Eighteen Month Pictures.....

Mom went with me today to take Joel to get his pictures taken....FINALLY!! We had to wait until his head bruises healed, and he kept getting new ones! Anyway, I thought we were doing well because he got a bath and a nap with no problem. However, once we got to the mall his attitude went downhill rapidly! He would not sit still for a minute and refused any and all attempts at making him smile. The pictures are really good, and the photographer earned every penny we paid for the prints. Also, Joel is entered in the "Cutest Kid" contest there. Not sure what we win, we're just in it for the title! More later...

My favorite! He looks sooo ornery!

New Puppy!......

No, not for us! I don't think Bailey would go for that at all! Actually, Joel and I went with Grandma, PawPaw, and Aunt Lisa to Coldwater, Michigan today to pick up PawPaw's new German Shorthaired Pointer puppy. Joel was so cute at the kennel! At first he wouldn't get down with the puppies, but pretty soon he was running all over with them. He was fine until they would get a little too rambunctious. He liked the puppies in the cages the best! Amazingly enough, he was drawn more to the big dogs, and stood at the fence "talking" to them for quite a while. Joel petted the puppy some on the way home and played with him once we got back. He'll have to make friends with this puppy...I don't think he'll be getting one of his own any time soon! More later....

Joel, Aunt Lisa and PawPaw's new puppy!

Making friends.

Busy, busy, busy.....

Joel has been busy lately, learning all kinds of new things and getting into all sorts of trouble! Let's see....this week he discovered the Wet-Jet and emptied an entire bottle of cleaner on my living room carpet; figured out how to un-do the "baby proofing" we improvised with in the kitchen; discovered that he can now reach the top shelf in the fridge without help (resulting in a gallon of milk hitting the floor, which he thought was hilarious); decided that he likes pushing his wagon around BY HIMSELF, thank you, better than riding in it; and learned how to walk Bailey with her retractable leash (Bailey is less than thrilled). Whew! He really is adorable when he takes Bailey for her walk. We are right there of course, but he is so serious and focused on holding on to her leash that sometimes he forgets to walk! He is so determined that now when we put him in the stroller he has to hold the handle of her leash or he screams his head off. He also discovered my Swiffer Wet-Jet mop. He loves it! He pushed it around for a while before he figured out that if he hits the button stuff will shoot out of it and it makes a funny noise. He honestly did mop almost the whole kitchen while he was playing. Knock yourself out, Joel! Heaven knows I need all the help I can get! :0) He is so active and so eager to do EVERYTHING that he is wearing out his old Mommy and Daddy. We wouldn't change a thing, though! He is the love of our lives and we are thankful for every single day with him. This morning he woke us up about 5:00, and I got up to take care of him. Gone are the days of sleeping in, but his cute little smiling face and free "Joel-y kisses" are totally worth it! More later...

Peek-a-Boo!

Joel's new favorite toy....my Swiffer Wet-Jet! Hey, we might be on to something here! :0)

A little boy's work is never done....

He sleeps in some crazy positions.....

Another new trick....he crawls back and forth like this over and over again. Even Bailey looks at him like "WHY??".

My sweetheart...

Rob gave Joel my old cell phone to play with. He LOVES it! He loves opening and closing it and pushing all the buttons. It still makes noise when you turn it on, and he thinks that is amazing! He's so serious sometimes when he is looking at it, I can't help but laugh at him!

Not sure who's walking who here.....

Joel could do this for hours. Bailey? Not so much!

So cute!

Learning New Tricks....

What a day! Joel was up early and in a foul mood. He is chewing on everything and keeps poking his gums with his fingers. Poor little guy....I think his new teeth are hurting him. Anyway, most of our day was spent listening to him yell and cry. He finally took a nap and was a little better when he woke up, so that was good. He has not been eating very well, but that improved today. This evening we went and visited a family friend and when we got back we let Joel wander around outside for a while. That is his new favorite thing....he just wants to wander around the yard, touching all the bushes and grabbing the grass. He enjoyed playing with his wagon. He actually prefers to push and pull the wagon himself rather than riding in it! That kept him entertained for quite a while. Also, Rob let Joel hold Bailey's retractable leash while he was wandering around and he LOVED it! Bailey was amazingly tolerant of this, and Joel giggled the whole time. He definitely wants to do things himself with no help. I took some pictures but I think they are too blurry to post. I'll take another look amd post some if I can. More later....

Ooops!

Okay, you would think I that I would know this by now, but I forgot to post the pictures before the journalling so that you know what you are looking at. Sorry, but I am too lazy to re-post the journalling so it is the right order. Oh well.. :0)

Our beautiful boy...18 months old!

"Daddy, I need a goat!"

Carter opening his gifts during his birthday party.

Joel at Carter's birthday party.

Ridin' the cars at the fair!

Bring on the ribeye sandwich and milkshake!

Joel and Daddy love the giant slide!

Mommy and Joel on the train at the fair.

Eighteen Months Old...

Joel is 18 months old today. I can't believe how time has flown by! That sweet little tiny peanut baby is now a stubborn, independent, busy, busy boy who gets into everything. He has a very strong personality and definitely wants to do what he wants to do when he wants to do it! Mommy lost her temper for a minute tonight and put him in "Time Out" in his crib. I know he's too little to get the concept, but Mommy had had enough! Anyway, when I went back to get him 10 minutes later he was sound asleep and slept for another hour. I think all the new teeth he is getting have caught up with him. His cold is much better. We took him to the Fulton County Fair last night with Grandma, PawPaw, and Aunt Lisa. He rode the giant slide with Daddy again. He smiles a lot when they do that! Mommy wanted him to ride the live ponies, but he absolutely refused and screamed when Rob tried to put him on the horse. He also didn't seem to like the merry-go-round, which is odd because he has ridden them before. He really liked the little cars. He rode those by himself twice and was full of smiles for that! Today he went to his first birthday party. My friend Lindsey's little boy turns three next week and the party was today. Joel spent most of the time chasing balloons and messing with their goat. He did let Carter give him a hug good-bye, though, so he wasn't completely anti-social! :0) He was supposed to get his pictures done at Sears today, but they messed up and double-booked our appointment so we are going next week instead. That will give his head another week to heal! That's all for now....I will try and post fair/birthday party pictures soon. I'm going to bed before Joel wakes up! More later...

GO BUCKEYES!!!! Joel got all dressed up for the first game of the season! The good guys won 45-7!