Yeehaw, What a Birthday!

We had a great time celebrating Wyatt's one year birthday. We decided to have a western theme to play up Wyatt's name (you know, Wyatt Earp!) We had barbecue pork and turkey sandwiches for supper. And I made a horseshoe shaped cake for dessert. Let me just say I am so thankful I have an understanding husband who realizes that I have to express my creativity... it's just who I am! And I love that I get to unleash it on my kids... and if I can do it myself, it doesn't cost as much either! That said, since I knew we'd have some little kids at the party (one excited 3 year old for sure!), I thought it would be fun to make a little western town they could play in. It was just a passing thought until I was at my sister's and saw she had some wonderful big boxes that she was about to get rid of!! So with a little paint that I already owned and Ben's box cutting skills, we had a saloon, general store, bank and jail that cost $0. Now that's some cheap fun.

One of my favorite things to do when it comes to events is the invitation. Of course, it doesn't hurt that this utilizes my graphic design skills!

Here's Wyatt enjoying the saloon. He was so cute - he didn't realize the doors would swing, so he would crawl under them every time!

Wyatt's birthday cake

Lila "selling" Wyatt a banana at the general store.

Sheriff Wyatt stationed next to the jail!

Wyatt was fascinated by the balloons that Aunt Janina brought to the party... she always brings a really cool balloon. This time it was a big silver "1".

Wyatt didn't really react to the lit candle, but he enjoyed the singing and clapped along with everybody else at the end of "Happy Birthday to You".

He dove right into the cake... his left hand (yep, he might be a lefty!) just went back and forth from cake to mouth as fast as it could!

The one picture I got of him with his birthday hat - he didn't want to keep it on.

All gone!

Once he saw that we were still eating cake, he started fussing.

"Hey, I want more of that stuff!"

Tyler was a Cowboy in more ways than one!

Claire enjoyed serving some time at the local jail!

We had a great time and are so thankful we could share it with family and friends. My parents were in town, and they were such a blessing as we prepared and cleaned up after the party. Thanks Mom and Dad!

One Year

Here are Wyatt's one year photos (and comparison shot of Lila)... no more pictures with Mr. Moose. I had to throw him into the shot as it was because Wyatt didn't want anything to do with him (or sitting still for that matter!) Wyatt and Lila's one year stats:

Wyatt: 21 lbs. 15 oz., 31 inches

Lila: 19 lbs 3.5 oz, 30.5 inches

This past month, Wyatt decided crawling was faster than "swimming" so he no longer swims. He has stood several times on his own as well as taken steps between furniture... more and more each day it seems! He also decided it was time to start a vocabulary. He can say "dada", "tickle tickle" and "woof". He hears a lot of woofing at our house :) He does say "mama" too but usually it is just when he is upset about something and it comes out "mamamamamama" so I'm not sure that counts. The other day he looked at a picture of Ben and said "Dada!" Now THAT is the kind of confirmation I'm looking for! He also knows when the dogs start barking excitedly at the back door, that means Daddy is home! He loves playing in Lila's room, banging on the sink in her toy kitchen. (She likes him to be in there about 50% of the time.) He loves bathtime and will crawl into the bathroom as soon as he hears the water running or sees the light is on. And he continues to be a great eater!

State Fair 2009

Last week we went to the Texas State Fair. Both Ben and my sister took a day off work so we could avoid the more crowded weekend. We had a blast!! It was cooler (in the 60s/70s) and overcast which made walking around much more pleasant. We started with the Little Hands on the Farm exhibit. We did this one last year, and it was so much fun. Lila enjoyed it even more this year since she could do everything on her own. Wyatt enjoyed watching.

Ben and Wyatt as we wait in line to get in to the farm.

The Amey Farm!

I'm not sure what character I am supposed to be - either a farmer's wife standing behind the cow, or a hay bale with a head!

Love this face Lila makes, like she is driving so fast or something!

When we got to the part where Lila could drive the little tractor, we put Wyatt in her wagon for a little ride. He did great holding on!

She enjoyed the petting zoo so much more this year... no fear of the animals this time!

Amanda B., not sure if you check my blog, but if you're reading this, this picture is for you!

We let Lila ride a couple carnival rides before we left. Something tells me that next year, we will be spending more time doing this. She really enjoyed it! The first ride she went with Daddy. Then we had enough tokens left for her to ride one more by herself.

Checking to make sure she is in the height range to ride alone!

Riding by herself on the swings. Can you tell by her face how much she loved this? Thank you Texas State Fair for giving us such a good time and great memories!

Outside

Here are some pictures of the kids enjoying being outside in the past few weeks. It has been very rainy here lately, so whenever it's nice we enjoy it!

My little climber!

Enjoying the swings.

Wyatt really enjoys this little plastic slide. He can walk all around it and climb on it. And it's outside, what could be better?

A double rainbow we saw one evening after it rained.

One morning we got to play with a friend while his parents (and Ben) worked on a Habitat for Humanity project. During Wyatt's nap, Lila and Evan played outside.

Lila wanted to pull him in the wagon.

But the basketball was the big hit!

Triathlon #2

I've fallen behind in my posts once again but I thought I'd post a few pictures of Ben's second triathlon... yes, I think this is becoming a hobby! This one was in McKinney so we didn't have to drive far at all, and we got to sleep in our own beds! I took both kids to watch Daddy do this one. Good thing we had donuts to eat and acorns to gather :)

Here's Ben lined up and waiting his turn to jump into the cold lake water!

Here they are swimming in the lake. Can you tell which one is Ben? I couldn't either.

Waiting for Daddy... little did we know at the time but Ben had a flat tire on his bike and was having a difficult time changing it! It added about 40 minutes to his race.

But finally here he comes into the transition area, ready to park his bike and start his run. I don't have a picture of him finishing his swim because I was dealing with the kids and I couldn't see which swimmer he was anyway.

Starting the run, a 5K.

Finishing the race!

There were lots of acorns on the ground near the finish line, so Lila had a grand time gathering as many as she could (we put them back before we left!).

I am super proud of Ben for finishing, despite his unplanned flat tire and added time. I am not sure I would have continued on after that - but he did, and now he's ready to try another one!

Sunny Skies

The past couple of weeks it has been SO nice here! The highs have been in the mid-80s, somedays only the high 70s. And it has been sunny too. We have gone to the nearby park to feed the ducks and play on the playground...

Lila LOVES to feed the ducks. She has no fear of them at all.

There is a large rock at the playground (made for climbing) and this fall is the first time Lila has wanted to climb it. She climbed all the way to the top too!

Wyatt loves to swing... that is the only reason that his (oh-so-cute-in-my-opinion) hat is still on his head. He doesn't really like to wear hats.

Going down the curvy slide.

We had so much fun, we decided to bring Daddy with us on another day for a picnic (courtesy of McDonald's!).

And of course, we had to feed the ducks again too!