Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving in Utah this year. It seems to be a great meeting place because both Jonathan and I have family there. We spent Thanksgiving day with the Hoyt's. We spent yet another year eating a wonderful meal at a wilderness cabin in the mountains. I have a feeling it will be the traditional Thanksgiving location. It was a fun gathering of both friends and family. Not only do they have a great buffet but the log cabin feel made for a cozy afternoon. They have a ton of wooden statues all over and it seems that bears were the common theme. Chase loved climbing on a few of them.

Chase loves being around other kids and had a blast with all of his cousins.

We spent the following day with my family. My mom and dad made the drive and were staying at Angel's house. We had a fun time playing and watching many games. Mom, dad, Angel, and myself spent a few hours away from everyone while getting in a little shopping. It was fun to bond with just the adults even though I think my dad was ready to pull out his hair and was probably wishing he had been deaf! It probably didn't help his mood any that Angel completely pulled the back of his seat off!!! Let's just say he definitely paid us all back by taking us on a LONG car ride (supposedly on our way home but clearly not the case) to a neighborhood where he used to live. I guess it's the small things we do to make our parents happy. He really enjoyed showing us the house and telling us many stories.

My niece, Lizzie, also shared her pet rats with Chase. I didn't know how he would handle it but you can tell by the pictures how he felt. At first he wondered what the heck it was but after spending just a few seconds watching it he headed for some security, Daddy! Surprisingly the rats were kind of cute.

He also had fun learning a few new tricks from his cousin Sam. What a bunch of crazy boys!!!

Chase and I also had the fortune of running into some old friends and their daughter Blakely at church. Good thing I had my camera with me because who could pass up a picture of these two cuties!It was a great trip filled with the love of many close family members and friends. We can't wait to see what next year brings!

First Five Steps

Chase took his first five steps today. Where you ask?!?!? In the toy aisle at Wal Mart of all places. I have tried enticing the kid with chocolate, ice cream, his favorite toys and nothing ever seemed to work. It all started because Chase was not enjoying his time in the cart while I was picking up some goodies for my girls movie night. That's when I decided to push him over to the toys. By the time we got there he was fussing and trying to climb out. I just took him out and stood him up in the middle of one of the aisles. He hesitated and then took one step. This was not out of the ordinary but when he took another step as opposed to dropping down and crawling I knew we had made some progress. Needless to say I never imagined he would take five steady steps all on his own!!! Of course I freaked out with excitement and immediately thought I would try to get him to do it again, so I could catch it on video with my phone. After several attempts and no success I finally gave up because people around were starting to stare and laugh. (I wouldn't want to end up on the people of Wal Mart website) I am hoping that those five steps were the first of very many more to come. Jonathan is in Austin with all of the boys and I said to him before he left that he would probably come home to a walking big boy. Now the pressure is on and I will hopefully succeed at my mission!

All Aboard!!!

We celebrated Chase's brithday on Saturday afternoon with all of his close friends and of course his awesome grandparents that traveled from TX and NE. When Chase was about nine months old I saw a train cake on a parenting website and from that day forward I planned a train themed party. After about a month of planning and a week of pure chaos the party was a hit! The train theme was carried out in the invitations, decorations, cake, party favors and even Chase's conductor ensemble.This is the invitation I made which set the image for the whole party. As you will see the Chase Express and engine of the cake all match this invite.

This is a group shot of everyone that came to his party. The top picture is minus my dad and the bottom one is minus Jonathan's dad.

Chase did an ok job of opening the presents but still needed some help. He was quite the gracious gift recipient. He loved every toy and wanted to play with it right away. He would cry everytime I took one away, that is until he opened the next one!

This is one of my favorites pictures from the day. Chase really did enjoy being dressed up as a conductor and even shared his hat with all of his friends so they could get a picture inside the Chase Express!

Here is a picture of the train and cart I made and attached to his walker wagons. The kids enjoyed playing in them and getting their pictures taken.

Talk about a cake. This thing took three people (me, Grandma Ree, and Nana) several hours to decorate. I can say that while it was fun seeing the final product I will probably never do this again! I feel sorry for his next birthday and even more sorry for any future children we may have because I can guarantee that no other party will have as much time and dedication for hands on projects dedicated to them.

I guess all of my hard work paid off though. Here is the evidence that Chase loved his birthday cake! He was such a good boy. We stripped him down, put a bib on him and sat him and his cake on a trash bag. He dug in immediately and just sat there and continued to eat. Once he started moving around (after about 5 mins) we picked him up and cleaned him off in the sink. It was fun to watch and a suprisingly easy mess to clean up.

I forgot to get a picture of the party favors but they were really cute. I bought some snacks, suckers, a wooden engine train whistle, bubbles, and glow stick bracelets and tied them all up inside a bandana with ribbon and attached a balloon. They were our table decorations and when the children left they got to take one with them. I am extremely proud of my big boy and the first year we have had with him. I was thankful that so many people came to help us celebrate his big day!

Nov. 6, 2009

For Chase's actual birthday we went to Wil Jenny's with the grandparents for a nice dinner. Chase was definitely dressed to impress and had a great time.

This is a horrible picture of us both but I had to post it. This is Chase enjoying some brownie sundae and holding up his finger to show how old he is.
The crew that came into town to help us celebrate. Chase has some awesome grandparents!Dad kept him entertained by drawing with the crayons. He loved having his hand traced.

Chase finally decided to try coloring rather than just eating the crayons. This is his first art work, other than the dark green scribble on the hand and of course the hand itself. Needs some work but maybe he might be an artist!

Because I posted some really horrible pictures of me I thought this one was a little better. Chase is still the photogenic one that's for sure!

My Baby is One!!!

Just thought I would let everyone know that my baby is officially one! I can hardly believe that an entire year has gone by already. We had a great train party with the Chase Express and both sets of grandparents came to help us celebrate. It was a long process of planning and preperation that I am thankful is over and ended up being a total success! It was a ton of fun and I can't wait to add my detailed post with all the pics.

Halloween

We finally made it to Chase's first Halloween! With him almost being one I knew that my little stink would not wear a normal costume. He rips and pulls at anything he doesn't want on his body. That list of things would include but not limited to bibs, hats, socks, and sometimes even his shirt. So I figured we better make him something I know he would wear. Of course I turned to his trusty football jerseys. Yes, he had to support the red & white in addition to the always necessary (according to Dad) burnt orange. Plus it saved me from spending $20+ bucks on something he would never wear again.

Here he is standing up all on his own. Honestly he isn't leaning on the fence. He can stand while dancing and playing but still won't make any effort on taking any steps. The sucker was his bribe to stand for a few seconds so I could get a picture.

Here he is practicing his hiking skills. Down... set... hike!

Taking a break, that standing stuff is hard work!

This is the trick or treat football bag I hand stitched and glued for him. Don't I do good work?A family pic from a work party.
Us all bundled up because it was freezing outside at the ward trunk or treat party. Chase wasn't really into getting the candy he mainly enjoyed looking at the trunks that were all decorated with flashing lights. The trunk or treating was the extent of Chase's Halloween experience. We figured we would save us all the trouble of getting him dressed up only to drag him out into the cold to collect candy that he doesn't even care about. Hopefully he will enjoy and understand it more next year!

Deanna Rose Pumpkin Hollow

Chase and I recently went to the Pumpkin Hollow at the Deanna Rose Farmstead with our good friends Jana and Kylie. We had a lot of fun and can't wait to go back next year. There were a ton of activities for kids that Chase had a fun time doing but I think it will be more enjoyable for him next year when he is a little older. We started off on a horse drawn hay ride which Chase absolutely loved. The horses immediately caught his attention and he loved playing with all of the straw.

Chase and I taking a break on the pumpkins.
He loved climbing on all the pumpkins!

This was the hay stack slide we went down. It was really neat because it was all supported by hay and stacked so it was as if you were climbing up stairs.

Chase taking a break outside the corn maze to play with the ears of corn. I knew he was truly a Cornhusker at heart!

Chase loved this scarecrow. I just stood him on the bail of hay and he knew exactly what to do. He rapped his tiny little fingers around the face hole and pulled his head through the opening. Isn't he smart and talented?!?!?

This is one of my favorites. He found a giant corn stalk at the opening of the corn maze and played with it there until I made him put it down so we could move on to the next activity. He was just waving it around and babbling away. I really wish I could understand his baby babble.

Just a cute photo spot but not a great picture of us.

My other ultimate favorite, Chase with his girlfriend Kylie. They loved sitting in the hay playing together during the horse drawn wagon ride to and from the pumpkin patch.

Another Photo Shoot

Another outfit and another beautiful day so why not take more pictures of the cutest kid ever?!?!? I know that comment may be a little biased but I do think these pictures are pretty worthy of that title. Sorry there are sooo many but it was too hard to chose just a few. I am glad that we get to have fun together and explore the great outdoors all at the same time. Yes, he really does have a good time and this is not a torture for him. It's kind of funny because I take all of these pictures right outside our apartment and I always get people asking if I want to be in one with him, but the problem is I'm always in sweats with a ponytail. Not a great combo for pictures! Maybe one day we will get a new family pic too!

I have no idea what he's doing but I love that crazy face! If you look closely you can see his snaggle tooth on top. For some reason his two front teeth didn't come in first and he has just one side tooth on the top, hence the reason why we call him snaggle tooth!
Okay, so I can't get the kid to eat food half the time but put him down in front of some rocks and he's ready to eat away.

Chase with his Radio Flyer walker wagon. He loves cruising around with that thing. Maybe I should send this on to Radio Flyer and he can become a real model and make some money for his mom!

He just looks too precious for words.

I swear he is saying here, "Wait a minute mom, I swear I didn't do it!"

Just taking a break. That walking stuff sure is hard work!
One of my favorites. I love that he is in the foreground and his wagon is in the background.

He can even do it with one hand. Hopefully this means he will be walking soon!

Another fun black and white photo. I just can't get enough of that face!

Oh, how I love that face!

Chase and I finally took advantage of the beautiful, fall weather and had some camera fun. The big grins you see aren't for mommy and the camera it was totally for the large, annoying dog that lives nearby. It was helpful however in keeping him entertained and looking in one direction and not trying to crawl to the nearest leaf or mound of mud!

I am all of a sudden on a photo and edit craze lately. I took some pictures of my sister Bri and loved it! I was able to experience more with my free Adobe editor and learn some new tricks. I love the stage Chase is in and can't help but want to capture it all. Although it may get annoying for Chase I plan to use him as my baby model. I have several outfits and outings planned for future photo shoots. I can't believe my baby is almost one!