What we've been up to: Kids update

Winter is interesting with two little ones.  Someone always has a runny nose and we're all going a little stir crazy! I used to love the cold but now I'm looking forward to warmer temperatures.

Jordan is now 15 months old. She has been walking for 4+months and is very good at it. She has now mastered going up and down the stairs by herself which makes me breathe a little easier. She loves shoes, necklaces, cell phones, books, and music.  She is all girl!  She normally would rather yell to get her way (she's a sassy little thing) but we're working on sign language and vocabulary. She can sign more, please, thank you, water, and blow kisses and wave bye-bye. She can say Mama, Dada, Miles (Miiii-um), apple, and thank you.  

Miles is getting really good at independent play. His new thing is his box of trucks. If it has wheels, he plays with it. He builds ramps and takes those trucks everywhere.  He even sleeps with them at night. It is fun watching him begin to learn. He's pretty good at counting and is now beginning to learn his letters.  He loves having focused Mommy time. Sometimes when I'm sitting on the floor he will come up to me and say, "you want to tuddle (cuddle) me?" It never last for more than 20 seconds but the gesture is so precious!  

Waiting for Daddy to get home.  Jordan loves to mimic her big brother.

They love to play with each other. Jordan's favorite thing to do is chase Miles and tackle him to the ground. He loves the attention.

We were BLESSED with a very nice play set.  The kids love to play when the weather permits.  Jordan can even master the stairs. 

Christmas brought a lot of boxes. We would put Miles in the big ones with Crayons and he would go to town coloring.  Note the snack and water cup. He was all set for a long play time.  

We've had a few weeks where it has rained almost every single day.  It takes forever for the mud to dry up so sometimes we just have to get a little messy.  The kids think the mud is so cool!

Miles baking some muffins with me.  It was like 9:30 at night and he had no interest in going to bed.

Showing off his work goggles from his tool bench.  

DARLA!

Jordan is just like her brother in that she loves animals!!  One day while I had some shopping to do at Target, Carson took the kids next door to PetSmart!  Jordan loved the fish and was very upset when it was time to leave. We may have been watching a little too much Nemo. 

December Road Trip- Take 2!

 As soon as we recovered from the stomach bug, we loaded up the car and headed for Lancaster to see Carson's dad and his side of the family for a delayed Christmas celebration!  It was a short trip but so good to see everybody.

While there, I hopped down to Columbia for the night to greet my friend at the airport that has been in China for the last 1.5 years!

Road Trip!

This December the kids and I went to visit a friend in Columbia that I had gone to college with.  I hate it when all of my normally scheduled activities get cancelled for the holidays and it's hardly ever warm enough to go outside. So, we got out of the house for the day and had a blast. We had lunch a Chick-fil-a so the kids could play in the play place and then spent the afternoon and evening hanging out at Sawyer's new house with her new kitty that the kids ADORED!  Christy, another friend from college, was able to stop by after work! Such a great visit!

 

Christmas!

Thanksgiving and Christmas went by very quickly this year and we (I) was very homesick.  The holidays just seems a little lacking without our families.  Our Christmas morning started at 3:30 am with Miles waking up with the stomach bug. Carson and I got hit just a few hours later. I only have one picture from the day of the guys passed out half way through opening presents. Miles started the day in Christmas jammies, but I think we were on our third pair by the time I took this picture.  Our neighbors we kind enough to bring us some food over so that the kids could have some dinner. They bounced back quicker than the adults!

I did, however, remember to snatch a picture of Jordan in her Christmas dress the Sunday before. 

Thanksgiving

I cooked my first Thanksgiving meal this year! We had an Iranian family over to celebrate with us and we had a great time!  It was great to have friends in our home since we couldn't make it home to be with our family in Orlando.
It was a ton of work and with the kids the ages that they are it was hard for them to understand why I was in the kitchen so much.
The verdict: The food was delicious, I can say that I've done it. And I don't want to do it again for many years!

Grammy turns 80

My Grammy turned 80 this November. We were very blessed that all of her family was able to be there.  My Mom and Aunt hosted a fabulous party with a great turn out of friends and extended family all there to celebrate this special lady. 

Family Photo

 Grammy with her two daughters

 A little bit of music

 Working hard in the kitchen. . .or not!

12 Month Photo

12 Month Stats:

20lbs/ 46th percentile

31inchs/ 94 percentile

Jordan is one year old!  I can't believe how quickly she is growing up.  She is walking very well and has even made it up and down our small flight of stairs.  She is vocal but not expressing many actual words yet. She says mama, and is starting to work on some of her animal sounds: moo, quack, baa, etc. She loves singing, music and dancing. If she is upset in the car, I can start singing and she will instantly stop and start clapping. This has led to 20 minutes straight of me singing, "I'm bringing home a baby bumble bee. . " She also loves to read. She can be half asleep but if I try to put her to bed without reading her a book she gets mad.  Speaking of mad, she is really starting to show her toddler colors and can pitch a fit if she wants something. One day I was not feeding her quick enough and she screamed for more. Miles covered his ears and said, "Ouch, too noisy!"

Miles and Jordan play so well together, and I can really see a great relationship between them forming. 

Her new favorite toy/activity is playing with her shape blocks. She can only get the circle one in the right place, but she does it over and over and over. 

She is a super sleeper.  She hardly ever gets up at night unless she is very sick and she sleeps for 12-13 hours every night.  She is currently in the process of dropping her morning nap which frees us up to do more things. I can't wait to continue to watch her as her personality develops! 

If you like to compare, here is Miles one year blog.

Birthday Cupcake

 My baby girl is one!!

First tastes

Oh yeah! She likes it!

Miles just liked to lick the icing off the cupcake.

More please!!

Baptism

Jordan was baptized in October. We pray she will come to know Christ at an early age and are thankful for the loving family of Christ that surrounds her. This photo from Miles' baptism was taken almost two years ago.

Fall Visit

While we were Apple Picking we were up in the area to visit some great family friends.  John owns the cabin that we visit in Colorado.  

Apple Picking

We went up to SkyTop Orchards this fall for the first time to go apple picking. We had a great time picking apples and eating apple donuts. Miles loved getting to help.  

 We found a great BBQ place afterwords. And Miles found a new friend. 

Videos from Corn Maze

Corn Maze

For 6 years I have seen the signs for the Denver Downs corn maze and we had never been. We finally decided to make it happen this year. We had a blast! There were so many fun things for the kids to do. We ended up staying way longer than we had planned. I think it was just the perfect fall activity for us after our crazy summer. We were finally in a house of our own, starting to get settled, and I think a family day like this was just what we needed. This will probably be making this a family tradition.   

Miles had never been this close to a tractor

 Jordan loved chilling in her stroller. There was so much to look at.

Instead of a sandbox they had a corn box! The kids loved it and it was so much cleaner!

Hayride!

 Enjoying the view

 Jumping on the hay bales

Super fast slide!

Keeping herself occupied in the corn maze