Thawed Out

This weekend simply couldn't have been any better! We started off on the right foot with family dinner at Soccer Taco with some friends, Jeb and Cathy. John Thomas was all about the female waitresses. I think he's definitely an equal opportunity flirt. Maybe it will motivate him to be bilingual?
I think he had a growing spurt this weekend, because he looks bigger in the last picture (taken today) than in the first (taken on Thursday). It could be due to the fact that we were all healthy at the same time for the first time all year. His dad must have made our bed seem irresistible, because John Thomas definitely ended up in our bed at 5:30 this morning. It may have been a major parenting no-no, but he was soooo snuggly I couldn't help it!

Did I mention we had a great weekend? I think we all did a lot of smiling. Feeling good, having a loving family, and time to spend together--I am so thankful for God's blessings.

I cannot get enough of this lil guy! We even got to go for a family stroll at the park today because it was 65 degrees. I'm sure we'll be blanketed with snow again before winter bids farewell, but a day like this is a warm welcome (so to speak).

John Thomas actually got to explore the deck this weekend too. We have to watch him like a hawk, because he puts EVERYTHING in his mouth. Even after I swept, he was able to find a minute speck of leaf that I had to emergently fish out. The tell-tale is the the "cat that got the canary" look he gets after he's put something inedible in his mouth. I can only hope that a speck of a leaf is the worst thing he's going to put in his mouth before he outgrows this phase.

Although I've learned so much over the last nine months, one of the biggest things I've learned is that I should NEVER say "never." Ever. The other thing I've learned is that it's really inconceivable how much I love JT and how much more I love his daddy. My heart is full.

Of course the blog wouldn't be complete if our ever-eager photog-dog wasn't enduring some mild form of infant abuse just to get some extra love.

One Man Down

We had another man down this weekend. Believe it or not, Jason caught a stomach bug and was completely out of commission all weekend. Not that I would ever wish for Jason to get sick, but John Thomas and I had a great weekend together. We read, played with Chester, danced, sang, and played more "peek-a-boo" than I can count. We even tried out his old swing and he loved it.
We also did lots of exploring around the house, including the library (i.e. the bookshelves in the dinning room). As you can tell, he's already taken a liking to Economics and his daddy couldn't be more excited. Although I'm a little tired, I couldn't imagine a better weekend with my baby boy.

I even braved church this morning as a single parent. He was incredibly good. In fact, it's the first service I've heard all the way through in a quite a while. Hopefully I won't be blogging about illness again for a very very long time.

If you're looking for something that will make you smile, I've uploaded onto Facebook a short video of John Thomas playing. You'll get just a taste of how much fun we had this weekend.

Nine Months Down

It is absolutely amazing how fast babies change and grow! From our little snuggly peanut to our big cuddly crawler, John Thomas has just grown up too fast! In his ninth month, JT crawls, pulls up, loves to eat, loves to be read to (especially when he's tired), loves climbing on/over Chester, loves to dance, loves to flirt, and loves his blocks and train. One of my favorite things he does when he's crawling around is chuckle right before he's about to get into something. "Heh heh, there's that potted plant that momma won't let me play in." And then he makes a b-line for the vegetation. I'm thinking his curiosity is a good thing, but may lead to some serious mother/son standoffs in the future.
We had more snow days this week. How I love living in a county that comes to a virtual standstill with only a few inches of snow. It actually worked out great because we all got to recover from the variety of ailments we've been battling. Not to mention that we LOVE getting to stay home and have quality time together.

We also found many creative ways to entertain ourselves, which included torturing the dog. At this point, I think Chester will take any attention he can get.

John Thomas has started pulling up on everything. Whenever we go get him out his crib, he's just standing there looking at us. I'm not sure how long it takes most kids to go from standing to walking, but I'll keep you posted.

 John Thomas has started saying "dada" as well as "mama." He doesn't say them everyday, but it's definitely music to our ears. Right now he uses them interchangeably, so he still hasn't quite figured out who he's talking about.

Also in his ninth month, John Thomas is flashing a toothy grin. He's got four, yes FOUR, teeth. I'm sure it's no surprise that we brush them every night right before bath time. I wonder when his dad is going to make him start flossing?

Sick of Being Sick

It was back to the daily grind this week for all of us. I didn't have to go back to work until Wednesday, so I soaked up the last few days with John Thomas. We mostly hung out around the house and enjoyed the relatively mild temperatures (mid-50s). I forgot how much he loves being outdoors. I think this Spring and Summer we'll be spending most of our spare time hanging out with Mother Nature.
I guess I shouldn't have been so surprised that John Thomas ended up sick again after his first week back at daycare. Everyone told me that it was going to happen, but I loathe the fact that he has to catch all these new germs. At least it happened on Friday, so we had all weekend to nurse him back to health. He must be a tough little boy, because even when he's ill he wants to laugh and play. If he hadn't been "tossing his cookies," I wouldn't have even known he didn't feel well. On a different note, school went well and I think I've got some really great kids this semester.

I know this may not be his cutest picture ever, but he was laughing so hard it was cracking me up. Hopefully he will continue to find momma and daddy so amusing for years to come.

So the hat may be a little Elmer Fuddish, but he looks so darn cute, I couldn't resist. Hopefully for JT's nine month birthday next week, we'll all be feeling better than ever.

Top Ten from 2010

Because I usually forget my New Year's resolution before the end of January, I've decided to have monthly resolutions. Hopefully this new arrangement will work for my apparently limited attention span. January's resolution: Don't live for the weekends. After going back to work, I really began to relish my time at home (especially my weekends). I know there are an abundance of opportunities, precious moments and important relationships I have been missing out on because my mind was on my family. If anyone else wants to join me in the monthly resolutions or has some ideas of your own, just let me know.
2010 has been an incredible year at the Kirkpatrick's, so narrowing the list down to ten was quite the challenge.
Top Ten Moments of 2010

1. The birth of our son. I simply cannot describe how blessed and thankful we are to have our little John Thomas. It's virtually impossible for me to verbalize how much love we have for our lil bear, but let's just say it's unfathomably infinite.

2. We love our new family traditions and routines like the "bath time" dance, eating dinner together, morning cuddle time and baby kisses.

3. JT's first Christmas and the first Christmas where our families came to our house. Hopefully this will be a new tradition too.

4. Time spent with our families. Whether it was flying to Wisconsin, driving to west Tennessee or driving to North or South Carolina, it's always a treat to visit with everyone.

5. John Thomas' christening. May it be the first day of his lifelong walk with Christ.

6. Time spent with our closest friends. From Alabama and Texas to Colorado and Ohio, we hate being so far away from many of our friends but are thankful to have people in our lives that are so close in spite of the distance. Of course, our Tennessee friends are the ones that have to put up with us the most and can't imagine having a better group of people to share our lives with. One added bonus is that some of my closest girl friends also had babies this year, so JT already has playmates!

7. Traveling to the beach with our babe. Although he was only seven weeks old, he loved it and we can't wait to take him back when he'll actually get to frolic in the sand.

8. Celebrating our sixth anniversary. Jason is so much fun to share my life with.

9. We finally splurged on living room furniture. It's changed the way I feel in our home and I love it.

10. Our new deck and fire pit. I know during the Fall, we spent as much time inside as we did by the fire pit. Not to mention the added bonus of s'mores.

We built John Thomas' first blanket fort today and he thought it was the coolest thing ever. Did I mention we love all the fun family time? Happy new year to our friends and family and we hope that 2011 is filled with laughter and love.