2 Years Old!

It's been a very busy month and Isaiah's 2nd birthday was just part of that mix. He's getting bigger. He is in the 95th percentile for both height and weight. He weighs 35lbs and he is 38.5 inches tall. We had a Dr. Seuss book themed party for him. He loves his books. Isaiah amazes us all the time. He knows his letters, capital and lower case. He knows numbers 1 through 10. He knows his colors, primary and secondary. We also noticed this past week that he seems to know his shapes, square, triangle, circle, and rectangle. We're not even sure where he picked those up! He has more hair but he still is a ways from his first haircut. He plays well by himself and he is getting better at playing with others. He is a very good at parroting what we say and he will repeat things he's heard again later.

He had so much fun this past month coming to visit mommy at the fair. He hung out with Rachelle and her Jr. Fair friends.

Okay, gotta run. Have a great day!

Hot summer days (23 months old)

Isaiah will be two in a month and I still can't believe he's been hanging around with me for 2 years (plus if you count time in womb)! He is so amazing and blows me away everyday with the new things he picks up. He weighs in at 34.2lbs and is 38 inches tall. He has new words about every week now. Overall he is becoming more and more expressive, pointing and pulling to communicate what he wants when he doesn't know what to say. He has also been more loving - giving hugs at random and kisses too! He is an incredible sponge. He has a pretty good grasp on his colors (red, yellow, blue, green, orange, and purple) and also is pretty good a recognizing this upper case letters.

This month we've had lots of play date and swimming with cousins, a big bump on a the head, and celebrated milestone birthdays for both Grandma Moyer and mom. He undoubtedly loves the water and has not learned a healthy fear or it yet. Swim lessons are in the near future!

As for the house, the downstairs is complete and back together - completely! The new backdoor has been installed. We're waiting for settling of dirt before the new concrete patio can be put in. We've also opted to have an outdoor sump pump pit put in for extra support of the interior one. We expect work on that to be started in the next week or so as well. We also discovered broken tiles near the road and contacted the township about them. While our yard is a mess, they are going to replace that as well! We should really be all set after that! Have a great day and stay cool out there!

2 months to 2 years old!

With only 2 months until he turns two, it still amazes me at how many people think he is three! My big boy is 33.5 lbs and 37 inches tall, quite the growth spurt in a month (not that my measurements are very exact)!

He is talking more and more. He surprised us this month with the word apple. He also says cat, eat, hi, bubble, and tonight he carried the #8 block around saying eight, eight, eight. He also recognizes the colors red, yellow, blue, green, orange, and purple, though we get green and purple mixed sometimes.

His shy side has appeared more this month. He has started clinging more when he knows momma is leaving him, unless he is with dad. He also is more shy around strangers - which is fine with me. He looks to me to give him direction on who is okay and who is not to talk to.

He is a mobile machine and loves any chance to run in a big open space. He still loves doors and buttons. And he loves to play with his cousins. He has been enjoying the outdoors every chance we can get, in between the rain showers. And will happily watch his Sesame Street anniversary or My baby can read DVDs when playing outside is not an option and momma needs a few minutes. He also plays by himself very well. We are still working on how to play with others. He tends to be a little rough - hugging turning into a wrestling move or just pushing other kids to get to what he wants.  We're still working on that.

He is also still a champ at sleeping and naps. He typically sleeps around 10 hours a night and 2-3 in the afternoon.

As for the house: I got word for our contractor (Thanks Scott) that the downstairs is ready for the touch-up paint, then he'll come back for a few final touches and we're back in! By next week, Isaiah will have his play room (the big one) back! The outside footer work is also complete. That contractor (Charlie) will be back yet to put in an outdoor sump pump pit because it was that or have our interior one redone. We're pleased with how it has worked so far. No leaks and all! :)  The new backdoor and patio are on hold, while we wait for the door to arrive and the ground behind the garage to finish settling but it will happen all in good time!

Sorry for no pictures, I'm on my work laptop and don't have a way to get pictures to add. Hope to be back to our home computer in a few days! Have a great week!

21 months old...

He's 21 months old, getting very close to 2 year old...he's 32 lbs and 35 1/2 inches. Everyday his little will becomes more and more evident. We started giving him time-outs and he's learned pretty quick what that means. He's started to be more helpful, he'll bring you his drink when empty and pick up his toys with some help.

He says quite a few words including Eddie, no, hi, dad, and mama. He know the colors red, yellow, and blue and can point to so many things upon request. He'll wave when he feels like it and give you 5 (or 20, depending on how excited he is).

He has been doing better with milk this month and is back to drinking just regular whole milk. He is getting more hair which is coming in a light brown. He loves playing outside, with bubbles, and bathtime. We're really looking forward to summer when we are able to be outside more. This month we Easter which was fun. We took him to a few different "Easter" outings and then for his first trip to Wilsons.

The house is coming along slowly. Our new floor is complete downstairs. Which is great news because now we can put some items in the middle level back down there and open up the house a little more! The footer tile work was to start this week but with the weather being so wet it will be a little while yet. We're still finalizing details with the interior contractor.

20 Months Old (and a house update)

lounging in the recliner

He's twenty months old and he is so much fun. He weighs 31 lbs and 4 oz. He is 35 1/4 inches tall. He is so ticklish and such a ball of energy. He's wearing mostly 2T, some 24 months clothes. He loves to be outside, even if he has to wear a coat and hat to do so. He is getting more hair and is a little daredevil at times.

 

Mommy's shoes

 

Look at my hair!



Daredevil

 



Stacking!



    

This month he managed to climb out of this crib. It was a pretty good scare for us but he hasn't tried since. We're taking the wait and see approach because we're not ready for a big boy bed, even if he is.  He likes to climb in the recliner in his playroom/the dining room and just in the last week he's figured out how to climb the kitchen chairs. I'm just waiting for the day when I find him on the table!



In the toy bin...



What a face!



Hi Mom...

This month we're also back to lactose intolerant (soy milk or lactose free); he seems okay with yogurt, cheese, and a little cows milk.  Too much spells problems.



Hey, Stop taking pictures of me...



As for the house, we are still waiting for two bids to come in. We've painted nearly everything and hope to finish the laundry room and touch up of the living room and office this weekend. The current plan, if we can afford it all (missing bids will tell)...remove the backdoor (close off permanently) and sunken patio, move back door to garage and make new ground level patio there, do an epoxy coating floor inside (to look like a granite tile), spray foam insulate the walls, PVC wainscoting panels on the lower half of the walls and the drywall we just painted will stay on the top. Outside, add a backflow preventer to both the storm drain and the sewage drain and have the footer tile cleaned/replaced as needed. In the crawl space, lower the rim of the sump pump pit so that the crawl space can fully drain on its own, maybe dig a trench around the exterior with a channel back to the pit. Really hoping, and praying, for either some nice weather so we can get out of the house more, or for some work to start getting done.

19 Months

And he is another month older...and still growing like a weed. He's 31lbs 2 oz and 35 inches tall.

He loves to throw items over the baby gate and down the stairs, read books, try to pick up the cat, climb on the couch, play outside (run around, go down the slide, and swing the best), push buttons, open and close anything that will open and close, clap his hands, point to your finger, give you (low) five and then get it back, and just make you smile.

He sleeps great - about 12 hours at night and a good 1 1/2 -2 1/2 hour nap a day.

His favorite foods are peas with dill, chicken nuggets, any fruit, yogurt and cheese. He'll drink his milk but he'd rather have juice. He'll eat almost anything if you can get him to try it.

He knows where his head, ears, nose, mouth, fingers, belly, knees, toes, foot, teeth and tongue are. He seems to recognize the colors red, yellow, and blue but that could just be him guessing correctly...?

I think he is getting a new tooth because he has a majorly runny nose these last two days and his gums on the bottom back right a very tender. (According to the baby book,) He only has 4 more teeth to come in, those back 4 molars. Aside from the runny nose, he doesn't seem too bothered. Good thing, love that he is so easy going.

Right now, he is trying to lift his toy box so he can throw it over the baby gate. :) Love him so much!

(sorry for the lackluster post, just stretched too thin to put more into it)

Thankful

We are so blessed and thankful.

Isaiah is all back to healthy. We're praying his second cousins and friends can also start to feel better too.

Nathan is home from his class/certification. He got the call today - he is officially a Certified Welding Supervisor! Nathan Moyer, CWS. :)

Our drain is clear, both ours and the neighbors. And he was very fair it what portion of the bill he charged to us. Being neighborly is what it's about.

We've settled into our new space. We're still WAITING FOR STATE FARM (we are starting to regret switching to them last fall) to send an adjuster out to look at our damage but it's all cleaned up and we've started to look at options for putting it back together. And we're hiring someone this time! I'm way over elbow grease! :)

We've been incredibly blessed by the family and friends who have watched Isaiah, or just had him over to play, fed us, let us do laundry and take showers, cleared out the debris, been an ear to listen, and prayed for us. Thank you.

In another dramatic turn of events...

We just found out today that for the past week our sewer line has been draining through our neighbor's house. We share a sewer line, comes in off the street and Ys out to each of our houses. He has been having sewer back up for the past week and BELTZ ran a camera and could not find the problem. Today BELTZ asked if they could run a camera from the clean out in the front of our house...they found the problem is beyond where our lines come together and that our neighbor's portion of the line is lower than ours so our sewer has been draining fine because it's been backing up theirs....So in good conscious, we can no longer use the drains in our house...Bring on the paper plates. And don't say anything if we smell...just offer the use of your shower. Lovely.

Isaiah doesn't seem to be impacted by this whole situation at all, and loves his new playroom. He did today, while trying to walk in the front door, fall flat on his face. His first nose bleed. He cried for a just a bit then was fine and wanted to go play despite the blood still slowly dripping.

God Doesn't Give You More Than You Can Handle

It's a saying you hear most often when you are facing handling more than you think you can. You look at the situation and you hear that phrase play incessantly in your mind. After this week I feel like I have a new understanding of this statement, beyond what I felt it meant before.

This week I learned more about myself, what I truly can handle mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I looked at my situation, I cried, I allowed myself to fall into deep self pity and really hit a low spot. I cried mor and he answered with an inner strength I indeed had not knowledge or comprehension of before. I felt lifted but even at this I felt like the situation was beyond what I could "handle". This is when true light and understand came about. I realized "God Doesn't Give You More Than YOU Can Handle" doesn't mean that you won't face situations bigger than yourself. But when you face those situation, it's not about what YOU can handle or even what You can handle with Him guiding you but what You can handle with Him and those people around you that He has put in place. The two major keys to this statement are realizing your need for Him to give you the strength you don't fully know exists or hasn't yet fully developed but second that He will put people in place who will hold out their hand and it's up to you to give them a brick (or wet carpet, or an 18 month old in my case).

I have a much deeper appreciation for family members who have been here to help this week. I've felt needy taking help offered. But with a new understanding of "God Doesn't Give You More Than You Can Handle" I realize now that by not reaching out for help when needed, I'm defying God's full plan for how to handle life situtations. I thank God for those who have been there both physically and in prayer.

And some new pictures....

Bananas...

These last few days have felt like a dream. Saturday night as I sat in the kitchen with Nathan talking about his trip, I looked at the bunch of bananas sitting on the counter and thought to myself, will it be weird from him to come home and the bananas be gone, for items around the house to have "rearranged" themselves. Now I wonder, will he even feel like he is home when he walks into a house turned upside down. I'm starting to adapt to the new "normal" that will be for at least a month or so. He will have to start that process of coping and adapting when he returns. I felt sad as I looked at those bananas, about what he might miss while he was away. A new word or action by Isaiah, an interesting news story, a funny thought, a beautiful sunset...but now as I look back at the dream of these last few days, I'm incredibly thankful at some of the moment he was able to miss, though I know he has experianced many of the same emotions and some extra anxiety from afar.

The water has completely receded. There are still wet spots around downstairs and a small puddle in the crawl space but we are coming out of it now. The road is back open for all vehicles and we're back to seeing our speedy neighbor fly down the street several times a day. The paper arrived as normal and the crisp morning air reminds me that today is a new day full of promise and possibility.

My big world is a little smaller today....

Isaiah and I slept pretty well under the circumstances. I didn't even get up once to check on things.

The water doesn't appear to have come much closer to the house from the outside and the water inside appears to only have risen a small amount. The sump pump is working, as it sit here and listen to is pouring the water out the window behind me. It is running non-stop at least keeping the water level where it is at.  The back patio is a pool though so as fast the sump pump pumps, water flows back in from the patio.

It's a very odd sight out. There is a very thin layer of ice over all the water and it looks, well, kinda pretty?  Nothing exciting has really happened yet this morning. I'm assuming more "action" on the part of officials will happen now that we are returning to daylight. One family, that tried twice last night near midnight to leave, finally made it out this morning. They have a high profile SUV and it was up to their floor boards as they crashed through the ice. I've watched numerous people on sixth street get to the end of our road and have to turn around so I'm only assuming that we are the edge and probably will be among the first to drain out?  The neighbor across the street is attempting to load a boat twice as long as the bed of his diesel truck into it and just about slipped and fell on the ice. And I hear loads of air traffic - helcipoters and planes overhead.

Alright, here they are the most recent pictures including those of the "pretty" ice covered lake I'm in. Thank you again for all the prayers. At this point, it is the only action we can take. My plan today is to watch the water level (hopefully recede) and try to keep a 18 month old from going stir crazy in his smaller world.

18 Months Old

A year and a half. How does time go so quickly? (this is mom) I think I'd better stop "putting words in his mouth" so he can find his own voice - aside from the few words he has started to say already - Ball, Mama, Dada, Oh Yeah, Uh-oh (that sounds more like uh-uh), No, and Up.

We completely failed to do anything *extra* special for him for his 18th month but we did take him to the play place at the mall, which he LOVES and he spent the day with the two of us. And we "encored" a few old toys.

We did go the weekend before and get some new pictures at PI. And we were supposed to go to the doctor today to for his check-up but with the weather, we'll be another week out for that. I did measure and weigh him at home and he grew (suprise, suprise!) - 34 3/4 inches and 28lbs 3oz. He's pretty much in all 24 months and a few 2T pants and mostly 2T shirts (largely because his arms and legs are so long).

This month he figured out he could push items in front of the couch and then climb on them to get up on the couch. He hasn't done it a lot but enough! He still LOVES books - and gets down right mad when you stop for any reason - even to get him a snack. He also enjoys playing with doors, drawers and buttons. He's not satisfied just to open and close them. He often will "study" the door and drawer hinges like he is figuring out how they work. We played in the snow some with a sled but I think he likes it more when he can just crawl around it in. Problem is he outgrew his snowsuit before winter is up so we don't stay out long or his legs and feet will freeze! He still eats just about anything we offer him, once he tries it. He'll push it away until you get the first bite in and then it's gone in a whirlwind.

Every day I look at him and say to myself, I'm so blessed to be your mom Isaiah. I love you so much.

17 Months Old

Yesterday I turned 17 months old. It was just like most other days, I hung out with Momma most of the day, we "ran errands", and then Daddy came home ate supper with us and played with me until night night time.  Sometimes it's just nice to have a normal day. During the last month we had quite a few special days for different activities for Christmas. It was fun to see all my cousins and friends but it's nice to get back to my normal days too.

I now have 15 teeth. I haven't grown a lot in the last month. I'm 27lbs and 14oz and I'm 33 7/8 inches tall. I can tell you where my foot, toe, head, nose, ear, mouth, and belly are. Momma and Daddy though always want me to show other people but I don't always like to do that. Momma started giving me some "table food" for lunch and dinner sometimes and some "waffles" from breakfast. They are very yummy. I like all the new foods but some of the old foods don't taste that good anymore so I spit them out when Momma tries to feed me those now. Things like avocados and acorn squash are just not that good anymore.

I'm getting pretty good at walking, I like it when Momma lets me walk outside by myself or sometimes in a store or at church. I also still really enjoy reading books with Daddy. This month I started going to bed a little later because I was having trouble going to sleep at 7 anymore. Momma and Daddy started letting me play for a little after supper and now I go to bed around 7:30-7:45. Most days then I sleep until 7 then and take one really good nap in the afternoon, around 1.

Momma and I have another normal day today so I'm going to go play now.