The Best Advice I Ever Received

One warm spring day when Jonah was a few months old, Nolan and I were picnicking with our good friends, Kristin & Cody. We were discussing how it's difficult to know when you're spoiling your child and when you need to apply more tough love. Cody, who is a kind-hearted and insightful person, gave me the best parenting advice I've ever received. He said, "I'd say when you're in doubt, err on the side of love."

Err on the side of love.
I love that.
And I've been thinking about it a lot lately. Jonah has taken to being snuggled to sleep before every nap and bedtime. A few months ago I would've thought (although I'm ashamed to admit this), "Okay, here I am snuggling Jonah while I need to be doing X, Y, and Z..." But lately, something wonderful has happened. I watch my little son curl up in my arms, content and peaceful as can be, and I feel so good knowing that I am providing him the security and safety and love that I so want him to feel. I want him to feel of my love for him and to always be able to trust in it and rely on it.

He is, after all, growing too fast. And soon I won't be able to snuggle him the way I can now. So, I'm eating it up. And I'm even having trouble putting him in his crib when he falls asleep.
Thanks, Cody, for the best advice ever!

{And just how lovable is this little guy? Really!}

This one's for Lauren

"Hey, where's my candy?"

And here's one of the family. Nolan was embarrassed of our costumes, but he couldn't come up with anything better. Any guesses of what we are?



Happy Halloween from the "I-Balls"!

Oh, Autumn

Autumn is my favorite season of the year. Jonah and I took advantage of the beautiful weather by going to the park yesterday. It was one of those good moments of life - breathing deeply the crisp air, enjoying the vibrant colors, and talking to Jonah about this and that. A great way to spend the afternoon, if I do say so myself.













And guess what? This is what today looks like in our backyard:

Catching Up

Our computer broke, so I've had a hard time keeping up with the blog. Here is an update on the latest happenings.

Nolan's been preparing for a huge exam that will give him the next level of licensure in his structural engineering field. His test is this Friday, so say a prayer for him! Other than that (and work, of course), he is always so helpful to me around home. I swear, he is THE model husband. He never makes demands about anything - dinners, laundry, etc. If he notices something isn't being done, he offers to help! And he doesn't make me feel guilty about it. We got to watch a movie together the other night, which was a fun and rare diversion. ("Relax, don't do it, when you wanna go to it..." Haha! That's for my own amusement when I look back and read this someday. Anyone seen "The Proposal?" I think I watched the Ramon scenes at least five times. Good times.)

I've been spending most of my time chasing Jonah as he gets into anything and everything. I've enjoyed taking walks or trips to the park to revel in the beautiful fall scenery. I attempted to make some pumpkin chocolate chip bread the other day, but the center ended up caving in. I'm just not cut out for cooking, but at least I try.

Jonah is almost 11 months. He learned to crawl a few weeks back, and he hasn't stopped since. His favorite things are to pull himself up on anything (especially dangerously unstable things, much to my chagrin), pull out the contents of the bathroom cupboards, and chase his ball around the floor. I think he might be outgrowing some of his intense stranger aversion, but we'll see. He loves to jabber, and recently learned to say "yaya" and "dada." He points with his tiny finger to everything that interests him, his favorite food is avocado, and he thinks it's funny to roll over during his diaper changes. I can't believe how big he's getting. Seriously.

This is the day I dressed him up like a big boy.

"Sooooo big!"

We spent a weekend in Logan with family and took a nice fall walk.

These are from a hike we took a few evenings ago.

We went to a pumpkin patch to pick our own pumpkins. I know many people do this every year, but it was a first for us. It was great! Jonah slept the whole time. Maybe he'll enjoy it more next year.

JSKB

:: sleeps like a stinkbug
:: loves yogurt
:: thinks bird sounds are funny
:: loves loves loves being on his feet
:: plucks ruthlessly at the guitar
:: stares eye-to-eye with himself in the mirror
:: is a momma's boy
:: gnaws on chapstick (with the lid on)
:: dances & does "so big"
:: rolls around during diaper changes
:: makes whale sounds to his Shamu
:: laughs when we give him his binkie
:: wriggles out of my arms trying to dive into the bathtub
:: only snuggles if we're watching TV
:: is the most loved baby in the entire world

Logan Weekend

We had a great weekend in Logan with the Balls family. There were a few things on the agenda:

We went for a lovely walk with Grandpa Seth (Nolan's dad). We soaked up the beautiful canyon scenery, and also enjoyed listening to Seth tell us about his growing-up days on the farm in Idaho. It was neat hearing him talk about working at the bean cannery, taking care of his milk cows, and water-skiing in the canal. What a great guy and a truly fantastic father/grandfather!







The next day it was out to the garden to do some harvesting! Another thing about Grandpa Seth is that he has an incredible garden. I am very jealous - he has the touch. Pat & Seth are generous and share their fresh, delicious produce with us. Our sister-in-law, Amy, and her son, Tyler, were great to do most of the picking.









Nolan's sister, Ranell, gave our cute niece, Ella, some very pretty pigtails. I think they were her first ever. She's usually rockin' the mullet.





And last, but not least, the reason for the trip was Nolan's grandpa's 95th birthday party. 95!! Grandpa Balls is a remarkable example of a wonderful life lived. He has accomplished a lot in his 95 years, and he continues to be a great father/grandfather/great-grandfather, and much more. It was neat seeing him blow out his birthday candles.





Other events included:
A delicious sweet pork dinner by Pat
Some fun sessions of Blokus and Ticket to Ride
A walk for Jonah & Grandpa Seth to see the horses (yes, Jonah let Grandpa Seth hold him!)

It was a great weekend. Thanks for always treating us so well when we come visit, Pat, Seth, and Ranell! We'll see you soon!

The Many Talents of Jonah Seth

Jonah has been busy broadening his dazzling array of knowledge & skills. Watch and you will behold his study of:

:: electrical luminescence
:: the amazing anatomy of the human body
:: rare bird calls
:: and the graceful movement of dance (with some flirting thrown in)

My, my. What a child prodigy I have on my hands. :)



p.s. Sorry the video quality is weird... our Mac is dying.