At the Playground

Already running away from me. 

And looking so grown up!

To life...full of chasing after my boys! 

Our Boys

Grandma Pam suggested I get a picture of the boys in their birthday shirts together before they're outgrown. I took several and they were not exceptionally cooperative. Can you believe it? But at least in this one they were both looking in the general direction of the camera. I'll include some outtakes so you can see what I was working with ;) 

15 Months Old!

Levi, you are 15 months old today. Happy St. Patrick's Day! You have made some leaps and bounds in your developments in the past 3 months. Here's what you've been up to:

Just playing... with a sticker on your forehead :) 

Enjoying some Christmas cookies

- You eat very well. You are a little picky, but have actually started branching out more lately, at least I think so. You particularly like ketchup on things, it's what I usually try if you snub a food at first. You're starting to eat veggies a little better. I think breakfast may still be your favorite meal of the day.

Happy New Year 2015! 

Matching Bronco sweatsuits -- just before our move. 

- You seem to enjoy brushing your teeth. At least you did. I'd tell you it was time to brush your teeth and you'd rush down the stairs and run to the sink, waiting for me to catch up. I think maybe it has lost it's allure because that is happening less and less often.

Playing in our new garage

- You got your first haircut on Sunday, March 8.

Enjoying our visit to the fire station with big brother! 

Having fun at Zeke's birthday party

Love your smiles! 

Always getting into something...

You love the outdoors! 

- You enjoy playing outside! You and Zeke like to lay down on the porch and look through the crack across the road at the construction happening. Bulldozers, backhoes, dump trucks, and now they're getting ready to pour the foundation, so cement trucks too.

Checking out the construction crew

Helping Daddy clear the driveway

Enjoying the snow! 

- You take one nap every day. At night, I usually take you down and rock you around 7:30 pm. We read "Brown Bear", sing a few songs, say our bedtime prayer, and then you like to hold on to and listen to Scout sing you to sleep. You "typically" sleep until 6:30 or 7:00 am!

Mommy loves rocking you to sleep.

Mommy loves watching you play with your toys like this.

- At your doctor appointment today, you weighed 29 lbs. and are 33 inches tall! Still a big kid, still staying along your growth curve.

Out on the deck

Would have been even cuter without the phone's reflection

Rocking the stocking hat! 

Out for a walk on a spring-like day

You left this sticker on your forehead much longer than I expected! 

- You are saying a few words now -- Mommy (which I love how you say it, you walk around saying, "Mah--MEE!), ball, please, Dada, meow (for cat), hi, bye (and are waving bye-bye), and you copy many things we say. You are also nodding and shaking your head and saying "uh-huh" and "unh-unh."

-  You got all of your 1 year molars, so are now up to 12 teeth! (It was a rough week because you had croup when you were getting a couple of them in.)

- You clap when others are cheering and clapping! You have a big smile on your face when you do it.

- You enjoy music and dancing. You sometimes sit with Mommy at the piano and play along. But we enjoy dance parties the most right now. You even dance to ones I wouldn't expect, like Michael Buble and worship songs. I think it's fantastic!

- You follow Zeke nearly everywhere. During Zeke's naptime, we really have to keep an eye on you because you'll go down and open his door and try to wake him up. Usually by climbing up on the bed with him.

- You point to things that you want, you climb on chairs to reach things on the table, you are almost able to get things off the kitchen countertops. Basically you get into most everything and we have to keep an eye on where we put things because nothing is safe. You're even learning to push toys over to places you can't reach so you can get something.

Levi, you are such a sweet, lovable, energetic boy. It's exhausting trying to keep up with you, so I'm thankful you have a brother who can! You still fight us when we change your diapers or clothes. You give kisses at night when it's time to go to bed. You have begun to wave "bye-bye" consistently and blow kisses sometimes too. You are not a fan of snuggling, but do enjoy being rocked to sleep, so I'm grateful for that. You are a fantastic kid and even on more challenging days, your smile and laugh and joy helps to trump out the parts that were tough. We love you so much! And look forward to how you will grow and develop over the next 3 months! Love, Mommy

First Haircut!

On Sunday night (3/8) we decided it was finally time to give Levi his first haircut. It's always a hard decision that first time, knowing they'll never look the same again. But I was constantly pushing hair out of his eyes and he had started scratching at his ears, so we knew it would be for the best. 

Look at all that baby hair! 

As you can imagine, it's nearly impossible to get a picture of him which is not blurry. But some of them have such cute expressions, I included them even if it was a blur. 

He did surprisingly well! He sat fairly still, did not cry or fuss, and just let Daddy do the work. 

Zeke enjoyed watching and did his best to help provide a distraction for Levi during the shearing. 

What a handsome boy we have! And now he and Zeke look even more like brothers! 

To life... full of first haircuts! 

Peppermint Oil: Why I'm Using It

Peppermint was one of the last bottles I emptied after purchasing my starter kit from Young Living. For one, I didn't really know what to use it for. And two, I was in the third trimester with Levi, and peppermint can cause a baby to turn in utero. Then after that, I was breastfeeding, and peppermint can diminish your milk supply, so I held off because I did not want to deal with a limited supply anymore than I already do.

So February hit and I finally had my chance. We had eaten at Subway for supper and my stomach was turning somersaults. It was almost unbearable when I remembered that peppermint can help with nausea. I rushed to the bathroom and mixed one drop with some almond oil and rubbed it all over the tumultuous area. I sniffed the rest that remained in my hands and laid back down on the couch. Within minutes, my stomach was feeling more calm and I was able to focus on doing something else. I have used it a time or two since then for the same reason and it is a welcome relief. It is nice to know I have a natural remedy close on hand for times like those.

Last summer, I also used peppermint for the first time in warding off spiders. You can mix 10-15 drops with 8 oz. of distilled water, shake it up in a glass spray bottle, and spray wherever those nasty things lurk. Every time I would spray down the insides of the windows and then along the outsides as well and I wouldn't see spiders for weeks. Then when they started to come back, I would just mix and spray again. And sometimes I would spray the spiders (especially the big ones!) directly with the concoction and they would just curl up in a ball and never move again. Yes, I realize that is probably not very nice, but I am not a fan of spiders, whatsoever, so this was a win in itself, even if I had never applied a single drop to myself.

Peppermint is also a great oil for boosting your energy! I like to put 3 drops of peppermint and then 3 drops of either lemon or orange in the diffuser and not only does it smell great, it keeps me moving and motivated. Some more uses are listed below in the graphic.

To life... full of smelling pepperminty fresh!