother and trying to play with his toys - when he is playing with them. You are definitely fun most of the time though and the best part of our day is when you smile your big smile at us or hide behind the couch to play peek a boo. I dread writing your next letter because I can't believe it has come so fast and writing a letter for your birthday is only going to remind me that even though you are small you are growing up fast. You can stay little for as long as you want, ok?

Love you Tessa Lindsay Woo Woo!

Mom

Helping daddy build the table.

(you might want to growing some hair on the sides of your head...)

(and I guess I should start dressing you in clothes that match)

11 Months

Coming soon.

Or at least sooner than later.

Or maybe later.