15

~all smiles (15 months)
~1st birthday (january, 2009)

~angel boy (6 months)

~newborn miracle (january, 2008)

STOP-S.T.O.P! My son, you are different each time I glance in your direction. Your smile, your temper(ment), your words, Y-O-U! Can time really pass this quickly? For so many years we hoped and prayed for you--and it seemed the time crept...inched slowly from minute to minute, hour to hour, day to day. Not the case anymore, my sweet baby. It flies--so quickly--too fast--for mommy to catch her breath and notice all you are becoming. "Time, you are stealing from mommy--slow down!"

Today you saw your favorite doctor and he was so impressed with you once again. You have grown about 2 inches since January (30 inches)! You only gained about .6 of a pound, but mommy is certain it is because you are so active--running, jumping, dancing, spinning, playing--ALL the time! Your brains are growing too--almost a whole inch since the end of January!! So smart!

I love the way you won't settle for a simple "no" from mommy. Your baby blues long for an explanation--Why can't I play with the phone? Why can't I press the buttons on the printer? How does the water come out of the faucet like that? Why can't I ride the lawn mower with Papa? You are so curious, my angel boy.

Thank God you show us your emotions--happy smiles, sad furrowed brow, wondering eyes looking for Savannah or Papa, and utter upset and frustration when you don't get your way. You did read this correctly--We thank God each day that you are showing your emotions and expressing yourself--even when mommy and daddy are pooped and really just want their boy to be the happy, go-lucky little toddler you almost ALWAYS are!

Never in a million, gazillion years did I dream that I would enjoy communicating with a 15 month old almost as much as I enjoy communicating with adults?!?! Who knew it would be so much fun to watch you learn, explore, problem solve, and figure out why the world is the way it is...you watch mommy and daddy and mimmick what we do and say. What does a kitty-kitty say? What does the doggy say? What does the sheep say? Where are your ears? Amazing! That is Y.O.U!

I know it might sound corny and someday when you are older you might think mommy is silly--but you really do light up my life (just like the song says)! Each day, I can't wait to see what you will do next! Mommy and daddy are so blessed--We love you--Forever and EVER!!

Stats:

Height: 30 inches (25 %)

Weight: 22 pounds (25%)
Head circumference: 46cm (25%)



Words:
Dad-da
Mom-ma
Bye-Bye
Wee-Wee
Yeah, Yeah (any questions you ask him, he answers "Yeah, Yeah"--Hilarious!!)
PaPa
Ball
Pa (for paci)



Responds:
What does a kitty say? repeats meow over and over
What does a doggy say? kind of sounds like "oof, oof" rhymes with roof.
What does a sheep say? BAAAAAAAAH
Bird says "weet, weet"
Choo-Choo train says "Whoo, Whoo"
Points to ear, eye, nose, mouth when asked where they are.
Pats belly when asked where it is, then he goes to find daddy or mommy's belly.



Favorite foods:
Chicken, Turkey, Hamburger
Cheerios for breakfast
FRUIT--loves it!!
Some veggies--peas and carrots
Bananas
Grilled Cheese
Goldfish
COOKIES and Milk
So far Logan loves to try any type of food we have offered him.



Sign language: We have been working with baby signs since he was born.
More
Please
Thank you
Drink/Milk
Eat/Bite
All Done
New ones: Help, hurt, good.



No wonder your head circumference grew a whole inch!! Lots of brains in there, kid!
Happy 15 months my sweet, sweet, angel boy!!



~heart,
Mommy

Spring is HERE!!

Last Spring Logan was a bit too small to really be able to "play" outside. In fact, I don't think we even ventured out of the house until April. Not the case this year! We have had a few nice days of 70 degree weather. So, we have ventured outside. Needless to say--HE LOVES IT!! Our neighbors have dogs and he loves to yell at them from our back deck. On Tuesday, Mimi and Logan decided to take a walk. He walked all the way up the street (on the side walk, of course) and back. Even mommy gets out of breath on that walk, but not him. Apparently, he wanted to go more than once! That afternoon he took a 3 hour nap--ha!

We are so excited for nice weather so we can play outside with our son. Bring on the sunshine!!

S~

Happy Birthday Cousin!!

Happy #3 Savannah!!  Logan loves spending time with his cousin!  He looks forward to each Wednesday and Friday of the week!  

These pictures are just a few from her #3 princess photo shoot.  What a great little model she was!  We love you Savannah!!

BTW--Nana, Mimi and cousin Anna also celebrated birthdays in March!  Happy birthday to you all!!

Chad, Staci and Logan

Words!!

Logan's communicating with us! How amazing!!!

Where is your belly? He puts his hands on his belly and then he goes to find either mommy's or daddy's belly. So funny!!

He is growing and developing so fast--words and jestures each day! He jabbers non-stop!! We are so blessed!

Sorry about the quality of these videos, but I couldn't resist sharing them with everyone~make sure your volume is turned up!! Oh...if the music is playing, scroll all the way to the bottom and click on pause. Then you will be able to hear the video :-)

S~

Happy Heart Day!!

Tubes

~in the waiting room before surgery

~funny yellow gown

~back to normal tonight~

Can you tell daddy dressed me? Mommy knows green is NOT my color!!

"He will be a different kid, you'll see!" "He will feel so much better! No more doctor's!"

These words have been ringing through my head over the last few days as we prepared for Logan to have tubes put in both ears. The procedure, which is very common, was done this morning with little fuss. Everyone at work assured me that Logan would be much better off and that, at first, he would cry and be upset, but by mid-afternoon, he would be back to playing and running around. Friend after friend tried to comfort me with their kind words. Deep down, I knew they were right. Deep down, I knew that everything would be okay. And...it is!

Logan did really well. He didn't even cry when the nurse took him from us for the surgery!! Mommy did, but he didn't. Once he was in the OR, Chad, Mimi and I headed back to the waiting room. Seriously, when the Dr. said it would only take about 10 minutes, I thought he was just telling me that to make me feel better. But it really was only about 10 minutes until I could hear Logan crying. When we got back to the recovery room, the nurse had Logan. He was so pitiful--eyes closed, big tears, crying like his feelings were deeply hurt by someone. Once I held him, he seemed to calm a bit, but the crying didn't cease until he woke up a bit more and daddy gave him some juice in his sippee cup. Long story--once we got home, Logan slipped back into his normal routine with the exception of a few whines here and there. He took two really good naps and is snoozing away as I type this post.

Everywhere we go, people comment on how beautiful Logan is. They say such amazing things about him--how sweet his temperment is, how beautiful his baby blues are, how contagious his laugh is...this visit to the doctor was no different. He swept the nurses right off their feet. In fact, becuase of the anethesia, we disclosed Logan's adoption with the office staff. Well, many of you know our story and how we are so blessed to be the parents of this miracle, but somehow God always has a way of reasurring us and calming our (really mine, Chad is a ROCK) fears. As it turned out, both of Logan's nurses were adopted as babies. Can you believe that?

So, another lesson learned for this learning mommy. God is good. He is faithful and if we trust in Him, he will provide. One would think that I would know this by now, with everything we have gone through. But sometimes I forget and worry gets the best of me. Then, when I least expect it, when I really think I am leaning on God, He show me just how much He loves me and wants me to put all my fears on Him.

Thank you to everyone who sent up some prayers and well wishes for The Hoene's and especially for Logan. They are much appreciated. Enjoy the pictures...

S~

Ice Storms and Other Random Photos...

~Front yard at Nana's house
~Pretty ice

~Handsome man ready for church!

"Narnia" in our Neighborhood

Before the Ice and Snow...

After

First there was IKE and now ICE?!?! Go figure that we would get hit with 2 major storms some 5 months apart. Thankfully, this time our power was only out for about 15 hours--we didn't lose power with IKE. I know that is not the case for most people. During that time, we spent some quality family time with my family over at Savannah's house because they have a working fireplace. Now that we have power, Nana, Grandaddy, Rusty and Cloudy (the bird) are all staying with us. Logan loves having his Nana and Grandaddy so close. It is amazing to me how there are so many people who leave their lives and come to the rescue when there are wide-spread power outages in our area. Now that is dedication!

Logan and I have enjoyed our snow days this week. Though I would much rather enjoy the sunshine with him in June instead of being at work--ugh! So far we have missed 6 days, so that puts students going until the first week of June. CRAZY!!

Anyhow, just to update those of you who read our blog...Logan turned one on January 1. We had a small family party on New Year's day and then the BIG Shin-Dig on January 9. It was great fun!! Because of some reschedules, Logan didn't have his first year check-up until January 23. He was so funny. He LOVES Dr. R...so much so that he sat on his lap almost the entire check up. Dr. R. said he had never had a one-year old do that before. Logan just loves going to the doctor. I wonder how long that will last? So...at 12 (almost 13) months here are his stats:

Height--28 3/4 inches (25%)

Weight--21. 6 pounds (25%)

Head Circumference--45 (25%)

Logan is saying so many words and jabbers ALL the time. I will try to get some video of him jabbering and post it soon. In fact, I came home from work today and he had been saying "Uh Oh" all day for Nana. Too funny!! He has learned to shake his head (no, of course) and knows where Mommy's nose is. It is amazing how much he is learning on a minute by minute basis.

So, it was back to work for mommy today (after 4 snow days) and man it was rough! I missed him terribly and look what I missed--so much learning!!

Until next time...

S~

BTW--Logan is scheduled for ear tubes on Monday, February 9. Keep us in your prayers, please!!