family

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Thursday, March 22, 2012

Nolan's 1st Birthday Party

We celebrated Nolan's 1st birthday with a Sesame Beginnings theme. It turned out great! It was so hard to come up with or find a theme that I really liked. However, I saw this theme online and wouldn't you know it, it has been discontinued. So after searching on E-bay, the internet, and local party stores here, we finally found all the pieces to put together. (They have Sesame Street themed birthday party for 1, but it's not the Sesame "babies." There was a lot of items we wanted to create/make ourselves-so his party planning took a lot of time, but in the end it was worth it. Here are some pictures from his party.
*Up above was the Happy Birthday Banner that we made. I used letters from a banner I bought and cut them apart. I used card stock and wrapping paper to match the colors of his party. I also traced some letters onto cardstock to get certain colors. This worked out great because I could pick and choose the order of the colors I wanted. We used ribbon to string them together. We found mylar balloons online and some at card factory outlet that were the Sesame Beginnings. We used helium to blow them up and then used treat boxes (which you can't see) that matched the them to hold the balloons together at the bottom. We also had the same wrap we used in the banner for some of his presents and matching tissue paper in the bags. Above we displayed a picture of Nolan we had taken for his first birthday....later we watched a slideshow of his first year.
His highchair-we created his name sign, decorate the tray with little Sesame Beginning banner pieces. We were so lucky to find a cup and plate that went with his theme!

The cake table-I painted the letters to spell out the number ONE, we made "Big Bird Punch"-everyone loved it. (Consisted of Apple Juice, Pineapple Juice, Ginger Ale, and Orange Sherbert.) Jimmy made the Cookie Monster cake, Nolan's smash cake, and the Cookie Monster cupcakes. We had matching plates, desert plates, and napkins with the Sesame Babies. The banner was great-we ordered it online and it is great quality. I am thinking we will put it up in his playroom.

Memory Lane-We took pictures of Nolan and made a photo banner. We had one picture for each month. We created this using card stock, scrap book paper, wrapping paper, and ribbon. We made the label for each month to look like the street signs. It turned out great-we loved looking to see how he has changed from birth to 1 year.

This was the door sign we created to greet our guests. Jimmy created all of the signs from poster board and cut out all the letters on cardstock paper. We had little Sesame Beginning stickers that we found to place on each sign. It was so cute!
This was the entry way. I took some of the wording we used on his invitation and used some wrapping paper, cardstock, and scrapbook paper to make it colorful. (This party is brought to you by the number 1 and the letter N.) Then I put a diaper on the tickle me Elmo and gave him some balloons. It was a super cute entry for our guests!

I created a shirt for Nolan using iron on letters. I had seen tons of cute little girl shirts for 1st birthdays, but it was hard to find a cute little boy shirt. So I came up with this idea and loved it! I did try to find a solid color onesie like blue or green to put it on, but could not find a plain colored one.

THE CAKE-Jimmy did a great job and created a Cookie Monster cake sitting on top of a large cookie. It turned out great and tasted amazing! He also made a smash cake for Nolan...that he didn't even smash, but it was super cute!
We had a great 1st birthday for Nolan. We had just immediate family because we didn't want it to be overwhelming and it was just the perfect size! Here are a few pictures from the day..

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Nolan's 1 Year Old!


It is official.....Nolan is 1 year old! It seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital. Looking back on pictures, I can't believe how much he has grown and changed. He doesn't even look anything like his infant pictures. Although I miss those baby days, I LOVE the stage he is in right now-he is so much fun! Nolan celebrated his birthday today with having a party on his actual birthday. It worked out great the spring break fell over his birthday. (Last year I was getting the house ready for a baby at this time-washing and folding baby clothes, packing my hospital bag, getting everything perfect in his room, etc.) I will post pictures of his birthday party soon-it was great!

At 1 year Nolan.....
*Weighs exactly 20lbs. (30%)
* 29" long (30%)
* Wears size 2 diapers (3's at night)
* Wears mostly 9 month and 12 month clothes
* Officially drinking from a sippy cup-no more bottles! Yay!
* Is drinking 2% milk....I know he is supposed to have whole milk, but he doesn't like it. He
spits it out....I think it is too rich for him.
* Eats mostly baby food...it is a challenge to get him to eat solid food. However, he has started
to eat toast and cheerios! He loves Ritz crackers and Goldfish crackers. Still no success with
meat, pancakes, cheese, grapes, bananas, etc...
* Loves feeding himself...he does a pretty good job using the spoon, putting it into the bowl,
and then putting the spoon in his mouth.
* Sleeps from 7:30 p.m. til 7:00 a.m.
* Loves to go on walks in his stroller or ride in shopping carts
*Has been spending a lot of his days at the park-he loves the swings and walking around on the
equipment....he cries when we have to leave.
* Walks EVERYWHERE....his walking is turning into running.
* Continues to love baths.
* HATES getting his nose wiped and getting his diaper changed.
* Understands the word "No" and pouts when he hears it.
* Loves to comb his hair and wear shoes. He loves to carry around his shoes and comb.
* LOVES TO DANCE! Every since he was little he has always loved music...but he will stomp his
feet and sway his head to the music.
* "Talks" all the time....I wonder where he gets it? =) He still only says Mama...but will try to
repeat us when we say "BOOM" for when he knocks over his towers.
* Loves to build and knock over towers, and loves to play with balls.
* Enjoys reading! He likes to pick out his own books...his favorite are the touch/feel books-
"That's Not My Lion, That's Not My Tractor, and That's Not My Dragon."
* Still has blue eyes and the longest eyelashes...everywhere we go people comment on his eyes.
* Loves to go "Oh"
* Plays peek-a-boo all the time
*Is able to follow simple directions: Go get your ball, come here, turn around, push, pull, roll,
bounce, stand, walk, and a few others.
*Signed more for the first time last week.
* Has the cutest little giggle that can make anyone's day better!
* Continues to bring joy to our lives each day!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Nolan's 11 Month Old pictures

Pictures of Nolan from 10-11 months.


Bouncing on my Boppin Ride

I love my baseball bat!
Crawling to get you!
Pushing my truck
Eating at my favorite restaurant-Texas Roadhouse!
Playing with my sippy cup
I.Do.Not.Like.Peas.
So happy all the time!
My first time in the snow!
Playing in the tub!
Walking in my walker!

Nolan's 11 Months Old


Nolan is 11 months old today and is such a sweet and happy little boy! Everyday he greets me standing in his crib with a big smile and a giggle. I live for nights and weekends when I can spend time with him. I love watching him grow and learn! He is very smart and continues to amaze me with what he can do at only 11 months!

At 11 months Nolan....
  • Weighs 18lbs 13oz (20%)
  • 28.5"
  • Has little curls on the back of his head
  • LOVES bathtime-he is officially in the real bathtub and loves it!
  • Eats 4 bottles a day (7 oz)
  • Wears size 2 diapers....still! (3's at night)
  • Wears mostly 9 month clothes and some 12 month clothes
  • Still has blue eyes and long eyelashes....I keep thinking his eyes will change
  • Will only eat Gerber puffs and other Gerber baby food.....but will NOT eat anything solid. We have tried peas, potatoes, bananas, bread, bagels, CHEERIOS, and he still will not eat it. I have tried to sneak these things in with his other foods....he is too smart and will not eat it or spits it out.
  • Is starting to drink from his sippy cup...he usually just chews on the top but now he is starting to drink water and juice from it
  • LOVES to drink from a real cup with assistance
  • Finally has TEETH coming in...2 have came through on the top and one is starting to on the bottom
  • Sleeps from 7:15p.m. to 6:30a.m. and naps 2 times a day for 1-2hrs each time
  • Loves to read books and to turn the pages for you
  • Says "Mama"
  • Knows how to blow a kiss...it is so cute! He will even make the sound. He also can give you a "kiss"- he will lean in and stick his tongue out on your cheek.
  • Gives high fives, waves, and claps
  • Loves to walk with the walker, cruise around furniture, and play with his toys
  • Has started WALKING! He took his first steps around 9 1/2 months...but now he is actually walking. Today he walked to me from the couch all by himself! (It's a little hard sometimes because he pants are too long!)
  • Loves rattles, BALLS, trucks, anything he can pull and push, and knocking over "towers" made out of stacking cups
  • Loves his little monkey that has a blanket attached to it
  • Is fast at climbing up the stairs...he likes to climb them whenever we go upstairs to his room
  • Plays peek-a-boo...he will sit behind a door and move the door back and forth to play peek-a-boo with you....it is so cute!
  • Words/phrases Nolan understands-no, come back, puffs, stand up, walk, push, pull, wave, so big, ball, clap, high-five, more, trust fall-(yes we say this to him and he will fall backwards into our lap) turn around, dada, mama, up.
  • Continues to bring joy to our lives each day!