Dear Donnie Roo,

My sweet, sweet Donnie Rooster!  Where did the last year go?!?!?  I feel like it was just the other day that your Dad and I were headed to the hospital, anxiously awaiting your arrival.  The last year has been inexplicably amazing!!!!  I have loved every second of watching you grow up.  I know I am a little late with this, and the picture is actually 1 year and a month instead of one year exactly, but better late than never, right?

Even though you had been pulling yourself up on and climbing on EVERYTHING for a few months, you didn't actually start walking until one week before your birthday.  Now you are an old pro and you think you are pretty cool walking around with and playing with your older cousins, who you LOVE!!!!  Your Dad and I were talking about how we think you and Griff are going to have a pretty awesome relationship.  Right now you both get so excited when you see each other and he is such a sweet older cousin.  You two love hugging and he shares toys, food, and drinks with you even when you can tell he doesn't really want to.  The whole walking thing has given you the ability to keep up with him even better than you used to:).  Walking, did I say walking????  You actually try to run most of the time and Grandma and I have to remind you to slow down so that you don't lose your balance.

One of your other best friends is Lady Bug.  You love to lay on her when you watch TV and she loves watching over you.  You have started teasing her a little bit, which your Dad and I are trying to teach you not to do, but you think it is so funny to hold out food for her and then take it away.  However, you are also very good about sharing your food with her...maybe a little too good.  Sometimes I turn away from you for a second and turn back and you have no more food on your tray because you have fed it all to Bug.

You love to make people laugh.  It is so hilarious to watch you make funny faces and do funny little tricks just trying to get a giggle out of people.  A couple nights ago at dinner, you were making faces and then would laugh so loud to try and make us laugh even more.  You are quite the entertainer:).

We had your one year check up a couple weeks ago.  You were 80% for height and 30% for weight.  Who would have ever thought that I would get a tall skinny kid:)?!?!?!?  I think the chart is a little skewed though, because you seem perfect to me.  You are so active that trying to get you to gain any weight is pretty impossible.  The doctor was so impressed with your beautiful mouth FULL of teeth.  You have all of them now!!  Molers, eye teeth, you got 'em!

You still sleep in bed with your Dad and me, but I LOVE it.  It is the best when I put you to bed and my busy little boy slows down long enough to snuggle until he falls asleep.  I love waking up in the middle of the night and having you right there to check on.  So many people keep saying that we need to get you in your own bed, but I don't think I can do that yet.  You are only little once and I want to soak up every minute that I can, and this time at night helps me to do that. 

There is so much I can say about you, but just don't know how to put it all into words.  You are so sweet and even when you are throwing tantrums (yes, they do happen sometimes) I love you to pieces.  You are going to be a big brother soon and I just know that you are going to be so wonderful.  As I have been writing this, I have had to hold back tears.  You have blessed your Dad and I so much and everyday I thank God for sending you to us.  Watching you grow is so amazing and everyday you find a way to make me laugh and smile.  You really are the sunshine of our lives:).

I love you Stinkerdoodle!!!

Love,
Your Mom

10 MONTHS!!!!

I can't even believe it. Seriously, where does the time go. I can't believe that my baby boy is 10 months old today!!!! He is such a sweet, happy boy...we have been so blessed. He has been sick for the last week or so, and even then, he remained smiley and happy.

I know that this was not very nice of my Mom and I to do, and Richie probably won't be too happy that I posted this, but come on, look how cute he looks. His hair continues to be a challenge for us:). It is starting to lay down a bit more, but now it is almost starting to look like he has a piece of fake hair laying on top. Amy said that if we don't cut it soon, she was going to start putting a bow in his hair every time we see them. I have to admit, he does look pretty darn cute as a girl:)...hehehe. And we still take to calling him Donnie Rooster!
Don has a beautiful mouth full of teeth. He seems to be holding steady with eight right now, but I am sure he will have more popping through soon, as he still like to chew and put everything in his mouth. He is getting so close to walking. He has a little push toy and is really good at controlling the speed and catching himself when he falls. He has realized that it hurts to hit his head, so anytime he feels himself going down backward, he hold his stomach muscles real tight so his head won't hit. It is actually kind of funny to watch. He pulls himself up on everything and, if it moves, uses to help him get around. I feel that any day he is going to let go of those toys and take off on his own.

This picture was taken when he was sick last week, so he is a little red and blotchy, but still smilin'. He is such a happy boy all the time!!!!

Sleeping is still a little tough for us, as he REALLY likes to sleep with us, especially his Daddy!!! Boy does he love that guy. Sometimes I have to remind Don that I carried him for nine months and pushed with him for almost three hours, therefore, by default, I should be his favorite...but he doesn't get it yet:). He wakes up twice to eat and quickly goes back to sleep...in our bed...still no crib. I have been reading a couple sleep books and hopefully we will get him in his own bed soon. I told Richie the other day that everything the books say NOT to do, seems to be exactly what we do! Not ideal!!

He is babbling up a storm and hopefully soon it will turn into real words. He still waves "hi" and "bye." He has said "Grandpa" clear as day...but only twice and never on demand:). Mamma and Dadda are his favorites, with the occasional "Babba." I have been working on teaching him to clap and he is getting very close. My Dad and I have been trying to teach him to play catch, which he is great at...with a little assistance from Grandpa of course. And lastly, I am trying to teach him to blow kisses, which he just smiles at every time we make the attempt.

Overall, we have been blessed beyond belief. Our little guy is so sweet!!! We could never ask for anything more...I am sure I am the only parent with a perfect child;).

Oh yeah...he loves to eat!!!! Everything!!! If you are eating he usually yells at you to get your attention and make you share with him.

2-1!!!!

Baby Joe turns 21 today!!! Sometimes I still slip up and call him my "baby" brother when I am talking about him to others...I quickly have to correct myself and tell them that he is a Junior in college and no longer a baby:).Joe is one of the best people I know, and not just because he is my brother. He is so caring and sweet to everyone he encounters. I can't remember a time that this kid has ever gotten so mad that he raised his voice. I know he is going to do great things with his future:).

Happy Birthday Baby Joe...I hope you have a great day!!!

Happy Anniversary!!!!

Richie and I celebrated our sixth anniversary last Saturday!!! I can't even believe it has already been six years. It seems like we were just young kids starting our relationship, staying up till the wee hours talking...we could talk for so long back then. We were laughing about it the other day, because, it's like, what the heck were we talking about for all those hours:)!?!?!?Every year, my husband continues to amaze me more and more. This year we bacame parents, and I think my heart may have grown 10 times! Watching Richie with our son is one of the best things I have ever seen. Those two sure are buds:).

In the card that Richie gave me he said, "Who knows where I would be without you...", but honestly babe, who knows where I would be without you. You are my rock.

Richard Faatoafe, I'll love you 'till the day I die!!! Happy Anniversary.

Such a cute boy...

Seriously...this kid is so freakin' cute!!!! Ok, so I know I am probably a little bias, but he is just so cute and smiley. Such a happy boy.After our snow storm last week, my little man got kinda used to having his Momma home with him all day. When I left for work this morning, he started to cry pretty hard, which broke my heart. So I had to look at these pics to make me feel better. I figured I should share a few with you all so that you could feel better if you needed to as well:).

Don is very busy lately. He pulls himself up everywhere and wants down all the time to crawl around. I should have known he was going to be super active, because when I was pregnant, he would be movin' all around all the time. I think we are going to have our hands full with this sweet boy:). Oh yeah, please notice the hair do he has going on. Yes, that is natural and has earned him the name of Donnie Rooster, Rooster, or sometimes just Roo.

Have a great start to your week!!

Eight Months

Such a bigga boy!!! Don turns eight months today. I cannot even believe how fast time is going. When we were at the hospital having him, people kept saying, "enjoy it...before you know it he will going to college!!" Richie and I laughed, thinking, no way could time go that fast. However, I am starting to believe them. These last eight months have flown by. We were looking at pictures from the hospital the other day, and I started to cry a little bit because I just get a scared that I am going to forget things he does, or it is all going to go so fast and be over before we know it.Ok, enough about that...let me tell you all the great new things my sweet boy does:). Don't let the picture above fool you...Don still does not sleep in his crib. Up until recently he would sleep in the bassinet next to our bed and usually move into our bed at some point in the night. Now we are using the bassinet as a play pen out in the living room, so it is no longer in our room, or an option for him to sleep in. The last two nights he has started the night in his crib and as soon as one of us goes to bed he moves in with us. I know, I know, we are terrible, but it is so nice to have him close at night, and he is definitely a snuggle bug who likes to be close to us. He uses his crib to play in and loves pulling himself up to standing while he is in there. So far, this is the only place he is able to do that on his own, but he has been making attempts on the furniture, which usually end in a crash:(.

He is crawling everywhere!!! This started around 6 1/2 months, but he is now becoming much more efficient with it. It is still mainly an army crawl, but he is moving up onto his hands and knees more. He cracks me up because he kind of does a "running" crawl when he sees a door open, or something that he wants really bad. He also loves terrorizing the house in his walker, which his cousin, Sophia, likes to call his wheel chair. He gets into all the cupboards at Grandma and Grandpa's house and pulls stuff out. The always talk about him destroying their house, but I secretly think they like it:).

He can say "hi" and waves while saying it, and he is getting better at "Dada." I have started working on "Mama" but he always resorts back to "Dada." Kisses are his specialty, which he will give with a sloppy open mouth...a mouth which has eight teeth and the K9's knocking on the gums:).

I just love my little man so much. He brings Richie and I so much joy everyday. We have been blessed beyond our imaginations. At night, when he wakes up, he reaches out for Richie or I (usually Richie...LOL) and wants to snuggle...melts my heart every time.

Dear Don,

I can't believe you are six and a half months old already. Your Dad and I waited so long for you and now that you are here time seems to be flying by. You change so much everyday and I keep getting scared that I am going to forget something, as Momma doesn't have the best memory:). Tomorrow you have your 6 month doctors appointment and I can't wait to see the percentiles you are in. You are such a big boy with cute, chubby legs!!! I love to squeeze and kiss them. You are so close to crawling!! Everyday you get a little better. I can see that you get frustrated because you want to get something so bad but you just can't get there yet. You work so hard to make it a short little distance. I want to help you so bad, but I have to stop myself because you won't be able to learn on your own if I am always stepping in and helping you:). However, it is tough for Momma to watch you struggling, when I know I could get it for you so easily. It is so cute how you get up on all fours and start rocking back and forth...almost like you are willing your body to move.

TEETH!! You already have 5 of them!! Such a bigga boy:). Because you have such great chompers, we have been able to give you some different types of food, which you LOVE! The baby food isn't really cuttin' it anymore, so we have had to give some crackers and add cereal to the food so it is a little more dense. You seem to be proud of your teeth and sure do want to use them. The other day you really hurt your Dad when you bit his arm! When you are around people eating, you sit and stare. We can almost see the wheels turning in your head as you try to figure out how to be more efficient with your eating.

Sleeping is something that is not coming as easy to you as I would have hoped, but you are getting into a schedule more and more each day. The last few nights, you have only woke up once to eat and get a quick diaper change, which has been so nice for your Dad and I, as we have been able to get some good sleep too! You still sleep in your pack and play next to our bed (and sometimes in our bed...hehe). Neither of us are ready for you to be in your own room yet, although I'm sure you would be...I am just not ready to not have you by me:). I am hoping that your naps will get a little more regular. Right now, you usually take a long morning nap and two little cat naps in the afternoon.

Your best friends are definitely your dogs, Baxter and Lady, and your cousins, Griffin, Abby, and Sophia. You laugh at the dogs all the time and they like to keep an eye on you most of the day. Your cousins crack you up and play games with you. Griffin likes to call you whatever he hears Grandpa calling you, for example, on Saturday he kept calling you boy...just like Grandpa:).

Well, sweet baby boy, I think that is a pretty good recap of where you are at in your life right now. I love each and every new phase that you enter, but it always makes me a little sad too because each phase goes so fast. You are always so happy and smiley and I hope that is a character trait that will stay with you forever:). I love you so much and you bring your Dad and I so much joy each day. We waited and prayed for you for so long, but you were so worth it!!! Today as I left the house for work, I went in to kiss you and your Dad goodbye and looked at our queen sized bed which had Baxter, Lady, you, and your Dad...who would have thought that one little bed could hold everything I love the most?!?!?

Love,
Mom