Jack is 21 Months!!

my sweet Jack, you are 21 months old. good grief. you are such a busy little boy & no longer my little baby. but, you are LOADS of fun. i mean it, easily the most fun kid i've ever been around. you have this cute ability to make everyone around you smile & have a good time. you are such a joy, and a ham. every day with you is better than the last.

you are weighing in at 25 lbs. you wear a size 18-24 months in clothes. you're in a size 5 shoe & a size 5 diaper. you are 33 inches tall. you are growing up so quickly. we can also tell that you just learning so much. its amazing what you pick up from just watching us. you can now open & close every door, cabinet & drawer in our home. probably not the best thing. we have to keep the front door locked at all times b/c you can just wander outside. you have learned how to knock on doors & say "hello?". its adorable. you can say the following words: truck, dog, duck, TJ, Jenna, sissy, momma, dada, uh oh, hey, no & night night. but most of the time you love to just begin every word with the syllable: da. its hilarious. you also really love animals. you play with your see & say toy every single day. you love to point out the animals & try to imitate their sounds. your favorites are: dog, duck, rooster & horse. you love to point out every single truck that we pass on the road. you get so excited as you scream: "tuck" (your word for truck!) it definitely keeps you entertained when we have to be in the car. you can also buckle your car seat but thank goodness you haven't figured out how to unbuckle it yet! you still love to "help" me around the house. you love to bring me things so that i will say "thank you". you love helping me unload & reload the dishwasher & folding clothes. you have even started trying to bathe Jovie during bath time. you love to pour the water on her head to rinse away the shampoo. its so sweet. you can bring me a diaper when its time to change you & you say "yuck" as we throw it away. you can also take any item & throw it in the trash can.

one of my favorite new things you do is sing. you just make up your own little songs & sing all day long. you sing in the car, as you play, during a diaper change, in the tub & in the tub. it is the sweetest sound i've ever heard. you've also gotten really interested in your bible. you love to bring it to me or dada so that we will read you a story. you point to Jesus in each picture & sometimes you even kiss the page. i'm not sure how much you really understand but it blesses my heart so much. i know Jesus is so happy to know that you love to read His word. we are praying that you come to know him at an early age & serve Him faithfully all of your life. i know He has great plans for you.

you love to point out cars when we take walks. its imperative that you touch every one of them! you also love to play with toy trucks, cars & balls. one of your favorite games is for us to put you on our bed & we wrestle with you or toss you around. you are such a boy. but you are such a sweet boy. at night time, you love to get your cup & your lovie & snuggle with us on the couch or the recliner. i love that time with you. speaking of night time, you are an amazing sleeper. you go to bed around 8:30-9 & you sleep until about 9-9:30 the next morning. you take one two hour nap every day. i usually lay you down between 1-3. i'm so thankful that you are such a good sleeper. it makes my life so much easier!

you are still a pretty good eater. you definitely have your finicky days but for the most part, you are willing to try anything. your new favorite snack is pickles. i think you would eat 4 or 5 at once if i let you! you have learned how to drink from a straw & you are so proud of yourself!

you are such a great big brother. Jovie absolutely adores you. you love to hug, kiss & squeeze her. sometimes, you are too rough but you are doing a great job of learning how to handle her. you have gotten her to belly laugh several times & its so much fun! we can't wait to watch you two together over the coming years.

my Jackabee. you are without a doubt the most wonderful little boy, ever. i can't remember life before you & i wouldn't go back to it for anything in this world. you are an absolute joy. every day, you make us laugh. we are learning how to discipline you just as you are trying to learn to obey. its a process but we are committed to being consistent with you. we can see that you want to please us & we pray you always have a tender & sensitive little heart. you are just the sweetest child & we are so proud of you.

Happy 21 months sweetheart. you are such a treasure. i love you to the moon & back.

Jovie @ 6 Months!

sweet little girl. holy cow, you are 6 months old. where has this 1/2 a year gone too?! i can vividly remember bringing you home from the hospital & now, here you are practically crawling all over our house! sheesh, please slow down a little bit for your mother!

you are the best baby. this past month with you has been so easy. we are finally seeing you come out of that gosh awful reflux. you still spit up a lot but it doesn't seem to bother you anymore. and we are so very thankful for that. you have the sweetest little disposition. everyone always comments about how well behaved you are & how you are such a good baby. you can entertain yourself pretty easily but your favorite thing to do is watch Jack run like crazy all over our house. he keeps you laughing & we love it!

the week you turned 6 months old, you began weaning yourself from nursing. it was a bittersweet time for me. i loved nursing you & the bond that it created between us. and i was a little sad to see that time ending b/c i knew it meant you are growing up. however, i knew it was the right time for you. i'm comfortable with you being on formula & baby food. you are a great eater. you take about 6 bottles per day & you eat baby food twice per day. i usually give you 1 fruit & 1 veggie each day. so far you have tried: squash, apples, sweet potatoes, bananas, pears & carrots. and you have loved each of them. you have also tried a couple pieces of pizza crust, a graham cracker & even a french fry or two. and you haven't turned a single one of them down. i think its safe to say you are a healthy little eater!

this month your eyes have gotten darker & your hair has gotten lighter. your little face & legs are really filling out & we can are beginning to be able to tell who you are going to look like. your daddy thinks you favor Jack so much. and i think you definitely resemble him when he was your age. but, i think you look the most like your daddy. and i love that.

here are you 6 month stats:

weight: 14 lbs

height: 24 inches

head: 43-44 cm

you are now in the 25th percentile in weight & height. and you're in the 50th percentile in the size of your head. growing girl! you were a size 6 months in clothes but you can still fit into a few things that are size 3 months. you wear a size 2 diaper.

you love your jumperoo. its so fun to watch you bounce & bounce each day. you can sit up straight, with a little assistance. you almost have it down by yourself. you can push yourself up to sitting from laying on your tummy. you can also get up on all fours like you are going to crawl. you scoot all over our house & you crawl, in small increments. we are amazed by your determination & the funny positions you get yourself into.

you are definitely a feisty little girl! you are happy about 98% of the day. but when you get upset, you go from being calm to furious in about 15 seconds. its actually really funny! you are very much a mommy's girl. if i'm in the room, you're watching me. if i leave the room, you want me. and if daddy is holding you, you reach for me. funny girl. it can be exhausting, but i love it! however, you do love your daddy. you get so excited when he walks in a room & if anyone else, but me (most of the time) is holding you, then you reach for him. you do very well if i ever leave you at home with your daddy. i love the relationship you have with him. so sweet. you also love your brother so much. you love to pull his hair & slobber all over his face. you try to follow him around the house & you give him your biggest belly laughs!! we love to watch the 2 of you play together & we can't wait to see you chase each other all over our house.

we have endured so much change in the last month & we are so glad that you are un-phased by it! we have moved to Cordova, into a very nice 3 bedroom apartment. we plan on being here through the first of the year & then we'll be looking for a house in Olive Branch. we are also planting a church in Olive Branch called Revision Church. it launches, to the public, in January. so, we are super busy with core group meetings & trying to get word out about the church. we are in an exciting time of life & we are so thankful to have you & Jack.

Jovie, you are a blessing. you make me want another little girl! everyday with you is so much fun. you are the perfect fit for our family & we are just so proud to call you ours. we are praying for the Lord to save you at an early age & that you will follow Him all the days of your life. we love you so much & we are so thankful for you.

Happy 6 months my love. you are my favorite girl. ever.

My Boys are 18

these are my amazing siblings. seriously, i couldn't have asked for 5 more wonderful people to have grown up with me. we had an absolute ball. they honestly make me want to have several kids just so my children can have the fun that we've had as a big family. i am so thankful for my 2 sisters & 3 brothers. i wouldn't trade them for anything. we are all close & we get along so well. such a blessing.

on June 28th, my sweet baby brothers turned 18! what in the world?! i can't believe they are so grown up. and b/c i am 9 years older than them, i'm feeling really old! but i love that each year we grow closer. we have so much fun together. one of my favorite things to do is for all of us to get together as a family and just hang out. we usually eat a ton, play games, watch movies & chat.

Kenny, Ricky & Tommy are the most amazing teenagers i know. they are so adorable. they love the Lord & have a growing relationship with Him. they are leaders in their youth group, good students, they work hard & help out voluntarily with anything they can. they are hilarious, i love each of their personalities. they are amazing with my kids. i'm so proud of the way they have loved on Jack & Jovie. they aren't perfect boys but they are learning & growing into be great men of God. i'm so impressed by them & so excited to see how the Lord will use them in the days to come.

Happy Birthday Boys. i'm praying that Jack is just like you at your age. i love you so much!!!

Short Break

i love blogging. its such a release for me, a way to express my feeling about my kids, my sweet hubby, life as a stay at home mom & our day to day experiences. but sometimes i feel like i spend too much time reading blogs & thinking about what to put on my blog. i know i have like 2 readers, so i'm ok with posting at my convenience.

we are spending this week in Ft Myers, FL. Ben's older brother, Tripp, is getting married tomorrow night. we are so thrilled for him. and of course, who doesn't love having to spend a week in Florida?! i'll make that sacrifice any day! while we are here, i want to enjoy the time with my family. i plan on taking Jack for long walks outside, taking my kids to the pool, going to the hot tub with Ben each night, playing card games & eating some yummy food. i don't want to think about blogging. i will definitely blog about our trip when we get home. i want to document it for my sake.

we just have so much going on this summer. so busy. so busy. but i want to enjoy my husband & my children. they are way better than blogging. i might sneak a few pics on facebook (for my family) and i might read a couple blogs now & then. but i won't be posting anything for about 2 weeks. i just want to spend every free moment with my family. life goes too fast! and summer will be over before we know it!

happy 4th of July, hope you get to spend it with the ones you love!