Ice Skating

Adam has been off of work this week, so we decided to take the boys ice skating. They have never been before, and were really excited to try it out. We brought their cousin Ava along....she had never been ice-skating before either!

Ignore Ryan's face. He really was excited. Actually, don't ignore it. His face pretty much sums up his ice skating experience.

 Unfortunately things didn't start out too well. The boys got out on the ice for about 5 seconds before getting off. Lucas immediately fell and I think it scared him, so he went and sat down crying. Ryan, on the other hand, was just mad. He decided ice skating was hard, stupid, and he wanted to go home.

 I should have seen this coming. I know my boys well. Ryan in particular has a really hard time with trying new things that seem difficult or intimidating. He gets frustrated veeeery easily.

 While Ryan pouted on the bench, we convinced Lucas to give it another try.

 They had stacks of buckets that you could push around to keep yourself balanced. Great idea!

 Ava was a complete natural. I have to admit, when I first got on the ice I felt really unsteady. It was harder than I remembered! But after a few minutes it got much easier.

 I got Ryan back out on the ice. He brought his attitude with him.

 A kind stranger gave us his little seal seat for Lucas to use. It was so much fun! He took a few turns around the ice.

 And then we got Ryan on it. The boys eventually skated around the rink a few times, holding on to our hands.

So we ice skated....but I'm not necessarily sure the boys enjoyed it. Adam and I had some fun, though! If nothing else, I think it was a good life lesson for the boys. Just because something is difficult, doesn't mean you should give up without trying. It's a work in progress with our boys!

At what age have you taken your kids ice-skating?

Andrew: 10 Months

Happy 10 Months baby Andrew!

This month was very much the same as last month...your personality continued to emerge! You are a very playful, loud, curious, impatient baby. You are never content to sit and observe. You want to be exploring everything, touching everything, tasting everything, or yelling at everyone.

I am absolutely your favorite person. You have pretty bad separation anxiety. If someone else holds you, you will definitely cry. And even when it's just us at home, you like to stay near me and have me in your sight. You love your Mommy! 

You started jabbering more this month. You say Dada, yea-yea, Mama, and this. You also sometimes say "Hi Dada" when you see your Daddy!

We are beginning to suspect you may be a lefty. You seem to favor that hand when eating. You got some toy balls for Christmas and you have been picking them up and throwing them! Future baseball player? You also love to clap, and if we say "clap-clap" you will usually clap on command.

You adore food. I put the finger foods on your tray and you immediately grab and shove everything in your mouth. You love eating and if I'm not feeding you fast enough, you will bang your head against the back of your highchair. Talk about impatient!

Andrew you are so close to walking! You love to stand up and cruise around holding onto furniture. But when I hold my hands out to you to encourage a step, you start doing a nervous laugh/cry. It's like you want to take a step, but you're afraid. It will happen soon!

I've had it with the whole no-sleeping thing. This week we decided to do some sort of sleep-training. I tried letting you cry at naptime, after nursing and rocking you. I went in periodically to check on you and comfort you and lay you back down. After two hours of crying you eventually fell asleep...standing up! I came into the room to find you asleep with your face resting on your hands on top of the crib railing. It was so pitiful! I laid you down and patted you back to sleep, and you napped for 20 minutes. Ugh.

We love you so much baby Drewski!

Christmas 2017

We had a very blessed Christmas here in the Nullmeyer house!

On Christmas Eve we went over to my parents' house for a casual dinner with my sister's family.

 We ate and relaxed, and the kids ran around being crazy.

 Andrew got passed around quite a bit, although he was never too happy about it.

 Ryan with cousin Jacob.

 Two peas in a pod.

(I'm dying over the cuteness of Lucas in a vest!)

We went home and read the Christmas story to the kids from the Bible but they were SO hyper. We managed to get the kids down pretty easily, after telling them Santa wouldn't come until they went to sleep!

 I sat down for a second and enjoyed the peace.

 The "big" gifts we got for the kids this year were both second-hand.

 Christmas morning!!

 We were a little tired but ready.

 I love stockings. They have always been one of my favorite parts of Christmas morning.

 I love how excited they still get over hotwheels.

 For the first time I made Pioneer Woman's homemade cinnamon rolls. Yum!

 Time for presents!

 Andrew's first Christmas!

 I was so excited for Jenna to see her dollhouse!

 The boys love their new air hockey table. Ryan in particular....he said it was his favorite gift!

 And Adam got a few new items, including this sawhorse table.

 We did a little cleaning after my parents left, in preparation for Grandma Jan to arrive.

 Ryan loved his new Sharks shirt and Star Wars watch.

 That evening we had round 2 of Christmas presents.

 Lucas opened a few presents before getting a fever and going to bed. Poor guy!

 We ate a roast for dinner.

Adam installed a few new additions to the playroom, including a rope ladder and some fun binoculars.

 And we moved the air hockey table up to the playroom. So much fun!

Merry Christmas from the Nullmeyers!