That darn dog :)

There have been many times since Kason was born that I have contemplated finding Kaia a new home.  It's not that I don't love her, because I do.  She is a sweet dog that is very well behaved (for the most part).  It just seems like she wants a lot of attention and will do anything to get it.  Between taking care of a baby, teaching 24 sixth graders, cleaning the house, cooking dinner, etc. I just don't feel like I have the time or energy to give Kaia the attention she deserves.

Considering the lack of attention, Kaia has been a great dog since Kason came along.  We decided to get a german shepherd for two reasons and the first being because we read that they were really good with kids.  This is so true.  She is extremely gentle with Kason.  Kason will crawl over to her and grab her hair and she just lays there.  If I did that...I'd lose a hand!  Not Kason, she just sits there and takes it.  They even share toys.....sometimes. :)

The second reason we chose Kaia is because she is supposed to be a protector.  I usually think, "This dog chases her tail..there is no way she will ever protect me"  However, she always proves me wrong. I've never really been in true danger, but there have been a couple of instances where I've gotten scared, and Kaia knows it.  Today I was taking Kaia and Kason on a walk.  We walked passed a house and a dog came charging toward us.  He was barking and growling and it scared me to death!  He was right in front of the stroller but before I could do anything, Kaia darted out in front of the stroller and started going crazy.  Luckily, the owner came out and got the dog.  I would never want Kaia to hurt another dog, but if I felt like that dog was endangering Kason, I'd let her off that leash in a heart beat!  Besides, the other dog was smaller..so I think Kaia could have taken him!  I'm pretty sure she would do anything to protect Kason and I.

Not many people. or in this case dogs, can put up with my lack of patience and still love me unconditionally. I guess we'll keep Kaia around.  After all, Kason would be devastated if we got rid of her.

Especially since he would have no ones toys to steel.  :)

 "A dog doesn't care if your rich or poor, clever or dull, smart or dumb. Give him your heart and he'll give you his. How many people can you say that about? How many people can make you feel rare and pure and special? How many people can make you feel extraordinary?"  -- Marley and Me

Kason is 7 months!

Our sweet baby boy is 7 months old!  I have been getting quite emotional thinking about how quickly time is going.  I literally feel like I was just giving birth not 2 days ago.  I want the time to slow down and I want to try my very hardest to enjoy every moment, even the ugly ones.  Before I know it, Kason will be a toddler and I know I will miss this baby stage.  So time, if you could do me a favor and just slow down, I'd be forever grateful to you.  Thanks.

Ok, enough of my pitty party...

We haven't been to the doctor in a while (thank goodness), but I'm thinking Kason weighs around 15 lbs.  I could be off, that's just a guess! :)

Here is what our BUSY 7 month old is up to...

...Crawling -- Kason hit a BIG milestone this month..crawling!  He has been rolling everywhere for the last month, but about 3 weeks ago he started getting up on all fours and rocking back and fourth.  About a week ago (Monday) he crawled for the first time!  Ever since then, he has been nonstop!  It's hard to keep up with this kid!  I am so thankful he waited until my first day of fall break to crawl.  It melted my heart when he did it for the first time.  He was SO proud of himself!  I've heard it many times before...now that he's moving, our lives will never be the same! :)

...Pulling up -- Along with crawling with crawling, this little (but strong) but is pulling up on everything!  He has taken many falls, but most of the time he just crawls over to whatever he wants, and pulls up on it.  Tables, chairs, boxes, people, etc.  If it's low enough, he'll find away to pull up on it.  I think we may have an early walker on our hands!  YIKES!

...Showing his personality -- Every day we see a little more of this boy's personality begin to emerge.  We know he HATES to have his nose or mouth wiped off.  He LOVES to be tickled.  HATES to fall asleep.  LOVES his fruits and veggies.  HATE teething.  LOVES Kaia, mama, and daddy.  All of these things we know because of his reaction to each of them.  One other thing we have learned is that this little guy is persistent, determined, etc.  If he wants something, he will do everything in his power to get it.  I can see this being good and bad in the future! :)

...Talking -- No real words, but Kason has been babbling up a storm!  He just talks and talks and talks.  I love to hear his sweet little voice, and I can't wait to here his first word!

...Growing -- I just can't believe how much Kason is changing.  He is started to look "bigger" (I know he is still very small) and just look more like a little boy.  He is so interested in everything around him.  Everything is new, and everything is neat.  I just love watching him grow and learn.

Here are some of his 7 month pics!




{I love when he sits on his knees and plays..I think it is SO cute!}

Mornings with kason

Mornings with Kason are my most favorite time of day.  This is the time when he is the happiest.  He has had a good nights rest (most nights) and is ready to go.   It is when he is most interactive and smiley.  Love. It.

Before I went back to work, Kason and I would snuggle in bed for an hour or so in the morning.  We would then slowly emerge into the living room where we would spend time "talking" and playing on the play-mat.  Back then the smiles were fewer and further between, so they were more often in the morning.  That's why mornings became my favorite time.

When I thought about going back to work I remember tearing up thinking of leaving Kason.  The things I knew I would miss most were mornings with Kason, afternoons with Kason, Ellen, and Sonic Happy Hour.  Ok, the last 2 were just a joke..sort of! :)  Anyways, one of the hardest parts about leaving was knowing that I would miss our mornings together.  I leave for school before Kason is awake, so I rarely get any time with him in the mornings.  This broke my heart.  I started living for those Saturday and Sunday mornings with my boy.  I started to ache for fall break to be here.

Well it's finally October which means 2 weeks of fall break!  I have LOVED my morning time with Kason.  So much so, that it is going to be very hard to give it up again in a week.  Our mornings look a little different now.  We can't lay in bed and snuggle so much anymore (unless Kason's snoozing) because the boy likes to roll and crawl all around.  The bed just isn't the best place for rollin' and crawlin'.  So, now we get to come out into the living room a little earlier.  We get to play and laugh together.  I get to watch Kason practice new skills and learn new things.  It's the best time ever.

I will cherish these mornings since they are pretty scarce these days.  These times are the ones that I want to engrain in my memory for when Kason is older and not so into spending his mornings with his mama.

Let's hope those days are far away! :)

Phoyography

I have always loved taking pictures.  I have a horrible memory so I think photos have always been important to me as a means to looking into the past.  In middle school and high school I always had a disposable camera at my side.  I mean, I went through hundreds of those things!  I loved photographing all of those fun high school events that you don't want to forget.  Football games, cheer competitions, prom, youth group events, you name it, I had a kodak disposable camera within arms reach!

When I graduated high school my parents got me a digital camera as part of my gift (you know other than paying for college which was a big enough gift in itself).  I fell in love with it!  It was so nice to not have to actually take pictures to be developed.  That camera captured many college events.  It got its fare share of use.  Sometime in college (I don't remember the exact year) Duane bought me a new, smaller digital camera.  Once again, love!  It captured mine and Duane's first few years together.  With that little read camera I took pictures of my engagement party, pictures of my wedding day festivities, and pictures of our first sweet puppy, Kaia.

In January of 2010 I purchased my first SLR camera.  Talk about love!  I became obsessed!  I had a friend that had the same camera and I always admired the quality of photos he was able to capture.  I knew that when I had kids, I wanted to have a nice camera so that I could take great pictures of them.  I love natural light photography so I knew studio photos were out of the question when it came to photographing my kids.  I got lots of practice taking pictures of Kaia and my niece.  I thought I'd have a few more years of practice and then surprise, I was pregnant!  

I have loved being able to capture Kason's first months of life with my camera.  I am definitely no professional, but I truly love taking pictures of people, especially kids.  There are so many photographers I admire so I don't even like to refer to myself as a "photographer".  So many people are way more talented than I, but I still love the art the goes along with photography.   Having Kason has really changed my love for photography and made me cherish the precious photos I take of my own son even more.

Life I said, I'm no professional but I have truly enjoyed taking pictures of families and kids from time to time.  Most of them are friends that just want some fun pictures, so I do it just for the fun of it.  I've had fun doing this and learning the ins and outs of photoshop over the past year.  I can't wait to learn more in the future (and hopefully upgrade my camera very soon). 

Over fall break (and a few times before) I have had the opportunity to take some photos of some friends and their families/kids.  I know I'm not the best, and would never claim to be, but I am trying!  I look up to so many photographers and hope one day to be able to capture images the way they do.  To do this, I know I will need lots of practice! :)   Here are some of the pictures. 

And one of my new favorites of my sweet boy...

I'm hoping to get a lot more practice in the future, but for now, I am just loving taking pictures and capturing special times in people's lives! :)

Wordless Wednesday

Weekend wrap up

We had such a fun weekend!  I think weekends are so much different now that we have Kason.  Different in a good way, of course!  I love for Kason to experience new things and family traditions.  It's so fun to see the world through his eyes.  Everything is new and everything is so interesting.  Little things that I take for granted send Kason into a state of awe.  His brain is a sponge and he is soaking in the world around him.  I LOVE this age!

This weekend was our town's fall festival.  There was a carnival on Friday night and then Saturday was the annual parade.  We didn't venture out to the carnival on Friday night, it was pretty chilly, so we just went to see Duane's parents in a booth they were working in.  Here are my boys all bundled up.  Well, Kason is bundled up, Duane insisted it was not that cold.  It was.

Saturday was the parade.  I have been watching this parade since I was a kid.  In high school, I walked in the parade with my cheerleading squad.  I was so excited for Kason to experience one of the traditions I experienced as a kid.  We live right along the parade route, so we had quite a big group at our house.  Kason was of course in awe of the whole parade.  He even skipped his morning nap because he was just so interested.  I'm sure he will love it next year, when he can actually stand on his own and catch candy! I didn't take a ton of pictures of the actual parade, because I was holding Kason, but here are a few of the people! :)

{All of these boys were born within 3 weeks of each other! :)}

On Sunday, we went to the orchard.  This is another tradition that I love to share with Kason.  My family went to the same orchard when I was growing up, so it's so fun to take Kason there.  Once again, he just loves to look around at everything going on.  He also loves to "eat" apples.  Ha! :)

{Trying to get some of that yummy apple!}

Such a fun weekend!  Now I just have to get through parent-teacher conferences, literacy night, and 4 days of school and I'm free for 2 weeks!  

Hope your weekend was great. :)