Mothers Day Photo Shoot

For Christmas 2010 each of the the special moms in our lives, mothers and grandmothers recieved a 5x7 frame with a picture of Lucy. My goal is to send updated pictures of the kids once or twice a year so that these special ladies can have a somewhat-current photo of their grandkids/great grandkids. After visiting both of our moms this spring - I realized that they needed a matching frame for Michael and an updated picture of Lu girl (since I hadn't sent them a new one yet! She has changed a lot since 5 months old!). So we had a photo shoot the week before Mothers Day and got some fun pictures of the kiddos. :) Here are my favorites. 

I think these pictures capture Lucy's personality so well. Energetic and so full of expression - it was a GOOD picture day for Lu girl. :) 

You can see how LONG her hair is in some of these - other than her bangs, she's never had it cut... 

Thanks to Grandma Lori for the outfit - it's one of my favorites!

 "What's this Mommy?" (This is the picture of Lu we decided to send)

 Her hair has gotten SO light! 

 A girl on a mission. 

 Running

 Love this one. 

 And this one...

 Oh, and this one too! :) 

 Sweet giggles. 

 So happy. 

 I think it's neat how you can see a reflection of me in her eyes. Her dark brown eyes.... they still make my heart happy. really happy. 

Ok, Michael's turn! 

 He was pretty mellow this day, so no huge grins - but he was happy and cheerful, and that was great! (This was the photo we sent of Michael)

 We are hoping to one day have a child with lighter eyes - but every time I look at Michael's I think, "I'd be so happy if all our kids had your eyes little man."

 A little raspberry action. :) 

 We went next door to our neighbor's house to borrow some of their shade under a big tree. Also they have much prettier grass than we do. ;)

Oh, I could kiss those cheeks all. day. long! 

Since Michael holds still he didn't get as many pictures taken as Lucy - I'm not partial to one child over the other. I promise :)

I love my kiddos - it is so special to have nice pictures of them to remember these stages! How do you keep far-away family updated with photos of your kids?

Michael's First Rice Cereal

As seems to be tradition in our family, Michael's first rice cereal pictures are a bit blurry - but you'll get the idea. (To see Lucy's first cereal pictures, click here) :) We started Lu on cereal really early, mostly because we were excited to try something new with her! With Michael, I was going to wait until closer to six months, but our doctor recommended we start feeding him rice cereal to help with his acid reflux and to encourage weight gain - he's kinda a small boy. So we gave it a try:

 

 May 9th, 4 3/4 months old ;)

I had to force the first bite - he had no idea what to do with it. :} The first bite stayed down!

Ha - he was wary of it the second time around...

"Mama, what are you doing to me??"

Gotta love my face - Brad laughs at me when I feed babies because I mimic what I want them to do.

He did great! All his food stayed down! His spitting up has gotten better - due to the fact he grew out of his acid reflux or the cereal, we will never know - but he LOVES his daily bowl of rice cereal and it has helped him sleep better at night too!

Two birds with one spoon stone.  ;)

A Surprise Trip to Michigan

We were in the mid-west for a friend's wedding and were somehow, in a world of tweets and status updates, able to keep our location a secret - surprising our Michigan family with a visit! :) Amy, Brad's sister, was in on the fun helping to make sure the weekend stayed clear. We went and visited both of Brad's parents at work and surprised them there - they were SHOCKED. :) All the secrecy paid off! It was a great few days of rest and catching up - it is always so great to see family.

 Lucy and Aunt Amy playing on the computer

Computers have a way of mesmerizing both adults and kiddos! :) 

 "Where's Lucy?"

 "There she is!"

 Michael and his Great Grandma Kidder

 Michael and Great Grandma Buning - I'm so bummed the picture on the left is blurry! Something was cracking them up - so cute!

 4 Generations of Kidders 

 Playing with Cameron, Brad's cousin Megan's son. (I think that makes these kids 2nd cousins?)

 These boys are just 4 months apart! :) 

 Aunt Amy got some fun hats and Lucy had NO problem trying them on. :)

 We tried to get in a family picture, but this little lady was in a most foul mood and because of that, none of them turned out. 

I thought I'd share a few anyway just for kicks and giggles. :) 

Haha! Family pictures are always SUCH a joy! :)

Photo Journal: Only Under Mama's Supervision.... :)

4 Months Old

4 Month Accomplishments:

• Turning Over! Both ways! Look out world! Michael is a-coming!
• Thumb lover. Michael has found his thumb! He only sucks on it when he is going to sleep or is really tired - it is a rare treat for us to witness him with his thumb in his mouth. But it is SO cute. It melts his mamma's heart to see it. 
• Big Boy Crib. Michael made an upgrade in his bed this month too! He is sleeping in the crib now that Lucy has vacated it for her big girl bed. 
• Supporting his weight. It took him a bit longer than his peers, but Michael can support his own weight (with an adult's help with balance of course!) and stand up! 
• First Baby Sitter. Michael stayed with Jim and Carol, a couple from church, while mamma and daddy when out on a much needed date. He did well! 
• Baseball. Michael is a boy after his Grandpa Kidder's heart - he already loves baseball and will watch it for extended periods of time, if given the opportunity. He doesn't like Sesame Street, but he will gladly watch the Tigers!

To see Lucy at 4 Months, Click Here.

*Yes, I'm two months behind on updating the blog.... but I've been taking pictures and have lots to update! I'm hoping to catch up soon - next week is Lucy's 2nd birthday (how is this happening? Where did time go?) and Michael's 6 month!!

An Alternative Use for Jean Shorts

There are many uses for old jeans. Two of my sister's have made jean quilts. I've seen cutlery bags made out of old jean pockets and even a table runner made of jean material on Pinterest. And I'm a little ashamed to admit it, but I totally sewed an old pair of jeans into a purse (ahem, a "Butt Bag, if you will) when I was in Jr High. I went to get Lucy the other day from a nap, and she had found a new use for a pair of her jean shorts:

 A HAT!

 Michael and I both thought she was a little silly - but we like to encourage creative thinking around here (especially when it doesn't involve a mess!).

She later put the shorts on the correct side of her body but put both feet through the same hole! It was a good balancing exercise. :)

Have you ever done anything creative with jeans? :)