Blurry

Dear Jordan,

Life is just flying by.  Yesterday, you were a little bitty baby who needed to be held to fall asleep and needed a bottle every two hours.  Today, you're a little boy who just pushed his pretend car by my chair and said "Bye, mama".  I feel like God has given me wisdom to savor today because I know before long, you will be grown up and I will miss these crazy days...and yes, they are crazy!

You keep doing things that blow our minds.  I'm going to name a few and you'll probably laugh at this, but for us, we are constantly amazed at watching you grow up.  For example, last night, I fixed sloppy joe's for dinner.  I put your meat on your open bun because you usually just go at it with a spoon and your fingers.  Last night, though, you watched your dad put his sloppy joe together and then you closed your bun and picked it up and started eating it like a big kid.  We were both so amazed by that!  (I told you, you will laugh!).  You also have started asking questions like "What's that?" and "Where did he go?".  I had no idea how much fun it would be to watch you develop.

You have been sleeping better this week.  Last week you were sick and it was kind of a hard week from you.  But the past couple of weeks you slept past sunrise.  Whoo hoo!  You have no idea how nice it is for me to get up and get my head on straight before you wake up.  I am thankful that you still need a good snuggle when you wake up.  I will miss that when you grow out of it.  Maybe you never will!

Back to eating...you are always more interested in what I'm eating than what you are, even if we are eating the same thing.  Every few minutes you push your plate over to me so I can put some food on your plate.  This morning we were both eating oatmeal and you just wanted to eat my oatmeal. 

On Friday, we went to the OU English Conversation Club Thanksgiving meal. We hosted a table and they all really enjoyed you.  For some reason, international students just love you.  They had a professional photographer and you were in a lot of pictures with people we had never met.  It was pretty cute!  You ate your meal on my lap and shared with me.  I kept trying to give you bites, but you refused.  But you stuck your spoon into the bread and would eat bites of food off of the bread.  Silly-ness!

Well, you are lounging on the keyboard right now.  Time for me to go!  We are going to a playdate with some friends here in a  bit, so we should probably get ready.

Thanksgiving is this week.  I am so excited to celebrate with you and your Daddy.  I am beyond blessed to have you two!

Love, Mom

Friendship

Dear Jordan,

This weekend was completely exhausting but totally worth it!  We drove to Texas to visit your great-grandparents and then we spent most of the day Saturday with our friends.  These are friends who we've known for many years.  They are the kind of friends who will be our friends forever.  We all got married at the same time, lived in an apartment complex together, went to church together, and even though we are scattering (and we're the only ones left in Norman!), we still love to be together.  Now, the best part of it all is that we are all having kids!  We now have the tradition of taking the "kid picture".  It keeps getting bigger and bigger and so do you kids!

Speaking of getting bigger, you need to stop growing up so fast!  I am cherishing this time because I know that I will blink and you will be too big to snuggle in my lap or just follow me around saying "mama".  I am so thankful that the Lord has given me the wisdom to slow down.  Frankly, I don't get things done very often!  I'm slow to get checks to the bank and the laundry is not always finished.  But, I never regret taking you to the library to play or sitting in the chair and watching Sesame Street with you.  You are a joy and an answer to prayer and I am determined not to let you grow up without my savoring your childhood.

You are so cute!  You make all kinds of people smile because you are so friendly.  You don't talk a lot, but you can certainly communicate.  And one thing is for sure...you are persistent!  You never quit!  Today at the library you really wanted to play with the computers.  I probably pulled you off of them ten times.  You never got mad, you just kept at it.  I try not to get mad or frustrated, because I know that someday God will use your persistent personality.  I pray all of the time for you to become His child because you are so special. 

I am so looking forward to you getting a sister pretty soon!  I know you two will grow up being great friends.  I know it's going to seem like you are neglected, but it will be worth it.  I will have to really make time for our snuggles and hopefully your sister won't be quite as high-maintenance as you were when you were a baby!

Alright, I need to wake you up from your nap (crazy Mom!) because we have to go.  I'm taking you to your friend Henry's house for a bit so I can go to the Eden Clinic.  I am so thankful that you are flexible and you let me go.  It fills me up to be there and I love getting to help women.  You are an important part of my ministry just by letting me be there.

I love you little man.

Mom

 

Hot Diggety Dog!

Dear Jordan,

You make a super cute hot dog.  Your Mimi bought you the costume to wear to Trinity's Fall Festival.  I had a back-up costume planned just in case you didn't want to wear the hot dog, but I think you had too much fun to even notice it!  From the second we got there, you were on the move.  You sat through the very first part of the costume contest and then moved on to the Toddler bouncy area.  Then you ate about a hot dog and a half and then half of Grandma Nietzie's cookie.  We tried to play some games, but you got tired and so only got two pieces of candy!  Finally, you wanted to jump in the big kid's bouncy house.  You kept saying "jump, jump" until I let you go.  I thought you wouldn't last long, but you I had to force you out to let the other kids have a turn! 

Last weekend, we went to Shawnee to visit Mimi.  You walked into her house like you own the place.  I love how much you love being over there.  I remember my grandparents' houses being so special!   I might remember more about them than I did my own houses I lived in!  You are such a blessing to your Mimi.  She loves you so much and you bring so much joy to our family.

Eating out with you has gotten tough.  You NEVER sit still unless your eating.  So if we take you to a place where we have to wait for food, it's pretty miserable.  We went to McAlister's last night.  I went to go get a straw and you were sitting in the booth with your dad.  By the time I came back, you had climbed over the booth and had dumped the little container with all the sugar packets.  Your dad was trying to hold you down and clean up at the same time.  It's a bit of a challenge, but you're not obnoxious about it.  You just never stop moving!

This weekend was Daylight Savings time.  Hopefully, by the time you read this, this will be no more.  I used to love it.  I like this time of year so the fact that it's darker earlier just means more time to see Christmas lights.  Plus, you get an extra hour of sleep the night it switches over.  Well, now that I'm a mom, it's a little different.  Actually, no, it's terrible!  You think you need to wake up at 5:30 every morning.  Two nights ago you woke up at 3:30!  I'm super tired.  However, I kind of knew how bad it would be, so I have my friends praying for patience.  I know their prayers are helping and I've tried to make an effort to be mindful of my attitude.  This really is just a season.  You keep getting bigger and bigger and will never be my sweet, little 20 month old again!

One last story...a new game we play.  Every time I say "Night, night" you lay down your head, wherever you are.  When I say "Good morning!" you pop your head up...grinning the whole time!  It is so cute!

Well, speaking of sleep issues...you're up waaay too early from your nap.  I can tell it's too early because you are really, really mad!  Time for me to put that patience into practice!

I love you, little man!

Mom