You turn around for one second and...

So my son is quickly growing up (actually he turned 17 months today) and he is becoming more and more mischievious. My friend Hilary makes awesome cookies and so I made a batch for my family. Apparently, Josiah loved them very much! I really wasn't paying attention and had forgotten that I left a bag of cookies that I had made for my mom and dad up on our table...totally in reach of my little scavenger. When I finally noticed that he had been really well-behaved and stopped whining, I wondered why. I turned around and there he was, double fisting two cookies out of the bag that he had stolen off the table and opened up. He was all smiles while several cookies were scattered on the floor around him. I couldn't help but laugh...and take a picture. These moments pass so very quickly and I don't want to miss them! Love you cookie monster...

Summer fun!!!!

This has been a crazy, yet fun summer!!! I have loved it so much! Today J, Seth, and I went to the Washington pool with my Aunt Julie and cousins Nate and Emma!!! We had such a great time with them!!! I believe family is SO important and I want to spend as much time with them as I can!!! I always say that in the end, life isn't about money or things or trying to hurt other people, it is about love! I LOVE being with my family and with Seth's family. It is always so refreshing to be in the company of people that know how to love each other! This world is so full of hate and anger and I want my son to spend as much time as he can being with those that truly love him.

Anyway, I am realizing that J may be a little swimmer like daddy, Aunt Molly, and Aunt Bets!!! He loves the water even though he seems frightened initially! He loves to play with water toys and the fountains! He is such a big boy!!! I can't believe how he has grown!!! This is only like the 5th time he has been swimming this summer. My friend Jamie has been so kind in letting us come over there to swim a couple of times. I hate to say it but I have only been to the Princeville pool one time! I love the pool, but don't know that many people that go there! I was able to have a mom's luncheon at my house and have some girls over from the area. I have been so lucky to meet some so many new moms in my area this summer! I was beginning to wonder where they all were!

Hmmm...what else have we been up to? Seth's 29th birthday was July 29th ( I just realized it was his golden birthday) . Most wives give their hubs a card and night out, but I decided I wanted to do a weekend, so Seth and I went with 3 couples to St. Louis for the entire weekend! We enjoyed our time with Greg and Sara, Ryan and Sarah, and Jeremy and Hilary! Each couple is so special to our little family! During our time in St. Louis, the boys did what they love...watched baseball, while the girls did what they love...shopped and got pedicures!!! It was a great time! We also went to the landing later on and had dinner! This was followed by a piano bar and dancing! We felt young again! I am so happy with the way our lives have turned out! Seth and I have such a strong relationship and we have surrounded ourselves with such great friends that have encouraged us so much!

Well, that is all for now! I will leave you a pic of my cousin Emma and J from the pool today!

Should I really even continue????

Well, I haven't done this in awhile...four months to be exact!!! I am so sorry that I haven't kept you up to date on the sweetest little boy out there, but mommy has not been feeling well, so blogs were not on the forefront of my mind. However, I am so sad that I didn't keep up with it because this is how I chart what Josiah is up to and so on. Josiah turned 1 and that was the last you have heard!!! He is now walking and TALKING a lot!!!! I knew he would take after daddy with all of that talking...that is who you think he takes after in the verbal dept, right??? Josiah started walking at 14 months. He had been taking steps before that, but never could walk far distances until 14 months. He is now running and mimics everything we say....okay, so now would be the time to be super careful! He has been saying dog, mama,dada, and choo choo (train) forever now, but he has added a lot to his vocab. He says nana (just did that yesterday when I addressed mom as "nana") and he also said chicken yesterday after I told him to "eat his chicken." He says "sit down" to sasha and says her name as "shisha," which does make mommy a little sad because it reminds me of Trisha. Some day I know she will want to meet this spunky little nephew of hers...I have realized it is not something I can bring into existence...I continue to pray until then. God has given me peace in knowing that I have done all that I can. Anyway, my blog is about my baby, not my sister, so enough about that. Josiah is very social! I work in nursery at church once a month and I get to see it firsthand. He loves to play with the little children in there. He squeals in excitement when he sees "tiny people." I love to watch it. My friend Sarah has a little boy that is 3 months younger than him and I love to watch them together. Last night, I visited their family, and we had both the boys down to thier diapers and they ran around enjoying their freedom! They are soooo adorable!!!! I wish I would have taken a pic of them. I love this child so much and my heart is full of love when I see those chubby cheeks or I hear his little feet running through the house...can't remember life before that...don't think I want to either! Oh, and since last entry, my SIL Molly and her hubs, Ryan welcomed little Elijah Quin Hite. We were thrilled for them. Molly has been so good to me and has always made me feel like a real sister...it was so great to be at the hospital when that little guy arrived! He is SOOOOOO ADORABLE!!! I look forward to our boys getting into mischief together!!! I am sure J will show him how! Okay, so here it is...the latest...I am going to do better! I promise!!

Love to you all!

The Quins

Traci

Oh how I wish I could post my videos on here...I can never get that to work!!! Anyway, today is a HUGE milestone! My baby boy turned 1 year old today and I have a mixture of emotions! I am excited because I can see more and more of who he is going to be as he grows. I am also sad because this past year was a whirlwind and I know this precious time is going to fly by before my eyes.

This one little person has changed my life dramatically...and I have learned that I LOVE that!!!! My day is not complete until I have those chubby little arms around my neck. I love when he only wants to be with me and makes that fact known to me. I love how he dances to silly songs with me in the playroom. I love how he claps/laughs at himself when he does a trick we have taught him. This mother and son bond is more than anything I could have dreamed. Having said all of that, I also realize the responsibility that comes with this little man. I want to raise him well. I want to teach him love, compassion, and honesty. I want him to hurt with those who hurt and truly know life beyond himself. I know I still struggle with those principles as well, but God has never given up on me because I am His child...what a crazy thought!

I have posted some pics from our little party. Josiah was scared out of his mind of the candle on the cupcake...he is definitely not a pyro! Someday I will post a video on here so you can all see "Mr. Personality" or you could all just get a facebook account and see them there...you know who I am talking about ...Mama Q.

Okay, so nothing really new here...I know it seems that I have abandoned this blog, but not a whole lot of new things are going on. J man is still standing a lot. In fact, the other day, he stood up completely on his own without holding on to us first...hasn't done it again though! When he first started standing, daddy and I would clap and holler for him, which made him get completely excited. So now he stands until he knows that we have seen him! We then start the clapping/hollering exercise which prompts more standing, which can wear you down a little! However, I have said it a million times, but it is so true...there is NOTHING like witnessing a little person doing something for his first time! I feel completely blessed!

I also have been having my night time prayers during Josiah's final bottle of the night. By this, I mean that I pray out loud with him. Any hurt or challenge or praise that I have, I pray for with little J man in my arms. I want this baby to know where his mama gets her strength from! I also have been praying a lot for Josiah to be a man of compassion and to love others above himself. My mom and I were in Bergners the other day (community day) and we saw this kid that completely touched our hearts. He worked with severely handicapped kids and had one of them there with him to help him sell community day coupons. He was so great with her! He was the type of kid that had probably just graduated college, but was not out to "get ahead" or measure his life by the amount of money he makes a year. He chose the job he did to make a difference in these special adults/children's lives. I admire kids like that today. After his partner in crime had sold us a coupon, he gave her a high-five and said, "Good job Brianna." That is when my mom and I began to cry. At that moment, I realized that my prayer for little Josiah was not to go out and conquer the world and make as much money as he could, but rather, to make a difference in someone's life and learn how to be a compassionate individual! I came home and shared this account with Seth...tears streaming down my face the entire time. I am thankful that I was at Bergners that day...and I was thankful for that kid that made me realize what our priorities should be to truly make a difference in this world! :)

Teeth/Standing/Baby Einstein

I have to start off by saying that Baby Einstein drives me up a tree!!! When I am watching it with J, I find myself completely irritated. The problem is that he loves it...especially the finger puppets on it. I am waiting for him to get out of that stage and move on to "Cars" or something that I can tolerate.

J is still trying to stand (he has done it three times off of a piece of furniture). He does this funny thing where he gets on one knee and tries to stand. It looks like he is proposing to mommy like 100 times a day. It is the cutest thing ever! I have not been able to get a pic of him doing it though! I will keep trying!!!!

TEETH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THEY ARE HERE...and we love them just as much as we thought we would. He has these little crunchie snacks that he used to let melt in his mouth, but now we listen to him "crunch" them with his toofers!!! It makes me smile! He has two teeth that are almost completely out at the bottom and I can see two more on the top that are on their way!!!! Hurry up guys...mommy is tired of buying all the organic purees or pureeing her own!!! Bring on the table food!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is a pic of his teeth...he doesn't let me open his mouth so they are hard to see, but he has bitten me enough to let me know they are there!!! Enjoy!

Here is another pic of J watching Baby Einstein...Note that silly puppet that he is infatuated with! Thankfully he is a little ADD and doesn't watch the entire program...just the puppets!

Taking a stand!!!

Do you know what I could possibly be talking about with that title??? Baby J stood for like 5 seconds today on his own without any assistance. The funny thing is that he had no idea that he was doing it. He saw that mommy had food and since he has become a major mooch when it concerns food, he crawled over to me and stood right in front of me. I didn't have my camera so I don't have a pic. I tried to get him to do it again, but he wouldn't. I am sure this will happen many times in the next several days, so I will keep my camera handy. You will see a picture soon!!!!!