Kade is Ten!

Our second son has reached the decade mark.  How the time does carry on!  Kade is most likely our most even-keeled child and gives us the least grief surprises:)  He has a very funny sense of humour which makes us laugh.  I know that having a sense of humour generally means that you are funny . . .but with Kade it often catches us off guard b/c it's kind of unexpected . . . and funny. Kade loves Calvin and Hobbes and has lots of the comics tucked away in his head.  He loves joke books and riddles.

Kade is our thinker . . . and you can see him think. He will get this look and you can just see the wheels turning inside his head.   He is not usually a blurter. He usually takes things in a bit slower, takes the time to process them, and then responds.  I think this probably is a large part of what keeps him out of trouble;)

Kade is one of our middle children and according to birth order studies, that makes him a very social person who relies heavily on friendships outside of the family.  True.  He loves his friends and has very special bonds with a few of his closest.  That is pretty special to see and I pray these friendships will last and grow stronger and that these boys may be an encouragement and inspiration to each other for many years.

Kade wrote this little paragraph in March and though it shouldn't have . . . it did kind of catch us off guard. 

Kade has always liked football and tolerated hockey.  But over the winter this has changed!!  Kade now spends almost as much time down in the basement as Kevin does. He has really flourished in hockey which probably made him fall in love with it.  I think he will give Kevin a good run for his money -- and maybe sooner than Kevin thinks!  Kade is doing 3 on 3 this year for the first time and had a game on his birthday.  He had scored once in an earlier game, but on his birthday he got a hat trick!! That was pretty special for him.  We were pretty proud of him too.

Kade will also watch the hockey games now and can often be found reading the "Hockey News".  

Kade enjoys reading . .  . though he doesn't always realize it.  He doesn't always like the idea of reading, but once he gets into a good book, it is hard to distract him.

Kade wanted a rainbow loom for his birthday and it was probably the present that excited him the most.  It kind of made Jonathan and I chuckle, but it kept (and still does) both Kevin and Kade busy for hours.  Well rounded boys I guess?!

Kade is our morning child. . . not a super early riser, but he is the easiest to get out of bed and is often already awake when I come in to get them up.

Kade likes to play hockey with Kevin, likes to tease Kylie (too much!), and likes to squeeze Karter. 

Kade has a fabulous smile and is easily the most photogenic in our family.  We think he's downright handsome:)

Kade doesn't particularly love school, but he loves his friends, and he is doing just fine academically.

I wouldn't describe Kade as neat or tidy.  Though he is not our hugest mess maker, he also has a very hard time remembering to make his bed, put his socks in the hamper, and put his things where they belong. If there is a shortcut, Kade will find it. One of Kade's jobs is to clean/organize the shoes on the mat after supper. It will often look like he's done a fine job . . . until you open the closet and see everything jammed on the top shelf.  

Kade loves swimming, fishing, and water in general.

Kade started piano lessons this year and is doing really well so far. I probably get by far the least amount of complaints from him.  I'm not sure if I would go so far as to say he enjoys it . . but I do think he is proud of what he has learned and enjoys mastering his songs.

Kade still has a great love for screens. If things have been quiet for a while and Kade is no where to be seen, you can guarantee that Kade has nabbed Jonathan's cell phone and has found a quiet place somewhere to play a game or two.

Kade loves music and will pick up lyrics super fast. (except memory work songs!)  I am always amazed by this ability.  

Kade's birthday breakfast - pancakes and Lucky Charms.

We are very thankful for this son of ours. He brings some balance and yet some spice to our family.  It is neat to see how each child brings different flavours to the mix.  Though he has a lot of determination, he also has a soft and tender spirit. He doesn't love controversy. He likes to be cozy.  He likes to create and build. He likes going out to the woods to explore and build forts.  He has grown quite competitive lately. He used to be fairly indifferent about sports. He enjoyed them, but the score really didn't matter. I see him get a little more frustrated at times now . . .though he is still fairly mild compared to Kevin at age 10:)

Kade, we love you SO much.  We love the boy God has created you to be. We love your personality and character.  We pray that God will bless your life and that you will continue to grow in your love for Him. We pray that you will love spending time with God and that the things you do in life will reflect that.  The next decade will be fun . . .but it will probably involve tougher choices. We pray that the foundations that have been laid and are being laid at home, church, and school will be firm and will help you.  We love you buddy.

Karter is Two!

Spring is here and birthday season is also in full swing over here and I've got to get writing!

Karter turned two a week and a half ago.  I can't really say anything about him beginning his terrible two's because if you've ever met the boy, you realize that he didn't wait for his birthday to start that!  I actually thought since he started SOOOO early, that maybe he would be done on his birthday.  (not really, but you can always dream:))  Truth be told, on his exact birthday he started screeching and screaming ridiculously loud. His temper also seemed to ramp up.   His sleep habits became less than desirable.  

BUT.

I think this kid is terrific.  So I'll just enjoy these wonderful and hilarious and "keep me on my toes" TERRIFIC twos.

So. We tried to take pictures of all the kids when we came back from Florida . . . so we'd all be tanned and colourful and hopefully look kind of good.  

Karter's session didn't go so well. Though we tried three different times that Sunday.  Not that he wasn't happy.  You'll see that he is. He just can't sit still. He is escaping the stool on most of the pictures and getting quite a kick out of it.  Anyhow . . . I think we captured the spirit of the boy quite well.

This boy brings so much laughter, love, and joy to our family. They all do . . . but Karter does in a special way.  I say this all the time . . .but I LOVE seeing the other three kids love him. They are so proud of him, they'll do pretty much anything for him, they feel sorry for him when he is sad, they play with him, they very very rarely get frustrated with him, and it is clear as day that they are smitten with him. And that is special.

Does this make him spoiled? Yep.  I don't even deny it. I just try to make sure it doesn't turn him into a complete brat;) 

Karter is still a climber.  He still spends a lot of the day on the counters or island. He helps himself to whatever he wants and I can hardly keep him from doing it.   I should install locks on a lot of things, but instead I am trying to train . . .but he is sneaky.

Kevin and Karter have a pretty special relationship. When I was expecting Karter, Kevin hoped for a boy so that he could play hockey with him. At the time, I figured Kevin would be almost out of the house by the time Karter was ready for that . . but I was very wrong. Kevin has spent hours and hours with Karter (and Kade too!) downstairs playing hockey. He teaches him all kinds of interesting and I'm sure useful things. It is pretty cute and hilarious sometimes!

Karter loves seeing the kids get off the bus and gets super excited. I always thought he was saying Kylie (the only name of the three that comes out clearly) . . .but I was having him repeat the kids names today and Kevin and Kylie sound exactly the same . . whereas Kade is different . . .so maybe it's Kevin after all . .  or maybe all of them.

I actually have a bunch of Kevin/Karter sleeping pictures. (maybe I'll save the next one for Kevin's birthday post!)  We find them like this if Kevin babysat for the night . . or if Karter was crying in bed too long for Kevin's liking. He doesn't like to hear him be upset.

Wish these pictures turned out clearer b/c I think they are adorable.  Karter LOVES it outside. I am so thankful for the warmer weather for Karter's sake. I am also thankful for a husband who will let Karter hang out with him in the shop for hours while he works. It makes for happiness all around.  Karter would love to hang out and go to "work" with daddy every day. (at least he thinks he would).  When he gets to ride in the work truck he looks SOOO proud and pompous. 

I mostly trust Karter outside, but I have to take a lot of peeks.  He spends a lot of time with the dogs (though he is not always very kind to them). He spends a lot of time with his push toys or playing hockey or "tennis" or just ball.  I'm sure the sandbox will be a busy place soon too.

Karter actually loves to help. Jonathan was working on the deck this past weekend and without anyone saying anything, he picked up all the scraps and carried them over to the firepit.  It made me smile.   He was Jonathan's most diligent helper this past long weekend.

 (they had know I idea I was watching:)  Awwwww.

 He also loves putting things away inside (though not his toys EVER). He likes to unload the dishwasher and the washing machine and loves helping put laundry away too. He doesn't miss too much. I'm always surprised at what he knows.  (Now to get him to clean up his toys . . . which actually isn't a huge deal, b/c he rarely plays with toys).

Karter does love being read to now and will look at books on his own too. This makes me happy.  In the morning after the kids are on the bus and I'm done my coffee, he'll bring me a book and snuggle himself onto my lap and we'll have a story or too. Cozy.

Birthday pictures!

This is right after he woke up and came downstairs. Oh yes. He can get out of his crib by himself now -- which is of course a real pain, and kind of handy all at the same time.

I took him to the park since I had to do a few errands in town and it was a beautiful day.  He LOVED it!

I really didn't know what to get Karter for his birthday. He doesn't really play with toys and we have pretty much everything else he could ever need or want at this age.  I thought a balloon would be sufficient. It would have been. He loved it and played with it for a long time . . . until it popped and scared the daylights out of him.  (Can a balloon popping hurt? b/c he has done it three times since his birthday and boy does he scream and cry OWIEEEEE!)

Sparkler time!

And umm. Candles . . . in icecream.

Kylie wanted to give Karter a present really bad, so I found this potato head in my stash and she gave it to him to add to our existing supply. He does actually play with it too!

And . . . I found itty bitty roller blades on kijiji.  That was the only thing I could dream up to give him and I'm really glad I found some. He was fairly impressed too.

A few more things about Karter at two:

• he is not a great breakfast eater . . . unless it is Honey Nut Cheerios or Lucky Charms or something else sugar coated. He did granola with yogurt for a while and I was excited that he liked it . . but that kind of went by the wayside. It is fairly normal to find a half eaten bowl of Karter's breakfast on the table.  GASP. I know. I am slipping.
• he is also not a great lunch eater . . . so I don't make a big deal of lunch.  He is usually good and hungry by supper time and eats fairly well then. It is his best meal.
• he is a snack-a-holic.  
• LOVES Mr. Sooey. (his soother).  We are trying really hard to have it stay in bed (and perhaps the van, and at hockey, and . .  . ya we cheat a lot), but some days it is pretty hard.  He is SO good when he has his soother and blanket and on a whiny day, it's pretty hard to be tough.
• he still sleeps in his crib, but will soon move to a toddler bed once I get it ready since there really is no point to a crib when he can (and does!) get out by himself.
• has not gone to bed well since he turned two . . . or was it since Florida?!  We often have to lay in his room till he is sleeping or he will just keep coming out over and over and over . . and it is much quicker to do it the other way. If we are laying there, he generally falls asleep really quick.  I think he is scared . . . but having a light on doesn't change things so I'm not sure what the story is there.
• he still toddles over to our bed in the night rather frequently  (surely he will outgrow this?!!!) (it is kind of cozy as long as he goes right back to sleep which he usually does)
• has started sleeping in since the time change! YEAH!! He usually sleeps till anywhere between 7-8am.
• loves sports of any kind and seems to do quite well
• hums whenever he eats . . . while he chews.
• doesn't say a whole lot.  He is trying to repeat stuff, but it doesn't come out real clear yet. He has his words that he does really well, but I would say his vocabulary is probably still under 25 words.  I'm not worried though:)  He makes his needs known just fine.  Some of my favorite words are "sooey", "ylie" (Kylie or Kevin) "owie" "all done" "side" (outside), "daddy a wook" (daddy's at work) "luyah" (hallelujah) "amen" "NO WAY" (which is by far his favorite response to pretty much everything!) and that's all I can think of right now.
• won't really sit and watch a movie. There are times when I think it would be really nice and he will . .. for a bit . . .but not too long.
• his nervous habit is putting his finger, fist by his nose and rubbing it. (kind of looks like he is picking his nose) Cute eh?  So if you talk to him and he doesn't really know you or if he is playing shy, that's what you'll get.
• the grocery shopping department hasn't improved since he was 18 months . . . except now he can get himself out of the No Frills carts too. I really DON'T enjoy grocery shopping and I DO take along his soother in hopes of making it a bit smoother . . and yes that probably was me on my knees, butt in the air looking and reaching under the shelves for the soother that Karter chucked.
• has a decent temper and is not afraid to show it.
• for all his activity, he still likes to be cozy. He will have a real nice snuggle every once in a while.
• sort of knows a few animal sounds . . . 
• is a fabulous mess maker. . . in so many different ways.
• usually (Kevin says EVERY time) puts his boots/shoes on the wrong foot.
• likes to sing and does it quite a bit.
• likes brushing his own teeth . . . and spitting . . and spitting . . . and spitting. Ya. That's the best part.
• copies pretty much everything we all do.  Oh how careful we have to be . . and oh how funny this is!
• gives the cutest kisses. If you are ever hurt by him or otherwise and "cry" (whether real or not), he will hurry over and give you a hug, a kiss, and a little pet and then you just can't help but be "all better!"
• is a goof and knows it.
• usually sports at least one or two bruises or cuts or gashes . . . though I do believe he is hospital free still!
• makes us laugh and smile every day.

How thankful we are to God for this boy!  Children are a blessing indeed and our family would have very different dynamics without him!  We are thankful for all the joy and laughter (and frustrations too!) that Karter brings.  We pray that God would bless him mightily and we pray for much wisdom for us in raising Karter in the ways of the Lord.