Happy Opening Day!

It's a serious holiday around here!

We suffer a long, cold, and nasty winter in these parts and I think I speak on behalf of all St. Louis by saying that the only way we get through it--is knowing Cardinals baseball starts in the spring!

Last year was Maverick's 1st Opening Day.

I can't believe how itty bitty he was!

You could say that we are slight Cards fans, ha!

This is my mom and I, at my bachelorette party.  My best friend Rachel threw me the most awesome party.  Our tickets were on the party porch, so it was a buffet of food & drinks. 

 My bridal shower was a Cardinals theme, and I confess--it was supposed to be a surprise.  But I found out.  I will never reveal my sources.  :)

My Aunt Linda really out-did herself with the decorations and food.  It was so awesome!

We actually didn't plan our wedding colors based on being Cards fans, but I love that it turned out that way. 

Maverick's 1st Cardinals game!

That was such a special day!

He did so great sitting/sleeping through the game.

I don't think we'll be that lucky this year.

Okay, so there is some grumbling out there that this isn't going to be a great season.

They do have their point--we are suffering some big injuries.

However, I do have to remind everyone the year we won the World Series--we had the worst record of all the teams that went to the playoffs! 

I think he is practicing his "Bob Gibson" pitching technique here!

"Ode to My Mommy"

Happy Birthday Mom!

Yesterday, the 25th was my momma's birthday.  My sister and I took her out to breakfast, and Maverick pretty much kept the whole section entertained, ha!  And later on everyone came to our house to have ice cream cake, yum!

I know this is pretty cliche, but I never understood how life must have been so crazy raising 3 kids until I had my own...I can't fathom 3!!!  Is it too late to say I'm sorry for all the crazy things my sisters and I did?! :)

I am SO thankful for her and how much she loves me, and how much she still teaches me as I raise Mav.

We quite literally wouldn't be able to survive without her.  It is SUCH a blessing that she loves to watch Mav in the afternoon so that I can work.  I can't imagine having to leave him with somebody other than family. 

I'm also so thankful for my mom taking me to church when I was little, and giving me the example of being a Christian.  I can't even begin to count the hours she spent taking us to (and volunteering at) Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Awanas, etc, etc.  Most of all, she always taught us that it's not important to 'look' like a Christian and be pretentious on Sunday mornings.  It's about showing love and kindness to everyone, every day of the week.

Maverick has the BEST Grandma in the whole history of the world! :)

Happy Birthday, we love you!

Parents As Teachers

Maverick had his first "Parents As Teachers" visit the other day, and it was great!  Working with preschoolers, I was already familiar with the program and heard so many great things.  We had a super visit!  Our Parent Educator brought age-appropriate toys and had fun playing with & observing Mav.  It was a great time for us to ask her questions and vice versa.  Robbie had her cracking up with all his fun stories about working with kids 'back in the day'.

 One of our minor concerns was that Maverick speaks only about 3 words, "Momma, Dadda, and Uh-oh".  We know that speaking 3 words is average for his age,  but we also know a lot of friends whose kids talk more than he does.  It was reassuring to hear from her that he is average and normal.  She told us that in the next couple of months his vocab will explode, and that to give him credit for the words he understands but doesn't necessarily speak.  It's funny though--in the past couple of days since the visit, Mav has started using 2 more words "Bye Bye" and "Poop".

 Yes, he says "Poop" ha!  I picked him up to go change him and I was saying "Poopie boy!" And then he started saying "Poop poop poop!".  Lovely, huh?!  Maybe this will help start the whole potty training thing...yikes!  Thankfully we don't have to worry about that for a little bit.

So of course I have to brag about a couple things.  She said Mav was awesome (like all kiddos!).  But she was really impressed with his fine motor skills (being able to put coins in a slot, opening bottles, etc) and also his reading comprehension.  It's funny (to me) to call it reading comprehension because he obviously doesn't read aloud, but he can point to objects when you ask him to find it.  Also, he knows most of his shapes.

I guess reading to him while I was pregnant and since his birth has paid off. :)