Posts Tagged ‘milestones’

Sweet little Raven,

Well, you've made it to two months, despite Heron's slaps and smothers! Don't worry, I'm looking out for you. He's actually quite sweet to you sometimes, which is why I have my guard down at other times. You're such a trooper though, and are doing just fine!

You're growing tons, that's for sure! I can't say how much, exactly, as we still haven't had you weighed and measured since you were born. I feel like you've doubled in size, but we probably aren't there yet. Anyhow, you are a cute little chunky guy!

We're still in New York, visiting with Grandma and Grandpa and the rest of Daddy's family out here. We hang out around the house a lot during the day, but also go across the street with your big brothers so they can go to school/daycare and spend time with other children. All the kids at school love you, constantly want to pet you and hold you, and have given you a cute nick name!

We've gotten out and about, visiting with family while we're here. We've gone back to Mom-mom's and Pop-pop's and spent time with (Great-)Aunt Connie and (Great-)Grandpa at (Great-great-)Aunt Ginny's house. You've given everyone some big, adorable smiles and are just melting hearts left and right.

You're holding your head up like a champ these days and don't seem to mind "tummy time" too much. You seem so strong! I think you just discovered your hands the other day. You still don't quite have those arms under control, but you do try pretty hard to get your fist to your mouth. You would nurse all day long if I'd let you and still like to suck on my finger, but won't take any type of pacifier I've offered. Soon enough you'll probably be using your own fingers, once you can consistently get them up to your mouth.

You're getting a bit more vocal and are cooing and making sweet, silly baby noises. You still love your swing and really like to stare at fan blades, whether they're spinning or not. You're still quite a happy baby and don't seem to get too upset very often. (Thank you!)

We've gotten your passport so we can go back home to Japan and meet Daddy. We're waiting on all sorts of paperwork in order to get tickets, so I have no idea how soon we'll be leaving. Hopefully by this time next month, you'll get to see your Daddy and our home. He will be so thrilled to hold you and kiss you! We all love you very much, sweetheart!

Love always,
Mommy

Hello, Raven! Welcome to your first monthly letter!

Things happen so quickly when you're this young. Even looking through photos of you right now I can see such a difference between 1 week old and 4 weeks old. You haven't been weighed or measured since you've been born, so I have no idea what your stats are, but I can tell, you're becoming a chunk!

You were born in Colorado while we were staying with Grammy and Uncle Ron. While we were there, your Aunt Andrea and cousin Amelia came to visit. You didn't get to see them too much because they spend a lot of time with your brothers, Rhino and Heron, while you snuggled with me at Grammy's house. You had your first Easter, but you didn't participate because you were hardly one day old (we came home from the hospital on Easter!)

During your second week, Aunt Andrea and Amelia left but your Uncle Matthew and Aunt Adria came to visit. We were all able to get out more together. You joined us on outings to the zoo and to the children's museum. You were always cuddled up with me in the baby carrier or hanging out in the car seat, asleep.

As you began your third week of life, Uncle Matt and Aunt Adria left and your daddy's mommy, Grandma, came out to visit. She didn't stay in Colorado long because she was just coming out to help us on the plane out to New York. We did get out to the North Pole, where you were mad the whole time. We also went back to the children's museum in Denver and out to eat at White Fence Farm. You seemed to enjoy yourself then!

We all headed out for New York with Grandma and you were great on your first plan ride! You sat in my lap and slept and ate a lot. We got to New York after a very long night waiting in airports and sitting on delayed planes. You've met your Grandpa, Great-Grandpa, Great-great-Aunt Ginny, Great-Aunt Connie, Aunt Jen, Mom-mom and Pop-pop, Uncle Jason, and Aunt Kay and Great-Aunt Sharon while we've been here in New York. Everyone loves you, of course! We're staying in the house that Daddy lived in when he was little.

You've been cracking some smiles, but I'm not quite convinced they're "real" smiles yet. Sometimes they are so perfect, but you've been doing it since you were a week old! I know any day now you'll be grinning at us all the time. You're a happy baby and easily soothed. You don't like a pacifier, but you like to suck on my pinky finger. You love the swing and aren't quite sure about the mei tai. Heron smacks you around a little when he's excited (but that is not okay!) and you're such a good sport about it. You love to eat and snuggle with me and we sleep together at nigh. I love being close to you and wish you daddy could be right now, too. You get to see him on the computer and hear his voice often. We aren't quite sure when you'll get to see him, but hopefully soon! He hasn't met you yet, but he's all ready fallen in love with you, just like I have! We all love you, sweet little Raven!

Love,
Mommy

Hi, sweet Heron!

This month has been an interesting one for us. We started a preschool at home for Rhino and you have been "helping out" and enjoying trying to do some of the same things he's working on. I can see that you do get really frustrated when you're unable to accomplish something that he's doing. Hang in there, honey! You'll be gluing and drawing and making your own sandwiches soon enough!

You and Rhino are having more and more fun together each month. You like to play together (even if your "play" consists of destroying his towers or ruining his train setup!) You do like to help out and will pick up your toys when I'm cleaning up or help me sweep or wipe the table. Thank you!

Last week we experienced a really big earthquake. We live in Japan and get quite a few earthquakes, so you've felt your share of shakes. This one was really big — a 9.0 — the fourth largest in the world in history. Rhino and I were in the living room, you were napping upstairs, and Daddy was at work when it hit. When the walls first started shaking, I didn't think much of it because, like I said, we have them all the time. It grew more and more violent and lasted much longer than usual. I ran Rhino over to the toy closet doorway and ran upstairs to sweep you out of bed. We sat in the doorway and said a little prayer and talked about all the objects that were shaking. I knew if I panicked, it would scare you boys, so we kept it light-hearted. We lost power and didn't know anything about what had just happened. We actually went three days without power; it just turned on a few days ago. Now that I can get online and use the phone, we are learning how severe this earthquake was. There was a tsunami that destroyed many homes along our coast. We thank God that the base and the town of Misawa is safe, even though we are on the coast and not too far away from the epicenter. Unfortunately, there are thousands of Japanese people who were not so lucky. We will do what we can to help out. I am hearing about families that are separated from each other and children that are orphaned and am just so thankful that we are all okay and I can still hold you in my arms.

So this month has had its ups and downs. You've been such a good sport, sitting home with no power or during rolling blackouts while I've been a bit of an emotional mess as I catch up on the news. Sometimes I just take a break to sit and not worry. Being around you and your brother warms my heart so much. I love you, sweetie!

Love Always,
Mommy

Happy birthday, Rhino, my sweet three year-old!

You're three years old now and all ready telling everyone you see "I'm Rhino. I'm three!" We didn't have a large celebration this year, but had a great little party at your Grandma and Grandpa's in New York two weeks ago. You enjoyed a train cake, made by Mommy & Aunt Jen. You loved all the attention, the Thomas & Friends party hats, ripping into presents, singing Happy Birthday to yourself, and picking candy off the train cake and sugary landscape. It was a fantastic birthday and you're still

Like I mentioned, we went to visit your grandparents (and aunt, uncle, great-aunts, great-great-aunts, great-grandparents, etc!) You've now flown across the Pacific Ocean seven times in your three years! I am so proud of how well you handled all the travel this time. You either slept, colored, played on the iPad or watched movies while we were on the plane. For the hours that we were waiting in the airport, you were usually playing with your little brother — chasing each other around, making silly faces and noises, and putting on quite a show! You love going through security checks and were very helpful with putting items in bins and pushing the bins on the rollers down to the scanner. Wherever you saw a mat with footprints on it (for people getting scanned to stand with legs spread) you'd get so excited and place your tiny feet on the prints and stay there! You also had some long car rides, bus trips, and quite a long train ride (the trains were especially exciting for you!) Even though the travel was long and you were tired, you were quite a trooper.

The visit in New York was all sorts of fun for you! You really liked being around all your relatives, who gave you plenty of attention! You got lots of play-time in with Grandma and Grandpa. They played your new favorite board game: Blokus (which you play with your own rules!) You exercised and stretched with Aunt Jen and Grandpa. You helped cook and ate lots of big-boy meals at the dinner table. You loved Jasmine and Mugsy, the dogs, and were really gentle with them and had fun! You got to sleep on a big air mattress with your brother, go out to restaurants, play with neat new toys, take lots of pictures with Grandma and Grandpa's camera, and spend time with lots of people who love you very much! We've been back for a week now and you're still asking about "Grandpa's house!"

I haven't scheduled your annual pediatrician appointment, but will soon. You seem to be growing well (you're in 3T clothes now) and are talking more and more! Your vocabulary has grown tremendously lately and other people are starting to understand you better than they were. Your favorite toys are still your train sets and you love to be read to or just browse through books. You are getting really good at jigsaw puzzles and will do them over and over! You're playing a lot of different toddler and preschool games on the iPad and I can see you learning how to problem solve. You also draw great pictures! You doodle a lot of pictures of people (of me, Daddy, Heron, Uncle Matt, Grandpa, etc!) They all have very large heads with vertical lines for eyes, a tiny stick body, and little stick ears and are so adorable! You draw other things too, some of which we can't recognize right away, but you tell us all about the train going through the tunnel or the dog. And you're excellent at drawing railroad tracks!

You still really enjoy going to church and ask all week about church and your friends and snack time and Jesus! You make some fun little crafts in there, sing songs, hear stories, and play with toys. You're still memorizing bible verses for Wednesday night well. You've been reciting John 3:16 to us for weeks now! You remind me throughout the day by asking "bible verse?" and we practice together. You also like to say a short prayer before each meal or snack ("Dear Lord, thank you for this food. Amen.") and get bent out of shape if Heron doesn't fold his hands with you while you pray. I know that right now you like to go to church to play with trucks and eat snack and that you'll memorize your verse because you get candy and toys for it, but I'm so glad that you're enjoying and learning a little bit about Jesus. I'm excited to teach you and see you grow as you learn about our Lord over the years.

You have some favorite foods, which I don't think have really changed lately. Dinner time is often difficult, but throughout the day I can pretty much always count on you eating any peanut butter sandwich (honey, jelly, plain, doesn't matter!), any fruit, anything sweet, raw carrots and celery, any bread, cheese, and a handful of other typically toddler-friendly snack foods. You are spending more time in the kitchen lately as you've gotten more interested in helping me or "I can do by myself." You can make your own sandwiches, slice your own bananas and cheese and pour your own juice. You like to do a lot of other things on your own as well, including attempting to get dressed and undressed (you're still figuring out buttons, but doing really well), putting on your own boots and jacket, sweeping the floor and brushing your teeth. Now why is it so hard for me to get you to pick up your toys??

Three years really seem to have flown by. You're such a compassionate, messy, humorous, noisy, friendly, loving little boy and I just can't wait to see what the next year brings! I love so much my little "big boy!"

- Mommy

Hello, sweet Heron!

You're now a year and a half and definitely a full-blown toddler! You're running around (clumsily, as always), climbing up on every surface you can find, messily trying to eat with a spoon and drink from a real cup, picking silly fights and throwing ridiculous tantrums, copying everything your we do (especially your big brother!), sleeping in your own big boy toddler bed, and always craving attention. It is fun but you tire me out so much!

You've started saying a few new words and phrases this month. You'll now say (and point to) eye, nose, mouth, & ear and also started saying no, nite-nite, down, baby, eat, upstairs, and I'm sure I've left out a few others. I think you're a little ahead of where Rhino was at this age, but I'm sure it's because he just blabs to you all day long! I'm pretty sure your big brother is your favorite person, though. If he's doing something silly, like sucking on his toes, you'll join right in and laugh and laugh! You love to chase him (and be chased) around the train table or race your hobby horses. He is sweet to you and always makes sure to share snacks with you (even though usually he expects you to share back and you don't!) I'm so glad that the two of you are close in age because now we can see that you'll have so much fun playing together!

 

Your month was very exciting: we had Christmas! This year was much more fun for you than last year. You didn't care too much about ripping open the wrapping paper, but you really did love what was hidden underneath! You received a Woody (cowboy sheriff) doll that I think was your favorite gift. You think putting his hat on his head is so funny! You also have played out in the snow for the first time (last year you were just too little.) You're not too thrilled about the cold stuff, so I guess I have more fun than you when we go out! You've also attended a lot of playgroups lately. You've been to plenty in the past, but never did participate much. Now you enjoy dancing to the songs, painting (a little bit), munching on snacks, listening to stories and, most of all, watching all the other kids.

We can tell that you're developing some favorites. Baby dolls are a big hit (we got you a cute little baby that you're always asking for, in preparation for the real little baby in a few months!) You seem to like underwater scenes and will choose fishy books more often than anything else. You love anything sweet (no surprise!), bananas, oatmeal, any and noodles (mostly long noodles like yakisoba and udon, though.) You like to play with instruments and are tons of fun with a xylophone or some maracas! You also like to sing for us! It's fun now that you're developing your own little personality more. You're such a character and so much fun to play with!

As always, I'm looking forward to another fun month with you!

Love,

Mommy

Hello, Rhino!

There haven't been any special visitors or major vacations this month. We've spent a lot of time at home and around town. We've done a lot of relaxing since we got back from our big trip last month. So there's nothing really exciting to report!

Your days are still fun, though! We go to the playground and to various parks, visit playgroups and parties, and have fun at home with Heron and Daddy. You like to construct elaborate tracks for your trains and pull along as many magnetic "choo choos" as you can. We've been reading a lot of books together lately. You especially love any books about trains! You also enjoy composing your own songs on the piano, helping out in the kitchen, and doing puzzles (your favorites are your African Plains and Construction Site puzzles.)

You had a WIC appointment recently and they weighed you and took your height. You're growing a lot lately and have shot up in height drastically! Your waist is still small and you wear 2T pants, but your head is giant (nothing to worry about!) and wear 3T and 4T shirts!

You've been going to church all your life, but when you turned two you started going to Sunday School and Junior Church on Sunday morning and the King's Kids Feed My Lambs class on Wednesdays. You like it in there so much more than the nursery! Pretty much any time we start getting our shoes on to go anywhere, you get excited and keep asking if we're going to church! Sometimes in class you're a little mouthy and occasionally are involved in some sort of hitting fight, but for the most part I get great reports and you have such a fun time! In your King's Kids class you've been memorizing scripture (just since we've been home from the States – and you all ready know abridged versions of John 1:3, 1 John 3:23 and Genesis 2:7 and tell them to us all the time!) You're also praying for your food at every meal. You've always been a part of the prayer, but now you're the one actually saying it, which is so sweet. And you say your whole "Now I lay me" prayer on your own every night before bed. I'm amazed at how easily you remember all these memory verses and prayers (and lyrics to Sunday School songs, Thomas and Friends songs, etc!) You hold sweet conversations with me all day long and it's really fun now that you're speaking coherently!

You're getting so excited about Christmas! I have a hard time believing that you'd remember anything from last year, but apparently you do! As soon as lights started going up around the neighborhood, you'd say "wow! Christmas! So beautiful!" I pulled out the advent calendar to hang on the wall and you excitedly started looking inside all the pockets, asking for candy! We are always driving around after dark looking at the new lights that pop up on base because you enjoy them so much. You and your brother have all but destroyed our tree. The entire bottom half is now undecorated. Punishment doesn't seem to bother you; those shiny balls and pretty present ornaments are worth any swatting! You of course enjoy all the candy and cookies that have been around lately, too! I've introduced you to all the people in the nativity scenes and now whenever you see a display you tell me who everyone is. It's been quite a festive few weeks and you're loving it! I am so excited to have another Christmas with you!!

You haven't seen much snow yet, but I hear it's right around the corner. We've had a couple short flurries, but nothing sticking. It will be so much fun to play out in the snow with you this year! We're going to get a sled (we have a great hill right across the street!) and you're all ready with your snow suit and mittens. Hopefully this week or next you'll be building snow men and throwing snow balls!

I love you, Rhino!

Mommy

Dearest Heron,

I've been such a lazy mommy! It's been months since I've written you a letter and you've grown so much in the meantime! I'll try to remember all the excitement you've brought us since you turned one, but too much has happened!

Last I wrote to you, Grandma and Grandpa were coming to visit. You had such a great time meeting them! We went to Tokyo (Imperial Palace & Ueno Park / Zoo), Hachinohe (the fish market, Fantasy Dome), Aomori (Asamushi Aquarium, Tony Roma's), Lake Towada & the Horse Park, Shipwreck Beach and a bunch of other places. You had a very busy summer (including a fun birthday party!) The fun didn't stop there! You also took a trip with me and Rhino to the US (your first time stateside!) You met your Pop, Grandmother, Granddaddy, Uncle Matt, Aunt Andrea & Cousin Amelia, and all your great-aunts and -uncles! You had your first plane trip (plus your second, third, fourth … seventh!) and saw Colorado and Texas! We were visiting for a month and you had lots of fun going to the zoo, the North Pole, Christmas shopping, visiting with family, playing with pumpkins, going to the Texas State Fair, playing at the lake, and so much more! It was a really long trip, but you were such a trooper!

You've grown so much in four months. What happened to my baby?? You started walking (and now, running!), talking (you say mama, dada, dog, door, hi, bye), and had your first haircut (which made you look so much like your big brother!) You're mischievous and sneaky, but also so sweet! You give us hugs and kisses, wave, and blow kisses. You stack blocks and roll toy cars and trains around. You're starting to get interested in books as more than just teethers (oh, and you have eight teeth!) You'll sort of play with Rhino, but mostly you just want to destroy whatever he's building! You didn't used to care much for Daddy and didn't like him holding you, comforting you, feeding you, etc. Since we've returned back from the US, you hug him and snuggle him and love to play with Daddy (he's relieved!) 

You're getting bigger, of course! At one time the doctors were concerned that you weren't growing enough. I know it was no big deal, you had just started cruising along and had weaned to cow's milk and solids. Last month you were up to 22 lb 10 oz (24th percentile) and 29.75 inches tall (15th percentile.) You're getting too heavy for me to carry around all the time (plus, you keep kicking your baby brother/sister!) You still love to eat and will chow down on pretty much anything (and lots of it!) I'm not exactly sure what your favorite foods are because you seem to inhale mostly everything! You love peanut butter, fruit, noodles, anything sweet, and rice. Yum!

I love watching you grow, little Heron. You've really started developing quite a personality and it is so wonderful! I'm looking forward to another fun month with you!

Lots of Love,

Mommy

Sunday after lunch, Andrea and I packed up all the kids in her roommate's truck and headed south for San Angelo. We spent about eight hours driving (including a dinner stop and many potty breaks!) It was a long drive, but great to sit in the car and chat withmy sister!

Unfortunately, the boys and I picked something up in Dallas (a few people were sick.) Heron had a temperature of over 103 degrees for a few days and Rhino and I were throwing up and sniffly. I had hopes of getting out and seeing the town and playing with the kids, but was just so miserable. We spent most of the week on the couch, but after three weeks of running around, it was kind of nice to relax. 

We did go one day to get the boys haircuts (Heron's first!) They were getting pretty shaggy and Heron's bangs were almost down to the tip of his nose. Andrea picked a salon with a great toy store, Specialties, next door. When I was in the chair with Heron, Rhino was playing with Thomas trains the whole time! The staff there was great and didn't seem to mind the kids hanging out for so long. (We did do some shopping, too, — their Melissa & Doug collection was wonderful! And Andrea picked up a cool, blue pop-up tunnel which was a huge hit!) Rhino was great getting his hair cut because he knew that Thomas was waiting for him if he got it over with! Unfortunately, it was time to go and there was another huge meltdown in the parking lot because he wanted his trains. Heron's first hair cut was not as calm as it may appear in the photo above! He screamed most of the time and swung his head back and forth. The stylist was really great and patient. She sang songs, talked to him, showed him toys. Heron just wasn't impressed and clung to me for dear life. He really did seem to transform from baby to toddler after the haircut. He looks so much like Rhino now!

We went out to eat a few times (and I tried the local favorite, fried pickles. Ehh.) San Angelo didn't seem as bad as I had been led to believe. We did go out looking for all the local yarn shops that I found addresses for online, only to find they had all been closed down. Disappointing! We ended up at Michael's and picked up some yarn for Andrea and started up crochet lessons again. She's now on her way her own crochet afghan!

I'm so glad I got to spend some sister time with Andrea and that the boys and Amelia were able to play together! There were a lot of silly little toddler arguments, but I think they had a good time! This part of our trip was short, but it was time to head home. I think were all missing Japan / Matt! It's time to take that long flight back home!

Happy first birthday, Heron!!

I'm so glad that Mom & Dad were able to be here for Heron's first birthday! We had a great time!

I sewed up a special birthday crown for him (like I did for Rhino, but I'll be redoing Rhino's for future birthdays.) [Idea from Amanda Soule's book, The Creative Family.] I also sewed up a birthday banner for his party on Monday (idea from the same book.)

He received some wonderful gifts! He was given some cute outfits from Great-Granddaddy and GG and Pop. Matt's parents got him some adorable clothes too, as well as a Punch and Drop and some stacking wooden rings. I finally got to give him the knitted rainbow snake that I finished a while ago! Matt and Rhino and I also gave him a Walk N Roll for when he starts walking (soon!)

And, of course, there was cake!! I baked him his own little chocolate cake with my yummy chocolate frosting. Lucky boy! We tried to hold off on giving him any sugar until his first birthday, like we did for Rhino, but it hasn't really worked out. Rhino likes to share his treats! So this is the second time Heron's had chocolate cake.

He did pick the whole thing up and try to eat it like a cupcake! When it first came out, he didn't want to try the cake, actually. I took a finger full of frosting and chased his mouth around for a while until I could finally sneak it in. Then he knew what to do!  I cringe a little at this baby-chocolate-cake tradition because it's just so much sugar and we try to limit sweets. It is just too adorable though (I love this messy, chocolate baby!) and it is a one-time thing. It won't be every birthday that he gets to dive into his own cake!

The mess was so worth it. He had a blast! And cleanup was pretty easy. Once I got him in the bath, crumbs fell off him and he turned the water brown. At one time, a small piece of cake floated by him and he grabbed it and attempted to have seconds! Such a pig!

Hi, sweetie!

We've had another fantastic month together. I can't believe that you're all ready one year old! It all has really gone by so quickly.

Since last month you've started getting more mobile. You crawl really fast and am always surprised by how well you get around. You're pulling up on everything and have started to walk along the furniture now. You'll even let go with one hand, but haven't dared to stand on your own just yet! You love to walk around and hold my hands and you seem so proud of yourself when you do! I'm really excited for you to start toddling around here any day now!

You're still a big pig and will chow down on anything that comes near you! Some of your new favorites are lasagna, strawberries, scrambled eggs, and corn. You've also started drinking from a sippy cup (just water right now), especially at night. You have no problem with it and will even use a straw in a cup, too! I love that right now you'll eat anything and aren't picky about what we put in front of you.

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I feel like you've really opened up more this past month. You have such a great little sense of humor and make us laugh all the time. You copy Rhino and you both laugh at each other. Your favorite game right now is shaking your head and then laughing. It's simple, but so silly! It started in the car when Rhino was shaking his head against the back of the car seat and you thought it was hilarious! Then you shook your head and Rhino laughed at you. It went on and on for quite a while! Now you'll just sit and shake your head any time and laugh at yourself. I love it!

You experienced your first Independence Day this month, but it wasn't actually all that exciting. We went to church, which you're enjoying more lately, but skipped out on all the Fourth of July festivities. The whole family took a long nap, actually! There were supposed to be fireworks that night, but they were postponed due to rain. They fired them off on Monday night, but it was well past your bedtime and you were all ready asleep. We'll catch them next year, though!

We're excited to see your Grandma and Grandpa really soon! They're going to spend your birthday (I'm writing this just a tad early!) with you and we're going to have a nice party! You'll get to go down to Tokyo for your second time and we have lots of fun things planned. It will be so nice for you to finally meet your Grandma and Grandpa and I know they will be so happy to see you!

Happy birthday, sweetheart! We all love you so much and look forward to another amazing year.

Love Always,
Mommy