The Gauck's

Nov 16, 2014-Jan 13, 2015

2015-01-13T21:00:00.001-05:00

What a busy time of year with the holidays and Noah's birthday! We have packed in alot of fun activities-cutting down our xmas tree, sledding down our side hill, checking out xmas lights and train displays, skating on our pond (opening day was Jan 11!), visits with Santa (which both times Noah completely ignored him, then jumped up and down exclaiming how much he loved Santa as soon as we were out of his sight), tracking deer on our trails, geocashing, gymnastics class, monster truck racing and lots of RIT hockey games-one of his new favorite things. He really has taken a strong liking to hockey lately. He plays in the house alot during the day, has to wear his hockey jersey 24 hours straight for multiple days in a row (he also insisted his jersey have a # on it-because his old one didn't so it wasn't real), talks about how he needs to get big like a hockey guy (a good way to get him to eat some days!), and asks to go to a hockey game every day. We started going to the local college games which have been alot of fun. We can sit right up front by the glass and he loves being so close to the action. The last couple of days, he has also been completely excited to play pond hockey. First time on skates and he did awesome! Already taking good shots and skating around on his own. He shoots left, bats left, but seems to do everything else with his right hand.

Christmas time was great. He really got it this year. We talked alot about Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus. He thought it was neat that his birthday was right after baby Jesus. He got the idea of presents this year too and was pretty excited Christmas morning! He also picked out a little gift for Daryl and me. I got a purple water bottle and Daryl got fishing lures :) With our help, he wrapped them and hid them under his bed. He was very excited about Daryl's gift and asked almost daily if we could give it to him yet. He enjoyed driving around looking at lights, watching the local Christmas firetruck parade and of course making lots of xmas cookies! I'm really not a fan of putting up the xmas lights. Kind of an annoying thing for me. We only have a few strands, but it still is a pain. Daryl and Noah were out back while I put them up. When Noah came up front and saw them, he was in awe. He said "thank you mommy! These lights look awesome!" Totally made it worth it. Next year, I bet we'll have the brightest house on the block-haha. Noah was also a great helper decorating the tree. He was really into it! His favorites were the Polar Express bell and a candy train.

On New Years Eve we ended up going to Uno's where they had a kids new years party at 7:00. He got a party hat and a champagne toast at the 7:00 balloon drop . It was a good time.

For his birthday, Daryl took off and we went to the Strong Museum. The next day, we had his party with family and a few friends. It was a Lightning McQueen racecar party. He was very excited and had practiced singing to himself for a few days before hand.

He is shy around adults, but not kids. Loves carbs, other than that, not much. The only veggie he eats is baby carrots. Somehow he is still growing-30.5# and 36.5 inches-50% for both.

Here are some funny things he is saying:
-we got a calendar magnet from a local real estate agent. She was standing in front of our local falls. Noah saw it one day and said "Mom-is this Honeoye Falls?" haha-didn't even know he knew that!

-he likes to say his address or bits and pieces of it.

-he sings his ABC's all the time, and also alot of random, made up songs

-Holy Moly

-While looking at a book he pointed to a guy and said "This guy is nervous." I asked why he was nervous and he said "because he's frustrated."

-D has been teaching Noah to look at animal tracks in the mud. So, while on our trail one day..."I smell a deer!" He points to the deer track and says " This here is deer mud, but I don't see any deer. Daddy musta got it with his pole."

-He likes to pretend play with his Teddy bear....I'll hear him ask him how his day is going or if he liked christmas, etc. Then he will come to me and say "Daddy needs to fix Teddy. He's not talking to me. His mouth is broke."

-"mom-I can't nap today."
Why not?
"It's berry hard. I'm a big boy-I just play with my toys. Maybe tomorrow I nap."

-I had been putting chest rub on him while he was sick. One night I forgot and he said "Mom-I need more sour cream on me."

-"I'm thankful for monster trucks, racecars and candy."

-He had asked if he could play hockey and I told him not now....
"Mom-I love you soooo much. Now I play hockey?"
me-"Noah are you trying to butter me up?"
Noah laughing hysterically "No-there's no butter on you silly mom!"

RIT Hockey Game

He LOOOOOOVES Remi

Getting his gymnastics award

So proud of his jersey with a # on it

He even sleeps in the jersey!

Meeting a real Hockey Guy! He got shy and ignored him-haha.

Christmas Eve event with friends

Making xmas eve pizza!

Daryl out backpacking in Bristol Hills

Happy Birthday!

2015-01-13T19:51:00.001-05:00

This guy: He's a lover of hockey, race cars, monster trucks and anything fast. He's an outdoorsmen and is full of energy. He's an inventor, songwriter and has some awesome dance moves. He's our answer to prayers and a reason to never give up hope. Happy 3rd Birthday Noah!

September 8-November 15, 2014

2014-11-17T20:08:00.001-05:00

Hockey, racecars and monster trucks are the important things in Noah's life these days. We spend lots of time each day running around on our "track," zooming cards down his ramp and watching monster truck video on youtube. We've also hit up a Sabres, Amerks and RIT hockey game-all of which Noah LOVED! He often talks about his hockey guys, wanting to be a hockey guy and if you ask what he wants to do today, he says "go watch hockey guys!"

Here are some other fun things we've been up to:
-On Daryl's birthday, Daryl, Noah and his dad went out on a fishing boat.
-we had a fall party with a bunch of our friends-tractor rides, games, candy. We had beautiful weather again this year, but hardly any leaves for the giant leaf pile. Noah talked for days about how his friends were coming over.
-For Halloween, Noah dressed as Woody from Toy Story. We went trick or treating with friends. Favorite candy this year-tootsie rolls and lollipops. He also got to trick or treat at our fall party, the Amerks game and a church trunk or treat=lots of candy!
-We've had fun visiting the construction site of Patti and Steve's new home. Lots of trucks and dirt-Noah's favorite!
-I let Noah pick out a pair of sneakers-he chose Lightning McQueen light up ones. He was so excited. Carried them through the store, told the cashier he was happy and put them on as soon as we got to the car (and then slept with them on for the next 3 days).
-Since the start of hunting season, Noah has been very interested in Daddy's gear and what he is doing. He talks about Daryl's pole (bow or shotgun) and how he is going to find a deer. He likes to wear camo like Daddy so that no one can see him. When I ask what animals daddy sees in our backyard while he is hunting, he says things like elephants, giraffes and alligators.
-Daryl made a brick oven, so we have been enjoying some homemade pizzas
-today was the first real snowfall. Noah has been very excited for the snow to arrive. We were able to make our first snowman of the season which was a big hit.
-packing boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Noah has had fun shopping for little gifts for kids that live far away.
-making homemade icecream in baggies
-launching model rockets
-we started a little at home preschool program this year. We are having lots of fun doing it!

Funny things Noah says:
-sprinkles-which can mean Daryl's head or face after he shaves it or foot powder that he likes to sprinkle in his shoes like daddy does
-pinny (penny)-we just love how he says it
-couple minutes
-DVDV
-when something goes wrong or someone says sorry he asks "is it my fault or your fault?"
-he likes to sing happy birthday and pretend to give us presents. He is VERY excited for his birthday to come. We talk about it almost daily. He will say, "after Jesus's birthday, then Noah's birthday!"
-We went out to dinner and he said he was going to pay for dinner when the check arived. I asked how he got money and he replied that he drives monster trucks. He had 24 mineys to pay.
-"what are you thinking mommy?"
-"i'm just hanging out"
-Noah asked me to reach his hot chocolate (which he wanted to drink out of a travel coffee mug). I was tickling him instead of getting his drink. Finally he said " stop it mom. Don't be crazy, just give me my coffee."
-Thanks mom. You're a good helper!
-ok! Relax!
-"I love this house. Daddy built it for me."
-Referring to his stuffed animal...."Let's make Teddy talk. I'll get my dr kit."
-He has started calling Patti, Pad instead
-"I love you Remi." This boy and his dog-inseperable!

RIT hockey game-ticket in 1 hand and the puck he caught in the other hand

pictures from our fall party

The highlight of the Sabres game-Noah looked all night for Sabretooth and finally found him on our way back to the seats before the 3rd period. Sabretooth had to go somewhere else in the aduitorium and asked Noah to walk with him. I wish you could have seen Noah's face-he was elated!

Noah kissing the picture of slot cars in the Bass Pro Xmas catalog

Ready for the Amerks game

Major shiner and possibly his first scar-Filled his backpack up too much and it threw him off balance. He fell on the corner of our bookcase-in seconds, it was black and blue and big bump.

Mountain biking at Dryer Road park

looking for the letter of the week

Making muffins

Crying when Daddy left for work

July 13-September 7 2014

2014-09-07T20:44:00.003-04:00

Here's what we've been up to!
-First ever Radoccia-Oddo family reunion was Aug 16. Tons of fun!! It was so nice to see everyone and meet some of the littlest Oddo's for the first time. Can't wait until the next one. The Oddo's stayed with us for several days too. We had a wonderful visit with them. We went to Niagara Falls and did the Maid of the Mist, went to Letchworth, had movie nights, played outside and ate very well! Noah was especially happy to have some boys to play with. He talked about "my boys" (Josiah, Joel and Jonas) for weeks before they arrived. Once they were here, he was super happy. It's been a few weeks since they left and he is still talking about them, asking where they are and praying for them at night.
-Erie County and NY State Fair
-Fishing, hiking, swimming (he just recently started jumping in the pool with his swimmies on, playgrounds galore
-Noah saw his first fireworks at the Redwings baseball game. He was almost asleep, but was wide awake and excited once they started
-Seabreeze amusement park-kiddie rides and water park. He had a blast!
-Steam Engine ride on the Arcade-Attica railroad
-We took Noah to the mountain bike park. They have several skills courses that he was able to do with his balance bike. He thought it was pretty cool.
-Lots of new phrases and words: actually, I can't, what yer doing, where's my boys, how about...., so, what should we do today?, what's next, I can't like that, awesome, (to me with wet hair after a shower)-your hair looks cool mom!, (to me when I finished my dinner)-good job buddy mom! I'm so proud of you!, you look pretty mom, (to Daryl's beer)-cool drink dad, (when you ask him a yes/no question and he wants to trick you)-nnnnnnnnnyes!, let's do this!, Me: I like grapes (while eating grapes)...Noah: I like cookies!, he introduced Graci to another kid as his sister
-he is eating a little better these days. Still not a fan of veggies, but he does like when we juice them. Fave foods are: pizza, hot dogs, graham crackers, tacos, ravioli, tootsie rolls (which he gets when he goes #2!)
-He has entered into a super shy phase
-loves: all sports, being outside, sleeping in the pop up camper, water parks (he asks to go to one daily), ice cream at Dipper Dans, The Monster at the End of this Book (which has also made him interested in monsters-but only nice ones :) ), going to look at construction sites, riding his bike in the road, going for runs, trucks, the chickens and animals in general, talking, jumping off of things, movie nights, launcing rockets, RC cars, goggles
-He still sleeps with Teddy and usually some truck or tractor and a ton of books on top of him
-some difficult toddler things he is doing these days: screaming for fun, throwing toys and testing the limits.
-he is pretty well potty trained. Still wears a diaper overnight, but that's it! Accidents really only happen occasionally if we are out (he doesn't like to poop in public-haha).
-He has a few of his fave books memorized so he reads them to us which is super cute.
-He can count to 14 and then it goes...14, 14, 14, 14, 20!
-When he is not distracted, he knows his letters, shapes, colors and a bunch of letter sounds
-Daddy and Noah have a secret handshake
-His memory is great and his imagination is fun! He is doing more and more pretend play now which is super cute!

Watching Fireworks

Reading to Graci

Riding Baby Bee (the neighbors horse)

I wish I was a little bit taller, wish I was a baller...

Sending the chicken down the hill in the dump truck

Taking a snack break at the bike park

Seabreeze with his pal Lily

Launching rockets

Had to wear his goggles everywhere this day

April 9-July 12, 2014

2014-07-14T11:43:00.002-04:00

My last post seems so long ago! We are so thankful that summer is finally here and we can get outside! We spend the majority of each day outside playing. So much fun! Noah is getting bigger and more fun each day. It's also an interesting age-he wants to be independent, make his own decisions and every now and then likes to tests his boundaries. So far, he doesn't often have tantrums, and if he does, they are short lived. He can get super whiney, especially when tired. The hardest part of this age so far, is keeping up with his energy! Noah has always been an early riser. We went through another spurt of 5:00am wake ups, but thankfully he is back to his normal wake time...6 or 6:30am. He usually still naps mid-day, but can go without a nap too. Bedtime has gotten a little harder lately. He has reached the stage where he likes to delay bedtime. He needs books with him-but he needs the books that you can't find. He needs his lantern lights on-no off-no on-no off. He needs you to cover him up, even though you just left his room and covered him up. He also needs to sing just 1 more song-about something random-ususally a truck or the dogs or daddy. I'm quite good at making up songs on the fly now. Thankfully, he always thinks they are wonderful :) My personal favorite is when he needs to "hold your hand for just a couple minutes." Some nights it can be frustrating to put him to sleep -I think of the dishes that I need to clean or the laundry I need to put away. But then I remember that some day he won't want me in his room, he won't want to sleep with his teddy and he won't want to hold my hand to fall asleep. They grow up too quickly, so I am trying to be thankful not just for the super fun and easy times, but the times that are not as easy too. By the way, bedtime isn't always horrible-there are the awesome nights too where we laugh or tear up-like when he sings himself to sleep with a random cluster of words that sums up our day, or when he sings along to Jesus Loves Me or asks to pray for Remi. There are also the times like tonight, when he was struggling to fall asleep so Daryl went into his room. I was already in there. Noah turned to me and said "Mommy leave-go wash dishes." haha!

New/funny things he says:
-sure
-no problem
-I have an idea
-What's next?
-(while digging in the garden) "I digging for hippos!"
-"cwinkle cwinkle little star"
-pretty please
-phew-this is hard work!
-look at me
-let's do this
-help here
-flopper (spatula)
-never!!!
-too winny (too windy) He hates when the car windows are down when it's windy out
-ok, i'll try it (with hands on hips and an attitude)
-we use alot of ground up chia so every time he sees pepper he calls it chia
-He dropped his fork on the floor (a frquent occurrence at meal times). He asked me to get it and I said No. Noah said "awwww-boooo mommy" while giving me the thumbs down
-he asks Daryl how his day was when he gets home. He is also pretty good about remembering things we did during the day-it's funny to hear him tell Daryl.
-on Dad's bday, I was telling Noah about his grandpa. I told him he was in heaven with Jesus.

Noah said "drive to Jesus, mommy's car, see mommy's daddy?

What he is into:

-playing the drums. If we don't go in the basement to use the drumset, then he gets 2 pencils and plays on the couch cushions

-whistling like Aunt Patti

-riding the balance bike

-band aids

-working with Remi

-dancing to the "Happy" song

-planes, trains, tractors, Daryl's old RC car and helicopters

-the chickens-he loves feeding them, getting their eggs and picking them up

-swimming, playground, our swingset (Patti gave us her old one and he loves it!)

-all sports-we rotate through all of them daily. He's pretty good too-definitely got those genes from D. He can hit a ball with and without a tee, throws well, kicks good, loves hockey and basketball.

-Having D spike his hair

-fishing with daddy

-ice cream and the "cookie store" (Wegmans-kids get a free cookie)

Things we've done:

-Amerks Game-he had a blast! He was on the Jumbotron and was the fan of the game!

-started potty training a few days ago-he pees on there just fine-the other one, not so much!

-baseball game

-picnics with friends

-parades

-D took him to a hobby shop and an RC car track

-race track

-Sesame Place

-Met Clifford

-rode some construction trucks at a local event and rode a bulldozer with Uncle Steve

-Easter egg hunts

The first day we met the liter of puppies

Happy Easter

Checking for candy in the eggs

Remington

The falls by our house after some major storms

At the races

Whistling

Waiting for the cookies to be done!

one of his first times on the balance bike

Lowes build clinic

visiting daddy at work

Ted's hot dog!

I was putting laundry away and found him wrapping a gift for daddy :)

Exercising

Catching chickens

Sesame Place

Remi's first parade

3 years

2014-05-17T16:25:00.004-04:00

Today I'm emotional. 3 years ago today we found out we were pregnant-something we weren't sure would ever happen. This year has hit me a little more than usual. Maybe it's because there are several things going on that have reminded me how precious life is.

I will never forget getting the call from the doctor's office and telling Daryl. What a day! We were so thankful! And then, I started having issues. It started at week 5. We weren't supposed to have our first ultrasound until week 10, but the doctor sent us in to check on the baby. There he was-a teeny tiny speck on the screen-our baby! Alive and looking good! Phew! Week 6 brought on some more issues and led to our 2nd ultrasound (and seeing the heartbeat for the 1st time). We were able to see Noah again and were reassured he was doing well. Week 7 brought more problems-this time was the worst by far. Instantly I thought the worst. Instead of turning to God, I turned to the Internet. I googled my symptoms and everything pointed to a miscarriage. I kept looking, but there was no hope-I was sure I had lost our baby. This time was also different in that we couldn't go in right away for an ultrasound. My doctor was out of town and wanted us to wait until her return 2.5 days later. The wait was devastating. I had nothing but time to imagine the worst. I was so angry with God-why would He make us wait so long to get pregnan,t only to lose the baby? That hurt! But, you know that wasn't the case. We were still pregnant and were blessed with a healthy little guy. It wasn't until today that I kind of made sense of that whole situation. As I said, we wouldn't have had our first ultrasound until 10 weeks had everything been normal. Because of the issues I was having, we got 3 extra ultrasounds to see our baby-from speck to bigger blob :) That may sound silly, but to us, it was absolutely amazing! I realized today those extra glimpses of Noah were little gifts from God and made us appreciate, even more, the miracle of birth. Beyond that, our struggles in my early pregnancy helped to take my thankfulness and faith deeper. In the 2.5 days we waited to see if there was still a baby, God surrounded me with positive thoughts and prayers from Daryl, our friends and family. By the time we walked in for that 7 week ultrasound, I was once again hopeful that our baby was still alive and if he wasn't, I felt hopeful that God would heal our hearts. That was an amazing transformation over a couple of days. From the moment we saw Noah's little heart beating again at 7 weeks, my days were filled with a cycle of prayer and thanksgiving. All throughout my day I prayed that Noah would continue to grow and thrive. At the end of each night, I was so thankful that God had allowed us another day to be pregnant. I learned to be thankful for each day, each moment He had given us.

I can't wait until Noah can grasp his story. The people praying for him before we were even pregnant, while we were pregnant and still today is amazing to me. I have no doubt that God has awesome plans for this kid. Please pray with us that we can be good parents to him and help lead him to the most incredible Creator ever.

January 2014-April 8 2014

2014-04-08T13:59:00.001-04:00

What's Noah up to these days? He definitely wants to be Mr. Independent. It takes a little longer to get out of the house these days because he has to get all his winter gear on, climb into the car seat and try to buckle himself in. If I try to help him walk on slippery ice bu holding the back of his coat hood, for example, he says "Mom-stop pushing me! or Stop touching me!" He likes to tell me what he wants for dinner-bread, chocolate chips or hot chocolate are his answers. Haha! He also has a new phrase-"No way!" He is very thoughtful and encouraging....offers us bites of his food, helps Graciela with things she can't do, makes sure I wear a hat outside if it's cold out and says things like "Good job Daddy/Ella/Mommy/whoever!" Then gives us a high five. He has become a great singer-Happy Birthday is one of his faves (he calls it Happy Cake). We sing it to everyone and everything-the potty, Ella, the sun, the birds....and at the end of the song he says "blow out the candles-pfff." Anything can spark bursting into singing Happy Birthday-lighting the fire (ooo-birthday cake!), seeing a cake of any sort or overhearing someone talk about a birthday or gifts. Noah also loves reading stories about birthdays.

Things he has been doing:

-We recently got 7 chickens. Noah has loooooved going out to see them, checking for eggs and helping to feed them.

-I went with a friend and her daughter to see Sesame Street Live. He had a blast!

-lots of playing in the snow (and now playing in the mud puddles)

-trips to Gander Mountain with daddy

-sleeping in his big boy bed-he has to have teddy and his lightup Dino with him, his Bible and an assortment of books. Sometimes he also sleeps with ABC flashcards, a random toy and an empty sippy cup.

-the day after he turned 2 he learned to climb out of crib, lock the door and turn the doorknobs. He has locked himself in his room once or twice.

-on 3/16 he peed on the potty for the first time. Since then, he has gone 4 or so times. Some days he will let me know when he needs a diaper change and somedays he could care less :) He loves wearing underwear for fun.

-talking a ton! It's amazing to see what comes out of his mouth! One day he pretending to call daddy on the phone. He asked daddy how work was. I then asked where daddy worked and Noah said "on the tractor." He has also started saying "yes sir" to men and women.

-he started telling us when he is scared. One night he kept saying he was scared of the bear. We weren't quite sure what he was talking about, but he eventually showed us-there is a bear in his room that needed new batteries. So, when the bear talked it sounded all weird and scary.
-telling the difference between boys and girls. He always asks if there will be boys when we go somewhere
-recognizing alot of letters, matching games...his fave letters are O and R-he always points those 2 out when we go places. The other day he accidentally drew and N and a B and he was all excited!
-at every traffic light he says red-stop! Green-go
-racing-we race alot of places, but he especially loves to race to bed at night. He says "on your mark, a-set, go!" in the sweetest little voice!

Noah Likes:

-helping us cook

-making popcorn

-ice cream (he asks for it every night even though we rarely have it)

-The cookie store (Wegmans-they give out free cookies to kids)

-racing with dad and Ella-he says "on your mark, a-set, go!"

-racing his trucks around the house

-jumping on the pull out couch

-pizza

-Curious George, Lightning McQueen, Mater, teddy, Woody and Buzz

-making dinosaur noises or roaring like a lion

-mud

-the song Hakuna Matata

-family movie nights which we do a couple times each month

-drumming

-picking toe jam-his or others

-talking about his friends. We have a friend with a 9 year old boy named Levi. Noah loves him and calls him "chubi"

1st night in bed

loves helicopters

playing hockey with dad

our eggs vs store bought eggs

making popcorn!

1st game of Memory

watching drum video with dad

having fun at a friends bday party

planting seeds

He loves rollerskating!

Shaving with Dad

Sick :(

He accidentally wrote an "N" and was then all proud of himself

2 Years Old!!!

2014-01-11T21:52:00.001-05:00

We have a 2 year old! What an amazing little guy we've been blessed with. He is sweet, joyful and full of energy! We had a wonderful day celebrating him. Daryl took the day off and we made our first trip to Bounce-it-Out. It's a whole building filled with those inflatable bounce houses. Noah was a little timid at first. He went into the openings of all the bounce houses, but then came right back out. I had to break the rules and climb into one myself to encourage him to check it out. Once I did that-he had a blast! We stayed there 2 1/2 hours and only left because mom and dad were hungry! We then went to Red Robin for lunch. He didn't eat any of his lunch, but he ate the whole ice cream sundae they brought out for his birthday! Noah wasn't too sure what to think of the waiters singing to him. He kept grabbing my arm and giving us weird looks. Later in the day, Daryl's parents came up and brought him his birthday gifts (homemade table and chairs and fishing pole). In the evening, we all snuggled on the couch to watch his favorite-Curious George. Next weekend we will be having a tractor themed birthday party with family and friends.

We can not believe Noah is already 2! We are so thankful for him and thankful to all the people who prayed for and loved him long before he was even born. What a lucky guy!

Here is a little bit about our 2 year old:
-Wakes up somewhere between 6 and 7 most days. Lately, we've gotten a few days where he slept in til 8! Ella is the first one he says hello to.
-In the morning he likes to read books and have a snack before breakfast
-Noah usually eats a great breakfast (although since turning 2 this has not been the case!). After breakfast, he hardly eats at all. A bite here and there. Somedays I wonder how he is surviving on so little. He hasn't eaten a vegetable in I don't know how long. Daryl juices fruits and veggies about 2-3 times per week. That is the ONLY way we can get him to have veggies. He guzzles a big glass of juice! Despite his lack of interest in food (except of course if there are cookies in the house!) he is still growing....somehow!
-He takes 1 nap around 1:30-3:30 and almost always wakes up super crabby. We usually have to watch a show to help him wake up. Then he is good to go.
-After dinner until bedtime is his most active time of day. It is very tiring to watch!
-Bed time is 7:30ish. He usually crashes instantly or plays in his crib for a few minutes before falling asleep. In his crib is about 10 blankets, 5 stuffed animals, a firetruck, frog nightlight, random matchbox cars and sometimes something else that he has to take with him that night. He looks for each of these things at bedtime.
-During the day he loves to: play with Playdoh, color, read books, run around, play hide and seek, play fetch with Ella, play with Daddy's remote controlled helicopter, jump, dance, climb, yell loudly for fun, put on his mittens and hat and walk around the house
-His faves: bathtime, Curious George, Word World, markers, Teddy, trains, tools, tractors, dirt, bugs, trucks, helicopters, helping to cook
-His dislikes: shopping, diapers, when Ella won't bring the ball back during fetch

This month his language has continued to grow. How fun to watch! Some of his fun new words are:
All Aboard
Oh Nuts!
Excuse me
dough (for playdoh)
bopper (diaper)
copter (helicopter)
colors (he isn't always right but he pretty much says them all)
it's working/not working!-He is very into if things are working or not working lately

He repeats everything....everything! He is also into singing. Most of the time it's his own made up tune. Sometimes he will sing the clean up song, ABC's or others. He is pretty good at saying please, thank you and excuse me. Noah is practicing his future daddy skills. Almost every night he brings out Teddy and George, wraps them in a blanket, shh's and rocks them and gives them a snack. He also is very helpful with the little girl I babysit. He tries to feed and burp her, helps get her ready for a nap and gives her toys.

He is asserting his independence more which sometimes leads to mini meltdowns. Thankfully, these are few and far between and hopefully they will stay that way! Meal times are the hardest. With his lack of interest in food, combined with his hatred of sitting in his booster seat and refusal to wear a bib anymore, it is quite an adventure!

Now the photos!

Sledding at Mendon Ponds

Helping G eat

Great pic D took while he was ice fishing

His favorite spot to read books-behind the rocking chair in his room

He had a couple days where he was having trouble sleeping-so I got some snuggles :)

He LOVED the copter at Bounce it Out

He is somewhere at the top of this

Visiting with Aunt Gwen-his new best friend

Happy 2nd bday Noah!

Loving his new tool bench

Christmas 2013

2014-01-03T12:00:00.000-05:00

Christmas time was great this year. Noah didn't quite grasp the whole thing, but there were some things he really liked:
-seeing Christmas lights and decorations out and about
-colored Christmas lights on the tree-helped him to learn some colors
-getting cards in the mail
-snow (when there is no snow or too cold to go outside, he makes snow angels on the carpet)
-making xmas crafts and cookies
-playing with the nativity set-especially baby Jesus
-unwrapping gifts-last year, all he cared about was the wrapping paper and boxes. This year, there was some interest in what was inside the boxes :)

On Christmas Eve, we made mom's traditionally pizza and watched a xmas show before bed. He woke up early on xmas day and was a little grumpy. He needed a little encouragement to open his gifts at first, and then he was into it. We got him a doctor kit (which he quickly learned to say "heart" while using his stethoscope), some books, and some little trucks and trains. We saved the train table for last. Once he opened that, nothing else mattered. It's been non-stop trains ever since. All day long we hear "choo-choo, all aboard" and lots of "uh-oh's" when the trains come off the track. It's very fun to watch him play with it. Daddy likes it alot too. In the afternoon, we went to Patti's for dinner. He had a blast playing with all her pets, opening more cool gifts, seeing all her decorations and playing with all the kids. It was a great day!

23 Months-Dec 9, 2013

2013-12-11T15:15:00.000-05:00

Lots of language popping up these days. Noah is repeating everything, and although it's not always clear, he tries his best. I am pretty sure he repeated a swear word that was heard from the person in line behind us at Wegmans. Yikes! He is stringing together words and really getting his point across-"mom-sit here! Dad-come here! (come here sounds like "mere"), I see it, catch you, where are you tractor? (often heard when we are driving and he is searching for tractors out in the fields), etc, etc. The other night, it was evident that he pooped. I said, "Noah-did you poop?" He said "umm....no! Ella poop. Daddy poop." Haha! Some of the ways he says things are soooo cute. We will miss it when he is able to say them correctly. For example-Amen is A-mean. Tickle is dickle dickle dickle (said it a silly little voice).

He LOVES Ella. She is the first one he greets in the morning and he is always trying to play with her. His new thing is to go get her "deats" (treats). Sometimes, he will tell her to sit before he gives them to her, and sometimes he likes to hide the treats from her. Daryl usually takes Ella and Noah out in the mornings to run around the yard. They all have a great time out there! He is still very much into trains, trucks and tractors. He sleeps with his tractor (and Elmo, teddy, George and 5 blankets which he hand picked!) and always thinks a tractor is going down the road when he hears a loud truck noise. Daryl put the train around the tree and that has been alot of fun for him. He could sit there for a long time just watching the train go around. We took a Polar Express train ride in Medina a few weekends ago. We spent about 2 hours looking at their model train display before the ride. It was amazing and we all enjoyed it.

Opening up his chocolate advent calendar. His favorite time of the day! I found him sitting ON the counter top trying to open another door the other day.

Happy boy on the tractor ride out to cut our tree

pretending to sleep

A cardboard box can keep him entertained for days. He always makes it a tractor!

He loves playing in the water and it keeps him entertained while I make dinner!

meeting new cousins!

ice skating! He doesn't look too happy here, but he had a good time. Daryl's back was a little sore!

Polar Express train ride-he is telling Santa to go over there!

cookie=best part of the train ride

stringing beads

When we turned the lights on for the first time, he said "whoa!"

he was pushing around a kitchen chair and it fell on his toe :(

Loved eating flour and the cookie dough! haha

22 Months-November 9, 2013

2013-11-11T16:54:00.003-05:00

I didn't keep good notes this month so I know I'll be forgetting alot. Anyway...fall has definitely arrived! Our new fireplace has been working great so far! Thankful to be nice and warm! Our solar panels have also been working great. Last billing cycle we only paid the taxes and fees! Woohoo! Sure beats last winter when we were paying a whole lot to heat the house and were still cold. Daryl did a good job getting us all set for this winter!

We had a fun fall party a few weeks ago. The weather was perfect-cool, but still warm enough to play outside. We had several activities for the kids-a thankful tree, pin the nose on the pumpkin, finding candy in a leaf pile, Halloween coloring and a sensory activity where the kids had to feel icky things with their eyes shut. Daryl took the kids on a hayride with his tractor too. That was a big hit!
We spent a day at Stoke Farms enjoying all of their fall activities. Noah had a blast! He especially liked seeing all of the tractors, the train ride and the giant slides. We carved pumpkins and this year, Noah wasn't all that interested in playing with the pumpkin guts. He was more into trying to carve the pumpkins and picking the seeds out of the goop. On Halloween, we went to a friends house for dinner and then trick-or-treating in their neighborhood. Noah was dressed as Dumbo (thanks for Patti for passing it on to Noah from her kids). He was a little unsure about going up to the houses at first, but then he was loving it! He enjoyed knocking on the doors and collecting his candy. He didn't say trick or treat, but he did say "thank you" and "bye" to everyone. We were out until about 8:15! He did not want to be carried. With the added weight of his costume and the increasing weight of the candy, he was funny to watch walk. We all had a great time!

Noah has taken a break from the daily dance parties (they still happen a few times a week) and started enjoying his truck books more and more. We read "B is for Bulldozer," "Get to Work Trucks," and "Trucks" over and over. In general, he loves books more and more lately. We have always read in the morning and at night, but now he wants to read during the day and I will often find him sitting on the couch looking at his books. It is really cute. I love that he enjoys reading! He has also taken a liking to trains. He often wants to build a train with his blocks and he loves visiting places that have a train table. Lucky for him, we got him a train table last year and saved it for this Christmas! We recently went to the local train museum. They had real train cars, model trains set up and you rode an old steam engine.

The last few nights before bed, we watched the Disney movie, Cars. This was our first family movie night and it was wonderful. Daryl and I both felt emotional for some reason...it was just such great family time all snuggled on the couch together. It is amazing how much he understands-laughing at the funny parts and saying "uh-oh!' when Lightning McQueen spins out on the race track. Last night, we let him stay up later than normal so we could finish the movie. We all enjoyed it alot and look forward to more movie nights.

So I know I am forgetting alot, but here are some of the new things this month:
-drawing circles
-loves to color, cut, paste and use stickers-lots and lots of stickers!
-takes his little tractor to bed with him
-putting 2 or more words together-more ___, no ma, sit ella, come here da
-says Amen at the end of our bedtime prayers
-says hug and kiss
-counts: one, two-ey, kinda says some things until you get to six which he says pretty clear
-singing/humming to songs. He has started singing along to the ABC's....he gets a few letters and then always hits the "ME" (next time won't you sing with me)
-jumping off of benches, steps, etc. Last month he started jumping and landing with 2 feet
-jumping forward
-pushing the kitchen chairs all around the house to reach things that he wants
-he has been doing this for a long time, but it is so darn cute-when you do something he likes, or figure out what he might be trying to tell you he gets all excited and in kind of a Jamaican accent says "YA MA!!!"

Ready for our Fall Party!

We miss our Ruby :(

Ruby

2013-11-03T22:11:00.002-05:00

On Halloween, Max's birthday, Ruby was put to sleep. It was a horrible day, but the weeks leading up to it were worse for her. About 3 weeks prior, Daryl found a lump on her neck. We took her into the vet and had to wait a week before they got the results. During that week, the lump got bigger and we found another in her mouth and another on her chest. Our fears were confirmed when they called to say she had cancer. We had hoped we would have more time with her, but seeing that it had already spread so quickly, we knew it wouldn't be very long. Over the 3 weeks, Ruby became less playful, stopped eating and had difficulty breathing. The day before Halloween, she looked awful. Just going outside to the bathroom was straining her, she didn't leave the couch and was frequently getting sick. We knew she was suffering. We miss our pup so much! She was the 60lb lap dog who loved to cuddle. Even though she was spunky and very energetic prior to Max's death, she was still gentle and sweet. She did like to jump on people-but she did it softly so it didn't even hurt. Ruby caused alot of embarrassing moments as she just had to sniff everyone she met in inappropriate places. I guess it was her way of saying hello. At her last vet check, they were amazed at how her teeth were in such great condition-unusual for a dog her age. But, she had lots of opportunities to keep them clean-chewing sticks, rocks, wood, drywall, tupperware, furniture...hahaha. Ruby would often puke in the middle of the night due to eating some crazy combination of grass and sticks. I'd jump out of bed at night to the sound of her coughing something up, then drag her to the bathroom so she wouldn't puke on the carpet. This happened so often, that Ruby knew enough to only puke on tile! She loved the outdoors and was not afraid of anything. She was independent and confident outdoors. Ruby used to love torturing Max-she would sneak up on him like a cat and then pounce on him. It was the funniest thing to watch. Since Max's death, Ruby has not been herself. She lost her puppy like attitude. Bringing Ella into the family has helped her to have a little fun, but she took on a mature role, acting annoyed at Ella's puppy antics. Regardless of what she thought of Ella during the day, every night, she let Ella sleep on her. She also let Noah sit on her, poke her, use her as a step to get onto the couch and pull her tail. She was the dog that made people not afraid of dogs. You couldn't have asked for a sweeter dog.

She loved carrying her food bowl around

The first day we got her

Protecting her little brother

21 Months-October 9, 2013

2013-10-10T15:04:00.003-04:00

Fall is here and the weather has been great! We've had nice days and cool nights. Some rain, but lots of sun too which is good for our solar panels! We've taken full advantage of fall-apple picking, growing pumpkins, eating fry cakes and cider, raking leaves (he loves to do yard with Daddy), going to fall festivals and a farm fest in Avon. The farm fest turned out to be alot more fun than we had thought. There were tons of activities for the little kids (driving trucks through grain and corn), a little corn maze, petting zoo, hayride and tons of BIG farm trucks which Noah LOVED! Daryl's mom also won a raffle here and got Noah a motorized Jeep! His feet can't reach the pedals yet, but when they do-watch out! The thing goes fast!

Noah was able to meet more family for the first time this month. John and Jeanne came up from Florida. We were able to see them a few times and had a wonderful visit! It took a while for Noah to warm up to them, but as soon as Uncle John made his firetruck sound, Noah was hooked :) He also got to meet Uncle Joe and visit with Aunt Rosalie! What a great month!

Things he is doing or into this month:
-Trucks- Our neighbors got a new driveway last week and we spend the majority of the day sitting in the driveway watching the big trucks.
-Bugs and critters-he spots them, picks them up and wants take them inside! He also really likes a pop up bug book. With each turn of the page he says "whoa!"
-finding dandelions in the grass
-finding the moon or airplanes in the sky
-riding his bike (his feet don't reach yet so we still have to push him around)
-eating popcorn and watching a cartoon (usually Curious George)
-Curious George, Elmo, Daniel Tiger
-coloring, gluing, cutting, painting
-jumping forward slightly
-building towers
-shaking his bum while dancing (which means he puts his hands on his bum and sticks it out)
-forts
-draws lines

New Words:
if you ask him to say I love you, he says "mua"
choo choo
tractor
truck
stuck
book
duck
where'd it go
tweet tweet
quack
baa
elmo
cereal (ci-ci)
cookie (doo dee)
snack (nack)
Lexie (ex-ie)
Graci (aussi)
Emmy
please (peas)
thank you (day doo)
a-choo!
six
George
simple 2 word combos like "bye ma"

I love finding him looking at his books :)

Making a mess!

Reading his truck book to Graci

Apple picking with Daddy

Becker Farms with Uncle John, Aunt Jeanne, Aunt Tracy, Aunt Patti

helping to decorate for Halloween

Finding a catepillar

Avon Farm Fest

Playing under the desk with Ruby

20 Months-September 9, 2013

2013-09-13T14:35:00.000-04:00

The title of this month should be climbing everything and Daddy, Daddy, Daddy. Noah still needs me for diaper changes and when he is tired or hurt, but the rest of the time he wants his Da! All day long he calls for Da, races to the door when the dogs bark thinking Daryl is home, gives him the best greetings when he gets home and sometimes even pushes me away to get to Daddy. Daryl is in his glory! Noah is also into climbing everything. The TV stand, ladders (uh-oh!), the high dining room table and chairs, the bed, the highest parts of the playground (he wants nothing to do with the kiddie slides), couches, kitchen chairs, the kitchen table, Daryl's tractor....nothing is out of the question anymore.

Noah has also become very selective (a nice way of saying picky!). He likes to drink from a certain cup, then later in the day it's a different cup he wants. He sometimes doesn't want to wear what I have picked out for him. He likes to go in the closet and choose the shirt. Noah got a Nike outfit for his b-day from Aunt Gwen. He wore the shirt morning, noon and night for 3 days straight. It had food on it, sand, dirt, got wet several times in his pool, but he only wanted that shirt. One day it was too hot at nap time to wear a shirt, so he had to sleep with it. Each time, I would stuff it further down the hamper and each time he found it and brought it to me trying to get it over his head. After the shirt he moved on to fleece footie PJ's....even on warm, sunny days, he took off his clothes and found the footie jammies and brought them to me saying "on." While in the car, he has to be holding a certain set of sunglasses (that certain set changes each time) and you have to go through each pair until you get it right. One night he had to wear the sunglasses to bed. He fell asleep with them on.

We've played hide and seek for months now, but now he is actually a good hider. Every now and then we will have that second of panic because we can't find him. He's not like most kids that giggle or let out a little noise when you call out "where is Noah hiding??" Nope-he is dead silent. We've found him in closets, in the bathroom tub, behind chairs...he's good! He is also hiding things so he can find them. A couple of times we have misplaced his sippy cup with milk-yikes! Thankfully, we always seem to find it after a few minutes. Noah enjoys helping to look for it. Now I will catch him hiding his milk under the ottoman. When I say "Noah, where is your milk?" He shrugs his shoulders and starts the search. Then he will look under the ottoman and pull it out with a great big smile. So proud that he found the missing milk! haha! Noah also loves to pretend to sleep or wake people up. He even makes a little snoring sound now.

It is amazing to watch him put things together and humbling to realize he is watching our every move. With having a puppy, I frequently have to clean up pee. The process is tell Ella "no!", get the spray, spray it, blot it up. I haven't had to do this for a couple of months now. One day we came in from outside to find that Ella had chewed some stuffing out of something. It was all over. He went over to her, said "No!" While I was picking it up, he went and got the spray, sprayed it on the stuffing, then got a towel from the kitchen and wiped it up. Very funny!

What Noah is into these days:
Elmo
Curious George videos and his stuffed animal
being outside and getting dirty
riding his bike
trucks and his truck book
dipping his food
waffles
taking all the pillows off the couch and jumping on them
sitting in a regular chair
drinking from a cup
calling people on the phone

Word list to date:
Elmo (ma-mo), No, on, da, ma, what's that (wassat), yes -sometimes (des), up, off, eye, hi, hello, see you, Ella, this (dis), that (dat), cookie (doodee), drink (do), please (ppp or peas), thank you -sometimes (day-do) , juice (deuce), cheese, help (hhh), whoa, mua, more, baby, boo, uh oh, stuck

Animal sounds:
bird, dog, cat (ow), owl (sometimes), horse, cow, snake, bee, pig, lion, tiger

Things we have done this month:
Erie County Fair, NY State Fair, beach, spray park, Lollypop Farm, parks and playgrounds, feeding ducks, Uncle Steve's 50th party...

Our solar panels

Trying to lift the pumpkin-his first from our pumpkin patch

Ruby hurt her leg and was down and out for a few days. Noah would not leave her side.

State Fair

Helping

State Fair

Tough Mudder

My popcorn buddy

Privacy Changes

2013-09-11T15:21:00.003-04:00

Hello-

I will be making the blog private. If you'd like to be added to the reading list, please email me at kgauck@gmail.com

Thank you!

19 Months-August 9, 2013

2013-08-10T21:13:00.001-04:00

Noah loves the pool-especially when Daddy takes him in. He kicks his feet and tries to blow bubbles in the water (which usually means he drinks some water instead of blowing bubbles). Noah also likes to "jump" in while we catch him. He continues to LOVE music. We've taken him to see some local concerts and he bounces, dances, claps and spins around. He has pretty good rhythm too! We have daily (and multiple) dance parties now that he figured out how to open the cabinet and turn on his favorite dancing song (Maroon 5's Harder to Breathe). If we aren't dancing with him, he usually pushes us off of the couch until we do! Noah is also into Old MacDonald (yi-yo for E-I-E-I-O) and The Wheels on the Bus which he acts out.

Noah started to not like being in his highchair. He wanted to be sitting at the table with us. So, I converted the highchair to the booster seat and put it up to the table. He loves it! We are working on him not putting his feet on the table, but otherwise he does really well in it. He uses his spoon and fork well, but will still use his hands at times since that is still faster!

Noah is a wild guy-spinning around until he is dizzy, complaining until you push him higher and higher in the swing, tackling us, the dogs, pillows or anything that is on the floor. We are working on not tackling the little girl I babysit. After he tackles her (which she could care less about as she is almost as big as Noah!) he will gently stroke her hair or arm or give her a kiss. He loves to be outside and I've realized that means multiple clothes changes each day! He loves playing in the dirt, mud, sand, water-anything messy. I love it :) He is quite the helper too. Noah waters the flowers (good thing because I never remember too), helps to carry things, picks veggies in the garden and fixes things with Daddy's tools. He also is good at throwing things away. I've thought that I've lost quite a few things, then realized that Noah has thrown them in the garbage!

Favorite toys this month are his Mega Blocks. He likes to stack them into a tower, then pull them all apart. He also loves pretend food. He has a picnic set, ice cream set and breakfast set. They keep him entertained! He will pretend to eat the food, feed it to you and give it to the dogs. He now sleeps with 5 stuffed animals-Teddy, Elmo, Curious George, musical turtle and musical bear, plus a blanket or 2. Most of the time the animals stay in the crib, but every now and then 1 or 2 have to come out with him when he first wakes up in the morning or from a nap. Speaking of sleep-he is still napping 2x per day, but I think he is close to transitioning to 1 nap. He goes to bed between 7:30 and 8 and wakes around 6-6:30. Right after dinner until bedtime is his most active time-he has loads of energy and plays hard! Tires us out for sure!

This month we have gone to some local summer concerts and parades, played with friends, hit up the playgrounds, went to story time and took Noah to the Canal Fest. Noah played mom's favorite game-I Got It. We listened to some music there and watched the parade. I took him to a juggling show at the library. I wasn't sure how he was too young for it, but he really enjoyed it! He clapped at appropriate times and was laughing at their funny tricks. We just got back from Sesame Place in Philly! That was our big summer adventure. Noah did ok on the 5+ hour trip (we did have Rachel with us who helped a great deal to entertain him in the backseat). He definitely isn't a fan of the car these days, but overall he did well. We turned his car seat to the forward facing position before the trip and that did help. In addition to having a better view, he now likes to dictate what radio station we have on-haha! He did not sleep well in the hotel or nap much while we were at the park which made for some very crabby times, but overall he did really well. He rode his first rides (which he loved), played in the water park, saw the parade (twice) and met all the characters. Elmo was his favorite-he slowly walked up to him not too sure, then gave him a hug and stood with him for a photo. It was cute! We had a really nice time!

New words: no (the clearest word-haha!), eyes, wow!, baby, beep beep, juice (duice), ppp for please, meow (ow), snorts for pig, what's that (wasat), hello (allo)-everything is a telephone these days: shoes, his hand, my hand... and some other words I can't think of right now...

He's a happy guy most of the time and although he can be shy, he loves people. He'll go to the end of our driveway to wave at bikers, walkers or cars driving by. He gives high 5's and knuckles and blows kisses. He's also pretty good at eskimo kisses and bear hugs :) Love this kid!

1st time facing forward!

Showing the baby how to drive

Big Bird gave Daddy and Noah a high 5!

In the middle of dancing at the parade

Very 1st ride!

Daryl did the Tough Mudder

He got shocked big time in the Electric Eel obstacle-major headache!

I love this shot and Daryl and the other 2 guys he did it with laughing at their friend who fell-hahaha!

Some video

2013-07-10T15:25:00.002-04:00

18 Months!

2013-07-10T15:21:00.001-04:00

I can not believe Noah is 1 1/2 years old already! We love this age an all that it brings. Independence is the name of the game these days. He wants to do things himself and definitely has his own opinions and likes/dislikes. He has a bit of a punk rock taste in music these days-Pink, No Doubt, Kelly Clarkson....with a little Bob Marley, Maroon Five and Country thrown in there. When a song comes on that he likes (it has to have a good beat of course), he will stop what he is doing to dance, clap, bop his head, jump (clears one foot sometimes!), march or kick his legs out. He flips through songs on the ipod until he gets to one he likes. Then he wants to play it over and over. He'll let you know if he doesn't like the song too! One of his favorite kid songs lately is Old MacDonald. He can sort of say "EIEIO" to request it. Daryl set up some of his old drum set for Noah. He loves it! We may have a little drummer on our hands!

Noah knows the sounds for a snake, lion, cow and sometimes a dog. Today is just said "oww" for the cat (meow). Noah has started to say "yes" and "no" appropriately (sometimes anyway-other times everything is no). I love it when you ask him something and he thinks about it for a second and says "ummmmm.....no." Haha! He tries very hard to repeat words you tell him to, but most of the time it's a "D" followed by a vowel. Today he said "bayyyybayyyy" for baby when I pointed to the little girl I babysit. He can't say "1, 2, 3, GO!, but he will say it in his own jibberish before he jumps, goes down the slide, etc. It's fun to watch his vocab blossom! When something is cold he makes fists, puts his teeth together and makes a shivering movement-too cute! Speaking of teeth-he 8 front teeth, 2 top molars and 2 bottom molars. He fake coughs when someone else does and pretends to spit in the sink after we do when brushing our teeth.

He still likes to go into rooms and shut the door on us, but now he can also open some of the doors. Before, we could shut the bathroom door while we were getting ready and we knew he would stay in there. Now, he can get out. That means lots of running around for mom and dad. He is very much into climbing-on the kitchen chairs, on the couch, the kitchen table.....anything. He walks up stairs with 1 hand on the railing. Coming down he needs his other hand held or he scoots down on his bottom.

He is getting into pretend play now. He has some fake picnic food that he likes to play with. He will pretend to mix the food, eat it and shares it with whoever is around. Noah also likes to feed his teddy bear. Mr. Teddy has become a favorite. He sleeps with him and sometimes carries him around the house. He falls asleep holding onto him. Yesterday he spotted a Curious George stuffed animal and really liked it. He hasn't let go of him since. (except for when I had to give it to the cashier to check out-Noah's bottom lip instantly came out and he started to cry :( )

Other Likes: DADDY (He wants Daddy ALL the time now), root beer floats, mowing the lawn, dirt, sand box, the pool, his cars, the Peek-a-Boo Bear, playing hide & seek
Dislikes: being in s stroller, car seat or highchair for too long

Other fun things we have done this month: Strawberry picking, went to watch the sprint car races, the zoo, 4th of July parade and festival

First time in our pool

He LOVES his couch!

Splashing in puddles with his new rain boots-he could do this ALL day!

Watching the lion nap

Noah and his buddy

Playing hockey

Noah requested Daddy. I told him he was at work and this is what he did

George

George and Mr. Teddy

Noah is 17 months

2013-06-17T15:43:00.000-04:00

We've been keeping busy lately. I started babysitting an 8 month old little girl 2 days per week. Noah is very sweet with her. He will rub her head or hand and kiss her out of the blue. He does take her toys sometimes, but only after buttering her up after a kiss! Where'd he learn that?! He LOVES being outside and it is very difficult to get him back in once he is out. Daryl and I try to run or walk in the mornings-he loves the peaceful stroll and points out the animals and school buses. His favorite toys right now are his lawn mower, bubbles (he likes screwing the lid on/off the most), balls and cars. He makes a kind of a vroom noise while he drives them around. He loves playing in the dirt and stomping in rain puddles (which we have had plenty of lately). Daryl will sometimes take him with him on the tractor when he mows the lawn. This is probably his favorite thing lately. As soon as he hears the engine start, he will run to the door or window and make an "OOO" face. Noah is very interested in cars, trucks, bikes, etc that go by our house and he will usually stop what he is doing to wave. He is getting very good at using a fork and spoon and is eating pretty well these days. He continues to love music and will often break into a head bop or dance move when he hears a song that he likes. He likes to practice jumping, but doesn't clear his feet yet. He loves jumping on the couch cushions when I put them on the floor. He recently had a couple of opportunities to jump on a trampoline at our friend's house. Noah LOVED it and did not want to get off! Daddy got quite a workout jumping around with him! Noah has 2 top molars now. Getting molars was alot more difficult for him than the other teeth. He was pretty miserable, not eating, waking up extra early and just not himself. We have quite a few more teeth to go, so we'll see how he handles them. Fun things we have done this past month:

Strong Museum-Last time we went, Noah wasn't walking. Now he is all over the place. He had a blast. We spent about 3 hours there one day while Daryl had off of work. Great fun!

Redwings Baseball game

Various farms, festivals and trips to the playground

Duff's for some chicken wings

Noah is starting to say more words, but only we can really understand them.

He can sign consistently (some signs are not the proper way but his own version of it)
-more
-done
-eat
-drink
-daddy
he will do these after me or sometimes on his own
-no
-cereal
-help
he says:

-duice (juice)

-shoe-do (for drink while signing it)
-lala (for Ella our dog)
-chs (for cheese)
-sss (for raison)
-mama
-dada
-dis (for this)
-da (for drop)
-do (for up)
-do (for down)
-ss (for sleep will doing the "shh" with his finger to his mouth)

-HHH (for help)

-ma (for more)-lots of babble

He follows directions, points to things you ask, and will make a cow noise. He knows where his head, ears, eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, bum, belly, hands and (sometimes) his feet are.

Lexie's Prom

Baseball Game

Hawaiin Day at Daddy's Work

Noah loves sleeping with his teddy bear

First corn on the cob

Poor sick baby :(

At the Memorial Day parade-his favorites were the motorcycles, horses and firetrucks-waved to everyone!

16 months

2013-05-10T14:43:00.000-04:00

Noah is at a great age. He is really starting to understand when we say things and is developing new concepts and preferences. We can no longer give him anything for a snack-he knows what he wants and lets us know by trying to saying it, pointing or crying until you figure it out! He can follow simple directions-like give ____ to mommy or go put this is the garbage. He loves being around other kids and he thinks older kids are super funny. We've been having great weather and getting outside everyday. He LOVES it! Noah often finds his shoes, brings them to me and sits down. That's my cue that he wants to play outside. His favorite things to do are play in the dirt/mud/water puddles, ride his 4 wheeler, play in the sandbox and sit on daddy's tractor. He also loves going for stroller rides. He will go into the garage, climb in his stroller and try to buckle himself in. Noah was sick for a week with the stomach bug recently. Then he popped his #8 front tooth and 2 top molars. So, he hasn't been feeling the greatest lately. Thankfully, he is starting to get back to being himself. He can say or partially say: drink (di), done (do), stuck (duc) , drop (do), down (dow), mama, dada, Ella (lala), cheese and raison (chs and sss). He is picking up more signs too: more, finished, daddy, apple, no, drink and come (to call the dogs). He says "shh" when someone is sleeping or when he is ready for his nap/bedtime. He sometimes will make a dog noise or a cock-a-doodle-doo (which is just alot of funny tongue movements-it's very cute!) when you ask him. He can find belly buttons and sometime eyes, nose and mouth if he feels like it. He gets frustrated when you can't understand what he wants or when he doesn't get what he wants. He will usually cry and carry on for a few minutes and then snap right out of it.

Ella

While drying off the dog's feet, Noah emptied a box of Bisquick

Noah Soup

He LOVES ice cream!

Poor sick buddy

Lunch date with mommy-dipping his nuggets

Finding his Easter basket

First taste of chocolate

Trying out his new water bottle

Noah is going to inherit this on his 16th birthday-right Uncle Steve??

In our yard-the flowers were beautiful!

Raspberries

2013-03-25T15:34:00.000-04:00

4 Quick Videos

2013-03-25T15:14:00.000-04:00

14-14.5 Months Feb 9 - March 25, 2013

2013-03-25T14:59:00.000-04:00

I know I start most of my blog posts like this, but we feel like these past few weeks, Noah has changed so much! He understands what we are saying, follows directions, is starting to say words, has perfected his dance move and has mastered giving raspberries on our bellies! This is such a fun age-he is soaking up everything he sees and hears. That also means our job has gotten a little harder to really be paying attention to what he does see and hear! Winter is still here in Rochester, and it's cold and dreary but we are doing our best to get out and try new things! Noah went to his first Buffalo Sabres game on February 17. We went early and sat right down near the ice to watch the practice skate. He really liked watching the players skate by. He didn't take his eyes off the ice! During the practice, a video guy came around to capture the audience. He came to Noah and did a close up of him. As it appeared on the Jumbotron, you could hear an "awwwww" throughout the arena. Not only did he make it on the Jumbotron, but Daddy and Noah made it on NHL.com and Sabres.com as well! Before the game, we were outside looking for Mom and Dad's memorial brick. A photographer tapped Daryl on the shoulder and asked to take their picture. It turned out very nice! What a fun memory for us to have! Noah wasn't too interested in the actual hockey game. He sat with us for the 1st period. The 2nd period I chased him through the lobby and the 3rd period we all watched from a food court. Haha.

Daryl had a day off of work recently and we went to an indoor playground. They had all sorts of toys, riding things, bounce houses, etc. Noah had a great time. We've been taking walks in our backyard and playing in the snow. A few weekends ago, we had unseasonably nice weather. We took advantage of that and went to the zoo, played outside, rode his 4-wheeler and even took a ride on Daddy's 4 wheeler in the backyard. We alos met alot of nice neighbors while walking that weekend. We are very thankful to live on such a great street!

On February 11, Noah went to the "snack cupboard" when I asked if he wanted a graham cracker. That was the first time he did something like that and since then it has exploded. He goes and climbs in the tub when you say "do you want a bath?" he goes to his room when you tell him it's time to change his diaper, he gets toys and books that you ask for, puts the phone up to his ear and babbles when you ask who is calling....it's incredible to watch his receptive language develop! He now says done, drink, drop (for Ruby to drop her toy while they are playing fetch), stuck and jump. They all sound like variations of "da" but it's coming along. He will sign "more please" (he put the 2 together on 3/11), drink and "finished." On 3/14 he started taking my hand and bringing me to where he wanted to go. It's so fun to see what he wants. Sometimes he just wants to play in his room or with a certain toy. I love seeing his little mind work! His favorite foods lately are blueberries, raisons, graham crackers (Daryl and I love watching him eat a graham cracker-it's very sweet), cheddar bunnies and of course CHEESE! He looooves music and dances whenever we turn it on. He knows right where the remote is to turn on the radio or his music DVD. Noah loves a Laurie Berkner music DVD. They dance and sing some catchy kids tunes that aren't too annoying for mom and dad to listen to. He gets super excited when we turn it on. We usually watch this after his afternoon nap while he has a snack. He tries to do parts of "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes." It's very cute to watch. Hopefully we can catch it on video soon! He knows where his belly button, nose and eyes are (sometimes). Noah was sick in late February. That's when he learned to wipe his nose and "blow" into a kleenex. He even wiped my nose too. Haha! During that time, his diaper rash came and got very bad. We have been stumped as to the cause and the doctor said she has only seen a few kids with a rash that bad. We tried everything and nothing was clearing it up and keeping it away. Finally a combination of 5-6 things and a 10 minute diaper changing process did the trick. However, now it's back again. We know now how to clear it up, but we are still trying to find the cause. We are doing a food diary again (although we have not been able to link it to a food), and if we can't figure things out, then the doctor is sending him to a pediatric dermatologist.

Noah loves animals. We always stop in the pet store when we are at the mall. He loves watching all the dogs and cats play. He enjoys chasing people's cats and loves, loves, loves Ruby! He is always hugging and kissing her (and poking her eyes and pulling her hair). Noah loves to find her toy and give it to us to throw. Once she gets it, he'll run over and says "drop." Ruby isn't much into playing fetch, but Noah still has fun. Ruby has continued to mourn the loss of her big brother. She has lost her spunk and playful energy and really has a hard time when we leave her. We decided it was time to get another dog-for Ruby to have a companion and hopefully start to feel better, and for the rest of us too. As crazy as Max was, we really miss him! This Friday we will be welcoming our new little pup into our family. She is a lab mix and seems to be a sweetie. Still trying to think of a name...

Noah wakes up at 6am, naps at 9-10:30ish, naps at 2:30ish-3:30 and goes to bed at 7:30. He is kind of growing out of napping in the car now. It has been replaced with really not wanting to get in the car seat. If he has a toy or snack or our phones, he is much happier :) He has tons of energy at home and we all sleep well at night! When we are out, he is very shy. It takes him a while to warm up and let his little personality shine through.

We are looking forward to Easter and hunting for eggs at our house. Hopefully some warm weather will be coming soon!

Watching the Sabres practice

In our seats

Valentine's Day party-someone set up a cupid photo shoot

Watching the puppies at the mall

Getting one of his favorite snacks

Poor little sick baby

Getting ready to play outside!

Looking at the animals

Spatula wars with Daddy

Noah likes the older ladies

Noah and Daddy's photo from NHL.com

Our new little pup

Month 13: January 9 - February 9 2013

2013-02-11T09:28:00.000-05:00

We have been staying busy and trying to keep warm on these cold days. Noah loves watching it snowing and going out to play in it. On February 8, the Blizzard of 2013 happened. Luckily, it wasn't much of a blizzard around here. We got several inches, but nothing like other parts of the country where they couldn't open their front doors. It was a good day for playing in the snow and warming up by the fireplace.

Noah is definitely walking all over the place! We decided that on January 11, he went from taking a few steps to walking. Every day he is more and more confident. He walks fast now when he gets excited or when he is trying to get to something he really wants-like the open dishwasher! He is climbing on everything and he thinks it's hysterical. He has also taken on some very cool dance moves. We have yet to catch it on camera, but it resembles a double handed wave with his hands over his head while twisting his trunk. Another move is the squat to stand with clapping. Very cute! We have dance parties just about every day. Sometimes he even dances to my singing.

Noah loves to help clean. He uses a cloth to wipe things, helps vaccum and loves to play in the dishwasher. He really likes helping Daddy do projects too. He has taken a liking to one of Daryl's dirty, old work gloves and he has to put it on every chance he gets. Daryl tried giving him a cleaner pair, but Noah didn't want those.

We started peanut butter (which is a favorite now), milk (which is definitely not a favorite, but he's getting more used to it) and just about any food we are having he will eat. I made homemade granola bars the other day and he loved them! He can sign "more" and is trying to use a spoon and fork. We know when he is finished eating because the food is quickly pushed off the tray onto the floor. Ruby is a fan of that. He also has a new trick where he will start to feed you a piece of his food, then quickly take it away and laugh. It's kind of funny how he knows this is a joke. Noah has started to really interact with Ruby. I'll find him throwing her toy to her, petting her or feeding him his snacks. Ruby isn't too interested (except in the food), but someday soon they'll be good friends.

Other new things: pointing to everything, blowing kisses, standing up from the middle of the floor, putting the phone up to his ear and saying something that must mean hello and playing hide and seek. He also got his 3rd bottom tooth.

Superbowl Sunday

13 months old today!

Ruby's chewing disaster

Mall walking with Aunt Patti

Play doh

Happy 1st Birthday Noah

2013-01-26T21:31:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to our sweet, funny, lovable, little guy. We are so thankful for you and love watching you grow and learn. You have made our dreams come true!

This year has gone by so quickly. Seems like just yesterday we were driving home from the hospital with our tiny baby. It has been an emotional few days for Daryl and I-reminiscing all that his happened this past year. We are truly blessed!

On Noah's birthday, we celebrated with a trip to Strong National Museum of Play. Noah enjoyed playing with trains, dumptrucks and crawling through an obstacle course. His favorite part of the day was shopping at the mini kids Wegmans. He pushed his cart around the store like a pro. It was really cute! After dinner, he had his first cake! He played in the frosting, but he did not like the cake. When I put some in his mouth, he spit it out. Guess he didn't like white cake!

We had his firefighter themed birthday party on January 12. It was a fun day celebrating with friends and family. Noah had a great time! We thought he would want to stay close to us with so many people around, but he was hammin it up! We barely saw him! Daddy made some delicious pulled pork and chili which went over well. We then had a firefighter cake and flame cupcakes. Noah liked this chocolate cake a little better :) We decorated the house with pictures of Noah from this past year. He had a wonderful party!

Right around his birthday, Noah really started walking on his own! We are so excited for him!

Strong Museum

On the steps of Sesame Street

Noah picked Chef Boyardee ravioli

Aunt Gwen surprised us from Florida!