Christmas Extended

My sister Kim and brother-in-law Darrell were on a cruise with Darrell's family for Christmas, so we celebrated a few days late when they got back.  Kim and Darrell spoiled us all with great gifts, especially my dad who got an iPad (which he's been dreaming about for a long time now).

We always have a great time with them, and this trip was no different.  It was fun to have my whole family together (except Kory, who is on a church mission in Brazil).  Jake loves my parents, Kim, and Darrell, and so do we!  It was fun to extend the Christmas season a little longer!

Happy New Year!

I had to work New Year's Eve (boo!), but after dinner we were able to spend some time with our friends the Zimmermans'.  Jake loves their kids, and Andrew and I really get along well with Adam and Michelle.  Adam and Andrew are in the same Statistics PhD program at Ohio State, and we are both members of the same church.  We played games with them for the evening, and went home around 10:30 with a tuckered out boy.  Andrew and I stayed up until midnight, but by then Jake was fast asleep.

We enjoyed New Year's day at home playing with all of Jake's new Christmas and birthday toys.  I'm excited for what 2013 brings!  So many possibilities- it's certain to be the best year yet!

The Best Year

We have had the most fantastic year with Jake!  We love him more than I ever thought possible, and have had so much fun watching him learn and grow.  His smile melts my heart and his giggles just kill me- he is just so great!

Jake loves eating, playing with his dog, toys that light up and make noise, playing peek-a-boo, and baths.   His favorite food is cheese, but he’ll eat about anything. 

Jake doesn’t like having his diaper changed, or really anything that forces him to stay still for more than a few seconds at a time.  He has so much energy and is always on the go.  He really is an easy baby, especially for the crazy amount of energy he has.  Jake loves playing by himself and would rather be crawling around than held.

Andrew's top words to describe Jake are determined, cheerful, happy, and smiley.  My top words are adventurous, silly, messy, and sweet.  We both love his contagious giggles, toothy grins, and slobbery kisses.

As of late, Jake has loved pulling things out.  He loves taking tissues out of the tissue box, clothes out of the dryer, toys out of his bins, food out of the fridge, and pots and pans out of the cupboard.  He isn't walking yet, and really isn't showing any interest in it.  If we try to help him along, he squirms until he can get on his bum and crawls around on the ground happily.

Jake sleeps about 10 hours each night and is still taking 2 naps each day, although the length of those naps changes significantly (sometimes 30 minutes, sometimes 4 hours).  Jake is taking 2 bottles a day, one when he wakes up and the other right before bed.  He doesn't really like formula.  We were hoping he'd like milk better, but he's had some the past 2 weeks and doesn't seem to like it any more than his bottles.  

  

I love Jake’s big blue eyes, adventurous personality, and sweet demeanor.  I love how he lights up when Andrew and I smile at him.  And I love how much love he brings to our little family.  Happy first birthday, baby boy!  Thanks for making this year better than we could have imagined!

Jake's First Birthday

My baby is 1!!!  How did that happen??

I LOVE birthdays, so I wanted to make the day special for my little man.  We let him sleep in, played with him and his toys all morning, read books, ate his favorite foods, gave him a bath with his new bubble maker (which he does not know what to think of), and then he took a nap.  When he woke up, we played more, Andrew made him home-made applesause, we took him to see the zoo lights, out to dinner at Chili's, and ended with brownies, ice cream, and presents.

I'm so lucky to be the mother of this spectacular little boy.  He is such a joy and I'm so grateful for the past year Andrew and I have had with him.  I'm so excited for many more years of joy with our little one-year-old!

Merry Christmas!

I had been looking forward to Jake's first Christmas very anxiously, and it turned out great!  It certainly wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but it was a wonderful day.  I was envisioning we would wake up and read the Christmas story from Luke, which went as planned, but then I pictured he would open every present perfectly and play with each toy with a huge grin.

That certainly didn't happen.  However, it was still great, and I love having a little boy to share the joy of Christmas with.

Jake got SO many toys, Andrew got a new computer monitor to hook up to his laptop, plus a new trackpad and keyboard.  My big gift was a new camera, which I am so excited about!

We spent Christmas Eve at my house, opened gifts at my parents' in the morning, then headed to my grandparents' home for the rest of the day.  

Jake loved playing with my cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents!  They all spoiled him rotten!

What a blessing it is to be a mother and to celebrate the birth of Jesus with my sweet baby and husband!    It was certainly a marvelous day!