Other times we stay inside and build tents!
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
It Rains Here A Lot
We have come to realize that it rains here a lot! I love a good thunder storm and we have had plenty since moving to Florida. Sometimes we play in it!
Other times we stay inside and build tents!
Other times we stay inside and build tents!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Love Them!
Aren't they cute? I love them.
Cannon has been into stacking blocks this week. He almost got 13!
Cannon is also really into colors now and he knows them all: pink, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, black, white, purple, and brown (brown is hit or miss though). His favorite is orange, just like his daddy.
He has also been using words like "too," "whoops," and "now." He'll say, "Can I watch it now," or, "it's too big." He has also been talking about different feelings, mostly happy and sad. He gets very concerned when he sees someone who is sad.
One of his favorite books is Go Dog Go. There is a part that says something about the "red dog is out." That red dog looks like our dog, Blue, and Cannon was quick to notice that. He now understands the difference between Blue as a name and blue as a color. He'll say, "There's the red Blue dog."
When we moved in we were able to get cable free for two months, so we are enjoying that. After the two months, we'll have it disconnected. I love all the on demand stuff for kids. Cannon has three favorite shows: Thomas and Friends, Sesame Street, and The Fresh Beat Band.
This week we went to the beach twice. On Monday we went to Ft Desoto beach, which is the furthest South you can go on our little peninsula. Then yesterday we went to Indian Rocks again. Cannon doesn't really like the waves. He prefers it to be calm so that he can walk in the water himself rather than be carried or knocked over by waves. There were waves yesterday, but the water temp was perfect! Not too hot, not too cold.
Cannon also has a new friend, who is a girl. And he loves her! Her name is Savannah and he gets VERY excited to see her! She also has a twin brother named Micah and they are 14 months old. At church a couple Sundays ago he yelled out, "I see Nanna! Mom, I see Nanna!" Of course he did this during the prayer when it was quiet. Yesterday we went to the beach with them and when we pulled up he saw her and said, "Oh! It's Sa-na-na-nah! Oh! Oh!" And then he started gyrating around in his car seat and throwing things because he was so excited!
Rachel took this picture at the splash park last week. Savannah is usually a mama's girl, but she will let me hold her sometimes. And Cannon gets very jealous!
The other day Cannon received his first letter in the mail! It was from Clayton, or Clay Clay as Cannon says. I was so excited for him and he was so excited to open it! It's proudly hanging on our fridge now. Thanks Clay!
Cannon has been into stacking blocks this week. He almost got 13!
Cannon is also really into colors now and he knows them all: pink, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, black, white, purple, and brown (brown is hit or miss though). His favorite is orange, just like his daddy.
He has also been using words like "too," "whoops," and "now." He'll say, "Can I watch it now," or, "it's too big." He has also been talking about different feelings, mostly happy and sad. He gets very concerned when he sees someone who is sad.
One of his favorite books is Go Dog Go. There is a part that says something about the "red dog is out." That red dog looks like our dog, Blue, and Cannon was quick to notice that. He now understands the difference between Blue as a name and blue as a color. He'll say, "There's the red Blue dog."
When we moved in we were able to get cable free for two months, so we are enjoying that. After the two months, we'll have it disconnected. I love all the on demand stuff for kids. Cannon has three favorite shows: Thomas and Friends, Sesame Street, and The Fresh Beat Band.
This week we went to the beach twice. On Monday we went to Ft Desoto beach, which is the furthest South you can go on our little peninsula. Then yesterday we went to Indian Rocks again. Cannon doesn't really like the waves. He prefers it to be calm so that he can walk in the water himself rather than be carried or knocked over by waves. There were waves yesterday, but the water temp was perfect! Not too hot, not too cold.
Cannon also has a new friend, who is a girl. And he loves her! Her name is Savannah and he gets VERY excited to see her! She also has a twin brother named Micah and they are 14 months old. At church a couple Sundays ago he yelled out, "I see Nanna! Mom, I see Nanna!" Of course he did this during the prayer when it was quiet. Yesterday we went to the beach with them and when we pulled up he saw her and said, "Oh! It's Sa-na-na-nah! Oh! Oh!" And then he started gyrating around in his car seat and throwing things because he was so excited!
Rachel took this picture at the splash park last week. Savannah is usually a mama's girl, but she will let me hold her sometimes. And Cannon gets very jealous!
The other day Cannon received his first letter in the mail! It was from Clayton, or Clay Clay as Cannon says. I was so excited for him and he was so excited to open it! It's proudly hanging on our fridge now. Thanks Clay!
Friday, August 5, 2011
Some Cannon
Lately Cannon has been driving me up the wall! Toddlers are definitely my least favorite stage (I might change my mind when we have teenagers). We just butt heads all the time. I know it's good for him to learn to be independent, but I have to admit that I love to be the one in control. But he has such an awesome personality and that's what I want to talk about.
Cannon is an extrovert. This is weird to both Ryan and me because we are both introverts. Cannon LOVES meeting new people! This trait in him has really helped with our move. I was worried about him leaving his friends and family and having to meet new people. He loves his new nursery class at church and he loves making new friends. He gets so excited to see his new friends and to see Miss Angela at the library (she does story time). He will have a conversation with just about anyone and makes friends easily. Even though he is an extrovert, he gets overstimulated easily and can only handle large crowds in small doses.
You cannot rush Cannon. I know he got this one from Ryan! There's still a running joke in Ryan's family because you could never get him to go faster. I have realized this about Cannon. I should have know this when he was born. My water broke at 37 weeks and even with pitocin, it still took him 19 hours to come out! If you let him take his time about things he will do them. This is why we are not pushing the potty training thing. I know he will do it on his own when he is ready.
I love to watch him play. He does a lot of make believe with his Woody doll. He pretends to feed him and he tells him what is going on. I sometimes hear him scold his trains and tell them no. Sometimes he laughs at them for whatever reason and say, "Oh Gordon," and then chuckles. When we read his train books he likes to hold the trains that match the characters in the books. He also recites his books to Woody or to his trains. He has several books memorized. Maybe not completely, but he knows at least the last word of every sentence. His favorite books right now are, "Catch Me, Catch Me," "Fast Train, Slow Train," and "Go Dog Go," and in that order too. He likes a bunch of other books too, but those are the must reads before nap and bedtime.
Hide-and-seek is the game around our house these days. He likes to hide under the kitchen table or the tent in his room. He stays still and quiet while you "look" for him and then squeals with excitement when you find him. I love playing this game with him! It was one of my favorites growing up.
Cannon has been able to count by rote to 10 for awhile now and sometimes will go a little beyond that. Yesterday I noticed that he was counting objects, which I have never seen him do before. He counted to three and then just did random numbers after three. He likes to sing the ABC song and he can point out the letters "A" and "O." And he has finally started to take an interest in puzzles. He can do simple puzzles, but his attention span with them is still pretty short. He does like to put money in his football bank and I let him put the quarters in the washing machines here. You can tell he is concentrating because he sticks his tongue out.
He has also finally started to take an interest in drawing. Sometimes he will use markers, crayons, or colored pencils. But mostly he likes using his Magna Doodle. I like him using that too because it's not messy! He is very into drawing circles and really makes them just how he wants to. He is very deliberate with his markings.
And swimming! Oh how he loves to swim! It's very interesting and very scary to watch him swim. He wants to swim and really wants to be independent. I cannot get him to wear a life vest, arm floaters, ring floater, anything. He wants to be completely free. He also has no fear and so you have to keep your eyes on him every second. I noticed that when he is in the water he is testing himself. He is not trying to swim to get from point A to point B, but rather to see what his body can do in the water and what his limits are. One example, dead man's float. This is not for the weak! Cannon taught himself to float on his belly and just float. It's pretty freaky to watch! He just floats there. Then he'll turn over or lift his head up when he needs air and then that's when I grab him. He will also walk off the step and "walk" in the water. He's crazy! I just can't wait until he can really swim!
I tried to get a video of his dead man's float. He kind of does it here, but usually he is totally on his belly and he'll float longer.
Cannon is an extrovert. This is weird to both Ryan and me because we are both introverts. Cannon LOVES meeting new people! This trait in him has really helped with our move. I was worried about him leaving his friends and family and having to meet new people. He loves his new nursery class at church and he loves making new friends. He gets so excited to see his new friends and to see Miss Angela at the library (she does story time). He will have a conversation with just about anyone and makes friends easily. Even though he is an extrovert, he gets overstimulated easily and can only handle large crowds in small doses.
You cannot rush Cannon. I know he got this one from Ryan! There's still a running joke in Ryan's family because you could never get him to go faster. I have realized this about Cannon. I should have know this when he was born. My water broke at 37 weeks and even with pitocin, it still took him 19 hours to come out! If you let him take his time about things he will do them. This is why we are not pushing the potty training thing. I know he will do it on his own when he is ready.
I love to watch him play. He does a lot of make believe with his Woody doll. He pretends to feed him and he tells him what is going on. I sometimes hear him scold his trains and tell them no. Sometimes he laughs at them for whatever reason and say, "Oh Gordon," and then chuckles. When we read his train books he likes to hold the trains that match the characters in the books. He also recites his books to Woody or to his trains. He has several books memorized. Maybe not completely, but he knows at least the last word of every sentence. His favorite books right now are, "Catch Me, Catch Me," "Fast Train, Slow Train," and "Go Dog Go," and in that order too. He likes a bunch of other books too, but those are the must reads before nap and bedtime.
Hide-and-seek is the game around our house these days. He likes to hide under the kitchen table or the tent in his room. He stays still and quiet while you "look" for him and then squeals with excitement when you find him. I love playing this game with him! It was one of my favorites growing up.
Cannon has been able to count by rote to 10 for awhile now and sometimes will go a little beyond that. Yesterday I noticed that he was counting objects, which I have never seen him do before. He counted to three and then just did random numbers after three. He likes to sing the ABC song and he can point out the letters "A" and "O." And he has finally started to take an interest in puzzles. He can do simple puzzles, but his attention span with them is still pretty short. He does like to put money in his football bank and I let him put the quarters in the washing machines here. You can tell he is concentrating because he sticks his tongue out.
He has also finally started to take an interest in drawing. Sometimes he will use markers, crayons, or colored pencils. But mostly he likes using his Magna Doodle. I like him using that too because it's not messy! He is very into drawing circles and really makes them just how he wants to. He is very deliberate with his markings.
And swimming! Oh how he loves to swim! It's very interesting and very scary to watch him swim. He wants to swim and really wants to be independent. I cannot get him to wear a life vest, arm floaters, ring floater, anything. He wants to be completely free. He also has no fear and so you have to keep your eyes on him every second. I noticed that when he is in the water he is testing himself. He is not trying to swim to get from point A to point B, but rather to see what his body can do in the water and what his limits are. One example, dead man's float. This is not for the weak! Cannon taught himself to float on his belly and just float. It's pretty freaky to watch! He just floats there. Then he'll turn over or lift his head up when he needs air and then that's when I grab him. He will also walk off the step and "walk" in the water. He's crazy! I just can't wait until he can really swim!
I tried to get a video of his dead man's float. He kind of does it here, but usually he is totally on his belly and he'll float longer.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Oh Toddlers!
Toddlers have this amazing ability to make a situation worse! This gift, or curse, happens all the time, when you least expect it. They dottle on the stairs, so what happens? They fall down the stairs. When you've had the worst morning, they will only take a 1 hour nap, or maybe none at all. When you finish hauling four loads of wet laundry up the stairs, you come in to see that all the whites are all over your dirty kitchen floor. When you are walking out to the car, they drop their Woody's hat which, of course, rolls all the way under the car requiring a broom to retrieve it. They decide that it is a good idea is to carry a cup of milk from the kitchen to the table and when you decide to offer minimal assistance, their rage ends up spilling said milk. When you are walking in the grass they, somehow, will always find the only dog poo around and then proceed to walk through it. When they are having a tantrum at the post office and you so patiently and lovingly get down to their level to talk to them, they will slap your face and pull your hair out. When you are just about to leave, they will inevitably have a poopy diaper. At the very moment you really need them to stand up because you are crossing the street, their body will turn to jello. When you are getting in the car to go to church, they will step in the only puddle of mud within 20 feet and get it all over themselves, yourself, the car and their car seat. When you are calm and chill, with no worries, they have this ability to turn you from happy to rage in less than 5 seconds. Never before has anyone been able to evoke those kinds of emotions from you.
Oh toddlers!
They also have this unique gift of totally melting your heart with a smile or gesture. And you know you have never loved anyone more.
Here's my toddler, with his curliness and all.
Oh toddlers!
They also have this unique gift of totally melting your heart with a smile or gesture. And you know you have never loved anyone more.
Here's my toddler, with his curliness and all.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Clearwater Beach
This afternoon we checked out Clearwater Beach. Actually, we went just slightly North to North Beach because you can bring your dog! Our plan sounded better in theory. It is hot at the beach and the water is starting to get really warm. It was still fun, but I think it was too hot for Blue. We gave her lots of water to drink and I kept putting water on her back to keep her cool. But I think we'll wait until it cools off a lot before we bring her back to the beach. She did really well. She doesn't like water, so she wouldn't swim with us. She stayed on our beach mats while we were in the water. She's not the kind of dog that runs away. Although she did chase a bird. She also enjoyed digging in the sand.
The beach itself was really pretty. All the tourists hang around Clearwater Beach, near the condos and hotels, which gets pretty busy. We went just a little North and there weren't very many people.
I realized I only took pictures of Blue and of no one else. I guess that was fine since this was her first time to the beach. However, I did get some videos.
Despite her smiles, she didn't have the best time.
The beach itself was really pretty. All the tourists hang around Clearwater Beach, near the condos and hotels, which gets pretty busy. We went just a little North and there weren't very many people.
I realized I only took pictures of Blue and of no one else. I guess that was fine since this was her first time to the beach. However, I did get some videos.
Despite her smiles, she didn't have the best time.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Hawaii
Way back last December (Christmas Eve to be exact) a friend of ours, Chelsea, got engaged. She told us they were planning on getting married in Hawaii and they wanted us to be there. It sounded like a dream come true, but I don't like to be hopeful for things that I don't think will really happen. For months I kept this in the back of my mind, but I kept telling myself that it probably wouldn't happen. I really hate to be disappointed and I didn't want to get worked up over a trip to Hawaii.
Well, our dreams came true! This trip was absolutely incredible! I still can't believe this happened to us. The plane tickets were paid for. The four-and-a-half star resort on the beach was paid for. And we received a food voucher for $100, per person, each day, for seven days.
From day one, this trip was amazing. We had a short flight from Austin to Dallas. Our next leg would be Dallas to Honolulu and then Honolulu to Kona. Apparently we have incredible luck because we were bumped to first class for the eight hour flight from Dallas to Honolulu! What an amazing flight! We were served a three course gourmet meal, including Ben & Jerry's hot fudge sundaes. But the thing I enjoyed the most was that our seats reclined in a flat position so that we could sleep. So needless to say, we arrived in Hawaii well fed and well rested. Quite the opposite of what I expected. This was just the beginning of things to come.
The Fairmont Orchid resort was gorgeous. Incredibly beautiful and peaceful. Our room overlooked the golf course, but you could also see the ocean. Hardly anyone came to that side of the resort, so it was quiet and peaceful. Just perfect. The weather was perfect and even the air smelled good.
With our food vouchers, we dined like kings and queens. There were several different restaurants to choose from at the resort. We ate things like sushi, filet minion, white truffle mac and cheese, crab legs, caviar, and shrimp, just to name a few. My favorite breakfast item was the coconut syrup that I put on my pancakes. Amazing! I also enjoyed a non-alcoholic pina colada everyday.
The beach was, of course, within walking distance. It was like a little lagoon with clear blue water. We went snorkeling and kayaking. The snorkeling was amazing! Basically it's one big coral reef right outside of our lagoon area. We saw lots of different fish and sea turtles.
We were also able to venture to the other side of the island on Ryan's birthday. Yeah, did I mention that it was Ryan's 30th birthday? What a way to spend your birthday! The other side of the island is very green, unlike the side we were on which was literally all lava rock (it had it's own kind of beauty). We hiked to see some waterfalls and found some different beaches. Well, they weren't really beaches, those are hard to come by.
Now the whole reason we were here was to celebrate the marriage of Chelsea and Jeremy. We enjoyed spending time with them and their families. We were also able to attend their marriage sealing in the Kona Temple. That was really special and a highlight of the trip. After the temple, they had a ring ceremony at sunset which was followed by a luau. Everything was beautiful and well planned. It was like something from a movie!
One afternoon, the girls had their own luncheon while the boys played basketball. Each woman received a voucher to use in the spa! I was able to get my hair highlighted and I think it turned out great!
This trip was incredible. Ryan and I really needed this trip. I was totally stress free the whole time. I went to bed by 9pm most nights and was awake by 6am. I just felt so much at peace in Hawaii. I think this really helped us get ready for the big move ahead of us. It was also nice to spend some one-on-one time with Ryan.
Initially I was very worried about leaving Cannon for a whole week. I made a "calendar of love" that showed what was going on for him that day and when mommy and daddy were going to come home. It had who he was going to play with that day and also a reminder that we would call him. He cried when we were dropped off at the airport. I was glad that he came to the airport though. Each time we called him he was happy. Toni said he did great! Of course, she planned lots of fun things for him to do to keep him occupied. The last two days he started to miss us. Then he came with Toni to pick us up at the airport. It gave me such peace of mind to know that Cannon was well taken care of and that he was not upset with us being gone for so long.
And now for the pictures!
The view from our balcony. The ocean was to the left and the mountains to the right.
Something you would typically see on your walk to the beach.
I miss those pina coladas!
Fire dancers at the luau.
The hula dancers got Ryan up on stage! This is a rare photo because Ryan never does this type of thing!
The hona (sea turtles) were frequent visitors on the beach.
I saw this rainbow over our resort on the last day.
Jeremy and Chelsea
Well, our dreams came true! This trip was absolutely incredible! I still can't believe this happened to us. The plane tickets were paid for. The four-and-a-half star resort on the beach was paid for. And we received a food voucher for $100, per person, each day, for seven days.
From day one, this trip was amazing. We had a short flight from Austin to Dallas. Our next leg would be Dallas to Honolulu and then Honolulu to Kona. Apparently we have incredible luck because we were bumped to first class for the eight hour flight from Dallas to Honolulu! What an amazing flight! We were served a three course gourmet meal, including Ben & Jerry's hot fudge sundaes. But the thing I enjoyed the most was that our seats reclined in a flat position so that we could sleep. So needless to say, we arrived in Hawaii well fed and well rested. Quite the opposite of what I expected. This was just the beginning of things to come.
The Fairmont Orchid resort was gorgeous. Incredibly beautiful and peaceful. Our room overlooked the golf course, but you could also see the ocean. Hardly anyone came to that side of the resort, so it was quiet and peaceful. Just perfect. The weather was perfect and even the air smelled good.
With our food vouchers, we dined like kings and queens. There were several different restaurants to choose from at the resort. We ate things like sushi, filet minion, white truffle mac and cheese, crab legs, caviar, and shrimp, just to name a few. My favorite breakfast item was the coconut syrup that I put on my pancakes. Amazing! I also enjoyed a non-alcoholic pina colada everyday.
The beach was, of course, within walking distance. It was like a little lagoon with clear blue water. We went snorkeling and kayaking. The snorkeling was amazing! Basically it's one big coral reef right outside of our lagoon area. We saw lots of different fish and sea turtles.
We were also able to venture to the other side of the island on Ryan's birthday. Yeah, did I mention that it was Ryan's 30th birthday? What a way to spend your birthday! The other side of the island is very green, unlike the side we were on which was literally all lava rock (it had it's own kind of beauty). We hiked to see some waterfalls and found some different beaches. Well, they weren't really beaches, those are hard to come by.
Now the whole reason we were here was to celebrate the marriage of Chelsea and Jeremy. We enjoyed spending time with them and their families. We were also able to attend their marriage sealing in the Kona Temple. That was really special and a highlight of the trip. After the temple, they had a ring ceremony at sunset which was followed by a luau. Everything was beautiful and well planned. It was like something from a movie!
One afternoon, the girls had their own luncheon while the boys played basketball. Each woman received a voucher to use in the spa! I was able to get my hair highlighted and I think it turned out great!
This trip was incredible. Ryan and I really needed this trip. I was totally stress free the whole time. I went to bed by 9pm most nights and was awake by 6am. I just felt so much at peace in Hawaii. I think this really helped us get ready for the big move ahead of us. It was also nice to spend some one-on-one time with Ryan.
Initially I was very worried about leaving Cannon for a whole week. I made a "calendar of love" that showed what was going on for him that day and when mommy and daddy were going to come home. It had who he was going to play with that day and also a reminder that we would call him. He cried when we were dropped off at the airport. I was glad that he came to the airport though. Each time we called him he was happy. Toni said he did great! Of course, she planned lots of fun things for him to do to keep him occupied. The last two days he started to miss us. Then he came with Toni to pick us up at the airport. It gave me such peace of mind to know that Cannon was well taken care of and that he was not upset with us being gone for so long.
And now for the pictures!
The view from our balcony. The ocean was to the left and the mountains to the right.
Something you would typically see on your walk to the beach.
I miss those pina coladas!
Fire dancers at the luau.
The hula dancers got Ryan up on stage! This is a rare photo because Ryan never does this type of thing!
The hona (sea turtles) were frequent visitors on the beach.
I saw this rainbow over our resort on the last day.
Jeremy and Chelsea
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Indian Rocks Beach
We had a beach day on Tuesday. Woody came too. He goes almost everywhere Cannon goes too.
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