So thankful for a wonderful first year

The weekend before Thanksgiving we made our first big road trip with both boys by going to a friend's wedding in Wichita.  The trip was actually pretty good thanks to a portable DVD player, and once in Wichita it was nice to see old friends.  Lucky for us, Shannon's parents were able to make the short trek (relatively speaking) up to Wichita to watch the boys while we went to the wedding.  Since it was also the weekend before Reid's 1st birthday, we celebrated with them a little early.

Reid excited to open presents

Getting tickles from Gigi

Who is having more fun with Reid's new toys?

We spent some time with Grayson (and Brent and Carolyn) while in Wichita

Tony, me, Eric, Matt (the groom), and Chris

On Reid's actual birthday, we celebrated with donuts and cinnamon rolls in the morning.  Then the following weekend, we had a few friends over to party.

Yummy birthday cinnamon rolls

Happily opening his presents

Party time for the birthday boy!

Grant playing with Avery and Andrew

Hey, what's that on my head?

Reid in awe of his pumpkin birthday cake (that Shannon made of course)

Family birthday pic

First bite of cake.  Oooh, that's sweet!

Gimmie more!

 

With Reid turning 1, that means he had a 12 month visit to the doctor.  Luckily we've got another healthy boy who is starting to put on a little weight.  Our big boy is up to 18 lb 10 oz, which is in the 12th percentile.  His height is 28.5 inches, which is around the 8th percentile. His head circumference is right in the middle at the 52nd percentile.  He is starting to eat more solids and loves puffs and yogurt drops.  It has been a wonderful first year and we can't wait to see what the next year has in store.

Where did October go?

Quite a bit has happened over the last few weeks, particularly for Reid.  Even though he hasn't taken the next step (his first step) in the walking process, he is starting to feel very comfortable walking with assistance and standing without holding on to anything.  Reid also had the joy of the arrival of his first tooth (finally!).  It took him about 11 months to get the first tooth (bottom left) and only 2 more days for the second tooth (top left) to arrive.  He's a big fan of pancakes and also enjoys mac and cheese, goldfish crackers and green beans.  The other big news is that Reid is consistently sleeping through the night!  Everyone (but most of all Shannon) is thrilled by that.


During the last weekend of September, my younger sister and her family came to visit for a few days.  It was great to see them and fun to get out and enjoy our state.  One day we went to Fort Collins and toured a few breweries (Budweiser and New Belgium), the following day the girls went shopping at the JBF sale, and another day we all enjoyed the Denver Zoo. 

Cousin Lauren giving Reid a hug

The new, very cool, elephant show at the zoo

Grant and Lauren exploring

A few weeks later, I went to Dallas for a week long work trip, so Gigi came out to help with the boys.  While in Dallas, I got to see Shannon's sister, Valerie, and her new hubby, Jeremy, before training began.  They showed me around Dallas a bit and also took me to their shop.  The training was good (especially the food) but I was glad to return home.  I know that Grant had a good time with Gigi while I was gone because he told me so every night when we were talking on Face Time.

Grant's a big fan of getting and giving smooches now

Plenty of books were read while Gigi was in town

Over the last couple of weeks, Grant's been busy with a few very cool activities.  First he went to the Tiny Tots Orchestra performance, where he got to check out all his favorite instruments (trumpet, drums, tuba, french horn and base) up close!  

Grant helping out the orchestra

Later, he showed Reid what a 'Touch a Truck' event is all about!

"Whoa! This tire is BIG!"

Who's ready for some for some fun?

Future fireman

And of course at the end of the month we had several Halloween events.  We took our annual pumpkin patch pictures, hit up a couple Halloween parties and enjoyed trick or treating around the neighborhood.

Out little pumpkins

'Skeleton Bones' for school on Halloween day

Our cow and lion were all smiles after trick or treating

Reid's big weekend

We've been lucky because the last few weeks have been filled with fun, friends and family.  So even though we are exhausted (and kind of tired of vacuuming), at least we can say that we got quality time with those closest to us.

But before we get to all that fun, I wanted to post a video of our newest cruiser.  That's right, once Reid figured out how much fun he could have moving around, he quickly ditched the army crawl for a real crawl, which led to him pulling himself up and eventually cruising around... and all within a matter of a couple weeks.

To start off the fun with friends, we got together with the Rogers in City Park.  It was an absolutely fabulous setting (good enough for someone to have a wedding) and a perfect place for the boys to run around.

Alex and Grant practicing their short game

Reid and John looking cute

Aww!

Next up was a great Labor Day weekend that included a visit from my friend Tony and then a party at the Kucera's ranch.  The highlight had to be a trip down to the pond for some rock throwing.

Grant and Andrew preparing to make a big splash

"Watch this Daddy!"

And finally, the following weekend was Reid's baptism where both of our parents and Shannon's Grandma made it out to participate in the event.  It was the first time our parents have been able to hang out together since our wedding.  It included lots of laughs, eating great food, and a night out for Shannon and me (Shannon's birthday gift of a Rascal Flatts concert).  

Mimi and Gigi having a laugh with the boys

Getting ready for the big event (Reid's first haircut)

Grandpa and Papa with Reid

After the baptism with Dr Dent

The entire family

Four generations picture

And the fun kept on going this weekend as my younger sister and her family visited us (more on that later).  Also, I prepare to head to Dallas for work soon, so stay tuned.

Summer Randomness

We could blame it on the Olympics or that we've been busy with 2 kids (I'm pretty sure we've used that excuse before), but the fact of the matter is that it has been a while since our last post.  We've been on the go a lot the last few weeks and this will be an almost entirely pictorial catch up of those events and some other things that didn't make it into previous posts from this summer.

Reid at 8 months

Grant feeding Reid puffs (Reid also eats Cheerios!).

Grant one of the many times at the splash park this summer.

Cathlin helping Grant feed Smokey at Elsie's 1st b-day party.

Reid playing in the grass with Evan at Oscar's Bambino and Vino party.

Swimming lessons went much better this year (maybe the next Ryan Lochte? Jeah, probably not.)

Grant finally figured out what those pedal things (that got in the way while I pushed him) were for.

The biggest event over the last several weeks was our trip to Breckenridge to celebrate our 9th anniversary last weekend. It was a nice getaway even if it was mostly geared at keeping the boys entertained.  In between dodging raindrops we took some nice walks in downtown Breck, went to a BBQ festival in Dillon, and hit a homerun with Grant at the Kidtopia Kidfest in Keystone. 

Listening to a trivia game show with Olivia and Oliver, the Kidtopia mascots.

Bringing up the caboose on the train around Keystone Village

Even Reid got to hang with the doggies.

Thrill of all thrills, a spiderman balloon from a balloon artist.

And with no fear, Grant hopped on Bonnie for a donkey ride.

The rare family pic with Breck in the background

And finally, the latest installment of Grant's silly songs.  In case you can't tell, he is singing about Pizza Hut, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and McDonalds.