Two-Year-Old Well Check

Hudson had his two-year-old well check this week. We were excited to get his long awaited stats, but not so excited for him to get a shot. Luckily, he did not have to get more than one, but any shot—no matter the number—is not fun. Hudson, however, did not seem to mind his shot at all. He just watched the nurse give him the shot without hesitation or one tear. I thought he might cry a little, but he didn’t even give it a second glance. He just wanted his Band-Aid and sucker. So, in the end, we got Hudson’s stats and a not-worth-a-tear shot.



Hudson’s growth percentiles for the age of 2 are:

Weight: 26 lbs (25%)
Height: 34 1/2” (60%)

Family Home Evening—Awards

Our theme for family home evening this week was: awards.

For the lesson we learned about the different awards that one can receive—trophies, medals, ribbons, certificates, plaques and so on—for achieving or winning a variety of activities. We then talked about the good feelings one receives when doing kind things for others. These feelings are the award we receive for our good deeds. This type of award is not as flashy or well-known, but it is a very rewarding and satisfying award.

After the lesson, we immediately had our medal cupcake awards (sugar is hard to wait for); and then we made our own award medals to wear. Both Elle and Hudson had a lot of fun, and I think next time they do something nice for someone else, they will think about the good feelings they have been awarded with.

All About Hudson

I wanted to take a moment and record all things Hudson. Since he just had his birthday, I thought this was the perfect time.

• Hudson’s favorite toy is a motorcycle. He is obsessed with motorcycles— mostly in real life. In a close second are cars and trucks. They too are loud and have wheels that go round and round.
• Hudson loves to put on ALL shoes. He does not care color or style; he just wants to try them on. Johnny hates this obsession when Hudson decides to put on his sister’s high heels—this is not okay to him. But Hudson and I don’t care, so he continues to wear the high heels.
• Hudson does not eat well. He is picky, picky, picky. I am constantly trying to get him to try new things. But the one thing he loves and will eat anytime of the day—even right in the morning—is salt and vinegar chips. This kid loves those chips. He begs for them everyday. They are another one of his crazy obsessions.
• Hudson is not a big talker. He is a man of few words. Most of the time if I ask him if he can say something, he just shakes his head and says, “uh-ah.” His first word—besides Mamma and Dada—was off. He loves to say this word. He walks around the house pointing to lights and fans and saying off and on. He also says no, do (go), bye-bye, hi, tar (car), up, Elle, ball, night-night, done, two, Papa, buba (Bridget), Dak, Wa-wa (Ya-Ya), and he does signs and lots and lots of grunting. But I have to admit that I love his little grunts. They are cute.
• Hudson loves to antagonize his sister. He finds great enjoyment in seeing her get angry with him. I try to tell him to not to bug his sister, but he does not care. He loves it.
• Hudson loves football. He can sit with his dad and watch games. He gets really excited when a football game is on. He immediately smiles and starts oohing and ahhing—very cute.
• Not much bothers Hudson. He is very easy going. He hardly ever cries, and when he does it is for a minimal second. If something does not work, he just moves on to the next thing. He is almost always smiling and giggling. He is never really upset. He is very even tempered. I love it.
• Hudson loves to vacuum. He asks me on a daily basis to vacuum the floor. I think he loves the noise. It makes him very happy when Johnny or I vacuum.
• Hudson loves to mow the lawn with his dad (it, too is noisy), he finds this to be one of his favorite things. He gets his little lawn mower out and follows Johnny all over the yard.
• Hudson loves to give kisses on both cheeks—no cheek is left out. It is very sweet.
• Hudson loves to dance. The second I turn on music he starts jumping and dancing around.

And that is just a small glimpse into the life of Hudson. He is such a good boy. We love him so much. I’m glad I took a moment to record all things Hudson.

Hudson is Two

Today is Hudson’s second birthday. At times it is hard to believe that he is two, but two he is. He is such a sweet, happy boy, and we love having him as a part of our family.



Hudson’s birthday started out with him waking up at the insane hour of 5:30—why he thought this was a good hour to start the day, I have no idea. But after accepting the fact that I was not going to get anymore sleep (I stayed up way too late the night before preparing and making all of the required—at least in our house—birthday festivities) I decided that we might as well get up and have some fun. So we all got out of bed and let Hudson immediately open presents (it is awfully hard to wait when there are presents just sitting around). He had a lot of fun tearing the paper off all of the packages. But when he saw the cars and trucks that were awaiting him underneath all of that blue wrapping paper, he could not contain his smiles. He was simply beaming as he inspected and drove each one. After the presents were opened, and we consumed breakfast, we headed to Lowes to build fire trucks—technically I built Hudson’s, but he did attempt to hammer some of the nails. And once the fire trucks were built and letting off loud siren noises (such a pleasant sound) we headed home for a nap. Boys that wake up at 5:30 require a nice, long nap. Or maybe it is parents who wake up with their two-year-old boys at 5:30 that require a nice, long nap. Either way, he had a nap.



Next, after the nap, we went to Chuck E. Cheese's to play games, ride in cars, win tickets and receive prizes. Elle and Hudson had so much fun. Hudson could have ridden in the cars and trucks all day.



After that, we let him blow out his candles and consume his motorcycle birthday cake (Hudson is obsessed with motorcycles). He did a good job at blowing out his two little candles. And, unlike last year, he actually ate and liked his cake (last year he puked).



All in all, it was a good two-year-old birthday. Hudson had a lot of fun, and he was all smiles and giggles. I’m so glad that we were able to share this day with Hudson, and make his day as special as he is. Happy 2 Hudson.

Family Home Evening—Armor

Our theme for family home evening this week was: armor.

First, we had a lesson about different kinds of armor. We learned that long ago when soldiers went into battle they wore metal armor—helmets, breastplates, swords, shields, and other various pieces—to protect themselves. We then talked about how we can protect ourselves from temptation and unclean things by wearing a different kind of armor: the armor of God. This kind of armor is spiritual strength which helps us to withstand evil.

After the lesson, we had chocolate shield cupcakes, because no one could wait any longer to have sugar. (Eating our theme seems to always be the highlight of family home evening.)

Then, with our tummies full, we made our own armor of God (better known as cardstock shields). And with our armor in hand, we blocked all evil (we blocked a ball which we pretended was temptation and unclean things).

And in the end, when the night was over, we found that we had a successful and fun family home evening.

Busy But Fun

This weekend we saw the Oscar Meyer Weiner mobile, we went to my parents, we played in the mud, Hudson spelt the sugar water that my mom was going to use to can peaches all over the floor, we went to a wedding, we ate too much sugar and the list could go on and on. Basically, it was another fun and busy weekend.

Two Cute

These two never cease to make me smile—even when they are causing havoc and creating mischief.

"Do"

Hudson got Elle’s lunchbox, put it in her backpack, and then asked me to put it on his back (it is about as big as him). He then told me, “Do” (which is go to most people who speak the English language). I asked him if he wanted to go to school, and he got all excited. It was very cute. But he was terribly disappointed when he did not actually get to “do” to school.

Family Home Evening—Streams

Our theme for family home evening this week was: streams. For the lesson we sang the song, “Give Said the Little Stream,” and then we talked about how all of us need to give just like the stream. We each have a capacity to give, and we tried to stress the importance of doing so to Elle and Hudson. After the lesson, we made our own stream and thought of something each of us could give—smiling, being patient, helping, and being kind—and then wrote and placed those items in the stream. After all of our gifts of choice were placed in the stream, we took turns jumping over our homemade stream (Elle and Hudson LOVED this). Then, lastly, we ate stream cupcakes, which were very yummy. And all of these items together made for a very fun family home evening.