The Holidays

In an attempt to appease my guilt for being an awful blogger these last months (and the majority of the year, really), I'm making a last-ditch effort to (quickly!) recap The Holidays...which I have officially decided includes Halloween too (I love things that come in threes anyway!).

Christmas was busy, busy, busy! Man, did I start late this year. In September I kept talking about how I was going to get started early, I wasn't going to wait too long and then get stressed this year, and then WHAM! it was after Thanksgiving and I hadn't done hardly a thing. And going out shopping with two little guys is tough for me when its not Christmas! Amazon.com saved my bacon!


When we took the boys to see Santa a few days before Christmas I totally thought Tommy would love it (cause he always has!) and Jacob would cry. Thomas was so excited, but he had a last minute case of the nerves when it came his turn and absolutely refused to sit on Santa's lap. He was worried that he wouldn't get the toys he wanted without telling Santa, so he begged me to tell Santa his wish list for him. Jacob was completely fascinated with the white-bearded man and made nary a peep of nervousness! And we coaxed Tommy into sitting next to Santa on a rocking horse, so we still got a cute photo!


We celebrated Christmas at my parent's house this year, just down the road 45 minutes from us. It was particularly wonderful because all of my brothers and their families were there. It was definitely a crazy household with eight kids aged eight and under running around, but I love my family and it was so fabulous to have us all together...it happens very rarely these days. One of my favorite things was seeing how my older brothers and I are now the ones playing Santa and making Christmas magic for our kids...nothing is more fun then seeing how excited your own child is for Christmas! On the big morning my parents' living room was a lovely explosion of boxes and wrapping paper! Though I always think its a little sad when that glorious, gorgeous pile of gifts under the tree is gone...




Jacob was super cuuuute on his first Christmas. And Tommy was psyched to get his remote control dinosaur "Spike"...He'd been talking about him for months!








We spent Thanksgiving with Ryan's family in Wyoming. I love my "second family," and every single one of his siblings was able to come this year, which is rare for his family too.










It was great to be back to visit his childhood home...it had been a while since we'd headed up to good ole Wyoming, and I really enjoy spending time up there. Probably my favorite part of Thanksgiving with the Laidlaws is their tradition of going up into the mountains to cut down Christmas trees. We always make a fire, have hot dogs and hot chocolate, and take turns riding the four-wheelers around...Tommy loved it and Jacob looked so dang cute all bundled up! We found ourselves a nice tall tree for our vaulted living room, and we got it for only $10! Woohoo! (Well, on second thought, it was free, because Ryan's dad bought all the tree tags...Thanks Glenn!!!)






Its also fun seeing how the Laidlaw clan is growing. For quite awhile the only two grandkids were our Tommy and his cousin Julia, daughter of Ryan's older brother Nathan and his wife Fabiana. This Thanksgiving there were two new babies, our Jacob and Julia's baby brother Misael, and now Ryan's brother Eric and his wife Hayley are expecting their first in February (a girl!), and Ryan's sister Melissa and her husband Seth are expecting their first in May (a boy!)! So it will be cool seeing the Laidlaw grandkid quotient triple in just over a year! Holidays at Grandma and Grandpa Laidlaw's house are going to start getting a lot noisier! ;)


On to Halloween...I love Halloween more every year! Last year I converted Ryan to the fun of wearing a costume (he made a fabulous Captain Hook) and he went all out this year as another dashing pirate...Jack Sparrow! Seriously, I was a little jealous of his costume's awesomeness. I was a glam Ladybug, and decided that wigs = fun! Tommy was an adorable Buzz Lightyear, and Jacob was a little Sheriff Woody to match.








We went to our ward's Trunk 'R' Treat the night before Halloween, where everyone said they hardly recognized Ryan and I, and I tried not to whap everybody accidentally with my wings! (Wings = also fun!) On the "Big Night" we had all our fam over for a little shindig at our house. We ate chili, decorated cookies, watched "Casper", and Tommy made his first ever trick-or-treating expedition to actual houses...three houses, to be exact! (We don't have many neighbors in our part of the subdivision yet. For that same reason we didn't get many trick-or-treaters either, which had me a little bummed. "C'mon kids!!!" I wanted to run outside and yell down the hill. "I buy the good candy!!!")


That was our trifecta of holiday fabulousness! =)

;)

To Sweet Baby Jake

Oh my beautiful little baby boy. You have quickly, ever too quickly reached 6 months old. Halfway to your first birthday, already...it scares me. The time has evaporated, moved forward with a pace so unforgivingly fast its baffling. So many, many small and precious moments and milestones have gone by and I haven't been as diligent as I wish I would have at writing about them all. I love you with all my heart and all I can say is that though reflecting on my life with you is important, living it with you is the most important, and I am trying so hard to be good at that part at least!

So much seems to have changed with you in the last month or so. I remember when you turned 2 months, you were so different all of a sudden. The newborn disappeared, you smiled, you cooed, and I fell hard in love (even moreso than I already was). Now its happening again. You're so expressive...always smiling, always giggling, always curious and watching and babbling. You're an ambitious little explorer, so eager to move around and to grasp at everything around you. That immobile baby is gone forever!

You're rolling all over the place and scooting now too, and between the two you get around pretty well...I don't put you down on the carpet for long before you're across the room and bumping into furniture. Whenever you see something interesting to you, you work ever so hard to get to it, like your big brothers' blocks...we have to be extra careful you don't get his smaller toys into your mouth. For this reason you are put down a lot less lately! I haven't seen you work on getting that little bum up in the air really yet, but I'm sure it won't be long before you're crawling and cruising all over the place! Oy. Time for Daddy and I to babyproof and get a gate for the stairs.

You seem to be getting strong little baby abs and can pull yourself about halfway to a sitting position, but you're not super ambitious about sitting up on your own just yet...I think you're more interested in crawling. I sit you up in "tripod" mode sometimes, with your arms in front of you, but you topple over after a few seconds. I got you one of those thingies to help you sit up, a Bumbo, thinking you would love it. Yeah, not so much...you arch your back and cry after a minute or two. You're not a big fan of it just yet. Its ok, you'll be sitting up before long. Mommy's not worried at all. =)

The times you do try hardest to sit up is when we put you in your bouncy chair or swing....those are becoming old hat and you quickly become impatient with them now. Mommy is thinking I'll take the hint and put those away in the next day or two. (Which is ok because between you and your brother our living room is overrun with baby and kid stuff! Although I'm a little sad to part with your swing...you used to love it and it was the perfect, safe, cozy spot to put you where I could see you while I did things around the house.)

You looooove to stand up. You've always had these strong little legs and even from very early on you liked to be held in a standing position. You plant those little feet and stand up straight and tall, like you're standing at attention...its cuuuuute. I put you in your big brother's old Exersaucer for the first time a few weeks ago. WHOA, that was a lot of stuff for you to look at, wasn't it? You're really starting to get excited about toys now (*so cute), especially anything that rattles or is crinkly or chewable, but after a short while in the Exersaucer all those noisy gadgets and toys are a little too much for you, aren't they? You're still a little wobbly in it too, so I think that makes you feel insecure. It'll grow on you!

You discovered your toes quite awhile ago now and you're always fiddling with them. I love it, oh I love it! I don't know why simply watching you grab your toes and trying to get them into your mouth is so delightful, but it just is. I can barely get your diapers changed anymore because you're always trying to pull your little legs up and get ahold of those toes!

You have big time food envy, oh my goodness. When you watch me and Daddy and your big brother eat we can see the longing in your eyes....I've started feeling mean eating in front of you. If we hold you while we eat you sometimes lunge for whatever we're stuffing in our mouths, or for those red plastic cups we often drink out of...you think those are way interesting! Earlier today you flailed wildly after Daddy's cup and knocked it right out of his hands, sending red Crystal Light flying everywhere (including all over Daddy and yourself!) Pretty soon Mommy will give you some rice cereal or baby food to try. (Mommy doesn't think that stuff is all that impressive, but who knows, you might love it!)

None of your teeth have made their big appearance yet, but we can kind of see those two little bottom teeth lurking under the surface. There have been days and phases where you've been cranky and gnawing on your hands and drooling like crazy, and an experimental dab of Orajel on your gums would calm you right down. So, I suspect those toofers are coming in...that's no fun, huh bud? One or two nights last week you weren't sleeping so well because I think your gums hurt, and I felt bad for you. (And for me. I was tired.)

Speaking of which...you're not a terrible sleeper, not a great sleeper, but somewhere in between. You had me fooled awhile back when you slept almost clear through the night a few times, except for maybe one feeding around 4 or 5 am...I was hoping that would become habit, but alas, you're still waking up several times in the night these days. Thankfully you fall right back to sleep after a diaper change and a quick feeding. Sometimes I'm so tired and you're so snuggly, I fall asleep with you in the glider for the rest of the night, until you either wake up again or daylight starts to creep through your windows! I think I need a less comfortable glider. (Or, you could start sleeping through the night! Please oh please?!)

You are such a sweet baby. Really, so sweet...everyone thinks so! You're generally happy except when you have good reason not to be: when you're hungry or possibly teething or tired or in need of a diaper change. Its a very rare thing for you to be fussy without a good explanation. You're easy, just like your big brother was. Boy, am I lucky to have such sweet, well-tempered babies! Or, as I remind myself, not just lucky, blessed.

You're so handsome these days (you always were, but moreso than ever!). We're pretty sure your eyes will be brown like your big brother, though sometimes we detect a hint of green. Your hair is turning blonder and getting longer. But don't worry, I won't be cutting off any of your sweet baby locks anytime soon. You don't have those funny long wispies that your brother did. Yet. Your bald spot on the back of your head (which was never really that bald) is growing in again and you have a long fringe of dark hair at the nape of your neck, just like your big brother did. You look more and more like him all the time...when I look at photos of you lately they look like they could be of your big brother!

You're a big boy...at each of your doctor's appointments you've usually measured somewhere in either the 80th or 90th percentiles for height and weight. Your 6-month appointment is in a couple of days and I'm very excited to see how much you've grown! ***Post Edit: You were 17 lbs 13 oz (57th percentile) and 27.5 in long (84th percentile). The doctor said you are "tall and husky" and that your growth is "phenomenal." Yay for a big healthy boy!

Boy are you a talker. You have definitely discovered how entertaining your voice can be! Sometimes you make low growling noises, sometimes you blow raspberries when you're bored or impatient or mad, and sometimes you screech for fun. Seriously baby, you can drown out the TV. But I love listening to you experiment with your little voice.

Your big brother is very, very interesting to you. No matter how fussy you may be, if I lay you next to him for story time, you don't make a peep except to giggle. (Those story times with you and Tommy are some of my favorite times...you really watch me and study my face while I read.) I think you really love your big brother. And I know he really loves you. He is so sweet to you and is always delighted in all the cute things you do, just like mommy and daddy. He always says, "Let me see that boy!" and loves to hold you, though he asks me to take you back pretty quickly these days because you are heavy! He loves trying to make you giggle and was pretty pleased when he made you laugh a week or two ago by playing "Peek-a-Boo!" I can't wait to see the good friends and playmates you two will become.

Other random tidbits...I would say you're a binky baby, but not quite so much so as your brother was. You always fiddle with your binkie, popping it in and out all the time. I think its sooooooo cute. You are incredibly curious about remote controls and calculators right now. What is it about boys and buttons? And this last month you took your first trip to the Zoo and came on your first sight-seeing trip up the Alpine Loop with us....we go every year in late September or early October. I was so excited to put you in the adorable "Gnome Sweater" that I got as a gift for your brother. Beyond cute.

I love you little baby, more than anything and everything! You are my beautiful, beloved boy and are nothing less than an angel sent to bless my life. You make me want to be stronger, work harder, and see life in a sweeter light. Just like the song says, I will always, always love you.

A Beautiful Song for a Beautiful Boy

"In My Arms"

by Plumb

Your baby blues

so full of wonder
Your curly cues

your contagious smile
And as i watch

you start to grow up
All i can do is hold you tight

Knowing
clouds will rage and
storms will race in
but you will be safe
in my arms
Rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
but you will be safe
in my arms

Story books are full of fairy tales
of kings and queens

and the bluest skies
My heart is torn
just in knowing
you'll someday see
the truth from lies

When the
clouds will rage and
storms will race in
but you will be safe
in my arms
Rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
but you will be safe
in my arms

Castles they might crumble
dreams may not come true
but you are never all alone
because I will always
always love you

When the
clouds will rage and
storms will race in
but you will be safe
in my arms
Rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
But you will be safe
in my arms

in my arms

A TidBit from Tommy

One day last week I chose to make a very rare excursion away from the house with both children, by myself.

A very big deal. I avoid going out while outnumbered as much as possible.

But I just had to get out of the house. I'm practically a hermit anymore, but I had hit my limit. It was one of those days that I didn't care how difficult it would be with both kids.

I just had to get out.

Getting ready took forever, like it always does for such trips. I hadn't even left yet and was getting a little exasperated and impatient with all the tasks still at hand. Thomas sensed my frustration and said "Mommy, you gotta go insane now!" (Or something of the like).

My child knows me all too well. I apparently use that phrase a lot.

So, "Yes!" I said, "I'm going insane!"

And my three-year-old asked, hopefully and sincerely, with a face full of innocence...

"Can I come?"

=)