Nolan has really always been a "talker". But lately he is just plain NOISY! I think he loves to hear his voice and really loves the reactions he gets. We call him our little baby eagle (use your imagination - he totally sounds like a bird). Here are a couple great videos.
And trying to eat his ball.
He cracks us up and we are so lucky to have him around! Arlo usually thinks so too, but in the car on the way home from school today he asked baby Nolan to "please stop making baby noises". :)
I broke a promise to my son today for the first time. Thankfully, it was only that I forgot to bring his favorite Hot Wheels car when I picked him up from preschool. But you'd think it was the end of the world. "Mommy, you said you would bring Fandango when you pick me up from preschool after music!!!" (Sobbing.)
My heart shattered into a million pieces to see him so crushed. I let him down! Please, let me never break a promise I've made to him again.
I've promised myself I'd start writing down some of the sweet, smart, and flippin' hilarious things Arlo says so I won't forget them. Here are a couple from lately...
Sweet:
Arlo started a church preschool at the beginning of September. He loves it and I love that he loves it (plus I love the rare one-on-one time with Nolan!). They sing a blessing before snack. I'd been asking him to sing it for me but couldn't get it out of him. Today, the teacher sent the lyrics home. It is this one:
Oh, the Lord is good to me,
And so I thank the Lord
For giving me the things I need
The sun, and the rain, and the apple seed.
The Lord is good to me.
So I sang it in the care with him on the way home today. After I was done, he quickly corrected me.
"Mommy, no, you have to make praying hands. Like this."
(Shows me his little praying hands.)
"And you have to say 'Amen' at the end."
Soooo sweet.
And here's a hilarious one to balance all that sweetness out:
You might know that I have a mild (usually) case of road frustration ("rage" is a little strong). But I learned I am not keeping it under control enough when Arlo recently said,
"Mommy, do these idiots know how to drive?".
Oops.
Today, he said, "These cars are driving me nuts." That's a little better, right???
Two weekends ago was the Tarheels' first home game. It was a gorgeous day and we had a great time at the tailgate. Nolan and I headed home while Arlo went to the game with Charlie, Dede, and Grandaddy. He made it the whole game (smack dab in the middle of naptime) and they say he did great!
We had gorgeous weather here this weekend. Like Gorgeous with a capital G. So we wanted to get outside as much as possible.
We went to the Farmer's Market on Saturday morning and had a lovely time walking around and seeing the sights. Arlo's favorite things: helping pick out the okra, getting to play a fiddle and an autoharp (and bringing home a guitar pick souvenir which is now hanging on his memory board in his room!), chasing giant bubbles from the bubble guys, and last but not least, the rainbow italian ice. :) Nolan's favorite thing was snoozing in the Ergobaby (which I could finally comfortably wear since it wasn't so hot!) and looking around at all the activity.
My favorite part? Spending the morning with my family. And a delicious latte.
In the afternoon, we went to Uncle Casey's house and enjoyed an amazing dinner and great company as always. Arlo made a huge mess played with dominoes, little toy trains, and any other games he could find. Scrabble *might* be missing a letter tile or two. Hope it's not Q or Z!
On Sunday, Charlie had to fly to New York, so my mom and I headed out to Pullen Park in Raleigh. I remember going to this park when I was a kid. They had paddle boats and a carousel (still do!) but it's been recently renovated with beautiful playgrounds, a covered pavilion for the carousel, and a nice concession stand (with Locopops!).
The rides were a huge hit. He went on the boats twice in a row and the train and carousel a couple times each. We would have gone more but I lost the tickets (which I later found in my pocket. Oh well, a good reason to go back again soon!). He wanted to go on the paddle boats so badly but we told him we'd wait for Daddy (the real muscle in the family).
He was so funny on the boats - he was smiling and playing with the bell and the steering wheel while the other kids were loading in, but as soon as the ride started, he was so still and serious. Not scared at all, but the operator had said stay seated and keep your hands in the boat - I think he took those rules very seriously. Check out the video.
The train was awesome - he couldn't stop talking about how it goes through a tunnel and over a bridge.
And the carousel!
Although he looks a little bewildered here, he smiled SO huge the whole time. He kept asking me if it was slowing down because he didn't want it to stop.
Nama and Nolan came with us once and sat in the seats. I worried the whole time (the thing goes FAST!). But baby and Nama stayed put.
I didn't get many Nolan pics. :( He was mostly sleeping in the Ergobaby. But we put him in the stroller while we ate our picnic lunch and he just smiled and talked the whole time. He is seriously the happiest baby.
What a lovely weekend! I am back to work this week, so it was great to have such nice weather for my last weekend of maternity leave. It's been a dream!
I really want to get started blogging again. I miss writing these memories down! I know how quickly we forget things we think we'll remember forever. I hope this online journal of sorts will help us remember the big and little moments.
So...I just have to take the first step, right? Here it is.
I won't worry about catching up anymore - that just stressed me out (although I may post some old pics once in a while).
Since my last post (in April!), baby Nolan joined our family. I will talk more (lots more!) about him later and hopefully share his birth story (edited for content). He is an absolute joy and a precious gift. We all adore him so very much, Arlo included.
Here is an introduction to Nolan, who in true Helms boy fashion, is wearing a 6-month sleeper despite being not yet 12 weeks in this video. He has a lot to say. Enjoy!
Dupey the statue lives on the back porch in Linville. He is named after the real dog, Dupey, who belonged to Arlo's great-grandparents.
Arlo likes to feed Dupey sunflower seeds that have fallen from the birdfeeder. (Thankfully, this Dupey doesn't bite!!!)
Clean-up time.
One of our very favorite playgrounds to visit in the mountains is at Cannon Hospital. It is huge and fenced with a lot of slides - all of our favorite things!
On this lovely day in August, Charlie and Arlo were both enjoying the slide. :)
Well, I've finally made it around to our summer trip to Linville in August last year. My good friends from undergrad, Sue and Brian, and their sweet little boy, Hunter (who I introduced you to here), came with us for a weekend. We had the BEST time and made lots of memories - you'll see about a million pictures below. It's strange that the timing worked out this way because today, March 26, 2013, should have been Hunter's 2nd birthday. It is unfathomable that he's not here to celebrate it with his adoring family and friends. Hunter passed away in his sleep from an unknown cause on October 15th, 2012...another important birthday in our lives.
I'm so thankful for every second I got to hold him and cuddle him and feel him lay his head on my shoulder when he was being shy or coy. I'm so thankful I had the chance to watch him grow and learn and develop his own sweet, curious personality. I'm so thankful he was lucky enough to have been born into a family who loved him more than anything in the world, cherished him, and gave him the best life any little boy could wish for. I'm so thankful to know he always felt loved.
Hunter, we all miss you so, so much.
"If
there ever comes a day when we can't be together, put me in your heart,
I'll stay there forever."
