Pumpkin Patch

  Ryan took Friday afternoon off so that we could venture out for Matthew's first visit to the pumpkin patch.  Did I mention that we're new at this?  We didn't quite know which patch would be the most picturesque or entertaining.  Let's just say that you shouldn't be surprised if you find yourself reading another pumpkin patch entry before this season is over.  This patch was L-A-M-E by all adult standards.  I mean we couldn't even find the goats.  Shouldn't pumpkin patches have goats?  However, after wandering around and watching Matthew explore we decided that it was awesome to see Matthew having so much fun on his first pumpkin discovery adventure.  Apparently by being a pumpkin patch newbie he didn't know that the patch was a dud, plus the weather was beautiful. 

I guess that means our day was a success! 

 

Here we are in the parking lot all full of hope and optimism.

 I just really like this pic of Matty on the pony trailer.

 They did have ponies... and flies.  There was one other little boy at the patch who really wanted to ride the pony, but he wouldn't go near them because of the flies.   That same little boy also really wanted a pumpkin, but, well, flies.  Poor kid.  The flies didn't deter Matthew.

 Here he is letting out his I'm-Trying-To-Figure-This-Out Viking yell.

 Hurry, Mommy!  I want to go over there! 

He was leading me ALL over the place. 

 Gotcha!

 No, seriously, I really gotcha!

Nope, kiddo, we've got you

and we couldn't be more excited about it!

Oh, Did I Mention?

This is the face I've been staring at for the last 3 days.  Yep.  My child who never ever cries.  Apparently this is how he is handling the lack of constant attention since all of our friends and family have departed our humble abode.  Fun.  Really, fun.  That plus 2 awesome head colds (his and mine) equal a peaceful household.  Ha!  He does look adorable crying though, don't you think?  Poor sweet boy!  Those sweet cheeks are going to make resisting temper tantrums mighty difficult.

Happy 1st Birthday!

Somebody had his very first birthday party this past weekend!  We planned an adult party that could potentially utilize our awesome new deck, but Mother Nature had other plans, as in 50 degree weather. We ended up with a bunch of adults crammed into our little casa, and it appeared like everyone was okay with the elbow to elbow action.  Little man knew something was up.  He was super happy waiting for the festivities to begin.  He loved checking out the pictures of himself decorations.

 

Here is a glimpse of the party decor.  Everyone worked so hard to get the place decked out.  Seriously hard.  We absolutely would not have been ready in time if it hadn't been for all of the help we had. 

Good job, team!

And if you love Pinterest then you'll love the cute guest book idea that Nick and Anna brought.  People put their finger print on a picture and it was oh-so-cute!

Matthew's food allergies have been well documented so I won't elaborate except to say that my grandma tracked down the perfect cake recipe for him.  Mommy's execution left a little to be desired. 

Note the pile of smashed cake.  This is the before pic.  I promise he hasn't touched it yet.

The adults, however, got a much prettier cake that coordinated with his invitation.  This is a before pic... before it met up with an accidental arm smack dab through it's middle.

But before we got to the cake thing our guest of honour decided to crash out for a much needed and untimely nap. 

When he woke up we whisked him straight into his high chair for a groggy round of Happy Birthday.  He took it all in stride.

As I was standing next to him looking out at the crowd I decided these crazy paparazzi needed to see what they looked like!  Oh to be loved that much.  It's too funny!

Just chillin' eatin' cake.  Whatevs.  It's like this happens everyday.  Don't we always have 25 people crowded around taking pictures and watching him eat?

Matthew also sat and opened EVERY SINGLE gift.  This kid's attention span blows my mind.  I'm not even joking when I say that he "read" every single card as well.  Crazy.

Here he is picking up his girlfriend.  Matthew has a special place for each lady in his life, but this one occupies the girlfriend spot.  He eyes her real boyfriend with what can only be called suspicion.  What a stud.

He was equally happy the next morning while hanging with grandpa in their pjs.  This is where grandpa pointed out to Matthew that he's always ready to pose for that camera.

Yep, I think he's right!

 

THANK YOU, EVERYONE!

 

Hanging 'Round the House

The phrase "He's all boy" used to kinda bug me.  Kinda in a meh, shrug, whatever-that's-stupid sort of way.  Now as I watch my son I suddenly TOTALLY GET IT.  See video...

 

Also, I just happen to love these pj's.  His little chunky limbs won't allow him to wear this for very long, so I'm documenting it while I can.  Love him!

 

Road Trip Round Up

Now that summer is officially o-v-e-r I decided to finally post the remaining pics of our marathon summer road trip.  Matthew and I (and my very brave mother for portions of the trip) made our way through more than 2,400 miles.  He was a dream travel companion.  I was super lucky because the whole trip could have gone south very quickly, figuratively speaking.  Ha!  It did go south, literally... anyway, 
Lots of miles = lots of pictures.

 

Iowa - Illinois - Missouri
Oh, Nick, what lovely hair you have.

Someone enjoys being spoiled rotten. 

Nick and Anna were happy to oblige before we left town.

Then we made it to GG's house!

Um, some cousins apparently had the same wardrobe idea.

 

Missouri - Oklahoma - Texas
At the hotel's happy hour everyone was really impressed with little man.

Texas was HOT, HOT, HOT.

Can you believe this lovely lady is about to pop with baby #3?

Matthew's first real visit (where he actually paid attention) with real life ducks. 

This is where he decided that our "quack, quack" wasn't an accurate portrayal of duck noises.  Maybe he'll become an expert duck caller?

Slogan is not accurate.  Just sayin'.

Matthew was being helpful and brushing the monkey's teeth.  Cracked me up.

Thank you, Ikea, for mass producing super cheap kids toys.

 

Dallas - Austin - San Antonio
Last summer Amy, Dawn, and I managed to get our act together enough to make it to the same place at the same time for Amy's baby shower.  This year we were really ambitious and had a little overnight visit.  This was our successful posed pic of the kiddos.

This is more par for the course. 

Poor baby Matty was the youngest and the only non-walker. 

He tried so hard to keep up!

He was also terrified of the group swim. 

Every pool pic included a shot of Matthew trying to climb out!

I have a zillion of this particular shot.  Little Kade was such a big boy and wanted to hold the baby!  Matthew is such a snuggler that he was more than happy to oblige. 

I think poor Kade got more than he bargained for!

Matthew and Miles meeting for the first time as outside babies.  Makes my heart melt.

And this last shot is just to prove a point.  That point is that one of life's greatest pleasures is having friends that have known you so well for so long that you can spend the day in your pj's, unshowered (teeth potentially unbrushed), and still be happy to have your picture taken with them after a day outside in 100+ degree heat... and no one will hold it against you or decide it will make good blackmail. (And when someone posts it on the internet they won't get mad, right?)

Add those 2,400 miles to the 1,100 from the Nashville trip and the 650 from the family reunion, well let's just say that this little boy is becoming one heck of a road tripper in a very short period of time. 

Maybe next year we'll hop on a plane for a change.

The Many Faces of Grandpa and Matthew

I'm not quite sure how these two do this whole syncronized faces thing.  You'll just have to scroll down to get the full effect. 

Peas in a pod I tell ya.