Noah's Bump & Curry

A week or so ago, Noah was running in the kitchen and his socks slipped on the tile when he tried to take a tight corner. He hit his head on the floor, but he's generally a pretty tough kid. Here are a couple of pictures of him holding the ice to his bump.



We were also inspired by Heather's blog post about Mom making the famous chicken curry when she was in town helping Brittany with the baby, so we decided to make some of our own to put Noah's "good eater" reputation to the test.

(Funny note about this pan we used for the curry: my parents gave it to me when I left for college after my mission, so I've had it for 10 years. I don't know how long they had it before that, but it has seen a lot of use as our "beater pan.")

We also experimented with pretty much anything we had in the house. I thought the dried mango was quite good and Nicole really liked the dried cherries. Green peppers and raisins are about the only things I'm unwilling to toss on there. To quote the great Alton Brown: Raisins are always optional.


He really did seem to enjoy it. We haven't found much so far that he wasn't willing to eat. He even eats the spicy onion ring sauce I make... but then he always drinks lots of milk. Hmm... maybe that's a good strategy to get him to drink all his milk?

~Kevin

Birthday Boy

Noah's birthday was a great day. I still can't believe that I have a 2 year old. But since he has now started saying the word NO, I'm believing it more everyday. :) Is it wrong that Kevin and I still think it's so cute when he says it? Yeah, good times.

Noah's birthday theme this year was OBVIOUSLY Elmo and friends! But Daddy and Mommy also gave him some Veggie Tales books and Larry and Bob stuffed friends (we couldn't resist!). He also got Mega Blocks. By noon, Noah had partied, unwrapped presents, watched a little Sesame Street, had his chocolate cake, and popped a few balloons. Then it was on to church! By the time bedtime came, I think he was definitely ready... just so long as his new friends (Larry and Bob) could come too!

We went to his 2 year check-up yesterday and he is right on schedule. He weighed in at 28.5 pounds (60th percentile) and was 33.5 inches tall (about 25th percentile). This was the first time that Noah got to stand on the little scale to take his weight. They have this little built in handle bar thing that helps them to balance and he grabbed on and stood as still as possible! What a cutie! I can't believe how grown up he's become. Anyway, he had the doctor laughing the whole time and can I just say that it's SOOOOO much nicer to have doctors appointments when I can actually hear what the doctor is saying????? Up until about a month ago, a trip to the doctor meant that Noah would scream and cry the whole time. Who can blame him, though, when inevitably there are shots involved.. sniff sniff. But no more shots for my little boy until kindergarten. Yippee!!!!

Balloons and Streamers!



The Birthday Boy's chair and opening presents the night before:





Giving the Elmo card kisses!







Caaaaaaaaaaaaake....





No holding back!





Giving the Elmo card HUGS... :)








Also, here's how I did the cake. I had SO much fun! I have a lot to learn and experiment with, but that will come with time. I can't wait to try the next one. :)







I'm excited for Noah to be two all year long... I know that there will be moments when I will wish he's a year older or (more likely!) a year younger. But I just love watching him grow and explore. Two is going to be a great year! Bring IT ON!!!

Ma Na Ma Na,

Nicole
@>->--

Oh! And here's one of the FUNNIEST pictures I've ever taken of Abbie and Noah.. You can just see it in her eyes...

"Everybody loves Noah.... More attention for Noah... Yada Yada Yada... I'll be right here if anyone needs me." Ha!

Guess Who's 2....!!!

Today my baby boy turned 2!!! You know, I'm not going to spend much time blogging today... I'd rather play with the birthday boy. :) So here are just a few pictures of the little dude and the Elmo cake that I finished last night. We'll post more later!


Love,
Noah's Mommy
@>->--

Snow Baby

I must say that my great "snow" expectations for Nebraska have fallen short so far this winter. We've had maybe one or two good snow storms, some really Freakin' cooooooooold temperatures, but then several warm patches that melted all the snow away before we could play in it for real. Jordan and Christina and the girls gave us the most awesome two-person snow tube that a body has ever beheld for Christmas. Alas... in the box it stays for now. It's not that I wish so many feet of snow on everyone out here. I just thought that we would have a whole lot more seeing as how we're in the middle of 'Braska now! Sure, ice storms of plenty, but snow? Okay, I'll stop or I'm going to jinx the commuters tomorrow...

Fortunately, when the snow has fallen briefly, we did get to backyard in time for a snow ball fight or two. Because it was so cold when it snowed, the flakes were so dry and fluffy. We may as well have been tossing powdered sugar or flour at each other... Very COLD flour. Noah and Kevin sure had fun the other day.










Here's a little video of the assaults. Noah would wind up for the hit and end up with everything in his hands right in his own face! Hey, but give him a football and watch out... Kid has serious arm. Enjoy!




And the BEST part of a snow ball fight... The warming up afterwards.

Ah, rosy cheeks.

Love,
Nicole
@>->--