18 Month Pictures

Will got his 18 Month pictures taken last week. We've been working on getting these done since late January, but the weather kept holding us up.

All I can say is our dear friend and photographer Becky did an amazing job again!

Will was hard to capture this time, but what 18 month old isn't. I was worried we wouldn't get any good shots; he insisted on holding either a ball, his screw driver or sippy cup and ziplock w/ cookies most of the time. Of course the ball made for great pics. The others were just silly.

But Becky captured shots I didn't even know she was taking,

As well as shots I'll hold dear to my heart always. (they were even walking the exact same)

And what I thought was a "maybe we'll get a shot or two" photo session, turned into 42 pictures that I'd like displayed all over my house. Man, I love this kid.

Weekend Away

We haven't been to the lake since Labor Day and for us that's not normal. We love winter at the lake, fireplace going, watch movies, cozy up on the patio. It's like summer...but cold!

This was Duke's first trip down and he did pretty well; for the most part. He thinks he's a circus dog which was entertaining.

Yes, you are seeing this! He was scaling the porch rail. Silly dog would weave in and out of the post getting himself so tied up that we'd have to unhook his chain and start over.

Ah, Mr. Innocent!

Will had a blast...mainly because we spent 90% of the weekend outside.

He and Duke played so hard that by 8:00 Saturday night they were both passed out!

Will was fascinated w/ the faucet.

This tore me up....I am down on the beach patio w/ the zoom all the way up to take this picture. Will took the path up to the house ALL BY HIMSELF! That makes him a big boy.

Then to make me even sadder..and freaked out, he took the stairs to the patio ALL BY HIMSELF.

Then sat down and scooted down the steps.

Duke LOVED the water. Of course most Labs do.

Then when playtime outside was done, Will spent most of the evening "fixing" his car. He loves tools, especially grown up tools. Why play w/ a kids hammer when the real thing is in Daddy's tool box. Of course it's with constant supervision when he plays w/ these tools and we've drawn the line with the real vs. play chain saw. I mean, you have to put your foot down somewhere; right!?!

Although the weather was a bit chilly, we had a great weekend and CAN'T wait for summer to get here so we can ditch the coats and warm clothes and hang in bathing suits all weekend.

Week from....BEEEP!!!

The last two weeks have been extra rough in the Martin household. Last tuesday Will caught a viral infection and with it came 5 nights of no sleep, 5 days of a cranky, miserable & clingy little boy and one very very strung out mommy who spent all of those days awake.

What was this awful viral infection I speak of....well, to be completely blunt, Will broke out with a gazillion little blisters all over his throat, was throwing up, had butt burning diarrhea and ran a temp close to 103. Saturaday morning the blisters decided they should pop up all over his face as well, so he's got about 6 blisters on his cheek and 1 on his lip. We lived in quarantine for 5 days for fear of passing this awful infection to any one else. All I could get Will to eat was yogurt and pancakes, it's the only thing that didn't hurt his mouth. He cried and cried and there was nothing we could do to make it go away. On top of all this, poor Bear was cutting a molar so his gums were so tender he screamed if you touched them. The only thing that gave any kind of relief was origel (but only for a short time) and teething tablets (and only once he was in such hysterics that they'd literally wipe him out) He was worst at night, he couldn't sleep and if he did get an hour or so rest it was propped up on me.

Needless to say, by Sunday I was so strung out I couldn't speak without crying. And to add to it, I had to spend Sunday sanitizing the house and Will's toys because of all the drooling, to make sure this didn't come back. There is nothing more awful than your child in pain and you can't do anything to make it better. It broke my heart to see him so miserable and no amount of climbing further into a ball on my chest would make it hurt less.

Michael travels with his job and most times we handle it just fine, but he took off Sunday afternoon for a week long trip and it was the first time I literally didn't think I could handle him being gone. Of course now things are getting better and Will's mouth has cleared up inside and the outside blisters are healing AND we get to see Michael tomorrow, but this has definitely been a long grueling week without him.

I don't have any new pictures to post, the camera has been the last thing on my mind but we'll get some over the weekend and catch everyone up on Will's adventures. He and gigantic Duke are headed to the lake to play.

Play Room

At Grandparents houses, there is always that play space that kids cherish. Growing up at my grandparents we loved the garage and the gigantic golf cart. (seriously it was a car sized golf cart!) At Nana and Grandpa Mike's house Will and Grace have the TV room that is put together for them to go completely nuts in. The gates up at the door to keep them out of the rest of the house and they get unrestricted play time without constantly being told "No, don't touch that". As a parent, we cherish these spaces because it's space for kids to use their imagination w/out us having to worry about them breaking something AND we get to actually sit down and chat instead of running after them constantly.

At Grammy and Grandpa's house, that space is under the stairs. Prior to this weekend that space was filled with house plans, stereo equipment, wrapping paper...you get the picture; stuff Will couldn't play with, but wanted too and a space he loved going in. But not anymore!

This room is the Grandbaby room! Set up just for kids. Adults have to duck to get in the space, so it's definitely a kids club! I can't say who was more excited; me or Will?

All his toys and books are in here and the stereo equipment is gated off so no restriction. He can come and go as he pleases. The back wall is getting a marker board so they can color. I say they because in a few short months, Mr. Will's new cousin will be here, so this space is for both of them. And I don't know that I've posted this yet, but Will's new cousin is a BOY! I'm so beyond excited for a little nephew. He doesn't have a name yet, so we call him Baby D. And Baby D and Will are going to have so much fun in this space. I can't promise the walls won't get colored on at some point, but I did promise to come repaint when it's all said and done! (sorry the pictures are so weak, I took them with my phone. Camera was dead!)

So now at both grandparents house, Will can spread his wings and explore without rules. (or too many rules anyway!)

Kids & Puppies

We had it in our head that Duke being an outside dog would make having a puppy easier, but the only thing I can say to that is "we should be beaten w/ a rubber hose", we were out of our mind! Inside or outside doesn't matter, a puppy is a puppy and it's truly like have another child.

They fight over toys; Will yelling "Mine" and Duke forcefully disagreeing. Watching Duke run away from the lawn mower that he was dragging w/ his teeth was belly laugh funny though.

Jumping on the baby was canned quickly, gotta say that dog has half a brain, although getting your butt spanked every time you jump on Will doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what'll stop that! So as long as Will is vertical and Duke is on all 4's, they do have fun together.

But there are times they have to be separated for bad behavior.

He uses his chompers on whatever is in his line of sight, which I might add that the bubble holder on the lawn mower was the latest victim.

He gives us ATTITUDE!!!! Grrr... He's already tried to escape, too getting thru an undiscovered hole under the fence into our neighbors yard. Made a great friend next door and played all afternoon. I thought we'd lost him, but breathed a HUGE sigh of relief when I saw him thru the fence.

But just like children one instant you are pulling your hair out for something they did , then in a breath, you want to cuddle them to pieces for being so sweet. We've really enjoyed having Duke around, he's growing like a mad dog. Poor puppy needs the weather to get warmer so he and Will can run around the yard not the garage.

Grace's 1st Birthday

I can't believe it's already come and passed, but my precious, precious niece Grace turned 1 year old on Saturday.

I clearly remember sitting in her mommies hospital room holding her just 1 year ago and I was alittle sad because my little boy was 6 months old and it seemed like I just had him and there I sat with this amazing little girl in my arms and my 6 month old little boy in the room....and now they are 1 and 1 1/2 years old.

Grace had an awesome birthday party at Gymboree. The kids had a ball playing...and the parents did too! After Will warmed up to the place, he was into everything..including a few cabinets he wasn't supposed to be in! Kids.

After a few rides down the slide and an almost shiner (thanks to his genuis mom) Will became a pro on the slide. We spent most our afternoon here climbing up the steps and WEEEE down the slide.

After lots of playing it was time for cake and presents. Grace wasn't ready to quit playing.

When she got her own cake, she face planted it right into the yummy deliciousness!

The year has definitely passed quickly and man has it been fun, but I still have a hard time with how quickly these little ones go from being born to little toddlers getting into everything. Grace is an amazing little girl and truly a blessing in our lives. Happy Birthday Grace, we love you more than you'll ever know.

Let me get it.

Will loves dropping stuff behind the couch; milk cups, blankets, clothes, toys, etc. What makes it more of a good time is assisting us in getting whatever is back there out.

Case in point, Will has dropped 2..I repeat 2 sippy cups of milk behind the couch. Why did he have two you wonder; well, the first one was dropped and...we thought "we'll get it later" as in before nightfall, sour milk is not a good scent, so we gave him another cup in the meantime only to have him send it packing to join the other cup.

Our tool of choice to retrieve the missing cups (in this case) is Will's handy dandy broom. Michael can't seem to reach the cups and Will thinks a good pat (slap) on the back will help his dad out.

Dad still couldn't get it, so Will gave it a try w/ the broom in hopes of bringing the cups out. Needless to say, he didn't get far, so Mom had to step in, play golf w/ the broom behind the couch and shoot both sippy cups out for rescue. Man, what an event!!! And shortly after the remotes went behind the couch! It's never ending.

Will's New Buddy

The Puppy is Home!!!!

And he's chewing on everything!!!!
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Meet Duke! Name changed because Chance didn't fit. Will loves saying "Doooo". He's been a good doggy so far, though the biting has started and that's making me crazy. Due to current weather conditions which I won't discuss here (this is a G rated blog and I can only talk in R rated about the weather), the dog is in the garage and the house when we are home. I am NOT an inside dog person, though he is precious and fun to play with, a hyper big dog knocking Will down all the time isn't going to fly in our world. So, when the weather warms, out he goes.

First night home was a doozie, Will wanted very little to do with Duke making it fun for Mommy because Dad was still out of town, so I had Will in my arms most of the night and Duke under my feet everywhere I went.

But the second day got better and Will started taking interest in our new little family member. They were constantly fighting over this blanket which is Will cuddles and Duke wasn't going to win that match. Blanket finally had to be put in the crib before those razor sharp puppy teeth made it scraps.

They are pals now, if Duke is in the garage Will is by the door saying "Dooooo" and pointing. Of course the nipping and jumping makes him mad, but we are working on that. Yes, having a puppy is definitely like having a second child; guess it's practice for when we do actually have a second child. All in all, he's a good dog and will be a fun companion for Will as he grows up. Just need the weather to warm so they can play outdoors and not destroy the house!

You Messin With Me?

Sunday we spent the evening with Will's Cousins; Drue, Cameron & Aunt Stormy were in from Texas. The boys weren't into coloring with Will and Grace so didn't get pictures of them, but definitely enjoyed their company.

Grace is a very intense child; she does everything with great passion...including coloring. If you can't tell by her expression in either of these pictures, I really won't be able to explain it any clearer.

No arms were bitten off in the process, but a few crayons were taken here and there.

To lighten the mood, Will tried to put a smile on Grace's face.

Buuutttt, he ended up pointing and laughing instead. She did join in thank goodness; you really don't want to cross this little girl!

Use Your Words!!!

Mr. Will has really started Repeat Repeater. Yeah, watch your mouth!!! It's pretty fun actually saying something and having him say it back; like he's very good at "Hi" and "Bye" and as stated before "outside".

He's learned sign language at school and has been using that to communicate. Makes life easier when he wants milk and squeezes his hand into a ball then out to tell us milk, rather than his previous communication of "meeee meeeee meeee" and pointing to everything but the milk. Or to say "more" or "all done" when he's eating. And the one that melts my heart is "Please"; I love a child with manners.

He's quite a note taker too, he sat in his chair the other morning taking notes while I told him about what's been going on with me.....

Then he turned the page to show me the scribbles he'd been doing while I talked, then went off on some serious jibber jabber tyrade, rudely interrupting my conversation to tell me how board he was with me talking! (I assume that's what he said anyway)

His artwork is getting better and better, though....well, more and more scribbles on the page is what I mean by better! And his face, that mark on his cheek is the pen not a scratch.