Thursday, February 27, 2014

Ted Picks - 9 months

In case anyone is keeping track, I know I am a little late on this...like a month and day late. Part is there is so much to share, part is not enough time to share it! Ted is so active now and doesn't always think he needs naps, so that leaves less and less time for bloggin'. :)

A reminder of some of Ted's six month favorites...



He still has some of his same favorites, but has moved on to some more "sophisticated" toys.



Ted Picks - 9 Months

1. Sophie the Giraffe - Doesn't it just seem so ridiculous that this is so popular? I mean, why couldn't I come up with it? It's a squeaky giraffe made out of something organic and because it's organic you can get away with selling it for $22. But, there's something about this giraffe that Ted just loves. He kicks and squeals with delight when I give it to him...mostly during car rides.

2. Indestructible Books - I honestly wouldn't believe it if I didn't see it with my own eyes. These books are amazing! They are chew-proof, rip-proof, non-toxic and washable. Ted has a lot of board books too, but I hate thinking of "where the book goes" when he gnaws on the corner. I'm pretty sure that is not great for infant digestion. Ted can chew on these books, crinkle them, basically destroy them and it is still in tact. Amazing! 

3. Baby Wipes Container - This is one of those "sophisticated" toys I was talking about. Seriously, he does not need any other toys if he has his wipes. I'm talking the cheapest, travel size wipe container. It makes the most wonderful crinkly/crunching noise that entertains him for several minutes on end. This makes diaper changes slightly more doable. Ted on the changing table...whole different story, whole different blog.

4. Fisher Price Wagon - I scored a similar wagon from someone who was cleaning out their kid's toys. They don't even sell the wagon Ted has. Doesn't matter that it's not the "cool kid's wagon", he absolutely loves it. He can sit and take every single block out, try to eat it, set it down and move on the the next. Sometimes if he's really lucky, his dad will take him for a little ride around the house in his wagon. 

5. Dog toys - Another "sophisticated" toy. As you may well imagine there can be quite a bit of confusion when it comes to dog/baby toys...for the baby and for the dog. Charlie really is a good sport. He's given in to letting Ted play with his toys, but if Ted drops one, Charlie scoops in real quick and moves his toy away from Ted. We have this activity blanket that has a squeaker in it and it drives Charlie crazy every time Ted steps on it. Charlie has tried to dig it out and drag the blanket with Ted on it in the front room. When we first brought Ted home, Charlie used to offer trades. He would put his toy in Ted's car seat in exchange for one of his toys. 

6. Activity Walker - My parents sent this to Ted for Christmas and he loves it. Lots of fun things to play with and we've seen him take a few steps with it!

7. Baby Einstein mp3 - Ted loves things that make sounds now. He takes this to his friend Bridget's house and she teaches how to dance. Seriously, it's the cutest!

8. Activity Cube - This was another awesome score we got from someone cleaning out their kid's toys. I LOVE wooden toys. This is in great condition, it will last forever and best of all, Ted loves it! It is also the perfect size for him to stand up with and he really loves that.

9. WubbaNub - Last, but certainly not least, especially in Ted's eyes is his beloved WubbaNub. It's been quite the evolution of WubbaNubs. We started with just one cute little Mango Monkey WubbaNub...Charlie ate it. (Remember the confusion of dog/baby toys?) I replaced it with two Mango Monkeys J.I.C. Charlie did not learn his lesson. We lost one and let me tell you that was one miserable drive home. So, I decided to buy another so we would always have a replacement. I went on Amazon (because it would have been way too easy to drive to Buy Buy Baby and get one) and picked out the super cute elephant. Buuuuut...I can't just buy one thing on Amazon, mostly because I have a serious aversion to paying for shipping. I will spend $35 extra just to SAVE $8 in shipping (ahem...Toms sale on Zulily). So anyways, I bought Ted the cute little elephant and cute little giraffe WubbaNub. Yes, now he has three. And he loves them. All. Of. Them. He sleeps with all three and seriously it's the cutest thing I've ever seen.










While he likes all his toys, his favorite thing to do is crawl from room to room to room just exploring. It brings me so much joy just to see the awe and amazement he can find in the simplest things. I hope he never loses that sense of wonder. It is the most precious thing.



His newest tricks are clapping, saying "dada, dada, dada", laughing like crazy when he gets tickled and torturing Charlie by stealing his toys and not playing "fetch" :)

And while he loves crawling from room to room to room, he shrieks in sheer delight when his "dada" comes home from work. I thought it was the best when he just smiled at us, but now, when he can't even control his excitement for seeing his mama and dada, there is nothing else like it. There is truly no greater high that I could ever imagine. My heart almost bursts a million times a day when he smiles at me, shrieks with joy when I come home and snuggles up to me to nurse. 

I love every single second of being Ted's mom.







Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Currently {4}

Thinking about: LENT. It's just around the corner and I'm in desperate need of some personal spiritual growth. I love the season of Lent. It is absolutely my favorite season of the Church year. A season when we are supposed to focus on suffering...weird it's my favorite. But I love the grace of the season. During Lent, I feel more disciplined...disciplined in my prayer life, health habits, resolutions. I'm not sure what I will do this Lenten season, but I am in desperate need of some personal conversion. I would love any ideas!

Reading: Still reading Dad is Fat. Maybe finishing a book will be part of my Lenten commitment. Seriously...it's ridiculous I can't finish a book.

Listening to: Still stuck on King George.

Watching: The Olympics, but I'm kind of over it. We don't watch a lot of shows, but the ones I do watch, I am geekin' for...what's with Grey's Anatomy's 6 month hiatus?!

Thankful for: Hospitality and the ability to open our home to others. Great friends and community. We had some friends visiting from SD this weekend and it was wonderful! Jason and I love hosting our friends and family. I always want our home to be open and welcoming to others. Our friends have two little boys and one of them is about 8 months older than Ted. It was so fun to see them play together and to think that Ted will be that big in just 8 short months! 

I absolutely love to see Ted interact with his little friends :)



Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Two Years and a Day

I tried to get this up yesterday, but some little mister did not want to nap... ;-)

Two years...some days it feels just like yesterday and some days it feels like a lifetime ago. Either way, I wouldn't it trade it for anything in the world. 

I loved our wedding, every. single. moment. I know everyone probably says that, but our wedding ceremony was actually my dream come true. It was held in my Church I worked at and have attended since I moved here almost twelve years ago. My pastor with a ponytail I've known just as long married us. My dear friend, Ike Ndolo, blessed us with his musical gift. Receiving the Eucharist on my wedding day from the beautiful chalice. Being surrounded by 200+ family and friends from nearby and traveling from out of state. It. Was. The. Best. Most importantly, standing before those 200 people and making a covenant of forever with my amazing husband.

Most of these moments were captured by camera (courtesy of the ever so talented Christina and Lexy), but so many more will live in my memory forever. Click.







Some more of my "best of" moments from that day...my mom seeing me in my dress for the first time. My dear friend and her daughter flying all the way from Boston for my day. My godmother sneaking in to see me before the wedding. My dad walking me down the aisle. The cutest, although stubborn, little ring-bearers around. My sweet family traveling from Iowa, Boston and Chicago. My immediate family being together for the first time in years.










 My husband and I sharing sweet moments just between us...



And...having amazing friends stand up for us at our wedding. Pre-Party with the Wedding Party!











Dancing with Jason to "I Cross My Heart"...we love us some George Strait!


My dad singing to me...



My favorite Iowa girls...


And just in case anyone is still reading this, some other favorites from our day :)























Happy two years and a day Jason! I love you schmoopy!