Looks like I've let the blog slip away from me again. I must say, kudos to the gals with more than one kid who can keep up with their blogs---it's not easy! Here's the latest from us:
Jeremiah ~ Jeremiah is now 4.5, just a few months away from turning 5! He figured out the whole "potty training" thing back in the early summer, and it seems to have "aged" him quite a bit. You grow up a lot once you stop peeing in diapers/pull ups! With potty training came dressing and undressing, and more independence, which he has taken his fill of! He's my "go-to" helper when I need something, usually letting Jesslyn or Judah in and out of the family room, since he can open the gate and they can't. Or going down to the basement to bring up a gallon of milk. Or getting his own drink of water. He even makes his own sandwiches now! Sure, it's just two slices of bread and a piece of cheese, but hey, we gotta start somewhere right. Oh, and he can buckle himself in his car seat, which is a HUGE plus for Mommy! My little man isn't quite so little anymore. :(
Jesslyn ~ Jesslyn is now 3, going on 30, and the most "grown up" out of all the kids. If Jeremiah can do it, she can "definitely" do it (even if she can't....) And if Mommy can do it, she's gonna try! Last week was her birthday, and it was quite a long celebration---we had a small Chuck E Cheese party for her on the Thursday prior (since her b-day was on Saturday, I wasn't about to make that mistake again...) and that was loads of fun. NoVA experience a small monsoon (Rainapocolypes!) that day, so roads were flooded, streets closed, and Chuck E Cheese was empty. I made her a princess cake, complete with an edible chocolate tiara on top (she ate half of it. :)
Then on her actual birthday, we did a movie night out on the pipestem. Our neighbor, Sybille, shares her birthday with Jesslyn, so it was a good excuse for all of us to hang out, party, have some cake and watch a movie. At one point, we had about 50 people there (only about 30 were actually invited.) I had kids asking me for cake, and I had no idea who they were. :) But it was fun---we watched "Gnomeo and Juliet" and "Thor". Very cool.
She's really into My Little Ponies, dressing up, toy phones, and flashlights right now, so that's what she got for her birthday. :) Her and Judah are also "best buds" and very close, though usually Jesslyn is WAY TOO close. She doesn't always grasp the idea of "personal space" and hasn't figured out that Judah's whining/crying means "back off!" But I'm sure she'll get it eventually. Or not. It's kinda a part of who she is. :) But she's very sweet, too, and always up for cuddling, and loves having her back tickled. She's a big sweetie!
Judah ~ Judah is now 18 months, and quite the character! He started walking back in June, while we were at the beach (we went to the OBX the first week of June. He was taking a few steps at a time before that, but really started moving once we got there. That wet sand is a good learning tool.) He's a bit of a chatter box, trying to say every word we say. Not quite as wordy as Jesslyn was at his age, but pretty close! A short list includes car, truck, plane, train, go, open, bye bye, hi, phone, apple/applesauce, juice, milk, water, drink, oww, Kookie, 'gunco' (for Uncle), bird, cat, dog, puppy, Dora, Boots, and so on, and so forth. It's awesome. :) He's also very sweet, and loves to wrap his arms around your neck, yelling, "Mama!" or "Daddy!!" or just cuddling with "Gunco James" (it's kinda weird... James'll pick him up, and Judah will just put his head on his shoulder and leave it there, for like, 5 minutes. Just looking around with his head on his shoulder. Only with James, though. :)
Let's see, what else with Judah. Well, he loves Big Fella. And babies. So I'm hoping that that carries over, because..... #4 is due in 6 weeks! But a little more on that in a minute. He's a bit addicted to his Mommy and Daddy, especially his Mommy, so I am a bit worried about how he'll take the baby taking up so much of Mommy's attention. The other two were great when their younger sibs showed up, so this is new territory for us. Of course, maybe we're worried about nothing, and he'll be smitten with his new brother/sister, and all will be well. Guess we'll see!
Oh yeah, and Judah's quite the little comedian. He always has this big smile on his face (with dimples! Love the dimples!) and does all sorts of silly things to get a laugh! He's also the hamiest of the bunch, dropping whatever he's doing for a chance to get his pic taken. It's adorable. :)
Finally, #4! Yup, we're expecting the next member of the Wilcox clan sometime around Halloween. We don't know if it's a boy or a girl (and hopefully won't have the chance to find out 'til they're born!) We're planning another homebirth, so getting things ready has been fun/exciting, but of course, there's still much to do. The pregnancy has gone well, thus far. No complaints. Just some morning sickness at the beginning. It wasn't as bad as with Jesslyn, but worse than the boys, so I have no idea what to expect based on that. But we're very excited, and can't wait to meet this new sweet bundle that God has chosen to bless us with. :)
Other random news: The kids and I (Jess) now have CBS (Community Bible Study) every Tuesday, and MOPS every other Friday. It's a nice break, and a chance to socialize in a positive way with other Moms, and the kids get to hang out with their peers instead of just their siblings. We did both last year, and it was good, but I have a feeling this year will be even better! So I'm excited for that.
Jeremy's job is going well, though it has its challenges at times. But overall, he's very blessed, and his boss is great, which is always a plus, especially with new babies on the way. Jeremy's getting more handy around the house, having replaced the faucet on our hall bath, patched a hole in the hallway, and did a good bit of painting in the dining room. So I'm proud of him. :) It's the little things.
And with that, it's off to bed. Hopefully, I'll better about updating from here on out. We'll see... :)
Jeremiah ~ Jeremiah is now 4.5, just a few months away from turning 5! He figured out the whole "potty training" thing back in the early summer, and it seems to have "aged" him quite a bit. You grow up a lot once you stop peeing in diapers/pull ups! With potty training came dressing and undressing, and more independence, which he has taken his fill of! He's my "go-to" helper when I need something, usually letting Jesslyn or Judah in and out of the family room, since he can open the gate and they can't. Or going down to the basement to bring up a gallon of milk. Or getting his own drink of water. He even makes his own sandwiches now! Sure, it's just two slices of bread and a piece of cheese, but hey, we gotta start somewhere right. Oh, and he can buckle himself in his car seat, which is a HUGE plus for Mommy! My little man isn't quite so little anymore. :(
Jesslyn ~ Jesslyn is now 3, going on 30, and the most "grown up" out of all the kids. If Jeremiah can do it, she can "definitely" do it (even if she can't....) And if Mommy can do it, she's gonna try! Last week was her birthday, and it was quite a long celebration---we had a small Chuck E Cheese party for her on the Thursday prior (since her b-day was on Saturday, I wasn't about to make that mistake again...) and that was loads of fun. NoVA experience a small monsoon (Rainapocolypes!) that day, so roads were flooded, streets closed, and Chuck E Cheese was empty. I made her a princess cake, complete with an edible chocolate tiara on top (she ate half of it. :)
Then on her actual birthday, we did a movie night out on the pipestem. Our neighbor, Sybille, shares her birthday with Jesslyn, so it was a good excuse for all of us to hang out, party, have some cake and watch a movie. At one point, we had about 50 people there (only about 30 were actually invited.) I had kids asking me for cake, and I had no idea who they were. :) But it was fun---we watched "Gnomeo and Juliet" and "Thor". Very cool.
She's really into My Little Ponies, dressing up, toy phones, and flashlights right now, so that's what she got for her birthday. :) Her and Judah are also "best buds" and very close, though usually Jesslyn is WAY TOO close. She doesn't always grasp the idea of "personal space" and hasn't figured out that Judah's whining/crying means "back off!" But I'm sure she'll get it eventually. Or not. It's kinda a part of who she is. :) But she's very sweet, too, and always up for cuddling, and loves having her back tickled. She's a big sweetie!
Judah ~ Judah is now 18 months, and quite the character! He started walking back in June, while we were at the beach (we went to the OBX the first week of June. He was taking a few steps at a time before that, but really started moving once we got there. That wet sand is a good learning tool.) He's a bit of a chatter box, trying to say every word we say. Not quite as wordy as Jesslyn was at his age, but pretty close! A short list includes car, truck, plane, train, go, open, bye bye, hi, phone, apple/applesauce, juice, milk, water, drink, oww, Kookie, 'gunco' (for Uncle), bird, cat, dog, puppy, Dora, Boots, and so on, and so forth. It's awesome. :) He's also very sweet, and loves to wrap his arms around your neck, yelling, "Mama!" or "Daddy!!" or just cuddling with "Gunco James" (it's kinda weird... James'll pick him up, and Judah will just put his head on his shoulder and leave it there, for like, 5 minutes. Just looking around with his head on his shoulder. Only with James, though. :)
Let's see, what else with Judah. Well, he loves Big Fella. And babies. So I'm hoping that that carries over, because..... #4 is due in 6 weeks! But a little more on that in a minute. He's a bit addicted to his Mommy and Daddy, especially his Mommy, so I am a bit worried about how he'll take the baby taking up so much of Mommy's attention. The other two were great when their younger sibs showed up, so this is new territory for us. Of course, maybe we're worried about nothing, and he'll be smitten with his new brother/sister, and all will be well. Guess we'll see!
Oh yeah, and Judah's quite the little comedian. He always has this big smile on his face (with dimples! Love the dimples!) and does all sorts of silly things to get a laugh! He's also the hamiest of the bunch, dropping whatever he's doing for a chance to get his pic taken. It's adorable. :)
Finally, #4! Yup, we're expecting the next member of the Wilcox clan sometime around Halloween. We don't know if it's a boy or a girl (and hopefully won't have the chance to find out 'til they're born!) We're planning another homebirth, so getting things ready has been fun/exciting, but of course, there's still much to do. The pregnancy has gone well, thus far. No complaints. Just some morning sickness at the beginning. It wasn't as bad as with Jesslyn, but worse than the boys, so I have no idea what to expect based on that. But we're very excited, and can't wait to meet this new sweet bundle that God has chosen to bless us with. :)
Other random news: The kids and I (Jess) now have CBS (Community Bible Study) every Tuesday, and MOPS every other Friday. It's a nice break, and a chance to socialize in a positive way with other Moms, and the kids get to hang out with their peers instead of just their siblings. We did both last year, and it was good, but I have a feeling this year will be even better! So I'm excited for that.
Jeremy's job is going well, though it has its challenges at times. But overall, he's very blessed, and his boss is great, which is always a plus, especially with new babies on the way. Jeremy's getting more handy around the house, having replaced the faucet on our hall bath, patched a hole in the hallway, and did a good bit of painting in the dining room. So I'm proud of him. :) It's the little things.
And with that, it's off to bed. Hopefully, I'll better about updating from here on out. We'll see... :)
