The Ricklefsens

Hello again...WOW!  I can't believe it has been half a year since I updated this blog last..  Soo- much has changed it is quite amazing.  Well, Joel is now officially a toddler!  He started walking around 14 mos and gets more and more sure on his feet every day...  He had a bit of an 'in-toeing' problem, was stumbling a bit, so we took him to a pediatric podiatrist who took an x-ray and said all was OK and that he would outgrow it..and so far so good..  He still takes a tumble here and there, but that's to be expected I guess.. :-/
He is now feeding himself fully and uses a spoon really well.  This is a very important milestone because (drum roll please) we are expecting baby #2 in October and I'll need Joel to feed himself so I can begin bottle/nursing duty once again..  As we did with Joel, we are going to hold off until the delivery to learn the sex, but I totally feel like it's another boy...we shall see!  I've tried telling Joel about the baby growing in mommy's tummy, but he's not getting it..lol.
What else?  Hmmm...Joel really isn't saying too many new words, but he sure does understand a lot of them and will even bring me specific things when I ask for them...of course he still talks a lot in 'Joel language' hehe..
We recently moved back into the smaller rental house and are now leasing out the larger one.  The move was a nightmare..especially being pregnant and having to care for a one year old...NOT easy..thank goodness Troy's folks helped watch him a few days while we got settled in..  There is still a lot to do, but it definitely feels like a home now...finally our very own home with no roomates!  Amen!!!
Well the TX summer heat is definitely on...(hottest in recorded history)..uggg..we feel pretty much trapped inside the house most of the time due to the heat, but do make it outside to hit the splash park, pool, beach and lakes as often as we can..Joel loves the water and I'm looking to enroll him in swim lessons soon..
Joel's 18 mo. Dr. visit was yesterday...this was the first time he didn't cry at all when he got his shots...such a big boy!  He now weighs 25 lbs and is 33 in. long...long and lean like his mommy (used 2 be lol) and late Pee Paw Pirtle.
Here are some recent pics:

YAY!  We finally made it to the big numero uno!  We had a small, but very special birthday party here at the house.  The family and some local friends helped make it a success!  Here are a few pictures:



 Joel is 13 mos. old now and is almost walking..  He stands unsupported and will take a few steps then fall down so is just a matter of time!  He has 8 teeth and is starting to self feed...well at least he likes to hold the spoon while I'm feeding him..  He is eating a wide variety of foods including salmon!  He is quite verbal and knows several words including mama, dada (of course), up, dog, kitty, ball, bear..  Also, he is finally starting to wave!  We are so proud of our little toddler, but are wondering where our baby went!  I always heard that they grow so fast, but never really understood until now...is soo- true!  Here are some more pics from over the holidays:



Oh, I almost forgot!  Joel had his first snow experience...he wasn't too fond...here is the video:

Hello there...whew...seems like forever since I wrote last...  Well, as you can imagine we've been keeping pretty busy and a lot has happened so please forgive the randomness of this post (run on sentences, etc)...lol.  Baby Joel has started creeping (almost crawling!) in the last week or so and is cutting his very first tooth!  Sadly tho, the poor little guy has had a few colds (he has been on the go go and around lots of people, including the neighbors' little girls who I am now taking care of during the day), but he is such a trooper and I know getting sick will only make him stronger..  I (finally) had a formal portrait sitting done when he was 6.5 months old.  The pics came out GREAT, here is a link to them:   https://viewimages.jcpportraits.com/sharealbum/sharealbumlist?rndId=1281292725&uId=467620   He now weighs almost 20 pounds and is eating three solid meals a day!  We are so proud of our little angel.  I recently took a trip to New Jersey and Boston and was gone from him for a whole week...that was really hard...not looking forward to leaving him again in a few months for our anniversary cruise :(  Anyway, I finally finished his nursery a few months ago and it looks really good...  Also, Joel is starting to imitate sounds and he just loves to zerburt (blow on ur skin), he's such a little comedian (so smart!)...officially his first word was 'Da Da', although he wasn't associating it with his daddy...but now he is saying "Ma Ma" and looks right at me...my heart melts!  :)  He has now been swimming several times and absolutely loves the water! Here are some recent pics:


                                                        Our future World Cup kicker :)

                                                               His first Father's Day


                                                                       His room


                        Joel and his Pa Pa Ricklefsen July 4th..no they didn't plan to match...lol!



                                                     Joel and his daddy clownin around :)


                                                            Playing in his exersaucer!


                                                                          Yummy!


                                                     His very first pool/swimming experience!


                                                                           No hands!



                                                Being silly wearing Daddy's necklace :-P

Well hello again..a lot has been going on the last few months...baby Joel has been traveling...becoming quite the rolling stone lol :)  His very first outing was to our neighborhood lake Pflugerville.  He has also traveled to Houston three times, Fort Worth twice and out of state to Arkansas!  He has been camping and hiking...we look forward to introducing him to swimming soon...I know he's going to like because he loves his bath time...just like his daddy. :)  We rented a cabin in the Ouachita National Forest near Hot Springs, AR directly on the Oauchita river in celebration of our 10yr wedding anniversary and Joel enjoyed it just as much as we did!  He has had two rounds of shots now and was such a big boy..think it hurt me worse than him... :(  He has more than doubled his birth weight and now weighs 15lbs 6oz...growing like a weed.. ;)  here are some recent pics...enjoy!

Hello again. Well a lot has changed since I typed last. We had two "Sip and See" showers thrown for baby Joel. One was in Houston at Troy's cousins apartment clubhouse and the other was in Sun City and Troy's parents' house. The one in Houston was hosted by Kristin, Tia (Troy's cousins) and my girlfriend Mel. It was a "Cirque du Bebe" theme complete with popcorn and cotton candy! It was a lot of fun and quite a success. Several of our friends were able to come out for some fun and meet Joel.

The shower in Sun City was hosted by my amazing sister Lee Ann, mother-in-law, and mom. It was a lovely Sunday brunch theme complete with mimosas! Again, several friends and family members were able to make it.
 Here is a family picture taken at one of the showers.  Turned out to be a framer!  Baby Joel looks like he's smiling, but really hadn't started doing so at this point...is probably just gas..lol!

Baby Joel is now two months old and is exceeding his milestones! A few weeks ago he started smiling and is now laughing too (they call it 'smile laughing'). He is cooing all of the time which really doesn't surprise me since I'm constantly talking to him in baby code :) He can roll over and is holding his head up much better than before. He can even straighten his long legs and support his weight (albeit just for a few seconds). We continue to give the Lord thanks for blessing us with this miracle. We are amazed at how each day he develops more and more into a fine young man! Thank you Jesus!
XOXO

Here are a few recent pics of baby Joel:
 getting his first bath...he hated it!  I've since then started bathing him in the sink and he LOVES (is a bath baby just like his daddy :).
 He's growing up fast!

At last!  Our little bundle of joy has arrived!  We induced labor on Wednesday, January 13th at approx. 5:45am and at 1:33pm delivered a healthy 7lb 4oz., 19.5 in. baby boy.  The delivery wasn't too bad...especially after receiving the epidural..ahhh...RELIEF....I'd seriously love to personally thank whoever invented it..  We returned home from the hospital on Friday and needless to say we are completely exhausted...but he's definitely worth all of the work!  We are totally in love with our little Joel...  Here is a link to the birth announcement: 

Make a Smilebox greeting

Here also are a few pics from the hospital and his first day at home :)  We think he's the cutest thing ever, but then again we are pretty partial...Enjoy!