Boogers, boogers, go away!

Posted in Max, Sick by
Our little guy is sick.  It is so sad, he is so little and there is no sadder sound than his cough.  Along with his cough he has a stuffy nose and had a slight fever.  With help from my mom, sister, and the Mercy Nurse, we have it under control, but I can’t wait till my little guy is feeling his best again!
Still cute even when he is sick!

Daddy

Posted in Jason, Max by
Max really likes to help Jason with work.  Over the past couple of weeks, Max has gotten to spend a lot of time with daddy and we have even nicknamed him “The Closer.”  Who wouldn’t want to buy a home from these two handsome men?
Max helping daddy check his emails in the early morning.

“Mom, leave us be! We are working!”

“Dad, are you sure you are doing that right?”
All in a day’s work.

One Year Ago…

Posted in Jason, Milestones, Wedding by
One year ago, Jason and I got married!  The Lord has blessed me with such an incredible husband.  I loved Jason very much a year ago.  I remember the anticipation of becoming Mrs. Rude.  There were things that I thought would be amazing like waking up to Jason every morning, sharing meals together, becoming parents together.  All wonderful things but, nothing I thought or dreamed up was as great as being married to Jason really is!  As I have gotten to know Jason more and more over the past year, I am so pleased to say that I love him much more than I did a year ago!  So much more!
So much has happened in this last year.  One of the most amazing things is seeing Jason become a dad.  He is so great with Max.  They already have such a great relationship and I know that Max adores him just as much as I do.
Some of my favorite things about Jason include his laid back personality, his good looks, his ability to talk to just about anyone, his work ethic, his good looks, his relationship with the Lord, the way he leads our family, his good looks, and the way he knows how to love me.  Oh… did I mention his good looks?  🙂

Here are the vows we made to one another a year ago.  What a great reminder of the foundation of our marriage.  Thank you, Lord, for an incredible husband.
“Amanda, you are my best friend and I love you and I know that you love me.  Because of this, I desire to be your husband.  Through the pressures of the present and the uncertainties of the future, I promise to be faithful to you.  I will love, serve, adore, and lay my life down for you like Jesus laid his life down for the church.  I promise I will never divorce you.  I will never hold anything over your head.  I promise to lead you and our future family in a way that honors Christ.  I will honor and love you while we’re together and while we are not in each other’s presence.  I will laugh and cry with you.  And I will cherish you for as long as we both shall live.”
“Jason, you are my best friend and I love you and I know that you love me.  Because of this, I desire to be your wife.  Through the pressures of the present and the uncertainties of the future, I promise to be faithful to you.  I will love, serve, respect, and submit to you.  I will never divorce you.  I will never hold anything over your head.  I promise to follow you as you lead me and our future family in a way that honors Christ.  I will honor and love you while we’re together and while we are not in each other’s presence.  I will laugh and cry with you.  And I will cherish you for as long as we both shall live.”
Happy anniversary, BFF.

Lions and Tigers and Bears! Okay, no bears..

Posted in Brody, Hailee, Max by
What else does one do on January 31st but go to the zoo of course!  Yesterday was another beautiful day in Des Moines; just about 60 degrees or so!  My sister called in the morning and asked if Max and I had plans.  We just so happened to be looking for some.  For Christmas, my grandma got Heather and her family a zoo pass that allows two guests.  Max and I were lucky enough to be those guests!!!
I got Max ready for the day, I don’t know if you can see in the pictures, but he insisted on wearing his “zoo pals” shirt for his first trip to the zoo!
Max started out the adventure being a little bit skeptical.

We had so much fun spending time with Aunt Heather and cousins, Hailee and Brody.  Hailee was telling us all about the animals and Brody was so great at opening all the doors for Max and his stroller!

Aunt Heather, Hailee (age 4), Brody (22 months)
Heather and I grew up going to Blank Park Zoo and it was so fun to be there with our kids!  I felt so grown up!

Max slept through most of the zoo.

Hailee and Brody in a pouch!
Towards the end of the trip, Hailee was hungry, Brody was slowing down, and Max woke up ready for a diaper change.  Good thing the zoo only takes about an hour to walk through!

Max and me.
And…  If you have ever been to the Blank Park Zoo, you know that the red pandas are cute as all get out! Here is a video of Brody attempting to say “red panda!”

Outside!

Posted in Max, Outside by

It is the last day of January and Max and I just got back from a walk… OUTSIDE!  We walked to MaryBeth and Addison’s house, which we were so pleased to find out takes only 10 minutes, were treated to lunch there, went to the park, and walked back home.

Rumor has it, it is 64 degrees outside!  I believe it.  It was so nice to get some fresh air.  This was our second walk of the winter; our first was with Aunt Julia a couple of weeks ago.  How spoiled are we???

Max enjoyed being outside and seeing his friend Addison.  We even got to see cousins Eden and Brielle on the way back from the park.  The girls were outside playing and were excited to tell Max all about their new bunk beds!

“Mom, I am having such a great time.” 

“This seriously could not be more fun.”

So sleepy after his busy afternoon!

How cute is this little guy?

Peanut hasn’t made an appearance on the blog for awhile. 

Stretching

Posted in Max, Morning, Sleep by

Max has been sleeping pretty consistent hours through the night.  He usually goes down around 10, wakes up at 3, again at 6 and then wants to play at 7.  When I take him to the changing table at 7, there is one thing on his mind… stretching.  This guy loves to stretch!  I tell him he is really good at it and he will smile and stretch some more.  I also tell him he is the best stretcher that I know; I think he really likes it when he knows he is impressing me!

Here are some photos to document his love for stretching:

Moved out to the living room after his good stretch session.  I think he is trying to tell me he is not only done stretching, but also done with pictures.

Olive Oil

Posted in bath, Max by
Max and I did some experimenting the other day…  I read that olive oil could help get rid of cradle cap.  Max doesn’t have it too bad, but every now and then it gets bad enough that it bothers me.  I figured that olive oil couldn’t hurt my little man, so I got a bath all ready, undressed him, and set him up on his changing table (his favorite place.)  I poured some oil on to a wash cloth and began rubbing it on his head.  He LOVED it!  It was like a little massage for him.  I should have turned on some calming music and lit candles… 
Max with the oil on his head.  Sorry for the cloudy photo, I think I may have gotten some oil on the camera as well.  Oops!

After the oil got a chance to soak in , we moved to the prepared tub.  Because Max smelled like an italian eatery, we shampooed twice!

My big guy in the tub.  I think he was checking out the new tile that Daddy installed in the shower!

The end result was amazing!  After we brushed his head with a soft bristled brush, there was no sign of cradle cap!

He loves being naked!

My Big Boy!

Posted in Max by

Max had his 2 month checkup today!  Everything looks great!

Max’s 2 Month Stats:

Height: 24.3in/ 87%
Weight: 13lb 15oz/ 90%
Head Circumference: 41.8cm/ 86%

Here is a photo of Max and some of his closest friends taken this past weekend!

2011 Top Ten

Posted in Jason, Max by

2011 was such a great year!  I might just go ahead and say it was my best year yet!  Here are a list of the top ten moments and events I am most thankful for: (Warning- There are an overabundance of exclamation marks!)

10. Traveling to Faithwalkers and rooming with Jason and Max!  It was a different experience to have Max with us.  He did get kicked out of a couple of sessions… but I am truly thankful that Jason and I are committed to learning more about the Lord and how to be better spouses and parents!
9. Road tripping to Branson with Jason and my sister-in-law Julia for a week of Rude Family Vacation!  So fun to officially be a Rude this year!
8. Spending my favorite holiday (4th of July) with my husband!  He made it so special!  We weren’t even dating yet at that time in 2010!  So much can happen in a year!
7. Having so many friends who love the Lord and encourage me to do so.  Jason and I are so blessed to be a part of such an amazing church family!
6. Moving into our new house!  It is so wonderful to not have to sign yet another lease and think about moving in a year.  Also… I got to pick out paint colors!
5. Celebrating my niece Hailee’s 4th birthday and my nephew Brody’s 1st birthday!  It is such a blessing to live so close to them and to get to see them grow up!
4. Going on my honeymoon with my honey.  We had a great time and I finally got to go to Disney World!
3. Celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas with both the Rudes and the Stopeks as a new family of three!
2. Meeting the greatest little blessing, Max Rude!  What a cutie he is! Oh, and not being pregnant anymore!
1. Getting married to my very best friend, Jason Rude! (He is a cutie too!)