Austin's First Year

Just a few hours old

1 month

2 months

3 months

4 months

5 months

6 months

7 months

8 months

9 months

10 months

11 months

12 months


Happy first birthday, little dude!

Where's Austin?

We have been spending a lot of time outside this summer. Last weekend we went to the duck pond on campus. Austin overcame his fear of grass and went exploring. We wanted to see how far he would go and he just kept going! He crawled as fast as he could until he reached the end of the shade, then he whined until we walked over to him and picked him up. He's such a funny little guy.

The Fourth - A Little Late

Our Independence Day was a hoot! My mom, dad, and brother came out to good ol' Orem to celebrate with us. We went swimming, ate yummy food and took naps. That was all before the actual festivities started! For the shindig, we headed to my dad's aunt and uncle's home. I guess they would be called my great aunt and uncle. This extended family thing is pretty confusing. We visited with lots of fam we haven't seen in awhile. The kids in the pictures that aren't mine are Maggie (the older one) and Kierra (the lil' one). Maggie is my dad's cousin's daughter and Kierra is my dad's cousin's daughter's little girl. Ha. We'll just call them our cousins because when it all comes down to it that's what they are! And it's so much easier than saying third cousins, or fourth cousins once removed, or something. Whatever the relationship, we love them! Sorry about the tangent...

Anyway, we ate some delicious food at the BBQ, and the babies got to play with the other kids. But Austin wasn't having any of it. He cried the entire time we tried to take a group baby picture. Typical. I was worried the babies would have a meltdown once the fireworks started. But they just sat and watched for about twenty minutes. Finally they broke down and there were lots of tears. I attribute their lack of enjoyment of my favorite holiday to the fact that it was about three hours past their bedtime. Still, it was fun to see my dad and brother light fireworks. And to my delight, aerial fireworks are legal now! This made for quite the display. After our meltdown, we went inside and watched through the front window while Austin and Avery drifted to sleep. We got home that night around midnight and boy were we beat! What a fun Fourth of July!

11

We have a couple of first birthdays in our house coming up in just one more month! I know I say it all the time, but I can't believe how fast time flies. We've been chasing around two very active 11 month olds and we love every minute of it!


Austin is such a joy and so much fun. He has a cute little personality and a radiant smile. He's such a flirt! If you make eye contact with him, it's almost guaranteed he will grin back at you. He follows his sister around (or gets chased by her). He's started clapping his hands and waving hi and bye. He has the funniest limp-wrist wave. When I tell him NO he shakes his head back and forth, but keeps on doing whatever he was doing. Austin sings now too, which is adorable. During church today he joined in during one of the hymns. He makes all sorts of noises and talks as if we should know what he's saying. He crawls super fast now and pulls himself up on almost everything. He can stand on his own, too. I think he really likes to stand but freaks out when he notices that no one is holding onto him. I predict he'll be walking pretty darn soon, though. This boy loves to play with his daddy. He chases Andrew around on the floor and laughs when he gets caught. He is the epitome of boy. In a sea of toys, he usually picks out his toy truck and ball. He pushes the ball around and follows it around the house. He occasionally likes to kick his toys, or anything near his feet. A soccer player in the making, maybe? Love this boy!


Avery is as cute and sassy as ever. Who knew an eleven month old could have such an attitude? She is blissfully happy when she has what she wants, and you better stay far away when there is something she can't have. We are trying to teach her about, and helping her understand she can't have everything. Since she literally tried to hold everything in her hands at the same time. She is full of fun, I promise. She waves hi and bye, and shakes her head when she hears the word NO (although she has a much better understanding of the word than her brother). She has a speedy crawl, pulls herself up, stands on her own, and has even taken a step! She can repeat sounds back to us like a pro. It is so funny to hear her try to say words. We haven't considered any of them as her real 'first word' yet because so far it is just gibberish. Cute babbling gibberish though. When she hears music, she swings her hips, shakes her head, bounces up and down, and does this weird sprinkler-like movement with her arms. During a musical number at church (we do more than just sing, promise), Come, Come, Ye Saints sang a capella by an older gentlemen, I looked down to see Avery rocking out. As long as it's music, she doesn't mind. Girl can groove.


I love these kids. I can hardly call them babies anymore. They are so big and independent. They bring so much love and happiness into our home. Sometimes, just sometimes, they fall asleep in my arms and I want to savor those moments forever. I love the feeling of a cuddly baby and that just doesn't happen too often anymore. My almost-one-year-olds are so sweet but I know that our years are numbered with them wanting and letting me hold them and kiss them and love on them, so I'm taking advantage of those moments while I can! My, oh my, this has been the best, most trying, most love-filled eleven months of our lives!

Could it be true?

Ok, it's not that crazy, but it's a big deal to me.


Looky look! They are holding their own bottles!!! I've been waiting for this day for a long, long time! Does this mean my babies are growing up? They don't even need me to hold their bottles anymore. Now only if I can teach them to change their own diapers...

Summer Fun

We were finally able to trade our winter coats for summer hats and swimsuits.

And it has been wonderful. There are a couple rosy-cheeked water babies around here that love to splash and shimmy all around the kiddie pool at Seven Peaks, our local water park.

Avery has too much to do to pose for pictures

We've gone almost everyday, and it has been refreshing. Most days we wait until the late afternoon so Andrew can come and watch the little fish with me. Our favorite activity at the water park is to sit in the shallows of the wave pool with babies in our laps. The babies think this is the bee's knees. They sit all slumped and relaxed as the warm sun wraps around them and the waves tickle their toes. They also like to yell at the big kids as they splash in and out of the pool.

Taking walks has also been on the agenda lately. During the day I'll take them out in the stroller for a long walk around the neighborhood across the street. The babies usually drift to sleep and I get some nice quiet time. I like to look at the houses and make mental notes to what I want someday in my future home. It's always fun to wish.

This summer is off to a good start.

Hair

Austin got his hair did! No, no, no, this is not his first haircut but his THIRD. The first two weren't dramatic enough to document, although I did save the snippings and took a bizillion pictures. Here's the proof from this time around:

Before

After

Austin still has a ton of hair but now his mop is manageable! We think he looks pretty darn cute.