Trips to the Zoo!

What fun we have had going to the zoo this month! Nicer weather certainly lends itself to wanting to be outdoors more & more while we can & Drew is certainly up for the novelty!


While he certainly can't pick out everything going on or even every animal, the ones he can see & follow sure do intrigue him. He generally loves the big tanks of fish, turtles, etc. since they are large enough for him to see easily, and even more fun, they swim right up to the glass!


Ride 'em Cowboy!


Waving at the girafee!


Fun with Daddy & Mommy!


Checking out the big animals - up so close!


The next Alligator Hunter!

13 Months...A New "Year"

So, we've entered the world of having a 1 year old in the house...hard to believe, and for the most part, so much fun!

Of course, the "big event" of the month was that Drew started walking! A few days after his birthday, he started to take steps here & there on his own after letting go of the furniture or Mommy or Daddy. So we jumped right on that & tried to help him practice as much as we could. Then, one night after his bath, he totally surprised us by standing up on his own in the middle of the floor (which he had never done before) & started to walk! It was a bit unreal, but SO exciting! And just like so many others, he has completely focused on this new task & adventure & is walking all over the place! He's really amazed us with his balance & the rate at which he caught on - he has even started walking at different speeds already. Daddy joked the other day though, saying we should count how many times he falls, because he still falls alot, but he just gets right back up & goes at it again!



Other fun & new 'movements' this month: Drew LOVES to dance & clap to music. He has several toys that play music (of course) & he will mash down on the buttons to play the music & then bop right along with it - smiling & clapping! When we play the radio, he likes to move up & down to the music & will every now & then throw in a little bottom shake - so fun! He also will "wiggle" on the floor to music when he's lying on his back or if I ask or show him to "wiggle, wiggle" - it really is so cute! We may be a little ambitious, but we have started trying to teach him to roll & catch a ball & while it's quite obvious there's some room for improvement to say the least, we can tell he's starting to at least grasp the concept. He usually throws the ball more than he rolls it, and catching is more of a loose term for being in the way of where we roll it, but it's fun to play. He does like to get one of his harder balls & bounce it against the wall on top of the coffee table & let it roll/bounce back to him - it kind of reminds me of Forrest Gump playing ping-pong with himself! We also of course are 'working on' him learning to kick the ball...he LOVES it when Daddy plays around with the soccer ball, giggling & chasing after it & trying to get it himself with his feet, but he usually just ends up walking over the ball at this point, but every now & then will get a kick in - we're not worried, we're pretty sure he's a born baller! :)



There's been some fun speech & cognitive developments this month too (man, I sound like a therapist!): Drew is starting to imitate us more & more in our behavior & some sounds. He has started to laugh in response to us laughing, whether it's directed at him or not. He is certainly starting to understand more & more words...we're pretty sure he KNOWS what "NO" means, but it's also very obvious he doesn't always obey or like it! He definitely knows there are certain items that are off limits & will dart for them whenever he gets the chance. And when things are taken away from him or he is kept from something he wants (like the fridge or pantry), he throws his little 'tantrum' of crying/whining that usually gets ignored or we distract him something else...more of that to come we're sure! He does know what certain words are though & we can ask him to go & find them - a favorite is his brush, blue ball, cell phone & farm. I have no idea when he learned what these items were, it seems like overnight, but it's wonderful! He is saying "da-da" more & more - he uses it for jabbering, but it does also mean Daddy & sometimes Mommy. He still has a "Pac-Man" mouth sometimes, as Daddy calls it - opening & closing his mouth in repetition, with no sound - it's pretty funny looking! He knows how to wave hi & bye, though he doesn't always like to do it, but when he does, he does it over & over! He is definitely gesturing more & more for his wants, not always very specific, but he's trying...some favorites are reaching high to ask for his stuffed animals from his shelves, which he is starting to love to snuggle with. We were inspired by cousin Ty being able to move his fingers across his lips to make a bub-bub-bub sound, so Daddy started working on that with Drew - well, it's taken it's own form...at first, Drew would essentially hit our mouths (thanks for that one Matthew!), but then progressed to more of a (please ignore the un-P.C. nature of this comment, but I'm not sure how else to describe it) Indian hand to mouth ah-ah-ah-ah sound, though Drew uses the back of his hand or forearm to do it. Anyway, it may seem silly, but it's pretty funny & one of the first of many 'tricks' we use our children for entertainment & show, right?!



Some other random things that make Drew who he is these days are: I think he's starting to understand shadows, or at least he's very curious about them. When he's really hungry and/or loving the food we've given him, he will thrust each individual piece in his mouth very forcefully & very quickly, as if we are going to take it away. He is still quite a good eater, sometimes so much so we don't even understand how it's physically possible to fit in his stomach. Ok, so this one's a little weird, but every now & then, we catch him hitting his head against the furniture repeatedly - we're not a fan of this one & not really sure why he's doing it, but hoping it passes soon - kinda bizarre! He somehow created a game out of us opening & closing our eyes - he would touch our eyes, which instinctually we would close them & when he took his finger away, we would open them...well, now he thinks this is a good game to play. But at times, we'll just look at him & open & close our eyes a few times in a more purposeful way than just blinking, and then he'll do it back - he looks so cute when he does it, squinting his eyelids together so hard! I have caught him every now & then "cleaning" or wiping the floor or table with a cloth or his hands right after I finished cleaning up a mess - usually after meal time - I hope he continues to like doing this! He LOVES to go outside now & walk all over the place - he prefers to walk out to the mailbox instead of being carried, & thoroughly enjoys stepping on & off the porch & into the grass, he really does enjoy exploring outside more & more - glad that the timing is right as Fall is just around the corner (I hope!).



Some sweetness from Drew this month has been that he really has started to give us hugs. Now I realize it's not quite like what a preschooler can do, but he certainly 'runs' at us & throws his arms around our neck & grabs tight - it is absolutely one of THE BEST feelings. He is still quite a snuggly little boy & we just love it! He has developed a new sleeping position that I think is just adorable - he gets all snuggled up with himself, tucking his knees under him, with bottom in the air, either both hands tucked under his belly, or the right tucked under & sucking on the left thumb & his feet are crossed - it's just so cute!



Now, real quick, on a 'parenting' note, we have made the switch to cloth diapers (as much as my supply will allow right now) & we've switched to milk & sippy cups - no more nursing or bottles. The milk & sippy cup transition seemed to take forever, he was really pretty resistant to it for awhile, regardless of what we did & seemed a little distraught over nursing being over, but just in the last week, he seems to be accepting it all pretty well. The diaper transition seems to be not so bad if you ask Mommy...Daddy's still not quite sold on it, but he's coming around (I hope!)



Well, I think that about does it...if you've made it this far without dosing off, congratulations! Until next month...

Drew is Walking!

So in the past two weeks, Drew has started to take a few steps here & there on his own, but this Thursday night he just took off! For the first time he stood up from the floor all by himself & then started walking. He gets a little frustrated when he can't get up fast enough or keeps falling, but he's loving it & doing great! It's so fun to see him get excited about it & advance so quickly!

1 Year Pictures

So, we couldn't help but share some of our favorite pictures/portraits taken for Drew's 1st Birthday. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

1 YEAR!!!

Wow, we are here...already! It's hard, almost impossible, to remember what life was like over a year ago before Drew came along - my somewhat hazy memory remembers a life a bit more self-absorbed, less complicated, more predictable & much less fulfilling! Drew is absolute delight, there's no doubt about that. He has brought more love, smiles, laughs & joy to our lives than we could have ever imagined!



Drew is certainly more & more on the move & is quite the little daredevil with little signs of any kind of fear of being hurt - already showing his 'all boy' nature. I posted earlier how he climbs the stairs - he's just getting faster & more proficient with that; he climbs on & off the coffee table we have for him in the game room without any hesitation - we must stay VERY close now. He does crawl on hands & knees now (thank you Tyler!) & sometimes (lots of times on the tile or concrete floors) on hands & feet! His standing balance is getting much better, standing for moments on his own every now & then. He still loves to bounce & jump & even a bit of dancing, but now he can do it while he holds on to furniture, etc. One time he even jumped, getting both feet off the ground while bouncing at the rocking chair! Our kid's got UPS! (Don't roll your eyes Uncle Kevin!) He LOVES to walk with help now too - this is the one thing he does seem to realize he needs help for - gesturing for us to give him our hands to hold onto or takes off with one of his walker toys...or a big box...or anything that looks about the right height that will slide along the floor - he just loves it!



A favorite 'game' for Drew has been for quite awhile now is to pull all of his books off his bookshelf. Well, this 'game' has been extended to all sorts of things now - he essentially loves to just pull anything out of whatever it's being contained & throws it back behind him - sitting behind him can be a dangerous spot to be these days! Some of his throws are pretty fast & long, now if we could just get him to throw forward! Drew is discovering light rays these days as the sun shines through the windows - he is fascinated by the light spots on the floor, furniture or wherever it hits. He wants to pick it up & examine it so badly - he just keeps trying to get it in his hands!



Socially he's been more & more of a blast this month as well - our favorite is the frequency of his laugh. He simply laughs randomly now at times - it's so fun to hear! He is clapping his hands now, some with encouragement, and sometimes on his own. He has been seen 'reading' his books - turning the pages & babbling on & on, telling his version of the story - so cute! A cool thing is he is picking up on 'folding' hands for prayer before meals - he'll sometimes put his hands together when Mommy & Daddy fold their hands & say the prayer - love it! He is imitating us more & more with all sorts of things really...he copies us when we put toys on our heads (we know we look & act silly!), he'll put his cell phone to his ear, well, the back of his head behind his ear, but you get the idea, and sometimes he even starts to jabber. He also loves his hairbrush & will 'brush' his hair after bathtime, running from back behind his ear & forward; he has brushed Mommy's hair some too, but he doesn't really see the point to brush Daddy's! :) Now, those of you that have been around Drew have seen it's pretty clear that he's a pretty big Mommy's Boy so far, but, he has started to say "Da" this month, and Mommy is convinced he is talking about his Daddy most of the time because alot of times he'll end up going to the study when he says it - which is where Daddy spends alot of this time! So, don't worry, Drew has LOTS of love for his Daddy!



Drew is working on getting the other 2 front teeth, but they haven't quite poked through just yet. In the meantime, a rare event has happened - Drew is closing his mouth! Yes, he still mostly lets it hang open, but he is trying to figure out what is going on under those gums, and we guess that closing the mouth helps with that some. He also is playing with/sticking out his tongue more & more - again, we think trying to figure out those teeth - makes for some silly faces!



Growth stats for the month: Height: 30 1/2 in. (75%), Weight: 21 lb. 14 oz. (37%), Head circumference: 46 cm. (50%).

Well, 1 year of parenthood under our belt...only forever to go! What a blessing Drew is to us - thank you Lord for your amazing gift to us, we are so undeserving, but we'll keep him! We love him so much!

Hoppy Birthday Drew!

We celebrated Drew's 1st Birthday one day early - we just couldn't wait any longer, the anticipation was just too much! :)

We (well, Mommy) ran with a frog theme (thanks for the help with the idea Aunt Katrina) since Drew LOVES to jump! It was so fun to plan & decorate - I was just so excited!



We had a great time with family & friends - thanks to all who were able to celebrate with us! Cousin Matthew made some awesome balloon animals for the kids, Luke helped bring presents to Drew, even announcing what he brought & that he LOOOOVES cupcakes, and Harrison danced & played so well! It was so fun to watch the boys play together & with all the awesome new toys! (Though Drew obviously knew that they were HIS toys!)



Drew didn't want much to do with his cake...the day before the party we had 1 year pics taken & he did great initially with the cake smash. So maybe he smashed it all out already, that & later on that evening he ran a fever of 102.9, so he just wasn't top-notch, or he crumbled under pressure! Who knows! We had fun decorating the cakes none the less & here's the video for anyone who wasn't there & wants to watch an anti-climactic cake smash!