Still Here

Deacon and I are still doing TOT School. I didn't know what our theme should be after we were done with dogs. Derek thought it should be a fruit so we had settled on oranges...random I know. Then on the Sunday night before we were going to introduce orange on Wednesday-Derek took Deacon outside with him to set the trash out and pointed up to the moon and said moon...which Deacon repeated again and again. So we changed themes! I made him 4 moons on the cricut since the moon was created on the 4th day. We read Goodnight Moon and went outside and pointed at the moon every night. As the moon changed Deacon started calling it a ball but now he knows it's the moon. He also has a turtle that projects stars on the ceiling and we turn it on as he goes to bed and he shows us the moon. I love having a theme we focus on for a couple of weeks because I feel it helps expand his language and knowledge. We are now going to move on to a Halloween theme for the month of October. I would love for him to learn the word Pumpkin.

As many of you know God has led our lives down a new path. I have accepted a position with the Marshall County Board of Education. It will be different in that I will work 5 days a week but I will be home with Deacon in bigger chunks of time several times throughout the year. It is a decision that we prayed over for several months. We knew that if a school position opened I needed to apply but we didn't expect one to open up this year. God had other plans and we are excited to start this new journey.

For the past 3 years I've been blessed to work with an amazing team. They were there through some tough times in my life and celebrated the anticipation and birth of Deacon with me. For girls and now guys with such varied ages and interests we bonded together and got along like a family. I will forever be grateful for the therapy team at Bradford Heights. They supported me my first 3 years as a Speech Pathologist and were happy for me when I made the decision to leave. Though I won't see them as often I will for sure keep in touch. I've worked with a unique population the last several years. My patients have been much older than me and I've admired and respected each one I've had the privilege to treat. They have all left a lasting impression on my heart. They've made me a more faithful, compassionate, caring, sensitive person and that is truly a blessing.

Derek and I decided before having Deacon that we would do whatever it took to ensure his best interest was always put first. We are both the type of people who put our whole hearts into anything we do and child rearing is no different. We struggled with knowing whether or not it would be in Deacon's best interest for me to work the school schedule or to work 3 days a week until he got in school. We knew hands down I needed to be in the schools before he got there. We decided to let go of that decision and let God and he provided all the answers and things just fell into place. We would appreciate your prayers as our family embarks on this new and exciting journey. I love love love kids...not just my own but all kids as if they were my own. I hope God uses me as an instrument in these sweet children's lives.

Tot School

I'm finally starting something new with Deacon that I've been thinking about for awhile. It's what alot of moms call tot school which is exactly what the name suggests-school for tots. Alot of these moms home school their older children and so they plan structured themes and activities for their younger children. The blog where I got most of my information from is http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.com/totschool.html. She has lots of theme ideas and printables I will be using in the future. We are blessed that Deacon is with my mom, Derek or I at all times. No matter who he is with he gets one on one attention which is invaluable to us and exactly what we wanted. It has more advantages than I can even begin to mention. However, Deacon rules the show. He decides what he is going to do and when he is going to do it and we just follow his lead. That's why I think it is so important to do some structured activites with him each day. We will all be working on the same concepts following a basic theme that will change every two weeks. I hope to document it all here. After Christmas we will advance to letters and numbers and that will be the basis of our themes.

I'm going to introduce the themes to Deacon on Wednesday mornings. When he wakes up in the morning he will find his special bucket in the floor. We are then going to go to the library and pick out some books related to our theme. I'm not going to force him to play with the items in the bucket but they will be available to him throughout the day and I know he will take an interest in them.

The first theme is dogs. Deacon loves dogs thanks to Maddy and he can already say the word and make the sound. This made it an obvious first choice as he already has an interest in it. The activities below are a starting point and I hope to add one or two more dog activities throughout the next two weeks.

This is the bucket I'm going to use for his theme activities. His Aunt Jill made it for him for his birthday.


These are some of his dog toys. Most of these he hasn't seen or played with in the last couple of months. These theme activities will also help me rotate his toys as he typically plays with the same ones over and over.


I found these silly bands at Hobby Lobby in the clearance aisle. Deacon loves jewelry so I know he will enjoy putting them on and taking them off. They are in the shape of dogs and he will always be under close supervision when playing with them.

This is a book we got while I was pregnant and it tells the story of a K-9 dog and officer. This will help bring in Derek's job to the theme.

This is a basic little book I made him.

It is filled with stickers that are different textures which he will enjoy feeling of.

I put these dogs on sticks for him to play with.

These are his big and little folders. The glue isn't dry but it will dry clear. Deacon can say so big and we often contrast that he is so big and Maddy is so little so I thought that would be a good learning activity to work towards. I don't expect him to be able to sort them and understand what big means and what little means but he usually does a good job putting things back in the place they go and it will be good early exposure regardless.

The big folder with big bones and big dogs.

The little folder with little dogs and little bones.

His bucket of goodies which I'm about to sneak in and place on his bedroom floor.

I think it's important that Deacon has some type of learning activity each day because if he were at a daycare he would be getting that for sure. I know that he may not fully understand the concepts we are working towards this week but he usually surprises me with how quickly he picks new things up. When he is a little older we will add in themed lunches which I can't wait for!

If you are an avid blog reader as myself or a pinterest addict which I'm also guilty of then you have seen these ideas I'm sure. These moms are having great success so I hope we do too. I couldn't have done any of these activities without my cricut. This project cost less than $7. Stay tuned for more themes in the coming weeks...

Deaconisms

• Yes that is sand you see all over his face. He loves his new sand and water table and like to dump sand all over his face.


• We played with water balloons the other night and had the best time-Thanks Aunt Tay


• His vocabulary is really picking up and he never shuts up...we just can't yet understand most of what he says


• We haven't introduced many new signs now that his vocabulary is expanding but he did learn "stop" He loves tellling "Ma!" (Maddy) to stop


• I'm really encouraging independent play a little bit each day. It's a skill I was worried he was going to miss since we try and interact with him every waking moment. Independent play is an important part of development so I knew we needed to work on this. I love just sitting in his room and watching him pull every book off the shelf and look through them without me trying to teach colors, animal sounds, etc.


• He loves to pretend to talk on the phone. He calls dad most often especially when he's at work


• Maddy and Deacon are the best of friends and he gets so excited when she gets up in the morning.


• He loves to pretend cook while I'm cooking. He loves to stir ice and make a huge mess.


• He is feeding himself most anything but making a HUGE mess! I love watching his fine motor skills develop. I've gotten him some adaptive equipment to help build these skills....can you tell I work with OT's


• He will pick up most anything such as hair gel, hairbrush, toothbrush and mimic its intended purpose


• My absolute favorite thing he has learned to do is clasp his hands together in prayer. He is a sponge and picks up on most things quickly. We have tried so hard to instill our Christian values in him since day 1 and to finally see it in him warmed our hearts. When we ask him to pray he folds his hands together very quickly but ever so sweetly. He doesn't keep them folded during the entire prayer but he definately knows we are praying. He has even done it in church a couple times right on cue.
  

100th post

It's our 100th blogpost! I've been really bad about updating this blog but I hope to get better! Deacon is doing wonderful. We are working on body parts and colors with him and he is doing really well. I have started couponing and there is so much to learn. I hope to take a couple classes and get better and share some tips on my blog from time to time.

Deacon is going to his first wedding this weekend so I'll post pictures from that for sure!

Dearest Deacon

Deacon,
I can't believe you are already one year old. It seems like just yesterday I was getting the positive pregnancy test and now you are a toddler. This past year has been the most amazing year of my life. You brought new meaning to our family and to our hearts.

You are 100% boy. You are rough and tough and very loud! I LOVE being a boys mom. You've taught me to love loud noises, trucks, trains, dirt, and balls! You love for us to build things for you to destruct. You are certainly your daddy's child. You love tinkering with things, lights, and all things electronic. I can't wait to see what you two create in the years to come.

You love your sissy girl more than anything but you also love to yell at her! We can't wait to know what you are saying to her because from the sounds of it it's not too nice. You think you are the boss of her and for the most part she lets you be. It really is true that a dog is a boy's best friend.

I've loved watching you learn so many new things. This world is so full of wonder and you are a blank slate just soaking it all in. You enjoy the simple things in life. We love watching you learn new signs and words every day.

We pray for you every night that you grow into the young man God desires you to be. He already has a plan for your life sweet boy and we pray we are doing our part to mold you into the role you will play on this Earth. We continually pray for wisdom in our newfound role as parents.

Thank you for blessing us this past year over and over again. You give us new reasons to smile everyday. You've taught me to not sweat the small stuff. I used to insist on cleaning my house every week and always having the laundry caught up but now I know those are such trivial things. I'll worry about those things again when you are all grown up! You've taught Daddy and I new ways to fall in love with each other all over again. Seeing you with him just melts my heart.

We love you more than words can say!

Mommy and Daddy

Still here!

Hi! My mommy's busy planning my first birthday but she will be back to updating soon!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

11 months

• Visited Florida and swam in the ocean for the first time





• Caught his first fish with lots of help from Dad





• Went to Venture River for the first time





• Can stand for several seconds on his own





• Consistently says: dada, momma, ma (Maddy), Tay, hey, huh, bye-bye, mum-mum





• Signs-more, please, thank you, and finished





• Loves most all finger foods except for tortillas, english muffins, bar-b-que





• Weaned down to two nursing sessions morning and night and began drinking whole milk from a bottle-he usually only drinks from sippy cups but he won't drink the milk from a sippy cup

We are in full fledge party planning mode at our house! We can't wait to celebrate the first year of his life!

Mommy's Day

Mothers Day this year had a whole new meaning thanks to Deacon. It was my first mothers day although last year I was very aware of his presence! This picture is the exact moment I became a mommy. It is a moment I will always treasure. Looking into the eyes for the first time is a moment I'll never forget and I'm so thankful my husband took this picture.


Derek and I saw his mom on Saturday night for Mothers Day and we met my mom and grandma for breakfast before church. My parents were heading to Lexington for Chase's graduation (yay Chase!!!!)

Deacon and I before church-love him so much!


After church Deacon took a nap and I did some embroidering. Then when he woke up we set out for an afternoon of family time. Derek and I decided to plan an event or an activity for Mothers Day and Fathers Day instead of gifts. Our birthdays are in April and May and our anniversary is in June so we don't need more gifts. As Deacon gets older I'm sure he will enjoy planning the day with the other parent.

We were planning on going to Belews the scenic route thru Cadiz to look at the flooding and take a hike. We were also going to go fishing for the first time and see if we could catch Deacon a fish. Well...that plan changed when we saw the Elk and Bison Prairie at LBL. Jackson and Amelia love going here so we knew Deacon would to. We got up to pay and the credit card machine was out of order and they only took $1 or $5 bills which we didn't have. This didn't stop Daddy though-50 minutes and 15 miles later we had the correct change. Thanks Barkley Lodge!

It couldn't have been a more perfect day. To see the excitement in Deacon's eyes is something I'll always cherish.


His face when he saw the animals was priceless. The bison were so close to our car and several crossed right in front of us.

We then found a little creek and stopped for pictures. I love this picture of him. A perfect ending to our day!

10 months

We are a little behind on our blogging because our camera has been in the shop but it's fixed now and we will be picking it up soon! Deacon turned 10 months old on Easter Sunday. We recently got his 9 month proofs back so I will share a couple of my favorite pictures and do his 9 month stats. Then I will be taking his 10 month pictures this week and sharing those as well. I'm hoping to start blogging more as more and more of my friends are getting blogs.

• Deacon is eating mostly table foods. He will eat anything we put in front of him and we feel so blessed by this. He loves all fruits, veggies, veggie burgers, cheese, pancakes, soft pretzels, and oatmeal. We are introducing new things all the time.





• He has signed the words: more, please, and thank you in the last week. He does more very consistently and appropriately. He won't do it unless he truly wants more of something-he won't do it on command. A few times we haven't given him what he wants quick enough so he will throw in please but it's not very consistent. We are working on finished now and he does something similiar to finished but I'm not sure if it's purposeful yet.





• He can get down off the chair or couch without tumbling head first. He knows to turn around and slide off.





• He can blow kisses, make an indian noise, and make a sound that sounds like our boat when we ask him how our boat goes.





• He says mama and dada consistently and Ma for Maddy. He can also use hey, hi, bye bye and mum mum pretty regularly. He has said several other words but not enough for them to be purposeful.





• He is sleeping 12 hours a night and taking 2 naps a day for the most part





• He went to Bowling Green on an overnight trip this month, dyed Easter Eggs, went to an Egg Hunt, went to the movies, played outside and lots more fun things I can't remember





• He is the best shopper in the world and will stay in his stroller all day long!





• He can stand briefly unassisted and can walk around all the furniture. We know walking is right around the corner.

We can't wait for the fun things we have ahead of us. I'm in full 1st birthday planning mode and I'm trying to get as much accomplished as possible while he naps and after he's in bed.

May God bless you all this week!

Sorry

This post will have no pictures as our camera is in the shop:( This is good for Deacon and terrible for us! Thank goodness we have our cell phones and another camera. I have his 9 months picture that I will post when the camera is back. We have been busy the past few week but are enjoying the time we get to spend outside. I have been working in Princeton the past couple of weeks so it's been nice to be so close to home. It makes for much shorter days. We have several Easter activities planned for the next week. We bought Deacon some plastic eggs and he has been practicing his egg hunting skills. He went and saw the Easter Bunny last weekend and wasn't scared at all. He also saw his first movie theatre movie-HOP and loved it! We are making Resurrection Rolls with our Sunday School class this Sunday. I hope that we can convey the death and resurrection of our Savior in a way that is meaningful and something they will remember forever!

Almost 9 months...

We have been taking advantage of this nice weather and playing outside as much as possible. Deacon loves being outside which is good because we do too!

Swinging


We had a wonderful time at the Wizard of Oz


Jackson, Deacon, Amelia


Sweet boy in his adorable shirt

His new trick is to do his hands like this when we ask him how big he is...so big!

Playing at church

He loves his car

First trip to Rupp to cheer on the Marshals!

Mommy's boy

Love him!

With him fam!

Such a ham!

Styling before church

8 months old!

You are 8 months old sweet baby! We can't believe you have gotten so big! We have had so much fun with you.

Highlights:

• Size 3 diapers- very close to size 4
• 6-9 month clothes
• Words-bye-bye, mama, dada, hey, poppa, ocar (oscar)
• He can wave bye and can sometimes point to mommy's nose
• He got his first black eye by falling into Maddy's toy box
• Pulling up and walking around furniture
• Can walk behind his lion toy
• Nurses about 5 times a day
• Sleeps about 12 hours a night and takes 2 naps (Thank you God!)
• Eats food that mommy and daddy make: blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, peaches, pears, applesauce, banana, broccoli, peas, green beans, mixed veggies, chicken, squash, sweet potato, carrots-we buy organic yogurt and oatmeal
• Started going to the nursery at church and does so good

Just this week Deacon has learned that even though he can't see one of us we are still there. If he's in the room with me and hears Derek in another room he crawls as fast as he can to look for him. The other night I was in the bathtub and he was in the living room with Derek and he crawled all the way into the bathroom to find me. He is learning so much every day and we are blessed to get the opportunity to raise him!

We're off to see the wizard...

Saturday night we are off to see the Wizrad of Oz with the Boone's at the Carson Center. I've been dying to host a movie night but I knew Deacon wouldn't appreciate it yet. So I got the idea to have a Wizard of Oz movie night and invite the Boone's. That way we could refresh our memories on the movie before seeing the play. A movie night is simply a themed party to go along with the movie you are watching. Lots of blogs I follow do these for their children and I AM IN LOVE with the idea. The Smith home will be having movie nights at least once a month when Deacon is old enought to watch a movie. All you do is watch the movie ahead of time and plan a themed party around the movie similiar to a birthday party. This movie night cost less than $20 and the kids loved it!

Uncle Michael and Aunt Jill brought Deacon the Wizard of Oz toys



The kids on the yellow brick road

Follow the yellow brick road-I'm lucky to have a husband who goes along with my ideas:)

The yellow brick road made by D

The witches brew....I'm melting....

Toto's dog food

Scarecrow's diploma

Wicked Witch cookies

Tinman's heart

We also had somewhere over the rainbow fruit cocktail and munchkin mix which was miniature oreos, teddy grahams, and nutter butters. This was the favor the Boone kids took home with them. The first movie night was a success.

We are still here!

It's been awhile since we've posted but we are still here. Deacon is at the stage where he is into everything so when he's awake we have to follow his every move. When he's asleep there's always lots to do so that leaves little time for blogging.

Deacon has started walking behind his lion push toy and it is so adorable. Sometimes he let's go and does it one handed. I know he will be walking soon. He can also wave bye-bye now and it is so cute too! I'll do a post soon with his 8 month stats! He is eating so good and continues to eat food that we make him. We are starting to slowly introduce finger foods.

Derek and I are going on a much needed date Saturday night. I think the last one was the beginning of January. It's just so hard to leave Deacon because we are both so crazy about him but we truly believe the best gift you can give your children is to love your spouse unceasingly. We can't wait for a night out! Aunt Tay surprised us tonight and told us she is making an unplanned trip home this weekend so this will give them some bonding time:)

I've finally decided to get serious about loosing this baby weight. It was affecting me in lots of ways but most of all my emotional well being. I know how to loose weight as I've done it before but I had to want to loose it. We started the Made to Crave book at church and it's exactly what I needed. I'm not following any particular diet but I am thinking about every bite that goes in my mouth. I'm making much better choices. Since I was on Weight Watchers several years ago I remember all the concepts so I do follow most of their guidelines. I've lost just over 5 pounds in a week and a half and I already feel better about myself. This book really made me realize I was made to crave something so much more than food-my heavenly father who wants me to be at peace with my body. I think my breaking point was when I told Derek I wasn't going on the boat this summer unless I lost weight-it's one of my favorite things to do and a family activity I enjoy. So here I am trying to get down to a healthy size again. I'm using this time of sacrifice and self control to grow closer to God. I know I can do it!

I only have one picture to post tonight-It's of Deacon reading his bedtime story. I could just eat him up!

Park Fun

We took Deacon to the park today to enjoy this beautiful day! He had so much fun and I know we be making many more trips. He wants to take his car next time so he can ride on the trail!

Valentines Day

We had a little Valentines lunch to celebrate Deacon's first Valentines Day. I love all the holidays and I want to make each one special for him. Derek, Deacon, and Maddy each had there own little tin.

Deacon's gifts

The table