Ian's Corduroy Birthday Party

I've already begun preparing Ian's first birthday party. I know it isn't until the end of March but there's a lot to do! Ian's nickname has always been "Ian Bear" so I knew I wanted a bear theme. Corduroy was the PERFECT bear to choose. I went to Pinterest and found..nothing. How does that happen? Pinterest is supposed to have everything! So I'm on my own here.. I decided I better blog this so when someone else searches they don't come up entirely empty. Here goes...

Step 1) Invitations.

 Step 2) Cake. We pretty much let the designer go nuts with her ideas. I think it turned out PERFECT!

Step 3) Decor. We ended up having most of the decor as food so I will explain that below. We had the corduroy book and I made a number 1 with buttons on it, as well as bear cups. We ran a string through balloons all the way around. Pics coming soon to explain.

I bought this punch container at Walmart for $15. The bear and buttons were in the bottom and the top had a separate portion for the juice. More pics coming of this! 

Bear cups (elmers glue, construction paper and sharpie) , 1 (super glue,spray paint, buttons), and bear hugs from Ian goody bags. 

Step 4) Food. The cake, of course, was the major hit but we had other things too. We had gummy bears in tin pails and the goody bags said "Bear hugs from Ian!" with teddy grahams inside. The punch dispenser was a hit,too! I found it for $15 at walmart. You can put decor in the bottom and punch up top. I used Cherry white grape juice to go with the color scheme. I'll post more pics once I get them uploaded.
Stay Tuned!

New Years 2013

2012 was a good one...

I feel like we've came a long way this year. This time last year I was still living in a tiny 2 bedroom, 1 bath rental house. We were only a family of 3, but I had a ginormous pregnant belly. In February we moved to Dyersburg in our own home. It's a very spacious 2 bedroom (plus a nursery), 2 bathrooms, large dining room, an extra sitting room, a 2 car carport, and a large shop out back.
On March 29 we welcomed Ian Joel into the world. He was a whopping 9lbs 12oz 21" with a head full of curly brown hair. Once I looked in his eyes, I knew our family was complete.
The rest of the year has been a blur! I turned 21, Christian turned 3, Joel turned 22. Fast forward and were were celebrating Halloween. Ian was a football, Christian was a football player. The holidays were also a blur. Santa was very good to the boys bringing them absolutely everything a little boy could ask for.
Bam! Now here we are. New Years. And I'm already thinking about the upcoming year. In just 3 months we'll be arranging Ian's birthday and then the blur will begin again.

So what's new for 2013

Ok, I'm not one for New Years Resolutions but there are some things I'd like to do differently this year. Joel and I recently realized over half of our day we have our noses stuck to one screen or another. We want to try to spend more time together and less time with TV, Xbox 360, and social networking. Sure we want to lose weight, too, but I'm not betting any money on it!
Probably the biggest change we'll see in 2013 will be with our Christian. He'll be able to play sports this year and will start school in August. It is the most amazing experience in the world to watch my children grow. Every day, Christian looks less like a baby and more like a little boy! Ian's not far behind him, either. It's only a matter of time and he'll be walking. He's already pulling up well. 

Where has time gone?!

It's way too obvious that time has absolutely left me, this year we'll try to savor every single second we have left of our babies being little. Don't rush your children. They grow too quickly as it is. 

Update on the boys Dec 31 2012

Christian Daniel!

I'm sure you remember my blog post about Christian's therapies a few months ago. Since then, he did meet with the neurologist and they came to the conclusion he has sensual tremors in his hands, and loose or weak muscles in his wrists and hands, feet and ankles, and mouth. They said through proper occupational therapy, he should be just fine. So far therapy is going great. He seems to really enjoy going and I can see his hands becoming more steady each day.

Ian Joel!

Ian has really came a long way in the past couple months. He now eats whole foods like a champ but still nurses several times a day, crawls and pulls up well, has eight teeth, and can say five words! The words he can say are: Mama, Dada, Bubba, Baba, and Bye Bye. I can't wrap my mind around how quickly he's growing. I remember when Christian was Ian's age he was standing well. To think that it's only a matter of time and he'll be walking is crazy! They literally grow right before your eyes.

Christian's Crafts!

What has Christian been up to lately..?Crafting!

Christian has definitely found his new passion. Crafting. It started out with just fine motor and sensory type "games" and then we'd end with a craft. Now he begs to do some sort of art every night. It would be easier just to show you. Enjoy!

Practicing using droppers and syringes (first 2 pics) Wipes box game. He has to use his fingers to pull items out because a clutched fist won't fit back through the hole.(second two pics)

Using fine motor skills putting pipe cleaners in a collander and more silly art with pipe cleaners

Tracing the letter "C" with stars. Showing off his art (planets and C) and the home made magnet (baby food lid painted with pic inside)

What has Ian been up to lately?

Ian Joel as of October 21, 2012

Ian is coming up on 7 months old. I don't even like saying that! SEVEN MONTHS?! That's like more than half way to a year! So what's new with the growing boy..?

He has teeth! 

Four teeth to be exact. He has 1 on top and 3 on bottom. He's been a fussy teether but teething tablets have helped a TON. I'm sure you're all wondering, "Are you going to stop breastfeeding now?" and the simple answer is no. Teeth actually do not make any difference in breastfeeding. Sure they can bite but all babies bite. You teach them not to. Whether it's biting your shoulder when you're burping them or biting at the breast, you teach them not to. If baby's latch is correct (his is), you can't really feel the teeth at all when they're nursing because the tongue covers the bottom teeth. 

He can talk!

Most of my family has already heard this first hand. He can say "Dada" perfectly. He knows who Dada is,too. He always looks right at Joel and starts babbling, "Daaa Daaa, Dada!" Joel is very proud, but he still said "Mama" first! We will be really excited when he starts acknowledging his favorite member of our family, big brother Christian. We're working on a nickname for him since Christian is such a mouth full. 

He's a scooter!

He isn't crawling just yet but he can definitely get to where he needs to be. He scoots on his belly or slides on his booty. Our house is having to be baby proofed. It isn't easy since the majority of choking hazards are Christian's toys. He gets up on his knees and rocks all the time. I'm sure he'll be crawling full speed very soon. We are in no hurry.

He's an eater!

Ok, so this isn't exactly new news but it's still his favorite thing to do. We are practicing baby led weaning, which is where you skip baby foods and just offer pieces of what you eat. You can read more about it by clicking the link. He's a professional eater at this point. He eats meats well, eats all fruits and veggies, and even breads! There isn't much he turns his nose up to. He does not like baby food at all. We thought we'd use it as a filler between breastfeeding and actual meals but he doesn't like it and wants no part of it, not that I blame him! That stuff stinks.

Our little man is growing very,very quickly. On one hand, I'm loving watching his new tricks,but on the other hand I miss him being a fragile little infant. Hug your children tight, they grow entirely too quick. 

Christian's therapy sessions

Update on Christian's Therapy

Christian has a "feeding disorder". You can read about the differences between a feeding disorder and picky eating here. He goes to therapy once a week at Sports Plus Rehab center here in Dyersburg. It is important to understand that his feeding disorder is directly connected to his sensory issues. The reason he isn't accepting of foods is because of the different textures. What we are doing in therapy is teaching him to accept different textures using all of his senses. We first have him just accept seeing the food. After that, he can try touching the food. Eventually he will learn to smell the food and lick the food which eventually leads to eating the food. When he started he would only eat tortilla chips, granola bars, and cereal. Now he eats all of that plus fries, grapes, apples, yogurt, and raisins. He has only been in therapy for 4 months. I think he is making GREAT progress!

So, what's new?

Christian has jittery hands. When he tries to write, color, button, zip, tie, or anything else that requires precision, his hands shake. They now think that he poor hand-eye-coordination as well as poor hand control.  He should be able to draw simple shapes by now, but he can not. They have written an order for him to start  occupational therapy and also have sent a request for him to be evaluated by a neurologist at Lebonheur Children's Medical Center to rule out any neurological issues. While he is there he will also be evaluated by the physical therapist there. We will keep everyone updated with whatever happens and how he progresses.

Guess who's growing?

My boys are growing!

I recently realized how behind I am in blogging! Oops.. I promise I have a good excuse. You see, between school, growing boys, Joel getting a new job and also being in school, daily life, household responsibilities, and of course networking it just honestly slipped my mind! 
Anyway, the reason you're here is not to here me ramble so now I must play catch up. Enjoy! 

Christian being a little boy!

Christian pees on everything! I swear it!