Busy-bee 9 months

My lovable,totally squeezable, sweet baby boy is 9 months old. Busy-bee was truly the missing piece to our family. He completes us! He is an absolute joy and has a personality already much to be desired.
 
Growing up I always ‘dreamed’ of having 4 kids never really thinking for a second that it might actually happen. I now know my ‘dream’ of having 4 children was not something I simply thought up for myself but rather something God had planned long before my childbearing years. You know those dreams; the ones that sit etched in the back of our head just waiting for us to say “YES”. Yep, that is Busy-Bee!  He is everything and more than I could have ever dreamed of on my own. He is a true blessing from God himself and I am forever grateful my heart said “YES”.
Busy-bee loves his siblings. He amazes me daily with his ability to interact and ‘play’ along with them. Whether it is playing ‘kitchen’, Duplo-Legos, or just joining in the plain chaos of living in a big family you better believe he is in the middle of all the action. He also loves playing with his BFF homeschool friends. He doesn’t even entirely mind shopping quite yet.

He is my brown eyed and blond haired bouncing baby boy (not to be confused with his (almost 3yr old) green eyed/blond haired bundle of  sweet spunk brother. 
He say’s; Momma (the first one of my kids to say Momma first…way to warm a mothers heart), Dadda, bababa clapping, he signs ‘eat’, craws everywhere, stands like a champ, and laughs with the sweetest of snorts. Weighing in at a whopping 18 lbs (10-15% tile) and just barely cut his first tooth on June 3rd, 2013. 
His favorite foods are pears and spinach (really, spinach?) he must be my kid: a true health nut from the beginning!  Food is not his love language as he also appears to have some food sensitivities much like his older siblings. We trudge along none the less one ‘baby step’ at a time.

Mr. Smiles Turns “2”!

 

 Mr. Smiles is the big “2”!! He has been such a joy over the past two years. He is all boy; full of spunk, a little monkey, a heart of gold, and guaranteed to light up a room with his personality and smile! He can count to 3, say almost anything, plays pretend like the best of them, loves babies, balls, trains, boats, motorcycles, riding his bike, and just being a boy! There is never a dull moment when he is around and I feel so blessed to be his Momma!

Being a summer baby the cake this year was a homemade gluten free pound cake complete with fresh strawberries and raspberries from our back yard! Yummy! We also enjoyed some orange flavored  cupcakes with a dairy free frosting at Mr.Smiles birthday celebration with Nonna and Papa this past weekend. Yes, despite our diet changes over here I’m happy to report a successful “sweet eating birthday” 🙂 whew!

 Our rough, tough little boy received a lawn mower from our Grand-neighbors…I thought that Mr.Smiles was going to take it to bed with him he was so excited! In fact he loved it so much it had to sit at the table with him while we sang “Happy Birthday”. Yes, he almost passed up cake ….and this boy can eat!

Then there was the Duplo lego table from Mommy and Daddy…another big hit. Well, that was until big sister K.Bear started bossing him around a bit and trying to ‘take over’ that’s when I was able to capture the ‘sour puss’ welcome to “terrible 2’s face” complete with hair pulling. Ha! I foresee some sibling squabbles in my near future. Hey, we all survived….bring on the fun or should I say “time out’s”, “discipline”, and “consequences for ones actions”.

Gluten and Dairy Free Pound Cake

2 cups sugar
1 cup Earth Balance Butter melted
4 Organic Eggs (room temp)
4 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla
3 cups Gluten-Free Flour Blend
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
1 cup Almond milk

Directions

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 12-cup Bundt® or 10-inch angel food cake (tube) pan; sprinkle with gluten-free flour blend. Set aside.

Combine sugar and melted butter in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla; beat until well mixed.

Stir together gluten-free flour blend, baking powder, and xanthan gum in small bowl. Gradually add flour blend mixture alternately with milk substitute to butter mixture, beating at low speed until well mixed.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan.

*Recipe has been altered from original Landolakes Recipe

Parenting is certainly not easy but truth is I wouldn’t change a thing!

From baby to big boy!!

Mr. Smiles is in a toddler bed  he is doing great and we couldn’t be more proud of our little man!


 He is 18 months going on “3” (at least). He wants nothing more than to be like the big kids. When mommy walked in to find him horizontal on the front of the crib it was time to take down the rail. He is our youngest crib to bed transitioner (is that a word?) but so far so good.

He has even mastered the in and out! Naps are a bit more tricky these days as the toys in his room are ever so tempting. However, Im happy to say when the sleepy sand starts to come…our smart little guy will make his way into his bed for a snooze! Nice job buddy 🙂

 Keep up the good work!! Love, Mommy and Daddy

O’yes, and the stats on our man;
Tooth number 9 is popping through as of today
Weighing in at 23lbs (10-25%)
Height 32 inches (50%)
Say’s Momma, Dadda, T, Nonna, Papa, Ball, Uh-O, Santa, Tree, and sign language of coarse (our saving grace with all of our kids!)
Loves; his sisters, balls, trains, trucks, to eat, and play babies with his big sisters 🙂