twenty-two month gunner.

Dearest Gunner,

You have grown incredible measures this year already!

 

You are approaching your second birthday now and I can’t even wrap my brain around where the time has gone.  You are so full of life, love, laughter and personality now, every day is so much fun with you!

 

I haven’t blogged on you in awhile and there is just SO MUCH going on with you now – I definitely have been wanting to update the world, or just you, on what life is like for you at this moment in time.

 

- You grew a full inch this last month!  We have a measuring chart on the wall in the kitchen and we measured you last week and I was SHOCKED to see a full inch had gapped the lines from where you stood last month.  I really couldn’t believe it, I even had your dad come and re-do it like three times to make sure I wasn’t doing it wrong.

 

-You eat a TON of food. It’s insane to me that you are so petite still because you eat more than anyone I know probably (besides your dad) – but that’s definitely your dads genes shining through. (Lucky!)

 

- You are a lot pickier with foods now though, but when you like something – you gobble it up like it’s your first meal in days.

 

- You are wearing size 3 diapers, size 12 month clothes and you are now in size 5 shoes.  I actually started picking up 18 month shirts just so they’re more comfy for you – and I got so excited to see some new sizes in your drawers!  Your pants are a little loose right now since you grew so much (upwards) so I can’t even fathom anything bigger than 9/12 month bottoms right now.

 

- You’re still a great sleeper (hallelujah for that!) Right now your bedtime is 10-11PM but sometimes you go to bed earlier, and sometimes a little later – just depending on how you’re feeling.  You really do tell US when you’re ready, you’ll either lay down in your teepee with your blanket and say “nigh nigh” or you’ll seriously run to your room and tell us it’s “nigh nigh time”.  I’m sure people think we’re crazy for letting you stay up so late but to be honest, I couldn’t imagine coming home from work and putting you to bed a few short hours later.  I squeeze as much time as I can with you at night and your dad does the same on the weekends when he’s working.  It works for us, and I know you love our time together after sister goes to sleep and we get that “one-on-one time” again. 

 

- You ride front-facing in the car now in your big boy carseat and you LOVE it.  We all love it and now I am so excited for when your sister can turn to the front also because it’s so much fun getting to talk and look at each other during car rides.  I find myself constantly looking in the rear-view mirrors to watch you watch the world pass by in your window.

 

- With that – you are giving me HEART ATTACKS now because you discovered the window buttons and car handles and you love to try and grab them.  Even with the child-locks on, the windows-locked and the doors locked – I still have panic attacks the second your little fingers touch the door.  So you’ve been bumped over to the middle seat a lot lately.  And because you’re a bit of a diva and freak out if the sun is on you, so it’s a win-win for us both.

 

- You are still a really great big brother to Kenzie.  You love helping us with her and you are always trying to be in the mix of what she is doing.  You know your sister and tell everyone about her all the time.  Did-ter has been one of your favorite words for a long time now and it makes sense because really do love her.  You help me and dad tuck her in at night and you love turning on her nightlight for her and saying “nigh nigh didter” before shutting the door for us.  You LOVE getting to be the one to wake her up in the mornings and you laugh and laugh when she pops her head up and sees you. You love helping make her bottles and now you even help us feed her foods.  You are learning to see all the perks of being a big brother, and it’s really special to watch your bond grow stronger.

- You talk N O N S T O P.  Our house is never quiet unless it is bed/nap time.  You always have so much to say about every single thing.  You can say a TON of words now too!  Top most “repeated” words in our house are: sy-co (for motorcycle) apple, nigh nigh, didter, mama, dada, oggy (dog), bye bye, hel-lowwww (hello), ball, yum (especially when you hear the red robin commercials), bite (when food is around), oosh (juice) and probably a hand full of other words I cant think of right now.  Then you mix that with the billion random words and noises you pick up on every day – and you got a full vocabulary of baby talk, or “Gunner Talk” we like to say. I love it so much!

 

- As great as you are a talker – you are an even better listener!  I know you can’t say all the words you want, but boy do you understand them! We can say or point to anything in the house and you’ll run over and get the exact thing we’re talking about.  You understand words so well and you are so smart, it amazes me every day.

 

- You are LEARNING so much! You know where and how to point to your eyes, nose, ears, mouth, hands, toes, hair, cheeks, tongue and you can point to them on other people also!

 

- You LOVE making people laugh and you are really silly.  You'll do just about anything even it means running full speed into the couch and throwing yourself on top of it OVER and OVER if it is making people laugh. Once someone laughs at something you do - you make sure we see it at least 10 times more because you think it's the best thing ever when people are laughing and being silly with you.

 

- You FINALLY like taking pictures again!  You have a "cheese face" now that when I tell you to smile for the camera you close your eyes and smile extra hard for the camera.  Even though it's not a "natural" smile and it's more "silly" than anything - I do love it because I finally am getting to catch up on photos of you! (which is great because now Kenzie is the one who won't sit still for pictures!)  But yes, you have a classic smile face and it always cracks me up.  Oh yes, and you make silly faces now too. (anything to make us laugh, right?)

- You listen to instructions so well also (when you want to) and you LOVE helping us do things around the house.  No joke, your biggest joy comes from helping sweep the kitchen or the patio outside, you LOVE sweeping and LOVE vacuuming and always want to do it on your own.  Everyone’s house has their own broom and cleaning supplies just for you because they know that’s your favorite thing to do.  It’s hilarious!  Then if anyone drops something on the floor or there is a mess – you are the first person to run over and clean it up and say “oh noooo!” then go and throw it in the trash!  It’s the cutest thing but also a hazard when we go to public places outdoors because you try to grab everything off the floors to throw away.  Youre on constant alert for things to clean up, I am POSITIVE that’s from your dad.

 

- You are a total BOY.  Your favorite toys right now are your toy guns and you love shooting people and yelling “bang bang” and then we have to throw ourselves on the floor and act like you shot us – and it cracks you up EVERY single time.  Then we will grab your gun and make the bang noise and you THROW yourself on the floor and start rolling around.  I’m thinking dad snuck a few episodes of cops in during the day because I don’t know where you picked it up – but it’s the funniest thing ever.

 

- You love playing outside and going to the park and just running FREE.  You have more energy than ever now and you get very rambunctious if you’re cooped up for too long – so we’re constantly taking you to the park now to run free and just play till your hearts content.

 

- With that, restaurants, shopping trips and long car rides are pretty much off the table right now just because you don’t like being held for too long or constricted to anything.  You want to be FREE at all times.  You have learned to hold hands when we tell you, so that’s very AWESOME because now you have learned you can walk free as long as you hold hands, and that’s a great compromise (and completely adorable).

 

- You are a total mama’s boy.  TOTAL mama’s boy.  I don’t know how long this stage will last so I soak every second of it up.  You are very clingy now with me and always want to be held or just be near me if we’re doing anything.  You’re very jealous as well right now if anyone is near me and you are not, including your sister (makes bath time extra fun) – but we’re working on the jealousy part.  At night you grab your blanket and run over to me just so you can cuddle up with me when you play with your toys.  You’re my little shadow now and I don’t think I’ve ever felt another human love me as strongly as you do (your sister is a total daddy’s girl right now, lol!) – but yes, you are the most loving little boy and I couldn’t be more thankful for the sweet and warm heart you carry inside. I’ll be very sad when this stage ends. 

 

- You love going bye-bye now and you especially love when you get to go to your grandparents house.  You now can recognize when we get to someone’s house that you’ve been to before and you start laughing and pointing when we pull into the driveway or see someone you know – and then instantly trying to jump out of your carseat.  You make everyone feel so loved and that’s a very special gift little man.

 

- You love playing with dad.  Whatever your dad is doing, you are trying to copy.  You're definitely his biggest fan.  Anytime you hear any loud car or truck or see a motorcycle - you instantly yell out "dada sy-co!" you think everything that has wheels is like dad's motorcycle and you are always telling people about it.  When you learn a cool trick with your toy, do something that makes us laugh or even learn a new dance move - you instantly look around for me and your dad to show.  You guys have a very special bond and I see so often and can't help but just smile.  Your favorite things to do with dad are when you guys are on your own - you love when he's in the garage or outside working on the yard, you're right next to him with your own set of "tools" or "yard tools" and you're doing the same thing. You love helping him do things and anytime he tells you what you have to do you instantly go "oh! kay!" and run over and do it for him.  Then there are times when the house gets quiet and I can't find you guys and I'll go in our room and see you both just laying in bed together, snacking on jelly beans (his special treat he only gives you) watching UFC together. You definitely have a special bond unlike any other and it's so so sweet.  You and your sister bring out the softie in your dad, and that's a very beautiful thing to witness first-hand everyday.

 

I could seriously go on and on in regards to you and how much you are doing at this stage in life, but I think this is the best summary I can give.  Overall Gunner, you are incredible.  You are so happy, so full of life, so energetic, so incredibly smart and you’re just growing up so fast right before our eyes.  I see you watching the world around you and you are just taking it all in, one word and action at a time.  You’re a sponge and pick up on things so fast.  For being a small boy, you have the biggest heart and you are always showing that to people, in the way you hug, the smiles you shine at them, and the way you always want to be the first person to help someone with what they are doing.  You’re a true gift Gunner and I am so thankful that we were blessed to have you enter our lives. I can’t imagine a more perfect little boy and I’m the lucky one who gets to be your mama.

 

Thank you for the last twenty-two months of pure bliss, and pure love.  You have changed your dad and me in more ways than you can ever imagine.  I am so excited to watch you grow up and continue learning, I can only imagine how much more you will learn and do before your birthday rolls around.

 

Love always, Mom.

 

 

 

9 Months of McKenzie!

So yes, the blog is about 27 dates late again.

BUT in true “Roya Blogging Fashion” I am actually on time with my dating of this post. 

I’ll get better someday, scouts honor.

 

My Sweet Little Kenzie.  How you are growing into quite the little girl.

I swear I blinked and you were sleeping on my chest all bundled up in my hands, and now – now you are crawling, standing, talking & I can’t get you to just “lay” on my chest unless I empty a bag of Puffs on my chest to eat.

It’s so sad and heartbreaking that the newborn baby in you grew up so quickly, but I can’t lie either in saying that I am loving this new age you are at.

You are so independent, smart and determined – You make my job so easy because you literally do NOT want anyone’s help, ever.

So yes, that is another bittersweet reality of your nine month self, you don’t need mama as much as you used to.

But you are still the incredibly sweet, loving and big-hearted baby you were nine months ago – and for that I am so grateful.

 

-          This month you’re biggest thing is TALKING! You try your hardest to mimic the sounds and noises you hear us making, and you like to try and copy our mouth movements too.  When you’re crying you’ll sometimes get a full “mama!” out or “maaaa-maaaa” out and it makes me so happy inside!

-          You also are making sounds to copy your brother.  He’ll say words or yell noises or, just yell out loud in general – and you will be right there following his lead yelling out your own noises and trying to sound just like him.  Super cute but not always nice to have you tag team your dad and me! (LOL)

-          You pretty much do everything you can to be like/with your brother.  If he is playing with a toy, you crawl as fast as you can over to where he’s at and try playing right along side him.  If he is doing something like banging on his drums, you’ll follow his lead and start banging on the drums or on your toy to make the same noises he is.  You are his biggest fan and it is the sweetest thing ever watching you look up to him so much already.

-          You completely turn down help with feeding yourself bottles now!  Anytime you see a bottle or sippy cup – you help yourself to it and push our hands away if we try to hold it for you or help you.  You’re very independent already which is so great, but I do love when you are sleepy and let me hold your bottle for you and rock you to sleep – helps me remember that you are still my baby (as much as you try to act like a toddler already)

-          You are the FASTEST crawler ever!  It’s so funny because you do the same army-crawl w/ your arms that Gunner did – (I swear you guys were meant to be twins because you do so many things exactly the same) – but yes you are FAST!  I can’t put you down even for a minute w/o you crawling completely out of sight or down the hallway or kitchen.  Seriously, it’s insane to watch you zip through the house.

-          When you aren’t flying through the house on the floor – you are STANDING tall and proud!  You love standing up and anything everything that you can get your hands on, you instantly pull yourself up and stand like a big girl on your own!

-          You love bouncing and dancing now!  Anytime music comes on the TV or radio – if you are standing you start bouncing and screaming or you just start shaking your legs and swaying (also while screaming in excitement) – it cracks us up every time!

-          As much as you love your brother and want to be his sidekick – you are also very much your own person.  You will follow him around all day, but as soon as you see something you want to do – you have no problem leaving and going on your own down the hall or across the play room to get the toy you want, and play on your own.  You are super independent and it’s a great thing because you are learning to rely on yourself already and that’s amazing for someone so little as you.

-          You are ALWAYS on a mission of some sort. Always.  I wish I could be in your brain sometimes because I always sit on the floor and watch you and just wonder what is going on in that brain of yours because you act with so much purpose.  Then all of a sudden you’ll get something or do something and just start yelling and laughing in excitement, that’s when I know your mission was accomplished.

-          You are freakishly strong.  Everyone comments on it and it’s no joke.  Even your doctor has mentioned it.  You can out strength us and your brother already and it’s the craziest thing!

-          You are very flexible and bendy.  Definitely see gymnastics in your future because you are insanely flexible.  Definitely didn’t get that from your mama but you are surely double-jointed.  I have to do double-takes when I look over and see you bent like a pretzel trying to get something or playing with your toys. 

-          You are still (I am so happy to report) the HAPPIEST little baby I’ve ever seen.  You are constantly smiling, laughing, giggling or squealing in excitement.  Everyone loves you so much and your smiles just light up a room instantly.  Everything makes you laugh and no matter how stressed I am or overwhelmed I may get sometimes, I just look at you and your big smiles and everything instantly is forgotten.  It’s a very p powerful gift you have sweet girl, and mama is so grateful to see that you are so happy all the time.

-          You are still a yeller.  LOL, you a very very vocal little lady.  You love to scream and yell and squeal as loud as you can.  Whether you are happy, mad, excited or just want us to look at you – screaming is your thing.  Sometimes I get worried people are looking at us like we’re crazy people in stores when you scream and yell – but then they look over at you and see your big smiles and legs kicking in excitement – and they just smile back at you. It’s super super cute.

-          You’ve got LOTS more blonde hair that has come in this past month.  You’re a total blonde and so far your hair is straight like your dad’s. You got to wear your first hair clip the other day w/ your “bangs” and that was a fun new hairstyle!  There’s nothing sweeter than seeing all your hair come in though, I’ve been waiting for it to make it’s appearance and it’s coming in full-force now and so sweet!

-          You have FIVE teeth now (two on bottom and three on top) – SO CUTE!!

-          Since you have teeth now you are eating  a lot more table foods and that’s a lot of fun also getting to introduce to you a whole new world of foods and flavors.  You are definitely taking after me in the sense that, so far, there is NOTHING you turn down when it comes to food!  You love all veggies and fruits, all the snacks we give you and oatmeal and applesauce the best.  Jar foods you are getting to be a bit picker on, but who could blame you now that you’ve got the real foods at your fingertips!

-          You have definitely become more fond of the sippy cups now!  You love your juice and water and snack times with your brother and it’s SO NICE getting to make ONE snack/ juice round for you both.  Same w/ dinners and meals – it’s almost at the point where we can get away with making one thing for the whole family, and just cut them up to you and your brothers size portions.

-          You are trying to walk, but not quite there yet (which is FINE with me!)  You are so fast at crawling and pulling yourself up to stand – I know the day you realize you can walk you will be GONE!  Then I really will never ever see the sight of a couch or “sitting” again because you will be so fast once you pick it up.

-          You CAN, however, walk across the whole house while holding our hands.  We just hold your hands and you do the rest and you can walk from one side all the way to the other side of the house just w/ a slight holding of our fingers. Pretty impressive stuff for not even being 10 months!

 

Those are the biggest things, I know there are a lot of things in this blog but what can I say – you are growing at RAPID speed right now and there’s always something new you are learning to do or say.  I’m sure even with these updates, there are dozens I am missing out on because you are just doing so much right now.

 

 

Another thing that happened this month is your Eye Appointment.  Your Pediatrician wanted us to take you to see a specialist this month to look into your eyes and abilities to focus.  Ever since you were born you have had a very sassy way of looking at the world out of the corner of your eyes or side of your face.  You’ve always done it so I’ve never thought anything of it.  Well, your doctor wanted to make sure it wasn’t anything that was bothering you or causing you to not see 100% clearly, so we took you to a vision specialist to get your eyes examined.

The Dr. Dilated your eyes and gave you a full exam and you did SO GREAT!  You didn’t cry when they put the drops in, and you actually had a really fun time doing all their activities and games to test your vision!  I was so so proud of you and I was certainly way more frightened and anxious than you were while at the specialist appointment.

The specialist said that you are 100% on track in  your motor skills and vision capability.  She diagnosed you with something called Occular Motor Apraxia, which is a delay in your horizontal saccades (which causes you to look out of the corners of your eyes sometimes because that’s how you focus better).  She said that right now you are absolutely PERFECT (her words I swear!) and that she doesn’t see any reason to do anything further right now.  We go back in one year for another exam and will see at that time what/if we need to do anything.

 

So yes, it was a BIG MONTH for you McKenzie and just like everything else – you take it all in stride.  You really are such a ray of sunshine in our lives, you just brighten up our worlds.  I am so proud of you and all the things you are learning and teaching yourself to do right now.  You are at the biggest point in your life so far in regards to your development, and you are hitting every single milestone and advancing in so many fields.  You are as smart as you are beautiful and THAT my love, is a huge deal because you are the PRETTIEST little thing I ever set eyes on.

 

Love always, Mom.

{family of FOUR photos}

A couple weeks ago we got family photos done!

This is something I have been wanting to do since Kenzie was born and I am so happy we finally got them taken. 

I'm also so thankful for my amazingly talented friend Stephanie who took them for us.  They turned out better than I ever imagined and I am so happy with them!

 

I'm already ready to schedule our next session because (no surprise to anyone) I really just LOVE getting pictures of our little ones and our family.  Because ya'll know how fast their looks change and grow up!

 

Here are some of my favorite shots <3

 



8 Months of McKenzie!

So yes, this is super late.

But yes, we are SUPER busy lately.

We have a walker RUNNER and a CRAWLER.

We barely get time to sit down & blogging has fallen wayyyyy behind.

{My apologies, sweet girl}

 

Anywho, let's get to your updates missy!

You are growing like a weed right now and allllllll over the place!

 

- You are a VERY happy little girl!  You are always smiling ear to ear and you love laughing so much.  Nothing makes my mama heart happier than hearing and seeing your sweet smiles all day long.

- You are a giggler.  You giggle anytime someone looks your way or smiles at you.

- You are incredibly tickelish!  You laugh and scream and your whole body freaks out when you get tickled, so of course - you get tickled a lot because it's so stinkin cute to watch!

- You are quite the talker these days!  You talk to everything and everyone.  Your toys, your bottle, your brother (even when he's not near you) and you are always talking in car rides also.  I love that you have found your voice and I love hearing you talk and learning new sounds you can get out.

- With talking, you are a SCREAMER. I never knew the type until you, LOL.  You scream at everything.  Whether you're mad, happy, sad, frustrated, or laughing - screaming is your favorite way to express yourself.  Sometimes we can tell if it's a good scream or bad (based off your face and if the screaming comes along w/ smiles & laughing) - but sometimes, I really don't know whether to help you or smile at you because you scream at everything!

- You are a bit bossy my love.  I actually think it's cute (you're dad not so much) - but I think it's awesome that you are so vocal and expressive.  I can tell in your demeanor that you are going to be a very strong woman.  You know what you want and you will NOT let anything stand in your way of getting it.  Whether it be screaming until you get it, crawling back to the same spot 29283490220 times after we move you away, or fighting with all your energy to get past barriers we put up - you will FIGHT for what you want, every single time.  Pros & cons to that now - but I think in the long run it'll be a very great strength & trait you have within yourself.

- Yes, you are a fighter.  Fighter in the sense that you stand up for yourself as well.  For example: the other day your brother took the toy you were playing with away for no reason at all.  You screamed at him, crawled alllllll the way across the room as fast as I've ever seen you crawl, PULL his hair so he fell on the ground, you took that toy back, screamed (of course), and crawled alllll the way back to your other toys.  Yeah.  It's an issue.  I can't tell which one of you is more rough with the other but it's for certain that you can take your brother down now.  And you will if you need to.

- You are crazy fast at crawling now.  You sometimes will go slow and just "mosey around" looking for something to get into, but once you spot a toy or your brother - you are GONE!  So fast.  There's been times where we cannot even catch you before you get into the kitchen because you're just so fast.  And SNEAKY!  For a screamer and very vocal baby, you know when to be quiet so you can sneak into things you know are not for you.

- With being a fighter, you are also a huge LOVER.  You are the most loving baby I've ever seen.  You love nothing more than being held and just loved on.

- I am very happy to say that you are a MAMA's GIRL. (First a brother's girl, then a mama's girl - but I'll take it!)  You are always reaching up for me to hold you (yes you REACH up now to be held!) and you love playing with my hair and just laying with me.  You twirl my hair when you're tired and just squeeze your arms around me to cuddle.  I LOVE IT!

- You are a STANDING BABY now.  & so proud of it!  Everything you do - you do veritcally now.  You love pulling yourself up against everything and standing up.  Every single time you stand up -  you scream and smile in victory so everyone knows to look over and applaud you.  Haha, definitely a showoff but it's so cute how proud you get!

WE are so proud of YOU sweet girl, you seriously are growing so fast!

- You have transitioned into your own room!  That's probably the biggest milestone yet.  You've been sleeping in our room since you were born, first in our bed, then in your own bed next to our bed - and now you are sleeping in your own room!  You aren't quite ready to be in your brother & your (co) nursery - so we setup your crib in the spare room to start you off.  You are doing GREAT!!!!

- You started w/ only waking up 1-2 times a night (which is amazing compared to normal amount of feedings overnight) and now I am an INCREDIBLY HAPPY MAMA to say that you sleep OVERNIGHT almost EVERY NIGHT.  If not all night, you've gone down to only 1 feeding in the middle of the night. 

A M A Z I N G.  Seriously, we have never gotten this much sleep since you were born - so we are VERY thankful and happy for this huge milestone.

- You are very independent.  You tend to not want our help and want to do it on your own.  Unless it's your brother trying to help you, then you are all for his help. 

- You can feed yourself now!  You love sitting in the high chair and getting all your snacks and sippy cup - and just feeding yourself and chillin in the chair like a big girl. (We love it to because now you and your brother both can feed and play on your own - so we actually have some moments in the day where we can do our own stuff around the house!)

- You drink out of a sippy cup now!  You sorta have been (thanks Gunner for leaving them all over the house for her to get) - but now you get yummy things in your sippy cup like apple juice!  And to celebrate the occasion, you now have your very own set of PINK sippy cups just for you!

- You are eating level 3 foods now and love them.  You especially love the oatmeals w/ fruit.

- You LOVE snacks more than any foods we give you.  You have an endless love for Puffs, Yogurt Melts & Num Nums now. & with that, your brother has re-found his love for those snacks - so you both run through them like crazy!  BUT it's great because now car trips, stroller rides & errands are all much easier with you liking snacks and able to feed yourself!

- You are in size 3 diapers still (almost into 4's though because of your little booty)

- You are in size 9 month clothes, some 12 months can fit you - but still too big.  And we're not rushing into anything with the number TWELVE on them (for my own sake) LOL

- You have TWO TEETH that finally popped through! And it looks like you may be getting an upper tooth now also!

- Your hair sprouted! You have lots of straight, dirty blonde hair now!  It's EXACTLY like your brothers - so we'll see if it gets as light as is.  But very exciting stuff - almost time to break out the BOWS!

 

I think that's a TON of HUGE milestones for you this month little one.  I want to save some for next month's blog but I am SURE you will grow leaps & bounds by then.  These are the big ones though for this month.

 

You are turning NINE MONTHS OLD in just SEVEN days now.

I can't even believe it.

Soon I have to start planning your BIRTHDAY.  How crazy is that?

You are getting your nine month photos taken in just a few short weeks.

Ugh.  That's enough on that, let's save the depression for next months blog.

 

But yes - you are EIGHT months old today and growing, learning & LAUGHING every single moment of every day. It's been so special watching you come into your own and develop this sassy, sweet and very loving personality.  You are the biggest cuddle bug and I am soaking up all the moments you just want to be held and twirl mama's hair while you fall asleep.  Your brother taught me how fast it all flies by and that one day you will just want to play on your own and not be held - so please believe I am soaking these momeents up with you!

 

We love you McKenzie <3