12 Month Check-up

As you know, Walker turned 1 on April 10. We just went for his check-up last week, though, since April was such a busy month for us. The appointment went well. Walker was 24 lbs 7 or 8 oz (75%) and was 32.5 cm tall (which is off the charts)!! I can't remember his head circumference (and I lost the sheet) but it was like in the 50%. All of Walker's measurements were bigger than Jake's at this age, so it will be interesting to see what happens.


So what's going on with Walker now?




He gave up his bottle and formula right before his 1st birthday and has transitioned so easily to the sippy cup and milk. No more warming up bottles! Woohoo!

He is a pig! The boy can put down some food! He's definitely a meat and potatoes kind of guy versus Jake who is a fruit and salad kind of guy. :) We're still experimenting on different fruits and veggies, but for now, he likes green beans, broccoli, grapes, bananas, and applesauce. Like I said, though, he doesn't turn away any kind of meat.

He sleeps 12 hours at night (give or take an hour) and still naps twice a day for a total of about 2 hours. He is such a light sleeper; his room is surrounded by box fans to try to reduce some of his brother's noise.

He sleeps with a paci and his "puppy." If you walk in on him sleeping, he always has "puppy" in a head-lock right next to him.

His personality is really developing! He's still super cute, but this little boy is proving to be very stubborn and impatient! I don't know where he gets it from. ;) Ha! Actually, Tyson and I both very stubborn and impatient, so Walker got a double dose of it.

He says Mama, Dada, hey, this?, choo choo, and something that sounds like "Jake."

He still only has 6 teeth, but is working on more.

His hair is pretty blond still and his eyes are a bluish-green.

He LOVES Kaitlyn Madden...his eyes light up and he starts smiling whenever she's around.

He has started standing independently for longer periods of time, but he's still not walking. We totally gave this child the wrong name! The pediatrician bet me and Tyson lunch if he's not walking by 15 months, but I just don't see it. He is so stubborn that when you try to get him to walk, he will pitch a fit and throw himself to the ground. I think he has the ability, he just doesn't want to. And why would you when you can crawl super fast? Plain stubbornness!

He and his brother still get along pretty well, but there have been the occasional fight with me ending up saying something like this, "Jake don't take that from him...Walker keep your hands to yourself...Jake don't hit your brother...Walker don't pull his hair." Jake thinks Walker is the funniest person he's ever met; he always says, "Walker is silly funny!"

He has started blowing kisses lately and he loves doing it to women out in public. Such a flirt.

His favorite show is "Dora." Usually Walker won't even pay attention to the TV when Jake has it on, but as soon as Walker hears the Dora music coming on, he is all about it!

His teachers all tell me (and I saw it first-hand by working in his classroom in April) that he is their best baby (along with Kaitlyn when she's there, of course). He is just so sweet and easy-going. Walker is also notorious for going to see about his classmates when they are crying; he helps put their pacifiers in their mouths or offers them a toy or whatever he can do to calm them.

Why walk when you have an older brother who can carry you everywhere?

We just went today for Walker's ophthalmology follow-up and we get to avoid glasses for another year! The doctor seems to think Walker will need glasses by age 5, so we are going to go back yearly just to keep an "eye" on it. Hahaha!

We are so blessed to have 2 healthy little boys who love us and each other so much...even though they are polar opposites. ;)

The Wedding

My little ring bearer

The beautiful bride

Ellie and her daddy, "Mr. Worf"

Tieing my sweet boy's shoes :)

Jake getting some energy out before the ceremony...

Jake and Ellie playing chase.

And here is Jake jumping over the pews.

2 very stressed out, tired, sweaty parents!

Helping Ellie pick up her flowers that fell out.

Kate, Jay, Ellie, and Jake

What a great weekend we had in Tifton this past weekend! My parents kept Walker so that we could focus on Jake, and what a brilliant idea that ended up being! It literally ended up being a two-man job just handling Jake.

Tyson was in charge of Jake in the back of the church, and I sat in the front of the church to catch Jake after he came down the aisle. He and Ellie walked down the aisle and it was surprisingly pretty non-eventful. Jake had gotten used to the idea of having to hold Ellie's hand, so she didn't have to pull him down the aisle like she did at the rehearsal. :) Ellie smiled and was sweet as always, but they both seemed a little shell-shocked. Jake (and his shy-self) kept making this blow fish face as he walked down the aisle, but he started smiling as soon as he spotted me. Well actually, as soon as we made eye-contact, I started pointing to the smile on my face to get him to smile...I felt like such a pageant mom. Ha! It worked though!

After their debut d0wn the aisle, Ellie and Jake came and sat in the pew with Ellie's grandfather and me. It wasn't a terribly long ceremony, but it seemed like it lasted forever! Trying to keep a 2 and a 3 year old quiet and still for that amount of time is nearly impossible. Mr. Tift and I pulled out every trick we could think of (eating goldfish, drawing, playing "I spy"), but those two, more specifically my child, were a mess! I had someone come up to me after the wedding and say, "he sure is cute, but he sure did talk the entire time!" Ha! I also had someone else say to me, "I thought you were the baby-sitter, but my friend said, 'no that's not the babysitter, that's the mama.'" In the back of my mind, I was sitting there thinking that this is really how it really went down:

Lady 1: "That babysitter needs to get that little boy under control!"

Lady 2: "That's not the babysitter, that's the mama!"

Ha! Maybe it wasn't as bad as I thought, but Mr. Tift and I were both sweaty messes after the ceremony was over and were relieved to send the kids back down the aisle with Worth.

It was definitely stressful, but we'd do it again for Kate!

And I can't forget to thank my family for everything you all did to help make this weekend possible. The boys and I came to Thomaston on Wednesday to get a head start and some help since Tyson has been gone for a week recruiting, but my mom ended up coming down with a migraine. My grandparents came down Thursday morning and took us out to eat and helped me out with the boys for a few hours. After they left, my dad stepped up and was a huge help! Have I mentioned how difficult it can be caring for a 3 year old and a 1 year old at my parents' non-baby proofed home? My mom started feeling better Friday, so mom and dad volunteered to keep Walker at their house for the weekend. And last but not least, my sis and brother-in-law kept Jake so that we could go to the rehearsal dinner Friday night. I'm so thankful for an amazing and supportive family; we couldn't have done it without you. Thank you all for helping out!! We love you!

Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner

Here comes Jake and Ellie.

I love how everyone is cracking up in the background in this picture.
Yes, Jake messed with his mouth the whole way down the aisle. At least he wasn't picking his nose, though.

The kids sat in a pew with me and Mr. Tift (Ellie's other grandfather) during the ceremony, and they walked out with "Mr. Worf."

Coach Bowers and Tyson

Tyson and the bride

These are the pictures from Kate's rehearsal and rehearsal dinner this past weekend. Like I said before, Jake did pretty well at the wedding as the ring bearer (more on that later). He and Ellie were hilarious, though, at the rehearsal. Ellie grabbed ahold of Jake's hand and held on for dear life; Jake kept trying to shake her off the whole way down the aisle, but Ellie won. Ha! I'm pretty sure they stole the show that night.

Kate's Wedding (A Sneak Peak)

Tyson's faux little sister, Kate Bowers, got married this past weekend in Tifton, and Jake was the ring bearer. I have a ton of pictures, as usual, and I will post more when I get home and catch my breath. We had a great time, and Jake did pretty well. He and Ellie Bowers (Kate's niece and Worth's daughter) were adorable together. This picture isn't the best of Jake, but I absolutely love it of him and Ellie.

Congrats, Kate and Jay! We love you! Thanks for letting us be apart of your special day!

"Monkey See, Monkey Do"

Last night before bath time, Jake was telling me about his day. I should have written it down because now I can't remember what all he said, but it was so funny that I immediately called Tyson and told him. All I remember him saying was, "you know, Mommy...monkey see, monkey do." Hahaha! I can't tell you how many times I've probably said, "monkey see, monkey do" when referring to something that Jake and Ryan have said or done; I've just never heard Jake say it before. Those little ears are always listening!

Anyways, since Walker thinks Jake is the most hilarious person and vice versa, I have a feeling I'll be saying "monkey see, monkey do" a lot more with my own two boys...just like with these crazy goggles pictured above.

Choo choo!

I'm pretty sure Walker is going to be just as obsessed with trains as Jake has been. Walker doesn't talk much, but one phrase he has no problem saying is, "choo choo!" He already has it figured out where the train tracks are near our house, and whenever we get close, he says, "choo choo!" It is so cute. And the boy can pick out a train quickly in a box of toys! Trains and balls...those are his favorites just like his big brother.

Tyson and I thought we'd take the boys to the "choo choo park" (as Jake calls it) since we haven't been in a while and since they both LOVE trains. Sure enough, the boys had so much fun! I've never seen so many smiles between the two of them. I love days like this!