Forgotten Poem

I was playing around on the internet, reading a blog when this poem was mentioned. I have read this before and really like it. It was written in 1927 but can ring true in any age.  Just wanted to share with all of you.




Desiderata 

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let not this blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass. Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore, be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be. And whatever your labors and aspirations in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams; it is still a beautiful world. Be cheerful.

Strive to be happy.

Passing it down

So today I decided to give away something very close to my heart. My most prized possession.

I gave Evan my teddy bear, CBA (Cuddly Bear Alper) I was about 5 when I got it so don't laugh too hard at his name.

It was very cute how Evan hugged and held onto the bear. I cried when Evan was so excited to have a new "friend". I hope that Evan can have this bear for many years to come. It's not in that bad of shape considering the bear is close to 30 years old.

Pictures to come soon.

Pictures

Since the last post was long this one is just pictures. These are all from the past month. Enjoy!

look at those eyes

Evan the train conductor

cheese

I drew Mommy right there

peek a boo

helping clean the house

wore this hat most of the day

new hat new day

playing with his bud Frank

milk....yummmm

Evan stacked these all by himself

Evan knocked these down all by himself

Evan having an "ice cream" sandwich for the first time

he likes it

Had to do it all by himself

It was gooooood

Spring has sprung..and not a minute too soon

I am slacking on my blogging duties and will try to catch up on as much as possible. Evan is literally changing daily so I will try to do my best.

We are so so happy that spring is here. It feels that Evan has been more sick than not this winter season. I told our doctor when we were there AGAIN the other week that Evan should have the immune system of a super hero by the time he enters school! We have had many sleepless nights and our fair share of watching too many kid shows. Once we can get out doors again and get in the fresh air I hope the germs will dissipate.

We have really lucked out with Evan and traveling. He loves the plane and even asks to go on it again when we land. A 2 1/2 hour flight is not that long and seems to be good for him since he no longer wants to take naps on the plane. It was our first trip with Evan totally mobile and we were worried what was in store for us. He did amazing! The most excited he got was when we were in the Seatlle airport and he saw a plane with Mickey and company painted on it. He was screaming "mickey, duck" while running to the window.

The three of us just got back from Arizona where we watched our cousin Dana get married. Evan is very excited for our new cousin Brian who also has red hair :) It was a beautiful event and Evan did an amazing job meeting so many new people.

While we were in AZ, we watched Evan's vocabulary flourish. If you ask him to say a word or a name he tries his hardest to say it. He can now say many family members name's and many other things. Evan can now also count to 2! He needs both hands as he counts 1 on one hand and 2 on the other.

It's so amazing to watch his brain work and connect. The other big thing that Evan is doing is identifying letters and the sounds that they make. We watch a DVD from Leap Frog called The Letter Factory and it teaches the sounds. Evan will tell you the letter when he sees it on the screen and is working on their sounds. He actually points out letters on everything.

This past week we have hit the independence stage of toddler-hood. I have been bitten, laughed and at screamed at all by Evan. We had a few days of HORRIBLE temper tantrums. Evan would just sit down wherever and scream and cry. I had the joy of Evan having a tantrum at the children's museum and me carrying out a screaming, kicking child to our car. That seems to have been the worst for now but Evan has his moments.

Some things we just never had to worry about with Evan since he didn't seem interested or we thought he understood it wasn't safe. WRONG. In his streak to push every boundary he can. Evan likes to keep going towards a hot oven to touch and laughs when he is told it is hot and dangerous. So much fun :)

We love being able to talk and interact more and more each day with Evan.

Sorry for the super long post just trying to catch up.

Will try to post more frequently and pictures will follow soon

Sam

18 months

I keep meaning to get on here and update but a busy toddler and an exhausted Mommy at the end of the day don't help. My baby is now a full blown toddler! He talks, disagrees, walks/runs, throws temper tantrum, has become a very picky eater and LOVES to try and say what we do.

Evan asking for more books since he doesn't seem to think he has enough

having fun with his toys

Loves his Thomas

At Evan's 18 month check up he weighed 25.8 lbs, 33 1/2 inches and his head measured 19 1/2 inches. So he is in the 40% for weight, 75% for height and 90% for his head :) The doctor thinks Evan will be about 6' when he gets older. Luckily Evan has slowed down in growing unlike his first year. We are able to keep clothes a little longer than before. Evan is long enough to wear 2T clothes but is no where near 27 lbs. So he will have saggy pants for awhile :)

Evan went to the allergist yesterday to be retested for his food allergies. I was hopeful but the allergies are still there. The good part is his reaction was less than it was 6 months ago. The doctor is very hopeful that Evan will be able to eat dairy and eggs before he is 3. We did learn that when Evan does test negative for his allergies it is going to be a VERY SLOW introduction. Like a tablespoon a day of milk (mixed in his formula) for a few days and then slowly increasing the amount. We had also mentioned how Evan has had croup 2 times in 2 months. The doctor said that if Evan gets it one more time in the next 10 months we will need to see them. Croup can be an indicator for asthma for a child with food allergies. 90% of children with food allergies get asthma! Fingers crossed that Evan will be in that 10%.

I went away for a weekend and left the boys to fend for themselves, it seemed to go great. I got in the car and Evan could care less that I was gone. All he said was "door".

being cute as always

playing in snow back from the beginning of January

the kid LOVES his football

18 months old and what a sharp dresser :)

twins

the happy picture before the split lip

Speaking of vocabulary, Evan is just a talking machine. You ask him to say something and he sure tries. Doesn't always sound like the word but he knows what he is talking about. Door is again the word of choice and he likes to point to them or when people come in our out of our house. He always has to point out they used the door. There are too many words/signs that he is doing now to write down but he is a sponge (guess we should start watching what we say around him)

Evan has started recognizing letters AND can make the sound of a few of them. If I ask Evan "what starts with M" he will say "mama", he knows dada/daddy start with D and that BeBe/Baby start with B. Evan has a book for the tub called Bath Time. He will point and say the B,A,T,M and for the E he will point to himself for Evan. We have a play mat with pop out letters and he loves to just point at one to find out what I will tell him the letter is and the sound it makes. Watching him learn and connect things just blows my mind.

When Evan was first eating until a little after 1year he would eat just about anything you put in front of him. I would say at around 14 months that all stopped! We have a very very very picky eater on our hands which makes meal times not so fun. For a long time Evan would just look at his plate and say NO, but in the past week or so Evan will at least touch the food and at times even put it to his mouth! Then last night I was cutting up bell peppers and carrots and Evan tried and continued to eat them. He also ate pasta which he never touches. It was such a great feeling and a peaceful dinner (for a little anyway) since we were ALL eating.

I think I am all caught up for now.

More later

Happy 2011

So 2010 has no come and gone and 2011 is off to a great start. Right before Christmas we were finally able to get to Colorado and spend time with my brother, sister in law and adorable niece. It was nice and relaxing and so great to see the kids play together. They are about 4 months apart and was about time they got to meet. Only a few altercations over toys but I think Annabelle and Evan became fast friends.

My  brother Ross and niece Annabelle

Konikoff's in Nederland, Co

Evan and Annabelle sharing

While we were away Evan was working on his walking and now is a pro. He hasn't figured out how to stand not holding onto anything but that doesn't slow him down at all! Isaac and I agree we are glad he took his time learning to walk. He likes to just get up and go. Laughing and squealing in delight while he walks around the house.

It is so wonderful to hear Evan laugh and talk. If you ask him to say a word, he will try his best to say it and sometimes he gets the word perfect. I am starting to realize he will say something he shouldn't and that will be because of me. I am working hard and watching what comes out when I speak.

We love in the morning to hear Evan having a conversation with his Lovey while in bed. It puts me and Isaac in wonderful moods and has us laughing. We don't understand much but it sounds like Evan knows what is going on. He doesn't just talk in bed he will do this around the house and in the car. I asked him one day if he was singing along to the radio, he told me no. I then asked if he was just talking and he said, yeah.

For Evan's 1st birthday he got a play mat that has the alphabet and numbers on it. His new thing is to point to letters and numbers while you tell him what it is and what sound it makes. He also has magnets in the kitchen and does the same thing. He knows some letters and numbers. He has known the number eight for awhile. He is now pointing out the B and saying B or the sound it makes. We can ask him what starts with M and 99% of the time he will say Mama, and with the letter D he will say Dada or Daddy.

I am more impressed and amazed every day with what this child can comprehend and learn. He is a sponge and it is great to watch him take it all in.

Last week me, Evan and some of our friends went to the Seattle Aquarium. He couldn't stop saying and signing "fish". He could have stared at them all day. Watching the world through his eyes is so much fun.

We started up again this past week with our Mommy and Me class. Last session Evan was having some major separation issues from me and would scream and scream when I left. It was challenging for me and wasn't seeming to get better. On Tuesday I was prepared for the same situation, I said good bye and without even looking at me he said "bye-bye". I was so excited and relieved. He played and colored and didn't care I was gone for 30 minutes or so.

Isaac and I have also now been told " I love you" from Evan unprompted. My mom taught him how to sign it in their own special way. While we were in Colorado, Evan looked over at me and did the sign. I kept it together but that moment will be forever stamped in my mind.

The end of this month Evan will be 1 1/2. We are in shock how quick our little baby is transforming into a little boy.

Until next time.