Update

We were in Salem for the 4th of July weekend. Here's Jason (Jeanette's husband) with his birthday pies. :)

Andrew revolutionizing the use of bubblewrap. It's not just for packing and temporary casts anymore....

Here's Andrew at Pizza Hut. He ate 2 peices of pizza, plus a bunch of other stuff. Growing boy! He's also wearing a shirt that used to belong to his daddy when he was small. Ca-ute!

At home watching Blue's Clues. He was apparently feeling pretty relaxed.

We went to the Fox theater last week and saw Wicked with our friends Natalie and Quentin. It was awesome, of course, and we had a great weekend!!!

Watching Daddy mow the lawn.

Proof that he's not pleasant all the time. I believe I wouldn't let him hold the camera here.

Eating peas. I think he looks adorable here.

Sorry that most of these are of Andrew, but he's the main subject at our house. :)

Happy Birthday Baby Drew!!!

We wanted to begin biking, so we got Andrew a helmet. He looks adorable, we love biking, and it's been so fun!

He was...ahem....pretty messy after his lunch, but isn't this shot of him great? He has the brightest eyes.
Happy Birthday, sweetheart!!!!
He was NOT shy about eating that cupcake. He's so cute.

365

365 days ago we were introduced to a good little friend of ours...

Happy birthday, baby boy! May this day make you as happy as you make us. We love you, little sweetheart.

Almost One

I can't believe my baby will be one so soon! We only have 4 more days! That little guy is quickly becoming a toddler. Man we love that little guy.

We Love Our Little Family

Watching for Daddy

Watching Blues Clues for the first time with Mommy and Daddy when he was sick with an ear infection.

"Riding" Daddy's bike

Daddy's finally home!!!!!!!!

We love our little family!!!!! (And Mike and I really do love each other, we just don't have any pictures together apparently) :)

Zoo!

Andrew and I went with his aunts and an uncle to the zoo today while Michael was studying. He thought the penguins were pretty cool, even though he didn't show much emotion when the camera was on him.

When we went to the chimps, he walked up to one and said, "Dada!" I don't really think that was a compliment. Especially when he did the same thing when he saw the 400 pound orangutan. Ouch.

I don't quite see the resemblance.

Here he is outside the Science Center on a dinosaur. At the zoo, his favorite things to explore were trashcans, the ground, and other kids. Little Explorer....

Oh!!!!!!! And two more finals and I'll be married to a 2L! Woohoo! Slow and steady wins the race!

New Pictures (from my mom)

Grabbing the cat's ear.

Chasing the cat after she ran away from the ear grabber.

Two remotes AND his mittens. Life couldn't be sweeter.

"What? I'm a total angel!"

"Oh! The camera? Oh, well let me let you get a close-up. I know you want one."

I'm at my parent's house right now so I thought I'd use their Internet/pictures/babysitting time to post a couple pictures my mom took today. Andrew has sooo much hair, and is really starting to look more like a toddler than a baby. I guess part of that comes from being 2 1/2 feet tall. And into EVERYTHING. Love that little nutty baby.

Lil' Sprout

There is so much to tell, and it's only been 2 weeks.

Michael and Karen:
Started our garden. We LOVE seeing those little sprouts come up! We are planting tomatoes, zucchini, squash, grape tomatoes, eggplant, basil, parsley, and peppers. Can't wait to eat those little guys!

Andrew:
Growing like crazy! We LOVE seeing that little sprout growing up! :) He got a top tooth, walks/runs all over the place, climbs onto the couch, fake laughs, and is generally just getting so big! We can hardly believe his birthday is so soon.

We are all really loving this great Spring weather!!!!

Happy Easter!!

And he's off!

Andrew learned to walk yesterday!!! He's still a little unsteady on his feet, but he was basically running back and forth from one couch to the other at the Bells'. He looks so adorable, and we're so proud of the little guy.
He also learned to wave. He now says Mama, Dada, and Baba (bottle). He is growing up so fast.

Skating and Not Killing Myself = Major Accomplishment

Andrew looking through the glass at his cousin Dominic. So cute.

Our little nerd baby. Amy and I made this Star Fleet Insignia for this shirt because it was just BEGGING for one. I don't even watch Star Trek. :)

My nephew and neice had a skating birthday party last week. I braved skating and didn't kill myself! I didn't even fall down! I was happy, and shocked actually.
We've been gone the last 3 weekends, and it's been great to see everyone, but I"m really looking forward to being home.
I love being home! :)

Photos

Just chillin' in his carseat, eating the strings on his coat.

Literally posing in front of the Christmas tree. It was hilarious.

And........eating the coffee table. Like only he can.

On a horse-driven carriage ride. It was chilly. Oops....should have worn some makeup.

Peek-a-boo with cousin Zach and Mama...oh yeah. And Catty the kitty.

I'm at my sister Amy's house and came across some photos she took in December. They were just too freaking cute not to share. He looks so big there, and he's 3 months older now!!!

Still No Internet

Things here are going well. Michael's finishing up his first year of law school, Andrew's trying to talk and walk at the same time, and I'm doing my home stuff. Andrew's started to take a little stuffed tiger to bed, and it's the cutest thing to see him pulling that thing along with him while he crawls in his little pjs. He's the cutest. Anyway, on to the post!

I really like to cook. I mean, a lot! I'm still too whimpy to attempt anything crazy, but there's something amazing about having a bunch of vegetables, spices, meats, etc and you can literally make THOUSANDS of different foods. I mean, that's amazing! I've been watching "The French Chef", Julia Child's tv show. She is totally hilarious. She's just so real, and it's really refreshing to see that after watching all the new cooking shows nowadays. For example, when the new guys take a bite of what they just made, they always close their eyes halfway, eat a half a forkful, and then say "Mmmmm. So creamy, delicious, and just cheesy." And you think, um......that wasn't exactly believable. Then you have Julia Child - picking at the meal throughout the preparation, saying, "Oh, it's just SO good!" and you think - Yeah. She LOVES food. She LOVES cooking. I don't know if anyone else knows what I'm talking about. But Julia is my sweet new buddy, and she makes me want to cook for my family. :)

Update Explanation

Our lives have been full of:

Michael - law school, family, law school, studying the law, studying his French

Karen- Andrew, actually practicing her violin, Andrew, Andrew, and Andrew

Andrew- clapping (today he clapped using one hand and one foot), talking like crazy, calling me Mama (I think legitimately), eating chunks of banana, standing on his own, walking/running with assistance, charming strangers, and weaning himself. Oh, and drinking from a cup. No sippy cups for this kid.

He has more to report than us. Go figure. :)

A Quick Post

Karen posted these pictures, but didn't get a chance to type a message before she had to head home and put the boy to bed.

Hear those crickets chirping?

I've been without the internet all week, so that's why you haven't heard from me in awhile. Not sure when I'll be getting it again. Ok, stop crying. I'm working on it.

Surgery

Andrew's surgery was this morning. Everything is okay, and he was a real trooper throughout the whole thing. He got pretty hungry and tired right before he went into surgery and was starting to break down, but anytime someone came in, he'd perk right up and give them big smiles. He's such a little sweetie.

Here he is in pre-op.

Here he is with Daddy. That was the smallest gown they had..... He's sporting a little shoulder there. (Can you tell we woke up at 5:00 this morning?)

Taking a stroll around the room. Not quite sure what happened to his other foot.

Snoozing on the way home. Poor little tired guy. It was really strange to see him all drugged up and out of it. He was also all red and puffy from the anesthesia.

We are so grateful that Heavenly Father watched over him, and to all of you for all of your prayers and well-wishes. Yay, it's over! :)

Tomorrow

Tomorrow Andrew is having his surgery. Today I have been a basket case. I'm sure it'll all be okay. I just can't WAIT for it to be over with...

In this picture, please ignore -

1. the snot under his nose.

2. the crazy look in his eyes. Yikes.

3. the cut above his eye - no idea which of his little escapades caused that.

4. the dried food on his nostrils

5. the sticky-up eyebrow

DO notice the little baby tooth. If you look closely you'll see that the one next door is coming in also. I'm going to miss his gummy grin, but those teeth are pretty cute, too!

Hanging out under his crib. Love those baby curls on the sides...

FYI - His vest was puffing out in front, that isn't a huge gut.

I love that baby...a lot.
Don't know if that was obvious.

Coupons........

If you've seen me at at for the last couple of months, I'm sure you've heard me talking about www.coupons.com. It's so great!!! You get some great coupons and can save a bundle. They're all for name brands, but if you can catch it on sale, you can make a pretty great deal. I printed out a $4 coupon for any Monopoly game and a $5 coupon for any Pictureka game. I found the card game versions of both of these for $5.24 at Wal-Mart. That means...

I got this little guy for $.24. An AMAZING deal, even if Mike is freaked out by the "attack udders" on the cover.

And this little guy for $1.24. Not too shabby.

They have a $4 coupon for Scrabble, so I'm going to pick up that card game for $1.24. Woohoo!

Our New Little Arrival

Thanks to the tooth fairy for the little deposit.

It's a lower tooth, and I'm glad for him that it's come through. Sorry about the lack of pictures lately. We're having some camera/computer issues that I'm trying to fix. In the meantime........can someone please explain to me how my newborn became an infant? Wasn't he just born yesterday??? Now he has a tooth, and when you hold his hands, he walks forward...........I'm happy to see him doing all these new things, but am so sad to say goodbye to my tiny one.