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.

A Crossroads Christmas

So it's untraditional, but our Christmas cake was just one of several firsts this year at the Kirkpatrick household. Obviously it was the very best Christmas ever because it was the first with our little snow angel, John Thomas. It was also the first time we had everyone over to our house for a major holiday. Jason's parents, my parents, my brother's family and my aunt all under one roof. I would say that it was a raving success. John Thomas has absolutely loved having all the hustle and bustle around the house. You practically had to wait in line to get time with him. He was content just hanging out in the kitchen or in whatever room the action was in.

The official Kirkpatrick Christmas portrait of 2010. I cannot even describe how blessed we are to have our family, our faith, our health, our friends, and our home.

The lil guy loves unwrapping presents! And between grandparents and other extended family, he racked up. We had to go buy a bigger plastic bin today to hold all of his new stuff. After everyone left last night, he just sat in the middle of all his new toys and you could see the excitement on his face.

Of course, we all unwrapped some pretty cool gifts. But the best gift of all is having a loving family to share the spirit of Christmas with.

I think JT would agree that the best part of the holidays was having all the wonderful company, especially his cousin Amelia. I wonder how we'll adjust this week with our abandoned house?

...And a Partridge in a Pear Tree

We have had a fantastic week here at the Kirkpatrick abode! First off, I only had to work two days this week thanks to some wintery precipitation. Trust me when I say that this teacher loves snow days as much, if not more, than any student I know. If that wasn't enough to make my week great, my parents showed up on Saturday afternoon ready to spend the holidays with us.
We had the Bradley's over last night for dinner, and I'm pretty sure that John Thomas spent the better part of the evening in someone's arms or lap. It's amazing how much a little one can really be the life of the party.

Anyone who has ever been to our house knows that our old couch was both an eyesore and a dog bed, so this weekend our shiny new furniture showed up. Chester, who is still mourning the loss of his old couch, has already learned to stay off the new couch (at least when we're around).

Our Sunday morning started off in the most beautiful way. My parents graciously agreed to babysit so that Jason and I could go see our friend, Sarah, in an amazing musical, Behold the Lamb of God. It was, hands down, one of the more incredible church experiences I've ever had. It was a wonderful reminder of what Christmas really is all about. I'm sure that's not what John Thomas was thinking about as he was climbing all over the gifts this week.

Under the Weather

This week was relatively routine until I got the dreaded phone call from the daycare on Wednesday afternoon. I couldn't have gotten to the daycare any faster and I am thankful that there weren't any speed traps along the way. The good news is that John Thomas is feeling much better now.
I hate when John Thomas doesn't feel well, but I made a list of the top five benefits of being able to stay home with my boy.
1. I get to spend oodles of time with John Thomas, including snuggling up for a morning nap together.
2. I can remember only wanting my mom when I was sick and I can't imagine being anywhere other than nurturing my babe when he is under the weather.
3. I don't have to wake up at 5:30.
4. I finally started wrapping Christmas gifts.
5. I get to take lots of pictures of our lil bear.
One of his favorite things right now is knocking over the "tower of destruction." He'll crawl all the way across the floor just to take out the stackable cups.

This is right before impact. I think you can see the anticipation on his face.

Leave it up to dad to discover the new found pleasure of knocking things over. Jason has had lots of time with John Thomas this weekend because I came down with a nasty stomach bug yesterday. I spent most of the day in the bed or in the loo. I couldn't even carry JT around without feeling like I was going to pass out. I'm feeling a little better today, but I think daddy is wiped out after having to care for his boy and his wife all day and all night. Jason definitely wins an award for "Daddy/Hubby of the Week." We've both decided that being a single parent has to be virtually impossible. Seriously, I can't imagine how one person could raise a child all by themselves (especially feeling the way I did yesterday).

It's not really a developmental update, but John Thomas has started taking a stow-away with him whenever he gets out of the tub. I guess he's trying to "hang on" to bath time just a little longer. He can also go from laying on the floor to sitting up all by himself. He doesn't just sit up from his back, he kind of rolls around to his belly, gets his leg under him and then pushes up.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

It's really starting to feel like Christmas around here. Not only is nearly all my shopping done, we actually had snow flurries all day too! It was the perfect opportunity to try out John Thomas' heavy coat. I'm sure to my parents, who live in Wisconsin now, these flurries don't seem news-worthy. I only wish we could get a few inches more so I might get to extend my weekend at home with my cutie.
Besides the weather, our tree is fully decorated but without any gifts yet. We only had a few baby-friendly ornaments to hang on the bottom branches, so the tree is mostly naked for the bottom two feet. That hasn't stopped JT from shimmying up to it and checking out the lights and (plastic) pine needles.

Only twelve more days of school until Christmas break, but who's counting.