15 Months

Ah, life with a 15 month old cutting crazy amounts of teeth in a very short period of time. Toothbrushes are the only thing that seem to ease the pain a little.

Jace is at such a fun age. The world is so interesting to him right now. Moving out of the apartment complex to a place with room to run around and explore has been really good for him. He's growin' up, ya'll! At 15 months, Jace...

-LOVES the new house and playing outside in the yard.
-Dances like nobody's watching. He shakes his head back and forth and stomps his feet to music he likes (or if he sees me and Colt having a dance-off, which happens more often than you'd think). When I turn the music off or change the song, he'll sign "more" (sometimes he makes the correct sign, but usually he's lazy and just claps his hands together).
-Has a library book called "First Words," and he will sit and stare all day at the "Things That Go" page. When we ask him to, he will point to the motorcycle, the airplane, and the car. Colt pretty much busted his buttons when I showed him that Jace can receptively identify the word "motorcycle." As far as Dad is concerned, that's all he needs to know.
-Says "dah!" and points whenever he sees a dog. He tries to chase them down, but they're too fast for him.
-Likes to take everything out of drawers, containers, baskets, and piggy banks and then put them away, then take them out again, and re-put them away. 
-Enjoys pushing his little walker alongside Colt when he mows the lawn.
-Turns his books right-side up when they're upside down.
-Knows how to go up and down the stairs all by himself. When he's on his own, he will slide down the stairs on his tummy, but he really likes to practice going up and down "like a big boy." His little legs just aren't quite long enough yet.
-Points with his fist. He doesn't extend his pointer finger, but when he hears a truck coming up the road, or an airplane in the sky, he extends his arm towards the sound and says "yeah?"
-Has cut 5(!!) new teeth in the last two-and-a-half weeks. Poor baby. 
-Suffers from some yard allergies, which is a bummer, since none of the allergy medications can be given before age 2. Mean.
-Laughs when he toots.
-Says "whoa!" when he drops or throws things that make a loud noise, or just randomly as he plays. Everything is just so epic these days.
-Will, when he really wants to be held, come up to me tearfully and say "mama baby, mama baby!" Melts my heart.
-Is  obsessed with bellybuttons (his own, as well as Colt's and mine). He lifts up his shirt to find it when we ask "Where is your bellybutton?" He also points to his nose when we ask him where his nose is, and can locate his toes as well, but finding his bellybutton is much more interesting.
-Can feed himself with a spoon, and gets mad when we try to save time by feeding him ourselves.

Oh little Jace-man, you are just the best boy. You make me laugh everyday, push my buttons like crazy, and are the first person I've ever wanted to eat all up. It's weird, but I can't help it. We love you to pieces!

Settling In

We moved in two weeks ago. We're all unpacked. The pictures are hung up, the garage is organized, and I finally found the set of car keys I lost the first week (Colt can rest easy now).

We love it out here. Jace can't get enough of the yard. The weather's been great, so we spend as much time outside as possible. And that's basically our life right now, in 100 characters or less.

That's a Great Question

I suspected you might ask that day, but since your mom, sister, and baby E were coming along on the picnic, I figured you would wait. Plus, I couldn't see the outline of a ring box in any of your pockets. ;) 

Can you believe it's been three years since this day? Now we've got a crazy toddler and we're moving into our first house.

Thanks for asking the best question.

I love you!

We're Moving

To a quiet little house in the country, with a big backyard and a garage! I'm going to be a country wife, and Jace is going to be a little cowboy. For real, though-there are fields of horses and cows just a few miles down the road.
 Our apartment has been great, but we're starting to feel a little cramped. We're really going to miss our ward, and living so close to so many amenities. One of the perks of city living is walking to the grocery store, and that I will definitely miss! Colt's commute will be significantly longer as well, which is not our favorite thing. But there are so many wonderful things to look forward to about our new adventure, like the fact that Jace has a blast in the yard every time we go over there. There is also not a single soul smoking directly outside our patio, and no homeless people sleeping in the stairwell. See? Country perks.

Everything is happening quickly, but it all fell into place and we are so excited. It was an answer to prayer, and I know God 's hand has been in everything. He is so mindful of our little family, and we are immeasurably grateful. My heart has felt full to bursting these last couple of weeks. We can't wait to be in our first house. 

This is a big deal! I feel like we should name it.

14 Months

Hello, little boy! Poor kid had a cold when I took these pictures, but he's been pretty tough despite the runny nose and cough that just won't quite go away. You can also see the little red line on his cheek from where he scratched himself several weeks ago. I'm hoping it will fade eventually, but I can't help but worry it's going to scar that perfect little face (that's the crazy talking). And he also needed a haircut ;) Oh well! I wish I could say I look this cute when I'm sick and tired and in need of a fresh new 'do! At 14 months, JJ...

-Is obsessed with Colt's bellybutton. It's weird. And cute. It's weirdly cute? Also, hilarious. -Signed "more" for the first time! Of course, it's because he wanted more of the Milka chocolate bar he was enjoying for dessert, and not more snugs from mama, but it was still pretty awesome.
-Is starting to point at the different pictures in his books, especially if I do it first.
-Peek-a-boo's like a pro-behind corners, in the mirror, and my personal favorite, by placing a hand over one eye while watching his peek-a-boo buddy with the other, then pulling his hand away to reveal both eyes and a huge grin. 
-Loves to ride his little Power Wheels Quad around the apartment all by himself.
-Can throw a pretty hairy tantrum when he doesn't get to do what he wants to do. I guess I have a toddler, now.
-Is enjoying the fine art of testing his boundaries. Jace loves to tease us. He knows he isn't supposed to do certain things, like drop his food on the floor, or pull the DVDs off their shelf. So, for instance, he'll grab a piece of food, dangle it over the side of his tray, and stare at me until I notice what he's up to. As soon as I say, "No, we don't throw our food," he smiles and shoves the food into his mouth. Or, he'll walk over to the DVDs and touch all the cases, looking deviously over his shoulder at Colt or myself the entire time, observing our reactions. He likes to toe the line, this one.
-During Nemo, there is a scene where the fish yell "Darla!" when the crazy little girl comes to see her uncle, The Dentist. Whenever this scene rolls around, Jace shouts along, too. "Dah-ya! Dah-ya!"
-Loves the Merry-Go-Round at the playground. He screamed when I tried to take him off. I predict his favorite ride at Disneyland will be the Teacups.
-Sticks tongue out at me when I stick my tongue out at him.
-Goes into a room and shuts the door behind him, then gets upset and bangs on it when he realizes he's locked himself inside. 
-Likes to put his head on my chest while I sing to him before bed.
-Waves at Daddy, at me, and at himself when I put my phone camera on "selfie" mode.
-Loves to watch the airplanes land at the local airfield.
-Is in a major snuggy phase. He needs some time to wake up after naps, so he just sits on my lap, drinks his milk, and holds my hand while he watches Daniel Tiger or Nemo. I can't get enough. Someone please tell me he'll still love to snuggle like this for at least 20 a few more years?
-Loves the big yard at the new house! I think I'm going to have a very muddy little boy on my hands from here on out.

13 Months

Oh, my little funny man. You keep me so busy. The days of plopping you down on my bed and snapping a few cute pictures are long gone. You are always in motion, a blur, swiping at any piece of technology in site.

I hope you don't miss your bottle too much, because we have yet to find it since you hid it from your father and I a few days ago. However, I did eventually locate the package of wipes you concealed after pulling out half the pack and discarding them in the corner of the living room. 

You're starting to understand function of objects, which explains why you like to take the toothbrush you've designated as a chew toy/all-purpose cleaning tool and pretend to brush my teeth. Mmm...delicious. 

You love dogs, dirt, being outside (you cry when I bring you inside), cars, your soft monkey and fuzzy blanket from Great-Grandma C, being chased and tickled, wagon rides, pulling the laundry out of the hamper and putting it back in, reading books in your car seat, standing on tippy-toes to dig around in drawers you're too short to peek into, stacking anything you can find (blocks, cans of Diet Dr. Pepper, bark-dust chips, etc), your best friend Henry, taking things apart and putting them back together, birds, watching the airplanes land and take-off, your truck book, "helping" me while I'm in the kitchen by removing every piece of tupperware from the cabinet drawers and shoving the lids under the oven, and walking/crawling up all three flights of stairs to our apartment by yourself. See? You really are a busy bee, and I love it.

Your favorite foods include homemade brownies with icing, raspberries and greek yogurt, anything with green chiles, raisins, chocolate milk and Ovaltine, green beans with garlic salt and cheese, chicken, green smoothies, eggs and toast, cheese-sticks, and applesauce. When you really like something, you say "Mmmm!" and I laugh, because I have obviously birthed the funniest 13 month old in existence.

Your latest words include Mama and Dada, yeah, done, cool, wee (when going down the slide or on a wagon ride), and dog (which sounds the same as your word for "done").

You have a liking for mischief and small acts of naughtiness that I never had. You know exactly what "no" means, and you completely understand when you're doing something you're not supposed to do...so you wait until I'm looking, give me the sauciest expression, and do it anyways! I'm not exactly sure how to handle such defiance, but I'm doing my best to be consistent and establish boundaries (whatever that means with a 13 month old). I know it's important to teach you respect, to listen and obey, but I also don't want to stomp this spunkiness out of you; it can be exasperating, but I love your nerve. 

Yesterday, you wore your very first hole in the knee of a pair of jeans while playing outside, and your dad and I giggled and gloated over it after we tucked you into bed. Sometimes we miss our baby, but we love watching you become a little boy.

You're at such a fun age. We sure love you, munchkie. Thanks for making us laugh.

P.S. Please stop biting me. 

The Best Thing I've Ever Made

Pretty good, right?