Only 2 months away from being 1!

(A not-so-clever way of saying Brooks is 10 months old.)
I'm not going to go on and on about how fast Brooks is growing up and how I can't believe how big he is. Instead I'd just like to share some of my favorite pictures from this past month.

The monthly chair picture is getting harder to take with a boy who wants nothing to do with sitting still:






The kid LOVES to eat:



He's attempting to clap (Mollie - maybe you can show him how it's done). Instead of bringing his hands together in a clapping motion, he just brings them together once, squeezes really hard, and shakes them up and down...it's hilarious!


Saturday, April 18:





Tuesday, April 21:




Brooks LOVES being outside, and the next best thing is looking out the screen door:


Brooks ate his first watermelon the other day. At first I was just giving him pieces, but this was much more entertaining. I think it might be his new favorite fruit:


I realize that I just posted a lot of pictures, but I had a lot to share (it's been a while).

Good-Bye Pumpkin!

My first year teaching I had this adorable little girl in my class, Katie. Now I never call anyone pumpkin. Usually I refer to my kids as sweetie or sweetheart or bud or something else along those lines. But for some reason, I always called Katie, "Pumpkin". She was the cutest little kindergartner you've ever seen! I remember one day she told me that she would like to make an announcement about how messy and disorganized the art tub was. I had her stand on a chair and she began her lecture, "I just wanted everyone to know that the tub is very messy. There are markers without any tops and paper everywhere! It's not fair to have it so messy. So I think we should work really hard to keep it nice and neat." She cracks me up! She had a reward system at home, and one of her rewards was that she got to invite someone over for dinner...she invited me! As a kindergartner, she invited her teacher over and cooked me wonderful chicken nuggets and a milkshake for dessert. I got to know her family really well, and eventually I had her brother, Andy, last year. Well, this past weekend the family moved to Wyoming. I was so sad to see them go! Katie and her mom came by to hang out a bit and say good-bye and I took this picture of Katie and Brooks:

You've never seen a 9 1/2 year-old so good with a little baby. Brooks and I miss you already, Pumpkin!

Back is Best?

Brooks has gone through different positions of sleeping throughout his 10 months of life. He went from being swaddled to not swaddled, to swaddled again, to a sleep sack, and now to a wearable blanket. He has slept in his crib, in my arms, in his swing, on the airplane, in the car, in the baby bjorn, on the floor...just about anywhere.





I got him a wearable blanket called the halo sleep sack. I want to make sure he stays warm through the chilly Colorado nights. Here is a picture of what it looks like (this is obviously not a picture of Brooks since this child is clearly Asian):

The interesting thing about this thing is that on EVERY single one that was at the store, it has a place on the blanket where it says, "Back is Best". I guess no one mentioned that to Brooks. 90% of the time I see him sleeping on his tummy (ever since he learned how to roll over).
Here is an adorable picture of Brooks sleeping and cuddling his favorite blankie, he's not in the new blanket, but it is still so cute:

The more I talk to "experienced" more, the more they say they put their second of third child on the tummy to begin with. I think it's one of those debates that goes back and forth. At this point, I just care that Brooks is comfortable and sleeping well.

Put your best foot forward...

Recently I learned about a company called "TOMS". They sell these great canvas shoes, and for every shoe you buy they give a pair to a child in need. Check out their website www.tomsshoes.com . We're starting something at school to get people to buy a pair of shoes to provide for those children in need. Tomorrow is a day of awareness and you're encouraged to go barefoot. The kids in my class will be working and playing without shoes to teach them a little empathy. Here are some pictures from the website to give you an idea of the kind of company it is:

Happy Easter!

Chad preached on Sunday morning; it was short but completely wonderful. He skipped the traditionally Easter morning message and really challenged the people, and by "people" I also mean me. He read from Ephesians 1:15-23. I want to pass along some of my notes that I took because I think it was so amazing and I want everyone else to experience a snip of how amazing it was.

Ephesians 1:15-23
15 Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding[a] being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Let me break down vs19 like Chad did. He studied the Greek origins of the words and gave a literally translation based on the words that I highlighted above.
Exceeding - Over-the-top, he used the example of "to overthrow"
Greatness - HUGE
Power - raw strength
Working - Energy from within
Mighty - to win
His Power - physical strength from the same power that raised Christ from the dead
What Chad is trying to show is that Paul (the writer of the book) was really trying to make a point about the over-the-top, huge, raw, determined, physical strength that we (as Christians) are able to tap into. So instead of praying for strength (because the strength is already there), we need to pray "Let me know and experience Your power today!" And humbly recognize that we NEED to rely on His strength. And why did Paul use the resurrection as a visual in vs20? Because it's a beautiful, daily reminder. So, I walked away with this, "Is vs.19 representative of my Christian life?".
Chad is really a wonderful preacher who uses lots of examples and really knows how to challenge believers. Thanks, Babe!

After the service we tried taking a couple of pictures outside, although it was kind of a gloomy day. And then we spent the rest of the day resting and hanging out...kind of a lazy day for us. It was a wonderful day spent with family, remembering that the strength that raised Christ from the dead is the same strength that is with me daily...we are truly blessed!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!

Chad has reached a new place in his life...his 30's. He keeps telling me that he is not old - just wise, and I keep telling him that's something that old people say. It's fun for me because I still have a couple of years until I hit the big 30.
Chad was greeted this morning by a very naked little boy with a big smile on his face for his Daddy, almost as if Brooks knew it was a special day. Brooks loves his Daddy very much. Here are some pictures of my boys this past year:

In Love

There is something so wonderful about sneaking into Brooks' room each night and watching him sleep. I never used to do that, but recently it has become part of my nighttime routine. It's my FAVORITE part of my nighttime routine. Every night I have to resist touching his little face or holding his little hand. And I am always amazed at the positions that he finds comfortable enough to sleep in. Tonight he was on his tummy with his butt up in the air and his face squished up against the bumper. This is one of my favorite times of day. Surprisingly enough, my other favorite time of day is when I get him up in the morning. I love his excitement when I come into the room. And it's even more fun now when I am welcomed by my little boy standing up in his crib just staring at the door in anticipation. It's the little things that make me fall more in love with him everyday.

Vampire or Hockey Player??

I have been trying to get a picture of Brooks' top teeth, but it is near impossible. We took a cute picture together the other day and I noticed you could see his top teeth. So...I cropped and zoomed in and there they are. You might notice the Brooks' teeth are similar to that of a vampire or a hockey player. He actually does have the other two teeth in the middle, but they are too small to see. This smile just cracks me up!

Recent Mischief

Brooks usually just follows us around the house and finds things to do wherever we are. We spent lots of time in the kitchen making meals or cleaning up meals that have just been eaten. Brooks is finding plenty to do in the kitchen..but not necessarily things I want him to be doing. Brooks has recently put 2 pieces of dog food in his mouth at a time (don't worry I got them out before he actually ate them). He discovered Kansas' water bowl and thinks it's lots of fun to splash around. He loves the game where he gets to open and close the kitchen cabinets. He has hit his head once and slammed his finger in the cabinet once. He pulls all kinds of things out of the fridge, the most recent being a gallon of milk.
This kid is full on wonder and perhaps a little bit of mischief. Since these pictures we have latched up the kitchen cabinets, and have to keep a close eye on Brooks around Kansas' food/water. The fridge, however, is just too fun!

Frosty the Snowman

So the other day our school actually let out at 12:00 in fear of the snow to come. The meteorologists were predicting 8-16 inches of snow, and it was coming fast. We ended up only getting about 8 inches, so it wasn't so bad. Chad really wanted to make a snowman "with Brooks" since we won't have the opportunity to do that much in Texas. The next day was pretty warm - I could've built Frost in my bikini it was so hot! Chad was ultimately in charge - I was trying to help, but also trying to keep Brooks busy and do lunch. Chad collected the snow to build the bottom of Frosty, and then we packed it tight and kept building up. In the end, Frosty stood about 5 ft tall. Even though Brooks won't remember this, it's a nice memory to have.


Brooks helping Daddy.



Brooks and Mommy. Brooks is sitting on top of the bottom section of Frosty.



Team Hoff + Frosty