Easter 2011

We had a very fun and busy Easter this year. John Turner seemed to enjoy this holiday more than any other so far. He would tell people, "Happy Easter Egg!". He thought the holiday was called Easter Egg Day!

We dyed eggs with John Turner on Saturday afternoon. He did such a fabulous job with it this year. He had dyed some with his teachers at school earlier in the week so he was a pro when we did on Saturday! He kept telling us, "Put the eggs in very softly!". He checked them a million times while they were in the dye to see if they were ready. He was very proud of them when they were all done!

Sunday morning when we woke up, the Easter Bunny had left John Turner an amazing basket of goodies! He was beyond excited about his prizes! His faces in the pictures below are priceless. He was most excited about the "monies" that the Easter Bunny had left him in some eggs. He loves getting money for his piggy bank. We count it at least once a day! There was also a flashlight in his basket. Daddy was glad about this because now John Turner won't have to play with his flashlights anymore! He also got some new markers, bubbles, coloring books, stickers, a singing toothbrush, a Sing-a-ma-jig, Weebles for his Weeble Tree House, and of course a bunch of candy!

After eating some of our candy for breakfast, we all got dressed up and headed to Easter services at our church. It was a very, very hot Easter Sunday here!

Of course, this little wild monkey didn't want me to get a good picture of him in his cute little Easter clothes. This is the best one I got! He looked so handsome and so grown!

And we couldn't forget to snap a picture of sweet baby Judson. I was 24 weeks pregnant Sunday!

After church, we went out to Carlton's Grandparents to eat and hunt more eggs! We left there and spent the afternoon with my parents. We love being close enough to be able to spend holidays with our families!

Church Egg Hunt

Our church hosted an egg hunt for the preschool children last Saturday. It was at the home of Ms. Dana, John Turner's Sunday School teacher. He was so excited to not only be going to an egg hunt but to be going to see Ms. Dana's house as well! Daddy didn't get to go with us this year. Gran Gran did though!

Before the egg hung, they got to make their own nightlights. John Turner did a really good job with the painting.

This is a picture of John Turner patiently listening and waiting for them to say go! He had already scoped out about all of the eggs in the place!

He did such a good job this year. He was so funny though because he looked for specific colored eggs the whole time. He was more worried about the color eggs he had in has basket rather than how many he had!

After the hunt, we relaxed with lunch and some fun Easter snacks! It was a great day! We love our church family!

21-23 weeks

21 weeks

Due to the stomach virus and a tornado, there is no 22 week picture!

23 weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along: 23 weeks

Size of the baby: an ear of corn

Weight Gain: 10 lbs

Maternity clothes: Oh, YEAH!
Gender: It's a BOY! Judson Taylor Watt

Movement: All of the time!! He is quite active!

Sleep: Sleep is OK- I got a body pillow last week and it has helped

What I miss: working out, sleeping on my belly

Cravings: anything and everything! I am just hungry!

Symptoms: none- I am feeling great!

Best moment of the week: I ordered baby bedding! FINALLY! I swear at this point with John Turner I was completely ready for him to arrive! This time I am struggling to get anything done!

John Turner at 2 1/2 Years Old

This sweet boy is now 2 1/2 years old! I can't believe I am saying that! I wanted to do a post of things I want to remember about him at this age. This is such a fun yet challenging age! He keeps us laughing all of the time!

Favorite toys and activities: -play-doh

-drawing/painting- he has just started to enjoy art a little-

foam/magnetic letters- he can recognize pretty much all of his letters now and know the sounds for many of them

-his computer

-games on mommy's iphone or ipad

-toy trains

-puzzles

-anything to do with music or musical instruments

-counting his money from his piggy bank- he calls George Washington Santa Claus!

Favorite characters/movies: -Thomas the Train -Mickey Mouse -Bob the Builder -Blue's Clues -Dora and Diego

Favorite outdoor activities: This child would stay out all day long if he could! He wakes up asking to go outside to play! He is an outdoor lover for sure!

-riding his 4-wheeler -blowing bubbles -sidewalk chalk -sports- t-ball and basketball -sandbox -running up and down hills -hopping around -playing with Oliver Cat

Favorite foods: Still doesn't eat much at all. We are eating chicken now so that is an improvement. Still eats no vegetables unless I trick him in some way!

-mac n cheese -chicken nuggets -parfaits -ice cream -any type of fruit -pancakes -pb and j -pizza

Favorite books:

He is a big lover of books! He loves to for us to climb up on his top bunk with a pile of books and read for hours!

-Llama Llama series

-Thomas the Train books

-Dr. Seuss books

-Bible story books- he can name characters and retell several Bible stories- Moses, Jonah, Adam and Eve, Jesus, Noah, David and Goliath

-Chicka Chicka ABC

-How Do Dinosaurs Say I Love You

I could write a whole post on John Turner's developing language ability! At 2 1/2 he has an amazing knowledge of words and vocabulary! He amazes us everyday with the things he says! Here are a few things he has said or says that I want to remember:

JT: Mommy, I go to time-out at school today

Me: Oh, no! What did you do?

JT: Ha Ha! I just kidding, Mommy! That is so funny!!

JT: Where are we going?

Us: To "any place we may be going"

JT: And then?

When he does something we are proud of we always tell him what a big boy he is. Now, if we do something he things is good he will say, "Mommy, you such a big girl!".

JT is great with directions. If we have taken him there once he can always tell us how to get back there!

His memory is also very amazing! He never forgets anything!

He loves the color blue! If he picks out a drink, snocone, toy ect.. it has to be blue!

He is still doing great with the tee-tee on the potty. The poo-poo on the potty still not so great! We are still working on that!

He is doing great with his big boy bed! He is getting up earlier in the mornings now which Mommy is not a fan of!

One of his favorite times of the day is when Daddy comes home! First thing he wants to do is "ride the bull". Carlton puts him on his belly and pretends he is riding a bull! He LOVES it!

He is already a gentleman. He holds the door for people everywhere we go. He will hold it open and say come on in/out.

He loves to play "tickle monster".

He can sing quite a number of songs. His favorite right now is "Jesus Loves the Little Children".

There are probably a million other things I could think of to write about him at this age! We love this sweet thing!

Big Brother Getaway- Part 2

Sunday morning we woke up and had a great big surprise for John Turner. We told him that we were going to see Thomas the Train! He was beyond excited! He wanted to leave the hotel right then! He didn't even want any of us to get dressed! He LOVES Thomas! He loves the movies, the books and just playing with the train pieces. He knows almost every character's name that goes along with Thomas. It is quite amazing to listen to him name each train, crane, bus, etc.. When we arrived I gave him his ticket to ride on Thomas. He was thrilled and wouldn't let us touch his ticket!

This is an event at the Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum in Calera, AL. We had been there last year to ride the Polar Express. It is a fabulous way to spend a Saturday with your children if they enjoy Thomas or trains for that matter! John Turner had a blast! Here are a few highlights of our "Day Out with Thomas"!

• The Petting Zoo: There were some chickens, goats and bunnies that the children could pet.

• Meeting Sir Topham Hatt: John Turner was speechless when he saw Sir Topham Hatt standing in this tent!

• Giant Sandbox: John Turner is always happy to spend some time in the dirt!

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  The Gift Shop: John Turner was able to talk Daddy into buying him a few prizes at the gift shop. He picked out a new train for his train table. He chose James the red engine he loves. He also picked out a Thomas t-shirt. He even talked his daddy into paying $9 for this huge Thomas balloon. It has been worth that $9 to me! It has entertained him for many hours over the last few days!

• Bouncy House and Slide: Normally our son is scared of this kind of thing. Well, not on this day. We couldn't get him out of there!

• Imagination Station: This was John Turner's dream! It was a huge tent full of different types of train tables! He was in heaven!

• Tattoo Station: He chose a Thomas tattoo. He wouldn't let us wash it off for two days!

• Train Rides: He was able to not only take a ride on Thomas but also another train as well. He had his lemonade and popcorn along for the ride. He just had such a smile on his face the whole time!

Our little family enjoyed this time together so much! I am very glad we got to take John Turner away for a fun weekend before baby brother arrives. (We are working on getting Daddy to take us to the beach soon for another big brother getaway) We made so many fun memories as a family of three. We look forward to adding to those memories as a family of four soon!

By the way, this little munchkin passed out in his car seat before we made it out of our parking spot! He had the time of his life!

Big Brother Getaway - Part 1

We decided to take John Turner for a little big brother getaway before little brother arrives. Our first stop was the Birmingham Zoo. Now, we thought going to the zoo would be a wonderful way to spend a Saturday in early April! Who knew it would be 90 degrees in early April?! This pregnant momma barely made it through the zoo! This little munchkin below had no trouble! He ran full speed all over that zoo!

Since we told him we were going to the zoo, he has talked about seeing zebras and camels. He said they were his favorite animals at the zoo! He also enjoyed the reptiles, birds and lions. He didn't stay at any animal too long. He would run up and squeal and name the animal. Then he would run off saying, "Let's go see more animals!".

He also enjoyed riding the train at the zoo. You know this boy couldn't pass by a train and not take a ride on it!

What hot day at the zoo would be complete without a little ice cream?!

After the zoo, we did a little shopping for baby brother and then had dinner. We spent the night at a hotel in Birmingham because we had BIG plans for John Turner the next morning. Part 2 of this post will be about that! John Turner calls hotels "ponytails". It is so funny! He said, "Mommy and Daddy we are staying at big ponytail!".

And the baby's name is...

After finding out at our 20 week ultrasound that we are for sure having another boy, we decided it was time to give him a name other than "little brother". We have thought long and hard over this decision. His name will be

JUDSON TAYLOR WATT

We knew that whether this baby was a boy or a girl, we wanted he or she to have a "J" name just like big brother. I have always wanted my children to have names that start with the same letter:-) We decided that we liked the name Judson a couple of months ago. While coming up with middle names, I decided that I wanted him to have the same initials as his big brother. We tried out Taylor and decided that we liked those two names together. So, unlike John Turner there is no family history behind this name! Well, unless you count having the same initials as his big brother! We can't wait to meet baby Judson and see if he looks or acts anything like his big brother. Now I am on to getting some things monogrammed with his precious name!

20 Week Ultrasound

Today we went to the doctor for my 20 week ultrasound and check-up. We really wanted John Turner to experience seeing the baby on the ultrasound with us. So my sweet Momma came with us so he could see the baby and then she could take him back home for some special Gran-Gran time while we waited to see the doctor.

John Turner was a sweet angel at the doctor. His favorite thing about our visit was seeing the BIG windows across the front of the doctor's office. He stood there in amazement watching the people and cars down below.

He waited so patiently for us to be called back for the ultrasound!

We were so glad we took him with us. He loved being able to hear the baby's heartbeat. The ultrasound tech even printed him his own picture of his baby brother. I am loving this sweet picture of our family of three soon to be four!

The baby is doing great. We were able to confirm for sure that it is definitely a boy! His heartbeat is very strong. He is still measuring to be due on August 14th. He was being very active during the ultrasound! Such an amazing thing to see this little life growing inside of you! We are so thankful for another healthy baby boy on the way! Now on to naming this boy, getting his nursery decorated, shopping for cute clothes, etc...

19-20 Weeks

19 weeks

20 weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

How far along: 20 weeks (halfway there!)

Size of baby: size of a mango

Weight gain: 9 lbs

Maternity clothes: Oh, Yes!

Gender: It's a boy! We found out today on the ultrasound that it is for sure a boy! Name to be announced soon!

Movement: Yes, especially at night when I am lying on my right side. Getting stronger and more frequent every day! I love it!

Sleep: I sleep well most nights

What I miss: working out often, sleeping on my stomach

Cravings: fruit(I made a fresh peach cobbler the other night at like 9:00! I had to have it right then! I ate almost the entire thing by myself!) or salty foods

Symptoms: none- I feel great!

Best moment of the week: Seeing this sweet baby at my 20 week ultrasound! Such an amazing and beautiful thing!