Oh Christmas Tree…

A couple weeks ago, we went on our new annual tradition of cutting our own Christmas Tree.  This is a tradition, that I will be very sad to leave behind when we eventually make our way back to the south.  Until then, I will cherish the cold, looking for our perfect tree to bring home. 

I loved that there was still a little snow on the trees.  It had been warmer the past couple of days, and the only snow we have had was the storm on Thanksgiving!

Taylor was a little more excited this year, but not much.  It was a little cold that day, and his gloves didn’t quite fit right.  We went to the same farm we went to last year, but this time Taylor made it very clear he was not going to sit on the pony.

Helping daddy choose our perfect tree.

“Hey dad!  I found one.”  Ha, not really, this is when his little fingers were getting cold…

Our tree.  It isn’t as great as last year, but still our perfect tree.  Since the weather was so dry this summer, there weren’t very many great trees to choose from.  Taylor had a blast decorating it, and it was a fabulous sight to see him choose ornaments and place them on the tree, even if it was the same tree branch. 

I love this last picture of Taylor, his big blue eyes just staring back at me!  Love this sweet man, and can’t believe he will be two in little over a week!!  Hope this finds everyone well and enjoying the season as we prepare to become a family of FOUR!  CRAZY!

Minnesota Fall

To say it has been awhile is an understatement!  I can’t believe how long it has been since I just sat down to write what has been going on in our lives.  Trying to keep an almost 2 year old occupied seems to drain all of my energy.  We have kept ourselves busy by going to the park often and participating in some of our favorite fall activities!  Taylor is growing up so fast!  He surprises us everyday with his developing vocabulary and new habits.  In an attempt to catch up on photos, here is are some of our favorites over the past couple of months.

Golfing in early summer, it sure was windy!

The Warrior Dash – Year 2

The Minnesota State Fair – Taylor loved the animals, especially the “moos".”

Enjoyed a visit from Pops.

Family picture with his road rash on his face from diving into the street.

Learning how to use the camera in Michigan. I don’t think we could have laughed harder as he repeated, “Cheese!”

We were finally able to get to the pumpkin patch!  Taylor loved the bounce house pumpkin, but was not too fond of the corn pit.  We went on a hay ride, that stalled a couple of times, but still had a blast with some friends!

Finally, we participated in our yearly tradition of watching daddy run the Twin Cities Marathon!  I was sad that I wasn’t running this year, but I’m looking forward to next year!  It was a beautiful fall day!  A little chilly in the morning, but Taylor and I dressed for it and was able to see daddy three times on the course!  He looked great every time! Plus, he was much faster this year, so we missed him at the finish line!  I felt bad about that, but he liked us meeting him three times during the course instead of seeing him finish.

Taylor loved watching the wheelers go by at mile 5.  He clapped and cheered for them, what a sweet boy!

Looking carefully for daddy.

Mile 21 and still seems to be happy!

We are so proud of you Casey! We love you!

Set Him Free

Casey and I have been very anxious for Taylor to begin feeding himself.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to sit down and spend some quality time with my little man spooning “oh so goodness” into his mouth, sometimes there are just other things I could be doing.  Like cleaning his “oh so goodness” mess from the night before!  After being slightly OCD about him not getting it on his clothes (Picture: Taylor wrapped in a giant plastic bag, with a plastic drop cloth underneath his high chair as well as on the walls. Then I thought that was too much work, that’s why we have dogs!!) So, I did what any sane parent would do, stripped him down and set him free!  It was such a sight to see.  As Casey and I cheered him on while he ate about half of the yogurt, he just smiled.  Here’s to my little man growing up…

And just because he’s so cute, here’s one from the wedding!

Starting Him Young

Well, with walking and standing comes practicing sports!  That’s right, Casey and I love sports, outdoors, pretty much anything active.  We have been excited for the time to come where Taylor can finally share in our activities.  My old tennis coach, Allegra, bought him his first tennis racquet, which we are very excited to use when this snow finally melts.  But for now, we are stuck with some indoor sports activities.  Looking back on my decision, probably not the greatest, but until he can loft the ball off of the ground, I think we are pretty safe.  So, we have been playing golf!  Thanks Aunt Missy and Uncle Ryan for my sweet club! 

Although he didn’t last standing for a single picture, he did understand the idea of hitting the ball with the club.  Then, hitting the club on the tile. Then, eating the ball, just to be sure it wasn’t food.  Who knows, maybe we have a future golfer!

Walking…

For those of you that have not witnessed Taylor walking via Skype…

 

Taylor Walking

We Have A Walker!

Granted it isn’t a full walk everywhere, and he must be in the mood.  Mr. T is still walking!  It happened on Wednesday while I was at work, my neighbor, and good friend, Chelby was watching him and she knew that we had been practicing hard core for a couple of weeks.  Thankfully his first steps are on video, but we have reenacted those first wobbly steps several more times this week.  They are adorable.  It was like when he first started crawling, it transforms how you view your child.  Even though they had grown out of the newborn phase long ago, crawling seemed to solidify it.  Now, it seems as though toddlerhood is well on its way.  I have a feeling we may be in for a treat when the 2’s hit, but for now we are simply enjoying our growing little man!  Here are some pictures, I love how excited he is! (Mind you, I am screaming for joy behind the camera, but still…)

Hope everyone is doing well!  We are officially in the swing of winter, and counting down the days for spring to arrive!  I’m super excited about February!  We have the wedding and then the half-marathon, where I will be TODDLER FREE!!! 

Thank You Pinterest

To say that I love Pinterest is perhaps an understatement!  It has now become part of my morning ritual.  I get my coffee, and then I browse new ideas.  My favorite has been browsing the photography pins.  I have found many cute ideas for sibling photos and even this great idea, that will be a yearly ritual as well.  It may be a couple weeks late, but I am excited for the collection we will have to cherish and look back on.

One Year Photos

When Casey and I found out we were expecting, I was in search for a photographer.  Photos are so important to us, and while we don’t take nearly as many as we should, I knew that I didn’t want this life milestone to go undocumented!  I am so thankful that over the past year I have been able to get to know Gina Zeidler.  The images that she captures takes my breath away.  Her creativity drives me to learn more about the camera that we own, and her story influences me to continue to follow my dreams.  One day, she decided to put everything down and followed her dream to become a photographer.  Now, she travels around the country taking photos and has been featured multiple times in Southern Bride.  Enjoy some of the pictures she captured of our precious 1-year old man!