Luka is THREE

Happy Birthday to Luka James!

I cannot believe that you are three!  You have been counting down to your birthday, very patiently, always stating the order of birthdays, leading up to yours - Bennett, Colby, Sloane, Mom then Me!

You have continued to grow and learn so much this past year.  You did awesome at "school" each Monday last year, but we decided not to send you this year - you will have enough school in the coming years!  You were very disappointed about this, and kept insisting that you WERE going to school and that we needed to go school shopping.  We are still going to MOPS this year though, and mostly because you have been asking about it all summer long.  You call it "my MOPS" and love your classroom.  You are still smart as ever and  can spell your name, and write "your" letter L (and also U and A, a good portion of the time, the K is tricky, though!).   You are an amazing colorer for your age, almost always staying in the lines, and you forget nothing (except that you ALWAYS have to wash hands after going to the bathroom - ha!) you are a sponge. 

You still have an amazing care free attitude.  You love to joke, laugh and smile.  Your charm attracts grandparents everywhere we go.  I always joke that you are a grandma collector.  The woman that does my eyebrows adores you and even gave you $5 for your birthday!  You also love your "Granny Nanny" Arlene and greet her at the door each Tuesday with a hug, asking her if she has been needing a huggy!  Of course your jovial nature also makes it hard to get upset with you or stay upset with you when you have bad behavior.  You always are quick with a "its no biggie", "no problem, Mom", I need to see life more like you, because often you are right. 

You also have a very adventurous nature.  This summer we bought a cabin and you LOVE everything about the lake.  You were the first of the kids to jump off the boat and into the water.  You had a life vest on, of course, but you must have jumped off the boat about twenty times in a row.  You were also excited to get on the tube and do the knee board. You also ended up with your first trip to the ER while we were at the lake.  You put your tooth through your cheek and ended up with your cheek glued shut.  You handled it well until the doctor said no swimming for 5 days, you tried to argue with her, but you had to stay out.  You were more upset about having to stay dry that anything else. 

You still love music and dancing.  You love to read books, build, trains, your strider bike, the "John Deere" (power wheel) and firetrucks!  You also basically love anything that Caleb is into, and Sloane sometimes too.  You will do anything to get Caleb to laugh, this is what gets you into trouble the most.  Oh the trouble you two will get into when you are older.  

You are a hugger and a lover.  

You have a love/hate relationship with your role as big brother.  Sometimes I have to stop you from carrying  Bennett around and sharing all your snacks with him, but you two never seem to be open to hugs at the same time, and at times you insist that you are still the youngest!  I am interested to see how your relationship changes as Bennett grows and is more able to play with you, rather than destruct or take away what you are playing with. 

I am so, so lucky to be your Mom and be a part of your life.  The other day I said to you, "Luka, my life would be so boring without you" and you replied with "I know!"  ha ha ha!  You keep me on my toes and help me to see the sunshine and positive part of life.  

I love you Luka James. 

Love, Mama

Sloane is FIVE!

My little lady is FIVE, a whole hand!  There is something about five that just seems SO old.  

Sloane is still as smart, strong, sassy and silly as ever.  She loves her brothers {most of the time} and helps out a lot around the house.  It has been so fun to watch her friendships grow this past year.  She has made some good friends at school and gymnastics and she always greets her friends with a hug.  She loves her family too, often crying when they have to leave or we have to leave them after a visit.  

Sloane loves to play and learn, some of her favorite things lately are playing any sort of pretend, ride bike, read books, spend time at the park and the lake!  Sloane is adventurous and brave and likes to try new things.  She was the first to try out the tube and knee boarding at the lake.  She gets a little frustrated when she can't master things immediately, but never gives up.  That is one of our most favorite things about her.  

Sloane is still in gymnastics (going on year 4) and moves to the "big gym" this year, swim lessons and decided to start competitive cheerleading this year, after attending a camp this past summer.  These two activities should keep her VERY busing this coming year.  She loves to "do healthy things".  

Sloane is still having night terrors and sometimes even sleep walking, but usually only when she skips an afternoon nap, especially if she's skipped a few days in a row.  For this reason I still make her try to take a nap most days.  Girlfriend plays hard and needs rest, even though she doesn't want to.  

Sloane was registered to start Kindergarten this next year, we bought supplies, clothes and even found out her teacher, but decided the week before her birthday that she should do transitional kindergarten, instead.  She woke up one day and was crying because she was sad she was going to miss being at home and was feeling a little nervous about kindergarten (even though all of her assessments said she was more than ready academically).  We made the decision to wait another year, she will be EXTRA ready next year and hopefully more comfortable with the idea of spending all day at school!

Sloane still loves all things sweet, movie night, sausage pizza, coloring, Junie B. Jones books, shopping, snuggling up, riding bike and playing outside.  She still despises getting in trouble, even if its just a verbal warning and will hold it against you for days.  

Happy Birthday Sloane, I can't imagine my life, or our family without you!

Happy First Birthday, Bennett

Happy Birthday Baby Benny!

My baby is one!  You are such a sweet, sweet baby.  You love to be kissed, hugged and carried, and since we all adore you so, there is almost always someone to oblige,

This year has been a bit of a blur, it seems like we just brought you home and yet at the same time that seems like a whole lifetime ago. One thing I know for sure is that everyday since we have brought you home, your siblings have thanked God for "cute, cute, Baby Bennett'" every night during prayers (and Dad and I feel the same, too).  They love you and it is so awesome to see you be able to start interacting with them more and more.  You great them with a great big hug and kiss every time they wake up in the morning or from naps.

I have done my very best to enjoy every moment of your baby hood, even the ones in the middle of the night, since you will be our last baby.   You did your best to grow up quickly though, I suppose you feel like you need to keep up with all the activity here!  You were crawling and walking long before one, which always made you seem more grown-up.

You are a clever little man, you watch everything and pick up so much.  I asked your siblings to put on their shoes the other day and you came to me with yours.  You follow directions and understand, so much.  You have an opinion and have gotten quite good at voicing that to us - it can be frustrating for us, but it's a good skill to have!

Oh Bennett, I just love you so much.  I can't with to see what the future holds for you.  I can't wait to get to know you, your personality and what makes you, you, even more.

Happy First Birthday, here's to many, many more!

Love, Mommy

twelve months {Bennett}

Bennett is twelve months old!  I am in major denial that he is one, how is my baby ONE?!
A couple days ago Josh referred to Benny as "my favorite one year old" I was sure to correct him that we still had two days before he turned one.

SLEEP:

Still down for the night around 7pm and up for the day around 5:30/6:00am.  Bennett had been sleeping straight through, and then we basically vacationed all of July and totally threw off his schedule and kept changing his bed and he started waking one or two times again each night  - noooo!   We don't plan to go anywhere for the next couple weeks, so hopefully we can get back to no wake-ups.  

Bennett is still (normally) napping two times a day.  His morning nap is around 9am and lasts about an hour and afternoon nap around 1pm, which also lasts about an hour.  

DAILY ROUTINE: 

Up around 5:30/6:00 and have a bottle, hang with Mom and Dad while they get ready, eat breakfast. play, and then play until morning nap around 8:30.  Play until lunch, then nap and snack, play, go to the park etc, until dinner at 5:30, bath around 6:30, then bed around 7:00pm*

*This is what we usually do when we are home, but we have been on the go most of this month so that means naps in the car, stroller, boat...anywhere you can catch them and thankfully you are a trooper.  

The lake also usually means bedtime closer to 8pm.  

EATING:

Bennett is still taking bottles about 5 times a day, roughly 5oz per bottle.  He is also eating breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks that are all solids.  He has suddenly gotten very picky, though.  

While we were at my parents he decided he wouldn't eat anything.  I ended up running to the store and getting him baby food purees and he scarfed them right down. 

I am 99% sure he'd live off of blueberries, grapes and string cheese if I'd let him!

sat him down and asked him to smile!

WEIGHT:

22.5lbs (according to home scale)

LENGTH:

30.25 inches tall

DIAPER SIZE:

size 3 diapers

CLOTHING SIZE:
 mostly 12 month clothing, but shorts are typically 9 months

HAIR COLOR:

light brown

EYE COLOR:

 blue

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Oh Bennett!  I am not sure if it is your new haircut or what, but all the sudden you seem so much less "baby" and so much more toddler.  

You are basically running these days, you love to climb the stairs and try to step down (eek). I am still trying to teach you how to slide down on your stomach and you do most of the time, but not consistently enough to be trusted!  You love to play and run around both outside and inside, if you have the freedom to roam you are typically pretty happy. 

You love to play with balls and have a heck of an arm.  You have fun throwing the ball for Colby and for Cooper when we were at Grandpa and Grandma's last week.  You are so gentle with dogs too, petting them so sweetly, most of the time.  You also still bark at Colby quite a bit.  

he loves his animal flash cards, we are working on animal sounds, so far they all roar - ha!

You climb all the things.  Tables, chairs, the stool in the pantry, the stool in the bathroom (you love to wash your hands and brush your teeth).  You even climbed out of your high chair a few weeks ago.   

You give high fives, shake your head "no",  follow simple directions with some guidance, love to throw things in the garbage or in random boxes.  You wave when we say goodbye or go into the mudroom.  You say "hi there" once in a while, along with Dada but other than that you aren't saying much lately, but you do mimic sounds really well. 

You know how doors open and lights turn off and on, even though you aren't able to do it yourself.  Whenever you hear wash you start rubbing your hands together or on your tummy, you are one smart cookie!

You have also started screaming VERY loudly when things aren't going your way.  Here's hoping we can work on your vocabulary so this phase is as short as possible!

You hate shopping and constantly try to stand up in the cart (despite being buckled) and scream non stop.  Something tells me you will not be my shopping buddy. 

so serious

You love a good beat and some music. You "sing" along with one song that Caleb and Sloane sang at Vacation Bible School.  It is so cute.

You got your second haircut this month and you suddenly look so much more toddler than baby, and you are handsome as ever! 

You are a major lover, you give out lots of {open mouth} kisses and hugs to your family members!  When your siblings wake up for the day or from nap you run to them and hug them immediately.  You are such a sweet boy! 

Daddy's boy!

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Firsts and important dates:

First trip to Minot (and parade, and fair) - July 21st
First Birthday: July 31st

eleven months {Bennett}

Benny Babe is eleven months old today!
Birthday invitations went out last week, but I am in denial that my baby is so close to one!

SLEEP:

Still down for the night between 7:00-7:30 normally and up around 5:30.  First nap for the day is between 8 and 9 shortly after breakfast and then another around 1:00 after lunch while Caleb, Sloane and Luka have nap or quiet time too.   (Although due to summer schedules and vacations some days naps are whenever you can get them, which might mean in the car, shuttling your siblings around).  When we are home your morning nap is usually longer, about 1-1.5 hours and the afternoon nap is around 45 mins. 

Nighttime sleep started off rough this month but has gotten much better, other than early wake up calls.  (lucky for me Dad usually gets up with you)

Unfortunately when we were at the lake this past weekend you woke up in the middle of the night and would only sleep if you could sleep with me and Dad, because we share a room there.  Hopefullly we can break this habit so that we can all get a little better sleep there!

DAILY ROUTINE: 

No major changes here - up around 5:30, play with Dad for a bit while he gets coffee and lets Colby out.  hang with me and Dad while we shower and gets ready, then breakfast around 7:00, playing, then a bottle and down for a nap between 8:00 and 9:00, awake around 10:00 - 10:30,  head to the park/run errands/etc, then lunch around12:00, then down for afternoon nap and a small bottle at 1:00 until about 1:30-2:00.  Then we play, go to the park, run errands, some days another small bottle around 3:0, then dinner at 5:30, play and a bath time or head to a siblings activities,  and bed with a bottle somewhere between 7:00 and 8:00. 

trying to figure out how the window works

EATING:

Bennett will try anything, if he doesn't like it he'll just throw it down on the floor for the dog, even when we go to restaurants - oops!    He eats whatever we eat for dinner 90% of the time, if he doesn't like what we are eating or some variation of that he ends up with a baby food pouch. 

 My supply started decreasing, and we still had about 1700oz of milk in the freezer, so I had been down to nursing just once a day but the last few days Bennett is only getting bottles.  The freezer stash is still around 1500oz, so he should make it to one with breast milk exclusively. 

WEIGHT:

22bs (based on home scale)

LENGTH:

30 inches tall (best guess)

smiley guy.

DIAPER SIZE:

Still size 3's

CLOTHING SIZE:

9-12 months, 12 months

HAIR COLOR:
brown but getting lighter

EYE COLOR:

blue

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such a climber.

The biggest change for you this past month is learning to walk!  You took a couple steps from me to Caleb one day, and then a few the next and then all the sudden you really took off and started taking many steps in a row. You practice all the time and can walk all over now.  You still have plenty of falls, but that doesn't stop you, you hop right back up and continue trying.  I am still getting used to the sight of you walking all over and you just getting up and walking away from me!  

You are still constantly trying (and succeeding at) scaling the stairs.  You also use anything you can to climb on beds, tables, etc.  You are SUCH a climber, heaven help me.  We've had a little success teaching you how to go down the stairs on your tummy.  You now seem to know that you need to go down that way, but only choose to do that some of the time.  You do run to the stairs with a big old grin because you know that someone will be there to get you right away.  

looking like a big boy on the chair

You still shake your head "no", you say mama, dada, bye bye and you bark at the dog and yell at Luka all the time.  You do "so big" and "peek a boo", you also give high fives.  You had been saying "hi" but new skills seem to have taken place of waving and shouting "hi" for now.  You have started saying what's that, "Wass sat?" about just about everything.  It is the cutest!

You love your Caleb and Sloane and light up when then include you in their play.  It is so fun to see you and Caleb interact because  you can just see how much you adore him (and him you). and no one can get you laughing like quite like him.  Sloane is your second mommy, always keeping an eye on you and covering you in hugs and kisses.  You and Luka have some spats - mostly about toys and he doesn't care to share with you, he screams "no, Benny" to you quite a bit when you try to include yourself in whatever he is playing, you've taken to screaming back at him.  You have definitely found your voice.  You also love Colby, but mostly want to pull his legs, which he doesn't appreciate. 

When Daddy comes home from work you know it now and run to the door to greet him with a great big hug.  

You love being outside and exploring.  You crawl on playground equipment with me and love going down slides (on a lap, of course) and the swings.  We look for parks without wood chips though, because you like to "taste" those.  You also love the water but don't care so much for the boat because of the life jacket. 

We play the radio a lot and you bounce to the music all the time.  

You are awful to take shopping lately because you try to stand in the cart!  I hope that you stop that soon. 

You had a follow up appointment with the opthomalogist earlier this week.  After patching 2 hours/day for the last two months your vision has improved in both your right eye (which we were most concerned about) and your left eye.  It was such a relief for Dad and me.  The doctor says we will continue to patch for 2 hours/day for the next two months and check again (we couldn't get back in until September).  We are hoping your vision continues to improve in your right eye and hold off on surgery!

You are still a lover and always crawl up for a hug and kiss and generally just like to be carried all.day.long, if possible.  You have also started to get a jealous if Dad or I am holding or sitting with one of your siblings.  

  

pretty proud of himself for climbing on the lego table to see outside and then being able to stand by himself. 

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Firsts and important dates:

haircut - June 5th
first steps - June 11th
first boat ride - June 22nd