Where, Oh Where, Has the Little Boy Gone?

I'm ashamed! It has been nearly a month and a half since we updated this blog. I am sure I lost my vast audience long ago. In my defense though, we were moving, in Thailand, then America and just finely home and settling in. Here are a few pictures from our time in America. It was blessed to say the least. It brought us joy beyond words to see our family and introduce them to Caleb.




He had a great time reading books with his Nana.




He got to meet his cousin and play with Grandpa Bill.




He discovered that he absolutely loves to play in the water at a local indoor kiddie pool.





He got to wrestle and play basketball with his Granddad.




He discovered that he can climb stairs.




I can't look at this picture without tearing up! How many times did Jared and I eat pizza with these kids, at this same table but with one of THEM in the highchair? He got to meet our dearest friends in the world!




He loved to getting to play in the bathtub. I loved getting to bathe him without worrying about getting water in his mouth!




This is one of my favorite memories of our trip home. He got to play with his Greatgrandpa and loved every minute of it!

Family Picnic

On Saturday, we decided to pack a picnic lunch and head to the park. Caleb has never been to this park before because it has been too cold. We haven't taken a good family photo in months so we thought this would be a good setting for that. However, three things were working against us. First, we had to use the timer on the camera to take the picture for us. Second, Caleb had never seen grass before so we couldn't get him to stop pulling up the grass and trying to eat it! Third, the battery on our camera died after just two photos...so, we were able to get these two photos and then after shaking the battery, we got one last one. Even though our plans for family pictures failed, we had an incredible day at the park with our little guy!

Our family!

Caleb feeling grass for the first time (at almost 8 months old)!

One of my favorite pictures of all time! My two favorite guys!

Fun Times

I thought you might enjoy a bunch of pictures of Caleb playing! He is pretty easily entertained - as you will see from the photos.

Just lounging in his "own" chair while we eat lunch!





He LOVES to read books. We only have three that we rotate between but never seems to tire of them. He especially loves the sparkly caterpillars. He also likes to turn the pages for me.





I few weeks ago, I wrote about how he didn't really use his walker much...well, he runs/walks everywhere in this thing now. However, the little chunk was too much for this walker and he fell right through! I looked up and saw him sitting on the ground wondering what happened. He never did cry - just looked a bit confused. Daddy fixed it for him and now he is up and running again.





He also loves to sit in the laundry basket and play with toys. This is great when I am fixing dinner or showering and need to keep him in one spot. It is just the right size for him.





He also absolutely loves to drive the car with daddy. He also enjoys honking the horn as people walk by. Fortunately, he fits right into his culture honking the horn all the time!

Caleb's Big Sister

Ladli is a young girl that works in our house for a couple hours a day during the week. This allows her to have enough money to go to school in the afternoon/evening (she is only in middle school!). She absolutely loves Caleb and he adores her as well. One day she asked me if I could take a picture of her and Caleb. I said of course I would be happy to! She then asked if I had a hat. Silly me, I thought she wanted Caleb to wear a hat. So, I told her he had a hat in his room. So, she came back with Caleb's hat and Jared's hat. She put Caleb's hat on him and then put Jared's hat on her. Next, she asked if I had some glasses. Again, silly me, thought they were for Caleb. I said I didn't have any for Caleb but I had a pair of sunglasses. So, she put on the sunglasses and we took a few pictures. Then she asked me if she could wear my glasses! By this point she was probably thinking I was a bit slow on the uptake. You see, lots of Indian wear "fashion" glasses because they think it makes them look richer and more stylish. So, we took some more pictures with Ladli looking very studious in her school uniform and glasses and Caleb looking like he was ready for a walk on the beach! Either way, we love her dearly!

Mercy!

Caleb has already taken to wrestling with his dad!

Say mercy!

Oh the Places You'll Eat

As we were traveling as a family last month, we found ourselves in a variety of places. We stayed out in a village with a pastor and his family, at a lodge at the start of a hiking trail, various hotels and spent lots of time in the car. As a result of all our traveling, Caleb had to eat in a lot of different places, none of which were familiar to him. We are so grateful that he is an easy going little guy! So, we took a few pictures of him eating his cereal along our journey.

He spent a lot of time eating in the car (while we were driving). Jared was good about taking the curves (and huge pot holes) slowly while he was eating!




He also ate on my lap in lots of restaurants and hotel rooms. He did a really good job of not grabbing my arms, the spoon or the cereal dish.




If I didn't have a table, I sat him on the bed to eat. "Look at me, I'm a big boy!"




Our friends gave us this traveling seat to use while they are gone. He isn't quite big enough for it yet, but he still did pretty good. "Dad, are you sure this is a good idea?"




Finally, we are home and eating in his "high chair" that is actually a baby swing with a tray. This is his first bite of carrot. He never really enjoyed the carrots, but we have moved on to pumpkin and he loves it! Perhaps that is because pumpkin is technically a fruit...

Confessions of a First Time Mom

I awoke Sunday morning feeling sorry for myself and downright tired. Jared is traveling again, so Caleb and I would spend our first Mother's Day alone. Our great excitement for the day would be walking to and from church (2 1/2 miles) in the afternoon heat! We didn't get off to a great start. I asked Caleb for a Mother's Day kiss - he chose to spit-up on me instead...I carried him to church in my arms (instead of in his wrap), forgot the shortcut and by the time we got to church my arms were shaking...I tried to feed him in the middle of the two hour service and the toddler sitting next to us decided to perch on my shoulder...on the way home, his hat blew off into the only puddle of (dirty) water in sight. Needless to say, by the time I got home, I wasn't feeling very "blessed". God had great things in store for us that were yet to come. They started with Caleb taking a 2 1/2 hour nap which allowed me to get a short nap in as well. When he woke up, he gave me several kisses (without the spit-up of course!). He ate his dinner and actually enjoyed his vegetables. We played in his room while I packed up his things for yet another move. He giggled and scooted around playing with everything in sight. Then we spent some time playing in his doorway jumper. He had never really gotten the hang of it before, but tonight he was a wild man. He would run forward, lift up his legs, and fly backwards! He laughs so much these days at just about anything. At the end of the day, as I laid my sweet boy in bed, I felt incredibly blessed. I was blessed to spend the entire day with my baby boy (who won't be a baby much longer). I got to cherish every moment and have him all to myself - no need to share with anyone! I couldn't have received a better gift. I am sure that every mother reading this that has grown children wishes they could have a moment like that again. To God be the glory for the precious gift of our son!