Hi, 6 Months!

So Proud

Over Father's Day weekend, E abandoned his training wheels. That means at a few days shy of three and a half, he can fully ride his bike. It was such a proud and exciting moment seeing him pedal around the block. I may have screamed in excitement.

We knew it was only a matter of time since the kid was biking since 18 months and often asked if we would take the training wheels off. Two things really seemed to seal the deal for the final transition...

1) Borrowing our neighbor's strider so E could understand the balance part. He rode it a few times before getting really good at putting his feet up and coasting for long distances.

2) A neighborhood friend learned on her bike last week while we were outside playing. E usually plays with the older girls around our area, so I know he often looks up to them. They are also the reason he knows about "tag, you're it". The first thing he said when he was riding was, "Now, I can ride my bike just like my friend." A great example of positive peer pressure. :)

Now he's back to asking if he can ride everyday. And he just loves being able to ride next to W while he's on his BMX bike. Such a thrilling milestone as a parent!

10 Months

Eeek! Only two months until your very FIRST birthday! Where has the time gone?!

Your very first word that's repeated so often was "Ezra"

Finally in that squirmy stage where you want down so you can explore everything

Pulling up onto all fours and scooting backwards...so close to crawling

SEVEN teeth!

A great eater and prefer to feed yourself...if you don't like something you don't hesitate to pull it out

LOVE your carbs and fruit

Doing so well with EC! wWthin just two months, you're doing 90% of  #2 in the potty! You totally get it.

Still such a love and ham...you will seek out someone's attention with your big smile!!

9 months

Lots of babbling and talking..we swear {Ezra included} we've heard you 'say' actual words like "clapping" "talk" "hi" "bye"...weirdest thing! Those Swenson boys sure know how to talk! ;)

LOVE bath time with brother

Surprising us with light hair. Still got dark eyes.

Pushing up onto your knees...exciting--yes...but also scary because that will mean I really have two kids now. Two that I'll have to run after soon.

Have four teeth..three on top, one on the bottom while working on number five

Love "real people" food and grab at ours aggressively

In the 80th percentile for height, 10th for weight...I just have slender babes, I guess, what can I say?!

LOVE LOVE LOVE to clap. It's the sweetest, most adorable thing I've ever seen. And you'll actually do it on command. 

Finally starting to transition out of swaddling for sleep. We've now just got your bottom-half still in there

Snuggly, sweet, lovable and so so happy!

His Hair

So it's no secret that we like to keep Ezra's hair somewhat on the longer side. ;) I love his white blonde hair even if it's turning more toward the yellow/dirty blonde color. I figure when else can a boy get away with wild, untamed hair? Perhaps as a teenager, but then it's more on the stinky side and not so much on the sweet. ha!

Last week I noticed he could no longer really see through his bangs. So, I grabbed some scissors and we sat outside while I trimmed them a bit. Then I thought I should probably take it up just a hair on the length too since I was already at it. Several minutes later I realized I had completely miscalculated just how much I had trimmed. Then there was the whole frantic flurry of trying to save it {which we all know just makes it worse}.

My job {Before}...

 
The following day my parents took E and {what do ya know?} ended up at Sports Cuts. ;) There, they cleaned up my hot mess and had him looking much more adorable in no time.

Their clean-up {After}...

My little guy is looking and seeming so much older these days!

Potty Talk {Thoughts on Training}

We started officially "potty training" {guess you could call it that...we've done infant potty training known as EC since he was a baby so we really only have to make the final leap into undies} last week. E just started insisting on 'unders' {that's what he called them before he could say 'underwear' and it's kinda just stuck} and even though I was super hesitant, I just went with it.  Day One left us with only two successes with lots of wet pants and unders. The following two days I did more prompting, about every hour, and we only had one miss each. Day four had three. That was the day Papa was home and he's still learning our new rhythm.  It wasn't until mid-morning on Day Five when we got one success and then we were good for the day. Day Six and on made for zero misses including nap time!!! I'm SO proud of him!

 I have to prompt him every time, but it seems like he's holding it until he's sitting on the potty now. Yesterday was the first day I felt like I could relax and not stress about him peeing at any moment. We had re-gained the rhythm that we lost over the weekend. It just seemed more fluid {no pun intended, ha.} and that the trips to the bathroom were a normal part of our day now. He's doing so great. I don't buy the the whole "did-it-in-three-days-and-we're-completely-done" thing. Maybe unless your kid is like five?! Or maybe a girl?? We're definitely not finished with training. On Day Five I buckled and put him in a diaper when we did a sandwich lunch date with a friend. The whole time it felt so wrong. Like I was giving in to my frustration instead of staying committed, sticking it out, and not giving up on him. He stayed dry though and when we got home, I put him back in unders...after an encouraging conversation with my mom on the phone. Heh.

 I figure as he continues, he'll eventually prompt himself. We're still doing diapers at night, although Ezra's not too happy about that. I value my sleep too much than to change bedding at night. We told him that if he has a dry diaper in the morning then he can earn unders at night. I found him on his stool this morning, trying to zip down his pjs to go potty. It's so adorable-- he's even more of a little man now.

 And the unders have also encouraged putting on his own clothes, especially his unders and pants. He now pulls out all of his clean underwear and mulls over them a good five minutes before selecting which he'll sport that day... the Thomas trains? the Lightening McQueen cars?  the extra padded solids? I'm thankful for elastic bottoms. It helps him to be more independent-- when he can do it all himself. All I have to do is suggest potty time and he's off on his own in the bathroom. So so so so nice! :) It's like I'm catching small glimpses of what it's like to have a little one beyond the toddler years and into childhood.

So, you will probably be able to spot us now around town, carting his little potty with us. It's been real handy for keeping mobile as he trains. And it saves us trips to the public ones {eww! gross!} We even had a 'potty party' this week with Ezra's friend, Elle, who's three. We were at a park without bathrooms and well, when you got to go, you've gotta go. They were so cute-- cheering each other on and checking out their different undies.

Here's to yet another parenting milestone!

Chop Suey

It's been done. E got his first hair cut on November 1st, 2011 at approximately 6:30 pm.

We had a close family friend, who's in beauty school, come over to give Ezra his first 'do. Em did my make-up for my wedding and she's fabulous at what she does. Plus, it was fun to have her and her mom over while W could be there to witness it too. 

The two quickly got acquainted...they bonded real fast since Em brought combs and a spray bottle full of water. For awhile now, Gpa was been styling Ezra's hair whenever he goes over there to play and Ezra is just NUTS about it. So E was definitely a fan of Em's from the get-go.

Papa helped at times to hold E's head straight while E occupied himself.

And away she cut. I was much more sad than I thought I was going to be. It was exciting to see it happening and see his reaction to a new experience, but it was definitely bittersweet. I'm so glad we waited until he was two, rather than get it around his first birthday!

And he loved it!

Some before and afters

 Yeah, we tried to keep it as long as possible. This cut turned out to be more of a trim. ;)

Thanks, Em, for giving our little dude a new 'do!

A Half Past One {18 months}

Dear Little Man,

Yes! You are quite the little man now, Buki. It just seems like with each day, comes more fun and joyful things you're doing, saying, learning, etc. We thoroughly enjoy watching you grow and take on the world more and more. Here are some things that we want to keep close to our hearts and not forget...

-First multi-syllable word: "opposites" from a Bert and Ernie book Mama picked up in the dollar section 

-So helpful!! Your current chores include: putting your shoes in the shoe basket, putting your dirty laundry in the hamper, helping Mama: set the table, feed the pups, take the pups out by 'walking' Pancho, put your toys away and make your bed.

-So agreeable! You respond with a hardy "Yeah!" to every.single.question you're asked. If only, you'd stay this way! ;)

 -Are currently getting the rest of your molars and now cuspids in; it's definitely toothy in there!

-Passion for books has grown a ton...we read quite often throughout the day: potty times, after waking up from naps, during playtime...but you still mostly read with us and only ever-so-often on your own

-Some well-read books include: Clifford's family, Curious George Rides a Bike, In a People's House, Green Eggs and Ham, Cat in the Hat, I Spy Little Wheels and Thomas the Train's Big Flap Book.

-Still taking two hardy naps each day...any time Mama thinks you're ready for one, it usually turns out to be teething that shortens them. Oi!

-Are definitely your parents' child: love being and doing things together and love cuddles! The best snuggler around!

-Starting to see more areas to learn and train in...handling the disappointment of 'no' to a request, asking without 'whining', and thinking of others when playing together

-Quite vocal with single words, lots of babbling and sound word. You love to point to and point out things as you see them.

-Have not been sick for the past 8 months or so! How that's happened, I'll never know since you still put lots in your mouth.

-Such a hardy breakfast and dinner eater...lunch, not so much... and are still very adventurous in your eating--you have never really gone through a 'picky' stage.

-Very outgoing and will interact with any and all that pass by you!

Love you to pieces, Buki!

Big Boy Bed

Last week, W was done with work pretty early so we had some fun putting together a few of the last major components of E's room. One of which being: his bed! I was shying away from it and loving the idea of waiting until the last minute to switch him over, but W was all over it like white on rice. So we dove right in!

I put his comforter, a few pillows and stuffed animals on and sat back to have a "I'm totally a Mama" moment and "He's not a baby anymore" moment as well. E was really excited about it. We played in the room for awhile. He hopped on and off the bed several times. The fabric letters still need a home on the wall but I pulled them out just to see what they would look like.

He did great with the normal bedtime routine--only got up once and W walked and sung him back to bed.  Then he was out for the night. We sneaked back in several times before going to bed, just to check on him and laugh at his various positions. Although he getting older, it still seems like he's too young for a regular bed! Maybe it's because I know two-going-on-three year olds who are still in cribs?! Either way, he still looked so cute and precious!

He did such a great job! I had to put him back a few times in the morning, but he fell back to sleep. And naps were just a smooth. He was so excited in the morning, like he knew that he had done something great. It was really cute. I'm still in shock that my high maintenance babe was so go-with-the-flow. I think he's really chilled out as a toddler! Definitely digging that!

Eek! Final reveal of his entire room coming so soon, I promise. I'm sure ya'll are sick of reading about this redo by now. ;)

First Trike

A few weeks ago, E received his very own tricycle. It is a hand-me-down from one of our neighbors. We are all about second-hand around here, if the items are still in good condition. Between my sister-in-laws, Ruth and Kelly, they have pretty much supplied E's entire wardrobe. 

The only "however" to this situation is the fact that the trike is entirely pink AND purple WITH princesses on the back of the mirror, albeit very faded. Ezra doesn't mind and considering the fact that the trike survived a visit with Grandpa and didn't mysteriously disappear, I think we're in the clear for using it for now.

And the kid loves it. He can not walk by it without hopping on. E may think it's silly later on in life that his first bike was a tad bit girlie, but he's already working on 'boy-ifying' it.

He's pretty close to full pedal circles, his legs just need to grow a little more. He's getting SO big!!

Our 1st Celebration

The night before Ezra's birthday while giving him his bath, W and I reminisced over the fact at that very moment last year, Meggs and Linds had come over with some yummy supper and to play a few rounds of Scrabble. I was getting to the point in labor where I had to lay down during contractions so I didn't play, but there was something soothing about having them there, taking care of us when things were just starting to get uncomfortable.

And W called me while at work about ten 'til 9:53 on E's birthday and we talked on the phone that morning. He started with "And this is when Ezra started to crown. He did that for about 10 minutes." What?! I didn't know he crowned that long! So we spent the next fifteen minutes remembering that morning and becoming parents.

Friday was very rainy and chilly, so we just played inside for most of his special day. He managed to wear his "Birthday Boy" shirt all day without getting it messy. Although he was drooling up a storm and it was completely wet.

Friday night, we celebrated being a family for a WHOLE year with close ones. We wanted to keep it super simple, small, and relaxed.

Grandma showed up about an hour before the festivities to watch Ezra while I prepped. I baked cupcakes, made frosting, and laid out the spread. I found a few framed pictures from other parts of the house and placed them along with the food. I put the napkins on top of my cute cake stand and forks in a mason jar that I put a piece of fabric around. Super easy. And I didn't take one picture of it. :(

The best part of the evening was singing "Happy Birthday" and watching at Ezra devour his cupcake. He was unsure about all the singing and paparazzi pictures, but very certain about the cupcake!

My old little boy!!

 He got it everywhere, including his hair.

He's ONE!

He opened a few gifts from those who didn't follow the invite rules. ;)

 He got trucks, a puzzle, and an awesome towel pancho. W was super excited by the old school Tonka truck. I think he's already making future plans with him and E for that one.

In W's words: it was delightful! A great moment to celebrate our year as a family!

{Special Thanks to Mom and Linds for recording this special event so I could put my focus elsewhere!}

Independence

It sure is messy!!

He insisted on holding the entire banana himself. Ate the whole thing on the walk back from our weekly grocery run. Oy!

Welcome to toddler-hood, right?

p.s. anyone have any good tricks for getting banana out of stroller? please leave detail instructions in the comment section. k.thanks.

10 Months

You officially have been outside the womb longer than it took to bake you! It's so hard to imagine you as this almost a year ago:

Here are memories we want to hold onto from the past two months...

Papa showed you how to get down the stairs safely awhile ago and the lesson stuck. You can get off our bed and down the stairs {with our help}. It's so cute to see you position your legs so you head backwards and then slide down on your tummy.

Ever since that juice box at Ikea, you love to use straws for drinking. It's been an added bonus when sippy cups are dirty or momentarily misplaced.

You are such a vocal and babbling baby!! I'm surprised that your voice hasn't gone hoarse from all the talking you do. We've heard many constance sounds from you like 'd, m, v, t, b and g'. The latest thing is making weird facial expressions while you make noise. Although we're not too keen on the screaming stage that popped up after our Wisconsin trip...it's seemed to die down for now...

Our very favorite thing you do is giggle, laugh and squeal whenever your papa & I kiss and hug. You love it! You'll hop up and down in Papa's arms with a huge smile on your face. It's the sweetest thing!

Food connoisseur! You still eat anything we put on your tray. Including eggplant. Pickles, bananas, and now cheese are among your favorites.

Definitely in the balls and wheels stage...and climbing! You climb your book basket to get up on the end table next to your rocking chair. Or climb up on top of Jojo to get to the couch. And a pillow to get a better view of our bed. More recently, the dishwasher to find your spoons. Not one of your more "exciting for Mama" stages!

You...cough..discovered yourself while sitting on the potty at about 9.5 months.

It's getting much harder to contain you to one area or to keep you still. You want in the action NOW. You are extremely social and love other babies and kids. We're working on being gentle even when you get so excited. You want to touch and grab at them or use them to help stand up which the other kids don't appreciate. But you are the most happy baby. People are still enthralled by your happiness and smiles. 

First steps! This week!! It was so very excited and shocking at the same time. Thereafter, you've been doing a great deal of standing on your own. I'm waiting until I can get some video or at least a few pictures of this monumentous event.

One we shouldn't remember but do: the time you pooped on the carpet then almost started playing with it until I caught you. I whisked you to the sink to clean off your feet while calling for Papa. With great skill, he got it out of the carpet {of which it smeared into}, and off Jojo's wagging tail. Gross.

Only two teeth still, but we can totally see the top two coming in. It seems like they've been almost breaking through for awhile now. We can see the little white tips on the bottom of your gums.

You have many favorite games. Different ones you play with different people. You play "fetch the ball" with Papa. Something about "getting your nose" with Grandma. And usually before bed, we press our foreheads together and rub noses. Then we scrunch up our noses and breathe loudly. It's just so silly and we both can't stop giggling. I so adore these sweet moments with you...when you're tired enough to slow down for some extended lovin'! :)

Animals fascinate you. You absolutely love them. The giraffes at the zoo. Turkeys at Gma & Gpa's. The geese and ducks we fed. Jojo is your favorite though. You take her toys and try to play with her. And it seems like you now love feeding her from your tray too. She is always so patient with your antics.

We are simply head-over-heals in love with you, Bookie. Thanks for being so adorable and lovable! You challenge us everyday, and we delight in the gift the God has given us!!

8 Months

Dearest Bookie Book,

You are turning into one cool cat. We have loved seeing your little sense of humor explode...as well as your mobility. You are moving every moment you're awake. Papa calls you "Peg-Leg" because when you crawl you keep one foot flat on the floor while the other is in the classic position. It looks pretty silly but it sure gets you around. For now, nix & bruises are the norm as you explore and get into everything.

Games are so fun to play with you. You love playing peek-a-boo with Papa's boxers. When someone is going in for a tickle, you squeal and turn away. Then turn back again until you see them go for you again. You also do this with your hand. If we pretend to eat it, you quickly move your hand away. Then you'll move your hand toward our mouth until we open it again. And the other favorite game is "Yeah!" where we lift our arms in the air & say "YEAH!" Any one of us will prompt it and all will follow!

Here are some other things we want to remember:

- "Da" is your favorite expression! You use it all.the.time. except when you're your form of saying "yeah!"

-Favorite toys include water bottles, crinkly paper, the dogs' toys, and any other thing we're interested in

- You're finally wiggling away from me when I carry you. You'd rather crawl. And now you aren't turning around to look back anymore. Sigh.

-Eating is your favorite activity next to exploring. You eat like a rock star. There hasn't been anything you don't eat. Bananas and sweet potatoes are still your favorite.

-Nursing is a bit more challenging now since you don't like to lay down very long, so we're getting creative...
-Naps. You're doing better than we hoped for transitioning to two naps. And nights are still great.

-We hands-down love infant potty training...besides the prune disaster,  poop-smashed-to-bottom diaper cleaning is very few and very far between. Yes, because it is terribly stinky!

-You were pulling up on things at 7 months. Really, Ez, no rush. You really don't have to keep that up. Now you've started to let go and balance for a bit before falling.

-I've never seen such blonde hair before! And you're growing more of it!

-Two bottom teeth! 

-At about 7.5 months, you started to prefer Papa over everyone else.

-While reading, you help us turn the pages of your board books. So cute!

-Still smiling all the time and at everybody. We're pretty sure we've experienced you flirting already!

-Love your open mouth kisses. I'll say "Kisses kisses" and you're ready with an open slobbery month!

-Nicknames for you are "bookie bookie", "booger", and "Ezra Beezra"...not sure why. They just come out.

It is truly so sweet how the simple things delight the heck out of you. 

These have been the greatest 8 months! Thank you for making life more bright and full. We are so blessed that God would pick us for your parents!

We love you, little guy!

Weekend Warrior

 We're cheap. It helps when neither of us has a full-time paid job right now. So we're creative and resourceful in addition to cheap. Because of that, we still haven't turned on our AC yet. The only times our PG&E billl was over $60 was this past winter with a newborn. During the summer, it can get really uncomfortable upstairs. We have tile downstairs so we tend to hang out there during summer months. If we must be upstairs, all of our ceiling fans are going full blast. We also take advantage of our pool. A quick dip multiple times a day helps keep us cool. This summer Ezra is getting a quick lesson in this as the weather heats up fast. Naked time all the time. :)

While we were hanging out in his room post-pool dip, he sat up on his own.

 

It lasted longer than normal. Long enough to get a few pictures before it was back to tummy, trying to crawl.

And I get to enjoy seeing a few rolls as he rolls over onto his back.

But it's been getting harder to take pictures of him, especially up close. Here's why...

He seems pretty pleased with himself!