For a while now, Jeff and I have been encouraging Connor to say his prayers at bedtime. This usually consists of the following routine: Mom/Dad says a prayer first, Connor says a short prayer, we say The Lord's Prayer together, and then Connor says a final prayer. He is really getting more comfortable in his prayers, and I never tire of hearing his sweet voice talking to God. Here is just a sample of some of the prayers I've heard lately.
Dear God, thank you for this wonderful day. Please help Collin and Kevin, because they really need to study. Amen.
Dear Jesus, please help my Mom to get out of business, so that she can play the Memory game with me someday. Amen.
Dear Jesus, thank you for Benjamin, Timothy, Miss Julie, and Miss Harry [yes, he said Miss], because Benjamin is my best friend, even if he sometimes is a little rough to me.
Dear God, thank you for another wonderful day. Please help my Mom to give me her iPhone, because I really want to play with it. Amen.
Dear God, please help my Dad to get his work done so he can come home to visit me. Amen.
Dear... Um, Mom, what kind of Father did you call Him? Oh yeah. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for such a nice day. Please help Kaitlynn to get better so she can stop giving me her germs. Amen.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Stairs
Well, we knew this day would come...it just came sooner than we expected! I was distracted with some laundry the other day and came back out of the laundry room to find this:
Yep, this little one has learned to climb the stairs.
Sigh. I remember going through this at our first house with Connor. We never used a baby gate for the bottom of the stairs; we just had to teach Connor that he couldn't use them without a grown-up.
So here we go...
Yep, it's a long way up!
Yep, this little one has learned to climb the stairs.
Sigh. I remember going through this at our first house with Connor. We never used a baby gate for the bottom of the stairs; we just had to teach Connor that he couldn't use them without a grown-up.
So here we go...
Yep, it's a long way up!
Monday, April 26, 2010
Sam's Baskets
These pictures are from several weeks ago but I couldn't resist sharing.
We sometimes shop at Sam's for our bulk items because it's right around the corner from our house. I took Connor and Kaitlynn with me and when I put Kaitlynn in the shopping basket, I noticed the cart was actually designed to hold 2 kids instead of just 1 like most baskets. I pointed this out to Connor who thought it was really cool and then he begged me to put him in there next to Kaitlynn. It took me a while to actually lift him and get him in, but I did, and he loved it!
You would've thought this kid was on a carnival ride, he thought it was so neat! He loves sitting there next to his little sister.
So now, everytime we go to Sam's, the first thing Connor wants to do is to get hoisted up into that shopping cart. Let's just hope he doesn't get stuck in there one of these days!
We sometimes shop at Sam's for our bulk items because it's right around the corner from our house. I took Connor and Kaitlynn with me and when I put Kaitlynn in the shopping basket, I noticed the cart was actually designed to hold 2 kids instead of just 1 like most baskets. I pointed this out to Connor who thought it was really cool and then he begged me to put him in there next to Kaitlynn. It took me a while to actually lift him and get him in, but I did, and he loved it!
You would've thought this kid was on a carnival ride, he thought it was so neat! He loves sitting there next to his little sister.
So now, everytime we go to Sam's, the first thing Connor wants to do is to get hoisted up into that shopping cart. Let's just hope he doesn't get stuck in there one of these days!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Spring Picnic
Today we attended a spring picnic/fundraiser at Connor's preschool. The weather held out so it was a lovely evening with friends, games, and fun for the kids. The first activity was a Chick-fil-A picnic dinner. Connor was very excited to sit by one of his class friends, Yara (in purple) and her sister Fenne.
Connor and Yara seem to have a thing going. They love to play and act silly together. I caught up with them as they waited in line for one of the activities.
It seemed like they were getting a little friendly with one another, especially considering that Connor refers to her as a "hottie" -- no joke. Guess I better warn her parents. He is a Courtright boy, after all.
There was a local Boy Scout troop on hand to help out with the other activities like the inflatables, train rides, and ring toss. Here's a picture of Connor and his buddy Kayden on the train. So cute!
Here was the ring toss game. I thought this picture was funny because the Boy Scout in charge of the game looks like he's got a cigarette hanging from his mouth! (It was a sucker, I promise!)
Kaitlynn enjoyed the weather and the people-watching (oh, and the Chick-fil-A!)
The Chick-fil-A cow was in attendance. Connor wouldn't go near him but Kaitlynn was definitely curious.
Connor got his face painted...
The final result: a red truck!
Kaitlynn and I joined Connor for a final train ride, and this was the best pic I could get of us together!
Connor and Yara seem to have a thing going. They love to play and act silly together. I caught up with them as they waited in line for one of the activities.
It seemed like they were getting a little friendly with one another, especially considering that Connor refers to her as a "hottie" -- no joke. Guess I better warn her parents. He is a Courtright boy, after all.
There was a local Boy Scout troop on hand to help out with the other activities like the inflatables, train rides, and ring toss. Here's a picture of Connor and his buddy Kayden on the train. So cute!
Here was the ring toss game. I thought this picture was funny because the Boy Scout in charge of the game looks like he's got a cigarette hanging from his mouth! (It was a sucker, I promise!)
Kaitlynn enjoyed the weather and the people-watching (oh, and the Chick-fil-A!)
The Chick-fil-A cow was in attendance. Connor wouldn't go near him but Kaitlynn was definitely curious.
Connor got his face painted...
The final result: a red truck!
Kaitlynn and I joined Connor for a final train ride, and this was the best pic I could get of us together!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Pillow Pet
Lately Connor has been on a Sprout TV kick. Sprout is a channel that plays short programs for kids and for some reason Connor has really gotten into it. I began to notice the more we watched Sprout that they play the same TV commercials over and over. There's one for a debt reduction company, a product called "Your Baby Can Read", and several others. I knew we were watching too much Sprout when Connor recently asked me what was D-E-B-T, and then later if I was going to get "Your Baby Can Read" for our baby Kaitlynn so that she could learn how to read. Hmmm.
Another commercial that has begun to play frequently on Sprout is for Pillow Pets. These are little soft pillows for kids that are shaped like animals. They have a little strap that folds the pillow in half, forming the animal shape. We've seen this commercial so many times that Connor will sing right along with the little jingle..."It's a pillow, it's a pet...it's a Pillow Pet!" Yikes. Here's the actual commercial on YouTube.
The other day we were at the mall and Connor noticed a kiosk that was selling none other than Pillow Pets! He was super excited and wanted me to buy him one. I told him, "Well, you have a birthday coming up so maybe you could ask for a Pillow Pet for your birthday."
A short while later, we were sitting down having a snack when Connor began talking about how he really wanted a Pillow Pet. "Why do you like the Pillow Pets?" I asked him.
"Because you simply undo the strap and it pops open into a full-size pillow," he replied, almost without thinking.
(Those are the exact words from the commercial, by the way.)
Two days later, Connor was again talking about these Pillow Pets. He decided that he really wanted the ladybug one. I'm still not sure where that came from. As we were driving home from school, Connor was really trying to convince me that he needed one of these pillows. "You know, Mom," he said, "Pillow Pets are good for playtime, bedtime,...anytime!"
(Again, the exact words from the commercial.)
And finally, the next day, Connor sees me on the computer and comes up to me asking, "Hey Mom, can we go to www dot pillow pets dot com to see the full selection of Pillow Pets?"
Man, these advertisers sure know how to do their jobs!
Another commercial that has begun to play frequently on Sprout is for Pillow Pets. These are little soft pillows for kids that are shaped like animals. They have a little strap that folds the pillow in half, forming the animal shape. We've seen this commercial so many times that Connor will sing right along with the little jingle..."It's a pillow, it's a pet...it's a Pillow Pet!" Yikes. Here's the actual commercial on YouTube.
The other day we were at the mall and Connor noticed a kiosk that was selling none other than Pillow Pets! He was super excited and wanted me to buy him one. I told him, "Well, you have a birthday coming up so maybe you could ask for a Pillow Pet for your birthday."
A short while later, we were sitting down having a snack when Connor began talking about how he really wanted a Pillow Pet. "Why do you like the Pillow Pets?" I asked him.
"Because you simply undo the strap and it pops open into a full-size pillow," he replied, almost without thinking.
(Those are the exact words from the commercial, by the way.)
Two days later, Connor was again talking about these Pillow Pets. He decided that he really wanted the ladybug one. I'm still not sure where that came from. As we were driving home from school, Connor was really trying to convince me that he needed one of these pillows. "You know, Mom," he said, "Pillow Pets are good for playtime, bedtime,...anytime!"
(Again, the exact words from the commercial.)
And finally, the next day, Connor sees me on the computer and comes up to me asking, "Hey Mom, can we go to www dot pillow pets dot com to see the full selection of Pillow Pets?"
Man, these advertisers sure know how to do their jobs!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Blog Flashback
I read this post on Noni's blog about a game for bloggers where we find the 6th photo from our blogs and re-post them. It immediately made me wonder what my own 6th photo would be. So I looked back and not surprisingly, my 6th blog photo was none other than a sonogram pic of baby girl. It was one of my favorite sono pics, the one where she was pointing with her hand. It almost looks like she's saying, "Shhhh! I'm sleeping in here!" Ha! Anyway, here's the original post with all the other sonogram pics if you're interested. I have to admit, looking back at that post and reading some of those words really took me back to an anxious time in the pregnancy. It's so amazing how much has happened since then and how truly blessed we are with the outcome!
As soon as I uploaded this picture, I realized that if someone scanned this post and saw the ultrasound picture before reading, they might think I was making some kind of announcement about another baby. Ha! NO WAY! I should probably warn Jeff before he reads this one...he's a little sensitive about that subject. Ha!
As soon as I uploaded this picture, I realized that if someone scanned this post and saw the ultrasound picture before reading, they might think I was making some kind of announcement about another baby. Ha! NO WAY! I should probably warn Jeff before he reads this one...he's a little sensitive about that subject. Ha!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Blue Bell, Blue Eyes, and Bluebonnets
This week I took Connor and Kaitlynn on a drive up to Brenham to visit the Blue Bell Creamery, where they make our favorite Blue Bell ice cream (or as Connor sometimes calls it, "Cool Bell").
The weather was nice so it was a good day for a drive and a little walk outside the facility. Here's one of the old refrigerated Blue Bell trucks.
And here's a little statue of the little girl leading the cow like on the Blue Bell logo.
After a brief video and tour of the facility, each visitor gets a scoop of their favorite ice cream. Yum!
Even Kaitlynn enjoyed the ice cream. She would put her paci in her mouth, but as soon as she saw me approaching her with the spoon she would spit that paci out for another taste.
While we were going through the tour, one of the sweet visitors (probably a Grandpa) was flirting with Kaitlynn and she was flirting right back! He said, "Oh look, she's a little Blue Belle herself!" I figured he was referring to her blue outfit, but he was actually complimenting her big blue eyes. So sweet!
One of the neat things we learned during the tour is that the workers in the Blue Bell facility are allowed to eat ALL the ice cream treats they want -- NO LIMIT! -- during their breaks at work. How awesome is that? So their motto really is true...they eat all they can and they sell the rest. Ha!
I was surprised and delighted during the drive to see so many of the beautiful bluebonnets in full bloom. Because of the longer winter and late freeze, the bluebonnets bloomed later this year and they seem to be much more abundant. So I couldn't resist stopping for a few pics when I found this little patch in a big field.
Here's my little blue belle among the bluebonnets. :-)
Yay for bluebonnets! (And for a break from the carseat, ha!)
I asked Connor to hold his sister for a quick picture and he took his job very seriously. I think he had a death grip on her!
So sweet!
The weather was nice so it was a good day for a drive and a little walk outside the facility. Here's one of the old refrigerated Blue Bell trucks.
And here's a little statue of the little girl leading the cow like on the Blue Bell logo.
After a brief video and tour of the facility, each visitor gets a scoop of their favorite ice cream. Yum!
Even Kaitlynn enjoyed the ice cream. She would put her paci in her mouth, but as soon as she saw me approaching her with the spoon she would spit that paci out for another taste.
While we were going through the tour, one of the sweet visitors (probably a Grandpa) was flirting with Kaitlynn and she was flirting right back! He said, "Oh look, she's a little Blue Belle herself!" I figured he was referring to her blue outfit, but he was actually complimenting her big blue eyes. So sweet!
One of the neat things we learned during the tour is that the workers in the Blue Bell facility are allowed to eat ALL the ice cream treats they want -- NO LIMIT! -- during their breaks at work. How awesome is that? So their motto really is true...they eat all they can and they sell the rest. Ha!
I was surprised and delighted during the drive to see so many of the beautiful bluebonnets in full bloom. Because of the longer winter and late freeze, the bluebonnets bloomed later this year and they seem to be much more abundant. So I couldn't resist stopping for a few pics when I found this little patch in a big field.
Here's my little blue belle among the bluebonnets. :-)
Yay for bluebonnets! (And for a break from the carseat, ha!)
I asked Connor to hold his sister for a quick picture and he took his job very seriously. I think he had a death grip on her!
So sweet!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
10 Months
I looked at the date yesterday and it just hit me...Kaitlynn is 10 months old! I know it's not a huge milestone but I think it's fun to document all the new things she's doing, and these days she is doing so much!
At 10 months, Kaitlynn is:
Here's Connor and Kaitlynn in their Easter outfits.
Kaitlynn at one of the indoor mall play areas.
Another play area. She saw those little window holes and crawled right through them!
Here she is getting pushed by Connor in the swing. Loved it!
And this is a terrible picture with my phone, but the smile is so precious. I am seeing so many of these toothy grins these days and I love it!
At 10 months, Kaitlynn is:
- Saying a few more words. The cutest is when she will drop something and say "Uh-oh". She also says "Ma Ma", "Da Da", and "Ba Ba" (for her bottle).
- Turning towards Jeff when you ask her "Where is Da Da?" She also does that for Ma Ma and Connor. She gets a little confused between Collin and Kevin!
- Clapping all the time. She will clap spontaneously when she's happy and also when we say "Yaaaay!" This is one of my favorite new tricks...seeing those chubby little hands smack together -- so sweet!
- Still waving at everyone, and now her waves usually face the right direction.
- Pulling up on everything. She has also started to let go once she's standing up, and she'll stand there a second or two until she loses balance and falls back down.
- Pointing at things. The other day I was feeding her lunch while the TV was off (it's usually on) and she pointed towards the TV as if to say, "Uh, Mommy, could you please turn that on?"
- Starting to "cruise" by holding on to things and then taking steps sideways.
- Playing so well both independently and with other kids. She loves exploring all the toys in the playroom, and she's also been really enjoying the play areas at our local malls and parks.
- Starting to dance a little bit when she hears music.
- Eating pretty much what we eat. I'm still trying to clear out some of the baby food jars in our pantry, but she usually turns her nose up at that stuff.
- Giggling at Connor often. He apparently cracks her up.
- Working hard to get attention from strangers. She will wave at them, smile, or simply stare them down so they'll look at her.
Here's Connor and Kaitlynn in their Easter outfits.
Kaitlynn at one of the indoor mall play areas.
Another play area. She saw those little window holes and crawled right through them!
Here she is getting pushed by Connor in the swing. Loved it!
And this is a terrible picture with my phone, but the smile is so precious. I am seeing so many of these toothy grins these days and I love it!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Pajama Play
I was looking through some of my unpublished pictures and realized I never posted some of these precious pics from Kaitlynn's visit with Alex last month. So please allow me to tell you a story -- in pictures -- from their early morning playtime.
Still in their pajamas, Alex and Kaitlynn were playing with some of his toys. Kaitlynn, the follower that she is, decided she wanted in on the action when Alex went to play with his really cool jungle gym toy (for lack of a better description).
Alex wasn't so sure about that and tried to warn her off.
And then there was the stiff arm. But Kaitlynn didn't seem to get the hint.
So Alex did what any man would do in this situation. He took matters into his own hand.
I guess Kaitlynn thought Alex was just fooling around, because she seemed to be amused. But not Alex...
If you look closely you can see that he was MAD! I think he was offended that Kaitlynn didn't appreciate his manly gestures.
Yep, it's proof. Males and females just aren't meant to get each other!
Still in their pajamas, Alex and Kaitlynn were playing with some of his toys. Kaitlynn, the follower that she is, decided she wanted in on the action when Alex went to play with his really cool jungle gym toy (for lack of a better description).
Alex wasn't so sure about that and tried to warn her off.
And then there was the stiff arm. But Kaitlynn didn't seem to get the hint.
So Alex did what any man would do in this situation. He took matters into his own hand.
I guess Kaitlynn thought Alex was just fooling around, because she seemed to be amused. But not Alex...
If you look closely you can see that he was MAD! I think he was offended that Kaitlynn didn't appreciate his manly gestures.
Yep, it's proof. Males and females just aren't meant to get each other!
Monday, April 12, 2010
Kemah Birthday Fun
Happy Birthday, Jeff! Jeff is celebrating his ##th birthday today! (What, you think only women are self-conscious about their age? Ha!)
Since Jeff has to work today, we decided to celebrate his birthday on Saturday with the whole family by taking a day trip to the Kemah Boardwalk. It's such a fun place to visit with restaurants, cute shops, rides for everyone, and lots more. When we first arrived, the weather was dreary and rainy so we weren't sure how the day would go, but thankfully the weather cleared and it turned out to be a gorgeous day. Plus, we were able to enjoy many rides without long lines!
Connor's favorite ride was the train that takes you around the entire complex.
It was a nice way to let our yummy lunch settle. Kaitlynn did great, too.
Here's Jeff and Collin enjoying the Aviator ride.
Here's a ride called the Inverter that Collin and Kevin rode. No thank you!
Jeff, Collin, and Kevin rode this huge swing that took them way up into the air. You can see in Jeff's face that he wasn't too fond of this ride.
One thing I was super excited about was riding the huge wooden roller coaster. I haven't ridden one of these since, well I can't even remember. Collin, Kevin, and I were the only takers for the coaster and it was so much fun. We rode it 3 times!
Probably the funniest story of the day was when Jeff decided to join Connor on the kiddie airplane ride. First off, he could barely get himself into the airplane.
Then as the ride began, we started to notice that something was a little off.
See the airplane in front? Well that's how high Connor's airplane was supposed to be, but as you can see, well it just couldn't quite make it up that high since there was a little extra, a-hem, weight in their airplane.
Those of us on the outside (as well as Jeff) were all laughing so hard that we were crying!
As if that weren't enough punishment, Jeff joined Connor for the kiddie ferris wheel ride.
But at least this time the ride worked as expected.
After lots of rides, we walked the Boardwalk and got some ice cream. Connor instead decided on cotton candy. Yellow, of all colors.
We all had such a great time in Kemah and it was a perfect way to celebrate Jeff's birthday. And you know the day was a success when all 4 of the kids fell asleep in the car on the drive home!
At home for birthday cake. Happy Birthday, Jeff (a.k.a. Dad, Daddy, and Da-Da)!
Since Jeff has to work today, we decided to celebrate his birthday on Saturday with the whole family by taking a day trip to the Kemah Boardwalk. It's such a fun place to visit with restaurants, cute shops, rides for everyone, and lots more. When we first arrived, the weather was dreary and rainy so we weren't sure how the day would go, but thankfully the weather cleared and it turned out to be a gorgeous day. Plus, we were able to enjoy many rides without long lines!
Connor's favorite ride was the train that takes you around the entire complex.
It was a nice way to let our yummy lunch settle. Kaitlynn did great, too.
Here's Jeff and Collin enjoying the Aviator ride.
Here's a ride called the Inverter that Collin and Kevin rode. No thank you!
Jeff, Collin, and Kevin rode this huge swing that took them way up into the air. You can see in Jeff's face that he wasn't too fond of this ride.
One thing I was super excited about was riding the huge wooden roller coaster. I haven't ridden one of these since, well I can't even remember. Collin, Kevin, and I were the only takers for the coaster and it was so much fun. We rode it 3 times!
Probably the funniest story of the day was when Jeff decided to join Connor on the kiddie airplane ride. First off, he could barely get himself into the airplane.
Then as the ride began, we started to notice that something was a little off.
See the airplane in front? Well that's how high Connor's airplane was supposed to be, but as you can see, well it just couldn't quite make it up that high since there was a little extra, a-hem, weight in their airplane.
Those of us on the outside (as well as Jeff) were all laughing so hard that we were crying!
As if that weren't enough punishment, Jeff joined Connor for the kiddie ferris wheel ride.
But at least this time the ride worked as expected.
After lots of rides, we walked the Boardwalk and got some ice cream. Connor instead decided on cotton candy. Yellow, of all colors.
We all had such a great time in Kemah and it was a perfect way to celebrate Jeff's birthday. And you know the day was a success when all 4 of the kids fell asleep in the car on the drive home!
At home for birthday cake. Happy Birthday, Jeff (a.k.a. Dad, Daddy, and Da-Da)!
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