Firsts and Lasts (Bittersweet)

I read a blog a few months back that talked about children's milestones and the author made a great point about how parents, especially with the first child, are so excited about what’s around the corner in terms of milestones and cannot wait for all of the “firsts” to happen.  The writer then goes on to explain how waiting for all the “firsts” to happen results in parents paying little or no attention to the “lasts,” which she emphasized are equally important.  For example, the last time they roll over, crawl, coo, or take a bottle to name a few.  I really enjoyed the article, as I have always been careful not to wish time away, especially when it comes to my kids.  I have always soaked in every second because I knew it would go way faster than I ever wanted it to.  And it has, even more so with Lily than Will.  When Will was little, I felt time went perfectly, not too fast, not too slow.  I got to take it all in with him.  I take it all in with Lily now as well, but it seems to be flying by so much faster as I now have two kids to focus on instead of one.  After reading the article, I immediately knew I wanted to write an ongoing post to capture both the firsts and the lasts of our sweet girl throughout the early years as she hits many of her important milestones.  So, here goes nothing...

First:  May 29, 2013 - 2 Months Old

Last:  October 18, 2013 - Almost 7 Months Old

Mudbugs!

Picture this...

It's the second to last week of the U5 Mudbugs 2013 Soccer Season, and Will is watching the soccer ball come towards him in an attempt for the other team to score a goal.  Will blocks it, then immediately turns around, kicks it twice, and SCORE.  IT'S IN THE GOAL!  The crowd erupts with excitement chanting "Good Job Will!" repeatedly.

Yes, this really happened and I get goosebumps and such a sense of pride every time I think about it.  Our little man, who usually hangs behind the herd of boys fighting for the soccer ball, got in there and made his first soccer goal.  I cried a little bit and Ben (or Coach Ben as he's known on the field) said he wanted to.  In fact, right after the goal, Ben raised his hands up and said, "My coaching career is done," meaning he was so proud of his boy and if that was the last time he ever saw him kick a ball, that would be okay.

Now, I know some people may think we are putting a little too much emphasis on him scoring a goal, but it wasn't so much the goal as it was that he actually rubbed elbows with the other kids on the team and wasn't scared to get in the herd and get the ball as he had been the rest of the season.  In fact, when we were all screaming so loudly for him, the other team's parents were looking at us like we were crazy for cheering so much over one silly little goal, but I said "You don't understand...Will NEVER even touches the ball with his foot."  And then they understood.  I was also elated to hear all of the team parents on our side screaming for our boy, because they too had seen Will's timid behavior throughout the season.  And as an added bonus, Nonna, Uncle Corey, and Eli got to witness our boy's first soccer goal ever!

While I don't think he'll be going pro anytime soon, the goal seemed to be the boost he needed, as instead of saying he didn't want to play soccer the night before our final game the next Saturday, he said "I am going to score another goal!"  So, if anything this did nothing more than build his self esteem and confidence.  What more could a proud Mom and Dad ask for?

We found this is actually quite a difficult pose for a four year old.

Action shot...notice where Ben is in the background?  Yup, that's where the rest of the team is...over there trying to score a goal.  Will tended to run outside and behind the herd along with his buddy Garrett.

Team pic!  These boys love Coach Ben!

Miss Independent

Turns out Sassy McMuffins, Sass for short, is a perfect name for our newly independent 7 1/2 month old.  Once she started pulling up to a standing position, she thinks she can do everything on her own, including feeding herself baby food.  As I was feeding her carrots tonight, she would grab the spoon from me after she took a bite, and when I tried to pull it away to get another spoon full, she started crying loudly.  Once I gave in and gave her the spoon, she was perfectly content as you can see in the pics below.

Response to taking the spoon away.

Response to Mommy giving in.

Halloween 2013

This Halloween was super fun, and extremely busy. I am the room mom this year at Asbury, so I was in charge of their Halloween party.  It was a success and the kids had a wonderful time. A few days before Halloween the weather was predicted to be rainy on Halloween night so many surrounding Youngsville/Milton neighborhoods decided to have Trick or Treating a night early. So, we decided to head down the street to Miramar so the kids could get a little Trick or Treating in. Thank goodness we did, as it literally rained hard all day and through trick or treating time on Halloween night. Since it was raining, we decided to make the best of it and carved pumpkins instead.

One of the games I created for Will's class.  (Thanks Pinterest).

Will eating some Halloween grub.

Sweet Bug.

Nonna enjoying the class party with her babies.

Trick or Treating in Miramar.  By the way, this was one of three costumes Will wore throughout the week, none of which were a Ninja Turtle which he originally wanted to be.  Thank goodness Grammy and Grampup gave him some superhero costumes last year for Christmas.

The scary zombie.

Waiting for Will's class to come through at Asbury's Halloween Parade.  She's giving me the "You want a piece of me?" look.

She loved carving pumpkins.  She especially liked pulling the
slimy pumpkin guts out and tried to eat the seeds.

Not wanting to share with brother.

Who needs Trick or Treating when you can carve pumpkins with Daddy?

The end result. Will designed the one on the left. 
Daddy's design was on the back of that one, and mine was on the right.

Toledo Bend Weekend

We decided to join my family for a last minute trip to Toledo Bend.  It was the Hoover kids fall break, and everyone wanted to take advantage of it.  Ben has been working super hard, and I have had my hands full with the kids so it was a much needed, albeit short, break.

Our humble weekend abode, "The Y Knott Lodge"  Yes, that's Ben up there waving.

Enjoying a nice family paddle.

The BB Monster got him!

Snuggle time with Nonna.

Enjoying the great outdoors and the fire.

Mommy and Will time!

If you look straight ahead, you can see "skull island," aptly named by Ben, Will, Eli, and Ez.

Enjoying the view and time with the fam.

Snuggling up on a chilly night on the lake.  (Love this pic!)

What's Lily Been Up To?

The question should really be, what hasn't she been up to?  She has been blabbering more and more trying to say Momma and Dada.  Yesterday we were at the shop and I said hey to Poppa and she actually tried to mimic that as well.  It definitely won't be long until she is talking.

She has officially started crawling.  No more army crawl for this girl.

She is now pulling up to stand.

And last but not least, her bottom two middle teeth have decided to pop through her gums.

Where does all the time go?

Just as suspected, it's not near as easy to consistently blog with Lily, as it was with Will.  I feel like we recorded every smile and movement with him, then there's Lily, who didn't even get her official 6 or 7 month pictures taken.  Typical second baby I guess.  I always laugh when I think about my mom and our baby books.  Missy's is filled out front to back, with every little detail.  Corey's is somewhat filled out with a few pics here and there.  Then there's mine with a few things written and the rest of the items sitting in the middle of the book.  Ha!  My mom and I always have a good laugh over it and now that we have a second child, I totally get it.  There are just not enough hours in the day.  Plus, just like me as a child, it's not like Lily is lacking in any way shape or form for love and attention.

With that said, the next few posts will be brief and mainly told with pictures ;)