Home Sweet Home

Well, we move out in 18 days... but who's counting?   Although we have had the possibility of moving in our heads for 3 years now, I think I am finally ready.  Anytime we've had people come look at our house, it's been kinda hard for me to imagine not living here.  This house does hold a lot of sentimental significance for me over the last 4 1/2 years:

• it was the first real place of my own
• it is the first house I ever bought
• it was where my sister and I were roommates for about a year (and we painted, renovated, redecorated every inch of it with the help of great friends that first year)
• it was where I spent thousands of hours talking on the phone with Mike when we "dated" long-distance
• it was where he first kissed me
• it was where he proposed
• it was our first home together as a married couple
• it is the only home Josiah has ever known

So it's not just a house... it's our home.  And it's FULL of great memories.  But that being said, as Josiah has grown from a baby to a toddler and he bonks his head on the pretty laminate floors and I cringe as he comes toddling around the glass top tables, and every time we put a leash on Shelby to take her out to go potty for the hundredth time, and our yard isn't really "our" yard so we can't have a swingset or fun outdoor toys for Josiah, or I ride through a neighborhood with kids playing outside and wish we had that... it helps me let go.  It's not that I haven't loved our condo, but we're ready for something more family-friendly.  It's definitely harder to get excited when we can only see what we're letting go of, and we don't yet know what is next, but we are trusting that God is leading us and we know that the best is yet to come.  

Party Time

I have been excited about planning Josiah's first birthday party since he was born!  I know he may not have totally understood what was going on and he may not exactly remember it, but I know he had a really fun day and he can look back at pictures and see how excited we were to celebrate him!  

At first, I struggled to come up with a theme because when I started planning several months ago, he wasn't exactly "into anything."  But I came across this adorable "Little Red Car" idea on a blog and I just loved the color scheme so I decided on it.  Well literally within days, Josiah's fascination with cars began!  He LOVES cars!  He is often found crawling with one car in each hand or standing up at the couch and letting them "race" & "crash" off the sides.  He says his version of "vroom vroom" and his face lights up when he sees his cars. 

So here's a little party recap, for anyone interested!

The invitations (6x9 flat cards from printed by vistaprint.com): 

The cake and cupcakes (design by Pizazzarie, baked & decorated by Christy Johnson):

The Birthday Boy with his cute color-coordinated cars outfit that my mom found!:

The Decorations: Red, White & Baby Blue.... balloons, streamers & homemade birthday banners:

The Menu: 

Hotdogs

Chicken Skewers

Potato Salad

Baked Beans

Squash Casserole

Chips & Cheetos

Lemonade, Water & Blue & Red Kool-aid Coolers

The entertainment:

The Treats:

Treat bags for each child had stickers (I designed and had printed on vistaprint.com) that said "Vroom.. Vroom.. Let's Play Again Soon! ~ Josiah" & a "Fill Up Station" full of red & blue candy to take home. 

What it was all about:

Josiah's First Year

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Josiah turns ONE on Tuesday and we had lots of fun celebrating his birthday this weekend! (pictures/party details to come soon)  It was so hard to narrow down a year's worth of memories into a five minute slideshow, but here is a little recap of the fun we've had with our sweet little man who makes us laugh every single day and is always 100% boy (well...except when he hands me my makeup and brushes my hair while I get ready in the morning....but that's just because he doesn't know any better and I need to keep him entertained so I can get ready... haha!)   

Feeding the Whole Family

I've gotten in a bit of a rut with meals lately and I think it's largely due to the fact that I need some new recipes or ideas to feed the whole family.  Josiah loves to eat our food, but a lot of the things I used to cook for just Mike and I aren't quite right for him yet.  (We tend to eat a lot of spicy foods, mexican, or sometimes meats that he doesn't have enough teeth yet to chew up.)  I'm also much more conscious of feeding Josiah only healthy, balanced meals... so I hesitate to give him a casserole or something we might eat that's probably not good for any of us!  Actually, I think this will be good for Mike and I too if I focus on preparing meals that all 3 of us can eat. 

So I need your suggestions!!!  What are some healthy family meals that you fix -- that would work for a one-year-old who mostly eats what he can pick up with his fingers!  He's quickly getting tired of me feeding him with a spoon and prefers to try it himself, but that's obviously a big mess... so most of the time I give him simple finger foods like chicken, cheese, peas, pasta, brocolli....etc.

Ideas for the Birthday Boy

Since we've been getting asked what Josiah might like for his birthday.... here are a few things we think he'll love.  For the rest of you with kids, what are/were some of your one-year-old's favorite things?

1. 
   
   Double Bike Trailer
2. 
   
   Wagon (with seats/straps)
3. 
   
   Water Table 
4. 
   
   Busy Ball Popper
5. 
   
   Beach Tent (something easy to tote that provides shade from the sun)
6. 
   
   Walking Shoes!  (giftcard to StrideRite is probably best since his feet are growing fast)
7. 
   
   He likes toys that he can stack/knock down.
8. 
   
   He has a bunch, but he definitely loves Cars.

Happy Father's Day!

You're silly,  you're sweet, you're steady and you're always there for me.  You make me smile, you make me laugh, you make me breakfast.  You sing, you dance, you make crazy noises, you cheer me on, you swing me around.  When I was really little and didn't feel so good, you rocked me to sleep, you bounced me to sleep, you walked me to sleep, and split the night-shift with mommy.  You taught me early about how cool sports are, especially college football... and I'll always be your little football buddy. Fridays are our special days together.  I'm so lucky to have a dad like you, and I hope I grow up to be as great of a guy as you.  I'm sad when you go to work in the morning, but I get soooo excited when you get home.  I sure like to make you smile and I hope you have had a GREAT first Daddy's Day. "I love you da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da!"

~Josiah

Baby #2

Haha!  No, we're not pregnant!  And here's a big reason why:  We have 48 days left to find a renter for our condo.  Which means... assuming we find a renter, we will be moving in less than 2 months?!  Holy Crap!!!!  (If you're wondering what the heck we're doing... call me and I'll explain!)  And... if you know anyone looking for a place, let us know!!! 

In other news, Josiah is starting to stand up without holding on to anything... and my guess is he'll take those first steps before his 1st birthday!   First Birthday!???  Crazy... it's only 1 month away!! The party-planning is well underway, although packing & moving now has to fit into my time somehow too.  And we're back to considering finding a new home for the Shelby-girl.  :(  Josiah is definitely the instigator, but Shelby isn't too tolerant of him chasing her and pulling her hair or ears or face... and the more she growls, the more he laughs and tries harder... and the worse she growls/snaps.  So...we're obviously not getting rid of Josiah...and that leaves us little choice for Shelby. Ughhhh.... tough decision.  

And with all that going on... don't even ask when we're gonna have baby #2!  haha!  Eventually... but not right now!   Instead... enjoy some more pictures of the cutest little boy ever:  Click Here for Entire June Photo Album