Jake Update - 15 months

It's official...my baby is no longer a "baby"! He is now a "toddler"! How did the past 15 months go by so fast? He is walking everywhere now, and has learned to open all of the interior doors in the house. I'm sure all of you will be shocked to hear that his favorite door to open is the pantry door! He knows exactly where the food is! :) He still isn't really saying anything much. I am pretty sure he says "yeah" and definitely will shake or nod his head. Just this week he learned the sign for "more" and uses it often!

Last Friday, he had his 15 month check-up. He is 26 pounds, and 32.25 inches long. That puts him in the 75th percentile for weight, and 80th percentile for height. I keep telling you all that their is height in my family...it's just "diluted"! :) Then again, so is the red hair, and he certainly got that! I am so excited to say that I believe the red hair is here to stay! It does appear to be lightening to a more strawberry color, though.

Oh...and as for his little personality...this is the sweetest child in the world! He LOVES to give and get kisses! And his little smile will just melt your heart! He is definitely a more sensitive kid. If I get onto him for anything, he drops his head and won't look at me. And if I am upset with him for something, he tries to love on me or make me laugh...anything to win me back! :) He's a VERY good listener! I am constantly amazed at how well he follows instruction. I'm sure in another year, I'll look back at this post and laugh and that sentence when he won't do anything I ask him to! But, for now...I'll just enjoy it!

He and Mitch are playing so well together these days, too! Mitch loves his baby brother, and the feeling is mutual! They love to wrestle and sword fight! They also like to run together down the front hall in the house. I'm wondering how much longer it will be before Mitch is annoyed with Jake following him everywhere! But, again, for now...I'll just enjoy it!

I believe that's about it...I'll leave you with some recent pics of my baby...oops...I mean toddler!

This is something we see at our house almost every day. Jake loves to get my headbands out of my drawer and wear them. Needless to say, Gary really isn't too crazy about this habit!

Jake hanging out at the park...he got mad because he fell down and didn't have anything to pull up on. He can stand up without holding onto anything, but he doesn't realize it yet!
Jake's newest trick...If he was at home on a rug or in the pack n play, he would have his hands up and balancing on just his feet and head!

That's him walking!

Oh...and you gotta love a good fit! I am such a mean Mommy...I told him "no"...Maybe he does't hear it enough, what do you think? And yes...instead of concoling him, I took a picture! :)

Park Days in February

It has been ridiculously cold for Tennesee this winter, so when the weather finally gave us a break, we hit the park! It has actually stayed nice here for the last week or more, so we have gotten to visit the park a few times.

Thursday, after we picked the kids up from school, my friend, Suzanne and I took the boys to the park. She has "Jack Jones" who is Mitch's age, and they live in our neighborhood. They ran all over the playground and played in the dirt for 2 full hours! There was a boy there who was a couple of years or so older than Mitch and Jack, and he kept tackling Jack. Jack would try to get away from him, but he kept chasing him. After a while, Mitch decided it was up to him to save the day. He looked at Jack and said, "I got this!" (Where did he learn that?!?) Then he ran right up to the boy and jumped to a stop with his arm straight out and his palm out and said, "I force field you! SSCCHHH!" Amazingly, it worked! The kid left Jack alone after that!

Jake wasn't quite as hyper as Mitch was. He was going on only a 30 minute nap all day, and he was so tired! He laid down on the sidewalk and put his head down to rest in the middle of the park! How long did he stay there?, you ask....Well, until I figured out that he wasn't going to get up on his own, so I picked him up and held him for a while....all 26 pounds of him! Then...he almost fell asleep in the swing. But mostly, he was happy finding and playing with sticks on the ground and pieces of playground mulch.

Dads have all the fun!

A few weeks ago, shortly after the Gatlinburg trip, we took a weekend trip to Gary's parents' in Alabama. It was his grandmother's 90th Birthday!

The kids had a great time...they were so excited to see each other again after such a short time. They don't usually get to see each other more than a couple of times a year. Jake was a bit of a challenge, though... He was really going through a tough time with big crowds of people he doesn't know. So, he wanted me to hold him most of the time. And...when Jake wants something, he usually gets it! I am such a sucker with him! We made it, though, and had a wonderful trip!

Mitch LOVES Papa Jack (Gary's dad)! He helped Papa Jack cook...washing potatoes for him and helping him spice up the chicken to grill!While Mitch was helping Papa Jack, Jake was playing on the steps. This is where he spent most of his time (when he was in my arms)...Here are some pictures of the Birthday Girl and her kids...

But...the best part of the trip had to be the cake! After the party was over, and most of the cake had been eaten, the kids were "hovering" around the table, just dying to dig into the icing with their little fingers. Well, Gary, being Gary...told them to to "go for it"! They couldn't believe their luck...and honestly, neither could I! Gary even got Jake in on the action. Of course, that's something only a Dad would do...but it was so fun to watch them!

Gatlinburg Trip

Finally...the post I have been promising...

This year, Gary's family all decided to take a trip to Gatlinburg for Christmas, instead of gifts for the adults. The time together was the gift. Part of Gary's family is in Alabama, part in Georgia, and we're in Tennessee. So...when we get together for Christmas, we are so busy trying to cram everything in, we don't really get to visit a whole lot...so this worked out great!

Mitch, Molly, and Wyatt were all born within a year of each other, with Mitch right in the middle of the two, so they all had a blast together. At 3 and 4 years old, this was the first time that really PLAYED together, and they were too cute!

Okay...I know you all really just want to see pictures, so here they are...

Grandma Judy got all of the 3-4 year old "Cars" chairs for Christmas. Then she decided right before our trip that Jake was big enough that he might like one, too. Jake sat in his as soon as she got them out, and was very happy just sitting in it...forever! He LOVES little chairs his size!

He also loves to wrestle, and isn't above "pinning" Grandma Judy!

I let Mitch pick one toy from Christmas to take with him, and he chose his GeoTrax Airport. I forgot to take batteries, though. So, Mitch, Molly and Wyatt had a blast with it the whole trip...just pushing the airplane around the track. Of course, Jake's favorite thing to do with it was to try to tear the tracks apart. Good luck with that, Jake! We had to bring it back partly assembled because we never could the whole thing taken back apart!

One day we up through the National Forest to a couple of "lookouts". Here are some pics from that:

Some of our boys!

Most of the family...Alex didn't come on the trip

The three Gary Jack Roberts!

A rare photo of me and Jake

From left to right... Gary, Lauri, Tara, and Matt (also in chronological order) Yes, those are bunny ears over Tara's head. You would think that after 42 years Gary would outgrow that, huh? :)

But...I did manage to convince him to take a "good" picture, too!

Our "fifth son", Matt (Gary's little brother) and Jack

And...The whole crew!
Pics from Downtown Gatlinburg:

Mitch "loving" on Jake...I'm sure Jake was really enjoying the "love"

Wyatt, Molly, and Mitch taking time out to pose for pictures. Mitch looks pretty happy to have his arm around a cute girl...even if it is his cousin!

Daddy and Mitch...I love that mischevious grin on Mitch's face!

Do you think Jake is done with being in the stoller?
Had to have a picture of Mitch sitting in "Time-Out" in the middle of Dowtown Gatlinburg!

Hanging out at the cabin:

A VERY rare photo of Papa Jack and Grandma Judy sitting together
A not-so-rare photo of Jake trying to get in his high chair...Always wanting food! :) Wyatt, Mitch, and Molly have fun in the chair...getting ready to watch a movie.
Molly didn't last long in the chair...
Wyatt, Mitch, and Molly putting together one of the puzzles that Grandma Judy got them.

Mitch, Molly, and Wyatt playing in the big jacuzzi tub in the cabin. They had a blast and played until the water ran cold! They thought it was their own personal swimming pool. Believe it or not, none of them even got mad about being doused with water!

Long Overdue Post

There were just so many things to write about all of our many wonderful Christmas celebrations with family, that I was too overwhelmed to even know where to start...so, since it's February, I thought I should at least share some of the pictures!

We always spend Christmas Eve night at my mom's. Mitch was dying to open a present, and, of course, Mimi had to let him. We finally convinced him to pick one other than the biggest box, and this is what he chose....

Mimi was certain that he would be sorely dissapointed when he opened up a pair of shoes instead of a toy. I think she was wrong... He loved his new "furry Crocs like Jack's" so much that even when he put his pj's on, he put his shoes back on!

Both boys got new hats from Mimi, too...

I think Mitch's favorite present, though, was his Bat Cave from Uncle Josh! I have to admit, it is pretty cool. Any of you with young boys...you need to check it out. Fisher Price makes it and Mitch will play with it for hours!

Jakes's favorite toy was a little wooden alligator walk-behind toy. I must admit, that is Mommy's LEAST favorite. Wow! That thing is LOUD!

Mimi also got them a really cool rocker/bench. It is a molded plastic bench for the boys to sit at and color/play/whatever. Then it flips over, and is a rocker that they can rock in with their friends. They both really like it, too....So do I...it doesn't make noise! :)

I was slacking on the pictures when had Christmas with Dad, but the boys love their thing from him, too. Mitch got an "I-Pod". It's a mp3 player for preschoolers, but he calls it an I-Pod. He was asking for one since his big brothers have them. Jake got a "bike" that "grows with him". It starts off as a rocker, then a tricycle with a handle, then you can the handle off when he can pedal. He loves to rock on it right now. I'm sure this Spring, I will pull the handle up and push him in it at the park.

We went to Gatlinburg with Gary's family this year, but that is a whole other post! I'll work on that soon, I promise!