Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Happy Birthday Jake!

Wow... has it really been a year since our baby boy was born? It seems like only yesterday that we were on our way to the hospital to meet our little man for the first time. It has truly been the best year of our lives. Believe it or not... Trip and I have been together for almost 20 years and during that time we've been very happy and had a lot of fun but nothing compares to sharing our life with Jake. God blessed us with a such a beautiful little soul and we will spend the rest of our lives trying to express our love and gratitude for such a wonderful gift.

Jake had his 1st birthday on Valentine's Day and we had a little Winnie the Pooh party for him. He didn't eat very much of his cake but he really enjoyed digging in it and he had fun with his cousins (Abbie and Katie), his Uncle Russell, his Grandma and his Mamaw and Papaw. Jake was absolutely mesmerized by his balloons especially the giant Winnie the Pooh & Tigger balloon. Luckily that one has lasted several days because he is so happy to see it floating on the ceiling every morning when he comes downstairs for breakfast. He had fun opening his gifts and playing with his new toys.

Jake had his one year pediatrician's appointment today and Dr. Love says that he is doing just great. He weighs 19 lbs 2.5 oz and he is 28 inches tall. He had four shots and a finger stick and he was a little trooper.... only cried for a few minutes after the 3rd and 4th shots.

Jake has added a couple more words to his vocabulary. We took him hiking last weekend and Trip showed him some dirt under the leaves and Jake really liked it (such a little boy) so he immediately started saying dirt and loves saying it over and over. Jake likes to watch Trip cook and Trip has been trying to teach Jake that some things are hot and Jake has picked up that word now so when Trip cooks Jake is constantly saying "hot, hot, hot". It's just so precious!

Thankfully, our gates are arriving this week because as you'll see below Jake has already figured out how to climb the stairs. He's also enjoying getting into everything and pulling out things that aren't toys... soft drinks... bowls... pictures... DVDs... etc.

You said you wanted a Mountain Dew, right?
Ouch!  That finger stick hurt but this band-aid is surprisingly tasty.
Hanging out with my Sophie, waiting on Dr. Love.
I have to have how many shots?
Where did I see that box of Cheerios?
Is this the purple block you were looking for Mama?
I love to read in my new chair.
See Grandma, the ceiling fan is right there.
It was so fun to read with Grandma.
I'm getting so big!
Happy birthday to me... happy birthday to me...
This is my Daddy and my Mama.
Uncle Russell and Papaw always make me laugh.
Mamaw needed to hold me even though she had
a broken arm.  It probably made her feel better.
My cousins are crazy about me... and I love them, too!
Mama helped me open my presents.
Wow!  That balloon is really up there!
Peek-a-boo
Hey, I know who that is!
Mama had to wash me off and take off my icing covered shirt
before we could open my birthday presents.
Here Papaw... have some cake.
I love to give Mama bites of my food.
Cool!  It looks like I have gloves made out of cake.
It's about time I got some cake to go with all of the milk I've been drinking.
Do you think Mama knows that I'm making this mess?
Is that for me?
Daddy is so proud of me!
My cousin Abbie loves to carry me around.

I sleep with one leg out... just like my Daddy.
I love a good snack after a big nap.
This is my new friend Sophie.
Daddy, I got your sunglasses.
This inch worm is so much fun.
Wonder if I can go all the way to the top?
I think I'm ready for the stairs.
I think I can see where the light is coming from...
Shhh... Daddy is looking for me soap.  He doesn't know that I have it.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Crawling... Crawling... Crawling...

Yep... it's official... we have a crawler. He's now constantly in motion, into everything and keeping Mama and Daddy smiling all the time. We've started baby proofing (outlet covers, cabinet locks, etc.) and will be ordering gates for the stairs soon too. Jake's 6th tooth just popped through today and I'm also very happy to report that he's now saying Mama... yippppeeee! It's still a tough word for him but he's getting better every day. He's been saying Dada for about 2 1/2 months but he's also now saying cat, duck, truck and Grover (his new best friend) and participating with his reading videos like clapping when they show the word "clap" and waving when the word "hi" comes on the screen. Jake has learned to sign for milk so he let's me know when he wants milk now which is so cute. When you ask him what the ceiling fan does he waves in a circular motion because we've told him it goes round and round. Jake is also pulling himself up in his crib and by holding onto his truck as well as the ottoman so he might move on to walking sooner rather than later.

As you'll see below, we took Jake for a walk one evening recently. He LOVES to be outside and he loves cold weather so he was very relaxed and fell fast asleep. He fell so fast asleep that we were able to pick him up out of the stroller, carry him inside and lay him down in his pack 'n play for a nice long nap. Jake normally sleeps very lightly and wakes up immediately when he's moved so we were very surprised.

Jake will be one in just 10 days and we're going to have a little Winnie the Pooh party for him. I promise to post more pictures after his party and possibly more video if he really digs into his on personal smash cupcake.

I'm including lots of new pictures in the post and a few new videos too.

Look at me Mama!  I'm standing up again.

I'm so glad that Papaw is feeling better.
I've got to hurry and see what's in here before
Mama gets back over here.
Wow that walk made me tired.
Shoot, I fell asleep before I finished my snack.
Daddy's boy.
I see you, Mama.
Did you see that Mama?  I just pulled myself up.
I'm really going places now!
I'm getting tired from all of this crawling.
Now I can go get my truck all by myself.
Daddy, it's so funny when you sneeze!
Let me show you how to build that shelf, Daddy.
Go faster Daddy... go faster!
I love this truck!
Read this one to me, Daddy.
Hey was that the cat that just went by?

Let's do it again, Mama.