Lots to say.....

Sam is a talker! I think by the time you get to your 3rd it is easier to not get puffed up and think that we have a genius but what fun it has been! It used to be where we could keep track of what he says but several months back he had a word explosion and his vocabulary went through the roof and there is no keeping up. Below are a few of the thing he said lately that always make us smile.

I sorry.

Snow

Cake

Cupcake

There it is!

There she is!

I love you.

Laugh and play

Thank you, mama....your welcome mama.

Pillow

Care.....he says it while waving and is trying to communicate to take care.

Body

Spoon

Fork

Cut

Skateboard

Bike

Game

You got it!

There ya go!

Girl

Boy

Shel (Andrew sweet girlfriend Shelby)

Chick Fil A (his very favorite place to eat!)

cookie....yes....OK! Thank you, mama!

2 years in a row.....

Last year we had about a dozen inches of snow. I can't remember the numbers but I think it hadn't happened in like.....forever! Well, this year we didn't get a dozen but it was pretty close at about 6-8 inches and ice underneath it all. Schools were closed for 4 days, many businesses shut down and Trae worked from home (as much as he could get done) for 4 days too. We only had power outages one day and they were rolling ones so it wasn't to bad. Jacob played outside the first day and got his fill. We took Sam out yesterday for a bit of sledding (I picked up this sled for a buck at a yard sale last summer and thought for a buck I would take my chances we could use it and sure enough we didn't have to wait long!) and he loved it! His new word is snow and he likes it as long as he is on a sled. This year I will watch for some winter gear for him because he has on his coat but brothers hat and socks on his hands! :) Fun times but honestly we are ready to get back to life as normal.

Happy Birthday Trae!

Today is Traes 41st birthday! It was a unique day to the snow and ice storms this week so he was able to spend the day at home actually most of the week! We celebrated just the 5 of us one night this week with a dinner and spending time together at home. He loved the meal which blesses me. We had barbecue chicken wings (however I experimented with some spicy wings just for him because those are one of his favorites and he said they were amazing. I made a blue cheese dressing from scratch to go with it too!), steamed red potatoes with rosemary, asparagus Pioneer Woman style, rolls and red velvet cheesecake. He wants he and I to have a date night out to celebrate his birthday so we have that planned too. Happy Birthday to my darling!

Precious gift.....

With 3 boys in 3 different seasons of life I have had a desire for a very long time to go back and have a few days with each of them as toddlers. I know, I know that sounds silly but it was such a precious stage that I wish that could happen. I was a young mom with my first 2 (21 and 26) and I treasured and savored it all. I can't relate to people that say they are a better mom now that they are older. I loved mothering and all my boys, I have been a homemaker for 19 years and the only thing different with having one at 38 is that I know how fast the time goes.

When I hug, hold and cuddle Sam during this stage I hold on, pause, breath, soak it in and don't let go. I know what is coming.....and I won't ever be able to cuddle a toddler because he won't be a toddler. He will be 4 and off to preschool, 7 and starting summer camp, 13 and asking mom to please not hug him in front of his friends, 18 and preparing to leave the nest.

A few days ago Sam wasn't happy. We were all here but the only thing that he wanted was to be in my arms. He wanted to be held, rocked and talked to by me. It was such a precious gift. It last about 20 minutes. Sam is a people person to the core. We have seen that in him since he was a newborn. It was almost as if during this sweet time together he knew.....he knew, that big boys don't rest in their mama's arms. Trae just sat and watched and soaked it in too. I will always treasure that memory....the gift. It may be the last time my baby lets me cuddle him for that period of time. I asked Trae to please get the camera because if I can't cuddle my toddler forever than what a treasure it would be to have a picture of such a sweet memory.

My heart overflows with gratitude to the Lord for blessing me in specific ways He knows have immense value to me.

PS. Do you notice his hand....when he was very, very young he would hold onto my shirt when I cuddled him. It gave me a firm grasp on mom and he always made sure he could touch my skin too. Even though he is 2 years old now he still reached up and held on in a similar way.

These are a few of Sam's favorite things....

Every child has their favorites! These are a few of Sam's favorites. A dear friend passed on some of her sons favorite toddler toys and Sam has found such delight in this Elmo! He dances with him and talks to him. Jacob ran into the dollar store to get a balloon for Sam's birthday and it brought so much pleasure to him! Books are something he looks at often or ask us to read to him. We always joke that it is unlikely he will be able to escape our love for books and it will rub off on him! The electronics.....not something we want him to like but most toddlers are memorized by them. We don't let him handle ours but sometimes he gets a chance at using one and is so taken with it. One day Trae gave him his Ipad box and he even enjoyed playing with that! Seeing his love for electronics we helped pick out a little laptop toddler laptop for his birthday and he loves it. We don't leave it out all the time but save it for those moments that we need him to be focused and quiet. :) Sam loves Sesame Street and Elmo his probably his favorite. He could have cared less about his cake but enjoyed looking at it. Maybe someday he will take a bite but for now the only sweet thing (outside of fruit) that he enjoys is a very thin wafer gingersnap cookie. We all ate his cake and enjoyed it!

This and that.....

Sam was blessed with this dancing Elmo and he loves to dance with him!

Andrew and Shelby (Sam calls her Shel visiting for Sams birthday)

Trae and I celebrating a dear friend turning 40!

My friend Tamara and I at her birthday party.

Jacob playing with Sam and doing things that big brothers do so well. Fun!

Sam spending time playing electronics with his brothers and OH so happy!

Andrew and Shelby showing us the dance they were doing for a school event! Shelby has taken dance for like 15 years and teaches classes currently and still takes dance.

I haven't posted pictures in a while! Sorry! I had a computer issue and so I waited. Lots of pictures have been taken so I thought I would throw in a variety since it has been a while.

Sweet moments.....

This week Trae was out of town for his annual sales conference in DC. We missed him horribly! God was faithful and our week went well overall! 2 house showings so that was extra busy. I always believe a few trips here and there (SO grateful it isn't more than 3-4 a year) are a good thing and help everyone appreciate one another at a greater level. I am still not supposed to be doing heavy lifting for another couple of weeks so we trained Sam how to use step stools to climb in and out of things. He has assistance but the stools bears the weight of him so it helps hugely! If Jacob was here and Sam needed to be changed or put in his crib I would ask Jacob to help. He was happy to do so. Every night when I would tuck Sam in and Jacob would lift Sam into bed he would hold him close and start praying for him. It was a precious gift to this mama because it was never asked of him. Such a sweet gift Jacob is to our family.