Easton 9-12 months and the rest of us

So I have been horrible at updating this blog for the last three months. With school starting back and cross country season at the beginning of the fall and now basketball season, life has just been hectic. You would think I would still have time to update a bit, but with Easton so mobile, and Kenan a ball of fire, I don't have a whole lot of time in front of the computer. If I am, my time this fall has been taken with a new volunteer job I have been doing with the church. Once I get done with that, it is usually on to something else. That being said, I will try to highlight the fun things that have been happening this fall.

Next week is Easton's one year birthday and I can't believe the year has gone by so quickly. He still seems like such a little guy to me compared to Kenan at this age. By one Kenan had about eight teeth, tons of hair, and was walking. Easton on the other hand still just has two teeth(although the middle four on the top are coming through), very fine blond hair you can hardly see, and is content to crawl instead of walk. Kenan was not much of a crawler which is why I think he walked so soon, but Easton can move really fast and I think it is just easier for him. I know some people don't like it once they are walking, but we are on the go so much I am ready for him to do a bit on his own so I don't have to carry him everywhere. He can move all around the furniture and push his push toy, just nothing on his own.

I am still nursing Easton and probably will for the next 2-3 months, although we will gradually cut feedings as he transitions to milk and his sippy cup. This is another thing he hasn't done as soon. Kenan loved using his cup by about 10 months. Easton doesn't really like it. He would prefer to drink straight from a big cup with me helping him. He is eating almost everything he can mash with his gums, although he still struggles with some veggies if they are not blended. I still haven't given him honey, strawberries, or nut products yet.

As the year has gone by Easton has gradually gone from the 95% in weight and height to the 10-15%. The doctor isn't worried though because he is a great eater and he is still gaining. He said this is just probably his normal body composition, he just gained well in the womb and came out on the big size. I would agree since Kenan was really large for a preemie, but if you compare their sizes over the year, by 6mnths they both have about the same weight and height and continue that. It has been fun to see the boys now interact so much and to see Easton's personality come out. So far he is a bit more laid back, but he still can have a temper when he wants to.

Kenan has developed a lot over the fall months. He started preschool at the beginning of September and I have loved seeing him meet new people and interact in a classroom setting. At first he would have preferred to stay home with me, but now he really enjoys it. Nick said we just do too many fun things. He has wonderful teachers, and I can see his desire for learning grow every day. He is also a great big brother. I know he is loving the fact that Easton can play with him a lot more, he is still just a bit too eager for some things. Many times I find him trying to get Easton to do something he doesn't want to do.

Sport season was another big highlight this fall. Kenan has so much fun interacting with the participants of the sports Nick coaches. He calls them daddy's kids. During cross country we had a runner go to Semi-state again so we got to go on an overnight to Brown County with some of the team. We did that last year as well, but this year Kenan really enjoyed it. Now that we are into basketball season, you can really see Kenan wanting to be a part of what daddy does. He will wear a whistle around sometimes and say that he is a coach. One of his favorite things to do is to ride the white buses that Nick drives the teams in. He thinks that is really cool.

As the year 2009 comes to a close, I am thankful for all God has blessed our family with and I look forward to another fun-filled year.

Easton 8 mnths

This past month Easton has become so interactive. He just loves his brother and they will even sit and play(kind of) together for awhile. It is so cute. He doesn't like it when Kenan gets too rough though and thinks Easton can wrestle because he is getting bigger. We have started introducing fruits this month and have had bananas, apples, and peaches. So far he has been a good eater like Kenan was. I can already tell he has a few that he is not the biggest fan of though. Still no crawling, but he definitely is moving all around by scooting on his bottom or pulling himself towards things he wants. He is so quick if he has his eye on something. He also has been standing up against things a little bit, but he is still pretty wobbly with this. Kenan started preschool this month two days a week and it has been nice to get some quality time with just Easton. I can tell he is enjoying the individual attention and I have loved the extra bonding time. I loved that Kenan and I were buds and have missed the special times just the two of us got. I am trying to do that with both Easton and Kenan when I can.

Last August Weekend

The past two weeks we have lucked out and not had any plans either Friday or Saturday night both weekends. The first weekend we decided to use that and spend a lot of quality family time. Friday night we went to Long John Silvers for dinner (Nick's choice). This was more of a treat because we do not eat out that much. After that we took Kenan to play miniature golf for the first time. He had received free coupons for Walthers in the summer reading program at the library and we decided to take advantage of them. I thought he did a great job at trying to hit the ball considering it is not that easy for a 3 year old. Easton enjoyed watching us from the stroller. When we got home the movie Herbie Fully Loaded was on and since Kenan loves cars he sweet talked us in to letting him stay up even later and watch the movie in bed with us (to give you an idea, we got home at 10:30 and the movie was just starting).

The next day was gorgeous and we took a day trip to Garden of the Gods. This is the first year we thought Kenan would be old enough to understand the danger and not run off. It was the perfect day. When we arrived we had a picnic lunch at the campgrounds and then went to hike the overlook. We didn't get to be as adventurous as we normally are since we were carrying an 8mnth old in a carrier and holding a toddler's hand, but we still climbed a lot. Kenan didn't scare me near as much as Nick with Easton in the carrier. I guess because I didn't have control. Since it was a beautiful day we saw a number of people. There were even two older couples that took pictures of Kenan because they thought he was so cute climbing and jumping on the rocks. It was a fun day.

Triathlon

For the past three years Nick has run the team part of the YMCA triathlon and each year Kenan has done the mini kids run. The first year Nick pushed him in the stroller, last year Nick had to carry him much of the way, but this year he was excited to be a part of it and ran the whole distance. Not that it is very for, but about a 1/4 of a mile is a lot for a three year old. When Nick was coming in at the finish line Kenan didn't even want to go congratulate him because he thought he would miss his race. I think this is a good experience to expose the kids to, and I am glad Kenan has gotten to participate. This year along with the medal at the finish line (and his Gatorade of course) they gave them free bike helmets. He already has one, but it is the next size up so he can still use it in the future.

Anderegg Farm

So at the end of August we took a short trip to visit my great Aunt and Uncle (the boys great-great aunt and uncle) who live on a farm in Marysville, IN. That is across the river from Louisvile, KY. They had not seen Easton at all except through pictures. Jonathan and Rebecca were free that weekend as well and decided to go with us. I have always enjoyed going to visit them and spending time outside enjoying God's beautiful creation. We took a hike in the middle of the afternoon down to the cabin that they had restored awile back. The grasses were a bit long so Kenan was getting very itchy and was having trouble dodging the cow poop, so we did not walk much farther than that. That evening we went to church with them and took part in their ice cream social after that. The evening was nice a relaxing just hanging out and playing games after that. The next day before we left Kenan got to help feed the cows. I think he thought that was cool. What an enjoyable weekend.

August Fun

So even after Nick headed back to school we packed in a lot more summer activities into August. The Sunday before school we went to The Reinhart Family reunion. This is Nick's mom's side of the family and it happens every year. It is nice to see some of the extended family. The next few weeks consisted of bowling, swimming, playing at the park, the zoo, and just some good ole family fun time.