Friday, May 28, 2010

adventures in potty training

wearing his favorite underwear that happens to be two sizes too big

told you so


showing off his tricks to pass time until potty time!



making his cheese face



more tricks


"kaleb, do you have to go potty?"

"no. mommy ride it!"


stair stepping



oops! an accident! underwear change, addition of shirt, and k decides he must wear his boots with his new get up


playing puzzles on daddy's iphone another underwear change later


what better way to end a fun day of playing and potty training with ashy and mommy than to sit on the potty...

and NOT go potty!

8 months & crawling!

our little ashy wavers between crawling and doing his modified crawl which is scooting forward and backward, pushing up on all fours in push up position and sliding on his belly like a little lizard! it is quite a sight to see!



Thursday, May 6, 2010

Excellence in Construction Awards

The 2010 'Excellence in Construction' awards ceremony hosted by Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc. was held at the Peabody and Derek was invited to attend! In the $6-10 million bracket Bale Honda had been nominated and Derek was the Project Manager for this build. His name was announced and he accepted the award on behalf of his company. What a fun, fancy night it was honoring my husband and all his hard work! So proud of you hon!




big boy bed


Kaleb's big boy bed has been quite an adjustment--a little bit for Kaleb but mostly for ME! I was never expecting any hang ups with the process since the past several months there has been absolutely no fussing from him when it's been time to go down for naps/bedtime. I tell him it's time for a nap and he simply grabs his blanket, walks into his bedroom, and will sometimes ask me to rub his back or read a book first but then he goes right down.

So over the weekend, we got him excited for his nap in his new bed and Derek and I put him down together and closed his door--the apartment has difficult knobs he can't open unlike the easy handles in our house so it's kind of ideal...we were half expecting him to try to open the door but instead we hear silence and thought he was actually staying in his bed. A few minutes pass by and Derek says "I hear him walking around." Yup, sure enough! Then we hear a couple gentle knocks on the door...then a few more. No fussing or crying so we didn't dare open the door. We peeked under the door and saw his little feet just scurrying about as he busied himself with his toys and books exploring his newfound freedom. I then had to jump in the shower to get ready for work and assumed Kaleb would be asleep by the time I got out. Surprise, surprise! Derek and Kaleb were playing together when I got out and Derek just started cracking up and was so excited to share the story of why Kaleb was out of his room. He tells me he peeked under the door again and Kaleb was laying right next to the door with his little legs tucked underneath him and one huge eyeball stared right back at Derek!! Then Kaleb's little eyeball widened in realization and he said "DADDY!!!" and reached his little hand under the door for his daddy! So of course, Derek, being the softy he is, reached right back and touches Kaleb's little fingers and let him out of the room! Hey, if Kaleb's little eye locked on mine I don't think I could resist either!

So for rest of the week I put him down for naps in his bed but he has ALWAYS ended up falling asleep right next to the door with his little legs tucked beneath him=( It's like he just wants to be as close to us as he can and it breaks my heart! But I'm holding strong. One day he actually woke up and walked to his bed and finished out his nap there but most days I check under the door and can reach beneath and touch his hair!

But night time has been great! He fell out of bed the first two nights without waking up! We actually saw the process. I walked in and he was sleeping while kneeling with only his head resting on the bed! I walked out to grab another pillow and when I walked back in he was soundly sleeping on the floor! Mornings are absolutely hilarious! We decided to keep his door open at night so he can just walk in to my room in the morning. I'm normally awake first since I nurse ashton early but once he woke me up! Or didn't wake me I should say! One morning I woke up and found him sitting cross legged right next to me in bed just staring at me and giving me the BIGGEST smile!! Little bit creepy but I guess I should appreciate the fact that he allowed me to sleep while he just watched in silent anticipation for me to wake up! I'm a light sleeper so he must not have made a PEEP!!! I suppose we'll have to keep his door closed from now on!

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Going Away Party for the Woods

We're not saying "goodbye" but "see you soon" to our good friends Jeff, Jenn, and Chandler since they will be in Texas which is just next to us! I figure that since they drove to Texas all the time while they were living in Arkansas it's only right that they drive right back here at least once a month! We had a great weekend with them showering Lenee and baby Grady and stopping in at their going away party. Jenn was one of the first girls I met and has such an awesome heart for others and for the Lord. We had so much fun on church retreats, camping, and girls nights! It was especially sad to see them go since we were neighbors for a few months living right next to them in our apartment complex. I got to babysit a few times and Kaleb and Chandler have had lots of play dates! We love y'all so much! Here are some pics of the going away party and the boys.


soon-to-be AWESOME parents Matt and Lenee with Ashton!

Lexie and Jenn
LOVE this pic!

kaleb and chan-man


here are some fun play date pictures
sweet boy!

pretending to be babies again on ashton's play mat. silly boys




love playing in the tent!






sharing lunch!



Monday, April 26, 2010

the cali girls visit!


Lauren and Riley came for a visit after moving to California one year ago! Oh how we missed them but these two picked up right where they left off and had way too much fun!
first playdate was at the playground at pinnacle mountain
oh how I've missed you!
"kaleb sit down and take a break"



they found a hole they liked to sit in and exchange sweet smiles




"yucky bug" they would say then jump up and down screaming

dinner at cheeburger
just giddy with laughter
these two laughed nearly the entire dinner and you know it's the good stuff when you laugh so hard you just have to throw your head back you can't contain yourself!

ashton, lauren and me

playdate at deacon's house
dancing to praise and worship music with riley, deacon, and stella...praise music that is, until Riley requested "all the single ladies!"
we also celebrated Reed's first birthday
what a beautiful day and setting right on the river and what an adorable baseball themed party!

kaleb and Reed riding in Reed's new birthday present





our lil' slugger




kaleb and riley
sharing a sucker



fun day at the zoo with riley, lexie, and kiley...I didn't have my camera so I stole these pics from lauren's blog=)






Tuesday, April 20, 2010

happy easter!

egg hunt and picnic with church! what a beautiful day! kaleb likes to pick up one egg at a time, take out the chocolate, and throw the egg down! no need to take up basket space with a useless egg! more room for chocolate! my little man after my own heart!
taking a break to take in the beautiful lake
ashton got one!


running! his favorite activity

then he let all the other kids take all the eggs while he loved on all the dogs he found!

the easter bunny came but ashton didn't know it

the easter bunny visited our home! taking out the chocolate and leaving the egg again

bbq and egg hunt at uncle jake's and noelle's house



ashton belly laughed a whole lot for papa and gave sweet smiles all day