DANNY'S FIRST BIRTHDAY & THE 4th

Our lil' baby boy is one!!!  I can't believe how fast that year went!  Some days I wish he was tiny and helpless again, but others I am amazed at what a big boy he is becoming and love watching him learn and grow.  He has so much energy and is running, climbing, chattering, and playing nonstop!  He is very social and always wants a playmate/audience to entertain.  He makes us laugh every day with the new silly things he does like licking pictures of animals in his books, crawling/walking backwards, and making the BEST faces ever.  He has also been going through a few phases lately . . . like being a picky eater, not sleeping at night, stomping his feet tantrums . . . with a bit of separation anxiety thrown in for good measure.  But overall he is still the greatest thing that ever happened to us and we are so in love with him!  I would even say obsessed.  

On his 12 month birthday, I snapped a few pics of him playing in the yard (nothin' fancy) that I'll post for you to enjoy.  And then on Independence Day we celebrated his birthday with most of our family and some friends.  It was a beautiful day with friends, family, food, and fireworks and we had a great time!  Danny wasn't too sure what to think of all the commotion and was actually quite cranky for most of the party.  He went to bed at 8 and slept like a log alllllllll night long.  Amazing!  I will admit it was kind of stressful for me - planning everything out, hosting a large group of people, not having everything go the way I hoped, etc. - and I don't think I will ever try and throw a party like that again (it's just not my strong suit).  But I think everyone there had a good time.  And it was a great learning experience for us as well.  So YAY for positive outcomes!  Here are some pictures of the birthday boy and the BBQ.

    He loves clovers :) 

        Eating, eating, eating.  This kid loves kielbasa!

Homemade shark pinata

Lil' shark cupcakes :)

PRESENTS!

First cupcake . . . and first sugar high

Pool Time!

Can you believe Mr. D will be 12 MONTHS OLD in less than 2 weeks?!  I definitely can't.  It seems like we just barely had him and brought him home from the hospital.  Anywho, I'll write more on that phenomenon later.  

In preparation for his big boy birthday coming up, we bought him a small swimming pool.  We have a nice big empty backyard that we never use, so we decided it was time to have some fun family things to do out there.  It has been such a nice year so far, it's kinda lame that we haven't used our yard more.  But I guess it's partly due to the fact that DB used to hate grass, and because I have been a basement dwelling hermit . . .

Now that it's summer we want to play in our yard as much as possible - and hopefully over time we'll add more to our collection of backyard activities.  It was sunny and the perfect temp for a swim yesterday, so Dad set up the pool and D had a blast playing in the water and picking (and eating) clovers in the grass.  Here are some photos. 

 Picking the perfect clover

 He loved it so much and carried it all over the yard with a smile on his face

 Tasting it . . . yummy?

A ladybug!  Ooooh, so cool.

Misc.

Danny watching The Sound of Music.  He was so into it.  He loves anything with singing or music.  I couldn't resist taking some pictures because he was just so cute sitting there so calm and still - plus look at that awesome no-neck he has!  It's like a perfectly round billiard ball stuck right onto his shoulders.  It kills me!  So adorably funny. 

Always giving us the silliest faces.

 

So sleepy and cozy that I didn't want to wake him up to take him out.

Big lips :)

Danny Laughing

Video of DB Walking - May 15th

The Case of the Missing Sock

We love to go on walks!  And since it has been so nice this year we have been going for a walk or two every day (or we try to).  I usually insist on Danny wearing socks so his toes don't get chilly, but he always ends up pulling them off part way through our walk.  One day a few weeks ago we went for a really really long walk and when we were almost home, we noticed that Danny had pulled his socks off and then when we finally got home and took him out of the stroller, ONE SOCK WAS MISSING!  I am kinda weird and things like this really bother me.  So I couldn't stop thinking about the sock and wondering what happened to it and wanting it back!  Ha ha.  When we went on our family walk the next day, we decided to retrace our steps from the previous day . . . and lo and behold, WE FOUND THE SOCK!  All dirty, wet, and smashed flat by a car.  Ahhh, satisfaction.  We documented the miraculous event by snapping a photo of the sock in the road.  Then we brought it home, washed it, and reunited it with its mate :)  YAY!

 

Amelia's Birthday, Papa's Pizza, and Getting Sick

Danny's cousin turned three on May 24th and we went to the traditional party at Papa's Pizza.  It is so delish and their pepperoni pizza is my favorite pizza ever!  Danny loved seeing all the family and playing in the kids arcade.  There were lots of different pizzas at the party, and I had never had the taco pizza, so I tried that one and loved it . . . so I ate tons of it . . . and cake.  And Danny surprised everyone by being a bottomless pit and eating like four pieces of pepperoni pizza plus olives, salad, and cake.  I had a small headache the whole day, but as soon as the party was winding down, I felt awful.  We decided to go to my mother-in-law's so I could rest on her couch and hopefully get rid of the headache before we had to drive all the way home.  As soon as I laid down, my head felt like it would explode and I became so nauseous.  I then proceeded to puke my guts out for the next hour or so.  SICK NASTY!  Luckily, Danny was super well-behaved and played so well for grandma so Mike was free to take care of me.  I don't remember ever being that sick, so I suspect it was food poisoning.  I was also the only one at the party who ate the taco pizza and the only one who got sick.  Thanks Grandma Rose for watching Danny and letting me be sick at your house, and thanks Mikey for taking care of everything and helping me feel better.  I'm hoping it wasn't food poisoning because Papa's Pizza is my favorite pizza and now I'm kinda scared to eat there again.  BUMMER! 

Anywho, on a brighter note, we all had a great time at the party and I got some snapshots of the kiddos!  Enjoy.

 First time on a carousel . . . and not too sure what to think of it

 Feeding himself

 The birthday girl

 Watching the big kids play

         

DANNY WALKS

Danny is already walking?  Why yes, YES HE IS!  Our little man had taken one or two "accidental" steps/stumbles previous to this, but I didn't think they really qualified as actual walking.

Here's the scoop:  Wednesday morning, May 15th.  Danny impressively starts WALKING all on his own while we're playing in the living room.  I start freaking out a bit and Mike runs to get the camera.  I am then able to coax Danny with some toys and he continues to take lil' baby steps.  Mike quietly sneaks up on us, trying to keep himself hidden in the hallway (DB loves the camera and as soon as he sees it he's too distracted to do what we want him to do for the video).  He continues to toddle around the room while Mike is recording.  Success - we got it on video!  Failure - the blog won't upload the video for your enjoyment.  True story. 

Our Danny has been a crazy walking machine since then and he gets more stable on his feet everyday.  He still prefers crawling though, because he gets around much faster that way.  Sometimes he gets so excited that he can walk that he tries to run, but always ends up biffing it (poor guy).  So there you have it, he is following in his daddy's footsteps and walking at 10.5 months!    

First Mother's Day

This year was my very first Mother's Day.  I cannot begin to describe how awesome being a mom is - I love it!  Honestly, when I first found out we were going to be parents, I was pretty freaked out and scared.  Mostly for the whole inevitable child birth thing that I was going to have to go through.  But as the pregnancy progressed, I developed a love for our baby boy and an excitement to meet him and know what it would be like to be his mommy.  Having a child is nothing short of a miracle.  Danny is my little miracle.  He has deepened my wonder and amazement for the love and power of God.  I still have a hard time comprehending how I had part in creating another person, and that he turned out so perfect!  Wow.  My life is so different now that I'm a mom - it's the best.  

A few words that describe MOTHERHOOD:

love

work

spiritual

full-time

amazing

exhausting

rewarding

learning

patience

sacrifice

happy

crazy 

My sweet Danny boy, Thank you for giving me Mother's Day.

   

The Falls: Then and Now

Last week we had a fun picnic and hike at some waterfalls with some friends of ours who have a son Danny's age.  The last time we were there, we had just moved, Mike hadn't started school yet, and we weren't expecting Danny.  This time, we have a baby, and Mike has finished 2 years of school!  It was a really beautiful day at the park and it was even more fun to share it with friends.  Too bad I didn't get any pics of everyone together!  Oh well, next time.  

Here are some pictures of our first trip to the falls 2 years ago.

Ah, what fun memories!  Now here are a couple of pics from our most recent trip.

Mini Fam Reunion and The Beach

A few weeks ago my big brother and his family came home to visit and we were able to spend some time with them, which was awesome because we rarely get to see them.  We also joined some of the fam at the beach for a day and had a blast!  It was so sunny and beautiful - and hot!  Thanks Phong and Melissa for hosting a fun weekend get together for everyone!  We were missing Tanner, though.  Hopefully someday we'll be able to have all the family together again.  

Here a some photos of all the grandchildren together at my parents.  We're an all boy family so far and just found out my brother and his wife are expecting boy #4!

 

Danny experienced sand for the first time and loved it!  Especially eating it, ha ha.  Mike loved riding the quads and I had fun spending time with everyone and watching the cousins play together.  Other than the crazy wind, it was so beautiful and warm.  Next time we'll definitely plan better and camp overnight.  Here are some pics.

 Even though it was 85 degrees, the water was still FREEZING!

 Knobby knees!

    Mustaches for all the boys - they loved them!  Danny didn't even try to take his off.  Hopefully Val got some great pics with her nice camera.

It looks like Mathias is strangling Danny!  Ha ha.  He is actually trying to "help" Danny turn his head toward auntie Val for a picture :)