Thanksgiving

This year, we spent the Thanksgiving holiday with Kyle's family in Nashville.  I will say, it was very nice not having to pack up everything and travel somewhere.  We had a big family meal over at Kyle's Aunt Cyndi's house on Thursday and then on Saturday, we had another meal at his parents house.  Here are a few pictures from the holiday festivities.

 Will is ready to play ball after his big meal!

 Getting in on the action with Olivia and Robert.

"Throw me the ball!  I'm ready!"

Will's version of cornhole!

 An attempt at a family picture.

 Wrestling off the calories with Daddy.

 Will and sweet Olivia in their Christmas jammies.

 Will with his cousins and Aunt Anna.

 Eating his first rice krispy treat.

 Playing with his cousin, Thomas.

Will at 15 months!

Will turned 15 months way back at the beginning of November, but once again, I'm late posting.  As most of you know, a 15 month old keeps you very busy!  We had a scheduled 15 month well check visit that turned into a well check / make sure he is okay sick visit.  The poor little guy came down with the nastiest stomach bug that lasted 7 days.  After several days, I became worried that something else was going on, but the doctor confirmed that it was just a lingering bug.

It's tons of fun watching him discover and learn something new each day.  I've noticed that he is now following simple commands like, "sit down", "bring mommy your paci/milk", "go get a book and bring it to mommy."  There were even a couple of times that I asked him to bring me a specific book and he went to his room, found the exact book and brought it to me!  Also worth mentioning this month is the fact that Will has turned into the pickiest eater! What happened to my good eater??  So, mealtimes have become somewhat stressful, but I'm trying to relax and just let him eat or not eat.  No wonder he is so tiny....he barely eats! Lastly, he started cutting his molars...which may be contributing to the eating issue and has caused several nights of restless sleep.  Otherwise, a fun month of go, go, go with a toddler that doesn't like to sit still!

15 month stats:

Weight:  20 lbs 3 oz (14th percentile)

Height: 30 1/4 inches (18th percentile)

Head Circumference: 47 cm (56th percentile)

At 15 months:

~sleeping from around 7pm--6:30am-7am

~continues to take two naps / day, but I sense that we are beginning to transition to one nap.

~running around like crazy!  He does not like to sit still, cuddle or be held for more than a few seconds.  Only at night will he allow (mostly Kyle) to rock him to sleep. 

~has turned into a picky eater.  I'm not even sure what his favorite food are anymore because one day he will eat something and the next day he won't have anything to do with it.  He does, however, seem to really like the squeezable pouches of applesauce and mixed fruits/veggies.  He LOVES his milk!

~Mickey Mouse and puppy dogs are his favorite!
~sticks his little tongue out when he's concentrating on something (so cute!)

~doesn't care to watch TV except the beginning and end of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.

~Still not talking much---dada, mama, his version of woof-woof, his version of oopsie and sometimes oopsie-daisy and shoes.
~signs all done and milk.

~had his 1st haircut!

~really likes Mommy's attention and doesn't like to play by himself for very long.

~his little personality is coming through more and more.  He has a little temper that can show when he wants something or doesn't get what he wants.  He's so sweet, though...loves babies and loves to wave hello at anyone who will look his way!

Will at 14 months!

Once again, I'm late with updates on Will at 14 months!  I would totally skip this month (as he is now 15 months), but it was a VERY monumental month for him!  

At the forefront of his updates at 14 months, is the fact that at exactly 14 months (to the day!), Will took his first steps!  Now, this could be disputed by his Grammy T., as she saw him take several steps while keeping him one evening several weeks prior; however, Kyle and I had not witnessed him taking any steps until October 2nd.  We were at life group with our dear church friends and Will just decided to start walking!  He took 6-7 steps, most of which I missed because I wasn't paying attention until everyone gasped!  He continued to take a few more steps that evening and from then on out, he went from 7-10 steps to walking!  It happened just as everyone predicted:  he just up and started walking!  He's so tiny (literally!) and it's so cute to see him "toddling" around!  One negative about walking, and being mobile in general, is that Will seems to be picking up every germ possible!  From birth to 12 months, Will had one very mild cold (which probably isn't even worth mentioning).  From 12 months until 15 months, he's been sick four different times including hand, foot and mouth and a nasty little stomach bug that lasted 7 days!  So, we are making up for lost time in the sickness department.

Otherwise, he is doing great!  It is such a fun age to watch him discover new things and learn new things.

At 14 months:

~IS WALKING!

~began saying Mama.  Well, it's more of a sound of mamamamamamama....but, I'll take it!

~continues to sleep 11-12 hours per night.

~still takes 2 naps/day for the most part.  I do get some push back on the nap thing occasionally!

~is becoming ever increasing particular about the foods he eats.  Overall, he's a pretty good eater, but it depends on his mood as to whether he will eat a particular food on any given day.  While he will eat almost anything, some of his favorite foods are:  oatmeal, bananas, applesauce, refried beans, milk, scrambled eggs and spaghetti.  Oddly enough, he won't have anything to do with chicken--no grilled chicken, no fried chicken, no chicken tenders, no chicken nuggets (even Chick-fil-A!).  

~has several push toys and LOVES to push them around the house.

~signs "all done" and seems to know what it means.

~waves "Hi" and "Bye" to just about anyone who will look at him.

~doesn't say too many words yet:  Dada, Mamamama, and makes a sound that means "woof woof"

~LOVES puppy dogs!

~LOVES Mickey Mouse.  He won't watch TV more than 10 seconds, but he gets very excited when Mickey Mouse Clubhouse comes on TV.  That is the only show that he seems to recognize.  He still won't watch it more than a couple of minutes, though.

~has shown significant improvement in the church nursery.  He continues to cry when we leave him, but I'm told that it only lasts for a few minutes and then he is fine!  Thank goodness!
~still loves his paci.  Interestingly, he will only take the 0-6 month pacis.  I have numerous pacis that are designed for 6+ months and he won't have anything to do with them.  He knows, by sight, which paci is one that he likes and he throws the ones that he doesn't like (without even putting them in his mouth) on the ground.  

Halloween Festivities

We enjoyed celebrating Halloween with the cutest little Mickey Mouse that you'll ever see!  I found Will's costume way back in March and it has been hanging in his closet ever since.  Through the months I would pull it out, look at it and think that Will would NEVER be big enough to fit in that costume.  Well, he was and he is!  

Unfortunately, Will had been under the weather for about a week, so we weren't able to capture many of his smiles (of course, I wanted him to have a "magical" day!); but for the most part, he went along with all of the activities.  The night before Halloween, we went to Ghouls at Grassmere (the Nashville Zoo).  The zoo does a great job with the Halloween festivities and I highly recommend it for all of you with kiddos.  Will seemed to enjoy people watching, aka kiddy watching, just as much as anything.  On Halloween night, our good friends, the Creamers, came over and we trick-or-treated at a few houses in our neighborhood.  Will and Mason could care less about dressing up, trick-or-treating or the candy, but fun was had by all of the adults!  

 Trick or Treat!

 Have a Magical Day!

The monkey and the mouse!

 Will and Mason trick-or-treating in the wagon!

 Mommy and her Mickey Mouse!

 Ghouls at Grassmere

 Will wants to walk all by himself!

 Riding the carousel at the zoo.

 Will loved his 1st ever Krispy Kreme doughnut!

Will at 13 months!

I'm a month late on this post, but am going ahead in order to have it in the book!  I never got around to taking Will's "official" (and by official, I mean the 13 month sticker) 13 month picture, but I have plenty of pictures of him at 13 months.  

September started off with a bout of Hand, Foot and Mouth disease.....yes, definitely sounds like something disgusting, but not really so.  Basically, he ran a high fever and had a rash covering his body and in his little mouth.  Bless.His.Heart!  He couldn't really eat or drink for several days and, deservingly, was pretty whiney.  After about 72 hours, he started feeling better again and after about five days, he was back to normal.  Happy Labor Day weekend to us! :)

I took him to the doctor at 13 months and he weighed in (with diaper and clothes) at 19 lbs 10 oz.  We don't go back for an official visit until 15 months.  

Toward the end of September, Will and I ventured off to Myrtle Beach with my parents for a little sun and relaxation.  This is always a fun trip and a separate post will come one day.

So, a little run down of Will at 13 months:

~continues to sleep pretty well...11-12 hours/night.  

~takes 2 naps on most days, but has started fighting me occasionally on the afternoon nap.

~At 13 1/2 months, we finished up our last scoop of formula and he is now completely bottle free!

~On Sept 10th, under Grammy T's supervision, Will took 5-8 steps, but Mommy and Daddy did not get to witness it nor have we since seen him take any additional steps.

~He loves pushing his push toys, going down the slide and dancing to his Laugh and Learn Puppy.

~He is becoming a little more particular on what he wants to eat.  His current favorite foods include bananas, apple sauce, cheese, spaghetti and crackers/puffs/yogurt melts (if those even count!). He will eat just about anything if his mood is right!

~Not really saying much more than Dada, hot, what sounds like "I do it" and his version of "woof woof."

~Loves to dance and clap his hands!

~Has a severe case of "Mommy-itis."  We continue to struggle with the church nursery.

~Had his first injury that included blood--he fell and hit his mouth and bit his tongue.  

It's fall y'all.....finally!

September has been a bit more low key than previous months!  We've taken advantage of the cooler temperatures by playing outside, going to the park and enjoying an evening ice cream outing or two.  We've also enjoyed having Daddy around since he took his last (fingers double crossed!) CPA exam.  Here are a few pictures of Will enjoying a beautiful, Tennessee fall! 

 Here I come!

 Places to go and people to see....

 Are you ready?

 Here I come, Daddy!

 Again! Again!

 Mommy's big boy!

My very first ice cream cone ALL to myself!

Why do I eat like this??

 Bedtime routine includes reading books with Daddy...

 and playing with all of my "animals."

Couldn't resist this one!  Sorry, buddy! :)

Ruth Elizabeth Boshers Downey

On August 12, 2011 my beautiful grandmother left this world to go home to her Father in Heaven.  I've been dreading this post for quite sometime because, honestly, I just don't have the words to eloquently express what a wonderful person she was, how much she was loved and how much she will be missed.  

I am an extremely lucky girl in that my family is very close.  Most of my childhood memories include not only my immediate family, but also my grandparents.  They lived just a few miles away, we shared meals together each week, we went to church together, my grandparents attended my school programs, cheerleading events and birthday parties (in fact, all of my birthday parties were at their house using their swimming pool!) and we took vacations together.  Again, I can't even begin to express what they both mean to me and how much they have influenced my life.  My grandmother was a wonderful, loving Christian woman.  Her life was devoted to her family and to God.  She loved my Granddaddy more than anything in this world and their marriage was one that I will spend every day of my life trying to emulate.  They were happily married for 65 wonderful years.  I know that she was proud of me and I am so proud, thankful and grateful that she was my grandmother.  Her life and her example encourage me to be a better person each and every day.

I have so many memories of her that I have been thinking about over the past several weeks.  Each time I think of something, I share it with Kyle.  I want to begin writing them down so that not only will I not forget, but that I can one day share them with Will.  It breaks my heart to think that he won't have the privilege of knowing her personally, but I will try my hardest to make sure that he knows every memory and story.  

On August 15, 2011 we laid her to rest.  It was the hardest day of my life thus far.  I know that she is now in Paradise, but I continue to miss her each and every day.  

Grandmommie--thank you for your life, for the way you lived, for your Godly example and for your unconditional love.  I will love you and miss you always.

Ruth Elizabeth Boshers Downey

December 28, 1925--August 12, 2011