Flint's One-Year Stats

He's going on 14-months, now, but I guess it's not too late to share an update on Captain Awesome. At 12.5 months, Flint weighed in at 24.1 lbs and was right on track for a 1-year-old boy with height/weight ratios just great.
He was not a fan of shots (duh). I did not anticipate that he would be a fan of shots (4!) but I also did not anticipate that he would cry for a straight 30 minutes following the shots (did I mention there were 4?). Poor buddy.

Flint is becoming quite the ham, with personality blossoming more and more each day. I think language learning is one of my favorite things about child development. I just LOVE it. Every time the boy says a new word or attempts a new sound, it gives me such joy, it's kind of silly. Maybe it has to do with my years teaching special ed, where any minute amount of progress in language is a noteworthy milestone marked by gold stars, standing ovations and fireworks of pride and excitement. He may not be a student of mine, but he still gets the fireworks.
Mr. Flint can name/request the following: Dada, Mama, cack-a (cracker), ball, Lyla (which he says pretty clearly, now, with many difference inflections (and yelling (wonder who he's imitating...))), dat ("that," accompanied by pointing), wa-wa (water or any other liquid), di-puh (diaper). He can also tell us "HI!" "no-no," "whoa-whoa-whoa," "yeah," "huwwo" (with my cell phone up to his ear) and "wow," and is able to answer what puppies and kitties say. In case you don't know, it's "wuh-wuh" (with a gruff Flint voice) and "neow." What he doesn't say, he signs, which is super cool because he can basically communicate all his wants/needs now. Hoorah!
He's trying to name Pap-Pap and Gia, as well, but clams up, naturally, when asked to say someone's name.

Flint is at the "runs everywhere" stage already, too, and is more into the cabinets, drawers, bins, baskets, EVERYTHING!, than Lyla ever was. Or maybe it's that I can spare slightly less attention for immediate redirection. I also hear "it's a boy thing," on this one.

(Doing more "boy" things... *eye roll*)

Mister still wins prizes for being:
A good sleeper. Well, maybe not always "good" but usually "easy." He's never had much trouble just laying down and going to sleep with no hubbub to help him catch his Z's. He does occasionally like to fool around, but he's content to do so. And that's fine by me!

A Super fantastic dancer-boy. The boy's got rhythm! He loves to hit the power button on Lyla's radio and just jam to whatever's on. If he sees Mama, though, he insists on partnering up. So it's kind of tricky to catch him doing his thing without getting roped in. Thus, few videos exist of his danciness.

An eating machine. He's pickier than Lyla ever was, but the kid can pack. It. Away. Seriously. He never stops eating. As Aunt Shannon pointed out to me, my children seem very food-driven. I'm going to have to figure out how to get to the root of this one and help them curb it! Eek! Favorites are yogurt (which he signs for by flailing his pointer finger around emphatically), crackers (which includes anything crunchy that's not necessarily a cracker) and most any fruits. On veggies, the kid is still eating purees because he simply will not chew regular cooked veggies. I'd complain, but purees aren't all that terrible and, as the Doc said, he won't be going to college still eating baby food. So... I guess he'll figure it out at his own pace. And hopefully by that time he'll have also figured out how to eat without humming loudly or otherwise vocalizing... noisily.

A blankie-cuddling champion. I had a special blankie as a kid (*cough* and as an adult *cough*), so it makes me happy that Flint has taken a liking to a certain comfort item as well. Luckily for him (and me) the blankie he prefers has a few copies and versions at our home. We actually have four of the same blankie with only a slightly different pattern. It seems like he only cares about the feel of it anyway. He has, however, caught on to the existence of more than one, and sometimes opts for double the snuggle.

My favorite little boy ever. And he is, in fact, turning quickly into a little boy. Oh, what a weed he is...

We're good...

Thanksgiving 2011 was good. Good food, of course. Good company... yes.

A few days before Thanksgiving, Faryn came over for the day and we made Thanksgiving cookies. We had to get creative because we didn't really have any cookie-cutters shaped like Pilgrims or Indians or turkeys or stuffing or cornucopias or ... anything related to Thanksgiving. A hand-shaped cookie cutter sufficed to make a quasi turkey, though. Hey, they had fun... and that was the point.

We spent Thanksgiving Day with the Pearson side of the family, had our traditional Thanksgiving food, and just enjoyed each other for the day. Flint managed to sleep through the meal, which lowered the stress level at the table to nearly zero. He was missed, though.

The kids played in the backyard and the big dogs frolicked and cavorted as big dogs ought to. Maya managed to sniff out a nest of rats hiding in Dad's woodpile. Believe it or not, in 6 years, this was her first kill. Poor baby rat.

I guess this is the part where I'm supposed to insert my spiel on how thankful we are, right? Well, we are. We've got an overabundance of most things (apart from millions of dollars... and it just doesn't feel right to complain about that one, somehow) and enough love to last many lifetimes. We're good. Life is good. We're thankful.

Cheers!

Lyla at her Thanksgiving Feast at school.


:)

Halloween, 2011

TRICK OR TREAT!

Lyla and Flint had a very Happy Halloween as Queen Lyla Celeste and Sir William Flint!

This year, we trick-or-treated in our own neighborhood (a first!) and with... just ourselves (also, a first!). We stuck to Vista Greens mainly because Luke wasn't feeling tip-top, and certain 3-year-olds hadn't napped. And while we had a very pleasant and private evening as a family, we did miss the hub-bub that could have been. And we missed being with our favorite peeps, of course.

Our Halloween-related discoveries were as follows.

• When children are permitted to wear their costumes to school on October 31st, have a backup ready for trick-or-treating, or send them in a different costume (see paint pictured on Lyla's dress).
  

• Our children are adorable.

• Our neighborhood is lame on Halloween. Well, it's lame any day, but on Halloween in particular, our neighbors are either non-participants, or the overwhelmingly obsessed with Halloween types. Fortunately, our children found that amusing, though we had to travel halfway around the whole neighborhood to hit enough houses to bring in a decent haul.

• Lyla prefers the company of her cousins and/or friends, and is fully accustomed to having her grandparents present at all meaningful (and most of the less meaningful) events.

• The evil cycle of complaining and candy, which shall now be referred to as the CCC, applies to babies with exponentially dramatic repercussions. It goes like this: Flint's complaints are quickly eased by a simple piece of candy. Candy is quickly consumed. Flint's complaints resume and while the original complaint is assuaged, the newer complaint is far louder and more urgent. Repeat.
  

• Candy + Baby = Sticky

• There are far too many princesses. Which is why we were relieved that Lyla chose to be a queen.

• Lyla might be the most bull-headed person I know. Ever. Despite repeated warnings from both parents and despite several prior experiences involving tripping over the front of her lengthy dress whilst running, she continued to run at full speed. And every time she tripped over the front of her dress and fell, we would demonstrate how to either hold the dress up while running or simply walk. She would promptly stand and continue on her merry way of stubbornness. Maybe her hard head lessens the blow when she crashes? Who knows. This is why we wince when she runs. The fall is inevitable.
  

• As Gabba Gabba says, "Too much candy's gonna make you sick!"

• What happened to giving out the good candy?

• Mmmm. Candy.

Long story short, we had fun. Here are some pics and videos.

More photos available HERE!

Fall Festivities

Finally, some crisp weather! Granted, there are still those sneaky 75-degree days in the mix, but we are certainly welcoming the cool air, the morning dew, the heat dial on the thermostat at night, and enjoying the lower sun, the turning leaves and the time we can spend outdoors playing together!

It's been a busy October. We just barely made it to the Pumpkin Farm in time for Halloween!

One event that kept us so busy was the wedding of our good friends, Kerry and Craig. They got married in Houston in the middle of the month and we took a brief family road trip southward about five hours to join in the celebration of their marriage. It was a beautiful day and a beautiful ceremony. We were so happy to have been a part of it, and the kids did great, although they WORE their mother OUT! Luke, being the Best Man, was unable to parent-assist for much of the evening. Thank goodness for helpful friends (I owe Melissa and Kristin each an evening of childcare) willing to love on Mr. Flint while I literally chased Lyla round Craig's parents' enormous (and gorgeous) backyard!
Lyla continues to ask to go "back to the hotel." Why are hotels SO fun!? Flint was not too fond of that portion of the trip. In fact, every time we opened the door to our room, he cried. I guess he didn't like being couped up. We spent lots of time just walking around the halls "exploring."
We finally made it to the Pumpkin Farm on the 29th. Cutting it close, I know! And even then, we only managed to get there about 45 minutes before sunset. In any event, it was the perfect amount of evening sunny and Fall chilly. Lyla totally hammed it up for the camera so she could hurry up, get the pictures done and go play! We did our traditional shot in the wooden stand-ups, posed with some punkin's, then the girly took off to go slide, explore the hay-stack house, old tractors, little pedal-tractors and gawk at the corn maze. Flint had fun throwing various sizes of orange "balls" (yes, pumpkins) around and screaming at the other kids (mostly the little girls playing with each other, who were also doing lots of screaming). He'd seriously just stand there and shriek, all grins, trying to mimic them (or maybe flirt?). When it started to cool off, he became very snuggly and sleepy. That, along with Lyla's need for "her own food" resulted in a pretty quick trip to the pumpkin patch. We had Lyla pick out pumpkins for both Flint and herself, paid, then went across the street to Gia and Pap's to steal some dinner for the starving girly.

Sunday, we invited family over to assist in the carving of the great pumpkins. Whether or not our itty-bitty punkins were "great" is yet to be determined. Lyla designed both pumpkins on paper beforehand and decided what was to be drawn, where, and how big/small/scary/funny, etc. When she insisted on eye lashes for both pumpkins, I suggested maybe just her jack-o-lantern should have them. "But Flint has eyelashes, too. See?" She pointed to Flint's eyes. Too true, Lyla. Too true.

Other photos from October, the pumpkin patch and carving pumpkins are HERE!

Happy 1st Birthday, Flint!

On October 20, 2011, our happy, easy-going, goofy, ball-loving, high-five giving, babbly, screechy, speed-walking, jumpy-dancing, cracker-eating monster, toothy-smiling, big-brown-eyed, finger-sucking, wiggly, busy, hilarious and adorable Mr. William Flint turned ONE!
On his actual birthday, we celebrated by opening gifts from Mommy and Daddy just before Lyla went to school. Later, during naptime, Lyla and Mommy baked our favorite little dude his first birthday cake. Chocolate, chocolate! Yum! Lyla had tons of fun following the directions and helping stir and pour (read: taste). We made Flint a special mini-cake all to himself and used the rest of the batter for cupcakes and a few mini-buggy cakes.

That evening, Gia, Pap, Aunt Shan and Uncle John paid a visit and watched Captain Carb Junkie dive into the messy deliciousness. I set up a backdrop and prepared to snap some photos while he stuffed his face and smeared chocolate everywhere. Much to Flint's confusion and simultaneous delight, everyone sang Happy Birthday and Luke set the tiny mocha tower in front of him, then offered him the first taste. Slowly, but surely, he went to town. He hardly moved from his spot beside his special treat and diligently worked his way through the gooey icing to fistfuls of crumbly cake. I thought surely we'd have to pry his fingers off the cake plate, but he soon had his fill and simply stood up to walk away - Cue Daddy for emergency fast-bath! The boy literally left a chocolate ring around the tub!

Two days later, we celebrated all over again at Flint's First Birthday Party! Per what has now been deemed tradition, he had his first party at Grandma and Pap's house. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful Fall day (Okay, maybe it could have been a little more "Fallish," Texas! But we thank you for the sunshine, though we stayed in the shade as much as we could).

We went with a "ball" theme, since that seems to be Flint's #1 mostfavoritethingever.
Gia bought a small kiddie pool and filled it with several bags of ball-pit balls (I think the count ended up being something like 500). The boy had plenty of practice time in the days prior to the party.

With the ball pit being outside (another favorite) on party day, he was super excited. He rolled around, threw balls, gnawed on balls, swam around in the balls, buried himself in the balls (with assistance, of course) and simply chilled out, as well. He was accompanied by family and some close family-friends. Gideon won the prize, though, for most chillaxed.

Flint was not too keen on the opening presents part. I imagine it's hard to understand something like that when it isn't a regular experience. But with his sister's help, he did his best. We tried to go pretty fast to hold his attention. It's been a week, now, and I can safely say (and my wrecked house can attest!) that he is thankful for all the wonderful toys, books, clothes, and hand crocheted Yoda hats he received.

And again, Flint got to chow down on loads of sugary cake, this time in the shape of a ball! Mmm. Everyone else enjoyed cake balls and brownie balls while Flint shredded his own cakey "mah." Following more playtime in the yard with his besties, the boy crashed for a few hours. I know naps are greatness, but birthday naps must be super awesome. They always seem to last a little longer...

What a day! We had so much fun enjoying our little man. A year ago, I remember not being able to wrap my head around how I could ever love another child as much as I love my Lyla. Well, Flint, you enlightened me! And while I don't tend to think of the day of your birth with quite such fondness (at least all the part before you finally came out), I'd relive it everyday for my favorite little boy of all time. We love you SO much! Happy Birthday, Son-shine!
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More birthday pics (yes, there are more... ah!) in this album on Picasa.