First Snow

Tippin' back a nice sippy cup of hot chocolate (i.e. milk with a few teaspoons of Mom's hot chocolate) after a long play in the snow!

Robert and Hannah

Robert: This blasted hat is too big, mom!

Mom: Sorry son. It is hand-me-down winter gear. Who buys new when you're only here for a few more months?!

Robert's first attempt at a snow angel!

Robert and Hannah, and Duncan crawling around in the snow to amuse Robert. What a great kid!

Well, after about 30 minutes, I finally got Robert and myself all dressed in our winter gear and we headed outside to play in the 8+ inches (and still coming down) snow. He loved every minute of it, especially sledding. The temp. was about 30 degrees, so it was warm enough to stay out for a while. Tomorrow the high is only 9 degrees, so we had to get out today. I am pooped, but I wanted to post the pictures ASAP. I'm going to take a nap. I'll fill you in on the details later.

Classic Christmas Photo

Who doesn't have a crying baby on Santa's lap picture? It's a rite of passage as far as I'm concerned. And, Robert has passed! He loved looking at Santa, he loved the balloon he got afterwards, but he did not love sitting with Santa. If you notice Santa's face, I don't think Santa loved it either! Hopefully Santa will extend grace to Robert when it's time to deliver presents. It's Christmas, after all!

Fall Festival 2009--Belated Review

I am such a slacker! I never posted anything about the Fall Festival this year! Robert had so much fun; I can't believe I never wrote about it. Aunt Julie got him another dog costume this year, though it was a totally different breed this time! He loves dogs just as much as she does, so it was the perfect costume for him. However, when we tried to put it on him a few weeks before the big day, he was not having it. He was content to drag it around like a stuffed dog, but he was not wearing it. Well, something happened between then and the big day, and when it was time, he was all for it! He loved trick-or-treating around campus. I only had to show him how to do it once before he was walking up to the doors and sticking out his pumpkin bucket for a treat. He loved carrying them in his bucket more than he cared about what kind of a treat they were. I was glad because I was not looking forward to prying the candy bars out of his hands! He liked the festival in the gym mainly because he got to walk around showing off his dog costume. He never once asked to take it off, and it was warm in the gym! We ended the night with a hay ride, which was cold but seemed enjoyable to him all the same. He conked out that night very easily! Thank you Aunt Julie for the cuter than ever costume, and thank you Nashotah community for putting on such a fun event!

I put a link to all of the Fall Festival pictures under Picture Albums over to the left.

Thanksgiving Then and Now

This was Thanksgiving last year.



Aidan, Robert, Adeline, Emmaline, and Margaret (Nashotah babies all born in July 08)

This was Thanksgiving this year.


Adeline, Robert, Emmaline, Aidan, and Margaret

Robert is sitting with Duncan while they played Guitar Band in the refectory basement after supper. When he wasn't with Duncan, he was dancing, playing with his buddies, and getting into trouble. Thanks to Hannah, Rob and I got to relax a bit. Rob joined in with Guitar Band (he sang Pinball Wizard!) and I checked out the black Friday ads with the ladies. It was such a fun day!
Robert and Aidan playing for a few minutes in the Pack and Play. Chanan was so smart to bring it because it allowed the toddlers (and their parents) a few minutes of down time off and on. I didn't get a picture, but sometimes they would stand up and dance a little to the Guitar Band music. It was too cute--like they were the band groupies!

Home Again

Robert and I just got back from a fun-filled trip to Atlanta to visit my family. Though we are nursing colds upon our return, we managed to have a healthy, happy two-week visit in the sunny South. We spent many warm afternoons at the park with cousins Ty and Jordan, played with MaBop's and PaBop's growing toy collection, and I worked on my bread baking skills under the experienced tutelage of my mother. We took tons of pictures of Robert, not enough of Robert and his cousins, and none of my bread endeavors! Oh well. I guess cute Robert will have to suffice. Here are a few, and don't forget to check the recent picture album over to the left.

Enjoying a little shopping with the girls.
Never too old for a sink bath, though maybe getting too big?
Taking the wagon for a walk.
New best friends, MaBop and Robert!
Great Grammy Rosemary came to visit for a few days!

Fall in Wisconsin

Sorry, I've just realized how long it's been between posts--almost a whole month! Believe it or not, life is not much different than it was a few months ago. Robert is doing great. Separation anxiety has run its course, and he's now much more independent.
Last weekend we went to the Elegant Farmer (http://www.elegantfarmer.com/) to pick a pumpkin. It was a crisp, cold morning. We took a hay ride up to the "pumpkin patch." I put that in quotations because after we got up there and saw them hauling pumpkins off a truck and dispersing them throughout a field, we realized that it was more like pumpkin "seeking" rather than "picking." We laughed, both realizing how muddy a real pumpkin patch would be, and promptly headed straight for the pumpkin truck to make sure we didn't have to "seek" too hard in the cold! Robert had a ball. He loved walking through the field getting all dirty and didn't seem too cold at all. He also loved the hay ride. He laid down in the hay on his belly and pretended to swim in it. That was funny!

Enjoy the pictures!

14 Months

It's getting chilly, the leaves are beginning to change, and it's unmistakably Fall in Wisconsin. I'm in heaven. Fall is my favorite season, especially when it IS a season, complete with cool weather and orangish red leaves. Robert and I have been playing a lot these days. He's already got a great imagination. We built a "cave" fort out of couch pillows and a blanket. Then we played Noah's Ark with his new (barn sale for $1) Little People set. He knows how to make the animals walk along and even feeds them from the little food barrels that came with the Ark. He repeats everything I do, so I pretty much act out a scene, making the animals talk and eat, and then he does it. It's so fun! Sometimes he pretends to eat out of the food barrels, too, and sometimes he pretends to eat the animals. Hmmm....I haven't found out how to work that into the story of Noah's Ark. Everyone keeps asking me if Robert is talking, yet. He's trying words all the time, but nothing really consistent besides Dada. He's got that down and uses the sign, too. He loves his Dada! He's also tried bubble, PaBop, dog, shoes, water, milk, Elmo, and unfortunately poop (he gets that from us telling the dogs to hurry up and "poop" when we take them out :). I'm sure he's tried other words, too, but these are the ones that come to mind. He's still signing, and we will continue to add more signs to try to help him communicate. He makes an annoying grunt and points when he wants to say something for which he doesn't have a word or a sign. It's awful, especially during dinner!

He's getting clingy lately, a bit like seperation anxiety, and has even been getting up again at night. He cries when Daddy leaves and when I drop him off at Kids Corner when I work out at the Y. He gets over it pretty quickly, but it's really sad. I've read about it, and though he's a little old for seperation anxiety, it really seems like that's what it is. I've just been trying to nurse him whenever he ask for it and to give him lots of extra cuddles and attention to reassure him of my love and support. And of course, prayer. We'd certainly appreciate your prayers, too!

Apple Picking

Today we went apple picking at the Nashotah House "orchard." It's really just seven trees, but they produce yummy apples for us each year. We really went to take pictures of Robert as I've not taken him to get professional pictures in a while, and we thought this might work. It did. Here's one, and don't miss the link to the left called "Apple Picking Robert". They are great!

Nashotah Five Reunites

After a long summer apart, the Nashotah Five (all born in July '08) reunite. They can be found toddling around together during various times of the day depending on sleep schedules. Margaret's legs are longer than all of the babies' legs put together, and I think her walking record hit over a mile the other day when she went toddling across campus with her push chair. Adeline is bound for the stage as I've now seen her perform some complicated dance moves by herself in the center of a crowd of people, loving every minute of it. Aidan is our resident adrenaline junkie and has recently shown Robert how to crawl under a car AND how to stand up on the tricycle seat. Emmaline is a sweet and cuddly mommy's girl, but I'm proud to say that she'll come to me with a big smile every time! And Robert, well, he's a bruiser and if left alone would somehow injure (by accident, of course) most of the above mentioned babies with any of the various playground toys strewn around the circle. Though we only get to speak a few sentences together at one time because we're always chasing babies, we moms are good friends and love to share parenting ideas and trade stories.

I am so blessed to live like this!

Notes about Baby Robert

• He started Toddler Gym, a class for 1-2 year olds that introduces them to following directions, playing games, and group play. Yes, he's way too young for it and cannot grasp any of the activities. He had about a thousand meltdowns throughout the 30 min. class. I'm going to try it once more and let him just play with the gym toys (balls, hoops, bowling game, etc.) and watch the other kids without trying to get him to do each activity.


• He's started holding his hands up and looking around when you ask him any questions, as if to say "I don't know!" It's super cute.


• He dances to any unknown sound that could be construed as music. I busted him grooving to that annoying beep sound that comes on TV when the station is doing a test.


• He blows bubbles in the tub, though somtimes sucks in when he means to blow out and almost chokes to death on water.


• He can climb the stairs with super hero speed.


• He hits and bites. Well, he does, and I thought I'd just be honest about it. We're working on it but would appreciate your prayers. It's probably just a phase. Right?


• Oh yeah, and while I'm at it, he throws tantrums and screams until he's blue in the lips. Prayers please.


• His only experience of "juice" is V8, and he likes it!


• He's still obsessed with sports balls.


• He actually asked for a specific food (crackers) yesterday using sign language.


• Just today he learned from Aidan how to safely get down off the curb by sitting down first.


• He hugs us around the neck and shows his love by resting his head on our shoulders and sucking his thumb. And as a special bonus for me, he reaches his hand up and plays with my hair.


• He got a new high chair with a bigger tray in an attempt to allow him to move his food around without having to throw it over the side onto the floor. I'd say it's about a 20% success rate so far.

Oh, I could go on and on, but I won't.

Love to all!

Lazy Days of Summer

And we said at one point early in our marriage, "let's not have one of those living rooms filled with kids toys." Hahahahaha!

Daddy and Robert doing some vacuuming together.

Robert was entertaining himself while I was cooking and when I looked over to check on him he was emptying my water bottle all over the floor. Nice.

It's the last week before classes, and the past few weeks have been, well, lazy and boring. That's a good thing!
We've enjoyed having Rob around to play and help with household chores.
We've been welcoming new families.

We've been playing outside a lot! Robert still LOVES all kinds of balls and is getting really good at throwing. He also loves playing with the young boys in the community, and boy do they love him. Everytime we see them it's, "Oh, it's Robert, hi Robert!" And the teenage girls also flock to him, but all they want to do is kiss and cuddle, and he's just not as into that as they would like!

Robert's been to the doctor. He's in the 100th% for height! Oh, and he weighs 27 lbs. (only 95th%).

I can't really think of anything else to write about. Life is good....

Birthday Finale!

Robert's BIG birthday party was this past Saturday. He celebrated with two of the four other one year-olds here at Nashotah House. Though the weather changed the outdoor picnic to a gym party, it was a wonderful celebration. And most importantly, Robert tasted his first cake! Thanks to my very talented friend Melissa, Robert has his own "smash cake" as well as a really awesome soccer ball cake to share with everyone. Not only did the cakes look amazing, they tasted like heaven! So the parties are over, and we are settling in to the fact that our baby Robert is now a toddler. He's walking all over the place--even more than crawling now. Soon he'll be talking, and before we know it, he'll be off to school. I don't even want to think about that!

Thank you all for your birthday greetings, cards, presents, emails, and phone calls. Thank you all especially for your prayers this past year. We love you!

P.S. I'm putting up more pictures under the First Birthday link to the left. I'm also putting up some cake eating videos.

Robert's Birthday Week

Robert's reaction when I wheeled out his Cozy Coup filled with presents!

Our little one year-old Baby Robert has had quite a week so far. He had a "presents" birthday party on Tues., and he's having his "cake" birthday party on Sat. He's been quite spoiled with lots of presents, including a huge balloon bouquet sent by Aunt Julie and a Cozy Coup Car from MaBop and PaBop. It's been such a fun week so far. Oh, and he's such a walker, now. I finally got it on video (with Rob's help), so check it out under Our Videos to the left. All he wants to do now is to go outside and walk up and down the sidewalk. He looks like a little Frankenstein! I know that's probably mean to say, but it's true. He puts his arms either out in front or out to the side for balance and takes big steps. It's so cute! Enjoy the video!

Less Than 24 Hours!

Mommy and I had fun at Nashotah Lake this weekend. I ate rocks.

I crawled straight into the chilly water all by myself and kept crawling until I didn't reach anymore and Mommy pulled me up because she didn't want me to drown! I wasn't the least big scared--I did it again and again!

Mommy finally made me get out and get bundled up because I was shivering and my lips were blue. Man, these Wisconsin lakes are chilly!

I can't believe I'll have a one year-old in less than 24 hours! Not a minute goes by today that I don't think about what I was doing this time last year. I hope I never forget that glorious moment when I held Robert for the first time. I was just telling a friend that I can still see that little infant in Robert's toddler face and that even when he's a teenager I hope I'll still be able to see it. The Lord surely gives us more that we could ask or imagine! I am infinitely blessed!