Wyatt's Birthday

Classes have been keeping me pretty busy this summer, so I don't have as much time to post right now. We did get the chance to celebrate little Wyatt's first birthday a couple weekends ago. Here is Sam at the birthday party, with his cousins, Will and Wyatt.

Here is Wyatt enjoying his chocolate cake...

...and here is Sam wondering why he didn't get a huge slice of chocolate cake this time!
On a completely different note, Sam now knows how to open up the pantry and pull down the box of crackers to get himself a snack (which he will also share with Oscar). I guess it is time to put some kid proof latches on our cupboards!

First Word!

So, Sam has been saying mama and dada for some time now, but we have never really been sure he knows what he is saying. It could just be baby babble.

Now we KNOW for sure that his first word is "baba", which he uses for milk/sippy cup. When he says it, it is different from baby babble in its clear and matter of fact tone. We have been teaching him a few baby signs (this is like baby sign language if you haven't heard of it). We've been working on "all done", "more", and "milk". Just this past week, he started doing the "milk" sign whenever he wanted his sippy cup. He does this by squeezing his hand, as if milking a cow. Then a few days ago, he started to attach "baba" to the "milk" sign, and he know does them both at the same time!

I can't tell you how proud we are of our little boy. I also can't imagine the pride we will feel when he does something really big like graduate from kindergarten (haha) or college! When I saw him do this for the first time, it actually made me cry with tears of happiness because there is no doubt that for the first time, he can actually communicate with us on a higher level. Of course, sometimes he does it now just because he knows he gets such a reaction out of us, and he just gets a big happy grin on his face, knowing he accomplished exactly what he wanted. I never realized that the pride you can feel for your child could be so intense. I love being a mom.

Check out the "baba" and "milk" video below.

Sam's One Year Old Pictures

Here is the link to Sam's one year old pictures:
https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0232120486JCP

Enter my first and last name as the customer name.

As you will see, we had trouble getting him to smile, but there are a few cute ones in there anyway!

The Park and the Zoo

This week Sam and I explored a new park (one that actually has some infant swings!), and he had a great time. We were actually the only ones there, so Sam got free reign to climb around. As you can see below, he even knows that when the bridge ramp starts to go down, he should flip around and go down backwards (we taught him how to do this when going down the steps, and I was so proud of him for transferring this skill here too!).

Our friend the coyote was spotted in the backyard again. Oscar spent the morning keeping vigilant watch over the premises. At one point, Oscar's little Cocker Spaniel bark actually made the coyote dart back into the woods. I think Oscar actually thinks he could take the coyote down if given the chance.
On Saturday we (finally) got Samuel's one year pictures taken. These are the first professional pictures we had done of him. He wouldn't smile. Instead he just stared at the flashing lights and the unfamiliar face of the photographer. Once the online link is available, I'll put it on here so everyone can see. There are a few good ones, but mostly he just looks very serious.

After the photo shoot, we spent the afternoon at the MN Zoo checking out the new Grizzly Bear exhibit - which was pretty cool. Even Sam enjoyed seeing the bears up close! Today's project - cleaning out the garage. Not as much fun as yesterday, but definitely needed!

June 3rd - Our Second Anniversary

Busy Weekend

We had a busy weekend! On Friday, Peter and I met up with Lisa and Chris, in town from Illinois, for the horse races at Canterbury Downs. It was great to catch up with them and to hear more about their little one due in September. On Saturday, Sam and I went to Lisa's baby shower. Lisa was glowing and looked adorable, and it was fun to see her family as well. Sam happily danced to the music of his favorite toy, Mom's cell phone, to entertain the guests.
On Sunday we spent some time at Grand Ole Day in St. Paul. We had a great time visiting with Jason & Bethany, Steve & Becca, and Tony & Shannon. Sam kept clapping his hands and smiling when we first got there, so he must have been having fun. It was hot though, so after a while, he wouldn't let go of his sippy cup - in fact, I couldn't get a picture of him without it!
Now we are starting off my last week of break before summer classes start. Sam finishes up swimming lessons this week, and we start our sessions at the water park with Katy and Jackson next week! Tomorrow Peter and I will celebrate our 2nd anniversary. We didn't go out to celebrate our first anniversary because Sam was just one week old. This year, Amy and Luke are going to babysit so we can enjoy dinner at Trevina's, which is where we had our rehearsal dinner, and then catch a movie. Thanks, Amy & Luke!

Sam's First Birthday Party

Samuel's first birthday was on Sunday, and we enjoyed a wonderful party at my parents' house with my family and Peter's family. It was great to see Robin and the boys since we haven't seen them since Labor Day weekend. I was so busy though, I forgot to get a picture of Sam with his two cousins. Wyatt turns one in June, so I'll have to get a cousin pic at his birthday party.

Samuel had a wonderful time opening presents, swimming in the pool, and enjoying his first taste of chocolate cake! Peter and I had so much fun just watching him enjoy the day, and he absolutely loves playing with his new birthday presents. His old toys were starting to become a little boring to him.

He seems to have grown up so much in the last week or two. He's much more swift in his movements as he crawls around and plays. He actually knows how to bang his toy hammer on his tool bench, and he puts the phone up to his mouth and ear (though it is usually backwards or upside down!). He has several toys that play music, and he bops to the music and will even hold the musical part up to his ear to hear it better while he giggles and dances...so cute.

Since Sam was born we would do what Grandpa Gary calls a "tummy buzz" by blowing raspberries on his tummy. Just tonight he decided he wanted to do this back to me. It makes for a drooly mess, but it was hilarious, and I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. Of course, this laughter just encourages him to continue!

He has also gotten pretty good at playing with Oscar - he plays both tug of war and fetch, though he can't throw the dog toys very far (it's more of a drop). Oscar and Sam both really seem to enjoy this interaction, and Oscar is probably thinking it's about time the kid actually starts playing with him instead of just trying to tug on his fur.

When he gets up in the morning or up from a nap, I pick him up and tell him it's time to put the nuk away. He pulls it out of his mouth and drops it in the crib. Sometimes he hesitates a little, but he always has a sweet, sleepy smile on his face during this moment of hesitation before it drops from his little hand. Now that he is one, we are going to try to break him of his nuk addiction. Should be fun...!

He eats just about everything, though he seems to not care much for potatoes - mashed, baked, or potato salad - he'll eat them, but he doesn't look too happy about it. Maybe he's just holding out for French fries! Bananas and banana bread seem to be his favorites right now. I'm sure that will change next week.

Anyway, here are some pictures from his party...

Here's the video of the Happy Birthday song. Sam is lucky enough to share his birthday with Grandpa Gary, so they both got a birthday cake and song!


P.S. On a different note, CONGRATULATIONS to my cousin Grant and his wife, Carley, who welcomed little Devon into the world on May 21st. We can't wait to meet him:-)