Max at 10 & 11 Months

I never got a chance to post about Maxwell at 10 months... and now he is just a day away from turning 11 months, so I decided to just put them together.

Maxwell is such a sweet, happy, lovable, determined, strong, stubborn baby!

For a few weeks now he has been able to open the front door. I am so glad that it is the only lever handle we have in our house!


He likes to try to figure out how things work. He still loves his ball popper toy, but now he likes to try putting different things in it to see what the air can move out. He has surprisingly found a couple things (other than balls) that work. But mostly it just gets jammed and I have to unclog it.


He also loves anything with a lid and can spend an hour just putting a lid on and then taking it off. It's cute because he will put the lid on and get the biggest grin and clap for himself-- then take it off and do it again. (It's kind of awesome because I can entertain him anywhere with just a bottle and the lid!)

He is so observant. He only has to see something once and then he will copy it. On Sunday he saw me pick up some garbage off the floor and put it in the garbage can. The rest of the day he kept picking up things off the floor and putting them in the garbage can. (Unfortunately he threw Amara's socks away 4 times and I had to keep fishing them out. lol.) It worries me though because he copies everything that he sees. We used to have a banana chair blocking his access to our DVD player but then he watched Jaxon move it and from that point on he realized he could just move it out of his way and get to the DVD player anyway. One day I was at the doctor with the kids and Jaxon moved an activity table they had in the waiting room. I asked Jaxon to stop but then watched Max stand up next to it and pull and wiggle it until he could move it, too! He is so strong for a little one and has more stubborn determination than I have ever seen.

He really wants to be a big boy and do what daddy and Jaxon are doing. Here he is trying to use the computer. Micah tries to give him an extra mouse and keyboard (instead of the real thing) but Max won't go for it.


He is still eating everything! I already wrote about him liking to eat rocks, dirt, tape, etc. But now he will actually go to great lengths to find things to eat. For example, peeling the tags off things:

Or he will sit and pick lint off a blanket. What do you do with a kid who is that determined to eat non-food items? I guess I should start memorizing the number to poison control now.

This is how he feels about bibs:




Max makes the funniest faces! He almost always has his face scrunched up-- eyes squinted and a mischievous little grin. I wish I had a better picture of it than this:

He also likes to make a fish face:


He can now crawl up all the stairs and can get himself down from the couch without falling. He has been standing on his own and cruising around the furniture for a long time now. But until the last week he has really had no interest in walking. In fact, he devised his own way of getting around:




In the last week he has started taking more and more steps. I still wouldn't say that he is "walking" because he won't do it all the time-- but he can take several consecutive steps. I really think it's all about speed for him. He will take steps as fast as he can until he falls and then he will just crawl or "knee walk" to reach his destination. Here's a video I took earlier today of him taking a few steps:




Yay, Max!

What would we do without this adorable little guy? I can't believe he's going to be one in just a few weeks!

Updates

I already mentioned that I have been a slacker on my blog for the last month or so... so here's the Reader's Digest version of what we've been up to.

We had such a nice Valentine's Day. Micah let me sleep in and made heart shaped french toast for everyone for breakfast. Does it get better than that? Actually, it did, because he gave me the sweetest card I have ever received. He put together a whole page with notes to me, and reasons why he loves me, and pictures of us and the kids. It was seriously so beautiful that it made me cry! Jaxon had a fun Valentine's Day party at school. Then we made cupcakes and took them around to our family along with Valentine's Jaxon had picked out for them.


Max looks really sad in the next picture because he is sick... again. Double ear infection and double eye infection. I swear we have not gone a day in the last 5 months without one of us being sick! (Coughing as I type this.) I'm praying that warm weather will come to stay soon!


A couple weeks ago Micah was promoted to assistant manager at Dominos. We're hoping that within the next couple months he will be able to get a general manager position. Dominos is very strict about who can apply for general manager-- you have to be an assistant manager first and then take some classes before you are even eligible to apply for GM. We're glad that Micah was able to move into an assistant position so quickly and it sounds like there are going to be a few GM openings in the near future. We're excited about this option for him because he will be able to work and go to school. The culinary program has very specific hours and there is really no way to do it with an 8-5 job. This would be a great option since he could go to school in the day and work nights. Everyone keep a good thought for him that it will work out! :)

The assistant manager hours are different than what he used to work. Sometimes he opens, sometimes closes, sometimes works all day.... it's different every week. It's been really nice though. We get to see a lot more of him. This week was extra nice because it was spring break at UVU so he didn't have as much school work to worry about. It's fun for the kids to be able to play with him and just nice to have him around. Yesterday we were able to have a spontaneous picnic in the park before Jaxon went to school. I love being able to spend time as a family.

Here's some random pictures from the last few weeks...

This one is my favorite:


Playing in the snow...







Enjoying the sunny weather...



At the grocery store:



One night Micah had to work late; the kids were bored and I had no idea what to do with them until bedtime. So I announced we were having a glow-stick party. I opened a package of glow sticks and turned out all the lights. They spent over an hour running around- dancing- spinning- and playing with their glow sticks. They loved it. They would have kept playing if I had let them. Jaxon loved me taking pictures of him in the dark while swinging his glow sticks around. The pictures actually turned out pretty cool. The best part was that I was able to relax in the recliner and watch them run all their energy out. Definitely the best idea I ever had.




Last weekend most of Micah's family was here to be part of Parker's baby blessing! We had a lot of fun- as always- visiting and spending time together. Jaxon loves playing with his cousins! They spent most of the weekend rolling around in the dirt in Micah's dad's backyard. Jaxon was in heaven! I found this picture that was taken over the weekend of Micah with his siblings. Love it!


Life's still crazy, but we're getting used to it. And we'll be adding a little more crazy this fall. I wouldn't want it any other way. :)

Big News!

I have been such a slacker with my blog the last few months. I feel really bad about it because I love the idea of having a journal-type-record for my kids to read when they are older. Every time I walk by my computer I get this guilty feeling and I promise myself to "work on it tonight". Yet somehow I never find the time. Imagine that. Anyhow, tonight I decided that the messy house could wait (it will just be messy again tomorrow morning anyway :) and I would take the time to post some updates.

However, first I have some big news that I want to share. I wanted it to have it's own post- not just crammed in with all the updates over the last two months. Ready?

We're having another baby!!!!


Yep! Another little Lauret is scheduled to join our family this fall-- due September 17. We are really excited about this new addition!

So far this pregnancy has been great. *Knock on wood* I have had a little nausea but nothing too bad. It is a pleasant relief after how sick I was with the first two! It's kind of crazy to me. Sometimes I actually forget that I am pregnant! I never would have thought that was possible. I felt so weird and icky every day for the entire 9 months with the first two pregnancies that I couldn't imagine ever being able to put it out of my mind for even a moment. I am very grateful that I am feeling well, especially since I have two kids to take care of-- and one who is still so young-- and a husband who is gone many nights. I don't know what I would have done. Though my lack of symptoms has incurred the wrath of every woman I have ever known who has ever been pregnant-- I am still very grateful. ;)

Well, that's all there is to tell for now. I have another doctor appointment on Tuesday-- And, yes, in case you were wondering, I did switch doctors. I am really excited about my new doctor! He was so nice at my first appointment. He spent a lot of time with me, answered all my questions, and never made me feel like he was in a rush to move on to the next patient. The best part is that he will be my only doctor for the entire pregnancy so I won't have to worry about seeing a different person each time. Hooray!

Should have said "so long" so long ago!

At the beginning of February Micah was let go from Orange Soda. When Micah came home that day and told me I can honestly say that my first thought was, "Great! Now you never have to go back there again!" I hate to sound ungrateful because OS was good to Micah for a long time and they are the reason that I was able to quit my job and become a stay-at-home mom. However, without getting into any of the hairy details, things haven't been great there for a while and Micah was very unhappy. Even though it definitely adds some challenges- I have really seen it as a blessing.

A short while back I posted about Micah returning to school and joked that I wouldn't see him again for two years. Well, it turned out not to be a joke at all! January was such a hard month- between his 2 jobs and school we really never got to see him. There were many days that he left for work before we were awake and then returned home after we were all in bed. My kids were really miserable. They love their daddy so much and hated not being able to be with him. Jaxon would cry every night that Micah had to work. It was so sad! And I could tell that after only one month of this schedule Micah was already getting burned out. We are really enjoying having him home right now. He is still somewhat busy with homework and working at Dominos- but we get to see much, much more of him. We're still not sure how things will work out long term... but we're just taking it one day at a time and enjoying what we have. :)

Max at 9 months

It's true! Another month has gone by and my baby Max is now 9 months old!

Here are the stats from his check-up:

Weight: 22.95 lbs- 82.93%
Length: 29.25 in- 80.02%
Head Circumference: 17.88 in- 52.52%

Maxwell is a little ball of energy and personality. He definitely thinks he is the king of this house.


He is one tough little dude. He spends a lot of time following Jaxon around and trying to take whatever he is playing with. Jaxon is actually really sweet with him and does a pretty good job of sharing. I wish I could say the same for Max...


On Sunday, during Sacrament Meeting, Jaxon tried to take a book that was next to Max- thinking he was done with it. Max looked at him and let out a scream like you wouldn't believe. Jaxon gave the book back.

My boys already love to wrestle.


Even though Max is smaller, he can still hold his own:


Max still loves his exersaucer:


And sometimes even jumps himself to sleep:


He plays with toys a lot more now. I love watching him discover how things work.


One of his new favorite things is opening drawers and cabinets.



One of my least favorite things about his current age is that he puts everything in his mouth. I mean everything! He honestly spends time searching the floor just to find things to eat. No matter how much I vacuum he still seems to find things. I have to do a mouth sweep on him about 40 times a day. If it's actual food he is usually pretty good about giving in and letting me take it. However, if it's something really delicious like a sticker or a rock he'll fight me for it. I'm pretty sure I'm going to lose a finger one of these days.

He also likes to carry his toys around in his mouth. It's kind of funny...




...but sometimes I have to wonder- is this normal?? LOL.


Ha ha! We love our little Max so much! I'll end my post with a little video of him clapping-- which he learned to do a few weeks ago. I love how he stops and looks at his hands like, "Wow! I did it!"

All the Babies!

The weekend of the 15th my brother-in-law Jake and his wife Kelli came to visit and we got to meet my newest nephew Parker! He was born at the end of December and is such a little cutie! We had a great weekend spending time with all the family. (Bobbie, Lani, Lily, and Amara were able to come from Roosevelt, too!) That Saturday we had a dinner at Lauret's to celebrate Lani's upcoming birthday. That was the first time that we got to have all the babies born in 2011 together. There were 5 of us that had babies last year... and we have another sister who will be having a baby in February! It's crazy, but so fun. Here's a picture of all the babies together. (No one is looking at the camera... but sometimes you have to take what you can get!)


From right to left:
Maxwell- born in April. Maizie- born in May. Devon- born in July. Owen- born in August. Parker- born in December.

Can you imagine what Sunday dinners are going to be like when all these kids are 2? LOL!

Back to School

The only good thing that has come from my husband's job change at Orange Soda is that he finally decided to go back to school and chase his dream. Micah has been working in marketing for the last 9 years. Even though he is good at it, he doesn't really love it. So Micah started classes at UVU this semester! His plan is to finish his business degree and also complete the culinary program. His goal is to open his own restaurant along with my brother-in-law Spencer. He is really excited about the culinary program. I am excited for him and glad that he will get to do something he enjoys. His goal is to be finished with school in 2 years. I am so proud of him... but it's going to be a crazy 2 years! Working 2 jobs and going to school full time? It's insane! But I know he can do it! Love you, honey! See you in 2014!