Andrew 18 months

My little boy is 18 months old AND a big brother!! So much has happened in his little world since our last update 6 months ago. For starters, Andrew went paci-free right at 1 year. The first day was rough, but he quickly learned how to console himself without the help of his paci. At 13 months, Andrew was also bottle-free and took his first steps!! He was a little wobbly at first; however, we now have a little runner on our hands! :) Andrew said his first words at 14 months- "fa" for fan and "ball". He presently has many more words added to his vocabulary, with favorites being "two", "four", "five", "six", "down", "please" and "bye".  His communication skills have increased greatly over the past few months. He now understands questions and commands we tell him as well as the use of sign language. He can sign "down", "more", "all done", "milk" and "no thank you".

As for his sleep schedule, Andrew is awesome at naps and sleeping through the night. We have made nap time a happy activity by offering his beloved "blankie" only during nap time. He pretty much giggles when he's told to find his blankie and lay down for a nap. He went down to one nap at 15 months sleeping a solid 2 hours! As for night time, bedtime is normally around 8:00-9:00 (depending on when daddy gets home from work) and sleeps until 7:30(ish) in the morning.

Andrew continues to be one happy little boy! He is obsessed with any kind/size ball right now!! He will shoot just about anything into his basketball goal. He also loves to be outside! He and his daddy spend a lot of quality time raking leaves, mowing the grass and playing on the swing set. His favorite tv shows continue to be Super Why and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse; however, recently we have found he enjoys musicals including "The Sound of Music", "Chitty, Chitty Bang Bang", and "Mary Poppins". Speaking of music, this little boy loves to dance! Music is another hobby he and his daddy enjoy together! Andrew has shown lots of improvement with sitting still to read books. He is constantly bringing books to us to read to him. You can only imagine how much I love this!!

Last but not least, Andrew became a big brother at 17 months old. This is by far the biggest change to his little world. I am pleased to say he has coped very well with this change. Right now, Andrew doesn't quite notice Thomas or seem to mind his presence. He has been very patient with the time I have to give Thomas with feedings, diapers and baths. When asked "where is Thomas?", Andrew knows exactly where to point. He has also doing better at giving Thomas kisses at nap and bedtime. I know with time, he is going to be the best big brother Thomas could ask for.

We are so thankful for our sweet Andrew!! I cannot wait to see what God has in store for him over the next few months!

i

 

 

Christmas 2013

HoHoHo! Merry Christmas!! We had such a great time celebrating Christmas this year! David was given 4 days off for the holiday season! We were so thankful he got to be with us on Christmas day oppose to last year. Since we have a newborn baby and I am still recovering from surgery, we decided to stay put in Nashville for the holiday season. We sure did miss spending time with our Georgia family! We hope to visit with them soon!!

Christmas Eve activities began with a quick trip to visit Santa. The line was actually not that bad! As we approached Santa, Andrew looked very interested in this bearded man and looked as though he would sit in his lap. Well, he made it about five seconds on his knee and then the tears started rolling. We then decided to make it a family picture! :) After the mall, we made it home to spend some quality time together as a family. We enjoyed a homemade meal, viewing "It's a Wonderful Life", baking cookies for Santa, reading The Night Before Christmas and a quick visit with our wonderful Gran, Papa and Ma. It was so much fun starting our own traditions and making new memories with our children.

 

Merry Christmas!

 

My sweet boys!

 

The Night Before Christmas

 Cookies for Santa!

 Santa came right on time!

 

 Andrew sure has been good this year!

 

Even Thomas got a few goodies!

Christmas morning, Thomas and I were the first ones out of bed. After his morning feeding, David and Andrew joined us in the den. (around 7:30am) We made sure to keep Andrew's eyes away from the living room.  Once the cameras were all set, we then entered the room full of presents. Andrew's eyes immediately went straight to his new kitchen! It was as if he knew exactly what to do with it! His favorite part- the microwave! He is OBSESSED with our microwave and hears the word "No" constantly when trying to push the buttons. He couldn't wait to get his fingers all over his personal one. He pretty much stuck with one present at a time. We had to encourage him to go to the next. It brought so much joy to see the sweet smiles on his face. :)

 

  

Mommy look! My own microwave!!

 

 Stirring the pot!

 Don't mind me!

 His very own Thomas the Train set.

 Thomas's present from Mommy and Daddy- his very first Bible!

 Two happy boys!

 Andrew playing with his new tent from Nana and Pawpaw!

 Nothing says Merry Christmas like new dress clothes and an ophthalmology book!

 You know you're a mom when you get overly excited about a new video monitor!!! 

 Daddy and Andrew having fun with their new toys!

After opening our presents, we then packed up the car to head over to Gran and Papa's house. There we enjoyed spending time with Gran, Papa, Aunt Jenna, Clark and Ma.  We had such a fun time opening presents, enjoying a delicious breakfast, playing with new toys, watching "Despicable Me 2", playing "Heads Up" on the iPad, talking to one another and ending the night with a wonderful Christmas meal!

 Andrew enjoying his new iPad holder from his aunt Ellen on the trip over to Gran and Papas.

 Thomas and Andrew's piles!

 Someone loves his new seat!

 This is where Thomas stayed pretty much the whole day!! We sure do love our aunt Nenna!

 One of Andrew's favorite new toys- a dump truck!

 Gran and David having some fun with Andrew's new golf set.

 Someone looks pretty comfortable in his new chair!

 One of my favorite gifts!!

I am so thankful for the time we were all able to spend together as a family. I am especially grateful for the time David was given to spend with us on Christmas! So many blessings to count and remember during this holiday season!