An interview with William… Summer 2011

1. Favorite Foods: Mac and Cheese & Pizza
2. Favorite Sport: Soccer
3. Favorite Movie: Cars 2
4. Favorite thing about School: Having friends
5. Thing I do best: Draw a picture
6. Favorite color: Red
7. What do you want to be when you grow up?: Policeman
8. What word describes you?: Happy
9. When I was a baby I used to: Crawl, had binky and had diapers
10. My favorite memory: Going to Disneyland
11. Favorite thing about Daddy: Playing light sabers
12. Favorite thing about Mommy: Playing blocks
13. A food I don’t like: Salad
14. My best friend: Gerhard
15. If I could have one wish I'd wish for: A real light saber

How can it be July?

I don't know how time speeds up the older you are, but right now, time is flying by. Some things to catch you up.

Michael:
He is doing great. He is walking better, talking a lot, and is getting at the really cute stage. He has officially been staffed out out of his early intervention program because he is on level! YEA! We are finally done with physical therapy!! He is showing that he does have his Mommy's personality, which means he is a bit of a drama queen! He loves his big brother, wants to do everything his big brother does, and his big brother is ok with it - most of the time. His favorite food is spaghetti, favorite drink is chocolate milk, loves his 3 blankets (his "poppies"), is totally addicted to his binky and is a CRAZY Blue's Clues fan.

William:
Getting so grown up. Needing his Mommy less and less is breaking my heart, but part of life. He is now in a booster seat - not a car seat. He can get himself in and out of the car by himself, can brush his teeth my himself and does a great job, and HATES it when I try to help him do something he wants to do. He did an amazing job in the 3 year old preschool program, and will move from the school I work at to the school he will be going to for kindergarten. We figured that we would try to get him to know some of the kids he will be going to school with. It will be sad for the both of us not having him at my school, but I really think it is for the best.

Benjamin:
SKINNY! Has lost 36 pounds and is looking fantastic. He is still working in the IT department and has had an amazing review. I was super, duper proud of him. He is still trying to get his mustang going, and will be having some body work done on it in the next month or so.

Alesha:
Got a new job for next year. I am going to be the media specialist at my school. Our media specialist moved to another school, so that opened up at position at my school. I interviewed for it, and found out Tuesday afternoon that I go the position. Nothing else that exciting going on for me.

Here are a few pics of the last couple months...

Benjamin and I went to Vegas for a conference for me. We stayed at Caesars Palace and got upgraded to a suite! It was great!

Benjamin and William at William's field trip to the park.

Renaissance Festival June 2011

Mikey liked the Renaissance Festival too!

My boys

Happy President's Day

Yes, yet again I have not posted in over a month. Now that I share a lot of what is going on with us on Facebook, I admit that I do not keep up on this blog. The month of January was a nice month and a nice way to begin the new year. I'd have to say that the most exciting part of the month is that Mikey started walking!! I can't say the exact day that he started, but I know he was a week or two into 15 months. This is a HUGE milestone. He has been behind in all his milestones, and this is the milestone he made the closest to "normal". We are still going physical therapy, but I have a feeling once he can bend down and pick something up, that will be it for PT. He is close to doing it, but just needs a hand on something to help out his balance. William is great. I can't believe his birthday is in 2 weeks. How is it possible that my baby is going to be 4? I am so torn. On one hand, I love watching him grow up, learn to count, learn his letters, be excited about reading, and just really doing a lot independently. But, I hate it that he doesn't need me as much either. I am still the one he runs to when he gets hurt, but most of the time it is, "Mommy, I can do it by myself!" At least Mikey still needs me a little more, but he too is needing me less and less. There is a sense of freedom for parents when kids can do more on their own, but also a sense of sadness that I will no longer have a baby. Benjamin and I talked about having another baby, and even considered it for a couple months, but I think the consensus is to be a family of 4. I guess I will not get another chance for the girl I wanted, but I wouldn't trade my boys for anything EVER!!! Looks like cars, trucks, dirt, and all things boy is my life now. At least I have a girl dog! hehehe Benjamin is doing well too. He is starting a crazy month of trainings. For the next month, he will be gone for almost 3 weeks on trainings. The one I am sad about is the one he is going on during Spring Break. New York!! I so want to go with him since I am on Spring Break that week, but I just don't see how we can afford the $500 plane ticket and all the other expenses that go with a trip to New York. So, I guess I will have to plan a trip back to New York once we win the lottery! ;-) I haven't been too happy at work lately. My class is a great bunch of kids, but sometimes I get frustrated with the lack of effort and pride the kids have only being in 3rd grade. That, plus new standards for Colorado and no money for any type of resources to go with the new standards has me thinking about changing careers. I'm not too sure how serious I am about changing careers, but I think this summer I will actively start looking into different positions. On another note, we have officially celebrated a year back in our house. I am very glad we are back and still think it is crazy how we ended up back in the house we built and then sold. Things happen in life that really surprise us, and this is definitely one of those times! So, what do the next few months have in store for our family (since I probably won't post again until April! hehehe) William's 4th birthday and just living life. Today is a day off of school for President's Day. Benjamin is in Denver for a training, so it is a day of just Mommy and her boys. I plan on thoroughly enjoying it! These days are few and far between. I am really looking forward to March 2nd as that is the day I get to get my new iPhone!! I am really excited. I am such a nerd!

Our year in review

January
*Our house was on the market to sell.
*Mommy had a birthday.
*Mikey was 3 months old.

February
*We moved into our new "old" home.
*Mikey had his first Valentine's Day.

March
*William turned 3.
*Mikey started solid foods.

April
*Took Mikey to Denver Children's Hospital to check is flat head.
*Had fun being a family.

May
*Daddy had a big birthday. The big 3-0-!!
*Mikey got his first tooth!

June
*The boys went to their first Rockies game.
*Took our big family vacation to San Diego and Disneyland.

July
*Mikey's first taste of homemade ice cream on July 4th.
*Mikey moved to his big boy car seat.

August
*Mommy and Daddy went back to Disneyland.
*Mommy started back to work.
*William started Preschool!
*Mikey popped out his top two teeth.

September
*Went to the State Fair Parade.
*Took Mikey back to Denver Children's and found out he has Developmental Delay Disorder.
*Mikey turned one!!!

October
*Visited the pumpkin patch.
*William had his first Halloween party at school.

November
*Got a new kitty, but couldn't keep her because of my allergies.
*Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

December
*A magical Christmas season with 2 wonderful boys.
*Mikey took his first step Dec 30th (his 15 month birthday).

What a wonderful year we had!!

Is it almost Christmas already?

Oh my goodness. Time flies when you are a full-time working mother of 2 young boys. Things in our household have been good. Mikey isn't walking yet, but he is cruising everywhere. He is saying a lot more words now: Dada, Mama, Papa, this, dog, hi, bye, fish, eat, yellow, ut-oh, no, down, and probably a couple more that I have forgotten about. His personality is really coming out at this age. He is getting to be a bit of a picky eater (guess he takes after his Mommy), but usually eats more than William does. He is liking to play more and more with William. Whatever William is doing, he likes to be right there. Sometimes that is a good thing, and sometimes it isn't. We can see the beginnings of sibling rivalry. William is a little sweetheart. He is doing FANTASTIC in preschool. He knows almost all his letters and a lot of the sounds that go with them! I am totally impressed. He can write his name and sing a lot of cute songs: his favorite being "I'm a Little Tea Pot!" He is really loving Christmas this year. We took both of them to see Santa at the mall yesterday. William told Santa he wants a "roller coaster". I'm not too sure how Santa will fill that order. Everyday he asks me if he can open the presents under the tree. It is fun to see Christmas through his eyes and remember how incredibly exciting it was.

My Dear Michael,

What an amazing year it has been my love! We have watched you grow so much in the last year that sometimes it is hard to even believe it. When you first came into this world, we loved you so much, and we continue to love you more and more with each passing day. The first few months of your life were full of change for our family. William was getting used to being a brother, and you were getting used to being out of the womb. I have to admit, that you were a very big cry-baby! You were on the verge of having colic, which is something Daddy and I were getting used it too. I had to leave you when you were only 2 months old and go back to work. However, you made the transition to daycare very easily, and it was nice to have your big brother there to watch over you! At 2 months old, you were diagnosed with Torticollis, a tightening of the neck muscle, forcing you to tilt your head. We started taking you to physical therapy once a week to stretch your muscles. You also had an x-ray and a CAT scan to make sure there wasn't something else going on. Luckily, those tests came out fine, and the physical therapy was working well. You had your first Christmas and had lots of fun. In January, we were packing up the house and moving back to our old house. Moving was a little tougher with a baby, but you made the transition to the new house with ease. You were doing great, and at 6 months we got you into the Colorado Blue Sky program and that got us free physical therapy and a new therapist, which was a great change. By the time summer rolled around, you had your first tooth already and we were getting ready for our big family vacation to San Diego and Disneyland. You weren't quite sitting up, but you were rolling around like crazy! You did great on your plane rides and had fun on our vacation. You were such a great baby on vacation. You hardly ever got fussy and loved being around people! You had your first taste of homemade ice cream on the 4th of July and your first swim - which you loved both!! In August, you spent a week with Grandma and Grandpa because Mommy and Daddy took a vacation back to Disneyland. You had fun with Grandma and Papa, even though we missed you a lot while we were gone. Mommy started back at work, and this time, going back to daycare took some getting used to for you, but you got used to it. The end of August, we took you to Denver Children's Hospital to have you evaluated for your delays. You were so cute and all the ladies who were evaluating you were so dazzled by your happy disposition. The doctors said you have "Developmental Coordination Disorder" and you were 4 months behind. No matter, we love you and are relieved that there isn't a disease causing your delay. In September, we had your first birthday party at the church, and all your friends and family came. Now you are 12 months and 1 week old and are rolling, crawling, pulling up, and cruising around the furniture. You are even saying some words, like "Mama, Dada, Ut-oh, Doggie, No, and Yellow". You are quite the talker! You love to eat and give Mommy kisses! At your 1st birthday dr's visit, you were 21 lbs and 29 3/4 in! You are growing and learning so much now that I am loving to see your progress. You aren't as behind as you were and I bet you will be walking soon! We love you little boy, and I am so glad you decided to be a part of our family!
Love,
Mommy