The Cline Family

Monday, February 11, 2019

Almost Four Years Later...

During a late night talk with Kurt and his parents, I realized that I had a blog out there on the web that I hadn't looked at in years. I quickly pulled it up and enjoyed browsing through posts I had written starting in 2011. It was very nostalgic & brought back a lot of forgotten memories. Of course, it made me want to get back to writing & posting about the happenings in our lives. I'm excited to be able to read about everything that will have happened 4 years from now!

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

1 Year Old

My handsome little dudes are a year old! Oh my goodness! It's been one of those months that make you take a step back & look at your life. We're missionaries living in the Dominican Republic with two one year olds. The only word I have to describe that is UNBELIEVABLE! I would have never pictured myself here at the young age of 29, but this is where God has lead us. I feel like I expressed myself best when I wrote a birthday post for the boys on my Facebook page, "It is not always obvious in the mundane, but my life is truly full of blessings." We have been given SO much!

All About | MAX | 29.25 in & 18.8 lb

He is our little monkey. This guy will try to crawl up on anything! He's successfully made it up on the bed, the couch, and even the lazy boy :) We have a hard time keeping him on the floor.

On another note, he can barely sit still. He goes from one thing to another. When watching TV (our favorite shows are Bubble Guppies, Paw Patrol, & Mickey Mouse Clubhouse), he stands there for maybe 3-5 minutes before moving on to something else.

Max also has the desire to push his weight around. He tries to move things all the time. He'll push a chair; He'll push the gate; He'll push the music table; He'll push the coffee table; He even tries to push me when I'm on the rolling office chair. It's amazing to see how strong he actually is!

With all of his new developments, there's bound to be some not so nice ones :) Max has reached the point were he REALLY wants to voice his opinion. To do this, he simply screams. What better way to get mom's attention, right?

Also, he's decided that he needs me to know when he's mad or upset. This has resulted in throwing tantrums. (He's not the only one.... *cough* Derek *cough*) Max tends to throw himself on the floor & whine. I'm still adjusting to this new stage & usually just watch him as he "expresses" his anger. I know these "expressions" stem from his sin nature, but I'm still surprised that they've begun this early. He's shown that he can be pretty stubborn. We're in for some challenges with both of them.

All About | DEREK | 29.75 in & 18.8 lb

He is our expressive child. I get hugs from Derek A LOT, but then again he LOVES his mommy :) This little guy finds things super exciting, completely hilarious, very frustrating, and excruciatingly painful! When he is having fun, he's laughing. When he is happy, he's smiling. When his is mad, he's screaming. When he is hurting, he's bawling. There is the saying that some people, "wear their heart on their sleeve." This would be Derek.

Within the first few months, I would have said that Derek wouldn't be able to play by himself, but this is not true. He is easily entertained for 10-15 minutes by stacking things or turning pages or moving books around. We've also found that he can stand in front of the TV for almost a whole show. (He got the Sprunger genes.)

Derek is also interesting in moving things, but he has more of a will to actually walk. He's spent a good amount of time practicing between mom & dad. It's so much fun to see the excitement on his face when he reaches you!

Of course, like with Max, there's the good and the bad. Derek "expresses" his frustrations by kicking and screaming. He lies on the floor and thrashes around, which goes right along with his personality that I mentioned above.

Derek also enjoys copying Max & has joined in on the screaming. I know they do it to get my attention, so we're trying to come up with a solution. I've started to teach them some baby sign language. Nothing big, just more & please. It's a work in progress :)

A year ago, I was writing about being new parents. It doesn't feel so new any more, & we are grateful for all that God has given us. I may not always act like it, but I am truly privileged to be the mom of two wonderful boys! Kurt & I love them both SO MUCH <3

Happy 1st Birthday Max & Derek!

11 Months Old

Max & Derek have finally made it to the won't-sit-still-can't-stop-moving stage! I thought I had my hands full before, but now I see that it was nothing compared to this :) I often find myself sitting in the living room in front of the couch with a boy on each side. If only I could take a video of the craziness that ensues! They've found that moving anywhere & everywhere is what it's all about. My eyes are being opened to the days ahead, & I'm a little scared!

EATING
This month, both boys have started eating the much talked about puffs :) They're doing well at picking each piece up. They've also learned how to suck through a straw. Their eating habits are definitely changing. We're finally down to 3 bottles a day :)

PLAYING
It is obvious that we have boys because they love to make as much noise as possible! They're all about banging their toys on the tile floor. Of course, they feed off of each other, so it gets REALLY loud :) At this age, they've also started playing well together & will copy what the other one is doing. They bat at their toys & try to kick things while sitting on the floor. Some days they can be very entertaining!

TALKING
No words yet, but they like to make a lot of different sounds. Max is constantly saying "at" or "dat." Both boys say dada, but not to Kurt. It seems like they're really working on their noises this month.

MOVING
We've got crawlers! Max & Derek have really picked up speed over the past month. I was ready for them to be mobile, but in a few months I might be saying otherwise. Also, these two have started to stand up in their cribs. It's become a game before naps where they stand up in their cribs & tease each other with their snuggle buddies by handing theirs over to the other, but yanking it back :) I've actually watched them do this on the monitor! What goof balls!

Next month they'll be a year old :) I wouldn't say that time has necessarily flown by, but there are months that I've all but forgotten about. (Probably because I would never want to repeat them). In any case, I can still hardly believe it will have been a year ago that we were in the hospital having just added two precious little boys to our family!

Happy 11 Months Max & Derek