iPhone pics

Ford and I spend a ton of time outside during the week, and while I usually don't have my camera I try to use my phone to capture some everyday moments! We live in such a beautiful place and I feel so lucky that I get to stay home with Ford and soak up some sun and fresh air too!

One of the very few times Ford has fallen asleep in the stroller while I am running! This was the week after we got home from Texas, and everyday that week he either feel asleep in the car or the stroller! Poor baby was worn out!

This little boy loves to climb and explore! In the winter the storms wash in lots of trees and sticks which make exploring lots of fun!

He loves to hug his mama and I will take it all day long! 

This was Christmas Eve at church. He looked so big in his plaid flannel!

This picture is pure Ford! Carrying a big stick and making so really tough boy noise! I love that he is all boy!

Erik took the week after Christmas off for a "staycation", and we were so happy to have Dada join us on our outdoor adventures!

We deal with a lot of diaper rash in this house which means we go "nakies" quite often! It doesn't ever seem to slow him down though!

This was in Tahoe at Erik's parents cabin! I love how good his form is (:

It was so cold this day at the beach!

I always trying to come up with fun boy stuff to do with Ford, so on this day we built a stick fort! I think he was impressed!

One day the state parks where doing some construction down at the beach and there was a tractor parked in the parking lot! Ford was in heaven! He loves tractors so much and even has a special tractor noise that he makes!

Love his smile and dimple!

We got lucky and it was there the next day too!

Here he is infront of a 1932 Ford Roadster! He loves cars and somehow knew this one was extra special! I kept trying to get him to leave and he just kept saying "a caaaaar"!

More beach time!

Such a happy boy! Even when it's cold we still make it to the beach!

I think there's some rule about running with sticks (:

I'm sure you are seeing a pattern here........the boy loves sticks!

Erik called this pic the "blue steel" look!

Right after I took this pic he stuck that nasty piece of bark in his mouth! We are still not past the phase of sticking gross stuff in our mouth!

He loves to smell flowers, although I'm pretty sure this was a weed!

I am 17 months old!

It feels like over night my little baby turned into a little boy! It is very bitter sweet, but watching him grow and become his own little person has been the greatest of blessings! This little boy is so special we just can't get enough of him! Here are some facts about Ford at 17 months:

*He is hilarious and loves to be the center of attention with all eyes on him!

*He is very charming and loves to flirt especially with cute girls!

*He is almost always happy and smiling! He has the best laugh and it is very easy to get him to laugh!

*He is very very ticklish! Especially under his chin and on his feet!

*He is very expressive! He has tons of facial expressions and lots of words and hand gestures! We don't know what most of his words are, but he certainly does!

*He loves Cooper and climbs all over him. Coop is a good sport and lets Ford do whatever he wants!

*He says Mama, Dada, car, truck, wa wa, ba ba, uppppp, down, cookie, open it (not prounced that clearly but close)I unt gat (I want that), I go, ball, ohhh kay, baby, uh-ohhh, duck, and let's not forget no no and noooooo!

*He holds his hands up and says "hap" when he wants to know what happened!

*He loves to be outside no matter what the temperature. Being cold doesn't bother him at all!

*He LOVES trucks, cars, tractors and anything else with wheels. He would love it if I just let him play in a parking lot! He is always making truck noises!

*He LOVES watching Curious George and only Curious George on the iPad!

*He loves his blankie and rubbing the corners!

*He loves buttons almost as much as he like trucks, and he loves to sit in the driver seat of our car and push all the buttons, turn the steering wheel and make car sounds!

*He is still a terrible eater and literally only eats yogurt, cheese, grapes, saltines and oreos. He sometimes will eat mac-n-cheese and chicken nuggets. He does love milk, thank goodness!

*The only way we can get him to eat all his food is to turn on Curious George and then he goes into a "monkey trance" and then we can shovel in the rest of the food!

*He is such a well behaved child! He is a good listener and if I tell him to not do something he doesn't do it! I just pray this continues on into the terrible 2's! If I do ever have to disciple him he comes straight to me and kisses me afterward! I'm not sure if it's an apology or a little manipulation!

*He walks up to things he's not supposed to touch and says "no no"!

*He is SOOOOOO sweet and loving. He loves to cuddle, kiss and hug, and is quite the Mama's boy!

*He plays so well with other kids and is so gentle and kind!

*He has all four of his molars in without us even noticing!! I thought I saw one and then today I looked and all four were in! 

Here is our sweet boy at 17 months!

Fun in Tahoe!

We went up after Christmas to the cabin to celebrate Christmas with Erik's family! Erik and I both talked about how we weren't sure if Ford would like the snow or not! Well the answer is a big YES! He loved being in the snow. I have to say I am a little surprised I thought all the clothes would lead to some crying, but he didn't care he just wanted to play in the snow! I caught so many cute pictures of him having so much fun, and I am actually in a few pictures for a change!

I just love seeing little ones all bundled up in ski clothes! Ford was able to get around pretty good even with his boots and puffy clothes! He looks like such a big boy!

 Ford has very fun Grandparents who took him sledding down the driveway!

Dada took him all the way to the top of the driveway and he loved it! He's a brave little boy!

The next day we took him to the sledding park, and he was ALL smiles!! Erik can hardly wait until he's old enough to get him on the mountain!

He loves his Aunt Anna, and loves to flirt with her! He knows a pretty girl when he sees one!

Love this one! He's such a happy boy!

Christmas 2012

We had such a great Christmas this year, and being able to see it through Ford's eyes made it even more special! We went to the candle light service on Christmas Eve, put Ford to bed and started getting everything ready for Santa! This was our first Christmas at home with Ford and we loved every minute! I made my Mom's famous cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning, Ford wouldn't eat them of course, but Erik and I enjoyed them! We had two special guests over later that afternoon for Christmas dinner Eugene and Shane. Eugene is someone we met a few years ago while we were remodeling our house. He is here from Mexico and without his family so we invited him to join us for dinner! We actually had him over for Christmas dinner two years ago, and at dinner he asked how come we didn't invite him last year! He's a funny guy, and always has a smile on his face despite living a very tough and lonely life. We also had Shane, an old Young Life kid we know from Salinas, over for Christmas dinner. Shane has a heartbreaking story that could seriously be made into a movie, and yet he is one of the sweetest kids you will ever meet. We want Ford to know that our home is always open, and we are called to love and serve others. Erik and I pray that we can be examples to Ford, and he will come to know the real and true meaning of Christmas.

Christmas Eve!

Getting Santa's presents all ready!

We videoed Ford coming into the livingroom on Christmas morning, and his little face was priceless when he saw his four-wheeler! He started making truck sounds and jumped right on!

Ford got a Batman four-wheeler from Santa, and a Thomas the Train set from Mama and Dada!

 So fun!

 Oh, how I love this sweet face!

Making truck noises takes a serious face!

His train set came with a firetruck and I think he liked that more than the trains!

We bundled up and took a walk on the beach later that day, but not before riding the four-wheeler some more!