Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Sailor is 18 months old!

 One and a half! 
This girl is changing and growing so much every day!
 She had her 18 month check up today. Dr. said she looks great. We were excited that she finally FINALLY hit 20lbs! 20lbs 4oz to be exact. Big girl is moving on up to the 18th percentile!
Her vocabulary is developing and includes the following words now:
 
Mama
Dada
Ball
Yeah!
Wow!
Whoa!
Bubba
Baby
Hi! 
Bye!
Ewww (typically her response if I ask if she's pooped)

She also has some "Sailor-words" that we've learned over the last few months:
"Eeeeeee!" means she wants a drink
"Mo!" means she wants more
"Lala" is her word for Elmo or any other Sesame Street character/Muppet, which is funny considering she's never really watched much Sesame Street.
"Baba" is bottle
"De-Dis!" is "there it is!" 

She is still absolutely in LOVE with all animals, but especially dogs. Anytime she sees one even from far away or out the window, she starts laughing and saying "FFFTHHH!!" which is think is her version of "Woof!" A couple of weeks ago, a neighbor dog jumped up and knocked her on her back in the grass and licked her face. Sailor got up laughing! We joke that she is actually part puppy because when you ask her if she wants something, she pants like a dog in the affirmative.

She's starting to learn some other animal sounds. Her favorite is the sheep sound:  "BAAAAAAAA!!!!" She yelled this so loud to all the lambs at Mt. Vernon that they finally scurried off to their mama in fear. 
She has started using utensils regularly and she even gets some of the food in her mouth sometimes!
She's super into SHOES! We have a big bag of hand-me-down shoes in her closet, and she's always pointing for me to get it down, so she can try on more. These cowboy boots are her favorite. It's common to find her wearing someone else's shoes  around the house on top of her own.
She absolutely LOVES being outside, especially with her brothers. Here she is trying to pitch the baseball to Mark and his buddy Eli.
She is the queen of mess-making. It's non-stop. This particular chip mess was the 2nd of its kind that I cleaned up in one day. I guess mom needs to find a better hiding place for the chips.
One day she found the pantry ajar and helped herself to playtime with the Bisquick! So innocent, that face!
She's learned now how to climb on TOP of the dining room table. I find her sitting up there coloring most days
"She's the master of disguise.... this is "Elton June.
"Sailor Shrek"
She even twirled in her very first princess dress this month, thanks to some fun hand-me-down dress ups from some church friends!
Just one of the boys...

She  knows her way around a light saber. We call her "Baby Rey"
We've recently started doing her hair in "ping tails" (as Keaton calls them), and I feel like its changed her whole personality.


I took her for an 18month portrait at Picture People last week. We took away her animal crackers and she REFUSED to crack a smile for us!
She loves riding in her new bike seat with Dada.
And being silly with Mama
We recently watched E.T. as a family and Sailor kept running in and pointing to the screen and laughing. After the movie, she loved cuddling with Daddy's old E.T.!
She's full of attitude and drama. She's confident and so sweet! We are all so in love with this girl. It's hard to imagine what our family was like without our Sailor June.

Saturday, May 7, 2016

Birthday Weekend!

Keaton's birthday fell on Saturday this year, and we had a blast celebrating all weekend with the Lieblers. They drove in soon after Keaton was home from school on Friday.
We took a walk down the market for a snack.
On Friday evening, Keaton had a special International Night at his school. He performed a song in French with the other 2nd graders. (Keaton is 2nd from the left) They did great!
After his performance, we headed to Brixx (Keaton's favorite) for some pizza!
After we finally got the kiddos in bed, we decorated the living room. He requested a "Presidents Birthday." This was the best I could do!
Of course the kids were up bright and early. Always a beautiful morning when I get to wake up to this face!
Keaton was excited to get started with the presents right away!

The Force Awakens!
After breakfast, we headed to Mount Vernon. It was  Revolution weekend, complete with real canons, professional reenactors, and a chance to meet Keaton's favorite Revolutionary General, the Marquis de Lafayette! 

He's kind of a big deal, especially if you have been living in the world of Hamilton the Musical for the last 2 months

It was fascinating to watch all the soldiers marching in uniform.
We even witnessed a real battle! Mark was very concerned for the dead men laying in the field. We explained to him that it was all pretend and that they were shooting fake bullets, but he wasn't convinced. "Then how did those men die?"
We took a picture with these guys, because "they look like pirates"
what a difference a year makes!
The kids loved exploring the education center.
Mark was so tired...I thought he would fall asleep at this table!
dress up!
GW's dentures are always a hit!
These 2 are precious together!
By the time we got home, Keaton was ready to dig into more presents!
His favorite gift - blade builders!

Of course, we enjoyed hamburgers for dinner.  MEL helped entertain Sailor while we got dinner on the table.
Ice cream cake at his request!
Happy Birthday, Keaton!

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Eight Years Old!

Keaton Ray turned 8 on Saturday!
Wait, how is it possible that I have an eight year old!
Halfway to driving??? Only a short decade from graduation????  NOOOOOO!

Seriously mom? Don't be sad. I'm only EIGHT years old!
And being EIGHT is GREAT!
Especially when you're smart...
Goofy...
And oh so handsome!
 Here's Keaton  in a nutshell right now: 

What is your favorite thing to do? Look at new books
What do you want to be when you grow up? Secret Service Agent
What is your favorite food? Hamburgers
Favorite Song: "Once I was 7 Years Old "by Lukas Graham also "The Election of 1800" from the Hamilton Soundtrack
Favorite Movie: Little Rascals (1994 version) 
Who do you like to spend time with? My cousins and my family
What do you do really well? Read
What makes you laugh? When Matthew talks funny, it cracks me up
What's the best time of your day? Mid-afternoon, when I come home from school
What are you afraid of? When I see snakes, because they give me the "heebie-jeebies." Also, being in a room that pitch black dark.
What do you like to do with your family? Movie Night!
What do you do love to learn about? History!
Where do you like to go? 2nd and Charles (Used books and Media)
What's your favorite book? Weird but True books, Picturepedia, Deadliest Things on the Planet, Capital Mystery Series
If you had one wish, what would it be? That my cousins were here every day


 Keaton is having a wonderful  year at school, and not just academically! I volunteer at his school weekly and eat lunch with him often. Almost every time I visit his school, one of the other teachers, counselors, classroom helpers, lunch ladies, or front office ladies will tell me what joy Keaton is. He is a good friend to his classmates, and praised by his teacher. I'm so thankful for this! Keaton and I are  equally excited and terrified to try our hand at homeschooling next year. I'm pumped  to be able to spend more of my day with this boy, and make some good use of that extra time by taking advantage of all the extra-curricular learning available in the DC area.

 
He is not playing a sport this spring, but loves getting out on his bike anytime he has a chance. Scott took the boys fishing last weekend, and Keaton is improving his cast each time. He's also about to graduate to Bear Cub in the next month! 


 We have seen some real spiritual maturity in Keaton over the last year, and its a blessing to watch your son express genuine interest in things of the Lord. He is halfway through the communicants class and will join our church this summer! I pray that his faith grows and grows. 

 He still loves history of all kinds, but has spent the majority of the last year becoming an expert on Presidents. For awhile there, he would bound  downstairs every day with a new factoid that he learned in one of his personal library of president books. "MOM! Guess what?!! It's Martin Van Buren's birthday tomorrow!" Teddy Roosevelt is his favorite!

 He gets a little annoyed when his teachers try teach him something in class relating to  his field of study.  I try to explain to him that not everyone is as well-versed in Presidential history as he is... "But GEORGE WASHINGTON??!! Who doesn't already know about George WASHINGTON!"  

He's also gotten into writing poetry lately. Here's one of my favorites from St. Patrick's Day:
Four Leaf Clover
Four Leaf Clover
Rare to Find
Four Leaf Clover 
Four Leaf Clover
Very Kind
You bring good luck
Look I found one, yes I did
Yes Yes Yes
It's on my eyelid. 

Keaton, God has a plan for your life, and if you trust in him, you will do great things!  
We love you so much! Happy Birthday!