8 months

It's time for a little update! The past month has been filled with the hope of nice weather but has been a bit cold and rainy. I love the rain though because it makes everything look so fresh and green. We've had a few nice days so we took advantage of that by getting outside in the stroller. We discovered a new park nearby called Bryant Lake Park. We are SUPER excited to take Caleb there this summer so we can take advantage of the beach, playground, paddleboats, etc. It's the perfect spot for a day outing.

Caleb has been healthy as a horse, praise the Lord! Speaking of that, are horses really healthy or something or where did that saying come from? I find myself questioning a lot of sayings that don't seem to make sense. :) Anyway, it's been another great month of watching him grow and develop. He's such a stud!

8 month Milestones/Likes

- Visiting with grandpa and grandma on both sides is one of his favorite things to do!

- Caleb's first two teeth poked through and they are so adorable!

- He loves playing with his shape toy and he can even put the different shapes into the correct spots (circle, square and triangle). Most of the time it's by chance, but that's ok.

- He swung on a swing for the first time and loved it!

- He's starting to rock forward as if he's going to crawl but as soon as he gets forward too far he takes the easy way out and just lays on his tummy. It will come and until then I will relax and enjoy him being stationary.

- He fell asleep on his tummy for the first time. This was odd because he's not a huge fan of being on his tummy but we went in one night to kiss him while he was sleeping he was on his tummy.

 

 

 

Geometry

My favorite class in high school was geometry...any math class really but especially geometry.  I think someone else might like geometry too!!  Caleb you would make Mrs. Johnson so proud!

 

 

Adoption

Today is an extremely special day...it's my handsome husband's BIRTHday!  Life is SO precious and I thank God all the time that He picked Dave to be the man I grow old with.  We seriously laugh ALL the time together and are like little kids who never want to grow up.  Babe, I know you're 31 but you definitely don't look like it and you certainly don't act like it and I absolutely love that about you!  Thank you for being a kid at heart, thank you for being the best husband in the world and thank you for being the best dad in the world!  My love continues to grow for you every day.  You're my hero.

So you're probably wondering why the post is titled adoption.  Let me please preface this post by saying that I am not judging or condemning anyone for having an abortion.  That is not my purpose so please do not take it that way because the bible says in Matthew 7:1 "Judge not, that you be not judged" and continues to say in Matthew 7:3 "And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?"  So again, let me stress, there is no judgement here. I just want to share how precious of a gift adoption is.  I am forever grateful that Dave's birth mom chose adoption because there are many families out there praying for the opportunity to adopt and bring a child into their loving arms.  I don't know what her circumstances were but I am so thankful that God warmed her heart so that she didn't choose abortion.  God placed Dave into the most loving arms on June 21st, 1982 when he was just over a month old.  He literally has the most amazing parents who have loved him and raised him into such a great man!  I hope that if anyone is ever faced with the decision of adoption or abortion that they choose adoption because these two boys would not exist if the choice would've been abortion and I cannot imagine my life without these two precious boys!  I love you both so much...your life is such a great gift!  Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you..."

Goslings

The day started out with pouring rain so we decided it was a "stay in our pajamas, hunker on down and watch movies" kind of day!  Then it turned out to be a gorgeous evening so we went for a little stroll.  It literally was amazing walking weather with the most perfect breeze you could ask for.  As we were walking, taking in deep breaths of the fresh air, listening to birds chatter, we stumbled upon a squirrel digging a hole for his large piece of bread.  It was cute!  I love the outdoors and even though we live inside the 494/694 loop we actually get to see a decent amount of wildlife.  We've seen birds, squirrels, racoons, deer and even turkey.  It's a whole clan of turkey although they went missing shortly before Thanksgiving.  Anyway, as we were winding down our stroll we noticed some GOSLINGS over by the pond!!!  I adore goslings, they are so stinkin cute!  I'm the person that pulls over to look at them and could seriously watch them for an hour.  Dave thinks I'm kidding but I literally want 2 ducks someday.  Until then, goslings and geese will have to do.

Little Mr. Independent

"Thank you mom for taking good care of me and feeding me....but I love feeding myself better, it's SO much more fun and WAY more messy!"

I seriously think about 5% of the food gets in his mouth when he feeds himself.  The rest ends up on his face, the bib, the high chair, his arms, his legs, his hair, the floor, the wall, etc. :)

Standing

Caleb is my name and standing is my game!  Pretty sure Caleb is going to be a mover.  He's not crawling yet but he loves jumping and he loves to be standing...anything but laying down.  Unless he's extremely tired, then he will snuggle and lay in momma's arms. <3  He can even pull himself up into the standing position using the arm of the couch....with supervision of course.

Little Mr. Caleb showing off...

Toys

All these awesome toys and I love the Tupperware, measuring cups and measuring spoons the best!

Wisconsin

I know Dave gives me grief for being from Wisconsin but deep down I know he has a special place in his heart for WI. ;)  Maybe not but I do know that he LOVES going to my parents house in Grantsburg.  It's nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of the metro and just head to a small quiet town to relax for a weekend.  Wisconsin holds so many great memories from growing up, too many to name all of them but here goes a few.  Wisconsin means family and home.  Wisconsin means farms and yes I did milk a cow once growing up...thankfully it did not kick me.  Caleb has yet to play on a real farm however while we were in Grantsburg visiting this past weekend he did get to play with a farm.  This will have to do for now.

Wisconsin also means Green Bay Packers!!  Yes Caleb is sitting on a Packers blanket...killing two birds with one stone.

Wisconsin as of 7 1/2 months ago means grandpa and grandma!  Grandma bought this swing for Caleb and grandpa put it up for him.  Thanks grandpa and grandma!!

 

 

I love this picture for many reasons.  Biggest reason is because there is the cutest boy in the world in it but it also screams home!  Farm fields off in the distance, my parents HUGE garden and yes people a clothes line!  Nothing better than climbing into bed with fresh sheets off of the line.  BEST SMELL EVER...unless it's manure season, then  you want to steer clear from hanging things on the line!  This picture absolutely warms my heart.

 

Wisconsin means laughing and we definitely do plenty of that as you can see.  Caleb is like a mini grandpa Harley....always keeps us laughing!

 

 

 

Wisconsin means CHEESE!!!!!!!!!  I love that we have a cheese factory in our small little town and it really is AMAZING cheese!  I eat it plain by the slice...YUM!!  Is that weird?!?  Must be the sconnie in me! 

 

Wisconsin I just want you to know that if I had a girl I'd name her Little Miss Sconnie but I don't think that would fly with Dave. ;)  Thanks Wisconsin...you've been good to us and we're excited about having many more memories in your great state!





Happy Mother's Day!

This clearly is a special day in so many ways.  First off I want to thank my mom because she literally is the most amazing mom ever!  We've shared a lot of smiles, laughter, happy tears, sad tears and even mad tears back when I was a teenager and I didn't know better but she did.  I love her so much and anyone who knows her would agree that it's a blessing to have her in your life.  Giving is one of her best qualities and I didn't think this was possible but she's become an even bigger giver now that she's a grandma!  She's AMAZING with Caleb and I absolutely adore watching them two together.  I love you mom!

I also want to say thank you to my mother-in-law Lea Ann.  You always hear stories about how people don't like their in-laws....well I have been blessed because I have never once thought that!  She is such a fabulous lady!  I honestly don't think I have ever seen her mad...she's ALWAYS smiling and I love that about her!!  Thanks La for being the best mother-in-law and being tied with my mom for the best grandma in the world!!

 

One year ago today we officially found out we were having a boy!!  We had the technician write down what we were having on a piece of paper and she put it in an envelope for us to open on Mother's Day.  We waited until about 12:10am on Mother's Day to open it.  It was such a fun little surprise and it's amazing how back then I had no idea what he looked like or what his personality was but he's here today and we're having oh so much fun!  I LOVE being a mother, it's the best "job" in the whole world and God could not have blessed us with a better son.  I love you buddy!

Lastly, my heart is extra warm and sensitive to those who have lost a mother or to any mom who has lost a child.  I pray God's peace, comfort and strength over you.  Happy Mother's Day to every mom out there...you truly are a gift from God!

Wedding

Caleb attended his first wedding since being born.  I say since being born because he was a teeny little guy at Donny and Shaleen's wedding in Cancun back in February of 2012.  I remember I had just found out I was pregnant right before we left for Cancun.  It worked out quite well because we surprised our parents with the news that we were pregnant by showing them a slide show of Cancun and at the end slipping in a slide stating we were pregnant!  It was fun to see the tears and laughter from both sides of the family.  Pretty sure my mom cried for days because she had been waiting soooo long to be a grandma.  I think she would agree that the wait was worth it.

Anyway, back to the wedding from this past weekend.  Dave laughs at me for all the tangents I go off on when telling a story.  Sometimes so many tangents that I forget what my original story was even about.  So we actually skipped the wedding part because Caleb is quite the talker/singer and I didn't want him interrupting Leo and Katrina's precious vows.  Dave was an usher and looked very handsome in his suit.  Caleb wore his Easter outfit that I made him so I was ecstatic that he was able to wear it at least twice!  We enjoyed delicious food, mingled with great company and danced A LOT!  Caleb was out for the count before the dance even started so we were unable to take him out on the dance floor.

Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lala left just before the dance started and they took the handsome little man with them for a sleepover.  Thanks Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lala!  Dave and I stayed at the Lowell Inn in Stillwater and had such a great time together!  We took advantage of sleeping in the next morning...I think we checked out at the last minute possible.  We ran into Paul and his girlfriend Alta that morning at the hotel so we grabbed breakfast with them before they headed home.  It was a gorgeous day so we strolled down to the water, soaked up the vitamin d that the sun had to offer and snapped a few pictures.  The sun felt glorious on our skin...it was so warm and cozy as if we hadn't felt the sun in years!  We then walked up and down main street and stepped into a few shops.  I love going into unique shops in smaller towns.  You can always find some fun things to buy with an added bonus of supporting a small business owner.  Overall it was a great wedding/weekend and it's always so much fun getting around Dave's Hill Murray buddies.  Thanks everyone for a great time!