Playing in the Rain

Rainy days in the summer are rare in Oklahoma, so when it drizzled for a bit one afternoon, we let Beckett play in the rain at Pa's house. His Grandpa and I supervised from inside the garage.

Soccer with Grandaddy

My parents visited during Memorial Day weekend. We had so much fun, although we didn't do much of anything. I kept asking what they wanted to do and they said "just watch Beckett." So, that's what we did. Grandaddy and Beckett had a good time playing soccer together. Beckett's Grandma and Grandpa Freeland bought him an Oklahoma State hat a while back. He wore it for the first time this weekend because he saw his grandaddy wearing a hat and thought that it was pretty cool. He wouldn't leave it on for very long, but long enough for me to snap a few pictures. Now that Grandaddy is gone, I can't get him to put it back on again. 

Our Bunny Friend

Beckett found a baby bunny in the back yard. He is so fearless and will go after anything that moves. I'm not looking forward to the day when he brings all sorts of creatures into my house! I can't believe that this little bunny rabbit let him come as close as he did. When the bunny first noticed Beckett, he took off running. Then he froze and let Beckett look at him from a distance. As Beckett got closer, the bunny ran under the bush. Beckett wanted to find him so he stood outside of the bushes for a while waiting for him, but he never came back out. 

Congratulations!

Congratulations are in order for many of our family members. We have an exciting few months ahead of us!

Blake and I will soon have a new brother-in-law. My sister, Serah, said "yes" this morning and we are ecstatic about the party that they will be throwing later this year. There's never a dull moment with these two, so there will be tons of fun to be had!  

Blake and I will also be gaining a new sister-in-law next year. My little brother, Stephen, recently proposed to his girlfriend (now fiance), Kristen. We are so happy about adding Kristen to our family and excited to see what the future holds for her and Stephen. 

Also, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law (Blake's brother) are expecting another baby in December. Chris and Kari obviously make cute babies, so we are looking forward to them adding another adorable animal to the zoo ;) 

And last, but definitely, not least, Beckett's Aunt Carson and Uncle Phillip are also expecting another baby and also due in December. Beckett is gaining two cousins in one month. How exciting is that? 

Happy 15 Months!

Here is a monthly update for my five faithful followers :) Now that Beckett is getting a little older, I am planning to not do quite as many monthly updates. I skipped the 14 months because not too much had changed.

What have you been up to? 

You are running everywhere and rarely ever walk anymore. If you are awake you are constantly moving and will not sit down for even a minute. You play so hard, but you also sleep hard (thank you, Jesus!). You'll now go down easily for naps and bedtime without putting up a fight and usually sleep about 12-13 hours at night with at least a 3 hour nap during the day. Daddy and I thought this day would never come. For at least the first three months after you were born, you had your nights and days reversed. Then you started sleeping better throughout the night, but still woke up at least once or twice. It felt as if you would never transition, so this is a major milestone for our whole family! 

Playing with the music box that Aunt Darlene and
Uncle Phil gave you. You love music and dancing. 

You are really starting to recognize more words now. When I say "let's change your diaper" you run into your room. When I ask you if you want yogurt, you run to the refrigerator door. Yogurt is your favorite food right now. At the moment, we are still struggling with food textures. You still won't touch anything slimy (pasta, fruit, etc) and start gagging when you try to pick it up with your fingers.

Some little boy spilled the box of Cheerios on the floor and you
and Karsten tried to eat them all before I  could get to them. 

You haven't learned to say the word "no" yet (thank goodness), but you have learned to shake your head "no". You shake your head "no" to everything I ask, even if you don't mean it. If I am feeding you and try to cram something in your mouth that you don't want, you shake your head "no." If I ignore you and try to force something in there, you spit it right back out.

Coloring with crayons for the first time

You love to be outdoors. You would live outside if we would let you. Sometimes you cry when we make you come back inside. You love to play in dirt, with rocks, and especially with/in water! I've never met a kid who loved water so much. You love it when we pour water over your head or squirt you in the face with water (sounds cruel, but you really do like it). 

Ready to go swimming

You love to play with sports balls. You always have a basketball, soccer ball, baseball or football in your hands. You are really great at kicking the ball, and have been getting much better at catching the ball. We are still working on your throwing. You can throw backwards like no other, but the forward throw is struggling a bit. It usually ends up going backwards behind your head. Is there a sport that uses a backwards throw?

Loving on the giraffe from our friend Ashley

You love to listen to music and dance, so we've been working on more songs and dance moves lately. Your Grandma Kaki taught you the Hokey Pokey and you have really enjoyed singing that lately while turning around in circles. Grandma Bummie always does Pat-a-cake with you and now you can do it by yourself. It's really cute watching you do all of the hand motions.

Wearing Daddy's shoes

Trying to walk in Daddy's shoes

You have started using a few words now, in addition to several animal sounds. You have always been more interested in animal noises than real words. Here are the animals/animal sounds that you know: cow=moo, sheep=baa, gamecock=cock-a-doodle-doo, duck=quack quack and the pig=snort. We are still working hard on the dog, cat, and horse for now. You are also doing well with "please" and "thank you" and "cracker", but we're trying to get you to say "I love you." You're almost there, but already close enough to melt Mommy and Daddy's heart. You can also count to three with a little help. This weekend, Daddy taught you the word "uh oh" and how to find your belly button. I'm going to go ahead and apologize in advance to anyone person that you run up to lifting their shirt up to find their belly button. 

You still have 4 teeth on the top and 4 on the bottom with no sign (other than a LOT of drooling) of any more coming anytime soon. You love to flash your smile to the ladies and they always flirt back. You're weighing in at about 25 pounds and eating like you are about to have another growth spurt. Your favorite things to do are dance, listen to music, read, play in the water and play with insects and other wild animals. You also love to talk and kiss yourself in the mirror.

Here's a cute video of you showing us how Pa tickles your belly and how Grandpa plays the Bumblebee tickle game.

My Friend, Mr. Turtle

Grandpa found a turtle in his bushes and brought it around to the backyard for Beckett to play with. Grandpa put it down on the patio, but he was inside of his shell and Beckett wasn't interested. As soon as the turtle came out of his shell and started crawling, Beckett sprinted over to him. The rest is history, poor turtle. *Disclaimer: No turtles were hurt during this play session...or at least killed.