is it even possible?

that i have an 18-month-old? i mean really, most of the time i feel like i am just a kid still. but here i am, face to face with the fact that i just took my "baby" to the doctor for his 18-month-old appointment. dang. and i guess, after all, i will be a quarter of a century old on sunday, so maybe i am not as young as i feel.

anyways, sorry just needed to express my astonishment for a minute.

today, gabe and i went to the pediatrician. he got a flu shot and didn't shed a tear. i was terribly proud because, honestly, i think i would have cried. i am a real baby. but not gabe, he is apparently all grown up. here are a few things about 18-month-old gabe:

:: he weighs in at 29.5 pounds and is 33.5 inches long (which puts him in the 75th percentile for both).

:: he is a very chatty fellow. really, there is very little peace in our house these days due to gabe's constant chatter (or yelling, as he can also be an extremely loud child).

:: he can say more words than it is possible to list, but is especially good at "please" and "thank you".

:: he loves to sing and makes up his own songs often. apparently to him they are real songs, though, because he sings the same made up songs over and over. they are usually about cookies, mama, or daddy.

:: he eats like a pro, but still no meat. i mean, he has been fed meat accidentally before, but we do not include it as part of his regular diet. luckily, he will readily eat scrambled eggs whenever we give it to him, so he gets all the protein a boy could need. not that he is ever lacking in energy. because he is not.

:: he is really into imitation. he tries to do everything that steve, jared and i do (especially jared, as gabe finds him to be exceptionally cool).

:: he hugs the dogs constantly. and although they certainly do not seem to enjoy it, they are good dogs and the tolerate his crazy behavior with astounding patience.

:: it is becoming obvious that we no longer have a baby in our house, but a little boy. and although the sentimental mom part of me wants to cry when she thinks too hard about it (or is that the hormonal, pregnant part of me?), it is so exciting to see his personality develop and watch him as he learns more about the world around him.

mr. cool

today i love...

:: this so cute sweater pattern. hopefully, i can learn to be a faster knitter and spend some time after ezra's arrival working on a few sweaters for the boys to wear next winter. they will be so cute!

:: this nursery wall! i mean, seriously, it is so amazing. if i were doing a brand new nursery for ezra, this would definitely be my inspiration.

:: this tutorial on how to turn any pants into maternity pants. wondering if i should go thrift some shorts and give it a try. sure could use some clothes that fit!

:: this cake! seriously. so cool.

:: these new diaper covers by bumgenius, my favorite cloth diaper company! they would allow me to use the cheap prefolds i love (obviously, because they are CHEAP) but with a one-size cover, thus eliminating the need to move up a size every three months or so. really, i thought of this idea a long time ago. glad they finally got the message and made exactly what i want. five of these and i would be set through potty training with the new little man! (and to top it all off, they will be ready for shipping just in time for ezra's arrival)

:: this spot at the fort where we planted ourselves last night to watch the boats. and gabe's eagerness to try saying all of the words we give him. he really surprised us by saying "boat" with no problem. who knew?

no comment

1. bravest..., 2. ...baby on..., 3. ... the beach!

in the evening

i think that i have found my new favorite evening activity. jared, steve, gabe and i all headed to the island for dinner, and afterwards spent some time enjoying the beach. it is so peaceful and relaxing to be near the water as the sun is setting. no need to worry much about heat and sunburns and crowds. not to mention how beautiful it is to be out during my favorite time of the day. i am hooked, and you better believe we will be there again at least one more time before the week is up.

new life

this month has been full of birth and new life. today, sarah and i went to visit haley and her new baby, charolette rose (charlie). friday, we visited dana and her littlest, chloe (born not even a week ago). steve's cousins, jeremy and pam, welcomed their fourth, andrew, last month. the ever growing sivyer family expects another addition this week in the form of rick and kelly's fourth child, kate. and i have not yet met, but really can't wait to get my hands on micah and danielle's second daughter, olivia, next time i am in tallahassee. dang. i think that might be all of them.

needless to say, all of this new life has had me thinking about ezra's arrival, which is apparently just around the corner. my due date is three months from this week and i cannot wait to meet the little guy (except that i can. mostly because i am really enjoying getting lots of sleep and going wherever i want whenever i want and all that). for now i am happy to just enjoy other people's newest additions and then kindly give them back at the end of the visit knowing that i will sleep soundly come eleven-o-clock.

charlie enjoying a quick nap while i enjoy her mother's company

some other time

this week, i tried my hand at potty training gabe. i went in knowing that at almost 18 months, he is still a little young, but showed a lot of interest in it. monday and tuesday were spent with a naked gabe running around. sometimes peeing all over the house and every now and again, getting lucky and peeing in the toilet. however, after two whole days of watching him, i quickly realized that his little body seems unready. so, we slapped a diaper back on him and i intend to try again once more at the beginning of december, just in case there is a chance of him being ready before the baby comes. i certainly don't regret trying, and learned a lot from the experience. plus, having a naked gabe running around all week was terribly amusing and a great opportunity to stock up on embarrassing pictures for the future.

ignoring his mother

home again

over the weekend, steve and gabe and i all went to madison and then to tallahassee. gabe wore his gator jersey with pride and ate his weight in grape tomatoes (freshly picked off of the bush at my grandpas' house).

in tallahassee, he spent hours swimming in the pool and floating around in his new inflatable canoe.

on sunday, unexpected events took me and my mom to maryland. unsure of how long we would need to be there, it was such a blessing to know that gabe was well cared for. he spent his days with various families in our church and his nights at home with steve. God is such a great provider, and it was amazing to see Him use the body here to care for my family. i am home now, and glad to be. pray for our family as we gear up for some changes in the near future. we are excited to see how God will work.

celebrating chloe

tonight, some of the ladies got together at this sweet tea room in palm coast to celebrate dana's pregnancy. after some complications and difficulty in the beginning, God has protected little chloe, and we all look forward to meeting her very soon! the tea room was so great, and it was nice to have a ladies night out without any children.

today i love...

:: this post on potty training at a young age. i think next week gabe and i will give it a try. we will see if it works for him.

:: this scarf pattern. i know i live in florida and there is little need for a scarf most of the year, but i have an obsession that i can do nothing about and i will continue to nurture it. so there. the pattern also includes a hat and mittens!!

:: this recipe blog. it is my new favorite, and this post on fresh bruschetta has been tempting me all week. i love bruschetta enough to make it a meal. but i am not sure how steve would feel about an all bruschetta dinner. also, this post on freezing fresh basil might come in handy if ever i can perfect the art of actually keeping basil plants alive. then, i could have bruschetta every day! that would really be a dream come true.

:: this man and his recycled houses. i mean really, how much cooler does it get?

:: this post on preparing homemade brown sugar. very cool. and actually, to be honest, i always suspected that was how it was done. now i know.

:: these pictures of gabe when he was only weeks old. maybe only days old. either way, he was so cuddly cute and chubby-faced. gets me excited to have another newborn in the house. that is until i remember just how little i was sleeping then. hmmm.

just before he dumped a whole bucket of sand on his head

the gracious hand of God

over the last year, steve and i have been overwhelmed as we consider God's grace and provision for us. He has given us a church family that supports and loves us, a reliable income in a time of uncertainty, a beautiful son and the blessing of another soon to come.

we have chosen the name ezra for our second son.

in reading through the book of ezra, it talks over and over about how the "gracious hand of God was on him". not only is this phrase so applicable to the things that God has been teaching us as a family recently, but it is certainly a prayer that we would have for our son. our desire is that he always be aware of God's hand in his life, directing his path, giving grace in all circumstances and providing for all of his needs.