Party On

It was a busy month! We spent 2 weeks in Wyoming with my family, celebrating Thanksgiving and enjoying the absence of snow. My dad got good news too- his labs indicated that the chemo is working! He still has cancer, but it is not growing and his PSA levels were .07 (a healthy man in his condition should have a 0)! It totally sucks seeing him in pain, but he's still walking, eating, and hasn't had too much nausea yet.  snuggling with Papa Then we came home on the 30th, had our new pup (Eli & Anias' Christmas present) delivered the 1st and celebrated Josh's birthday the 2nd.  After that it was Christmas prep time. So far we've Wrapped presents Picked out a tiny-toddler approved tree and put it up Bought our yearly Christmas ornament Put lights up outside Decorated indoors Made cookies, caramel popcorn, and hot chocolate with homemade bread Started our Shepherd on the Search Advent Calendar Watched Polar Express, White Christma

Well I'm behind in my life so this is all about the babies! Anias: 14 Months old I say new words like…  “yuck", "please" I have   10    teeth My favorite food is blueberries My favorite toy is  my stuffed owl Some other things I did include… I make car noises (blow raspberries) when I push cars around. I shake my head no and yes a lot and turn on my baby monitor to pretend it's a phone. I take clothes out of the dryer and put them in the basket and I walk constantly. Mom can't remember the last time I crawled. I tease mom and brother. I like to almost give mom a bite of food then tear it away and laugh. I like to take brother's toys and run. I play chase every day and love to go down slides. I wait until the count of 3 and then throw myself down the slide. I like to hide in the curtains. I was curious George for Halloween while brother was the man with the yellow hat. I held my Halloween bucket all by myself! I went to my first pumpkin pat

I might need to keep doing biweekly blogs just to keep my mind straight. Writing definitely helps me feel all zen, even if I'm the only one reading them. Here We Go Chemo Remember the little infographic about my dad? Well he fell here... in the terminal section. That doesn't mean he's going to die tomorrow (thank God!), but he's definitely more likely to die from cancer than old age. So that's not the most exciting news. The good news is there are still treatment options, and he's begun hormone therapy and will start chemo next week. Eli and I are going down to help (Eli is so excited to feed their dog) and enjoy their company in general. Modern medicine is so amazing and moving so quickly and I still feel hope that he will be around to meet my grandkids, but if you pray- pray for him please- and us. That's Hot It's that time of year again, the hot toy list is out! It's filled with robots and Teddy Ruxpin (ha!) and a bunch of seemingly real

Anias is a year (and a week) old! We had so much fun at his party and I feel so blessed to be his mama. I would generally write a sappy, thoughtful bit here but I'm a little overwhelmed at the moment. I hope you enjoy the picture overload regardless! I still have a whole set to do of him in his birthday chair. Eek! Anias: Week 52- 1 year old  Dad calls me the great escape artist because I'm always sneaking out of everything. I like to free fall on the couch and I laugh and laugh even though it terrifies mom. I stand on my rocking chair and shake it back and forth or maneuver it so I can knock down all the toy storage on the top shelf. I like to 'play basketball' by throwing balls into my bucket and I took 4 steps in a row! I had my 1 year checkup and I weighed 19 lbs 12 oz (24th percentile), was 30 inches tall (56th percentile) and my head is 18.5 inches in circumference (76th percentile). I continued the family tradition of being sick

There's only 1 more week and 1 day until my baby is one! I'm preparing a big Noah's Ark themed birthday party and am so excited to celebrate Anias' first year! Week 50: I had my second ear infection and let everyone know it. I've been standing for longer periods of time, but I get upset when mom or dad tries to get me to walk. I will do it on my own time mom! I say mama, dadda, Anias, hi, this, and Josh. I like to sing and play with blocks. I constantly pull brother's hair and laugh when he says "ouch!". I like to destroy Eli's train tracks. I took my first TWO steps on 8/27. Week 51: I snatched mom's keys and tried to unlock the door to go for a walk. When I realized I was too short I threw a major fit. I also do my very best to open the baby gates on the stairs. I said ba-bye for the first time and will go "ahhhh" on demand and ask mom to go "ahh" too so I can check her teeth. I do my best to type on mom's

6am: wake up, snack, and play happily until brother wakes up and comes to see me. Hug brother then go downstairs and play while I wait for breakfast 7: eat eggs and banana bread waffles because it's Saturday! Mom makes pancakes or waffles every Saturday for us 8: nap 9: scavenging for dropped breakfast, getting out some toys, dance party 10: Go for a Target run where my family tests out potential birthday presents; go for a ride in my little red car 11: have lunch at Ricardo's, eat cheesy rice, a tomato, and most of a quesadilla; dance 12-2: nap 2: destroy the house finding the perfect toy, ride my motorcycle and push around some cardboard 3: cry, "help" mom clean out the cabinets 4: play pat a cake & bite mom; fall off my motorcycle and cry- it leaves a big bruise on my face Have a snack that makes me so happy I dance 5: eat dinner (macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, a mighty 4 pouch and a string cheese); go for a walk 6: watc