A Morning At Devil's Den State Park

Today was a day like no other in Arkansas history. It was sunny and 74 degrees and so, I will admit it, we decided to skip church and enjoy God's creation! We spent the day at Devil's Den hiking, snacking and showing Cole a lot of neat new things. When I was pregnant with Cole a friend from work gave us this hiking backpack. We had not used it before and decided today was the day. Wow - Cole LOVED it! He kept laughing and pointing at Rhonald saying "Hi Daddy!" Rhonald got quite a work out carrying that big boy around all morning so he was glad when we decided to break for lunch. Cole had...or sort of had...his first peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He took a few bites and gave it back to me saying "all done mama." I am not sure what he thought but I am sure he will love them one day. After lunch we walked along another trail where Cole found more bugs, rocks and leaves than any little boy could imagine! He also got to see his first acorn and a huge Caterpillar. We love watching him learn about new things and really take them in. It is truly amazing!!! Rhonald and I had the hardest time getting him to leave today. He simply wanted to sit in the middle of the trail and play in the dirt. He piled up the rocks and then organized some leaves. It was so sweet to watch him enjoy his day so much. When other people would walk by him he would not even move but he did say "Hi" to every person that passed. He was so work out that he took a very long nap once we got home. When he woke up he ran out to the backyard for more fun in the sun...and dirt!

"Pish! Pish!"

Looking at a big bug on the playground.

Enjoying a picnic lunch

Cole always throws his head back when he is swinging!

Looking at the fish.

2 weeks ago we spent a day at Roaring River State Park in Missouri. The weather was great and we just had to get out of the house and enjoy it. Cole took a great nap on the drive up there which was great because it meant that we were able to stay a little bit longer than we had originally planned. We had a nice picnic lunch of lunchables and fruit, played on the playground and looked at lots and lots of fish. Cole loves fish. He has loved them since he was only a few months old so he had the time of his life! He kept yelling "pish! pish!" every time he saw a trout swim by. He loved running up and down the river watching people fish and looking at bugs. That is another obsession and, let me tell you, he can find a bug almost anywhere! We really did have a great time exploring and simply being together.

Destin, FL 2009

Ok, I know...I should have warned you about all of the pictures. But, in my defense...this is my scrapbook and I had to include a little of everything. Where to begin??? We had a great time in Destin this year! We spent a week with my parents and my brother's family enjoying a lot of rest and relaxation. Cole was so much fun and so different than he was last year. Last year Cole hated the ocean and everything about being away from home but this year he LOVED it! He actually got in the water with Rhonald and had fun. He loved feeling the water on his toes. By the end of the week he was taking his sand bucket to the water and filling it up - only to dump the water out on the way back to our spot because it was so heavy. He would repeat that sequence over and over as long as we would let him. Cole loved the water but he REALLY loved the sand! Oh my goodness - he would run and run and fall down on purpose. I don't think he ever stopped laughing when he was playing in the sand. Watching him have such a good time was so much fun for us-it made us laugh just as much! Getting to spend time with our niece, Kylie, and nephews, Luke and Tyler, was one of the highlights for me. We usually only see them once or twice a year so being with them for a week was great! Another bonus to this trip was how much time Cole was able to spend with everyone. I love that he is getting to know his cousins better and really looks up to them. They were so sweet to play with him and help us watch him. Rhonald and I were able to sneak away for dinner twice which was awesome! I celebrated my 31st birthday on our vacation (holy cow - I know). Rhonald took me to the very best restaurant I have ever been to for my birthday...The Beach Walk Cafe. The picture of the beach above is the view from our table. It was amazing and I felt so blessed to be there and enjoy that with him. Cole actually slept well every night and traveled well in the car (thank goodness). We were so proud of him and how well he adjusted and how he seemed to just go with the flow. Cole loved playing in the pool and splashing around with the boys and my dad. He was able to spend a lot of time getting hugs and reading with my mom. Rhonald, my dad, my brother and Luke went deep sea fishing one morning and caught a ton of yummy fish! They caught their limit of King Mackerel, Red Snapper and Grouper. They had a wonderful time and actually commented that they were tired of catching fish by the end of the morning! We are so thankful that we were able to spend this time with our family and make so many wonderful memories. We were exhausted once we got home but after one good night of sleep we were already talking about going back next year! Now that is how you know you had a great vacation!

Our Sweet 19th Month Old

My oh My....Where to begin?! I know I say this every month but I think Cole is more fun now than ever before. He is so funny and he knows it which makes it even funnier to be with him. Cole is growing like a weed. He LOVES Thomas the Tank Engine and anything to do with trucks, trains and cars. He runs around the house pumping his arm yelling "choo choo" all day long. I have taken him to Barnes and Noble a few times to play with the train set and he is totally in heaven! He still enjoys farm animals quite a bit too. He loves to sing along (in his own words) with us when we sing to him which is super cute. He still loves to read and he really loves picking out the book that we read to him. We recently have made his pacifier a bedtime only item and he is doing very well with that. Cole has a bit of a hard time giving it up when he wakes up from his nap but he gets over it very quickly. Since we have made this new rule he is talking so much more and saying so many new things every day. I love listening to him babble away and I love that we understand him even when no one else does. He loves to sit on the potty and say "pee pee" but that is as far as it goes. He has never "done anything" on the potty but at least he is making the connection. We see more and more that Cole has a servant's heart. He loves helping us around the house and he has really started trying to help other kids when they need it as well. We feel so proud of him whenever we see him reaching out to others. I wish I was more like him in so many ways! Cole is a thinker - just like Rhonald. Although he loves to run and be silly he can also get very serious when he is playing with his toys. He likes things just so and has a hard time when they don't work out how he wants them too. He loves to line things up over and over. Cole is still eating like a champ and now points to each item on his plate and asks what it is or tells us what it is if he knows. We do this about 10 times with each meal but I know it is how he learns. He is doing very well with a spoon and a plate. We love this little guy so much and simply adore everything he does. Sorry if these monthly posts get boring but I have to have some way of keeping up with all he is doing. Thank you, once again, for going on this journey with us!

A Redneck Summer

If I were to pick a word that described the weather this summer it would have to be HOT! And I mean very hot...like 100 degrees hot. We have been swimming (in a real pool) 2-3 times a week for several weeks now. Last weekend was just like every other weekend...HOT. Rhonald had been joking all day about getting in Cole's baby pool but I never thought he would do it. When Cole woke up from his nap the pool was ready...I got Cole ready (yes, he is only wearing a swim diaper and not a swim suit but hey - we were home) and took him outside. I told Rhonald I would be right back - that I was going to get popsicles and when I came back I found both of them "swimming" in the pool! Cole adored having Rhonald join him and I think Rhonald enjoyed it too. We decided this was the true meaning of a redneck summer!

Has It Really Been 18 Months?????

WOW! It is crazy how fast 18 months can fly by! Cole turned 18 months old on July 11th. I have to admit that I was more sad about this day than when he turned 1 year old. He is a boy...not a baby boy but a real and true messy and dirty and fun little boy! He amazes us each and every day with all that he can do and say. Cole is starting to say so many things and he is becoming more independent all of the time. He follows directions very well. He is great about cleaning up his toys and putting things in the trash (he also loves pulling things out of the trash which is something that we are constantly working on). One thing that I love is that he no longer dumps his plate on to the floor when he is done eating but he hands it to us and says "all done." When he is ready to get out of the bath tub he puts his toys in his bath bucket and stands up and says "all done." He has learned to say "no" and to say "yes." Those are 2 key words in communication ... you don't realize it but they are. It is so helpful to be able to narrow down what he wants. We say all of the time that we have more fun with him every day. He really is funny and is learning how to use his sense of humor to get what he wants. Cole loves swimming...and has way too much confidence in the water. He loves to jump in and have us catch him and he loves to kick his legs in the water. The frustrating thing is that he does not want us to hold him in the pool and he only wants to be in a float part of the time. This is an area where we are all trying to learn patience...especially Cole. I took Cole to the doctor last week for his 18 month check up and everything looked great! He weighs 27 lbs and is 32 inches tall. I love taking him in because he is so good that everyone makes a big deal about him. Ok, it does help that we take Cole to the clinic where Rhonald was a resident so they love us and have known us well for 4 years. Cole walked from the waiting room to the scale and jumped on it. Then he ran to the exam room when Carla, the nurse, said Dr. Thomas was waiting for him...which she wasn't but it worked. Then he sat so super still and was so quiet while Dr. Thomas and a medical student examined him. The student was impressed and said Cole was the first child he had gotten to examine because the rest of them cried so much. I was beaming with pride at my big boy! Needless to say we love our big boy so much and we are so blessed. I know I say that a lot but it is so true. There are not words that will ever describe how much we love him, each other and the life that we have been blessed with.