18 Months

James is growing and changing too fast for me. Before I know it he is going to be 2. He had his checkup this morning is healthy, growing, and right on track. He came in at 33 1/2 inches and 24 pounds 12 ounces...maybe. The weight could be a little more or less because he did not want to stay on the scale. It was the best we could get. He trying to say more and more words. The newest have been stroller, purple.He has been having lots of fun the past week with family here. So much to see and do. He has been to Applebees, shopping, the park,

(in his classic "i don't know" or "all done" pose)

the farmers market,

where he got this apron, and immediately began to help cook all the yummy food we got.

We have enjoyed the cooler weather with trips to the park and to the children's zoo where we road the train for the first time. The train he found to be relaxing and almost fell asleep on my lap while we were going around.

His favorite thing to see was the galapogaus tortises. He was thrilled with watching them.

He also enjoyed climbing into and out of this egg. So we have been quite busy. We shall see what next month brings and the new things he has learned and discovered.

17 Months

Time sure flies. I can't believe how much and how quickly James changes each week. It seems he has grown taller again, because we keep pushing things farther back on the counter and table out of his reach. He is certainly busy. He goes from dawn to dusk without much of a pause. (The last two days he's woken at 5:30.) He continues trying to talk more and is picking a few more words. His latest is nana for bananna. He will even sign a few words to make a short sentence. Papa and Dada are his two favorite people right now. Papa is magic and can make any fit stop by entering the room. It's to watch them all play. James still loves to clean. He vacuums, shakes the rugs, and will get a broom to sweep under his chair when he is done eating. (I hope that he will always clean.) James has also begun recognizing his pap and nana's house. When we turn the corner he gets excited for the meow-meows and woof-woof. Once arrived he will immediately start looking for the meow-meow. Lets just say life is never dull and always entertaining.

Having fun on the slide at the park.

How can you resist this smile? I may be biased, but I think its pretty cute.

Lions, and Tigers, and Butterflies....Oh My

We had a great family outing and took James to the Omaha zoo. This was his first visit to the zoo. He was ready to run when we first got there. It was a good trip since it had been years since we had been there too.

This is James when we first got to the zoo and were visiting through the aquarium.

We ventured through the butterfly garden. He wasn't too sure about everything flying around.

There was a new baby seal. Very sweet.

Animals...oh my.

James really enjoyed the desert. I think it was because things were more at his level, and easier for him to see from the stroller.

Grandma and Papa on the Skyfari.

We wore him out and needed a break through part of the day.

Recharged and ready to go after a snack. He enjoyed the petting zoo for about 3 minutes and was done and ready to move on to the next thing.

Fun in the rain forest. He really liked running along the dirt path, and putting his hands in it.

It was a good outing and lots of fun. It'll be great to take him back.

The Swing

The Swing

How do you like to go up in a swing,

Up in the air so blue?

Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing

Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,

Till I can see so wide,

River and trees and cattle and all,

Over the countryside--

Till I look down on the garden green,

Down on the roof so brown--

Up in the air I go flying again,

Up in the air and down!

By Robert Louis Stevenson

James swinging at the park for the first time. He loved it for about a minute, then needed out so he could run some more!

What does a ______say?

We've been practing our animals. These are the few that he knows. Sometimes he gets a little confused, and will roar for a sheep. He also was at my parents house the other day and kept saying meow meow meow when he would see my mom's dog.

Giggles!!

James has been spending his evenings after dinner running and laughing with Jonathan. It's quite entertaining.

Splish Splash!!

We got James a pool for the summer. He took to it right away, and really enjoyed all the features, and splashing in the water. He was sad when it was time to go inside and dry off. He'll just have to wait until the next time.

Move Day

We managed to get ourselves moved from Hastings to the Dahlberg's quited smoothly and efficiently. We were very blessed to have so much help on the day of our move. We had about fifteen people helping us unload the house and load the truck. They were also great because they helped to clean the house out too, which saved me some time. We sent James to a friends house for the morning because he was helping too much.

Here is our house filled with our things.

Ruth busy vacuuming. It was taking her a very long time to vacuum because it was moving easily. After she was almost finished we realized it was on the wrong setting.

Here are most of our helpers. They look like they are working really hard.

Here are few that are working.

Lunch time.

Saying bye to some friends.

Goodbye house.

Hello temporary home. We have all our boxes in the basement and the rest of our furniture in a storage unit. We are pretty settled now, and have all adjusted to our new home. Its been a smooth transition. James enjoys seeing his grandparents daily, and now gets very excited when they've been away, and return. They are also great babysitters! They watched him so we could go out for our anniversary the other night. We are enjoying our temporary home.

15 Months.

Not to much here, just pics of James playing. He is getting settled in his new home and is starting to sleep better again. He is busy trying to say new things. His latest word is baby. He also finds it lots of fun to drop or throw something and say uh-oh.