Home Owners

     So we finally signed the papers last week and we got the house for an ending price of $16,000! I am super excited and nervous. I have never actually owned a house before and I think the last big purchase I made was my car. The nice thing about paying cash outright for the house is no more house payments. There is a piece of mind that comes with knowing you own the house, that no one can take it away from you. Now when you first see the house you would probably think to yourself, "what the heck where you thinking?!" Yes, as of right now the house kinda has that death trap look to it, but it's not really that bad. There are some major things that need to be fixed but there are also the minor things that make it look much better. What I love about this house is that I can make it my house. I can tear down walls, put walls up, add rooms, paint the walls and just do whatever.
      What really got me excited about the house was the huge backyard! While we were waiting for our agent to come show us the house we went in the backyard. Kyle and Sariah loved it. They loved running / crawling through the grass. I could just picture being outside and watching the kids playing as they get older. I could see my garden in the corner and the berry bushes lining the fence. When we first went in the house the kids went nuts. It's probably the biggest house they have been in yet. It felt like home even though it was completely empty. I could picture Vincent in his office doing his work while me and the kids are in the kitchen making lunch. I could picture their laughter echoing through the house as well as their screaming at one another.
      All I can say is that this house is a blessing, and had it not been for God I am not sure we would have gotten it.

A little late but never

    Kyle is 18 1/2 months old and I was starting to think he would never walk! It would appear that he seems more content to get up on his hands and knees and crawl around then stand on his own two feet and walk. And it's not a lack of trying to encourage him to walk either. He has a jeep walker, a lawn mover and other things he can push around, he just chooses to crawl. He is getting better about letting go, standing, and walking. Mainly because a lot of time if we are in a open space and he has nothing to grab onto I will just let go of him. I have decided that he is going to stand and walk even if he doesn't want to. No I am not a mean mommy but I do find myself standing in front of him with my arms out and then step backwards. When I stop and think about it, it does seem rather cruel to encourage him to come to me then move. However, this method has seemed to work. Sunday at church he was walking all over the place, unassisted! And he is doing it more and more at home. I say by next week he will be a full blown walker. So as they say better late then never and way to go Kyle!

Now if I can just get him to talk a little bit more :)

Kyle is growing up

Sariah is growing up

Overcoming fear

Fear is something that everyone has to overcome. From birth we are afraid of a lot of different things. One of the first few fears that we overcome is the fear of sitting up, crawling,walking and standing alone. It’s amazing to watch as children learn to overcome those fears, to achieve those goals.

For Kyle he has been somewhat of a late bloomer, he never hit the milestones when a lot of other kids where hitting them. He has really taught me a valuable lesson in patience. Recently we have really been working on his walking (he is getting close to 18 months). He is pretty good about walking when he is pushing something or holding on, but he just isn’t ready to let go. Over the last week he has gotten braver and braver. He has been letting go and standing on his own, although I don’t think he realizes it just yet. He has also been taking small baby steps, like 3 steps at a time. My goal is that he is walking by Christmas, don’t think it’s a lofty goal.

Becoming a big girl so fast

Every day that passes Sariah gets another day older. Not only does she get older, but she is trying and learning new things. Today was our first day of sippy cup use. Yes, that is right we used a sippy cup. Now baby girl isn’t even 6 months old yet and I wasn’t sure if she was ready, however big brother Kyle thought she was. It was lunch time for Sariah and I had put her in the high chair / booster seat and I guess Kyle thought she might be a bit thirsty. He took his cup (it has a straw) and put it on the tray and she grabbed it and put it to her mouth and tried to suck on it. So I decided while I am trying to get her to poop to give her apple juice and instead of giving it in a bottle I did a sippy cup that Kyle doesn’t use anymore. She had some issues with the juice running out of her mouth, but other then that she did pretty good.



Still have a hard time seeing how fast she is growing up, next thing you know she’ll be sitting up on her own (we are working on that) and crawling around (she has perfected the art of rolling over) and talking (you can always tell from her blah blahs when she is happy or mad).

These are the times to cherish I say.

Milestones - Comparing my two little ones.

The joy of have two small children can be overwhelming, it can also be very challenging. If one thing is certain, just because Kyle and Sariah share the same DNA and looks they are two different children. This is proven by the way they are developing.
Milestones are a big deal in a child's life, it's really how we base their development. Granted each child can hit those milestones at different times, some children achieve milestone markers before others, while some are just late bloomers. I used to get hung up on Kyle hitting those milestone markers in his early development and would get disappointed when he didn't hit it the month it was to be expected. If Kyle has ever taught me one thing in life it's this...patience! Kyle is who I would consider a late bloomer if you base his development on a milestone chart, but you know what he is learning at his pace. I am in no rush for him to grow up just yet. Do I wish he could walk, yes I do. Do I wish he could / would say more words, yes. But as long as his doctor isn't worried then I am not going to worry about it. Personally I think he knows how to do these things, he just chooses not to do them. He is a very bright little boy, and I see a lot of potential in him.
Sariah on the other hand seems to be hitting her milestones right on track. I mean it's like night and day between the two. Here is a list of the milestones she has hit already

Motor Development

Opens and shuts his hands. More...
Raises his head and chest while lying on his stomach More...
Stretches her legs out and kicks when lying on stomach or back. More...
Supports her upper body with her arms when lying on stomach. More...
Swats at dangling toys placed near him. More...
Mouths objects brought to her face. More...
Reaches and grasps for things with both hands. More...
Pushes down on legs when feet are placed on a firm surface. More...

Visual Development

Watches faces intently. More...
Turns head toward direction of sound. More...
Follows moving objects with his eyes. More...
Recognizes familiar objects and people at a distance. More...

Language Development

Begin to babble. More...

Social/Emotional Development

Reacts when you sing, call his name, or attempt to play. More...
Enjoys playing with other people; may cry when playing stops. More...
Becomes more communicative with face and body. More...
Smiles! Grins! More...
Recognizes familiar faces. More...
Appears joyful often. More...
Laughs out loud. More...

Cognitive Development

Stares at her hands and fingers. More...
Plays with her fingers. More...
Brings his hands to his mouth. More...
Has accustomed to regular eating and sleeping patterns.

It's hard to think that she can do all these things when she is still so little. I am so proud of both of my children and how far they have come already, and I am excited to see how they progress.







Even though Sariah has rolled over more then a few times it seems like she just didn't want to do it today, but she gave her best effort.

Growing up so fast

Did you know that kids grow up way to fast? Yeah it's so true. Sariah is 14 weeks old and getting bigger everyday. Watching my little girl hit different milestones is awesome, but saddening. It's the same thing with Kyle, every day he is getting bigger and bigger and more independent. Is it bad of me to want them both to stay small? Sariah is a little talker and mover, I fear that one of these days I am going to look over while we are doing tummy time to see that she has just taken off. She is already trying to get up on her knees, and can sorta push herself while on her tummy. Maybe I got spoiled because Kyle took a long time to crawl and I kinda liked it like that (yes I know that sounds bad). She also reaches for things and holds onto toys, pacis and fingers. My little girl is also no longer just happy with a bottle and wants real food. She loves sitting up so she can look around and see what's going on, and she loves watching football.
As I said before she loves to talk and growl. I am not so sure where the growling came from, but it's kinda cute.
So here is a short video of Sariah talking to her bear.


Again, both of my kids are growing up way to fast for my liking and I wish they would stay small, but it's all part of life.