This seems to be...

a slow time of year for posting, at least for us anyway. There just isn't a lot going on right now. Nate actually has a fever. This is his second fever in a couple of weeks...and it's not just a low-grade fever. Tis the season for sickness, but it's really making me want stay at home...but I'm not good at staying at home. I like getting out of the house, so I guess that's not really practical for us.

Anyway, this post is supposed to be about the great bargain I got a couple of months ago. We love to go camping and have been looking for a good quality, used bike trailer. I have looked at kids market and other consignment sales and haven't had any luck. I helped with our church yard sale a while back and found this one for $20.00! I thought that price was too good to be true because it was clean and in great shape and new would cost at least $100.00. I quickly discovered that it was broken and that's why it was so cheap. We decided to get it anyway and thankfully the part (shipping included) only cost $12.00. Darren fixed it today and he and Nate went for a short ride. I wasn't sure what Nate would think, but he really liked it. We are really looking forward to warmer weather and hopefully lots of fun camping trips.

18 Months

Nate was 18 months old on January 10th. At his checkup he weighed 23 pounds 5 ounces and was 33 inches. This morning on the way to church I was thinking about what I want to remember about him at this age. I was also thinking about how much I love him and how there aren't even words to truly express how I feel about him and how much he has blessed our lives these last 18 months. I know all of you moms out there can relate. :)

• He is loving books right now. We always read one before nap and bedtime, but lately it seems like he's wanting to read almost all the time.
• He loves looking at pictures of himself and family members.
• He can do the following animal sounds...horse (my favorite), dog, duck, monkey, cat, cow, tiger, and chicken.
• He is saying so many words that I've lost count.
• He still eats pretty well for the most part and still loves his green veggies, but he has a few new favorites... biscuits with jelly, pancakes, blueberries, and fries (we don't have these too often, but when we do it's more, more, more)
• He loves running through the house naked after his bath. Darren and I get a really big kick out of it also. We probably won't think it's so funny when he tee tees on something or us. I should rephrase this. I won't think it's so funny. Darren would probably think it was hilarious if he tee teed on something or me.
• He loves to wrestle with Harry, his big stuffed hippo that his Uncle Dale gave him for Christmas.
• He loves to build things with his mega blocks and playing with tractors.
• He loves puzzles and is surprisingly good at them.
• He loves for Darren to tuck him in like a little burrito before bed. Every night before bed we read a book and say a prayer. Then Darren tucks the covers around him and we call him our little burrito.
• He rubs his bellybutton when he's tired or sleepy.
• We have a front load washer and dryer and he loves to help load the washer and dryer. Even though it takes about 10 minutes to put a load of clothes in the washer, he loves helping mommy.
• He loves being outside. Today it was finally warm enough to play outside for a little while. I was inside and Nate and Darren were outside. I saw Darren go by the window with sticks and then Nate go by with sticks. He loves helping and wants to do whatever you are doing.
• He loves for me to sing to him and already has favorite songs. He shakes his head no until I sing the song he wants... or maybe he's really saying no more bad singing, but then when I keep going he just gives up and decides to wait it out.

Studio B

We're getting some culture in our neck of the woods. An art studio opened in town several months ago. It's similar to sips n strokes. A friend invited me to go tonight. I knew it would be fun, but I was a little hesitant since I have zero artistic ability. She assured me that it would be easy and fun and she was right. We had a great time and I really like my painting.

Christmas Day

We had such a great day! We didn't have any plans until the afternoon so we had the entire morning to play with Nate and his new toys. Darren and I even got in a short nap while Nate was napping. We spent the afternoon and evening with Darren's family. We had so much fun and Nate had a great time playing with all of his cousins.

Check out the drawing of all the grandkids we gave Darren's mom and step-dad for Christmas.



Here are a few pics from the day...

Christmas Eve

We always celebrate Christmas with my family on Christmas Eve. My sister's birthday is on the 23rd, so it's a Christmas/birthday celebration. We always have the same dinner menu- steak, shrimp, and crab legs (Jill's favorites). After dinner my niece, Ashlyn reads the Christmas story from Luke 2 before we exchange gifts. We always have a great time and get some pretty comical video.

Happy Birthday Sis!

Christmas Party

I joined a women's bible study a few months ago and tonight was our Christmas party. We decided to have a family party. It was great to have everyone together. Nate had a great time playing with the other children.