All A Boy Could Want

I thought I'd share a "few" pictures from Glade's birthday celebration. Well, when I tried to find them on my computer I noticed they were all gone! ALL the videos and ALL the pictures we took on his birthday were gone. After feeling depressed for a few hours I decided we'd just do it again. Afterall, he doesn't know the difference!

So here are pictures from Round Two of Glade's Birthday (second cake, second hat, second song, luckily I saved the banner)! I still need to take more pictures of him with his presents. We got him a bike and a puppy (thankfully one that only barks when batteries are inserted and never poops on the carpet)...what more could a little boy want?! I was surprised how much this little boy LOVES his new bike. I thought his older brother would get most of the enjoyment out of it but boy was I wrong. Glade has never had a hard time sharing until said bike came around. Although he cannot climb onto it himself he will crawl over to it, pull up on it and whine until he is helped in it, at which point he will squeal with glee! He has even been known to fall asleep on the bike and still put up a fuss when he was taken off. I suppose we did a good job picking his gifts! As for the puppy, Jimmy thinks it's his baby and carries it everywhere (I believe he got his love of animals from his Aunt Renae).

Don't you all wish you could harmonize as well us Higleys?

The first cake was vanilla and he loved it. I think he was upset because I made a chocolate one next! :)

Oh my how we love this boy!

Diaper Wars

I'm in the process of posting about Glade's birthday.
In the meantime, enjoy this...

(Hear the music in the background? I was surprised to find out how many American songs are played on the radio.)

Halloween Funny

This made me laugh. No offense intended. Happy Halloween!

One More Tag

So I was also tagged by Meg. The tag is to post the 4th picture in your 4th picture folder. This picture was taken the night we said goodbye to the Higley cousins.

I tag my old Ward buddies...you know who you are!

A Closer Look

So my Aunt tagged me for this meme...oh, 3 months ago. I'm finally getting to it! The rules are to take pictures of everything as is...no prepping first.

1. My Kitchen Sink:

Pretty much the only time my sink has dishes in it for longer than 15 min is when the dishwasher is running. Proof...see the red lights on the dishwasher. Side note: one bad thing about the sinks here in Holland - no garbage disposals. I don't think you can put one in even if you want to. So sad.

2. Inside My (little) Fridge:

One of the reasons I now do grocery shopping 3 times a week. I'm still not used to going that often. One of the other reasons...how much can I possible carry home on the stroller when there are already two kiddos in it? :)

3. My Favorite Shoes:

Let's just say I really need some new shoes. I've been wearing these almost every day for the past...I believe 3 years. They were fine in the states but they don't cut it here when I do so much more walking. I'm looking into getting some tall black boots.

4. My Closet:

Notice the "scary" blue monster hiding in there?

5. The Laundry Pile:

Always a work in progress. Oh how I miss my dryer!

6. What My Kids Are Doing Right Now:

Well since they are both sleeping and I don't DARE risk waking them up, I'll post what they were doing just before naptime. We decided to take a little walk to the swings. I found out that somehow all of the pictures and videos of Glade's first birthday were mysteriously erased and the boys both have the sniffles so we ALL needed some cheering up and fresh air! Bobo (the bear) decided he wanted to come too.

7. My Favorite Room:

I just love the view I have when lying down in bed...and I love lying down in bed!

8. My Most Recent Purchase:

I've loved trying all the new candies (snoep), pastries, & juice here.

9. My Fantasy Vacation:

I know I am only 3 hours from Paris, but I don't care...I REALLY want to go home. I miss my family and friends. I got a few love letters from my family last week and it was so fun just to see everyone's (Mom's & Nae's) handwriting. Renae's letter made me lol while waiting for our metro. Emails are excellent but there's just something about holding a piece of paper in your hand that you know the person you love was holding just a few days before. I even smelled them to see if they still had traces of home...nope. Anyway, I miss all you guys. Terribly.

10. Self-Portrait:

I love swinging. It makes me feel like a kid.

Okay, so who do I tag...since it started in the family, let's keep it going with Amber & Kenna.

A Year of Glade

I know every parent seems to say this (I did approx 2 yrs ago) but I cannot believe my baby is ONE! I pulled this from my journal entry written a few days after he was born:

I was watching the birth video and I actually only pushed for 10 minutes. I knew it seemed short when it was happening but I was thinking it was longer than that. He was just an anxious little guy! He's so sweet and perfect and I can't stop holding him. Jarom said I'm going to spoil him but I can't stop, it's just too much fun to hold him!

Glade has been such a complete joy to have in our family. He is such a cuddly baby and in fact will cuddle up to anyone who wants to hold him. He's such a happy little guy and has become a Momma's Boy big time! Here are a few of his one year "stats":

-pulls up onto everything but not walking yet
-has two bottom teeth
-makes the best squishy nose faces
-thinks his big brother is the funniest thing
-wakes up at least twice each night (just two weeks ago it was 4-5 times...BIG improvement)
-loves to be held and cuddled
-says, "mamamama", "dadadada", & "ba"
-shakes head "no" & nods "yes"
-responds to his name
-eats everything he sees
-loves to bounce on the bed
-wiggles to music

I put together a slideshow with pictures from his first year. I currently only have 7 songs on my computer but I figured this song still fit...voice of an angel to go with the face of one. So get ready for lots of grins and absolute cuteness from my brown-eyed baby. I love you so much, Baby Glade. I cannot even think of words enough to express my love. Happy Birthday sweet boy!