Life's a changin'

In the last several weeks, we've experienced two major changes in our little family. First, our baby boy became officially not a baby any more (sniff, sniff). He turned the big 2!

It's been great fun to see him develop physically, mentally and emotionally of late. He has learned how to save "Love you," and loves to give hugs and kisses. He'll come running at me and my husband full-speed, saying "[h]ug! [h]ug!" He's got his foibles for sure, but he's a sweet little boy. He says "Thank you" most of the time when he's given something, and he says "Hi" and offers a big grin to nearly anyone—especially to characters who look like they might be criminals in their free time. His vocabulary seems to expand daily; it's always fun to hear him say a new word he picked up on his own.

Celebrating with dirt cake. Shortly thereafter, he attempted to eat the candle.
That is, he took a huge bite of it before I had him spit it out.

Second, we moved. It was just a few blocks away, in the same town, but it was quite the experience! It was the first time we had moved as a family (when we married, I simply moved into my husband's home), and so we had plenty of stuff to sort through and toss. We ended up taking a very long time to move everything since we were under no pressure, and that made for some extra stress. But all in all, we're fairly settled now (except for a few last pesky boxes). And we are enjoying the perks of our new home.

The move came with a move to Jack's big-boy bed. He loved it—and we loved that he loved it.  Next up, potty training...

 Moving time! I told him we were moving his toys so he picked these up and headed out the door.

We are keeping busy celebrating others' life changes, too—graduations, a good friend's wedding, baby showers, birthdays. It's that season of the year when I'm reminded to be so thankful that life's a grand adventure!

One small step...

About a month ago, Jack made his big move. We had been waiting for it for some time. We expected it to happen around 12 months, because he was on time with crawling, and early with teeth and some other developmental markers. So we figured walking would be right on "schedule" (wherever the schedule comes from).

He had a little walker wagon that he loved. We encouraged him a great deal to take a step. But he was too busy climbing—on everything—to care very much. At the same time, he was getting heavy to carry everywhere that we didn't want him crawling. (We have a big boy. He is consistently at or above the 95th percentile for his height and weight. This means some people probably thought it odd that our "2-year-old" wasn't walking yet. [Yes, people have actually told me they think he's two.])

On the eve of his turning 14 months, I moved a toy, not thinking much of it. But he wanted that toy. He took a couple steps toward it. Well, it was more like a shuffle because he was in a sleep sack at that point, headed to bed, but it counted of course.

For a couple weeks after that, it was just a few steps here and there. He's a fast crawler and wasn't interested in making the switch to being shakily upright. But now that we've passed the 15-month mark, walking has moved up on his priority list. He walks at least 50 percent of the time, if not more—and a little more every day. His steps are still slightly wobbly but he's much more confident and walking greater distances than he was just a few days ago.

So now I think I can officially say that I have a walker. And a toddler. Welcome to the world of walking, little Jack!

Doing a bit of walking today

Money-Saving Monday: Party planning

Yep, it's Tuesday, and yep, there was no money-saving post last Monday. A little family vacation and then Jack's party ate up much of my time.

Unlike previous parties we've hosted, my husband and I decided to set a firm budget for Jack's barnyard birthday. It would have been easy to get really carried away because celebrating his first year seemed like a big deal to me, and there were so many fun possibilities with the farm theme. So we set the budget at $100 (not including his birthday gift and his party outfit) for invitations, food, paper goods, games, prizes, favors, and decor. I think we may have gone a few dollars over when we had to run to the grocery store for some last-minute ingredients, but basically we stuck to it. Here's how:

• Reuse: I found various craft supplies around the house that I was able to use or repurpose for the party, including cardstock, markers, and foam shapes for paper-bag puppets we made at the party. In addition, I was able to use a candle screen and some blue fabric I had left over from my wedding to create the "fish pond" (children "fished" for candy treats), and various baskets and boxes I had to hide plastic eggs in the "chicken coop."
• Make it: Except for a $1 stick-the-tail-on-the-donkey game, I made simple games and activities rather than purchasing them. And while I usually order a grocery-store bakery cake, my husband and I baked and decorated the cake ourselves, which was actually quite fun.
• Shop carefully: I found several items at a local dollar store (including a straw hat for Jack) that worked perfectly, plus I used coupons and found sales on several of the items. 
• Get free money: I wrote some reviews on a mommy website that was offering a $5 Target card for contributing 10 reviews, and earned another $5 gift card with a Target purchase. Plus, I got at $21 check from Ebates after doing some online shopping that I would have done ordinarily. This made my budget $131.
• Splurge a little: There were some elements to the party I couldn't save much on, such as watermelon and hay bales (although the feed store staff suggested I purchase straw instead of hay for a bit less, and I did). I didn't mind spending the money because I felt those were important elements and I was able to save in so many other areas. 

How do you save on kids' or other parties while still making them fun?

A year together

The family photos we took for Jack's first year were a bit of an adventure. First, we were a tad rushed because I was disorganized and late. Then, Jack didn't follow my little plan and take a nap in the car, so he was not in the mood for smiling. The photographer, who graciously accommodated my not-so-gracious lateness, jumped up and down, tickled Jack, and made every silly noise I'm sure he could think up, but still Jack just stared him down. Quite the opposite from his six-month photos; Jack could hardly stop smiling then.

He did get a smile out of him every once in a while. Here are some of the results:

Eight great months!

We celebrated Jack's eight months by going to a local park and seeing the animals there: deer, bighorn sheep, and bison. It was great fun and the park (a big tourist attraction) was very quiet since most of the attractions had closed down for the day. Even though it was rides-shutting-down time, the older man running the carousel said there was one more ride of the day and let Jack ride on it with Mommy.

Jack's big accomplishments this month were crawling (and he gets a little braver about exploring the house every day), standing (while holding onto something), and the pincer grasp (picking up finger food and getting it into his mouth). It's so much fun to see him grow and grow and grow...

A little festive fun

What we would look like as elves, apparently...

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

All I want for Christmas...

Really, kids are the fun of Christmas. All those toys and smiles and that just-can't-wait excitement are some of the best parts of the holiday season.

Yesterday, I proved this with a phone conversation my 5-year-old nephew and I had:

Him: Can I get a hamster for Christmas?
Me: I'm not sure. You'll have to ask your mom and dad.
Him: Yeah (sigh). I asked my mom, and she said no. I asked my dad, and he said no.
Me: Maybe when you're a bit older you can get a hamster.
Him: Yeah! If the dogs and the kitty die, maybe I can get a hamster.
Me: We really shouldn't hurt our pets.
Him: Maybe if my little brother lets the plug out of the fish tank so the fish are in the air and can't breathe?
Me: There is no plug in the fish tank, and remember, we shouldn't hurt our pets.
Him: My little brother doesn't know any better.
Me: Is the hamster on your Christmas list?
Him: That's a good idea! I'll add it to my list. I put a check mark beside the things I really want, and a star by the things I really want. I'll put a star by it.

Traditions of gratitude

Lately I've been contemplating how to make Christmas meaningful and I sort of skipped over Thanksgiving. Hard to believe, since I generally celebrate it twice (once for Canada and once for the States).

Gratitude is a certainly a character quality I want to instill in my son (and myself). Thanksgiving traditions should help me be purposeful about doing so. Here are a couple ideas I've run across in the last little while:

• Decorate a small box, jar, or similar container (or just purchase a pretty one). Throughout the year, when God's blessings are especially evident, write notes of thankfulness on slips of paper and drop them in the container. On Thanksgiving Day, open the container and read all of the blessings, big and small, that you might have otherwise forgotten: recovery from an illness, a conflict resolved, an extra-special treat, a lovely spring day.
  
  
• Use a countdown calendar to generate excitement about the special day and learn more about gratitude. Every day leading up to Thanksgiving, write down one thing about which to be grateful, and stick it in the calendar. Gather the notes of appreciation and save them in a scrapbook or box for future years, or simply read them all on Thanksgiving Day.
  
  You can purchase such a calendar, or decorate your own using a pre-designed one. Here's a downloadable one for kids that you could adapt for such a project.You could even make your own. Ideas include making it from a placemat or in the shape of a tree with leaves. Or, you could simply use sticky notes to affix tidbits of appreciation to the square representing each day on a regular calendar.
  

I'd love to hear your Thanksgiving traditions, too—both the meaningful and the just-for-fun ones.

A whole half year

Really? Already?! It's hard to believe some days that this little guy has been in our lives for a whole six months. At other times, it feels like he's been part of our family forever.

He's sitting up (mostly) on his own and busy, busy, busy. I feel that when he crawls he will take off like a little rocket ship. Even though he hasn't mastered that skill, he is getting pretty good at transporting himself by wiggling to and fro in his ever-urgent quest to grab and put that pretty piece of [fill in the blank with the closest object] in his mouth. The accompanying grunts of effort are priceless.

He also loves to talk in varying pitches, tones, and vowel-consonant combinations. Every so often, we imagine that he's said words. Of course he has no idea what he's saying, but we did catch, "Brrr," "Mom-mom," and "Oh, boy" (the latter was the cutest yet).

His final adventure is eating. Perhaps it's more of an adventure for me as I play: "Let's figure out what you like to eat." So far, he just says no to rice and oatmeal cereals (although he does eat some of it begrudgingly). He loves sweet potatoes but sadly he might be allergic.

He's still completely lovable, and his smiles and big eyes melt my heart. Maybe they will forever.

Christmas without craziness

I love Christmas. Part of the reason it's so special to me is that we didn't celebrate it in my family when I was a child. I think it's fun and I'm looking forward to my child (and future children) enjoying holiday traditions.

I'm not a fan of the Christmas craziness, though; in my family and my husband's we have done some things to eliminate a bit of the stress. In his family, we give gifts only to children and to his parents (it's the most fun to watch them anyway) and in my family we do a gift exchange so we only have to purchase one meaningful (but inexpensive) gift for one relative.

I also love to do Christmas shopping very early when I find coupons or deals to cut the cost on gifts, and before the malls are madhouses. And shopping online reduces the hassle further. I love free shipping sales (!), or buying all my gifts at once on certain sites that offer free shipping for spending a certain amount.

With Christmas stress out of the way (well, mostly at least!), I am in search of meaningful holiday traditions. I bought an advent calendar to use with our son, but I'd love more ideas to make the season extra special.

Would you share yours? Please leave a comment about your traditions and ideas. Thanks so much!

Bringing us sunshine

I couldn't resist the sunglasses, which were a steal at just 15 cents. It's not summer yet...but there's plenty of sunshine in our home.

Oh boy! Five months!

I apparently need to post more often, because Jack is already five months old. He's got two little teeth and a very splendid smile. He likes to play with rattles and toys, giggles during games of peek-a-boo, and loves people-watching.

I constantly marvel that God created this miracle of life within me and that he's ours for life. I love him a bit more every day.

Four months of fun

Jack recently celebrated four months of life. He is a very happy little boy—always smiling and laughing. Teething is putting a bit of a damper on his happiness, but for the most part, he'd say life is good!

Growin' and growin'

Just before Jack turns four months old, I'm doing a catch-up post to show his growth. It's amazing to me how much he's already changed!

One month old

Two months old

Three months old

Summer of joy

This summer has been full of new adventures as we've become parents and enjoyed watching our little boy grow. I haven't blogged in a long time, so I thought I'd do a little catch-up post with some photos of what we've been up to.

Jack's baby dedication

A trip to the zoo to feed the giraffes

A visit from an uncle and a cousin

Jack is now almost four months old. It's hard to believe! His favorite hobbies are smiling, rolling over, and eating milk. He's also started to recently be more interested in watching and grabbing toys.

Our little Canadian

Happy Canada Day! Jack hasn't been a Canuck for long, but he's already proudly displaying the flag, and, clearly, singing O Canada!

Super Dad

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband! His five weeks of fatherhood have proven him to be a great dad—cuddling, bouncing, changing, and playing with little Jack.

We love you!

Life's tough when you're pregnant

Of all the symptoms of pregnancy for a preschooler to notice, I wouldn't think frequent potty breaks would be one of them. But apparently, I was wrong.

Our four-year-old nephew asked me if I have to go potty before I head to bed at night. Thinking it was a general question, I responded that going to the bathroom before bed is a wise idea for everyone. But he insisted: "No, do you have to go potty at night, because the baby is pushing on your bladder?" A little surprised, I answered yes.

He thought for a moment. "Do I have a bladder?"

Perhaps he'd assumed it's something you grow only when pregnant.

Apparently, he understood this whole bladder business to be a rather serious health issue. Because a few minutes later, when he asked the blessing on our dinner, he most sincerely prayed, "Please help the baby to come out. And please help the baby to stop pushing on Alison's bladder."

I love kids.

Just a week!

In just a week, I will have an ultrasound that should tell my husband and me the baby's gender. This is one of the most unique and exciting moments in all my life.

I love how God brings us excitement, but of all different shades so that we can enjoy life a little more fully. For example, the thrill of my wedding day and the beautiful wonder of a little one within me have evoked such different feelings in me—but both are utterly splendid.

Now, to wait a whole week...

A day for thanks

Tomorrow is a big day. For the first time, my husband and I are hosting Thanksgiving dinner. (I've hosted many a Canadian Thanksgiving, but they were potlucks—I only had to provide the turkey, fixings, and beverages.)

It will be a small affair, with six adults and two little children. And others are bringing bread and dessert. Nonetheless, it's been fun to plan and prepare for a traditional dinner this year (although it may get less fun Thursday when I am fighting with the not-completely-thawed turkey and worrying over a new recipe for sweet potato casserole and dusting at the last minute).

It also brings to mind plenty of blessings:

• Salvation and grace through Jesus Christ
• My family, including my fabulous husband and our precious little one, due next May
• Extended family (including a wondrous, recent transformation of one family member)
• Friends
• Plentiful food and warm home
• Hugs
• Music
• Smiles
• Oh, and did I mention the baby?

Have a splendid Thanksgiving Day, whether you're feasting or hosting or both!