Thanks, it was my grandfather's

Many of you know that my [step]grandfather, my mother's step-father, passed away a couple of weeks ago. I appreciate all of the heartfelt sympathies from friends, family and church members over the last few months. To answer the question I've gotten countless times, I'm doing alright.

Learning and Growing

Wow!  Our little sponge is really soaking up everything around him!  Our almost 14 month old is practically running anywhere he can get to, and climbing on EVERYTHING!  His verbal skills have skyrocketed as well.  He babbles pretty much non-stop, but can say several words now: hi, bye, ball, momma, dada, daddy, bath, up, duck.  Noah LOVES bath time.  As soon as he hears the water filling the tub he runs through the house to the bathroom exclaiming, "BATH, BATH, BATH".  He sleeps with his ducky every night and whenever he sees it he says, "Duck!"  He loves to color with crayons and gets upset when it's time to put them away.  He's really great at picking out the circle shape from his shape sorter and putting it in the right slot...we are still working on the other shapes, but he's starting to figure them out.  N has started to learn some sign language, too!  So far he knows the signs for "more" and "milk".  "More" has proven very beneficial because while he is eating he can simply sign "more" to us when he is ready rather than whining or crying to get what he wants.  It has really seemed to give him a good outlet for words he hasn't mastered verbally yet.  We are working on the sign for "please" now.  Noah's latest trick is blowing kisses!  It's pretty much the cutest thing ever.  He is growing up so quickly!

Noah's First Birthday!

What a wonderful birthday celebration for Noah!!!  Thanks to everyone who came to help us celebrate.  We had such a great time playing, eating, and laughing with you all.  The Farmville Train Station proved to be a perfect spot for the shindig!

Tumblebug

Ear Tube Update:
Everything went great with Noah's surgery!  It was a little scary for Mom & Dad as the nurse took him out of our arms back to the operating room, but it wasn't long before the doctor came into the waiting room to tell us everything went well.  However, when they came to get us and brought us back to him, he was pitiful.  He was incredibly confused and disoriented from the sleeping gas so he was screaming, crying and whimpering with his eyes closed...and he proceeded to do that for the next hour straight until he finally fell asleep.  He was sort of in and out of that state most of the afternoon, but by the evening little man was up and playing like nothing happened!  Thanks for all your prayers and well wishes!

Mom and Bob?

Lyndsie's post last night has prompted me to write one of my own. We have been saying for a while now that we need to write some posts but time gets away from us. By the time we finally get a minute to breathe at nights where we could write a post, all we want to do is zone out in front of the tv. So, this is long overdue but I guess better late than never.

Toddlerhood

I'm sorry...who stole my baby and replaced him with a toddler?  I apologize for the lack of posts here lately.  Things have been a little crazy in the Blakely household.  So I will try my best to catch you up.

Happiness is at the bottom of the Box

My wife and I began our CrossFit journey in October of 2012. We had heard of this unique fitness experience from our friends and co-workers and decided to humor them at CrossFit 1st Due’s “bring a friend” night. We showed up that evening two months past the birth of our son with plenty of apprehension and baby weight to go around. What greeted us was nothing short of terrifying. When we walked in there was a guy doing ring muscle-ups in the corner, a row of humongous tractor tires, and letters in weird combinations on a whiteboard. I almost turned around and walked right out thanks to the sheer horror I saw unfolding in front of me.

I’m so thankful I stayed.

No Purées Here!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

So, we at the Blakely household decided to enter the world of solid foods last night!  We were planning on waiting until Noah turned 6 months old, but lately he has been reaching and grabbing for everything (including our food) and doing some serious chewing on anything he can get to his mouth (including my fingers...ouch!).  So we decided to try it out a week and a half early.

Baby Toes & Sweet Giggles

Sorry it has been a while since we posted.  Life is a little crazy these days!  There is lots going on in our adventures with Baby Blakely!