my little cowboy.

Tyler took this picture of Cruz just last week.  He decided that he was going to be a cowboy that day.  He picked out his whole outfit and wore his hat to school (and the gym later that day!).  

It's time for an update on my little man.

• He is so curious about everything.  He wants to know exactly how things work.  You can just see the little wheels in his head churning when he's trying to figure something out.  The other day he was trying to figure something out and kept asking me questions.  He kept saying "I don't get it".  Then when I finally explained it well enough he said "OH, I get it now Mom.".  haha.  
• He loves preschool.  It is so much fun for me to pick him up each time and see the excitement on his face as he shows me his projects and talks about his day.  It's been so good for him.  Tyler and I went to our first Parent Teacher Conferences the other day.  His teacher gave him all "M's"...which means "Always or Most of the time".  She said he does really well in the class, plays well with the kids, listens really good, and that she loves having him in her class.  She had all good things to say.  We were so happy to hear that.  We told Cruz that we were very proud of him!  On our way to the conferences Tyler asked Cruz if he listened at school, and Cruz said yes...and then proceeded to tell him that he doesn't always listen at home.  Love his honesty! :)
• He adores his baby sister and hasn't shown much jealousy towards her.  He always wants her in the same room as him...and is always asking to play with her.  You can tell he wants her to interact with him so badly.  
• The other day Cruz came out of the bathroom and said - "Mom, don't look!".  To which I replied "Oh dear, what did you do?".  He said "Nothing!...(pause)...well, the play-doh fell in the toilet.  But it's ok!  I took it out!".  I then asked him: "Did you flush the toilet after you went to the bathroom".  He said: "Yes! (pause) Oh, no, I didn't.  But it's ok!  I got it out and dried it off with the towel".  Oh Cruz. :)
• He is always wanting to listen to music.  We have spotify accounts on our phones and he is always asking to listen to our country playlist.  His favorites are: "Cruise" (which he thinks was written for him), "Big Green Tractor", and now "Little Bitty".  He also loves   "One Thing Remains". 
• He LOVES to talk, to anybody that will listen. :)  Sometimes I have to tell him that Mommy's ears need a rest because they're tired.  It kills him to wait...and is so excited when the rest is over!  
• Cruz and Daddy have been having lots of wrestling matches before bed.  Lately they have been acting like different animals during these wrestling matches.  It is pretty hilarious to watch.  And listen to, I should add.  Most nights Cruz has to put on his wrestling mask we got for him while we were in Mexico. 
• He is one of the world's slowest eaters.  This is probably my biggest challenge, and the thing that I need the most patience for as a mother.  We are constantly getting after him to eat faster.  He is such a social little guy and isn't too concerned about eating.  It's not really that he doesn't like what he's eating...he'd just rather talk, or get distracted with something else. :)  We have tried all sorts of tricks...timers, rewards, dessert, early bedtime, no snacks, etc.  They work sometimes, but it's still a challenge most nights.  Sigh.  It's a hard thing for this Mommy who struggles with control issues.  
• When we talk about how much we love each other, he says, "I love you 100!".  
• Nearly everyday he asks me where we're going or who's coming over. :)  We have to keep the social calendar pretty full for this guy. (Hmm, who does that remind me of??)
• He is a total boy and loves playing with his cars and trains.  He went through a spell where he didn't play with his trains as much, and now he has to take Toby and Dart to bed with him every night. 
• He sleeps on the floor by his bed everyday for naptime.  He started doing this awhile back and continues to do so every day!    

 Oh how I love my little 4 year old.  He is a total sweetheart and I love his imagination/creativity!  I thank God for my little talker.  :)  I'm looking forward to this year with him...we are going to have so much fun together!

cruz's 4th birthday

My little boy turned 4 years old on January 8th (I realize this was one month ago, please excuse the lateness of this post!)  I keep looking at him and wondering how in the world he is already 4 years old.  He has grown up so much this past year.  I know that I always say that, but the change from 3 to 4 is crazy.  He is a little boy, and doesn't have the baby features anymore.

I can't imagine life without this little guy.  He changed our world 4 years ago.  He brings us so much joy.  I've learned so much from my little boy.  I absolutely love his enthusiasm for life and his adventurous spirit.

We had great fun celebrating Cruz.  He woke up with streamers on his door and then he got to open his present from Mommy and Daddy before going to preschool.  

We got him an electric race track.  Tyler had set it up downstairs the night before, so we just wrapped up the box and then showed him the track downstairs.  The boys had great fun playing for a little bit before we raced off for preschool. 

After preschool (we took snacks - he asked for goldfish and cheese sticks!) we went to Chick-fil-A with some of his buddies.  Daddy came and joined us, too!  It was a fun little lunch.  He's got some great little friends. :)

Later that night...putting together his very first lego set.  They sat at the table and worked on this for like 45 minutes...which is impressive, because he hardly ever sits still. :)  He loved it!

And then on Friday night we had a birthday party at our house with family and some close friends.  Cruz asked for a Lightening McQueen party, so that's what he got!  We had pulled pork, artichoke dip, creamy corn and macaroni casserole, a delicious salad that my Mom brought, and finger jello that my sister brought.  It was a great night celebrating our little 4 year old.  I so wanted him to have a FUN evening, and it sure seems like he did.  :)  He loves to play with his cousins/friends...he is always asking where we're going or who's coming over.

Aunt Sara and Cousin Jake

He gave hugs after each gift.  He did so well opening the gifts and his excitement over each gift was so cute! 

More legos!!  So excited!

He was asking for a Lightening McQueen cake ALL.WEEK.LONG.  We thought we better get him what he asked for. :)  Here he is...so excited!!

Daddy did good.  Daddy has become the cake carver/decorator in our family.  We're getting a system down...we weren't up until 2am the night before this year!

Baby girl with her "Auntie" Jill.

cruz

(His awesome outfit he came up with one morning.  Cowboy hat, pajama shirt, Daddy's belt, underwear, and Daddy's socks).

- You are growing like a weed!  Sometimes I just stare at you and wonder when it was, exactly, that you got so big.  I told you the other day that you need to stop growing, that you can't get any bigger because I always want you to be little.  You thought that was pretty funny.  Later on I overheard you talking about it out loud during your nap.

- You love your buzz lightyear toys.  You run around saying, "to infinity, and beyond!"...and always have to get your wings on.

- You love to play the demo songs on the piano.  You run around the house with your superhero cape on to one of them.

- You hide about every night when Daddy gets home.  Most of the time you hide in the same spot.  And you cannot keep from laughing or yelling out to Daddy from where you are hiding. :)

- Our biggest challenges these days are getting you to eat all of your food, and getting you to listen right away.  You are easily distracted and sometimes can't even make it up the stairs before forgetting what you were sent to do. :)

- You are so social!  You ask me about every day where we are going or who is coming over.

- You have some really good buddies from church that you love to play with.  We are so thankful for your guy buddies.

- For some reason you started taking naps on the floor in your room instead of on your bed.  You ask to do this everyday!

- You love to do crafts and projects.

- You talk all.the.time.  Oh, do you ever love to talk. :)

- I told you the other day that you were my special treasure....and you looked at me and said "Mommy, you're my treasure special, too!".

- You love to help me in the kitchen and are always asking if you can help with whatever I'm doing.

- You love to listen to your radio.

- You love to go to the park down our street, we go several times a week!

- You love your little sister so very much.  You are always kissing her and giving her loves.  Your voice gets pretty high when you talk to her.  It's pretty cute. :)

- You told me the other day that when you get bigger you're going to "get my own gum, and my own phone".

- You love watching cartoons (maybe a little too much!).  Your favorites are Team Umizoomi, Mike the Knight, and Dora.

- We read Curious George about every night.

- Your mommy and daddy love you to pieces and can't imagine life without you.  

January Misc

Well, we're still here. :) Playing the waiting game. But that is ok. I am enjoying my time with Cruz and am also enjoying checking things off my list! Here are some pics from January that I have been wanting to post of Cruz. Love this boy.

He got this Buzz Lightyear pillow for his birthday and absolutely loves him. Here he is sharing his popcorn. He takes very special care of Buzz. I think Buzz will be great for when the baby comes...Buzz will be Cruz's doll to take care of.

Love my brown-eyed boy.

What a little stinker face.

Macaroni art.

Cruz got this book from MaMa Jackson for Christmas...it's a recordable book with MaMa's voice in it. He loves it and gets so excited when he hears her voice.

cruz's 3rd birthday...party with friends!

cruz turned three on january 8th. i still can't believe i have a three year old! we had two parties for him this year...a friend's party and a family party. for the party with friends we went to bk. i'm new at the whole kid party thing, but it worked out great to have it there! there was a great play area, so the kids had fun playing for awhile. cruz has some awesome little friends. i love seeing him play with his buddies and develop friendships. and i am so thankful for my friendships with the moms. :) it was a fun morning! sorry for all of the pics...i couldn't narrow it down very much.

daddy showed up for part of the party! yay! cruz was excited, as you can tell.

we had a john deere tractor theme. (mainly because of how much cruz loves papa jackson's tractor!)

love these pics of cruz and his buddies...

thanks to everyone who came! we loved having you be a part of cruz's special day.