Gwen's First Birthday!

It is amazing how much a little gal can grow in one year. It is also amazing how fast if flies by!

I cannot believe that Gwen is a year old! She is such a sweet girl and we absolutely love having her in our Home. Happy 1st Birthday Gwen!

One Day Old

One Year Old

Gwen is now 28inches tall and weighs 19.4lbs. She is petite for her age, but still growing way too fast. She walks and practicaly runs. Says: Momma, Dada, dat(that), shoes(here we go!), Bubba, pawpaw, ball, bye bye, thank you, night night and more. Of course she doesn't say all of these just how we might, but she says them in her own way and we understand them just fine . . . She also signs: all done, more, thank you, food, and please pretty well. She likes to play with balls and toys that she can carry and take things in and out of. She is fairly independent and quiet which often times equals sneaky. She loves to laugh, give hugs a blow kisses. We are very blessed to have her sweet spirit around us daily.

Gwen's Party







Elizabeth and Miles came by to help us blow up the balloons for the party ;), ;). Elizabeth did such a great job. I think she was pretty pleased with herself!

Jessie had fun with all the balloons too. She also started her own trend of shoe wearing!


Here is Reesa and Geoffrey having a great time.


Then, the balloon fight started! Watch out everyone!




These guys were too cool for a balloon fight. :)

Time for Cake!

Gwen got some last minute cake-eating tips from Jessie.

And the Dug right in and topped it all off with some Juicy Juice.

Here was the damage.

After a bath, it was time for presents.

I think Gwen had a pretty good birthday. She recieved a fun summer dress from Bethany, Miles, and Elizabeth; a lamb, net with fish for the pool/tub, and a cup from Grandmother; way cute church shoes from Aunt Kim, Uncle Frank, and Jessie; some great books and CDs with readings of the books and additional songs from Aunt Dolores; and a baby pool with some more water toys from Grandma and Pawpaw Jones. Thank you all for your great gifts!

Here are some pictures with her and some of her new things. We haven't been able to use the pool, or the water toys outside because of all the rain, but we've still been having fun with them inside!

She loves to go in and out of the pool over and over again.

Well, you can't turn one with out have to get those blasted shots at the Doctor. So on Tuesday we dropped Geoffrey off at Aunt Kims for a bit and went on over. Everything went really well, she was a great trooper and was back playing with her buddies in no time!





Sometimes life and all this running around sure wears you out!

I hope you enjoyed your Birthday Gwen and I can't wait to see what's in store for you in the future!

Geoffrey and the BIG 3!

Geoffrey's Third Birthday was April 12, 2009. I am just now blogging it because we were moving at the time and the whirlwind life can be sometimes carried us away with other things.

Geoffrey is a great big brother, son, and grandson! He is boy through and through. He is very sympathetic, caring, and a great protector.

Here are a few pictures of him through the years.

April 12, 2006

3 Months Old - July 2006

9 months

Happy First Birthday~ April 12, 2007

About 18 months old ~ 2007

Happy Second Birthday! April 2008

Became Big Brother - 2yrs. - Summer 2008

Happy Third Birthday Geoffrey! April 2009

He is now 37lbs. and 38.5 inches tall. He has one baby sister, talks amazingly well, loves to be outside, sing, draw, paint, and "swim" in the tub. Hopefully we can really go swimming this summer and teach him how.

I was just thinking this morning how Geoffrey loves people and loves to be on the go. This is a great thing since he has lived in 6 different apartments so far, not including 2 transitional stays at Grandma and Pawpaws house. This statistic of his should stay the same for the next couple of birthdays . . . I hope so anyway!

We love Geoffrey and are greatly blessed to have him in our home. He is a great joy in our lives and teaches us a lot each and everyday. Happy Belated Birthday my Wonderful Boy!

I Truly Love Mornings like this . . .

I love mornings when I get to sleep in even if it is just a little bit. I also love mornings when we are still up and at 'em by 8:30am even when we slept in, and have a plan for the day that includes work and fun. Most of all I love mornings when my children are happy and healthy and enjoying each other's company!

I took this video this morning. I asked Geoffrey to feed Gwen while I made his oatmeal. I had never asked him to do this before, but I thought they could both handle it. Then, I just couldn't resist getting the camera because they were so cute together! Geoffrey is a great big brother and loves Gwen so much. She loves and admires him too! They already fight over toys and other things, but it is times like this that makes being a mom so grand!

Adventure #2 ~ Walking!

Well, yesterday Gwen was climbing mountains. And while walking doesn't sound as exciting . . . . it really is! She took just a few steps yesterday and today she is taking several steps at a time. She just can't get enough of her new found adventure! Hmmm. . . I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Pictures Galore

Geoffrey recieved a guitar for his birthday and loves it! He sings songs to Gwen all the time. It is SO cute!

Here is Gwen and Jessie in our new stroller. We have already had tons of fun strollin' around town this spring!

Here is Geoffrey with a baby black bear. We were able to go with Uncle Frank to see these darling bears at the beginning of March. They were so soft and cuddly. They also loved to give kisses! They make a unique purring sound when they are happy, too. It was a lot of fun and a great experience. Thanks Frank!

I just gave Geoffrey a hair cut because we were letting his hair/curls grow out. I actually was able to cut it with out cutting all the curl out! Too bad in this pic his mousse was gone and the curls have gone wild! Oh, well! We love his curly hair, and it looks like Gwen will have curls too. We know they didn't get them from me! They are a great gift from daddy!

I just think Gwen is pretty when she's just out of the tub. Her eyes seem so bright! I don't know . . . just a fond mommy moment for me!

Gwen's New Adventure

Well, Gwen has become the adventurous spirit in our home! She thinks she can and then does climb anything she puts her mind to. It is fun to watch her, but she scares us to death too! Hope you enjoy watching our little climber climb her newest mountain.

Tune your Guitar strings and Watch out!

Geoffrey with his Guitar Hero - Zachy! He is so cute! He uses this racket and strums the strings and everything! We have bought him a guitar for his birthday, but I kind of hate to give it to him. I bet he will still pull this out at times and play!

Here's Gwen's new two little teeth!

Geoffrey took Nathan's brush, wet his hair down, and styled it the other day. Then, he ran in and said, "Look Dad!"

Go Gators! Whohoo!

My handsome boy!

&

Beautiful girl!

Well, lately we have just been trying to live life and enjoy it, even when

it is stressful and the winter is just going on and on and on. Honestly, I don't think that this winter is bad, but for some reason I have been extremely eager for summer to come this year. I just can't wait to get out in the sunshine!

The children are growing too fast as usual!! Gwen just recently recieved her first two teeth and I belive four more will follow soon. She is crawling quite conventionally as of yesterday. We have been calling her an inchworm for the last two or so weeks because she would move her knees and feet up then lay on her tummy, reach, and get up again. She soon got her arms working with her knees, but she still kept laying down to get a few more inches out of her efforts. It was quite effective really. She was going everywhere! Like I said though, she is now crawing like crazy all over and has even mastered the sitting position out of the crawl and has moved right in to pulling up on her walker! If I am not careful she'll be walking before St. Pattie's Day! Lol. Hopefully not . . .

Geoffrey is doing great too! Although, I believe he is getting bored of winter. We both love to be outside and out and about. Since we just have one car, nice weather really helps. I am going to have to take an extra effort to do some new crafts and games with him in these last few weeks of winter. He loves to learn and so it is hard to keep him occupied when he constantly likes to do new things, or help me with things that he is not totally ready to do. I do appreciate his efforts though!

Nathan is trying to keep up with work and school. It is challenging at times but he is doing great! He is a great husband and makes sure to spend time with the children and I.

This year we are focusing on our food storage. We hope to be able to get a decent one built up. If anyone has any helpful tips or hints please let us know!