18-24 Months

CREWZER: 

- puts his hand on his heart.. He's heard the national anthem at tooo many basketball games!
- ate some ice cream sandwich (dad gave it to him) in the tub and dropped a piece... Screamed bloody murder when he saw it floating around in the tub!!! He thought it was a bug.
- points to a lot of body parts! Nose, belly, bum, eyes, hair, head, ears, teeth
- has a few fave books that he loves pointing stuff out... His three fave are Little Blue, "the pizza book", and "the monkey book" hahaha
- End of March: went to peurto Penasco, Mexico as a 19 month old!! He learned to talk while we were on our trip. He says everything!!! Water, pizza, pasta, snacks, please, thanks, daddy, mommy, Molly, all our families' names, shoot it, pass, good catch, mm hmm, get down, outside, and lots more!!! He also says hi!! And bye!! Super cute
- throws tantrums and is super grumpy/emotional, especially in a he morning.
- he's going to be a big brother! In October. And points to my belly (or boobs) and says baby
- 4.3 said picture!! When I tried to take a selfie with him hahah
- 4.5 he's been saying "fooffall" for football lately. cracks everyone up. I never want him to grow up/fix this.
- 4.5 went to the dentist for the very first time! He actually did pretty good. I mean, he cried but Mickey Mouse clubhouse distracted him enough to let them clean his teeth. Woot! And he LOVED the tractor he got at the end. He will have to have a frenectomy when he is 3 or 4. Poor kid. Has his moms genes.
- says everything is green or "geen!" As he says it. Hahah
- loves bubbles! Says it perfectly.
- started sleeping with a pillow and blanket in his crib! It's so cute and he loves it! Almost 20 months old.
- 4.17 sustained leaders at stake conference. Said temple too.
- has some cute friends and loves showing off for them. He loves his neighbor madden and all his cousins
- 4.22 said his first prayer! With dad's help of course. Cutest thing on this planet!
- says "k, c-ya!" When saying goodbye haha. And usually gives knuckles and blows kisses. He's not very good at physical contact with people, haha so that's all they're gonna get!! And we're ok with that.
- timeouts. He so sweet and always apologizes to cute it melts my heart!
- he says the prayer... Oh man cuteness overload!!!!
- 5.11 he's so sweet. Today he kept giving my legs hugs and I'd tell him I love him and he'd say, yeah. And walk away. Ahh melt my mamma heart.
- 5:15 Jaren was reading a bedtime story, and I was kinda kissing the back of crews head but didn't think he even noticed. Then crew just looked up and goes, "kiss" hahaha sweetest thing ever!!! Then he wanted to Eskimo kiss and then he had to kiss dad too. He's just the sweet little guy. I never want him to grow up, ever!!!
- 5:15 crew went to nursery today WITHOUT CRYING!! Christmas miracle. Made me so happy.
- 6:16 toddler bed!!!! He was amazing his first night. We'll see how the rest go! He loves his big boy bed (he says that so cute!!)
- he talks and talks and talks our ears off!!!! He's also starting to copy things we say and do. We LOVE him so dang much!!!
- I love when he puts his little finger in from of his nose and says, "I be right back!" And runs off hahaha
- saw a big white wear house and said, "temple!"
- says "that's tute! I love it!"
- "tapkin" for napkin
- "play tars".. Play cars. Oh and all the cars are "dreen" ....aka green

Pics at 22 months!

Crew's dermatology appt visit notes:

He's got a few different diagnoses. Dermatographia - where you scratch his skin and it immidiately reacts and goes red and raised. Releases histamines so Zyrtec or Benadryl at night. I have to use a certain new laundry detergent and a certain new bath soap.. He's also got something called atopic dermatitis that MAY be allergies from molly.... Why his nose runs and why he coughs. Plus the keratosis pilaris, red bumps that Jaren has on his arms. Amlactic from Costco will help but can be really acidy for face.. They gave me a steroid rx and rx hydrocortisone cream for topical use for extra irritated spots. Aquaphor all over (even his little irritated scrotum. Avoid baby powder) after bath every night. Lotion every morning. He might grow out of this when he's a teen, but if not they can remove the red bumps from his face w laser. People with this condition are less likely to get ance.

15-18 Months

Ok, ok I know I've said it before, but THIS IS MY FAVORITE STAGE! haha He's just so much fun. Here's the recap on the last few months, in order:  

- says mommy now!
- has such a good arm
- wanna sing a song? Then he tried to sing I am a child of God. Haha
- taught him about Lehi and he said "hi!"
- folds his arms for prayer sometimes
- goes to nursery at 16 months because of mom and dads demanding callings
- 16 months starts to get clingy!! To mom and dad only. Won't really high five or go to other adults. But he LOVES kids!!!
- says NO like really good... Uh oh
- gives really sensual kisses
- loves to fake cackle.. Sooo funny!
- it's wintertime and his excema is so bad :( trying renew lotion 3x a day. Next we will try apple cider vinegar. Poor guy! His cheeks are always bright red. Doesn't seem to phase him though!
- started to put words together like "a ball" and "catch it" and "shoot it"
- he tries to jump and hop and it's the cutest thing ever!!
- finally starting to sit still while watching tv
- knows where his bum-bum is
- doesn't have to be taken out during sacrament meeting anymore!! We are currently on a no-hall streak. He stays quiet cuz he loves loading the crayons in the crayon box. Such good entertainment haha
- says/repeats mommy and daddy all day long now!!
- wears 2t clothes
- 1.16 I asked him if he popped and he said no and smiled. Then immediately started grunting and going red faced. Hahahaha
- 1.27 belly growled, he noticed it for the first time and laughed cuz he thought it was a fart :)
- he loves when someone knocks on our door! He runs to it waving hi hi hi the whole way! Oh and he always tells Molly to shush when she's barking.. Wonder where he got that...
- 1.28 he loves a show on tv called "dinosaur train" and gets so excited when it comes on ANd "bob the builder"
- 2.4 size 5 diapers at 17 months!! Well for sure at night. He leaks through otherwise!!
- getting soooo smart. He understands everything we say.
- 2:4 he now meows, moos, roars, and barks. Oh and hisses. Haha
- he takes my finger and drags me into the kitchen the cracker cupboard when he wants a snack. Whaaa?!!
- 2:19 loves going outside! Puts his hand on the doornob and waves "bye!" To Molly because that's what we do when we leave the house. So cute!
- took his tray off the high chair and now he just sits right up to the table with us
- 2:21 he threw up for the first time!! And on mom. So sad!
- 2:28 says "Oh no!!" And covers his mouth on scary parts of Disney movies
- says water really well.
- knows exactly what we are saying!!! All the time!!!! He is Sooo much fun!!
- he let me take his 18 months pics and they turned out darling!!! What a happy little guy.

12-15 Months

He's on the move, folks!!! We love him soo much. He's constantly making us crack UP!! Almost every single night... before we get in bed... Jaren and I peek at his monitor to see his sleeping body is his tiny crib and say, "He's so cute." 

NOT KIDDING!! We adore our little man. 

- 9.15 full blown walking! Like a 6 foot stretch!
- 14 months! gets his sippy cup from the high chair. Just knows where it is!! Haha
- he signs sooo well! For toys from other kids, milk at the grocery store, so smart!!!
- says punkapunkapunka for pumpkin
- still never says mom...
- loves playing with Molly!!! They are bffs
- nov 2, made his very first basket!!! Loved it and did it over and over again.
- takes Molly's bed and sits in it to read books
- he loves balls!! Says ball all the time.
- says blankets
- 11.10 gives kisses on command
- says night night
- blows kisses
- tries to copy you!! Snapped his fingers cuz Alli did
- got his first REAL haircut
- loves to dance!!! And be silly
- hardly ever messes with the Christmas tree
- he now yells at us in the morning so we come get him haha
- he's really good at saying "no way!"
- getting his 1 yr molars and is such a little turd lately!! Grumpy central. I'm hoping this is just a phase and he goes back to being the sweet, good eater he once was!!
- had his first "spicy food" experience. So sad!! Grabbed his tongue and wanted me to get him out of his high chair! Gave him milk and applesauce and he was fine, but I felt so bad!! Haha
- plays bball soooooo much!! He is always walking around the house palming a ball.
- On the night before he turned 15 months, I took away his bottles for GOOD! They're gone. He's officially a grown up now. haha.

Our angel baby

On August 3, 2015, we discovered the best news. WE WERE PREGNANT! 

Crew was 11 months old, and we were pregnant. 
I cried, while Jaren laughed. We were so incredibly excited!!!

We began making plans to finish the basement and move things around to make room for the baby. I was constantly scheming about how I was going to take care of TWO babies just 19.5 months apart!!!

Almost immediately, we told family and friends. Which, looking back, is kinda odd because we didn't tell a single soul till I was 11 weeks along with Crew! This time, the Nelson's were first and they cried and we caught it all on camera with our selfie stick in a restaurant in Arizona!!!

But.

Just over three weeks ago, tragedy struck our family as we lost our baby at almost 11.5 weeks gestation. I can honestly say it has been one of the hardest experiences to endure. I had heard that little heartbeat, seen a tiny body on an ultrasound screen, and walked past and adored the fuzzy, black and white sonogram pics hanging on the fridge. 

Because I was fairly far along and because we were so excited, we told a LOT of people! It was humbling to have to tell friends and family the worst news. Why didn't we wait till it was "safe" to tell?! Then maybe the heartache wouldn't be so bad? 
Here's the good news: Because so many people knew, we had a ton of support!! So many other wonderful women have experienced this. My mom, sister, grandmas, aunts, sister in law, mother in law, cousins, visiting teacher, very close friends and countless others all offered their complete empathy. Some even showed up on my doorstep with flowers, candy, cookies, and pumpkin rolls! I know some people don't grieve like this, but I yearned for support and talking about it actually helped. Hearing their stories and asking questions was comforting to me.

October 15th was National Pregnancy, Infant Loss and SIDS Awareness Day. Now that a few weeks have past, I feel like I can share my story and maybe offer support to someone else. It helped so much and I know it eased our family's sadness! Why don't people talk about their miscarriages? Because it hurts. It ALL hurts!! Or because we might blame ourselves, or have feelings of inadequacy. But what about those families who go through this silently? Or repeatedly? Or never, ever carry successfully? Or experience infant loss? I think about baby boy Jade Nelson, who my husband's family lost due to SIDS, almost 28 years ago. How do we talk about these things?! How do we approach others who have experienced this??

This I know for sure: babies are the best thing in this entire universe. I know I'm young, and have hope that there will be more... But we wanted THAT baby, ya know? And some might say, it's just a miscarriage! But it wasn't. THAT baby was our living, growing son or daughter. Who, as Jaren reminded me, was too perfect to come to this earth. Without a doubt in my mind, I know that someday we will meet THAT baby. We will be reunited again through Jesus Christ, the Plan of Salvation, and the knowledge of eternal families. And that brings me the ultimate comfort and joy!!! My heart is truly full. 

Crew is UNO!!!

Crew turned UNO so we partied mucho and threw him a huge fiesta! Complete with tamales, chips and salsa, grilled shrimp, mexican rice, a pinata, and a dog wearing a pancho and sombrero. I'm so mad I didn't get any pics of the food/serving table! But here's some other pics of his party, and bloopers from his UNO photoshoot!

 And here's some from his photo shoot! I WAS SWEATING trying to wrestle a dog, a child, a mustache, and a hat. But, it was all worth it!

And the final product..... TADA!! Phew we worked hard for this shot!

Happy Birthday to our little man!