HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACE!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACE!

One year ago today, we were blessed with a new baby boy, Jace H. Velderman! He weighed 9lbs 8oz and was 21" long. I can't even begin to tell you how fast this year has gone by.

One of my favorite things about Jace is his killer smile. He will flash it to anyone!!

Jace is also famous for his big, sloppy, wet kisses. Watch out if he comes at you with his mouth wide open. He has been known to "attack with kisses" especially if you are a little cousin!

Jace also loves to dance by waving his arms and crouching his legs and bouncing. He loves to "go crazy". Tell him to "go crazy" and he will wave his arms and shake his head. He loves to play with Jordyn's kitchen set. He loves to climb the steps. If we leave the gate down, he notices immediately! He loves to chase our cat, Wylie, around the house. He also loves to make a lot of noise by banging his toys against anything he can think of (must be a boy thing).

Jace has been walking since 11 months old. He also recently learned how to clap, wave bye-bye, and do so big. Now that he knows these things, he LOVES to show them off!

Jace has also recently started to eat and swallow solid foods. We had concerns at 9 months since he would not keep food in his mouth, so this is a big step for him!

Jace has been such a blessing to us! We thank God every day for you little buddy!! Your smile lights up my world!

December 2008December 2009

HALLOWEEN

Guess Who's Walking?

He's walking (and throwing in some kisses for Macie as well)!!

.....and falling (I see many bumps and bruises ahead)!

Big Girl Bed

We decided to give the big girl bed a try with Jordyn. I was debating whether to use a toddler bed or go right to a twin bed, but then I found this toddler bed for a great price at a garage sale! Jordyn has been potty trained for 1 1/2 months now but is still wearing diapers at night. We decided before we try "big girl panties" at night, we would get her into a regular bed in case she has to go to the bathroom. So...ready or not...here we go! We, of course, still have the crib in her room also in case things don't go so well. So far, she loves it!!! But that will probably change when nap time comes around!

I'm not quite sure I'm ready for this because it means my baby girl just keeps growing up. Wish us luck!!!

Jace's 9 month pictures

Check out Jace's 9 month pictures! We are very fortunate to have photographers in the family. Thanks for all you do Andrew & Tiffany!!

http://marcphotography.zenfolio.com/p922020655

Jace - 9 months

Jace had his 9 month check up this morning. I can't my little boy is 9 months old already! His appointment went well. He weighs 20lbs 5oz (50%) and is 29 3/4" (75th%)....long & lean! I was concerned that he had an ear infection, but thankfully he does not. We figure it must be teeth. It seems as though he has been teething for 6 months now...still no teeth.

Another concern we talked about was his eating. He will not eat or even try to eat solids. He is making progress because he used to gag until he threw up and now he doesn't gag but just spits anything lumpy out. As of right now, we were told to just keep trying to give him solids. We were also told to work with him on consonant sounds such as "ma ma or da da". He doesn't do this yet which could have something to do with not using his tongue correctly. If we don't see progress on the solids and consonant sounds in one month we may possibly need to look into therapy. The doctor is not too concerned just yet but prayers that Jace may figure these two things out in the next month would be much appreciated.

Some other things about Jace at 9 months:

• He is crawling everywhere (8mos) and now pulls himself to standing
• He LOVES to flash big smiles to everyone
• He will sometimes wave bye-bye
• He loves to dance (wave his hands) and sing ("oooohhhhh ooohhhh") to music
• His favorite toy right now is Jordyn's kitchen set. He loves opening and closing the oven door.
• He loves to harass our cat Wylie and also splash in her water bowl
• He loves to play in the water as long as it isn't a bath
• He loves to give big, sloppy, wet kisses
• He is very attached to mom or dad right now
• He follows his big sister all over the house and really frustrates her when he tries to "help" her do puzzles.

We love you so much Jace. You bring so much joy to our lives. We thank God for you every day!

East Lake Camping

We had our last camping trip of the season last weekend. My whole family spent a long weekend at East Lake Campground in Hopkins. It was a beautiful weekend and we had a wonderful time!

Wagon Ride!! Jordyn won ice-cream after the ride!

Jordyn & Kendal playing on the beach
Cuddling with daddy....her favorite thing to do!

Swimming....Jace's favorite thing to do...with anybody!

Can't keep them clean while we are camping!

6 Year Anniversary

This post is quite late (I've been a blogging-slacker) but September 6 (Labor Day weekend) was Jer and my 6 year anniversary!! I can't believe it has been 6 years already. We kept it simple and celebrated our anniversary by going to Jer's parents cottage with the family. We spent most of the time enjoying the beautiful weather by the lake. Mom & dad did watch the kids for us though so that we could go out for our anniversary. We went golfing in the afternoon (sometime we both enjoy but don't have time to do much) and out to Clementine's in South Haven in the evening. Thanks mom & dad!!!

Here is a video of Jordyn driving a battery powered car that grandpa got for her. She figured out how to make it go but couldn't steer. She didn't want to quit driving but we were sick of helping out. Our solution...let her drive in circles. She went for about 15-20 minutes before we made her stop for dinner. Who knows how long she would have gone!!! Thanks grandpa!!!

Here is some video of Jace enjoying the water at the cottage. Even after a dunk under water, he still really LOVES to splash around!!!

Jordyn 2 Year Pics!

Check out Jordyn's 2 year pics at http://marcphotography.zenfolio.com/p983559724.

Once again Andrew & Tiffany (Marc Photography) did an excellent job. Jordyn is one of their most challenging models :-). She's always on the move, doesn't much care for the camera, and only smiles when she feels like it! We decided to try and chase her around outdoors instead of trying to get her to pose in the studio this time.

Thanks Andrew & Tiffany!!

Jordyn's New Best Friend

Couldn't wait for it to stop raining so we could take Macie for a walk outside

But we don't need to be outside to walk Macie. She has been doing this most of the day! Macie is being a good sport about it! Jordyn even held Macie on her leash while she sat on the potty. She was done of course by the time I got the cameraShe is making sure Macie is well fed at all times. No, we didn't get a new dog....Macie is Andrew & Tiffany's dog and we are dog sitting for her. Jordyn is not going to be too happy about giving her back though!
Andrew & Tiffany, you can rest assured that Macie is going to be good with your new baby! She has been more than patient with Jordyn and Jace!

Jace's 1st Haircut...or trim

I forgot to post this but a couple of weeks ago Jace had his 1st hair trim. I can't call it a haircut just yet! My mom and Amber did it for me while I was at work. I had been trying to do it myself for some time and after several failed attempts and nearly cutting my poor boy, I gave up. He just had a trim around his ears and across the back.

Isn't he handsome???

Weekend at the Cottage

Last weekend, we had a good time with friends and family at Jer's parent's cottage. Even though the weather was cool and wet we still had a good time!

Andrew & Kendal
Amber & Elijah
Chad & Andrew after an exhausting tube ride!

Rainy Days

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JORDYN!

This past weekend, August 2, Jordyn celebrated her 2nd birthday. We celebrated with the Kraker family at Baldwin Oaks and with the Dirette family at home. Jordyn was more excited for cake than she was for presents! I can't believe how quickly 2 years have passed or how "grown up" Jordyn is already. I am truly blessed and thankful to be a stay at home mom so that I haven't had to miss a moment!!

Jordyn is learning new things so fast that I can hardly keep up with her. Every day she surprises me with something new. She is now putting full sentences together and talks non-stop. She gives me a running play by play of everything she is doing all day long and makes me repeat back to her whatever she says. She is very particular and everything needs to be done in a certain order or put back a certain way (hmmmm.....where does she get that from?) Jordyn loves to dance; we spend A LOT of time doing this...hey, at least I'm getting a work-out. She loves the water, talking walks with her baby doll, watching Barney, and having tea parties. She is also very proud that she sits in a big girl chair now to eat and eats all by herself. Jordyn also went "poopie" on her potty today for the first time. She is VERY proud of herself and wants to tell everyone what she did and that she "got candy". Big milestone since she has been refusing to even sit on the potty!

Jordyn is also a very good big sister to her brother Jace. She runs to his room as soon as he wakes up, brings him toys or his pipe whenever he cries, and always makes sure he is included. Whenever we do something she says, "And Jacey (she calls him Jacey) too!" If we leave him at grandma's to play, she asks for him the whole ride home.

Jordyn, we love you so much!! We thank God for every day he has blessed us with you and pray for many more days. Thank you for blessing our lives!!

2 day's old

1 Year2 Years

Jace - 6 months

Jace is actually now 7 months, but I thought I would give a quick update since he had a doctor's appointment today. At his 6 month appointment, he was 28 1/4" long (95th%) and 17 lbs 5oz (50th%). He had dropped in weight from the 90th% to the 50% although he hadn't actually lost weight. The doctor was not too concerned since he was developing and growing taller but decided to have him come in a month later (today) for a weight check and head check (his head was growing too fast). We found out today that he weighs 18 lbs 13 oz, still in the 50th% but growing, so no concerns. He will just be tall and skinny. His head growth slowed down, so no helmet...yea!! He is developing well and everything looks great! We are having so much fun with our little boy.

Jace's 6 month pictures are also ready to view. Please check them out at http://marcphotography.zenfolio.com/p1007092746. They are pictures 1 - 24. I need suggestions on favorites because I LOVE them all. Andrew and Tiffany at Marc Photography did a GREAT JOB as usual!!!

Thanks for the great pics guys!

Camping

This weekend we enjoyed a wonderful, long weekend of camping. We stayed at Conestoga Campground in Eastmanville with my mom and dad, Bryan, Katy and Rogue.

It was special for Jace (not that he'll remember) because it was his first time camping!

We did a lot of relaxing, swimming, eating, playing, and sitting around the campfire. The guys also tried some bow fishing but didn't have much luck. I can't wait to camp again in a couple of weeks!!

Jordyn watching us instead of sleeping

Jace's sleeping arrangements for the weekend