Happy Daddy's Day!

We stole away to the beach again for Father's Day weekend. Not many better ways to celebrate dads than with all the fun the beach brings.

Our boys always enjoy the extra love and attention from family members. Lots of loving arms to cuddle the baby and fun play mates to read books and play with in the sand and surf. 

Sunday morning, we did it up right with lots of bacon. What says Happy Father's Day more than way too much bacon? Is there even such a thing? 

This was only the first batch....

In addition to bacon, Daddy was treated to homemade cards, books, and t-shirts that the boys "designed" plus a few other goodies.

I can't believe that I didn't get any pictures of my Daddy on Father's Day. Total photographer fail. Note to self to make up for that over the 4th of July. I did capture one of Matt his his oldest boys on the beach before we head back to town.

It was Daddy's choice for dinner = wings. Silly moods for the boys, so that meant silly pictures, but that is who they are right now, so it is kinda perfect too.

Hope you had a Happy Father's Day, Matt! We love you and all you are to our family. xoxoxoxo

Month 4 in Pictures

Our squishy baby is 4 months old now. Wha??  I know, right? Jonah continues to blossom and grow and has each one of us wrapped around his chubby little fingers.

He continues to be a happy baby. Giggles and squeals are a regular thing these days. Super cute!

Did you check out that dimple? Swoon!

I feel like each month, Jonah has a face that he makes. This month's was an open mouth look in which he was working hard to imitate and mimic people talking to him. He did eventually find his voice and will now squeal and "talk." ...And blow raspberries. Lots and lots of raspberries. 

Jonah loves to be held more than he enjoys being put down, but he will play on his playmat or in his bouncy chair for a little bit. He has mastered the tummy to back roll and will not stay put for tummy time very long. He is playing with toys a little more. He can hold them, transfer them, and eat them (of course!!) 

He loves to gnaw on fingers....yours or his....and has officially became a thumb sucker. Self soothing rocks! It doesn't always work, but when it does, it sure is nice. Either way, it is incredibly sweet to see him sucking away on that thumb.

Jonah digs standing on his little legs. He will bounce and dance. He seemed ready, so I went ahead and got the exersaucer out. He likes it, but doesn't love it yet. His brothers sure do.....it is hard to keep Jude out of it. Silly boy!

The 4 month sleep regression did not pass us by....my awesome sleeper has become a pretty good sleeper. I try not to complain as I know he will learn to sleep and this season is short, but instead of getting up 1-2 times a night, he is now up 2-4 times a night. This makes for a tired Mama (who is also currently fighting a cold...hard to do when sleep deprived!)

I think I could watch him sleep forever. Beyond precious!

It may have taken a while, but I think Jonah has officially won over Jude. This month, Jude has been heard saying, "He's the best, isn't he?" and "Jonah is my friend" with the latter being said almost daily. Eli continues to be a sweet big brother and enjoys trying to make Jonah laugh and always wants to pick him up....unless he is stinky.

The 4 month check up went well and confirmed that we have made yet another short and chunky babe. He is almost 25 inches long and 15 pounds 14 ounces (~ 55th percentile for height and ~ 80th for weight). Just right for squeezing and squishing. Yum!

We have loved getting to know this precious little gift, and we can't wait to get to know him more and more as the days go by. I think I am finally getting the hang of "enjoying" the newborn stage...though I don't think he classifies as one any more...We just love him! Our "schweet" boy.

Back at the Beach

And just 4 days after leaving, we were back at the beach again...in time to catch the tail end of sunset on Friday night. Yay for summer! Eli was ready to celebrate the end of kindergarten and welcome summer with a trip to the beach. We hope to make this a regular thing. I'm getting really good at packing us up in a short amount of time and just a few bags.

We did what we could to keep the boys on the beach as much as we could each day. Though the forecast called for a significant chance of rain, we saw none....some cloud cover, but definitely no rain. The weather was perfect.

My parents joined us for a quick 24 hour stay. It is worth it when it means 24 hours in paradise! 

A post-dinner-sunset tradition is beginning. An ice cream treat and beach time after dinner. It has cooled off, no sunscreen needed, the scenery couldn't be better or more gorgeous, and the boys have a blast. 

Do you see the frisbee Jude is about to catch?

The coquina shells were out of control and everywhere. So very cool.

Couldn't help but think of REM's "Nightswimming" as I watched the biggest boys swim and take on the waves while Jude and I took it easy.

A perfect way to wear out two tireless boys. This is what tired looks like:

We poured them into bed after baths, jammies, and books.

Sunday, they were back at it again....and then it was time to pack it up and pack it in. We know it won't be long until we are back again, so it is not too hard to say good bye. 

Feeling blessed.

Two and a Half

As of last month, Jude "the Dude" (a.k.a Monster Baby, Stinker, Stinky Pants, Dude, Baby Dude, Little Man, Middlest Man) is officially 2 and 1/2. Here is what is up with our cool little dude...

Jude:

• is a funny, funny kid who loves to make faces, cheese it up for the camera, and say some really hilarious stuff. (See the side bar for a few examples.)

• can be a fiesty fella! He has learned to hold his own against his big brother and can push and shove with the best of them. (...sigh!) 

• is a sweet big brother and loves to say, "Look at that schweet boy" when looking at Jonah or at pictures of Jonah. He is learning to use "feather fingers" to touch his baby brother and asks to hold him more and more. He will still tell me to, "put Jonah down" when he wants my attention.

• imitates Eli's karate moves quite well. Sensei Morris loves to show off what he knows and ask him to do his Star Block Set, stances, and more. Unfortunately, this has led to a lot of hitting. Eli and I are the usual targets of his punches or kicks. Ouch!

• does not like to not get his way and will scream his little head off to let you know. We do our best to ignore it at home, but out and about it gets a little trickier. 

• knows his letters and can usually identify all the capital letters. He knows how to spell his name and can find the letters, but doesn't put them in order or write them yet. He is beginning to understand the sounds each letter makes.

• can count to 20, but usually skips 13 or 14. He can also count backwards. He surprised me and can identify many of his numbers too, but thinks that numbers make "sounds" like the letters do and will ask me what sound the 5 makes. Haha!

• knows all of his shapes and colors well. Recently, Jude figured out the traffic light colors and likes to tell me when to stop and when to go. 

• gets into all kinds of mischief....especially in the bathroom and kitchen. He loves to play in water and successfully flooded the kitchen once and the bathroom several times. I have to keep an eye on him and an ear out for water. (This is often when he gets called a little Stinker!)

• is potty trained! Woohoo! (Days only...not nights.) He decided to do it, and he did it. No real rewards or timers necessary. He still has a couple accidents a week and will have days where he is just off, but I do not cue him. He knows when to go. Most of his accidents are when he is not with Mommy, but overall, he's got it!

• recently learned how to do a thumbs up and loves to do it. He also has mastered holding up 2 fingers...he calls them "scissor fingers." He is still working on the "I love you" sign.

• loves to play games....on Mommy's phone or the Ipod Touch while we walk home from school or while Eli is at karate.

• would be a couch potato if I let him! He will watch anything, but usually requests Team Umizoomi or Bubble Guppies.

• can show different emotions on cue. It is one of his little party tricks. It makes us smile.

• loves to eat! The kid could eat snacks all day long. He tries....

• won't eat many vegetables, but he does love cucumbers! And carrots with ranch dip. Fruit is a different story....there aren't many fruits (if any!) that he doesn't like.

• is a sugar nut! He loves treats, juice, and chocolate (almond) milk. We have to watch it as he has mastered puppy dog eyes when asking for things.

• is testing boundaries and wants to be in charge. We are using Time Outs and they seem to be working OK for now.

• is a determined little guy and isn't afraid to let me know what he wants. He will tell me to "stop talking" or to "leave him alone" when he is frustrated. He will also grab my face and turn it towards him when he wants to tell me something but I am having another conversation. After attempting to yell at me to get me to do something, he will try to push, pull or drag me over to help him. 

• loves to play outside, specifically with water...in the pool, in the water table, with the hose, you name it.

• enjoys playing "customer" lately with the cash register and car wash. It is neat seeing the beginnings of his imaginative play.

• has recently started to enjoy books more. Pete the Cat is a favorite these days. He will let me read to him more and is starting to memorize repeated text stories. He pretends to read and it cracks me up because he uses gibberish and a different tone of voice when he is "reading." 

• loves to dance. He watched some So You Think You Can Dance? with us on the DVR the other day and now has all kinds of new dance moves. 

• sings and makes music. His self-proclaimed favorite song is Matt Maher's "Your Grace is Enough" but loves lots of kid worship songs, Laurie Berkner songs, and even "Gangnam Style" He has begun to identify instrument sounds and will ask, "Do you hear dat guitar, Mommy?"

You are a super fun kid, Jude and we love you! Can't believe how big you are getting. You are growing and learning so much everyday! I've got to be careful because your beautiful blue eyes batted in just the right way can mean a mushy Momma who will cave in to any demand. Thank you for making me smile and giggle daily. Please stop screaming though. I could do without that. Okay? Thanks! Love you, Little Dude!