Beckett's 2nd 1st birthday!!!

Maybe a few days late, but we celebrated again!!  We really did it right with this 1st birthday (at least in my mind!)...we had 3 small birthday celebrations all spread out to make his birthday last a few weeks!  This also meant we got to eat cupcakes and party 3 times!  Ruby Belle was stoked!  And each time I would say, "we're having Beckett's birthday party today" she would say, "Ooooh!  And then it's MY birthday party?!"  So sweet and cute!  So, we had 1 birthday with my in-laws, one with just our small little family and then this one with my family.  They all pretty much went the same way - Dinner, cupcakes, bath for Beckett, then presents.  I loved every minute of watching this little guy each time though!

Sorry for the picture overload...just captured the sequence! 

it begins...

thinking hard about his next move

??? don't ask!  it's this crazy face he makes!!!  

hmmmm...getting serious about the cupcake

Oh, yeah!

taking it down!

"ugh, this cupcake business is intense!"

oh, man

feeling accomplished!

Total celebration!

Happy Birthday, Beckett!  You are such a special little man!!!  This face is contagious and a perfect description of life with you! 

Beckett's 1st 1st birthday!!

We celebrated Beckett's 1st birthday this past weekend with Justin's parents.  They travel a lot and plan to be in Wyoming, Alaska and Colorado for the next 6 weeks so they came down a few weeks early to see the kids and celebrate the big man turning 1!  This party was a little different than Ruby Belle's 1st first birthday...The cake ended up ALL over everything instead of ALL in his mouth.  (Ruby Belle ate ever last bit of her first cupcake and even some ice cream!  that girl LOVES sweets like her mommy!)  Anyway, we all had fun celebrating this sweet little man and visiting with Justin's parents!

This pretty much sums up this little guy's life!

Happy Birthday, sweet crazy man!!

Happy Happy Man with his first cupcake!!! 

I cannot believe he's 1!  

It's bittersweet because it's probably our last little one, but I did spend a good part of the last year waiting for this day!  I LOVE LOVE LOVE babies...they are so sweet and tiny.  AND helpless.  and draining...BUT SO SO rewarding, and fun and adorable and huggable and just little balls of joy!!  Don't get me wrong, I really love every minute of my kids.  But I can't help but LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE (that was one extra LOVE) the age/stage between 9 months and 2 yrs).  It's just SO fun to start really seeing their personality and all the milestones!  Watching a baby learn to crawl is fun, but watching a baby learn to walk is SPECTACULAR (in my eyes)!  I LOVE IT.  And then learning to clap, wave, say "hi," and eventually learn more and more words and start forming sentences and expressing themselves!  NOTHING beats it!  (well, I kinda love the whole labor/delivery part too...it's quite possibly my favorite - really.)  Ok, I don't know...I love it all.  Every time I type a favorite, I think of one more that I may like more...or maybe I like another one more, or....the list goes on!!  My babies, any mothers babies, are such a delight, a blessing and a miracle.

We love you more than we can ever show you, little man!  You are such a joy to watch!  Such a joy to love!  I cannot get enough of you!!

Bath time fun

Each night there reaches a point where Justin and I are tired and the kids are cranky and the only thing left to do is take a bath!  Thankfully, this point is easily detectable and happens around 7-7:30 each night.  And most thankfully it usually ends up with bath time fun!  I love this time because they both are typically happy, entertain each other, and it's all in one small confine space!  It usually works out well...until recently when Beckett has started throwing all toys out of the bath tub.  This is fun for him...throwing things and getting into what he shouldn't are his 2 favorite activities.  This makes for a very messy and wet bathroom!  and what I've learned with all of this... no matter what the environment, "Boys will be boys!"

Isn't she lovely...

I took a photography class a few weeks ago and have been playing with my camera....

LOVE THIS LITTLE GIRL!!!! 

AND I realized I haven't blogged about my sweet RB in FOREVER!!!  She's a few months shy of 3 and I'm not sure I've really given an update!  So, here it goes!!!

Ruby Belle is the sweetest big sister...but does fight over toys.  AND Beckett puts up a pretty darn good fight!  She also is turning out to be a good little swimmer...well, progressing (and something tells me that one day she'll be a little fishy - maybe it's in the genes?!)  She's got sass that can out sass a tween and looks that could kill.  She is SO strong-willed and tests her limits and us daily!  BUT we LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE our little girl!!!  She is so fun and loves to play.  I can really see her imagination starting to blossom (she has imaginary friends I think, and she often plays in bed at night, talking away to her stuffed animals and baby dolls.)  She can be SO serious though!!!  She's my silly ball of seriousness!!!

Beckett - 11 months!!!

Here we are...Tminus 1 month until the big 1st birthday!!  Can you believe it?!  I can't!!  He's all over the place now since he's walking!!!  Here's the updates:

• He is SUCH a boy!!!  into everything (all cabinets are now on kiddie lock down - and he just hangs on them...banging them back and forth.  One day he'll be successful, I'm sure of it!  That boy is strong!)
• speaking of strong, I caught him trying to put his leg over the edge of his crib to break out!!!  really?!  already?  Thankfully, he's not tall enough, but I never thought Ruby Belle was tall enough and she sure surprised us on this day.
• Has gotten a lot better at walking and sometimes can't get where he's going fast enough! He gets SO excited about some things!  He LOVES a few of the really soft stuffed animals he has, but especially the large dog!  loves to lay on that thing and just look up and smile!  It's too hilarious and cute! 
• He makes some of the funniest faces!  My favorite - He scrunches his nose and eyes up and kinda sounds like he may snort (but he doesn't).  You kinda have to see it...
• Starting to babble a lot more and make more sounds.  Loves to blow bubbles/raspberries! 
• was sleeping through the night then he got sick again...and now we're back to waking up once a night. Gotta fix that soon!  Momma needs her sleep!
• eating some finger foods and I'm still making most of the baby foods.  He eats WAY better at day care than at home (same with Ruby Belle...I can't even beg her to eat a hamburger at home, but she supposedly eats everything at school!!).  He does love oatmeal mixed w/vanilla Greek yogurt!!  Not that great at actually sitting in the high chair very long...we're working on this one.
• Puts everything in his mouth - dirt, rocks, grass, anything off the floor, etc
• Loves to pick up things and throw them
• drinking 5 bottles a day...some in the sippy cup
• Officially done w/breastmilk a few days after the 11 month mark!!!  (started sneaking in a little cow's milk...I know, don't tell my pediatrician!)
• Still has 8 teeth but 1-2 more are starting to look like they may make the cut soon.  Oh, and I am pretty sure that one of his bottom teeth is chipped...not sure how, but looks like it to me! 
• Still wearing 12-18 month clothes and #4 diapers 

at first, this was about as good as I could get...(and I could only find 1 "e" so we had to improvise!)

then I squeezed in this one...

and this one.
All action shots...because this boy is constantly on the move!!!

I cannot say how blessed we are with this little man!!  I just can't get enough of him!!!  

Officially a walker!!!

Well, this is a little late, but we officially have a walker!!  and since this post is 2-3 weeks late, we have a pretty good walker now!!  

He's ON THE MOVE, KIDS!!!

Beckett just playin' with his sis prepping for his big walking pictorial...

Poised and ready for action!!!

and he's off!!

and running (well, not quite yet) 

AND the celebration ensues!!!