Family photo session

Love..love..love.
Family.
Mom and Dad.
Grandmothers.
Mam-Mam and Grandy.
Xander.

Xander is One!!!

It is so hard to believe that our baby boy has finally turned one. How does 9 months of pregnancy seem so long and yet 9 months of life can pass so quickly? Xander was a gentleman with his cake. We just couldn't get him to dig into it and make a mess. The little girl in the photo is my brother's daughter, Stasia. She is 5 years old and just a little jewel. The other photos are from a little photo shoot we did the day after Xander's birthday with the grandmothers. I will upload some of those photos too.
We feel so richly blessed to have our son in our lives. We also feel so richly blessed to have all of our friends and family. We love you dearly!!

Xander's going to be ONE!!!

Here we are heading into Xander's first birthday, which is coming up on August 31st. It is so hard to believe. He has grown in so many ways and kept us belly laughing all of the way. We have enjoyed those of you who have journeyed with us and we are so thankful for your understanding and support along the way when we have been so caught up in learning our roles as parents.
Xander is scaling walls now and cruising so I imagine we are in for a world of new adventures with him. He has kept us on our toes so far and I have no doubt that we will be chasing him all over the place very soon. He is trying so hard to talk. He can say, Da-da, mom-mom(but not lately), goo (good), ba (bath), bi (bite) and got-got. Ahhh.. such sweetness wrapped into a rough and tumble little boy. He loves to climb the staircase of course with mommy or daddy in tow and just recently created a new method of coming back down, head first. Geez... how about feet first? We keep trying to work on that but how can you see where you are going if you aren't head first, right?

We promise to be better at updating and will definitely post birthday pictures as soon as we can. After all the party is really for us isn't it? It is more like a "survival party" for mom and dad. Hey that gives me an idea. No.. better not.

Schoodic Peninsula, Maine

This is our bike ride out to Schoodic Point which is part of Acadia National Park. Dad had Xander's car seat hooked down in the baby trailer. He loved it! One lane of the road was closed to bicycles only and it was a one way road. Great ride along the coast.
The sunset was waterfront at our cabin on Prospect Harbor.

Great Wass Island, Maine

Hiking through the bogs, blueberry barrens and taking a break for snacks with Dad.

The first day in Maine

The first day in Maine it was 55 degrees. After that day we hit the 90's most every day. So we had x-man snuggled up a bit.

A vacation in Maine

Wow.. what a fun trip to such a gorgeous place! We had the coast, the mountains, yummy seafood and new experiences with Xander. Xander took his first steps while holding mommy's hands. He said a new word, "good" repeatedly. He tried his first asian pear and loved it. He cut his left front tooth on vacation. he also stuck his toes in the ocean and the sand for the first time. It was just overall a wonderful weekend. We hiked out onto Great Wass Island among the blueberry barrens and nature preserve. We biked out on the Schoodic Peninsula which, Xander loved. We visited several lobster pounds which is like BBQ pits in the south. Great food! We spent plenty of time relaxing and moving slow. Which for us as you will know is not something we do well. But we managed a new vacation experience this year, vacationing: ie; relaxing. We are always the adventure enthusiasts. However, Jason did get to paddle out on the Atlantic a few times. I was a bit timid to do it alone. So I enjoyed it vicariously through him this time.
Xander did beautifully on the plane and traveled better than we imagined he would. He was such a trooper, since he started out on vacation with an ear infection and a nasty cold. But he has recovered nicely and is as wiggly as ever.
We love you all and miss you.

(part 2) the mischief of Xander

Ahh.. yes.. sorry for the toe shot but I couldn't resist the look on his face when he was trying to eat my toe. Yikes! That could have really been brutal. Xander's two bottom teeth are like gator razors. Really. Never let him try to teeth on your finger. And like I said before he wants to eat everything, well, not literally but chewing is the way to go for him. I asked him this morning if he was mommy's baby boy or mommy's puppy? Sometimes he crawls around with something hanging out of his mouth. I should get a shot of that. Then the final picture he is playing his toy congas that Jason and Stacey bought him. He loves to drum. I have a video I would love to upload of our "little drummer boy" but I took the video vertical on our camera and so it loads up and you watch it sideways. I haven't figured out how to shift it so you can see it without turning your head sideways. Anyone know how to do that?
Anyway... know that we miss most of you and the rest of you well you are probably tired of us by now.

What is Xander up to now? (part 1)

Well Xander had his first day at the pool on Memorial Day. The water was entirely too cold for him and he would dip his toes in and then draw them up even faster. He wasn't quite sure what to think about it but overall I think he had fun.
Xander is into everything. He is so curious. He still does his combat crawl but he can bust a move.
In the following pictures he is trying to get Daddy's guitar case and eat it as he tries to do to everything.
Then of course the next picture he got busted trying to scoot under his pack and play, which he found to be very funny. Then his toy bin he thought was more fun to play with than all of the toys that were tucked away inside. Xander is a real treat. He is lively, opinionated, silly and just makes us belly laugh daily.
We love each and every one of you.
Celebrating HIM!

Good times are to be had with DAD!

Well folks, when Daddy and I play we play hard. We throw balls, crawl, giggle, fly and do "baby boot camp", yup.. baby boot camp. That is what Daddy calls it, he takes my feet and says we are doing jumping jacks, running in place, then holds me up in the air and we run through tires and then places me face down on his lap and we do the combat crawl. Whew! I get tired. I really like running through tires and the combat crawl though. I would rather do boot camp than go to sleep any day. Sleep is for the birds.
What are birds anyway? Do they sleep? Mommy holds me in front of the window and always says, "Do you see the birds? And, I am thinking to myself, "How should I know, what are birds anyway? I just like banging on the glass."

Well, I am getting really tired again. I think it is time for my siesta!

Where does the time go?

Wow!! Our dear sweet friends and family, I apologize that over a month has passed and we haven't kept up with our blog. We get really busy during Spring and Summer with our other commitments and before you know it a week has passed and then another. We are doing great!! Xander had a rough go last week with an ear infection but he is well on the mend and so sweet. He rolls everywhere. He would rather stand than sit and doesn't have a tremendous amount of interest in crawling. He gets where he wants to pretty well. He still belly laughs daily and makes us belly laugh too.

Can a 7 1/2 month old be a comedian already?
He loves to get a crazy response from us by something that he does or a sound that he makes and then our response makes him laugh out loud. He absolutely loves to be outside! Hallelujah! Could you imagine Jason and I with an indoor only baby? That would be tough. He is already saying.. ma-ma, ba-ba and has said

da-da a couple of times. He is so full of personality and has very strong opinions and feels free to express them. I hope he keeps that, well, at least expressing them with tact. Of course, when he is old enough to understand. His curiousity and sense of wonder is so beautiful to observe. God is an amazing god. I stand in awe at His creation and even more so in our child. Do you realize that we were each knitted so beautifully together in our mother's womb? We are designed to be just like we are right now with of course room to grow into what God's ultimate plan is for us. It just makes me speechless.
Beauty. Beauty. Beauty and Wonder. God. Always.
We love you. We miss you. We cherish our relationships with you. Thank you for being a part of our lives. Thank you for allowing God to weave you into His tapestry.

Happy Easter everyone!!

Well we just wanted to wish everyone a very lovely Easter celebration with their glorious King.
Here are just a few pictures of Xander I had to include. The first one was a case of serious bed-head. I had to get a profile of that one for kicks. Poor child. It turned out well considering how he is just chillin' in the recliner and doesn't seem to mind.
Then of course the others I just couldn't resist posting. The 3rd picture looks posed but Xander was playing on our bed. He loves to feel the comforter against his bare legs. He is hilarious. Then I just couldn't leave out a picture of his first two bottom teeth gleaming in that delightful grin. He is a real jewel.
Jason and I have so much fun with him.
We love you all.
Blessings,
Mitzi

Having fun!

Okay, I just love my little jumper thingamajig but how does this thing work? Really? I hang onto a blue rope and it doesn't let me fall no matter how wild I get with my jumping. Huh? I am getting so good at jumping that I can chew on my fist and only hold on with one hand. Excuse the drool on my chin please. I am really working hard on getting some more teeth in so I can eat what Mommy and Daddy are eating. Their food certainly looks better than my weird green stuff. Hey mom, what was that strange yellow stuff you tried to get me to eat yesterday? On the other hand Daddy doesn't give me the chance to see what he is sneaking in my mouth. Then he makes funny faces while I am eating and I forget that it must have been something weird too.
Anyway, I love getting wild and crazy in my jumper especially when Daddy plays music for me. That really makes me want to move. Mommy says I look like the lord of the dance. Who is that?
I have to go now, Mommy said it is naptime.
love, sugar bear.

Our little rock star!

Need we say more? Xander seems to really enjoy music. He especially loves it when he is in his doorway jumper and Jason is playing the mandolin and singing to him. He looks like "Lord of the dance." He makes us laugh so much.

Growing up!

Wow! It is so hard to believe that our little guy will be 6 months old in a week. He already has his first two bottom teeth. Of course right now they are too small to get in a picture. Xander is hard at work teething on his teething bunny trying to get them through. We rarely get photos of all three of us at the same time. Xander's god-mommy spontaneously took this one for us. Thanks Cindy! We are doing great so far. Xander is rolling over. He is trying to sit up but still cannot sit alone. He has such an amazing sense of humor. He is certainly going to be the comic in the family. I fear the practical jokes that he is going to pull on me, worms and frogs anyone?