Check-up's, Council and Belly Shots!

One of Michael's favorite toys from us for his birthday was a Transformers pop-up tent with a tube to crawl through. He loves it!

Sheniah does too! Actually, Michael loves when someone climbs into the tent with him and his big sister is always happy to oblige!

Sheniah has joined student council as a 7th grade representative and is loving it! She was officially inducted and pinned this past week and then the entire council had a lock-in over the weekend. She had a wonderful time and seems to be loving school as usual!

Here is Sheniah at the induction ceremony...she looked so pretty, but was not too thrilled about posing for this picture!

While Sheniah was at her lock-in we went to Albemarle to visit Yaya and Aunt Aimee and Terry who had come up for a visit from Florida. They hadn't seen Michael since the day after he was born, so it was great to see them and have them get some time with him. It was just unfortunate that Sheniah couldn't be there, but we are likely going to visit them and Grandma B. in Florida soon so she will see them all then.

Before heading off to Albemarle I decided it was time for Michael to get his "big boy car seat!" Here he is for his first ride (to Albemarle) in it!

He really seems to like it and especially likes being able to see us in the front seat while he is riding along.

Here is Michael opening his birthday present from Aunt Aimee and Terry with Yaya and Aunt Aimee.

Here is Michael with Aunt Aimee and Terry.

Playing ball with Aunt Aimee...

In honor of the three birthday's we had in September (Jackie - 1st, Michael - 3rd, and Aimee - 15th) Jackie made an ice cream cake for all to enjoy. Here they are blowing out their candles...

and here is Michael enjoying the cake!

Then it was time to say goodbye and head home.

A couple of days later Michael let me know that although he likes his new car seat, he misses his old one...I came around the corner to find this scene...

He had crawled into it all on his own and was just hanging out in his closet! It was hilarious.

I should probably preface these next set of pictures with the fact that I do not support child labor...however, Michael is his father's son, so for him to take such an interest in cleaning is no big surprise!

Here he is swiffering the kitchen floor!

And these next two pictures are especially impressive for the following reason. Michael has always been a bit sensitive to loud noises. However, he has never seemed to mind the vacuum until a few weeks ago at which point I was vacuuming the living room only to switch it off and hear him screaming in a panic in the other room. He was not injured...he was terrified of the noise. For the next several weeks just the sight of the vacuum would send him into a panic. Since I didn't want to foster his newfound fear of the so scary vacuum, I parked it in the living room where he would have to see it and hopefully overcome his fears.

It was a slow process, but he eventually wandered over and touched it and realized it wouldn't bite! So yesterday he decided to vacuum...and to prove that he had truly conquered his fears, he mounted the vacuum and was riding it like a horse! Unfortunately I was too slow with the camera and all I caught was the dismount...
Today was Michael's 1 year check up! I can't believe he's already a year old! Here are his stat's from today:

Weight: 19# 9oz (I was SO sure he had passed 20#'s!) - back down to the 10th percentile.

Height: 30 1/4" - 50th percentile (Hooray - something is "normal"!)

Head: 49.6cm - <95th>

So, according to the doc - his head is still big, but it is not growing in leaps and bounds anymore as it was. Also, Michael's development is right on track so there is no cause for any concern or further testing at this point. The doc thinks either Michael is just a normal kid with a big head (some people just have big ole noggins!), or he has benign hydrocephalus - which he will continue to grow into and will not cause a problem or need any treatment. Either way it is good news for now, and we will recheck at 15 months to make sure he is still developmentally on track. Basically, he's still a little guy with a big head - but at least now he is getting taller!

Finally, I am now officially 6 months along in this pregnancy! Pretty crazy, huh?!?! The other day David looked over at my bulging belly and said "I can't believe you're pregnant AGAIN!!!!" - You're tellin' Me, Buddy!!!! We are getting excited as it becomes more real and we are narrowing the name list. The strangest thing is to be able to say "he" or "your baby brother"...it's a new experience to be able to call him, well, him!

So, for comparison I decided it would be fun to post the belly shot from my 6th month of pregnancy with Michael with the belly shot from today. At this point with Michael I was measuring 3 weeks ahead (due to the polyhydramnios). With this one I just look 3 weeks ahead (due to flab retention from Michael-nios)!!! So, here you go...

Michael at 6 mo's gestation...

Baby "B" at 6 mo's gestation...
UGH - so attractive it is! Oh well, it is a beautiful thing...even though I haven't felt beautiful in years, somehow I know it IS a beautiful thing!

Sheniah's Braces!!!!

The big day is finally here! I woke her up with a big "Guess what...you're getting braces today!!!!" - since that is what I have been hearing for the last month ("Guess what momma, I get braces in 3 weeks" or "1 week" or "12 hours"!!!!)

She was so excited she could barely sit still as we waited to leave home for her appointment!

I am so happy she is getting them, though, in all seriousness. Not only for the medical reasons of correcting problems such as a slight overbite and crowding that would lead to cavities and other problems. But mainly for the self-esteem boost a beautiful smile will offer her. She has always been uneasy about the gap between her front teeth (which I have always found endearing - but I guess kids can be cruel and tease about such things).

Here is the before picture outside the office. It is too far away to see her smile very well, oops!And tada...the after picture! She actually looks very cute with them on!
She couldn't stop smiling the entire way to school. Meanwhile she was saying "I'm going to walk around all day with my lips stuck together and not smile so noone will see them"...yeah right! She is so ready to show them off!!!

Michael's Birthday Party!

The big day was finally here! It was so exciting and so much fun. We had a lot of wonderful family and friends attend, and Michael certainly had a blast! It was good to see everyone and share this special day.

First I want to brag on my incredibly talented sister-in-law. She should truly open a business of making cakes for people. Jackie made the cake - which was delicious, moist and almond flavored! Then Alison got her hands on them and they were so incredible. The pictures don't really do them justice (no pun intended!!) - the detail was incredible on both of them. Thanks so much to the best sis/aunt!

The police car cake...

and the badge cake...(paying respect to the "bee hive" badge of CMPD, of course!)

Michael wore his police uniform - the little mini-blonde David!

and hung out with all the people who came to celebrate. Here he is with Judy and Joann...

Sheniah made him the sweetest poster...

and had a lot of fun hanging out with Mark and Joann's daughter, Amber.

Maria made a little friend, Caroline...

David did the grilling...

and with perfect timing, Michael was ready for a nap when the food was finished...I got a peaceful meal!

When he got up it was time for him to eat and have cake. Here he is with Sheniah before the "candle ceremony" and digging in...aren't they cute?? She's got the best grin...of course, he looks a bit worried...

As is his typical fashion, Michael was quite suspicious of the cake at first (he treats all food as if it is poisoned...won't touch it, let alone eat it) - I suppose he is destined to be a cop - already suspicious of things!!

Finally he decided to give it a little taste...

and quickly realized it was REALLY good!

The onlookers got a kick out of his change in attitude and the eventual double fisting of cake!

After a quick cleanup and outfit change, it was time for presents. Michael preferred the cards - he loves to read and open and close things so he had a great time with all the cards...

Maria came to help out - Wesley and Sheniah were bored by this point and were off playing!

I was so happy and fortunate to have Cathy with me to help out and enjoy the day. She even gave up tickets to a Wake Forest game to come! Unfortunately she was my cameraman all day and I don't have a single picture of her. But, she did bring Wake to the party!

Then the party was over and it was time to come home.

Michael had such a wonderful time and got some incredible gifts from everyone...the food and company were fantastic. I think it was a good time for all.

Here are a few more shots from the last few days...

One of the gifts from Aunt Alison and family was this little chair/activity center. Michael realized quickly how much fun this was!

He also got several "handle haulers" (little push cars with handle's on top) which I will say are a must for any child of this age - he is so fascinated by them!

One of the coolest parts of watching him learn to walk is when he now goes from sitting or crawling to standing without the help of holding on to anything. These handle haulers have made him even more determined to do that, and he will even stand up while holding on to them! Here he is mid-stand...

However, he is becoming quite a ham and every time I try to capture this act he stops and races over to me grinning and trying to get the camera!

Here he is enjoying more cake after lunch the other day. He really likes it now!

And finally in one of his presents from David, Sheniah and I...a little blow-up car that came with lot's of balls for him to sit in!
So it has been a fun and wonderful year. He is so much fun and has brought so much joy to all our lives.

On another, VERY EXCITING note...Sheniah is getting braces tomorrow!!! She is so excited she can hardly stand herself! I don't know how she is going to get any sleep tonight!

Michael Is 1!!!

Two postings in a week! I must be doing real good! I just wanted to post a few quick words and pics before Saturday (Michael's official b-day party).

I can't believe he's already 1 year old! It has really gone by so fast...he is getting so big! Everytime I get sad about how quickly he's growing up, though, the little one gives me a kick or prod and then I remember it's okay! I will not have much time to miss a baby! It is pretty crazy though to realize that in a matter of a couple of months I will have an official teenager, a running toddler and a newborn - WHEW...I need a nap just thinking about it all!

Well, here are a few pics from the last few days.

This is a picture from what I used to make the invitations to Michael's police themed birthday party...how cute! It's a toothy little grin that has one more tooth now. Yup, today we found that he had gotten another tooth - the top right eye tooth is poking through! I guess it's about time, it had been quite a while since he had gotten a tooth!

Playing the piano...he's very talented, perhaps the next Bach!?!?

Playing with a bowl - he really likes it when I put it on my head!

Or when it falls off his head!

Reading with daddy. They're so cute!

Since everyone was out of school on Monday we went to a little amusement center of sorts here at our little local mall with Alison, Maria and Wesley. The kids had a great time...

Sheniah was even able to bring along her friend Chelsea which made it fun for her too! Except here where I think she had just stubbed her toe and came to get sympathy from me and Michael!

Finally it was Michael's official birthday. Here is the first picture of the day...

Later he had dinner and then got a candle in some pudding! (He gets his cake Saturday from Aunt Alison!)
He wasn't too sure about the pudding! Hopefully he likes the cake better!

Happy 1st Birthday Goose!!!!!