He's ONE!

Well, we made it through the 1st year! It was the fastest, most incredible year of my life. My baby is ONE year old. I was emotional the weeks leading to and the morning of his party, but after it was all over I felt excited about all the things he'll start doing in his 2nd year of life. He is such an amazing little person! I love you Evan with all my heart - Happy Birthday sweet boy!

Opening his 1st present from us on his actual birthday.

Moose and Zee cake (by Dolce baking co. in the Village - amazing)

Singing "Happy Birthday" and getting ready to dive into his GInormous cupcake.

"So Big"
He liked the cake but enjoyed entertaining all of us (and sharing his cake) more than anything. I think daddy had more fun playing in the cake than he did:-)

YuMM-O!

Playing in his new sandbox with his new Cardinal's hat!

Go cards! (for Uncle Bri)

His new climber/slide...So far his favorite thing is the door - open, close, open, close, open,...:-) We are going to have a lot of fun outside this summer!

Easter

Evan's 1st Easter...I was going for a Master's look here but with the trendy Euro garb the guys wear these days, Evan would have been out of place at Augusta! We enjoyed a yummy lunch here at the house but stayed in cause the little guy had a fever from what appears to be just a cold virus. We'll see. He's been much better today already! Happy Easter to everyone! And somebody send in Spring!!!

More pics of the kid

It was so quiet I thought he was up to no good, but they were just chilling by the front door.

Playing with Easter Eggs from the Great Grandparents

Pulling up on the stairs

Playtime with Finley & Will

Shoveling Goldfish crackers...his favorite snack.

Crawlin' & Walkin' (and busier than ever)

It is such an exciting time around here! Evan is now crawling (today he made it from the hall to the bedroom with a little encouragement from Daddy, Mommy & Sammy)!!! We've been waiting for this for a while as he's almost 10 months old, but figured he'd do it when he was ready. And we were right. It is so adorable to watch him move around independently. As you can see, he also can walk with his push walker.

He comprehends lots of vocabulary and will look for and locate objects that he knows. I can also reason with him a little and distract him because his comprehension keeps getting better. He also says "ba" for ball and bottle and baby and balloon. He probably thinks that words only start with "ba" since so many early words start with that sound. BUT, he does discriminate and say "pu" for puppy. That's what he gets for having a speech pathologist for a mommy. Life is going to be totally different for us in the next few days as he becomes more comfortable with crawling...I don't think I'm really prepared. Any helpful hints would be appreciated.

His new favorite thing to do is open and close and empty out his dresser drawers.

Looking a little apprehensive here, but just wait...

We taught him how to shake his hands above his head to "celebrate" and since he has had his 1st ear infection this week, he now grabs his ears. Boohoo.

But, that pink stuff really does the trick and he's almost back to his old self.

Love the bed head in this pic!

My 60 minutes

For a while now I've been wanting to post about 60 minutes on CBS. It is seriously in my top three that I watch weekly (along with Idol and Ugly Betty if your curious). This is some really good investigative reporting, and very interesting subjects, too. I have learned so much about so many people and events. And it's not always about Iraq or the state of the economy (though they had this interesting report on Sunday about how the FDIC takes over banks when they fail...right up my husbands alley). I feel smarter after I watch the show especially after I hang out all day playing peek-a-boo and listening to Baby Einstein music with my son. Not that I would have it any other way!

Happy Birthday Uncle Preppy

Have fun at the hibachi tonight...wish we could join you!

10 posts in 1

February is almost over and so much is going on in our lives that it has been tough to stop to blog about it. For one, I'm going to be an AUNT! Most of you, though, already know that. The little baby Hays is due to arrive in September. The E-man is so excited to have a cousin. We love you and can't wait, Bri & Kel!!!

In other news, we celebrated my mom's birthday, we have had a stomach flu, and I have started back to work on a PRN basis. This has been the biggest challenge of my career as mommy. I don't know if I will ever get used to dropping him off at "school". So that is an overview...now here's all the cute pictures!

Remember this swing from the newborn days? He doesn't really fit anymore but he loved relaxing for a few minutes with George. Evan's first Valentine's Day! He LOVES balloons. This one's still afloat in our living room and comes in handy for any temper tantrum that is starting to erupt.

What's better than cupcakes, wine and a good competitive game on valentine's day?

Growing up TOO fast. Here's the big guy brushing his teeth with his new big boy toothbrush.

Getting excited for bedtime!

First time with green beans.

Learning another important grooming skill.

The big boy carseat! He loves that he can see out a little better even if he is facing backward still.

So cute in his winter gear.
Anna made this cake for my mom for her birthday...she's quite the pastry chef.

Healthy Child, Healthy World

I have been reading this book since the holidays and have to say that it is my new addiction. It talks about how we should take precautionary measures to protect ourselves and the environment we live in from chemicals and toxins that MAY be harmful. My thought is that if something hasn't been proven to be safe, we shouldn't be using it.

Of course, now with the E-man starting to eat "table foods", crawl on the floor and explore all things with his mouth, it is my job to make sure it is safe. What I like about this book is that it offers simple, realistic steps I can take to make his world a little safer. Clearly, not everything can be avoided and it would drive me mad trying to live that lifestyle. But it's been easy (and satisfying) to take a few steps.

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