Some belated birthday fun

I wanted to post a few pics from Sawyer's first birthday party. He really likes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so we had a Mickey party. He had a few friends come and play, plus a ton of family. Grandpa Terry and Grandma Sue flew out from Utah to visit and participate in the festivities.

Greg was inspired by the show, Ace of Cakes, and took on the challenge of making Sawyer's birthday cake. I was going to just make cupcakes with mini oreo ears, but Greg had grander plans. He decided to replicate Mickey's Clubhouse. This is what it looks like on the show.

This is Greg's version. Not too shabby for a first time kiddie cake maker!


I made these Mickey party hats for everyone to wear, which most did without complaining (except for the birthday boy). Here, they are being modeled by some of the party guests. (A special thanks to Amylou for cutting out those circles for me at school).

We had a knock-off version of Cafe Rio for lunch and then birthday cake. Sawyer was a fan of the cake and frosting. Here he is after his first few bites

and a shot towards the end.


He had such a good time and enjoyed getting to play with his buddies, Graham and Lydia.




Here we are opening some of his presents.


This one is from Uncle Dave-it's his very first movie. It's called "It"-by Stephen King-a must see for the 1 year old crowd (Uncle Dave says, "but it has a clown in it")


Here he is opening a few more with his dad, and me looking on.



Fun was had by all ( I hope!)

In other news, Greg had surgery on his eyes this past Friday. It is called PRK, and will give him 20/20 vision(or pretty close to it). I got to watch the procedure and thought it was pretty cool. The sound of the laser is scarier than anything that you actually see going on. He was uncomfortable the first few days, but he is now feeling and seeing much better.

I hope everyone has a happy Thanksgiving! May you all get to spend time with friends and family and eat lots of good food!

Brace yourself for the cuteness!

Okay, so I told a little lie in my last post. We aren't getting his pictures taken next week, but today. I decided to take advantage of my baby's relatively bruise/scratch free face and get his photos taken. I knew if I waited too much longer, he'd probably gash his face open or get a rug burn on his forehead. He loves to crawl with his little hiney in the air and his head pressed right against the carpet-it's so funny to watch, but a little dangerous to his face! He was a lot wigglier this time than the last time, but they still managed to get some cute shots.



He was way more interested in other people's photo sessions than his own, and kept trying to sneak into their pictures.


He also liked to play with the props instead of pose with them. Like in this next picture....


Or eat them, like in this one...



He was very sad that wasn't a real apple.

We are still working on his roaring. He likes to do it when he's not in his costume, usually at lunch time with a mouth full of food. I hope people hand out string cheese and yogurt, because that is all he wants to eat right now.



He's such a fun little guy!

Happy Birthday Sawyer!

Our sweet baby Sawyer is 1! This year has flown by, yet it seems like he has always been with us. I still am amazed at what he has accomplished in his first year of life. He used to stay on the blanket where I put him. Now I have to try and brush his hair as he's running down the hallway. He has brought so much joy into our lives, and I can't wait to see what this next year brings.
Here are some pics from the last couple of months. ( We're going to get his 1 year pictures taken next week).

We went to the Yellow River Game Ranch, which is basically a huge petting zoo. Animals, like deer, rabbits, and ducks, are walking around for you to feed and pet. Some animals are in cages (like bears, cougars, and other animals that would eat young children). Sawyer wasn't too sure about seeing animals up close and personal, but got used to them towards the end of the trip. Here he is petting the rabbit, ever so sweetly.

And here he is trying to pull it up by the poor bunny's ears.

We went to Utah in August to surprise Greg's dad for his birthday. His sister Kelly and her husband Cardon flew in from New York too, so it was like a mini family reunion. We went boating, hiking at Sundance, played games, and had a great time. Here are my boys getting ready to start our hike. Sawyer thought the back pack was pretty cool.


I love this picture-it shows off how beautiful his eyes are.

Here's the whole gang at the waterfall we hiked to at Sundance-even Sue made the whole trek! : )

Greg's brother, Kent, has this cool scooter and sidecar. We went for a drive up and down the street. Sawyer wasn't a fan of his helmet.


Sawyer has his 1 year appointment next week, so I don't have his stats yet. He is walking and running very well now. After wearing flip flops all summer, he is now wearing regular shoes and is having to get used to them, but he is not letting them slow him down. He drinks from a sippy cup and loves milk, string cheese, fruit, and yogurt. He squeals when he sees a soda can or a real cup and instantly becomes your best friend if you share. He is no longer wanting baby food, but regular food. He is a funny little kid at meal times. He has to get the smallest taste of what's on the spoon before he will commit to a full bite. I have to dab the food on his lips because his mouth is clamped down tight! He prefers to feed himself most of the time, so I am trying to make his meals finger food friendly. He can say mama and dada pretty regularly and loves to play patty cake. One of his favorite games is to sneak up behind you and "scare" you. He also loves to brush your teeth for you with his tooth brush and give you sips from his sippy cup. If you are lucky, he will also share some of his partially eaten or manhandled food with you too! I am hoping his love for sharing will continue on as he gets bigger.
As soon as we get his new pics taken, I'll post them. Greg is in Chicago to take his oral exam to finish his board certification process. I know he will be glad when he is finally done! Since he is gone, we are postponing Sawyer's birthday to the Saturday after Halloween. Greg's parents will be here for the festivities. I'll post pics of that day too!