Christmas time!

Well, I apologize once again that I have procrastinated on updating our blog! I always get on to Jeremy about procrastination, but I admit it...I can be just as bad!

We have really enjoyed this holiday season with Nater. (And, I only say "holiday" because I am grouping Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the upcoming New Year)! It is so fun to have a little one around during this time of year! He has seen Santa (and is so NOT scared of him), we took a trip to Branson to see the lights (there were so many, it was gorgeous!) and we have ALL enjoyed all of the yummy treats that seem to be around right now (cookies for breakfast anyone?)!

For those who have asked, we still do not know anything regarding whether or not we will be able to adopt Nate or not. It seems as though the decision keeps getting pushed back and we are trying our best not to get too impatient. We just cannot imagine life without Nate and we are hoping and praying that he will be able to stay with us. It is crazy how much he has grown in the 11 months we have had him. He came with limited words and now he talks like crazy. He is saying his prayers, eats in his big boy booster seat instead of a high chair, and his balance and coordination are stellar. I am still "Honey" to him and Jeremy is "Uncle". Him and Maverick are still the best of buds and love running the 'track' around our couch. Nate is now out of 'parallel play' and now loves to hang out with his friends like Hudson and Owen. We are so blessed to have friends with children around Nate's age. It has been fun for all of us!

We pray that everyone has an amazing Christmas and a very Happy New Year! May the miraculous gift of Christ fill your home with faith, your heart with hope, and your life with love. Blessings to you all!!!

Jeremy, Stephanie, Nate, and Maverick

Rooms I painted in FL

1st picture: little girl room, ladybug and flowers matched bedding

2nd picture: little boy ROCKSTAR room

3rd picture: little boy ROCKSTAR room; guitar mural matched bedding

4th picture: baby shower gifts I painted for a friend in FL

Trick or Treat!!!!

What can we say...Jeremy and I had a TON of fun taking Nate out trick or treating this year! We were not sure if he would get the concept or not but it didn't take him long at all to figure it out! We took him to a neighboring subdivision (where one of his babysitters lives) and he was excited to get candy at the first couple of houses and wanted to eat it right then and there. However, when we told him that he would KEEP getting candy if he went house to house, well...he was OFF! He was running house to house saying "more candy"!!!! It was hilarious! Maverick wanted to go along as well so we thought it was only fair to put him in a costume too. So, since Nate was a race car driver...Maverick was his PIT CREW! We grabbed an old shirt of Jeremy's and I painted PIT CREW on it and that was all we could get Maverick to wear. He was excited to be out with us but jealous that the cute little race car driver got all the candy!! We were really bummed we did not have our video camera with us but all in all, it was an awesome night. Perfect weather, fun times, and lots of yummy candy (that I am still dipping into)!!!

A New DO, and a few other things TOO!

First picture: Nater was in desperate need of a haircut (a good one...not just a trim by HONEY)...so I took him into Great Clips and got his hair cut AND we added a little mohawk! It turned out super cute but that may be the only day you see it like that! Every time I try and put some of Uncle Jeremy's hair gel in his  hair, Nate wants to help too and he ends up knocking the mohawk right down! Oh well, I have learned you gotta pick your battles!

Second picture: This picture was taken at Jeremy's 15-year class reunion! Nate and I had a really good time meeting Uncle Jeremy's classmates and running around like crazy!!

Third picture: HOPEFULLY we will get to DisneyWorld soon, but for now, this is as close to eating with Mickey Mouse as you get kiddo!

Fourth picture: We took Nate to Bump City in Blue Springs so Nate could play with his little buddy, Hudson. One of the workers got the big swing out at the end of the session and he had an absolute BLAST riding on it! 

Happy Fall!

Well, there is really nothing new and exciting going on in the Dulin household but I thought I would catch up on a few pictures! 

First picture: We have a good neighbor that has a little girl and her and Nate have become very sweet friends (Nate really digs the older women)! We have a new ReMax office that just went in beside us and one day they had their big ReMax hot air balloon on display. It was pretty cool to see in person and the kiddos really enjoyed it. 

Second picture: It is crazy that it is already Fall. I am not sure where this year has gone! I do LOVE the Fall and this is the one part of the year that I really like in the Midwest. However, it never seems to last as long as it should. Nonetheless we have a few decorations to celebrate the season including this new door hanging! My wonderful in-laws bought this for us and we put it together. There are three scarecrows to represent Jeremy, Nate, and me! Too cute! I was very appreciative of the sweet gift. 

Third picture: This picture was captured when the boys were watching Happy Feet...I mean...Football. Haha! The boys enjoy their 'couch time' together and it is really cool to see the bond between the two of them. Nate is really talking a lot, and very well too, so it is cute to hear him say UNCLE GERMY now, instead of just ERMY. 

Fourth picture: This picture has a funny little story attached to it. I was giving Nater a bath one night and Maverick came in and was hanging out with us. He kept sticking his nose in the tub to see what Nate was up to. I kept teasing Mave and saying, "Jump in with Nate Mave! You need a bath too!" He put a paw up but didn't get in, instead he settled with playing with Nate. Nate would put a bath toy in Mave's mouth and then Mave would toss it out. It is always really funny to watch those two play. Anyway, I finally got Nate out of the bath and took him into his room to get ready for bed. However, when we got in his room I heard this loud noise! I ran into the bathroom and Maverick had JUMPED INTO the tub! Obviously, he was waiting for Nate to get out so he could get IN! Of course, I could not resist grabbing my camera and snapping a shot of Maverick enjoying HIS time in the tub!

I am soooo blessed with my three boys. It has been SUCH a joy having Nate live with us, despite the terrible-two-year-old episodes!) and it has been so wonderful to be married to my very best friend! Even with instant parenthood, Jeremy and I have been blessed with a very good first year of marriage and I thank God everyday that He brought us back together. It has also been so awesome to see Maverick 'come back to life'! As many of you know, Maverick was diagnosed with cancer LAST OCTOBER. He was given only a few months, if that, and now he is going on ONE year. He definitely has had a lot more energy and it has been so fun to watch him enjoy playing ball and running around again. We just got some new X-rays taken of his tumor and it appears that the tumor is not as visible! God is SOOO good! We have been so blessed to have this unexpected time with him. We still miss Grahamy greatly, but we are definitely cherishing our time with Mave. 

Until the next post we wish everyone well! 

Catching up on the past month!

Holy cow! I cannot believe a whole month has gotten away from me since I last blogged! We have been so busy that I put it by the wayside and if there is ANYONE out there that actually keeps UP with our blog...I sincerely apologize! We have had a great month though and unfortunately, there are just TOOOO many pictures to share! I ended up spending 2 whole weeks in Arizona for work (and a little play of course)! I had an amazing time and it was the perfect balance of work and play. God showed His faithfulness too...I went out there with FOUR rooms to paint on my schedule and I ended up painting NINE! It was awesome! Jeremy joined me after about a week and a half and we had a much needed weekend together. Oddly enough it was our FIRST weekend away (out-of-state/vacation) since being married and without a LITTLE ONE! We have really enjoyed having Nate live with us but we definitely cherished the time we had as a couple since we basically became instant parents right after we got hitched. We often get away for date nights but it is even more special when you get to be out of town in another place together. BUT, now we are back to life and getting back into the routine of things. If you have Facebook you can see all of the rooms that I painted and other fun things. And, if you don't...well then I suggest you GET a Facebook profile! :) However, here are just a few pictures that I WILL post. We got some pictures taken at Target for Nate's TWO year old pictures (he is growing so fast)!!! Enjoy, and love to  you all!

Nate's new room!

I was very excited to get Nate's room painted and for us to get it decorated for him! He loves it and really loves sleeping in his big boy toddler boy. We are thrilled that he has a really fun room now that he can play in!

Neighborly fun!

We had a BBQ with our neighbor and her daughter and we had so much fun! We are very blessed to have nice neighbors and a play date for Nate! (Nate really likes the older women)! haha! Nate had his first smore too and ended up quite a mess but he seemed to really like it! Smores are one of Honey's favorite treat too! YUM!

Thanks Papa and Grandma Dulin!

"Papa and Grandma took me to Deanna Rose and I had so much fun! I got to see animals and go down slides and play in the water." I love going to Deanna Rose and I really love hanging out with my Papa and Grandma. They are the best!" -Naters

Our daily life with Nater

We have been incredibly blessed to have Nate live with us at this time in his life. It is such a super fun stage and we are thrilled that we have been able to experience and share all of these special developmental moments with him. This summer we signed Nate up for swim classes. There is not much they do in swim classes at his age but it gives the children a chance to be comfortable in the water and get used to being in the pool. However, we soon realized that Nate had some hidden fins as he was a swimming machine in his class! He was all over the place and absolutely LOVED being in the water. On the very last day of class he even went down the big slides (once with the teacher and the other time with me) AND also went off the diving board (the teacher and I also helped but he was soooo ready to jump right off whether someone was there or not)! Nate LOVES being outside as the third picture shows. He got some chalk for his birthday and we have spent several moments outside drawing on the driveway. We also are now in the challenging potty-training stage with Nate! We are certainly not pushing it but he has started showing us some interest so we got him a little potty and he has been going on it every once in awhile. He gets a M&M every time he goes on his potty which he really likes that! He is a pretty quick learner though...we were at a friends house this weekend and one of our friends taught Nate how to pee on the side of the house....AND HE DID! Crazy kid. Gotta love boys! He is not fully potty-trained but we will definitely celebrate, and share, when he is! Needless to say, despite the typical-terrible-two-year-old tantrums we love having him with us. 

Super Cool Dude

I took Nate to the Midwest Kids Fun Fest in Overland Park this weekend while Jeremy was at work. He got to meet Scooby-Do and was not afraid of the big dog AT ALL! He also got to ride a pony for the first time, which he absolutely LOVED! We had a good time walking around, picking up information, and playing with the animals and toys that were there. 

Fun weekend with friends and water!

This weekend our friends son turned eight and they had a birthday party for him. They set up this huge bouncy water adventure treehouse and Nate was in HEAVEN! He LOVED it! He was scaling up the lady by himself and going down the slides on his bottom, back, frontwards, and backwards! He is such a fearless, adventurous little boy! It is crazy how smart, fast, and energetic he is! Everyone at the party was amazed at him, as we are EVERYDAY.

Tickle and giggle time

1st picture: Nate loves his new CARS couch that Grandma DeeDee bought for him for his birthday and his new CARS sippy cup that Honey bought him!

2nd picture and 3rd picture: Tickle and giggle time with Nate one morning!