12.21.09
Isaac: 22 months
CHEESE!!!
First of all, can i just say, I cannot BELIEVE how light your hair is now! It gets lighter and lighter every time i trim it, which is every month. You were born with thick, black hair just like your dad, and his hair has always been black. I just assumed you would always have thick, black hair too. Well, i guess i was wrong!
You are now snuggled in bed for the night. You go to bed around 630pm and you sleep until about 7-730am. You sleep so soundly, so sweetly. Then you wake up and you play so hard. You go full speed ahead until you go to sleep. You typically go to sleep without a fuss. Thank you for that!
The past month you have increased your vocabulary about 100 fold. You will repeat anything we ask you to say, so i find it amusing to ask you to say all sorts of things, all day long. I’ll say, “flux capaciter!” and you’ll parrot, “fux capatacitatotor-oh!” You usually add a few syllables to whatever we ask you to say. I couldn’t imitate it if i tried, but my favorite thing you have repeated so far is “uncle Adam.” It takes you about 30 seconds to get out the full attempt and the only part i can understand is the last “-’dum.” Trust me, it’s adorable. You say a lot of things without encouragement too. Some of our favorites are, “Daddy, where are you?” “Merry Christmas everybody!” “help me” “change shoes!” “steamroller! steamroller! steamroller!” “clara sleep?” “peek-a-boo!”
you love animals…and chickens and roosters are a few of your favorites. along with sheep, cows and dogs. i can’t wait until spring so we can go back to the drive through zoo; you will love it! you really enjoy your little people barn with all the different animals, and when you wake up from nap i will usually hear you in your room playing with them for a while before you start throwing them at the door to let us know you are ready to come out. 
you still like being outside as much as possible. you REALLY want to be able to ride Clara’s bike, but you can’t quite reach the pedals so you get very mad just sitting on the seat. You don’t want my help either though, so you get mad if i push you around on the bike. You will just have to grow a few more inches before you can be happy!
*a couple weeks ago i kept you and Clara home from school and we had a fun “sick day”
*you want to paint all the time. out of no where you will ask me if you can paint. it’s too cute.
*you like to help me clean, especially vacuuming. and wiping down the table after meals.
*you and clara play together really well, just an occasional fight. usually because one of you has something the other wants. Sharing. it’s tough, but get used to it because it never ends.
*one of the funniest things i have noticed you doing recently is “testing” clara’s drink. i have noticed that you always steal clara’s drink after i have given you each a cup of milk or juice. you drink a few sips from your cup first. then i noticed you would grab clara’s cup the first time she set it down and you would take a few sips from hers. of course if clara noticed, then you guys would end up in a fight over the cup. but after a few times i noticed that if clara wasn’t around you would still go back to your own cup after you tasted hers. i soon realized that you were just testing hers out to make sure it wasn’t something better! you’re so smart!
our handsome boy
one of my favorite times of day is bedtime. i love sitting in floor; you in my lap, or sometimes Daddy’s. you pick out a book (or ten) and we read and point at pictures and talk. you are so sweet and calm at this time. you drink your milk and lean into my chest, tilting your head so you can see the book we are reading over your cup. when we put you in bed (or sometimes you climb in yourself), you say, “nye-nye. love you!”
even superheros need to sleep
(i caught this pic with my phone one day when you fell asleep while i was reading you a story at nap time)
Merry Christmas little man, we love you!
12.20.09
Things i love: my husband (of ten years!)
Yesterday Zach and i celebrated our ten year wedding anniversary. He planned a sweet surprise day for me, and i never suspected a thing.
I am so thankful to be married to the most admirable man i know. I thank God for that day over 12 years ago, when on a routine outing as friends searching for a blue icee, zach felt that “spark” when i touched his hair during some random story while we were driving.
I never believed in love at first sight. I never wanted that for myself.
I love that zach and i progressed from a solid, God-focused friendship into a solid, God-focused dating relationship. And I am blessed by our solid, God-focused marriage.
Zach, you make me so happy!
on our 10th anniversary with our 1st christmas tree
11.30.09
Our first Christmas tree
This December Zach and i celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary, and on Saturday we put up our very first Christmas tree! We also started what we hope will be a new family tradition along with the Newcomb Farm.
We drove out to the Newcomb Farm in West Fork and loaded the kids and ourselves into the back of a trailer filled with dirt. This is how we traveled “down the road a bit” until we came to Across the Creek Farm’s unofficial tree farm.
"Across the Creek Farm"--here we are, crossing the creek
Ike gets some help from PaPaw
Ike yells at the chickens--cock-a-doodle-doo!
Zach points out the winning tree
dragging home his "kill"
clara is not a fan of getting wet and dirty
securing the tree for transport
Trimming the tree....
...and basking in her gentle glow!
The kids are loving the tree. Although, Clara keeps saying she wants the “green, pink, purple, blue and red lights” instead of white. Ike wants to pull the “balls” (ornaments) off the tree and throw them. I’m glad i went with the shatterproof ornaments. Ike likes to point at the tree and say “oooh, pretty!” I love the smell of the fresh cedar. I love our first tree; Zach picked a real beaut!
Thanks to The Newcomb Farm and Across the Creek Farm for their generosity.
11.25.09
Isaac: 21 months
Ike, you are beginning to confirm my suspicions that you are going to keep us in the doctor’s office. (although Clara isn’t helping either–see post below). Nine days ago you fell at day care and broke your finger. The first day it was so terribly swollen and bruised that i wanted to wait and see how it looked after the swelling went down…i wasn’t really convinced it was broken at the time. By day five after you hurt it, it was still very swollen and very black & blue so i decided we’d better get some xrays. And you broke your “pointer” finger along the base, slightly into the growth plate. We got into the orthopedic doc the next morning and you started wearing your splint that day. You have been so tough through it all. You protect the finger with much caution, but you still play hard as always. You have to wear the splint for two weeks until it is healed and then we have to get xrays to make sure it healed properly. You seem to like the splint now that you are used to it. You hold your hand out for me so i can wrap it securely after taking it off for baths. Sometimes you hold up your hand and say “ouch-ers!”
right after ortho appointment--looking so tough!
i don't know about this...
...let's get rid of this thing.
Besides your broken finger, you scared your dad and i half to death at the playground one day when you decided you would jump from the platform of the playset which was about 20 feet off the ground. You called out to us and when we looked up you lifted on leg and acted like you were about to jump. You put your foot back down and started working to reposition yourself to jump. I had already taken off up the stairs and toward you so that by the time you went to really jump i grabbed you as you raised your leg the second time. daddy was also positioned below you in hopes that he would catch you in case you jumped before i got to you. through the whole thing we were yelling to you, “don’t jump ike.” you laughed and wiggled around in my arms as i carried you back down to the ground. you can be such a little stinker!
from that day on the playground
we had halloween this past month. you were Max from Where the Wild Things Are, we have always loved reading that book together. you made the perfect Mischievous Max:
you caught on right away to door-to-door trick or treating, but some of the effects scared you at times. you were pretty cautious all night. you threw caution to the wind when it came time to eat your candy though!
You soooooo badly want to ride this bike that belongs to one of our neighbors. i will sit you on it when you beg, and then you get upset because you can’t pedal it, but you don’t want me to push you either. our neighbor is getting a new bike for christmas and passing this one on to you. i bet by the time spring arrives you’ll be able to ride. wonder what you’ll break next? kidding! (please be careful for your mother’s sake)
*this month you have been naming colors–you even get them right sometimes!–i love how you say yellow
*one of my favorite things you say is when you call out, “bye-bye guys!” whenever we are leaving somewhere
*you continue to be a great sleeper…so easy…i always say you sleep hard so you can play hard
*you like to color, especially with markers; you like stacking blocks and knocking them down
*you have been known to full body tackle people…daddy, clara, me, even poor little baby liam…it’s something we are working on with you
*you are a huge fan of your bedtime routine: bath, get in pajamas, play steamroller with daddy and clara on our bed, yell “milk! milk! milk! milk!” and run to the kitchen and dance around in excitement while waiting for daddy to get your milk, sit in my lap and read a few books, mommy+daddy+clara pray for you and then lights out, door closed, nighty-night!
*you still love being outside regardless of what the weather is like or what you will be doing
*you like singing songs and dancing–you and clara do this together a lot…adorable & hilarious
OK, so that’s been 2 broken bones in less than 2 years…whatcha say we take a few years off?
love you my little stinker
Clara: 38 months
Today you are 38 months old. That sounds like such a long time, but really it is just past 3 years. And even though i can remember life before you were here, it feels like you have always been here. that probably doesn’t make much sense to you, but one day you will understand.
this past month has been so full of excitement, adventure, even some pain.
just a few days after i posted your 37 month update, on October 29th, you dislocated your elbow at pre-school. when i picked you up from school i noticed that you weren’t even trying to use your right arm. AT ALL. You are right-handed, but when we arrived home and you started eating dinner you tried to use your left hand to eat. when you became frustrated with that you even asked me to help feed you (asking for help or taking offered help is not something you do regularly as of late). i tried to examine your arm but you couldn’t really explain where it hurt except that your “arm hurt” and you wouldn’t move it at all from shoulder to fingertips. i tried and tried to convince you to try to move it just so i would know whether or not you could move it, but you refused. you were scaring me because you would just start softly sobbing at times and you looked sorta like you were in shock. very scary for a mommy. i quickly decided that you needed to be seen by a doctor. i suspected “nurse maid’s elbow” (elbow dislocation) because that is the most common arm injury at your age, but when you or ike get hurt the nurse in me gets a little unsure of herself. so we got an appointment with the after hours clinic at your doctor’s office and we were there in mere minutes. despite your dislocated arm, you fought like a champ against any attempts the doc made at examining you. he decided nurse-maid’s elbow was the culprit and i had to hold you still while he performed the reduction manuever that put it back in place. you still kept that arm completely still and protected until the next day while we were getting x-rays to confirm that the joint was indeed back in place. during the xrays, while you were fighting me and the technician, you started using your arm fully. i let you spend the rest of the day with me at work. it was an unusual day at work because it was the day before Halloween so we were having our annual halloween carnival for the day care below my office. you had a blast and now you beg to come with me to work almost every day.
waiting for the xray results--finally feeling better
on saturday we celebrated halloween. you dressed as a “halloween princess.” when you saw this costume on another little girl who came to the halloween carnival at my work, you leaned toward me and whispered while staring at her: “mom, i wanna be that halloween princess for my costume.”
the "halloween princess"
enjoying the fruits of their labor
So, Halloween was a blast. You talked about it for weeks afterward.
You also never stopped talking about the doctor. After your whole arm incident, you became a little obsessive about doctors. You would ask all the time if we were going to the doctor. you would quickly announce, “my arm doesn’t hurt, i don’t need to go to the doctor.” and you started taking your babies to the “doctor” a lot. including asking for the “tempature” (thermometer) so you could see if they were sick. after a few weeks of this i decided to get you a doctor kit so you could have a little more fun and hopefully not be afraid of doctors forever i found an adorable baby alive that sorta looks like you and she was a “make me better” baby doll that came with a stethoscope, thermometer, medicine spoon, bulb syringe, and bandaids. you immediately loved her and started taking care of her and calling her “doctor baby clara” which you still refer to her as that even today. you have taken her temperature hundreds of times and decided that she needs medicine and then a bandaid sticker. i taught you how to use the stethoscope to “listen” to her heart and lungs, explaining to you that you can hear her heart beating with the stethoscope. the day after you got her, you came home after school and started playing with her. you picked up the stethoscope and placed it on her chest and told me, “mom, we have to call doctor baby clara’s heart.”
Oh, how i love you my darling girl!
10.24.09
Clara: 37 months
Sweet Clara,
The past month with you has made me wonder why people always say, “terrible two’s” when it is clear that the three’s are much harder. It’s not that you aren’t a ton of fun, it’s just that you resist us more than you used to. You just question us more, and we find ourselves telling you to obey more. I have even used the dreaded phrase, “because i said so” in response to your inquiry about something or other. You can be exhausting at times, but mostly you are more enjoyable than ever. You are getting to be such a big girl.
The past month you have started saying a new phrase that is so adorable. Last weekend i had to be out of town and you and Daddy and Ike picked me up at the airport (thank for the beautiful flowers) and when i picked you up you touched my hair and told me, “Ooooh, mom, I love your hair. I love your shirt. I love your pants. I love your new shoes.” How cute, and my shoes really were new! Another time, we were running in a gas station so you could use the bathroom, and a HUGE white truck was parked next to our car. As we walked by, you reached out and touched it, announcing, “Mom, I love this white truck so much.” You make me laugh.
You are always talking, you are always playing with a baby, you never want to eat. You have been potty trained for about 6 months now, which is great. You have started reasoning with us, making deals with us related to bedtime or eating. Almost every morning you tell me you don’t want to go to pre-school, you want to stay home with me. It makes me so happy and so sad at the same time. Of course I love that you want to be with me, but i am saddened by the fact that that isn’t possible. I know you love pre-school though, because we talk about it at length every night at bedtime. You tell about all the kids in your class, who went in time out, who pushed you, who you played with and what you played. You tell me you obey Ms. Joanne, and you never get time out. You recite for me the days of the week, the months of the year, and you are counting to 50. You can do them all in English and Spanish. I am so proud of you.
Every night we pray for you, and sometimes lately you ask if you can pray for me. You put your hand on me and start praying that “mommy obeys her teachers and is safe at preschool” and other things that we pray for you. You are such a sweet and precious girl, I love your teachable heart and your sweet spirit.
you sneak out in the hallway to sleep
Love you.
10.22.09
Isaac: 20 months
Hey big guy! I want to tell you about all the fun we’ve been having this month.
You are so energetic, playful, and HAPPY! You love to make faces and point at yourself in the mirror.
You love shoes. You want to be wearing them all the time, and you want to change them whenever you see a pair laying around. Especially rain boots and Clara’s dress up shoes, but mine and Daddy’s shoes get pretty frequent use as well. I can picture you now, the way you lift a leg up in the air and start chanting, “shoe, shoe!”
One of your favorite games that we play is when i hide and you come find me and then i jump out and yell, “BOO!” You laugh soooooo loud and make this hilarious noise deep in your throat and say a sort of “ah-ha”…hard to explain, but very much something you do right now.
You still love few things more than playing outside. The weather had been getting colder, but that hasn’t really slowed us down. As you can see above, you like to push Clara’s doll stroller around. You like to put things in it, trucks, your sippy cup, babies, whatever…and you and Clara fight over this stroller more than any other toy. And speaking of fights, you are tough! I have watched as you body slammed Clara and took her to the ground because she took something from you. At day care, your teacher greets me about twice a week with great news, “No incident report today!” That means that the other 3-4 days of the week you DO have an incident report, which means you were hurt somehow. I am usually told that you did something like jump off the platform of the slide, or fell while climbing up something, and occasionally because you collided with another kid. Regardless, you have made a name for yourself as one tough cookie!
Trucks, balls and books are a few of your other favorite things to play with. I love reading with you, the way you turn around and back up to my lap until you plop down with a book and start pointing out pictures. You get so excited as you tell me all about the animals and people and objects that we are looking at.
You have been speaking in sentences too. Short, two-four word sentences, but they are definitely sentences. Tonight it was funny when Clara said, “I’m gonna spank your booty” and then you parroted, “I spank your booty!” And you giggled along with Clara and the rest of us. You know what breaks my heart but makes me so happy all at the same time? How much you adore your Daddy. He is your hero, your favorite. You love me, you still choose me a lot of the time, but sometimes nothing works except Daddy to make you stop crying. It’s a wierd transition for me, but I know it is a phase, and that you love us both. And we both love and adore you beyond words.
Taking a hard-earned nap
I love you my handsome little man.
10.08.09
A Surprise Visit…
On Friday afternoon i received a text from Zach which read, “Brent and fam will be at our house at 6 for dinner”…
I literally squealed and jumped up and down a few times…just ask anyone in my office. So, yeah, i was a bit excited.
Brent has been one of our dearest friends since we met in college. He spent the weekend with us, along with his wife (whom he wed on my birthday, btw) AND their precious 6 month old baby girl, Catie! I just loved visiting with them and getting to know Lindsey even better, and of course getting in a little baby time with one of the most pleasant infants i have ever encountered. Also, they had yet to meet Clara and Ike, so we all had a great time getting to know each other’s kiddos.
Clara ADORED Catie…actually, she is still talking about “Brentny, Lindsey and baby Catie.” She keeps asking where they are and wondering if we can go to “hers house.”
This is Clara’s “I can’t believe this is happening!” face. She usually reserves it for baby dolls, but i guess in a way, Catie was her ULTIMATE baby.
our best attempt at a pic of all the kids together
and of course, the GROUP photo
Catie's first time swinging
We spent part of Saturday at the park swinging and taking a little walk to the hospital duck pond. And one of our favorite parts of the whole outing was throwing those green-ish yellow ball-like things that fall from trees this time of year at a light pole. Seriously, it was a BLAST! And, does anyone know what those ball-things are?
Awwww....
Not surprisingly, Brent is a doting and loving father. It is always fun seeing your college friends with their children. We are so grateful for the weekend that we were able to connect with old friends in a new way…as parents.
We really do love you guys, thanks for coming to stay with us!
09.28.09
Clara: 36 months
I cannot believe my baby girl is THREE! years old. You are SO grown up. You even tell me, “No, i’m not a little girl. I’m a big girl.” And sometimes you add, “Ike the little boy.” I think it is hilarious how you still haven’t completely figured out when to say he or she, him or her, so you usually say the female pronouns. So, you will be talking about uncle Tyler and say something about her, and of course you refer to Ike as her and she most of the time. occasionally you remember and say, Ike’s a him, he’s a boy. Clara’s a girl. Mama’s a girl, she’s Jessica. Daddy’s a boy, he’s Zach.
And I really love how you say your full name, Clara Adelaide Newcomb. It is so sweet.
feeding the ducks on the bike trail
One of our new favorite family activities is bike riding. You and Ike sit in the bike trailer behind me or daddy, and you yell out, “faster, faster!” You give me and daddy quite a good workout! So, we usually stop along the way at a duck pond along the trail, and the last time we stopped one of the ducks had just had babies. You and Ike LOVED watching them follow the mommy duck around. We fed them our sandwiches for our picnic and you guys were squealing and jumping around with excitement about watching them eat. You guys quacked and waddled around, playing with the ducks.
So, guess what you did for the first time one week before your birthday? You cut your own hair! You gave yourself bangs! And you know what? You did a pretty good job I never would have given you bangs, but i think they look really cute on you. But, in the future, no cutting your own hair…or Ike’s. thanks.
Clara's first self-haircut
Clara, so many things have changed about you in the past year. You have grown so much, and you are talking so much and so well. You are a big helper. I love when you talk to Ike, helping him along with something. I especially love how you will take him by the hand and guide him where he needs to go. Usually he goes along and you guys can sometimes be found walking around hand in hand, which always leaves a big lump in my throat as i fight back tears of joy. You cannot stand to let Ike go to bed without a hug and kiss from his big sis. You enjoy reading to him. Your nature is to nurture. You are always in “mommy mode.”
Which brings me to something that has NOT changed in all three of your years, you love babies. You love being a little mommy to each and every one of your dolls. On your actual birthday we decided to take you to the store and let you pick out ANYthing you wanted. As far as you knew, there were no limits to what you could have. But, what do you think you decided to buy? A new baby of course! You seriously considered a doll house, but when forced to choose only ONE thing you gave up the doll house for the baby. And this new baby is your first that is interactive. She laughs when you tickle her. She moves her mouth and makes noise while she drinks a bottle. She burps and then falls asleep. And you love her.
Two days later we had your party. One of your presents was a gift card from Brayden (who was the only boy you wanted at your party by the way), which we took to the toy store and you picked out…….not one, but TWO babies! Twins! They are also interactive. They talk to each other and to you. And of course, you love them.
When we got home you did something very out of character: you asked me to take your picture…with your babies.
so excited!
lovin on baby
You were interested in one other toy before you settled on the new twin babies:
we're not ready to shell out the $400 this Barbie Cadillac costs
You had a great time at your birthday party. You had the Dora cake you requested. You had the red and purple balloons you requested. All the friends you asked to invite were here to celebrate with you. I loved watching you play with the other 6 kids you invited. You guys had a blast making little pizzas, having an impromptu dance party in your bedroom, twirling in your new twirly skirt, opening gifts, and getting lots of love from your family and friends. Clara, you are a precious girl, a joy of a daughter, and a gentle, sweet princess. I love you so very much.
Purple and red balloons
Dora cake made by Mommy
Dora decorations
the whole gang--including grandpa!
Brayden wanted "dora's eyes"
DANCING!!!
Love you sweet girl...looking forward to our next year together...
