Photos Courtesy of myPhone

A Kid Party

Over the weekend we took Jude to his friend Emma's 3rd birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese's.  This was Jude's first visit in which he was old enough to participate in all of the activities.  The party was terrific and a big hit with Jude.  He loved the pizza, of course (he would eat pizza every day if we let him).  Chuck E. didn't intimidate him one bit.   The games and rides were a favorite for us all.  I am not going to lie though...after 1 hour and a half in that place, Jude was not the only one needing a nap. ;)

This Little Family Went to the Market

What a beautiful weekend we had here in southern Ohio!  Winter can say goodbye as far as we are concerned.  We visited the 2nd Street Public Market on Saturday for some yummy eats and for some browsing.  It is always a difficult decision when it comes to picking what to eat there.  My sweet tooth was desiring the Nutella crepes, but I resisted and went with a Hungarian cabbage roll.  Matt chose to try Colombian.   Both of the dishes were pretty good, but Jude seemed to prefer my sauerkraut.  The shops sold everything from fresh produce to handmade products to giant pretzels.  It was very crowded.  We met some really nice people and even ran into a few acquaintances.  All in all, it was a nice visit and one that we will have to make again soon...especially to try the Nutella crepes. ;) 

Life With an 18 Month Old Jude

So our little guy will be turning 1 8  M O N T H S this Saturday!  Jude has brought so much joy and delight to our lives and it seems that each new stage just gets better.  I was this thinking about this post the other day and thought it was time for another Jude update. 

• He has some moves.  He started walking two weeks after his 1st birthday and it seems as if he hasn't stopped moving since.  He runs, jumps, and spins in circles.  However, I think his favorite move is dancing.  At the first sound of music he stops whatever he is doing and starts dancing.  His dancing looks a little like this: stationary, bending his knees, twisting back and forth, and swinging his arms.  As it happens, it has turned out being one of my favorite things to watch.
• Curious should probably be his middle name.  This kid has sensitive ears.  For example, if he hears a dog barking outside, he immediately stops and says, "What's that?"  Then, he begins barking as if to tell us that he knows it is a dog.  Also, he has to be included.  Do not even think about having people over after his bedtime.  If he thinks he is missing something, he will definitely let you know until you come and get him up. 
• His vocabulary is growing!!!  If you are a parent, then you probably know the excitement that comes with each new word your child learns.  Here are a few words that he says: Dada, Momma, Papaw, Sunshine (my mother-in-law's dog's name), bye bye, yes, no, bites, hush, mess, and boo.
• Microphones and instruments are his favorites.  He didn't really have much of a chance seeing as most of the people in his life use these things, so we are glad that he has a love for them.  His favorite instruments seem to be the piano, guitar, and drums.  If you follow me on Twitter or Vine you have seen this video of Jude singing and playing his guitar from our recent road trip.   I'm secretly hoping that his love for these things never grows old.  ;)
• He has some new tricks.  His newest is sticking out his tongue...however, this can get gross real quick if he is eating.  If you ask him to show his mad face he will clench his fists, get red in the face, and stick his bottom teeth out.  This happens to be the funniest ever, but I have yet to catch it on camera.  He likes to worship Jesus.  I mentioned earlier that he loves to dance when hearing music.  Well, most of the time that includes him raising his hands to worship Jesus.  He loves playing peek-a-boo.  And lastly, he has a great fake laugh.
• Jude is a smarty!  It amazes how quick he picks up on things.  The other day I was watching him go through his daily ritual of looking at books.  I noticed that he would recognize an upside down book right away and turn it right side up.  I'm not sure if this is developmentally appropriate for his age, but it definitely made him look smart. ;)
• His kisses have even gotten better!!!  Now a kiss from Jude includes him closing his lips, saying "mmmmm", and giving a kiss.  And yes, they are the sweetest EVER!

Snow Days Are Made For...

Today Matt & I had our first snow day off together!  Yippee!!!  It was glorious...especially since both of our schools announced they would be closed last night.  So, we set Z E R O alarms (that's good for us since we usually set 3).  We slept in until 8:30 (again that's good for us since we usually are up at 6:00).  Matt made breakfast, snow plowed our drive and our neighbor's.  Jude & I "cleaned" around the house.  Then, we ventured out to get Matt's truck tire fixed.  Oh the fun and exciting things you can do on a snow day. ;)  The question was what should we do while waiting for the truck to be finished.  We needed milk...check.  It was lunch time and we needed to eat...check.  We ended up eating at Dorothy Lane Market.  I mostly love their sugar cookies, but coming in a near second has to be their pizza.  So, there you have it.  Snow days...the best ever!