Visit with Santa

This morning, we woke up and went to our town's little Christmas festival. It's cute. There's a little parade, arts and crafts show, carnival, fair food, and of course Santa. Daniel and Clarke waited in a long line while I walked around for a bit to look at stuff. By the time they got to Santa, Clarke was ready to get out of his stroller and run around. He was not happy when he learned he had to sit on a stranger's lap for a minute. So, this is the picture you get. Oh well, I guess you always have to have at least one meeting with Santa that includes a melt down picture.

19 Months

Clarke is 19 months now. I can't believe it. He is a really good kid. Kind of crazy, but a really good kid. He's starting to talk a lot more now. He has lots of words and can repeat most of what we say. We still have to remind him that he knows words though. "Use your words." is a very common phrase around here. Some of his favorites are: I want milk (or juice, mommy, daddy, ect.) He also calls most motorcycles and bicycles a gycle. Then, he'll make the motorcycle sound. He's starting to associate motorcycles with Daniel. Sometimes, he says "Daddy gycle.".

He has discovered dipping his food in ketchup or ranch dressing. He really likes it, but he's a bit messy...


and in the hair...


This is a good pirate picture I found that I wanted to add.


This past week, I changed Clarke's diaper and put him down for a nap. Well, I did not put shorts on him. I could hear him for a little while playing before he finally fell asleep. Then a couple of hours later, when I went to get him up, he was standing in his crib, naked as a jay-bird, and smiling so proudly. He had taken his diaper off. I'm pretty sure that he took it off before he fell asleep, because where he normally sleeps was soaking wet. It was cute this time, but I'm guessing it won't always be cute. We will always put pants on him before bed time now.

Clarke does not sit still, not even for one minute. He's a very busy kid. Except when he naps and sleeps. He does those two things very well...I think it's because he is so worn out from going all of the time!

Lately, he likes to color, throw, catch, tackle, play on his motorcycle (tricycle), play outside, drink out of straws, dip his food, lick it off and dip again, undo everything that I do and make big 'ol messes. The comment that I get the most about him (other than how stinking cute he is) is that he is all boy. And that is very true. He does everything in a boy-ish manner...no dolls, no hugs and kisses...just mud, tackles, motorcycles, balls, jumping, running....you get the picture. I love every minute of it!

Halloween 2009

Clarke was a pirate for Halloween this year. He had a hat and a sword. This kid was so happy to wear a had and carry a sword. We could not get him to be still long enough to take a decent picture, so you'll just have to know that he was the cutest pirate you've ever seen. We didn't go trick-or-treating since he doesn't eat candy yet. We did, however, sit outside of the house and hand out candy to all the kids. A couple of times, Clarke thought that he was supposed to go with the kids when they left. He would just follow them like he knew where he was going.



Have you ever seen a pirate on a motorcycle? Well, now you have.


A few houses down from us, there was a little carnival for the kids. Clarke saw it and walked down there like he knew the people...which we didn't. It was a cute carnival though.


Playing with his sword.


This is about as still as he got the whole night...he's not really one to sit and take pictures.

Pumpkin Patch

Sugar and Poppy took us to a pumpkin patch while we were in Arkansas last month. Clarke had a great time.

He got to jump in a jumpy house...one of his favorite things!


He got to play in a tire swing for the first time.


We couldn't get Clarke to look and smile at the same time. This was as close as we got.


Of course he did with Sugar and Poppy.

He even got to ride a horse. That picture is on another camera that I'll have to upload later!

Grace Elizabeth

My sister-in-law, Laura Catherine, and her husband Adam, introduced Grace Elizabeth to the wold on Oct. 14, 2009. She's been a long time coming. We are so glad she is finally here!



We have a picture of Clarke sleeping just like this.





Grace does not move much or light up, so he really was not that interested in her. I'm sure he will be very soon! Sugar did a good job of coaxing him over to her so that we could get this picture.

LHS 10 Year Reunion

This past weekend was my 10 year HS reunion. I cannot believe I've been out of high school for 10 years! Time flies. Some of my very best friends in the world are from high school. There's just something about those friendships that I'll cherish forever. Being from a small town, most of us grew up together all the way through school. We've gone to church together and played sports together for years and years. Anyways, I loved most of high school. I had a blast. Don't get me wrong, I love my life now, but I also enjoyed the freedom of being young and not having any real responsibilities. I don't want to go back to that, but it was fun to revisit it for the weekend. Oh, and I realized that I am way too old to be staying up past midnight for 1, much less 2 nights in a row! I was so tired when we got home :). Here are some picture highlights from the weekend.

The husbands that had to become instant friends, because they didn't know anyone else. They were all good sports.


Shelley, Me and Casey...we played softball together starting in 2nd grade...i think.


Casey, Ashley and me.


Amber and me.


Amber, Casey, Ashely and me. These are some of my very best friends from HS. We're missing a couple of girls for various reasons. We were trying to take a picture with our kids, but Clarke was having nothing to do with it. He was hungry and tired. He let us know for sure. He did not want to be held and then would cry when we put him down. I'm not sure what to do when he gets that way. It was a funny thing to watch, though.

Burp Face

Clarke has always been very mobile. He rolled over for the first time when he was 3 weeks old. He climbed up stairs as soon as he started crawling around 6 months old. He walked when he was 9 months old. That makes me tired to think about it :). However, his verbal skills are not that advanced. He has always been a big 'talker'. Meaning, he babbles a ton, but nothing we understand. Just recently he started saying words that we can understand. And, he's started to repeat things that we say occasionally. I'd say that he has about 20 words that he actually says clearly enough for other people besides us to understand. Anyways, this video is an example of his words.

Daniel and I have called Clarke a burp face every time he has burped since he was born. I guess he thinks it's funny, because he has started to say it all of the time now. It's pretty cute, until he calls another kid a burp face, i guess. Oh well. It could be a lot worse, right?

Faux Hawk

Saturday we celebrated my Dad's 60th birthday with a surprise party. It was really fun. We had mexican food from his favorite restaurant, Flores, and even margaritas. Dad was really surprised. He said he had no idea. I'm actually quite impressed that between my sister, mom and I, none of us spoiled it.

Of course I had to include a picture of Clarke and his super cute outfit and faux hawk. He was happier than he looks in the picture.

Cool Mom Points

The Mom's group that I'm involved with from our church met at Chick-fil-a today for lunch and to let the kids play on the play ground. Afterwards, we drove over to a park in the same shopping center. When we got there, we realized there was also a splash park that none of us knew about. So, we de-clothed the kids and let them run around naked in the fountains. I think they had a blast. At least Clarke and Elliot did. I think I get a few cool mom points for the impromto naked water fun.


Clarke and Elliot playing at the splash park.



Elliot loved when the fountains would come on in his face.


Clarke checking out the fountain.


Clarke just being cute!!!

As for the rest of the summer, it's been busy and fun. Clarke is crazy. He's a hyper almost 17 month old. He runs every where he can. He usually doesn't have a plan in mind, he's just running for the sake of running in open space. So, I get a work out trying to keep up with him!

We've been back and forth to Little Rock a couple of times. They've, for the most part, been quick trips for various reasons. We'll be going back a couple of more times in the next couple of months for Daniel's HS reunion and for the birth of our niece, Grace Elizabeth. We're excited to meet her!

I'm up to teaching 6 classes a week now. I love it. I get to teach 2 spin classes, 2 bootcamp classes and 2 pump & jump classes. It's really the perfect job for a stay-at-home mom. It's one hour at a time. You get your workout in, and there is a day care with some really nice ladies to take care of the kids for the hour. Plus, I've made some really great friends with kiddos about the same age.

Daniel and I both have our high school reunions this year. I'm actually looking forward to both of them. I think they are going to be fun. I can't wait to catch up with some of my friends from LHS.

Sorry for the lack of postings. As usual, I'll try to do better. However, that's about all I can say...I'll try :).

1/2 Marathon Relay

This weekend I got a chance to go to San Antonio with some friends of mine from the YMCA. (Where I work and workout.) We did the Carraba's 1/2 Marathon and Relay. It was so much fun. We left on Friday night. Went to dinner, went to a movie and stayed in a hotel. We got up Saturday morning and headed to the race. Two of the girls did the 1/2 marathon and the rest of us did a relay 1/2 marathon. I'm so proud of all of us. Everyone did so well! Here are some pictures:


Pre-race. Danielle, Dabney, Rhe-Anne, Dara, Michelle and me


The Relay Team. Team Y. Rhe-Anne, Me, Dabney and Dara


Danielle and Michelle - the 1/2 marathoners! Way to go, girls!


Post race-we were HUNGRY! Michelle, Me, Rhe-Anne, Dara, Dabney and Danielle

I'm so thankful and blessed to have met such a great group of girls. I look forward to growing friendships with all of you!

Recap

A couple of months ago I said I was going to start posting more. Well, that didn't happen. But I do have good intentions. Here's a pictoral recap of what's been going on in our busy, busy world for the past several weeks....


Clarke went to Chick-fil-a and played in the play area for the first time. He really liked to climb into the slide and scream...I guess he liked how his voice sounded in the tube :).


Aunt Cat came to visit. We shopped a ton!


Clarke has still been so cute...I leave the tupperware cabinet open for him to play in while we are in the kitchen. This day, he decided to sit in the cabinet and watch what was going on the kitchen.


Our small group went to a Round Rock Express game...This is my sweet friend Andi.


I started making curtains for our house. This is a terrible picture, but you get the idea. I have done 2 windows and I have 3 to go.


We played softball...our team was pretty good, but we lost a lot. I think we needed to practice together more...these are some of our New Braunfels team members.


We went to Arkansas for Memorial Day weekend. We went to Lake Ouachita with our friends the Fosters and the Harrells. Always a good time with that crowd!


We went to Dallas for a wedding. Daniel refused to take a good picture with me that weekend...so up he goes on the blog with a bad picture.


Sarah and I went to Schlitterbahn for the day. It was so much fun! We rode almost everything!


Our Mom's group has been going to the pool a lot. Clarke loves to float around in his float. He really likes water. At some point this summer, he'll be taking swimming lessons!

In other news, I started teaching a class at the YMCA. It's called Pump & Jump. It's a combo strength training and cardio class. It's pretty fun! That's my only class for now. When others open up, I'll try to grab more. I really don't mind just teaching twice a week though...free membership and I get paid to work out twice...not too shabby!

Our small group is floating the river this weekend! More picture to come!

OMG, I have a One Year Old

On April 7, 2008, we welcomed Clarke into our lives. What a surprise he was. We had been told from the time we were 20 weeks pregnant that we were having a baby girl. So we picked out a name, Jaci Claire, and had very cute custom bedding made for her.
Well, it wasn't until the baby was born and the Dr. and all of the nurses got silent that we found out the truth. The Dr. looked at Daniel and said, "I though you said you were having a girl." (Since we had moved to Austin when I was 36 weeks along with a textbook pregnancy, there was no need for additional ultrasounds.) And from then on, we had a Justin 'Clarke' Edwards. I can't find the video of our family coming into the room and noticing that Jaci was not a girl. It is classic. My favorite part is when Laura Catherine starts to cry (she really wanted a niece bad) and said, "We were going to paint pottery together." Clarke's grown on her since then.

Clarke has been such a blessing to us. He is such a good baby and is becoming a great toddler. Don't get me wrong, he has his moments, but I really don't think we could have asked for an easier 1st year.

Here is a list of his latest accomplishments:

• has 7 teeth
• runs all over the place - and loves to be chased
• is learning to sign. he does 'more' and 'all done'
• claps for himself and all his accomplishments (sometimes we'll ask him to do tricks and he skips right to the clapping part...he's so proud)
  
• bounces his head to the beat of music
• he can't say any words, but he is very vocal about what he wants
• talks on the phone (puts his hand on his ear and starts to say words in his own language)
• he fetches better than our lab
• he's 50% percentile in his size. (I like to call that perfect)
• He needs his first hair cut. he doesn't have a ton of hair, but what he does have is getting long in the back and over his ears.
• he knows the word "no" and shakes his head. We have a cord that sticks out a little bit from our entertainment center. He knows he cannot touch it, but wants to so badly. At least once a day, he walks up to it shaking his head "no". It's pretty cute.
  
• He's a really good eater and sleeper (Praise the Lord)

Here are some of the latest pictures:


enjoying his birthday cake


loves bath time


pictures in the wild flowers


the traditional 'side of the road bluebonnet' picture


he really is the cutest kid i have ever seen.

i am going to try and be a better blogger. i hope i succeed.

A Blog About a Blog

I would like to encourage my readers (both of you) to check out this blog. It is so funny. I had to create a link on the side of my page to promote it. So far, my favorite is this one.
A 1 year update is coming soon. I promise.

11 Month Update

Wow! I cannot believe that Clarke is 11 months old. He is so much fun. A handful, but so much fun. I can't post a picture this month because we still have not replaced our camera. I'll be sure to get one before his birthday next month. Here is Clarke's latest bag o' tricks:

• Walking/Running everywhere
• Going into rooms and shutting the door
• He likes to chase balls around. The further he has to run to get them, the better.
• He likes to be turned upside down
• He has 7 teeth (I think that's the same as last month)
• He has been moved up to the "Walking Class" in Sunday School
• He is starting to point to things
• Still no words, just da-da-da-da and some squeeling
• I keep a cabinet in the kitchen with Tupperware open for him to play in...he really likes that and he can climb in it.
• He likes music and will start clapping when he hears a song that he likes
• He likes to turn the water on in the bathtub
• He likes to put things into and take things out of baskets...he is in Heaven on laundry day.
• Lately, he's been putting things on his head-bowls, rags, clothes, you name it.

We're not going to have a full blown birthday party this year...just family. I think I'll wait to pull out all the stops when he actually knows what is going on and can enjoy it. On that note, does anyone know where I can find a cake pan that looks like a giant cup cake. I saw one at Hobby Lobby but it was $35. I think that is too much.

We have made some changes this week. We dropped Clarke to 1 nap a day. He took to that new schedule just fine. We just eat lunch a little early and then he sleeps for 3-4 hours. I do not mind, at all when he sleeps for 4 hours :). We are also working on giving him a sippy cup of formula. Hopefully that will help with the transition to milk next month. Speaking of milk, it is going to be like getting a raise when we switch from formula to milk. That ought to be fun!

That's all for now. We are doing some traveling in the next few weeks. Maybe we'll get our tax return and I can buy our new camera so I'll have a way to get some pictures while we are driving/flying all over Tarnation!

Clarke's Favorite Commercial

This is Clarke's favorite commercial. He gets so excited every time it comes on!
An 11 month update is coming soon!

10 Months

Whew! Another month has come and gone. We have slowed down a little bit around here, but we still seem really busy, somehow. This picture isn't the best quality because our camera broke yesterday and we had to take this one with Daniel's phone. Here's the latest list of accomplishments:

• has 6 teeth
• shakes his head "no"
• eats a ton
• does NOT like limes (we gave him one to see what kind of face he would make, and he screamed and cried)
• walks (it is still easier for him to crawl, so he usually chooses that, but he can and does walk)
• he loves to be chased
• he likes to play with kids a little older than he is
• he laughs so hard when he sees people throwing things
  

Clarke is keeping us on our toes. Yesterday, he knocked over a whole glass of red Crystal Light. I'm still trying to get that stain out. He moves so quickly, that I cannot possibly baby proof everything.
Last weekend we had dinner with one of Daniel's co-workers' family. They have three kids, 9, 7 and 2 years old. Clarke thought they were so much fun to play with. The big kids were throwing paper airplanes around and Clarke laughed so hard that he had tears coming out of his eyes. It was so funny.

Now that Clarke can walk, maybe we get start to work on saying some actual words.

I was tagged!

1. go to your 4th folder where you store your photos.
2. select the 4th photo (no exceptions).
3. post the picture with an explanation and link it back to your tagger.
4. tag 4 people to do the same.



no surprise here. it's a picture of clarke. one day, i was about to wash the sheets for our bed and i decided to drape it over clarke's crib and have our very own photo shoot instead. it was right after holloween when clarke was a cowboy, so i couldn't resist making him wear the hat.

i tag:
casey, amber, shannon f and sarah ross