Cuddle Time

Here's Raf, a little crusty, but cute, nonetheless. We were cuddling on the couch, having quiet time after lunch today, when I looked over and just found him so incredibly cute. Of course, I find him cute all the time, but when he gets to feverishly sucking that thumb and nuzzles into me, I find him extra cute. Of course, the downtime didn't last long, before I knew it, he was jumping all over the couch, grabbing my lens cap, and declaring it was a cookie. Such a monster!

Valentine's Day 2011

I won't go into the gory details, but this year's Valentine's Day was about the worst case scenario in our home this year. That probably leaves the reader wondering, but let's just say it's something we'll probably laugh about in years to come, even if we can't laugh about it now. Needless to say, with the day's events, we didn't even come close to celebrating Valentine's or my and Eric's 8th anniversary in any way that we would have anticipated. Then, about half of us were sick thereafter, and it just didn't work out. Thankfully, Tatumn was still happy to make some festive cupcakes for her classmates and our family and we were able to enjoy their deliciousness. We also received some tasty treats in the mail from Jane and Dave, so that took the sting out of the day a little bit, too. Next year, I so desperately hope things will be different. I just can't tell you how much I hope it'll be different....

Winter Fun

Going a little backwards here, but we thought last weekend might be the last days we might be able to enjoy ice skating before things began to melt, so I took a few pictures. 

Muddy Day Fun

The temperature rose today but so did the amount of mud and water with all the snow melting. Imogen came home after school covered in the stuff! She had an awfully good time with all of her friends who chose to do the same at the playground. What a mess, but what fun?!

18 months

Guess who's so big? I don't exactly how big in the literal sense and I couldn't even guess right now*.  We are due for a checkup! He's not nearly as big size wise as he was as an infant, and is slimming down but he's big in other ways and he certainly thinks he can conquer anything right now. This guy is crazy, I mean, really, really crazy! He's so very active and into everything, he's everywhere, and he's got a mind of his own.  He's very independent at times and at other times he's so very, very dependent, especially on mommy.  He's got a lot going on right now.  He's stuck between a big boy's world and infancy, just like you'd expect for an 18 month old, yet sometimes I feel it's more extreme for him.  He cracks this family up.  He climbs everything, pushes every button, tests limits, and screams when he finds it necessary (which is often).  He still loves to play with balls, but he's also taken an interest in books and blocks.  His vocabulary is growing all the time and he says about thirty words now.  He has no sentences yet and I'm not sure I see any in the near future but he surprises us all the time, so anything is possible.  He's still pretty clumsy and falls off of the things he climbs all the time.  He currently has about five knots and a slight black eye to prove it.  He's not running yet and I don't think he'll be doing that soon either.  Maybe the spring and nice weather will inspire him to run once he gets outside more often, but mom will have to hold her breath!  He loves baths, hats, yogurt, cuddling, touching anything he's not supposed to, and his sisters, especially Tatumn.  He hates bedtime, sleeping alone, being alone, and sitting still (except when he's cuddling).  Mr. Raf is just too funny with his antics and really, when I think about it, his personality hasn't changed much but his energy certainly has!  He keeps us busy and constantly on alert, but his milestones are exciting, no matter how intense this time is for him.  He'll wear you out, but you'll have a blast doing it.  We love you Raf!

*Rafferty is 29lbs. and 32 inches! It appears he's average for height but still on the big side.  :)

Bitter Cold, but Bright, & Back to School!

And then they pulled out their skis.

Yeah, it was that crazy. Saw this couple and quickly snapped a picture right before they skied out of site, right down our street! Crazy stuff, this blizzard of 2011!