PaRtY!!!

Saturday at 10:00 we celebrated Caleb's first year.  Aunt Kristen, Uncle Curt, Oma, Opa, Grandma, Grandpa, and Mimi and Papa were here to celebrate!  Caleb loves balls, so we had a bouncy first birthday party for him.  He got a LOT of balls!!! 

Mimi helped me make cake pops decorated like sports balls...if you haven't had them, you've got to try them.  They were a little bit of time to get them all done, but they were worth it!!

The decorated table...

Birthday cake and cupcakes....

Our sweet, sweet princess Hannah on her little brother's birthday.

Trying to get a cute picture of them together.  Caleb just wasn't into it...

That's a little better...sibling love!

Mommy and her two favorite, precious peanuts.

Papa, Hannah, Mimi and Caleb.  It is so special when they come to visit from Missouri.  We had a great time together!

Grandpa, Caleb, Hannah, and Grandma.

Hannah, Aunt Kristen, Uncle Curt, and Caleb.

Caleb with his presents and a few small balls.

Throwing them, two at a time...endless hours of fun here!!

Grandma made Caleb his first birthday blanket...it's SO snuggly!

Mimi and Papa got Caleb a Buzz Lightyear battery car...as you can see, Caleb was VERY pleased with this gift!

Caleb in a basket of balls...I didn't count, but he had to get over 30 of them!

The whole clan...all actually looking at the camera...one sharp group!!

Our lovely family

Opa, Caleb, and Oma.

The cake...Caleb wasn't sure about the singing, but he was all in on the cake!!

Hannah helping to blow out the candle.

And another mess to clean!  He loves his yummies, that's for sure!!

In addition to the car and blanket, Caleb got a talking tee-ball set, a golf set, an adjustable basketball hoop, some Mizzou outfits, money, a sports sweatshirt, a baseball snuggie to sleep with, a bat and ball, a toy airplane, and balls, balls and more balls!  It was a great morning.  We served brunch and when everyone had their fill we moved on to presents...it was so great to have our loved ones here to share in this day with us and to celebrate all that Caleb means to each of us.  

August 30th...one of the best days of our lives!

The first shot of the day, straight out of the crib!  He is in quite a hurry for his bottle in the morning...12 hours is a long time to go between meals for this big boy!!

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Feeling a little better after some liquid energy...now we're ready to go get some breakfast for the birthday boy before school.

At "Old MacDonald's" as Hannah calls it...eating our fair share of pancakes!

I wish we could do this every day, Daddy!!

Caleb's day at school was special, too, as we took cupcakes for him and his favorite 36 friends!!  They enjoyed the sugary goodness for their morning snacks.  We picked up the kids a little early and had a birthday photo shoot at Celery Flats.

He only wanted to get down and crawl around--NOT pose with Daddy!!

Daddy teaching Caleb to throw the rocks...

As a quick study of everything dirty and dangerous, it didn't take Caleb long to throw them one after the other.

Fast forward 17 years and I'm going to take this same shot as a senior picture :).

For dinner we went to "The Moose Restaurant" (Texas Roadhouse).  The kids love their made from scratch rolls and their yummy peanuts.  Caleb was happy to eat and eat and eat!

After dinner we came home to enjoy some presents.  Caleb wasn't really into them.  Thankfully he has an older sister who loves to help out, especially where presents are concerned!  Caleb got two new pairs of shoes (he's gotta walk at some point), some new pajamas, a Sunday cozy sweat suit, a growth chart, and some new socks....Grandma and Grandpa gave him some money, a truck Pez dispenser, and a homemade shirt with a C on it.  He only needed to wait a few days to get all the rest!!

Then...cupcake time!!!  He wasn't really fond of the hat...

But he LOVED the giant cupcake we gave him.

He REALLY got into it.  There was cupcake everywhere...it was straight to the bath for this little dude!!!  

Happy birthday, to our dear, sweet Caleb.  We cannot believe a year has already passed since the first time we met you, but we cannot wait to see what this next year will bring.  You will be walking and talking and running after your sister.  We love you more than words can say and you are such a blessing to our family.  Love you, Birthday Boy!!

Happy Birthday to MEEE!

Caleb's first birthday cupcake at daycare.  We took one for each of the kids to enjoy.  They were so excited to see that big white box of goodie when we got there this morning!  Caleb's morning started off right with a trip to 'Old McDonald's' (as Hannah calls it) for two full size pancakes.  More fun to come later!!  Happy Birthday, big boy!!

How can it be??

Tomorrow when we wake up...we will be celebrating the birth of our son, Caleb Lawrence Terpstra.  One year ago today we were on our way home from a weekend in Holland.  That night about 4 am, my water broke.  Although I was not 100% certain that is what had happened, I returned to bed for several more hours of sleep.  I woke again a few hours later with the confirmation and realization of what was about to happen.  Craig called his parents to come and watch Hannah (they were in Holland, too), and I went about my business, doing some laundry, packing my bag, eating some breakfast (a banana and a muffin), taking a shower and getting ready, and calling my mom...contractions had started, but I knew with the marathon labor I had for Hannah that we had plenty of time.  We arrived at the hospital at 9:00, spent a little time in triage and were sent straight to room 8.  Because I wasn't progressing fast enough on my own (and there was meconium), they started petocin around 1:30, at 2:10 I requested and got my epidural--the best epidural EVER!!  I took a nap and relaxed as best I could.  A few hours later when the nurse came in to check how I was--it was GO TIME!  I got a stern DO NOT PUSH while they gathered Dr. Peterson and within 2 minutes and three rounds of pushing the most beautiful baby boy was born.  We had not found out what he was, so Craig was overcome with joy knowing that we were blessed with a son.  Names were undecided as well, but we had boys names narrowed down to Ethan or Caleb.  Craig called him Caleb right away (since the name Levi was off the table I felt comfortable letting him choose between the two :)).  Had our son been a daughter, we would have welcomed Kaitlynn Elaine...

The first picture of the three of us...Caleb weighed 8 lbs 5 ounces and was 21.5 inches long.  He had a 15" head--something that has tipped the scales since that day!  Right away he was different in so many ways than Hannah--he was a quick labor, he was a great eater, he had more hair, he didn't cry when he got his shots and I think the biggest difference was mommy and daddy were so much more relaxed.  

 And now, one year later.  Caleb is so sweet, so content, and has been such a joy his first year.  He is a perfect sleeper and a very healthy eater.  He has three teeth on the bottom and is getting four teeth on the top.  He weighs around 23 pounds and wears a size bigger shorts than his 2 1/2 year old sister.  He loves Hannah so much and he lights up when she comes into the room.  She has taken a real liking to him, too, and speaks to him in such a sweet little voice.  As he is crawling and pulling himself up he is able to get to a lot of Hannah's 'things' so we've had endless conversations about the importance of sharing.  He attempted climbing of a few steps and can make it up on the deck outside by himself.  He just starting walking around things yesterday and today.  He's not afraid of the dirt and has had a mouthful of it on more than one occasion.  As he's seen Hannah climb up the slide many many times, he feels as though he can do that, too, and makes it pretty far up!  He has a few words in his vocabulary that include Mama, Dada, Nana, and Ike.  He is VERY loud when he wants to be, which seems to be a problem at daycare with the other babies are trying to sleep!  He's down to two bottles a day and has worked himself out of a morning nap.  Today was his first day to try to sleep on his big boy cot at Little Tykes for naptime and by his demeanor this evening...it didn't go well!  He's also very accident prone--last week he received his fourth accident report from daycare...something that Hannah has yet to receive.  He has a few favorite books which include What do you say? and A john deere tractor book.  He LOVES his pacifier which will probably prove to be a difficult habit to break...and he LOVES balls...we are having a ball themed birthday party for him this weekend and cannot wait to celebrate his first year with our family.

My dearest, sweetest Caleb--Daddy and I are so thankful that we were chosen to be your parents.  We love you so much and cannot believe that one year is already behind us.  You have grown and changed so much in the past 12 months and we cannot wait to see what this next year will bring.  We know you will be walking and talking and running and destroying things in your path.  We thank God everyday for your health and your happiness and every opportunity that we have to teach you and help you realize all of the gifts that God has given you to allow you to be His perfect, precious son.  We have been granted one of the best blessings that is possible...to have you as our Baby Caleb...we love you and wish you a very Happy Birthday!  Love, Mommy, Daddy, and Hannah

Wild, wild, animals!!

Saturday we made an impromptu trip to the zoo.  I think we have the realization that this beautiful weather isn't going to be around much longer and we need to make the most of it.  It was a gorgeous day for a walk around the zoo to see some of our favorite animals.  Mom's favorite will always be the penguins...Hannah is undecided, although she makes it known the animals she does NOT like by screaming, covering her eyes and wanting to leave.  It's more the barn animals that seem to bother her.  Caleb just enjoyed the ride and the constant snacking!

 John Ball Zoo, Grand Rapids, MI

 Petting the goats...Hannah wouldn't even get near them.  A year ago she would have fed them and touched them...maybe next year?

 Our beautiful little girl...showing her most precious 'princess smile'.

 Daddy and Hannie

 Mommy and Hannie

 Mr. Caleb working on snack # 1.

 Hannah checking out the monkeys--she was OK with them because they were so far away. The one by the window got a quick scream and a leave!

 A perfect way to end a perfect trip to the zoo...with a picnic lunch.  Caleb ate 1 1/2 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, 1/2 of a blueberry fruit bar and 1 swiss roll.  Need less to say, he slept REALLY well at naptime!!