Nash counts

What a crazy weekend this was! We laid some new sod in the front yard, went camping and Nash counted to15 all on his own. 

He is so smart and regularly surprised us with his genius. While we were camping, he and I went on a little scavenger hunt. He was collecting rocks and counted all the way to 15 with his rocks. I couldn't believe my ears as I know I haven't been working with him that much on his numbers! He's just brilliant and we are so proud. 

Nash's First Movie

Monster's University came out this weekend and we decided that would be a perfect film for Nash's first movie in the REAL theater.

Uncle Isaiah was in town, Jess had a day pass from the hospital and it was Sunday so Mimi, and Uncle Nic came with us as well.

Some of you may know, I have adopted a new philosophy to life: No Expectations.  The more I realized that I was putting expectations on everything in my life, the more frustrated and sad I became that nothing and no one was able to live up to my ideas of how it should go in my mind.  Therefore, the new philosophy was born! 

As it relates to this story; I had no expectations of how Nash would react to something that Isaac and I enjoy so much: Movies! I figured, there is a chance that he will like it for ten minutes and then want to wander outside the theater or roam around and see how everyone else was enjoying the movie.  As luck would have it, he absolutely loved the entire experience!  As soon as the film started playing he was completely transfixed on the massive screen.  Of course, we had movie popcorn and he delightfully ate a piece of popcorn every few moments throughout the entire movie. (He's his dad's son)  He would dig his little fist in the bucket and munch as he smiled and laughed at all the great scenes.  I hardly remember any of the movie myself because I was so wrapped up in how much he was enjoying his two year old self.  I dare say one of the best things about being a parent is watching your children experience the things that you loved or still love. 

All in all it was a great first experience and I can't wait to make it a regular family event.

Painting day

I love Thursdays and Tuesdays because I'm home with Nash. We had so much fun today! Santa had put some paints in Nash's stocking so we decided to try them out today. Boy did he create some masterpieces. He was naming all the colors and going full throttle with two paint brushes. After he had released all the creativity for the day, Nash picked up one of the papers and said "bibbit!" And I asked if it was a frog he painted and he replied "yep." Since it was the best painted frog ever, we displayed it on our wall. Nash was so proud and clapped as we hung it up. Love my little artist.

Nash and Santa 2012

We took Nash to visit Santa again this year and here are some of the results from the encounter.

Nash is 17 months

I know, I really must be better at blogging more frequently!
Our little man is growing up so fast. He has definitely started to have a mind of his own, he is talking like crazy, he wants to do everything himself and is even showing signs of an (GASP) attitude............he get's it from his Dad. ;)

I figured it was time that I post some of the delightful Nasherisms that he has been saying lately.  Sometimes, I wish I had a decoder to break some of the language barriers.  Here is a good list:

CooCoo = cookie, also cookie monster
Nana = Banana
Caca = Cracker
Mimi = Grammy (we have tried so hard, but Mimi is so cute so it's sticking)
Bob-o = Grampy (also have tried to get this to change but it's sticking)
Bapes = Grapes
Cheesh = Cheese
Owl = an owl puppet that is almost as fabulous as Hoot Hoot but not for night night
Ni Ni = Night Night
Go! = Bye Bye
Ouside = Outside

Actually, as I am writing this list, I am reminded of how well he is speaking. He has just a few euphemisms that are hilarious.  What can I say? He is a genius.

First Family Vacation 9/15/12

It took us a little over year, but we finally went on our first family vacation!

We decided it would be fun to 1. Visit the beach 2. Visit family 3. See our newest cousin, sweet Ella Jane.  To Thousand Oaks, CA we went for a few days of fun and relaxation.  

When we were looking at plane tickets, there was a great fare to fly into Long Beach, which is only about 40 miles from our cousin's home. Seems like a fairly good option, right? NO! It took two hours to drive to their home in crazy California traffic. Note to self: Never do this again! But it was a funny CA experience. (Thanks so much to Janelle for driving us the whole way to and from!)

Day 1: We played at a new Disc Golf course, at which Isaac did AWESOME, Nash loved to watch Dad throw the disc, and I enjoyed the sunshine and fresh air with my guys.

Day 2: Beach Day! We took the day and headed to Malibu and Zuma beach to enjoy the waves and sun. Nash was a little apprehensive about the gigantic sand box and very loud, cold bath tub, but as long as Dad was close by he enjoyed it.  After, a few hours he started running towards the water and wanting Isaac to dip him in as the waves rolled in. It was great introducing him to something that I have always loved: the ocean. 

Day 3: Church Picnic day. Mark and Janelle's church was hosting church in the park, with lots of food and fun after the service. They had a lot of great activities set up for the kids and Nash loved the water stuff and the bubble pool.  Also, I think just running around other kids made him very happy.

Day 4: Beach Day again! This time we headed to Santa Barbara for more beach time and to enjoy the quaint downtown. What a darling little place this is and if I made multi-millions, I would totally live there. We had lunch and spent the rest of the afternoon building sand castles and splashing in the surf.

Day 5: Another two hours back to Long Beach to head home.

We were so grateful to our cousins Mark and Janelle for putting us up and toting us around all the great places in CA.  It was a great time and good memories made.

Nash is now 15 months!

Ok, I know, I suck at blogging regularly. It's just that finding the delicate balance of being a fantastic mom, incredible wife and a good employee is down right exhausting and my blog has taken the trunk spot.

What a summer it has been and we aren't done yet! Nash is 15 months old now and is growing in leaps and bounds.

This summer he went on his first plane ride (to IA), went camping (LOVES camping), was in his Aunt MaryAlice's wedding as a ring bearer (looked adorable in a tux) and will be visiting the beach this week.  All in all, it's been a great summer.

He is still a little skinny guys, but he is tall and smart. Today, our pediatrician, Dr. Blackburn said that he is in the 18-24 month stage for development as he is saying two word phrases, feeds himself and is running and climbing over everything.

Some of the words he is saying these days are:
Mama, Dada, Nana (means Banana), Mammy (Grammy), Bob (Grampy and no idea why?), Bye bye, Hi!, Ya, No, mmmmmmmmm (for all the delicious food he eats at home), All done, Thank you, Shoes, Bath tub, Diaper, Hoo-Hoo (hoot hoot), Outside, Milk, Nash, Baby, Dog. He is adding new words each week.

He LOVES to be outside. Every day he wants to go play in the grass, sandbox and with his disc golf target. He loves the park and wagon rides. He loved camping and we have gone to the mountains a few times for dutch oven dinners and he cries when we leave. We have taken him to the splash pad where he just giggles and laughs, even though the water is -5 degrees.

We have been watching Sesame Street in the mornings and he can't get enough of the Bruno Mars song Don't Give Up that he performed on Sesame Street. He requests it every day by shaking his head and singing ooooohhhh eee ohhhhhh.  He also sings, lalalalalalala Nash's song (it's really Elmo's song but we changed the lyrics)

Reading is his favorite thing to do. He will bring you book after book after book! He just loves to sit in his reading corner and flip through books and be read to. I couldn't be more proud of this habit.

Parenthood really is the biggest blessing and just so much fun! We are enjoying every moment and look forward to each new phase.