My little sunshine

On Oct. 27th, two years ago, I held you in my arms for the first time.  I immediately nicknamed you my sunshine, as you were my light on that sweet day.  We traveled a long road together those nine or 8 months that you were inside of me... the journey started with hospital stays due to dehydration and that fact that I couldn't even hold down water, and then on month 7 I went into preterm labor.  You can't imagine the emotions that flooded me that day... would you be ok, would you be born that day, would you survive?  I already loved you more then words can express, and I could not lose you or bear the thought that you could be born sickly.  So, I did the only thing I knew to do... I prayed to God that he would help you to stay where you were until you were healthy enough to live.

We sat and prayed for 27 days in the hospital... praying for your life, for your health.  On the 27th day, on a very rainy and gloomy day, you were born.  Immediately my world was filled with light, and you still are a light to me today.  Happy birthday my sweet Noah!  You will always be a light and joy in my life!

A little about Noah...

1) You are a super happy little boy, and your laugh is so contagious.
2) Your preschool teacher reports that you are everyone's friend and are very social.
3) You can throw a tantrum like I've never seen
4) You love playing games with your papa after work... monsters, hide and go seek, castles, chase...
5) You almost never stop moving.
6) Your favorite phrase right now is "thats pun!" for fun.
7) You LOVE your big brother and run up to hug him at spontaneous times or steal a toy he's playing with just to get him to chase you.
8) You are such a terrible listener that I thought you had a hearing problem when you were younger, but nope, you just choose to never acknowledge my requests. :)
9) You currently speak with a slight lisp, but gosh it sounds so adorable. 

I love you sweet boy!  My life would not be the same without you!

ox, mama

He's 3 1/2

It's hard to believe my little guy is 3 1/2 already. *sigh* The days are long, but the months fly by so quickly.

He has a super sweet heart and is very caring.

He loves playing "super hero's vs. monsters."

His favorite toys are his super hero's (namely superman, spiderman, and iron man)

This little guy has LOTS of energy, and is always on the go, (unless he's watching tv.)

Even at 3 1/2 he is still getting into things... my makeup, chocolate snacks he finds when I'm out of the room, etc.

His laugh and smile are so contagious.

He has started to tell me at random times of the day, "mama... I love you." (and then my heart melts.)

He is obsessed with the idea of growing up. Some days he tells me he's growing up, gettin' bigger and bigger, other days like today, he said he's not growin' up, he's still little. I'm glad he's still little for now. :)

ox, Jayme

My favorite photos from 2010

We don't usually send out Christmas letters with our cards, so I thought I would create a Christmas letter blog post of sorts, talking about the highlights from our year.

We had such a great year in 2010. Our family truly has so many things to be grateful for... our health, work, our sweet children, wonderful family and friends. Our hearts are full.

Niko turned 2 in February. Along with his growing independence he has developed a growing strong will. haha He keeps us on our toes, but I have to say he is such a joy. He loves rough housing, going on new adventures in the neighborhood, and ice cream.... or anything with sugar for that fact. He asks for a lollipop just about everyday, even though he only gets one about once a month. :) He attends a mother's day out program two mornings a week at a local church preschool. His teachers say he is on the quiet side, but loves to play with the other kids, go out side, and participate in art and singing. He is also the one in his class that already understands the spanish lessons. :)

Noah is almost 14 months... where does the time go. He has to be the cuddliest little thing ever. So, squeezable and soft. :) He is walking like a pro these days, and loves this new found freedom. He is also our little climber... always on top of something. The other day I ran into the bathroom for a quick moment, and came out to find him on the kitchen table. I have NO idea how he got up that high, but in a way I'm not surprised. He is very gentle, sweet, and fairly stubborn, much like his brother. He loves to smile, has 16 teeth already, and is the pickiest eater ever! He is also still fairly small in weight for his age but is average on his height so it looks like he is going to be the tall and lean type. :)

Pablo continues to work hard. He currently works for a company that makes gel mats for industrial kitchens, operating rooms, etc. He was hired on last December to be a project/product manager for their new line of kitchen appliances. The job is a blessing! When he's not working he spends 100% of his time with his family and on his hobbies. He is an amazing father, and husband, and we are so thankful for all he does.

I have stayed very busy this year adjusting to life as a mom of 2. These boys keep me busy like I never imagined. I am almost always searching for new balance in my life, but it's ok that it is not always there, this is just a season. A season that will pass all too quickly and before I know it my boys will have outgrown me and not need me as they do now. I will miss this time one day, and I work hard at embracing it even on the hardest of days. I continue to work as a freelance graphic and textile designer, but this year worked very part time. I also run my little etsy shop where I sell cards and kid's party items. It's fun and the perfect way to keep my foot in the design world!

Well, we hope you all had a wonderful 2010 as well.
Many blessings for 2011.

Love, Jayme (and family)

Rough Housing

If you stop by our house around 6 o'clock in the evening, you will likely see something similar to above. I guess with 3 boys in the house (including Pablo) that's a given. What you can't see in these images is the beating of one another with pillows, the full contact wrestling, and the clobbering of one another. :)

Trick or Treat...

Wow, we had an action packed day yesterday. It started with bible study, and then we attended a Halloween birthday party, and then did a little trick or treating. Noah's outfit was short-lived as he did not want to leave his puppy dog hat on, so he attended the events as noah.:) Niko thought the face paint was pretty cool (you can see the red parts he did himself) so that made him very excited to wear his outfit. It was our first year trick or treating with Niko and he seemed to like the fact that he was getting candy from people. I couldn't get him to say "trick or treat" or "thank you" at the door... he would just freeze up. haha It was a fun night for us all.
ox, Jayme

Cedar Park Fall Festival

Last weekend we went to a local fall festival. We decided to go to the festival this year instead of the pumpkin patch we usually go to because the weather was forecasting rain, so we thought it might be wise to stay closer to home. It did end up pouring at one point, which is why Niko's hair is soaking wet in some of these pics.:) We ended up having a great morning though and I'm glad we were able to get some cute pics!

Cedar Park Fall Festival

Noah and papa singing