Will's 3rd Birthday Party

My sweet sweet Will. I have to start with a smile on my face and say this will NOT go down in the books as my favorite birthday party memory with you. But you are only 3 and I am still learning you each and every day. The back story is that you have for as long as I can remember been very interested in fire trucks/stations etc. so when I called and found out that our local fire station would let us come for your birthday and tour the station and climb all over the trucks and run around I knew that would be a hit. You told EVERYONE that you were having your birthday party at the fire station and could. not. wait! We invited a good number of your little buddies and your mamma and daddy worked like dogs getting ready for this party. Primarily because no food or cake could be served at the station so everyone was coming back to our house for the party. Minor dilemma was that your daddy FINALLY began building our new deck one month from your birthday and it came as no suprise that every night two weeks leading up to the actual day he was out there finishing that deck. Two days out and it was finally finished (I'll post pictures of that soon!) 

The morning of we scrambled around to pick up and prepare last minute food while attempting to finalize decorations. But wouldn't you know it after all that, in mid October it was still 900degrees outside....

Here you are at the fire station clinging to daddy as you were feeling a bit shy...

Apparently our bud Jack was feeling the same way :)

Sweet Zeke was ready to roll with his super cute fire truck t-shirt!

...and best friend Gerry was hamming it up with his cute face!

The fire man gave a rather serious tour probably for the adults benefit (though he never turned any of the lights on) but the kids were more interested in the cool fish tank in the living room/kitchen area of the station.

My sweet nieces Ellie and Lucy! 

...and FINALLY what he was waiting for... a chance to drive the massive fire truck.

...and I love it, the seats were Pierce brand! How fitting!

All was fun and games until we broke it to Will that there were about 10 other kids who would also like a chance behind the steering wheel. That is when the party took a turn. At least for Will.

Look at this handsome handsome Jack! or Jackaroo as I call him! 

Cee Cee with Fire Chief Pierce! 

It really and truly is not worth capturing any of this "printable party" that I had the grand idea of doing the week of because all the decorations were outside and it was so dang hot we moved the whole thing inside in a rush when everyone arrived. Not to mention I didn't even have time to finish putting everything out. Next year, we are ordering pizza :).

...right before his nap that afternoon I asked Will if he had fun at his fire station birthday party and he said, "No mamma, I did not!" "I did not want my friends to come I wanted it to be just me"... and there ya have it- Mr. Congeniality. The reality is he didn't want to share. Not time on the fire truck, not his new toys or old toys for that matter and he was VERY stressed over the whole thing. Lord help me, this is new territory for me as a mom. I was the kid who wanted everyone at my birthday party and LOVED people but Will apparently is just like his daddy was at this age, a little bashful! 3 is welcoming in some very new challenges so hopefully it will pass quickly...  But even if you are always a little bit shy I will still love every single thing about you, because the truth is you are more than that! You are funny, kind, smart, thoughtful, a GREAT big brother and a very blessed child of God and I love you as I tell you every night "to the moon and back!" Happy 3rd Birthday!

Will's Preschool Birthday Party

Will started preschool this year at Colonial Baptist which is where I grew up going to church as a kid. They have such a great two day two's class and Will LOVES it. Most of all he loves Mrs. Amanda! A few weeks ago I asked if it would be alright to bring in cupcakes for Will's birthday and Mrs. Amanda said of course. (I'm new at this gig, so honestly I wasn't sure) So on Thursday morning I brought Will with the cupcakes and dropped him off to run a few errands before the birthday party.

When I came back the "Other Mrs. Amanda" as Will calls her was there leading there music time and I was soo excited I got to witness how much fun they were having. This picture is when Will realized I was there and he was over the moon to have his mamma in school with him!

 

He's obviously suppose to be particiapted but he just kept smiling and checking back to make sure I was still there! 

Mrs. Amanda called him upfront so they could sing and bless our cupcakes!

 

He was so proud that he got to wear this special #3 around his neck to celebrate! 

 

Miss Brooklyn is on the left and Quinn is on the right and I have to stop and say that Quinn LOVES Will. Quinn's mamma works at the preschool so she is there every day, and each morning she asks her mamma "is Will going to be at school today?" and gets so upset on the off days when he's not there. Melts my heart...

 

And the best part for Will was when I told him he could come home early with me! I honestly thought he would want to stay for outside time but nope, he wanted to leave early which I was totally fine with as it was already 11. Happy 3rd birthday my big preschooler Will! We are soo proud of you!

Happy 7 Months baby Pierce!

Sweet baby Pierce I can hardly believe you are already 7 months old. The time is truly flying by. You, sweet boy are busy, busy, busy! You just started to army crawl and you get better and better each day. I have a feeling are lives are about to get a little more exciting at the Shipman household. 

While you continue to be a happy baby, lately you have been much more discontent and seem frustrated. I assume that is because you have places to go and people to see. On top of all that, we are still waiting to see your first pearly white so EVERYTHING is going into your mouth. I try to keep your paci in as much as possible for fear of what you might try to eat. You also will not poop since we started solids which is enough to make any of us grumpy!

 Not much has changed this month with your schedule (sleeping/eating) except you eat lunch and dinner pretty well and have started to decrease your fluid intake to 5oz at each feed which is to be expected. You are still a fantastic sleeper.

 Even though you don't seem to be very loud or verbal you are the best belly laugher I have ever seen and you laugh ALL. DAY. LONG. Primarily at your big brother who you continue to delight in. The doctor says you are our little observer!

 
 

The major happy thing I have to report is that you have stayed well this past month, Praise the Lord! No ear infections to report so for now, no tubes! Yay!

 I continue to watch in amazement as your relationship with your big brother gets more and more. Will LOVES you to pieces and when you nap, he always asks "Where's Piercey Pants" which is what he fondly calls you! He hates when we hold you and is always asking us to put you down so you two can "play". Warms my heart to think of how you will have a best friend and protector for life! We love you so much baby Pierce!

A Letter from Mamma to Will on your 3rd Birthday!

My sweet precious Will,

This past weekend we celebrated your third birthday and over the course of the weekend several tears were shed (by me of course!).  When did you get so big?!? These past three years have flown by. Your daddy and I are so very proud of the little man you are becoming. You are funny, smart, kind, handsome, bashful, stubborn, talkative (in your comfort zone), wild and yet still such a snuggler. I always call you my little rascal because you are just that a rascal!  

You have changed so much in the last 6 months. We said goodbye to all your paci's 6 months ago, Potty trained before your baby brother arrived...then regressed and are now back to being fully potty trained. You are no longer my awesome sleeper... you have such a hard time slowing down your mind and finally falling asleep (just like your mamma) and naps continue to be hit or miss, though your 2 hours of quiet time in your room is not optional. You LOVE your Thomas trains and play in your room for hours as you pretend to be Thomas or Percy. You love to help me cook dinner and for the most part are relatively obedient. You are a GREAT little soccer player and love kicking your new soccer ball. Your favorite shows are Daniel Tiger's neighborhood and Thomas and friends. You absolutely love going to preschool at Colonial on Tuesdays and Thursdays and love your Jesus songs (Psalty Kids Praise) that we check out from the library.

The greatest change I have seen in you though is your new love for your baby brother Pierce. You love to climb into his bed and snuggle and tickle him and if we would let you, you love bouncing him around in the crib as you act like it is a trampoline. If Pierce is not with us or you simply can't see him you are very concerned. And HE lights up when you walk into the room. He is your biggest fan and you have begun to delight in that. You have made a major transition from loving me the most to preferring your Daddy strongly! At first I was hurt, but now it makes my heart glad as I see your desire to be just like Daddy. This past month you have spent every waking hour outside helping your daddy build our new deck with your tool box in hand ready to "help.". Your sweet spirit was completely devastated when you woke up last Thursday morning to find that it was all finished. Precious hours of father/son time me and your daddy will always remember.

Humorous to your Daddy but not so humorous to me is that since preschool began a month ago you have started to stutter ALL.THE. TIME. I cringe each time you struggle to get out your question to me but the doctor laughed when I asked about it at your appointment and said that it's called the 3 year stutter. She explained that it is caused by the rapid brain development. Basically your brain is processing faster than your mouth can spit it out. She assured me by 4 it would be gone!

Your favorite little buddies continue to be little Gerry, your cousin Lucy and sweet little Jack Barnhill. I can't wait to watch those friendships grow. Your daddy and I pray each day that you would grow to be a man who Loves Jesus more than anything, a man who has the gospel written on his heart and a man who would fiercely love people, considering others more important than yourself.

Will, I could not possibly love you any more and I can't wait to reflect back a year from now to see how much more you have grown!  Happy Birthday my sweet first born!

Happy 6 months baby Pierce!

My sweet second child. We could not possibly love you any more. Between waiting for your 6 month well check and being sick we are a bit delayed on getting your stats up!

You have honestly had a tough last month. First, you got a terrible stomach virus that lasted for 10 days and consequently caused you to get another ear infection. You recovered well but then 3 weeks later you came down with a cold that you picked up at church which also turned into another nasty double ear infection. You've got your mamma worried because according to the pediatrician if you get more than one more ear infection they are going to want to discuss tubes...That dear friends is something daddy and I desperately would like to avoid. The thought of putting our infant under anesthesia for surgery is more than I can bear. But unfortunately the doctor said because of your anatomy, every time you get sick you will inevitably get an ear infection until your ears are more developed. What does that mean around here...lots of hand washing, paci washing, hand sanitizer and NO CHURCH NURSERY for at least 2-3 months. Certainly not ideal, but it will be short lived and well worth the sacrifice in the short term.

On to your stats...

Weight: 19 lbs (77%)

Height: 26.75 in (55%)

Head: 44 cm (70%)

You are one big boy, but not as big as I thought you were going to be when we arrived. You continue to be super contented and easy going. You truly are a joy to be around. True confession...sometimes I forget you are in the house and I panic as I quickly come see that you are contentedly playing in your excersaucer, johner jumper or just playing with your toys on the floor.

 

Eating:
We derailed from solids shortly after you turned 5 months because of the stomach bug. The last thing you needed at that point was more roughage. But in the past week we have started again and on our best day, you get lunch and dinner consisting of either a fruit and veggie or fruit/veggie and oatmeal. You have yet to turn your nose up to anything. You love it all!  You still take a bottle at  7:45, 11:30, 3:30, 7:15 and yes we are still ridiculously dreamfeeding you at 10:00pm. Its completely your mamma. I just love more than anything that quiet feed at night before I go to bed where I kiss your head the whole time and get to solely focus on YOU. Yes you are asleep and nutritionally don't even need it but soon we will take that away. (Full disclosure, we have never tried a single night to not feed you before going to bed so time will tell how that transition goes.)

Sleeping:
You continue to be my high sleep baby. You go down at 7:30 and wake up at 7:45am with not a peep through the night. You take two 2-2.5 hour naps. Usually from 9-11 and 1-3:30. Your brother at this age was still not consistently sleeping through the night and only took two 1.5 hour naps. We are also in a weird stage where I have cut out your catnap in the evening because you are on the fence of needing it and not needing it. I imagine very soon you'll be just fine to go til 7:30 without rubbing your eyes at 6pm.

Milestones:
You are sitting like a champ. We still try to put pillows around you so that when you inevitably do fall over you don't hurt your sweet head but even when you do you don't cry. You are desperately wanting to crawl as you flail your arms and legs trying to figure out how to make yourself move, Usually you just pull yourself around to get where you want to go or just roll to the toy you want. Still no true baby talk. Just lots and lots of belly laughs and "ahhhhs" no "gagaga" or "dadada" yet. The doctor said you appear to be an observer but not delayed in the least. I have found that you talk the most when all is quiet otherwise you just want to take in all the action.

Likes:
WILL...Will is your favorite person in the whole wide world with me as a close second. You crane your head to see where he is and what he is doing. It makes my heart burst with joy to see the bond forming, Will's favorite thing to do now is to get into the crib with you and "play". You both laugh and squeal at the top of your lungs as he squeezes your belly with a big hug or lays next to you as you try to grab his face, You continue to just love people. You delight in others delighting in you. You also love eating, sleeping and being able to move around on the floor.

Dislikes:
Really nothing to note here... The only time you cry is when you watch me walk out of the room and that is half hearted crying at best.

 

Sweet Pierce, may you continue to be my favorite 2nd born little boy! We love you so so much!

"Mamma...could we please be done?"