Chris is Home!

Well, at least for a few days. It’s already going by too fast! =)

Chris’ flight got in last night and we had a joyous reunion. About 20 of our family and friends were able to come to the airport and welcome him home (many more wanted to come, but his flight came in while most people were still at work.) There were lots of cheering, welcome home signs and a plethora of smiles all around!

Luke watched intently as Chris’ plane touched down – and then as he came down the stairs. We rushed to the door he’d be entering in to greet him. Luke almost couldn’t believe his eyes! He just had to stare at Chris for a second for it to register that it was actually daddy standing right there in front of him. Then came the big hug he’s been waiting to give Daddy for almost 10 months. Will was pretty nonchalant about it all – though he was only 2 ½ months old when Chris left. He’s definitely coming around quickly though!

Luke is Chris’s shadow. No one else exists in his world right now. It’s just daddy. And it is so sweet and precious to see!

There are a few things we could use your prayers on though. Chris caught a cold on his way over here – so please pray for his quick recovery. And Luke’s mild stomach virus has become a full blown nasty stomach virus – so please pray for him as well. It’s a bummer that they both have to start out R&R sick. I do think Chris is beginning to feel a bit better – but Luke’s stomach is quite messed up right now. So any prayers on their recovery will be much appreciated.

Alrighty, here’s what everyone has been waiting for – Pictures! A reporter from the Daily Times was at the airport and took these pictures for us. I’ll send a link to the newspaper picture once it’s out.

Watching Chris walk to the door...

"There's Daddy!!"

Daddy's Home!

Big Hug!

So happy to be together again!

Will walking to Daddy - we didn't tell Chris that Will was walking so we could suprise him at the airport.

Daddy brought presents for both the boys - Luke and Will were very excited to get a car and train each from daddy.

At home - Riley was very excited to see her daddy again too!

She went crazy with happiness! She remembered him right away and jumped all over him.

More pictures later!

Happy Birthday Will!

Today is Will's 1st birthday! I can't believe how quickly the time has passed. I remember his due date coming and going and wondering when in the world this child would actually come. A week later he finally made his appearance and has blessed our lives immensely. He has such a sweet personality and a smile and giggle that will just melt your heart. He adores his big brother and it's so fun to see how much they love each other.

We had some cake to celebrate his birthday tonight - and we'll do a bigger birthday celebration later on when Chris is able to be here to enjoy it.

So without further ado - Will's first year in a few snapshots.

41 weeks preggo

Will's first picture!

Happy Birthday!

January 2008

February 2008

March 2008

April 2008

May 2008

June 2008

July 2008

August 2008

September 2008

October 2008

November 2008

December 2008

January 2009- Happy 1st Birthday!!

Happy Birthday Will! We love you!

Very Short Update!

Sorry it's been so long since I've blogged! There haven't been very many free moments lately. I will attempt to write an update blog soon - but for now, I'll just post a few pictures. =)

A boy and his best friend...

The boys playing together!

They're everywhere!


Luke's hair has been growing so fast lately! My dad had just cut it over Christmas, but it has already grown out again! So I took him to my hairdresser a few days ago. Luke did great! He sat in the chair all by himself and was very calm...in fact, I think he really liked being pampered! He got to hold the squirt bottle - and by the end of the cut, he had managed to squirt himself in the face 3 times. He thought that was hilarious! Here are before and after pics:

(I took him first thing in the morning, so he had some major bed head going on! HAHA!)

Cutie boys!

More later!

2 1/2 years later, he finally uses a pillow and blanket - by his own choice!

Luke has finally embraced sleeping with a pillow and blanket! I'm not completly certain why, but Luke has taken his sweet time adjusting to using a pillow. I've had one in his bed since a bit after we switched his crib to a toddler bed. He's never wanted to use it. The last few night though, he has -on his own- begun using his pillow!

Now the blanket thing has been an ongoing battle. He has hated being covered up for quite some time. The only thing I can trace it back to is once, when we had first moved to Germany, he got wrapped up in one of his little blankets while he was sleeping and woke up terrified. Since then, he has refused to be covered up. This has proven a challenge in keeping him warm at night. In Germany we'd double up his jammies so he'd stay toasty warm. When it started to get cool this winter, I very slowly tried to reintroduce the blanket (any attempts before this would result in a huge flip-out on Luke's part.)

So, each night I would go in after he had fallen asleep and cover him up. This seemed to work well as long as he didn't wake up and catch me covering him up.

A few months ago, I let him pick out his own blanket from the store (a very wise suggestion from a very wise friend!) and I started asking him if he'd like to be covered up. He would say "yes" or "no" and I would comply with his answer. If it was no, I would put the blanket at the end of the bed and then I'd go cover him up after he fell asleep.

Just in the last week, however, he has started covering himself up!! YYEEESSS!!! Now I don't have to worry about him being cold in the middle of the night anymore! He finally likes to be covered - and he's happy to do the covering himself! I know it may seem silly to be this excited about such a small feat - but in my world, this is HUGE!

Paper Chains and the Phins

Chris's R&R is coming up soon, so I made a paper chain for the boys to countdown the time! Well, it's mostly for Luke because Will doesn't really understand yet...=) Each night before bed, Luke tears a link off the chain. He knows that we have to go through the whole chain - and when we reach the very last link, Daddy will be here to help him tear it off. Sooooo exciting!!!

I'm already preparing Luke in advance that Daddy will just be home for a visit. I don't want to be a party pooper, but I don't want him to be devastated when Chris has to head back either. So, I figured if I could help Luke understand that "it's just for a visit" before Chris even gets here - it'll help the dreaded departure day go a bit smoother. We'll see how it all pans out!

Even though it is, "just for a visit," we are all super uber excited! =)



On a completely different topic - we were all rooting for the Phins to win last Sunday...but they just couldn't pull it off. Oh well...at least they did better than last year!!=)

As always, more later!