Grayson is 16 months & Boys' 1st day of school

It has been a while since I have posted an update, and I feel like there is a lot to catch up on! First of all, here are pictures of my sweet boys on their first day of school this year (August 11, 2014). Both boys are loving their classes at school, and we are so thankful for the amazing Director and teachers at St. Luke's Day School.

Grayson- 1st day of Toddler PDO

Logan- 1st day of Junior K (1st year)

Logan's 1st day of school pictures since starting St. Luke's. He is getting so big!

Grayson is growing and changing all the time, and he is now 16 months old (as of 10/12/14).  The toddler stage is so much fun! He is starting to say lots of words, and he is becoming very opinionated. We never have to wonder what Grayson wants!  Some of the words he says include what's that, bottle, yes, no, ball, baby, puppy, and the list goes on. He calls Logan "La-La" and Logan loves it. As soon as Grayson wakes up in the morning, he immediately asks for La-La and wants to go give him hugs. They have started playing together even more, and it is so sweet! I can actually leave them in Logan's room while playing unsupervised for a few minutes and feel like they are going to survive. Logan is a very sweet big brother, and I am so proud of him!

Sweet brothers ready to go to the Tigers game. And we actually won!

At Grayson's 15 month check up, he was still off the charts for height (33 1/2 inches) and he actually made it on the charts for weight in the 95th percentile (31.5 pounds)! 

Grayson started walking right at 13 months and is definitely running more than he is walking these days. When he is really serious about getting somewhere his right arm has a big swing back and forth, and it is hilarious! He also has some pretty awesome dance moves that involve that swinging arm, twisting at his waist, squatting down, and turning in circles. He is such a funny boy!

 

Such a sweet little thumb sucker!

Grayson is such a dog lover, and he particularly loves Bella who is a black lab belonging to his Mimi & PawPaw. He talks about Bella constantly even when we are not at their house. I am not a dog person at all and his hugging Bella kind of stresses me out, but it is really sweet too.  He also regularly asks about cousin Graham's dog "Bob-O" (or Bosco), too.

We love our sweet Grayson so very much! While he is becoming more opinionated in his toddler months, he is still fairly laid back and is content most of the time. We are so happy he is part of our family!

Orange Beach 2014

We just returned from Orange Beach today, and we had a great week! It is always great to get away with my boys. Logan had been talking about the vacation for weeks and was super excited that we would not have school or work for 9 days, and he was even more excited that could swim every day!  We were all excited that Mimi & PawPaw (my wonderful in-laws) were joining us as well.

Logan- age 4

Grayson- 13 months

The whole crew

A rare picture alone!

This pretty much sums up our family

I love my boys!

We spent the days on the beach, in the pool, and relaxing in the condo. We went out for dinner every night, and we ate a lot of great seafood! My favorite restaurants were Cobalt, Tin Top, and Louisiana Lagniappe. I think I had some type of fish every night!

He isn't scared of bugs anymore (despite my best efforts), and he was waiting for the hermit crab to emerge.

Sweet boy!

I love these brothers.

Logan loved the pool as usual, but he was willing to spend some time on the beach as well.   One of Logan's favorite night activities was riding go-carts. He rode with Brian, John (PawPaw) & me, and had the biggest "tall tales" afterward. All of his "winning" stories involved riding with his Daddy, and he told very exaggerated stories the entire 20 minute drive back to the condo. So funny!

Grayson was happy just about anywhere. He is the best baby/toddler I know! He started "talking" even more this week and was a pro at telling everyone exactly what he wanted. Even though he does not say a lot of actual words, we have no problem understanding what he needs or wants. He is also walking like a champ and is not crawling at all anymore.

Grayson liked the sand as long as he had water to pour and splash.

Logan never slowed down, which is his usual state! He had a blast.

They were not interested in having interrupted play time to get a picture.

My boys have the best Daddy

My three loves!

We were so blessed to have had a safe trip, beautiful weather, and time to relax and recharge. Now, we are happy to be home in our sand-free house!

Logan is FOUR!

My sweet Logan turned FOUR on July 8! I know everyone says this, but it just goes by too fast. Here are his pictures over the years.  In my totally biased opinion, he is such a beautiful boy!

Logan has been very anxious to turn four, and he is somewhat obsessed with people's ages. He told me almost daily that EVERYONE else in his class was already 4, and he was the only one who was still 3. That's what happens when you have a July birthday! When he woke up on his actual birthday (which we had discussed for weeks), he kept saying, "Am I really 4?!"  He wants to know how old everyone is, and even introduced our entire family to our server at a restaurant last weekend by saying, I'm Logan and I'm 4; this is Grayson, and he's 1; this is Destin, and she's 32, and this is Brian, and he's 33.  I need to teach him not to tell my age!

Logan is very outgoing, and he makes a friend wherever he goes. If we go to the park or anywhere in public and there is someone remotely close to his age, he introduces himself and tries to play with him/her. I think these are qualities that will serve him well as he gets older!  Logan is also very admired by his little brother who has started calling him "La la." 

This spring we signed Logan up for soccer, and it was interesting. He liked it at first and even was fairly successful the 2nd game, but then the next games were just all silliness. I think maybe we started him too young.  He really wants to play baseball, so we will probably sign him up for t-ball next spring. He did look super cute in his soccer uniform though!

Logan is still a very good eater. I think the picture below was taken when he was eating his favorite meal of grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and green peas.  At his four year old check-up Dr. S asked him his favorite food, and he said green peas. I thanked Logan for making me look good! He certainly eats his fair share of popsicles and other less-than-healthy foods, but I am grateful that he loves veggies.

In early June, Logan completed a week of swimming lessons, and he is now swimming like a fish! The class was five days of 30-minute sessions, and he cried the first two.  Even though he has always loved the water, he did not like having to put his whole face under. By Wednesday he was no longer crying, and by Friday he could swim the length of the pool. I am so proud of him! No more floaties are needed for this boy.

Logan's four year old check-up showed he is still off the charts for height and weight for his age, which again was no surprise! He was 3 feet, 8.5 inches tall, and he weighed about 48 pounds. He is wearing mostly size 5 in clothes and size 12 in shoes.

Logan is still very energetic and loves to run and play. He has a big imagination and could play Star Wars or Avengers for hours at a time. He is very strong-willed and somewhat dramatic, which I think can be attributed to his age and his genes (Ahem... his Dad!). Logan also has a very big heart, and he always gives hugs, kisses, and tell us he loves us (including his baby brother!).

We celebrated Logan's birthday Star Wars-style with lots of friends! This was the first time to invite friends from school, and Logan has a blast.

He could not wait until guests arrived to get on his water slide.

He was so excited to see cousin Kaylie!

Some of his school friends

Brennon is Logan's "best buddy" and he woke up asking me if Brennon was there yet!

Lots of little friends came!

Cousin Graham had a big time with Katelyn!

This sweet little brother slept through almost the entire party.

Here was the cute invitation designed by my very talented co-worker (who has his own Etsy shop)!

Logan, Happy 4th birthday. We love you more than words could every express, and we are so thankful that you are our son. Like I always tell you, you will always be my baby!

Grayson is One!

Our sweet Grayson turned one on June 12, 2014, and this past year has gone by too fast.  He is a busy boy and is eagerly discovering the world around him.  Grayson still has such a happy demeanor and is laid back compared to the rest of us!  If he misses nap time, he just takes one later or in the car as needed.  If we are busy helping Logan, he just watches and waits.  If a toy gets taken away from him, he usually just goes to find a new one.  We are truly blessed to have such a sweet boy as part of our family!

Grayson at 11 months (5/12/14)

Grayson is on the move.  He is not quite walking yet, but he is cruising everywhere.  He has started letting go and standing alone for very short periods, and he can walk quickly and steadily when holding our hands.  So, I think those first steps will be coming very soon.

Grayson gives lots of kisses and knows what a kiss is!  They are a little wet, but they are oh so sweet. Grayson is also a very good communicator.  He already says several "words" including Mama, Dada, Hello (Ello), Bye-Bye, Ahh-Oh, and Ball (Ba).  He points and says "Dat?" regularly, and I think he means "What's that?"  If he does not like something, he lets us know immediately.  If he sees something he wants, he also lets us know immediately.  He is a smart boy!

Birthday morning donut

The birthday cake to share

Grayson's mini cake

Grayson's monthly pictures. It has been a fast year!

It's not hard to tell that Grayson is a big boy!  His 1 year check-up revealed that he is still off the charts for height (32 inches) and weight (28 lbs., 5 oz.) for his age.  He is wearing size 5 diapers, size 24 months clothes, and size 5 shoes.  Luckily, his growth has slowed somewhat, and he has been able to wear the same clothes for a couple of months.  He loves table food of all kinds and gets very upset if you do not share with him immediately.

Grayson didn't like the party hat...

But the cake was awesome!

Offering to share

Our sweet family

We celebrated Grayson's birthday with a small family gathering.  He loved his cake and getting to see all of the family members who love him so much!

Bess

Mimi & Papa

Mimi & PawPaw

Grandmother

Aunt Alice

Uncle Jason & Aunt Holly

Such a sweet boy!

Grayson, we have enjoyed this first year of your life so very much, and we cannot wait to see what God has in store for you.  You are the sweetest baby, and we love you more than words can say!