Just a Few Days Early...

Andy got his first birthday gift a few days early. I am usually very anti this practice, but, seeing as it will help get the house clean for his party, I went with it!!

This trunk was in the closet at my Memere and Peperes. They kept linens in it, and I think it is awesome! It is wood frame with tin outside, and the yellow part has a cool scroll pattern on it. But, it needed a little....ok, a lot of TLC. TLC I can do! We ripped out the old flower contact paper, patched a few holes, put on a child safety hing, added wheels, new paper, and some new paint...

And what did we get, but a treasure chest fit for the sweetest boy in all the land!

Can't you tell he likes it??

Much Better!

Julie has not been sleeping well. Every night, she would get out of her toddler bed and sleep on the floor. We took this as a sign that perhaps her bed was a little too small. We didn't worry about it too much, but then, one night, we walked in on her attempting to drag the mattress off the bed. OK, we get it. Big girl bed, here we come.

She was very excited she got to help Daddy take apart her old bed. We love that her crib turned into a toddler bed, then into a full bed After getting the special pieces to make her crib a big bed, going to Target and letting her pick out her own bedding and rearranging her room, this is what we have.

She is so happy! We have been reading stories on her bed, she and Andy have been jumping on it, we all snuggle as a family before bed. And the most amazing, and unexpected thing, her behavior has been so much better! She still has a mind of her own, no question, but you can tell that she is sleeping so well that she feels better and is much more agreeable.

Andy loves the bed too, they both use a stool that Pop-pop made to get up on it. Excuse the dirty room, we were still moving stuff around.

I was very surprised at how incredibly sturdy this bed is! A huge added bonus is that we have a guest room in the house again! Julie can easily camp out in our room if anyone wants to come visit!! Thank you so much Grandma and Pop-pop for the final pieces of her big girl bed, Memere for helping with the bedding and Christina and Brian for bringing down the pieces this weekend so we didn't have to pay for shipping! She LOVES her bed and we are all much happier when she is sleeping so well!

To Hold You Over

I have a whole bunch of fun stuff to tell about, but none of it is done yet, so here are a few cute shots to hold you ever!

A Treat...

before dinner. Don't judge.

This was Andy's first real taste of chocolate....or ice cream. Needless to say, he liked it!

Totally unrelated, but has to be shared: Julie and I were playing a counting game over dinner, she was counting and I was making faces for each number. She was laughing really hard then suddenly very seriously said "I have to go potty!!" I ended up shooting iced tea out my nose it was so funny. Julie didn't really see the humor as she ran to the bathroom.

Climber

Andy has proved himself to be a climber, going up flights of stairs, trying to climb the drawers in the kitchen, climbing up onto the footstool. But tonight, he went above and beyond! He went straight up the 5 foot slide on the play structure in the backyard. He did it without any help or steadying. I think I only put my hand up to catch him once.

He was even able to climb into the house at the top...none of us could believe what we were seeing. Especially Julie, who threw off her shoes and followed him, as not to be outdone by her little brother. They were both proud when the got to the top.

Proof

There is no denying that both of our children have their Daddy's strong genetics, but here is just a little proof that there is a little bit of me in my girl!I was about Julie's age in this picture! When I showed it to John this evening, he thought it was Julie! Apparently she got more than my sassy-ness and attitude!

Here is another one. I was a little younger in this one I think, but I can still see a resemblance.
No wonder her Memere and Aunt Arlene call her Rachel every now and again!

11 Months

Another month, gone so fast! Andy is such a funny boy. He climbs all over everything! I can not believe what a climber he is. He can go all the way up a flight of stairs without any help. He is trying so hard to get out of his crib. It won't be long before he is in a big boy bed!

He is still thinking about walking, but not doing it yet. When he does, he will be off like a bolt!

He loves to eat...anything. He is not picky.

About a week ago, he was standing at the gate while I was making dinner and he said "Uh, Uh, Momma Uh!" Of course, I was the only one home, but I swear he said it!!

I love my big man and I can not wait to see what he does next!!