It took 5 years...

to go from this...

to this.
For our 5th Anniversary, Dan decided to treat me to a weekend of luxury at the Anniversary Inn in SLC. At first, I was nervous about leaving the boy overnight for the first time, but once Dan reminded me that I would get to sleep in for the first time in a year, I decided to give it a shot. P went to stay with his grandparents for the weekend and he did awesome. He didn't even notice we were gone...but he was excited to see us again (which always makes a mom feel good). However, our bodies were not physically capable of sleeping past 8am, but that was still 2 hours of extra sleep for me! The Inn was very fun...each room has a different theme, and we got to stay in two different rooms. The breakfasts were delicious, and my favorite part was that they give tours of the rooms every day, so we got to see all the fancy rooms.

The weekend was full of our favorite things: movies, delicious food, and relaxing. We LOVE movies...it's kind of an obsession for both of us. Back when we were childless, we often went to the movies once a week (for FHE on Monday nights with my BFF Shoshanah, may she rest in peace). However, since being blessed with our adorable little one, we have only been to 3 movies, and each time we went to see something that ended up being sold out, so we watched something else that was less enjoyable. So, in one weekend, we doubled our movie attendance for the year. We saw Due Date (which was extremely disappointing...we are fans of Robert Downey Jr and Zack Galifianakis, and I am a big fan of having babies...so a comedy with all 3? How could you go wrong? Well...they did go wrong. Seriously wrong. I barely laughed at all. Boo), Harry Potter on the IMAX (of course it was great...but I thought the hullabaloo about the "nude" scene was a bit much, and it is annoying that they split the last book into 2 movies making the entire franchise even more commercial), and Red (which we both enjoyed...John Malkovich is hilarious in it...despite his general creepiness). Overall it was a pleasant viewing experience.

We also tried a few new restaurants in SLC. We went to The Copper Onion (thank you Matt for the suggestion) which is my new favorite. They have a very fresh and simple menu and use locally grown products. We recommend the house made Pot o' Pickles (if you like that sort of thing), but everything we ate there was delicious. I am only upset that we didn't try a dessert...maybe next time. We also went to the Italian restaurant Al Forno which was NOT good. Super high prices for food that was WAY below standard. In fact, we would not be surprised to see them on Kitchen Nightmares one day.

Overall, it was nice to spend some time together and leave the world behind for a few days. We didn't even bring a computer with us...can you believe that?

Look what I can do!

Happy Turkey Day!

13 Months...

My mom begged me to do a 13 month post...so here it is! P has become quite the helper this past month. Every time we are cooking, cleaning, or fixing something around the house, he wants to be right in the mix. He loves when I make him eggs in the morning and let him help stir them. He also loves to push the shopping cart and the stroller, mop the floor, and load the dishwasher. P has also started to give us big, slobbery, wet, open mouth kisses on demand. And his new favorite word is "No". He is watching us say new words and is very interested in mimicking us. He also loves being outside no matter how cold it is. We just love watching our little guy grow!

Catch me if you can!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Birthday!

On P's birthday he got to ride in his big boy seat...

and on a tractor...

and he got to wade through pumpkins at the pumpkin patch.

A few days later, we had a football party!

P was a little timid with his cake at first, so grandpa had to help him...

but it didn't take long before he got the hang of it.

Happy Birthday P!

12 Months...

P came out crying...

(newborn)

But he has been smiling ever since!

(1 month)

(2 months)
(3 months)

(4 months)

(5 months)

(6 months)

(7 months)

(8 months)

(9 months)

(10 months)

(11 months)

(12 months)

Favorite Foods: fruit (bananas, pears, peaches, grapes, mangoes, apples, cherries, etc...he loves them all!), tomatoes, cheese, pasta,

Least Favorite Foods: none...he will try everything at least once

Nicknames: Buggie, bud, stinker, Pastie

Teeth: 8 and no signs of any more coming yet

Words: "mama" and "dada" are consistent, and "NO!" has become his new favorite

Walking: the day after he turned 11 months, he woke up as a full-fledged walker. One day he was crawling and taking a few steps, then the next he refused to crawl any more and walked everywhere. And at this point he can squat down, walk in circles, and kick balls all around the house.

Personality: P is a social butterfly. He loves being around other people, especially other children. He refuses to sit during church and would be perfectly happy if we just let him walk around smiling and flirting with everyone. He throws tantrums when he doesn't get what he wants. He loves to play games, especially hide and seek and "I'm gonna get you!"

Fun on the slide...

That's what she said.

How to eat off a plate...

It's official...

We have a walker.

State Fair!

A few weeks ago, P went to the State Fair with Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa, and Megan.

He got to milk a cow...
and pick some apples...

and plant some carrots...

and ride a tractor...

and brush a sheep.

He had soooo much fun at the State Fair...

that he asked me to take him back the next week!

11 Months...

P's current favorite hobby: playing in the pots and pans drawer (or any cupboard in the house).
P has also enjoyed walking this month. He started by pushing around his toys, and recently has started taking steps on his own. So far 9 steps in a row is the max.

P's favorite foods: mangos, Kraft mac and cheese, string cheese, nilla wafers, pickles, eggo waffles, grapes, Cafe Rio black beans (pictured below)

P especially likes feeding himself, and refuses to allow anyone else to feed him. No more baby food for this one!

P still enjoys the swings and he LOVES being outside.

P has started to make some friends in the neighborhood...

and has finally learned to appreciate grass.

If you look closely at the picture below, you will see P's EIGHT beautiful teeth!

Today, when I arrived home from a super long day at work, I went downstairs to play with my boy. He was playing around as he usually does, but when I looked at him he was so big. He was playing differently and acting more like a toddler than an infant. I am not ready to have a toddler...why can't my baby stay a sweet little baby forever?

-Besides wanting to feed himself, P is still a great eater. He pretty much eats whatever we put on his plate.

-P has been having some sleeping problems recently...waking up between 3am and 5am ready to start his day. We have tried to put him to bed later (between 8-9pm) but then he would just wake up earlier. The only way we can get him to sleep until 6am is to put him down between 7-7:30pm.

-P is down to one nap a day...BOO!

-P has become quite the problem solver...specifically when it comes to reaching things that are out of his reach. He will use anything he can find as a stepping stool (including mom's face).

-P has been talking like crazy. It is obvious he is trying to say things, but so far "mama" and "dada" are still the only coherent words.

-P is FINALLY starting to allow us to read to him, which has been super fun...and so far he loves Harry Potter!

Baby are you down, down, down, down, down...