my picture wall

I recently did a new layout of pictures in our family room.  I was so excited because I finally had a place for the big canvas picture of Charlie at 3 mos. old.  It had been sitting in my bedroom for 4 years! 

Here is the before:

Here is the after:

It showcases some of the fabulous pictures of the boys that have been taken by a multitude of photographers.  I walk by this now and just smile.  I hope you did too!

packing the backpack...

It's always so funny for me to pack Charlie's backpack for school, especially on Tuesdays after he's played in it all weekend.  This is what I found last Tuesday...

Then, when I went to put his snack in the front pocket...golf balls!

Philip - one year old!

Pics taken July 27, 2011

Philip is no longer my little baby. He officially turned one in July so I guess he's classified now as a toddler.  I am, however, loving this stage of his life.  He is just so much fun and has a great time with his big brother.  I love watching that.  Philip is still my little cuddle bug.  When I pick him up out of his crib after a nap or in the mornings, I put him against my chest to give him a hug and he just wraps his arms around me so tight and snuggles in.  I try and relish in that moment each time.

Philip became a different kid when he turned one.  It was like he realized he wasn't a baby anymore.  He has become so much more independent.  He now fusses at me when something doesn't go his way.  He's becoming a picky eater.  The list goes on...  Philip is such a different child than Charlie was.  Now that Philip is mobile, he'll just take off down the hall to go play on his own.  He ends up 99% of the time in Charlie's room.  :)  Apparently, he has better toys.  But, he'll just sit and play all by himself.  Charlie would never do that...still won't do that - even at 4.  Philip is very content and a really good baby.

Philip's favorite toy right now is a ball.  He will sit and throw it to you and you just roll it back.  That will keep him occupied for a while.  It's also great because he can do this with Charlie.  Philip is also into the "putting things in and taking things out" phase...especially if it includes a ball which many of the toys he got for his birthday are just that.

Philip is not walking yet but so wants to be!  I remember around his birthday, I had just begun to walk him around with support.  Now, a month later, he walks like a champ, still with support though and can pull himself up with ease.  Just yesterday I walked into his room to this...

His balance is getting better exponentially each day.  He is cruising along the couch and from the ottoman to the end table.  He won't let go yet but it won't be long!  The video below will give you a good idea of where he is with walking and letting go.  It was taken a week ago though and he has already improved.

Philip, just in the last few days, has learned to bend over and pick something up.  He has also just learned how to sit back down from standing.  I see him trying to climb things like the fireplace hearth and if he finds stairs, so he may be my climber where as Charlie was not.  I think there are going to be many things with Philip that there weren't with Charlie just because he's the second child and is learning from his big brother.  People keep reminding me of that and I am seeing it more and more each day.

Philip got a virus around his birthday that the doc diagnosed as Stomatitis.  This gave him ulcers on the bottom of his tongue.  Sounds awful, I know.  I felt so bad for him at the time but it was a bittersweet thing in the end.  It caused his appetite to drop off significantly for a few days.  Philip wouldn't even latch when it came to breastfeeding.  Since he was a year old though, I was able to give him cow's milk, which he would drink out of a cup no problem.  I tried to get him to nurse for a couple of days but with no luck.  So, the boy weaned himself cold turkey.  He was only nursing first thing in the morning and right before bed (most nights) though.  I had planned on nursing longer but...oh well.  However, the sweet part of this deal was that Philip also quit sucking his thumb!  Hallelujah!  I thought he would start back after he got better but to my surprise he hasn't.  Yay!!!  I thought for sure he would suck his thumb when he went to bed each night.

And along those lines, Philip is a great sleeper.  Even with no thumb, I just take him into his room at night, give him a little lovin' and lay him down in his bed.  Most nights he cries just a little and then goes on to sleep.  But, he has been this way since he was born.  Philip never needed rocking, back rubbing, a hand on the back...nothing.  He's my independent kid.  Most days Philip gets two naps which are usually around 1.5 hours long.  He sleeps between 11 and 12 hours each night as well.  If he wakes up during the night, which is next to never, I just go in, sway back and forth a little bit with him and lay him back down.  Philip, even as a baby, will not go to sleep in our bed.  I haven't tried it in a while, simply because he doesn't need it, but I suspect it would still be the same thing.

Some days, when our schedules are off, which seems to be alot lately, he'll only get one nap.  Surprisingly, he's such a content baby that he doesn't even seem to notice that he missed his morning nap.  I'll just lay him down in the afternoon and he'll sleep for about 3 hours or so.  He makes up for it but never complains about it like alot of kids.  Believe me...I'm thankful!  Some days, he'll take a morning nap for like 4 hours and then not need an afternoon nap.  He's just a "go with the flow" kind of kid and I am a "not gonna wake him up" kind of mama.  I can tell when he's tired so I put him down for a nap.  If I ever read him wrong, he lets me know!!!

I mentioned that Philip has become a picky eater.  Well, let me clarify...the boy doesn't turn down food.  He just has an order he eats them in.  And, like most kids, the veggies are last.  I think he wouldn't eat them if I'd let him but he doesn't gripe too much when I make him eat them.  He drinks his milk, eats his meat, then the fruit, and then the veggies.  Bread trumps everything except the milk.  And, he has figured out that the food on my plate tastes better than the food on his plate so I am constantly fighting to get his hands away from my plate.  Even if his food is the same as mine, which is the case most dinner meals, he still wants my food.

Philip has mastered some words that we can recognize.  He mastered "mama" when he was sick.  He has recently starting calling Daniel "dada".  He's always said these sounds but not in reference to anything.  Just tonight when we were talking with Daniel's parents on the computer, we were saying our goodbyes and Charlie was being loud and rambuncous about it.  (Imagine that!)  The second before Charlie ends the call, Philip blurts out something that sounded like a bye bye and threw up a hand to wave!  Daniel and I just looked at each other in disbelief for a second.  But, Philip has gotten good at mimicing all of us so I guess it was to be expected.

I took Philip in for his one year well visit around the first of August.  Here are his stats:  Weight - 22 pounds 12.8 ounces (50%);  Height - 31 1/4 inches (90%);  Head circumference - 19 1/4 inches ( >97%).  Usual vaccines and everything checked out fine.

Philip's birthday fell on a Wednesday and the boys and I ate dinner at the Moore's house before going to worship.  They, of course, had cupcakes for Philip.  He wasn't too thrilled at everything but we found out later it was due to him being sick...

at the pool...

Debbie and I took the boys for one last hoorah at the pool before they started back to school.  What a great time we had!  Charlie had learned to jump in the pool by himself and Nathan decided to jump with him.  I think they jumped for about 30 minutes before we made them take a break.

They jumped...

and they jumped...

and they jumped...

Debbie and I laughed and laughed and laughed... :D

Charlie's first day of PreK4

Yep.  It's that time again...when you realize your babies aren't babies anymore.  Charlie is now 4 so he has begun to prepare for Kindergarten.  *tear*  He has begun a new school year and is in the PreK4 class.  Ms. Tera is his teacher.  This will be his third year at this school so he is familiar with everything including his teacher which has made something new easier.  Charlie doesn't do well with change. 

Charlie would not go to sleep Monday night.  I guess it was either too much excitment or the short nap he had that afternoon.  So, when he awoke on Tuesday morning, he was excited but dragging a little.  He kept asking me all these questions about school so I could tell he was ready to go back.  As we pulled into the parking lot yesterday, I asked him if he wanted me to drop him off or walk him to the door.  I was kind of sensing that he might be a little nervous.  He answered, "Walk with me."  I parked the car and walked him to the door.  Ms. Tera greeted him with her usual "Good morning, Charlie!"  and he walked right in with her like it was old hat.  Not even a glance back.  Yes, I'll admit, I teared up walking back to the car.  I can't even imagine what I'll be like next year when I have to leave him all day.  Ok, let's not talk anymore about that...

When I picked him up, he was cranky.  I assumed it was just because he was tired.  He stayed up late, woke up early, hadn't had lunch, and stayed an extra hour longer than last year.  I'd be cranky too.  Tera said they had a good day though.  I did get a video, like the two previous years, but he wasn't very cooperative for obvious reasons.  However, he did talk much more about it with Daniel over dinner Tuesday night...

recent outings...

The boys and I had a few outings last week.  ToysRUs was having a "buy a backpack, get a lunch box for free" sale so I wanted to take advantage of it for Charlie.  Charlie was so excited to get a backpack.  He's been begging me for one for a while.  He kept telling me he was going to get a Spiderman one.  Charlie came home with a Lightning McQueen one.  :)  It even has wheels!  He pulled it through the store and has either been wearing it or pulling it ever since.  Charlie was also excited to see the police car and other Power Wheels.  And, now that Philip is bigger, he gets to join in the fun as well.  Charlie asked me to put Philip in the police car.  "Philip gets to drive and I'll just ride."

We also met our next door neighbors one day at the play area in the mall.  They all had a blast...including Philip!

"Mom! I want to show you something..."

"Look! It's an H!" exclaims Charlie. 

It was just too cute not to post...

kids being kids...

Life is just so much more fun when you just let kids do what they do best and have fun...

And, yes, it was Charlie's idea to play in the rain and to put on his raincoat. He insisted he wear his raincoat! Too bad he doesn't have any rain boots...

Lake Eufaula 2011

At the end of May, for Memorial Day, we took our annual trip to Lake Eufaula in AL with Daniel's family.  The Martin clan were all able to be there as well, except for Matt who is serving overseas.  It was a great, relaxing week for Daniel and I.  The temps were a little warm but overall wonderful.  Here are some pics from our trip...

There were not any big events that happened this year.  That's big considering we've been through windstorms that ripped our awning off to campsites flooding to Mr. Ward having to go to the ER for kidney stones.  The only thing this year was my BIL, Michael, had just had back surgery a few weeks prior and was still recovering so he spent alot of time in the RV instead of out enjoying the sun and scenery with the rest of us.

We did have a scare one night when my nephew's friend, Braeden, fell out of the top bunk at about 3 am.  I don't think I've ever seen adults wake from sleep and be on their feet that fast!  Luckily, just a bruised knee.

Charlie had a blast as always.  He was all about the water this year and it showed!  He also got to venture out more with Papa or Daddy on the jet ski now that he is a little older.  He even got to ride Big Bertha! 

And since the Martin clan was with us, that meant Kaylee was there.  Charlie and Kaylee were inseparable!  We kept commenting that we wonder how many years that will last before it's "Eww.  She's a girl!"  :) 

I'm pretty sure this was not Charlie's first time to have pancakes for breakfast but he sure got hooked on them during this trip!

Charlie is all about his cousin, Branson.  Here he is in Branson's hat and shoes...with no shirt like Branson and drinking a coke like Branson.  :)

Here is Charlie's time spent at the lake...
Philip also seemed to enjoy himself.  There was never a time that someone wasn't playing with him so he got quite spoiled. 

Eat.  Play.  Nap.  He's got the lake routine down!

This was his first experience in the water - lake and pool.  He didn't seem to really care much for the lake but he tolerated it. 

However,  Philip loved the pool! 

Here is Philip's time spent at the lake...