Merry Christmas!!!

Ok, so Christmas isn't going quite as well as we had hoped. I'm still a little sick, poor Evan is sick and cutting two molars at the same time. The great news is that Aaron is home, and feeling better than the rest of us and thank goodness is letting me take all the naps I need.

We had the cutest pj's for Evan to wear for Christmas Eve night, but alas, it was super hot yesterday and almost 80 degrees in our house so I felt that fleece feety pj's just wouldn't be comfy. So Evan picked out his favorite Little Einstein pj's instead.He didn't quite understand the whole unwrapping presents and was confused by all the new stuff going on, so he sat and watched Mommy and Daddy open all his presents while he made towers with his stacking cups. Such a funny baby! I don't think it helped that he was "doped up" on baby Tylenol either.

In true Christmas fashion, while Aaron was putting Evan's new car together, he had a blast playing in the car box. If you are wondering about the trash bags he is playing with in there...he snuck them from the cupboard and was hiding them in the box...silly baby!

He was able to enjoy some of his new toys though! I think he is going to be a Whack-A-Mole champion one day!

And, last but not least. Evan would like to make an announcement...he apologizes for slobbering all over his "Announcement T-shirt", but with the new teeth, poor little guy can't help but be a leaky faucet. Nonetheless, Evan wants everyone to know that in early July he will be a big brother!!!!!!

The Destructive Force that is...Evan

Evan is feeling a bit under the weather, but when it comes to playing with his toys, nothing is going to slow him down. Before bed yesterday, we spent a few minutes cleaning up toys, but Evan had to build towers with his cups a few more times before we could call it a night. Then, he decided he needed to King Kong everything in sight. No wonder I can never keep the playroom clean. Here is the video:

Since the poor little guy has a terrible cold (thanks to me) we have had to resort to putting saline drops in his nose. At one point, he took them from me and ran. Aaron and I have spent the last 30 minutes looking all over the house for the drops. We eventually found them in....you guessed it...the laundry hamper. We have recently taught him to put his dirty laundry away in there, I guess medicine counts too. So glad he didn't throw it in the trash (his old hiding spot) since it is garbage day tomorrow!!!

Happy Dance!

Evan and I are doing the Happy Dance today since Aaron is home! Evan only seems to do the dance if I sing "dancin dancin" or if he is in the tub, but still you get the idea. Sometimes he dances across the room to get to his toys...always with a very serious face. Once his technique is perfected, I'll start teaching him how to do dancer faces. :)

What a Mess!!!

I've been working really hard to get more funny videos of Ev, but alas, now that he is a big boy (13 months today!) he is far less likely to ham it up for the camera. I have a huge collection of Evan's back while he is doing cute stuff. And, he does so many funny things, but as soon as I pull out the camera he stops...so much like his daddy!

One of the funniest things he does lately is to take his Baby Einstein radio, push the button and hold in up on his shoulder holding the handle. It is circa 1982 boombox style and it cracks me up!!! I can never get to the camera in time.

He has also turned into an amazing hugger! He says "ug" and will wrap his arms around so tight. I love every minute of it. He also likes to sneak up on me and hug my back...sometimes I think he just wants to wipe his slobber on me....I don't mind though, still love it.

Here is a video of him from this morning. I tried to get video of him dancing, but he stopped shortly after the camera started and decided to wander around instead. One thing to note is that I took this video at about 9am this morning. Only 1 hour before this, all the toys were put away and this room was clean. Crazy what he can accomplish in an hour. No wonder I feel like the cleaning never ends!

P.S. I LOVE that it is mid December and I can put my baby in shorts!

Holiday Woes...

Ok, so I was trying really hard to create a "Holiday Newsletter" to send to everyone in place of Christmas cards this year, but boy was I having a hard time. It isn't surprising that someone who talks as much as I do can't figure out a way to sum up the entire year in one page. But, then I thought about and realized that almost everyone I would send a card to already reads the blog and therefore already knows that the Coleman's had a pretty good year.

Then, as I was discussing my concerns with my Mom, she (ever the hippy) said people should "Go Green" this year and save some trees. I thought this might be a great idea, then I remembered that the economy is struggling and it is nice to keep the mailman busy. But alas, then I remembered that my mailman only delivers 75% of my mail (100% if you count the stuff that he accidentally delivers to the neighbors), and do I really want him to have job security...I don't know....Probably through the holidays...at least.

So it was decided, I wasn't going to send holiday cards. Until I remembered how happy it always makes me to open the mailbox and see that someone had thought of us enough to take the time to send a card. At this time the cards we have received are the only Christmas decor (ok, and the stockings I hung also) that we have put up. We are waiting for Aaron to come home to put up the tree and all the other fun stuff.

So, I have added a poll, to send a card or not to send a card...vote if you have an opinion. I am curious to see what everyone thinks.

P.S. If you don't see a card from me in the mail...it isn't because I wasn't thinking of you, it was because I went Green. :)

Happy Birthday Daddy!!!

Today is my Dad's 60th birthday. If he were still with us he would have told us not to buy him presents but to buy something nice for ourselves instead since he already had everything he wanted...his family. He was always so kind. I miss him so much and think about him a million times a day. I tell Evan Papa Jim stories as often as I can. I find myself saying "Vat is dat crunching", "I'm hungry like the wollllf (pronounce the L though) and even doing the funny snap dance for Evan when I want him to smile. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Speaking of trees...this time of year is always tough, especially when I try to watch a Charlie Brown Christmas. I always end up crying like a baby because Charlie's tree reminds me of so many Christmas' we had when my dad felt sorry for the crappy trees and chose to buy those instead of the nice ones. We always got a good laugh as the poor little trees would sag under all the ornaments and tinsel. One of the most memorable Christmas's for me was when my dad put tapes (I know...we are old!) under the tree and we were so excited to get super cool music and when we opened them they were my Dad's favorite bands from the 70's! We were really disappointed then, but I must say that I still love The Turtles and listen to my CD (yes, I upgraded) often.

Happy Birthday Papa! Take care of Boo for me.

Sweet Baby!

I can't believe that at 12 1/2 months old Evan is such a little smarty. He has added so many words to his vocabulary this week. Just today I heard him say "hug", "yeah", "pretty", "ok", "turtle", and "hungry". It is pretty awesome! Sometimes he sneaks away into his playroom and just sits down and starts looking through his books. He even giggles when he gets to his favorite pages. I love to just sit back and watch him explore. I surprised him when I took this picture a few days ago. :)

Early this morning he decided that he was going to go crazy with an empty box of diapers. He was wearing it on his head for awhile and trying to climb in. I took a bunch of photo but none of them really paint the picture of how much fun he was having and how cute he was.

Happy Birthday Aaron!!!

Oh boy! Not only is it the holiday season, but it is birthday central around here. Today it is Aaron's birthday! I wish he were here to share it with us, but alas, we have 10 more days before he gets home. :(

We hope you have a great birthday Aaron! We have a present for you. It isn't as great as the infamous Mexico trip (pictured above), the new car (ok, that was for me) or the sweet baby I gave you for other birthdays, but you should enjoy it nonetheless.

This picture was taken the day after your birthday last year and I love it...just think, if it weren't for Evan you would have been somewhere out to sea instead of Virginia Beach on your last birthday. Your welcome! :)

We love you and can't wait for you to be home with us everyday...we need you now more than ever!

Happy Birthday Holly!

Happy birthday today Holly! I hope all your boys do something great for you today!!!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!! I promised I wouldn't make a big deal about your birthday and I even took your advise and went "green" and didn't mail you a card so I thought I had to do something. I hope you had a wonderful day and I want to thank you for being a wonderful Mom and friend that I talk to everyday and can count on to be there for me whenever I need it. I love you very much and Evan does too.

Early Christmas

Evan definitely has Aaron and I wrapped around his finger! I was able to do some Christmas shopping on Black Friday this year, and Evan has already gotten to play with a few of the toys that I bought because I can't say no. One of the toys I picked up for him is a talking Quincy doll from Little Einsteins. Now I am wishing I would have wrapped it and put it under the tree because this is what I hear all day long.

Bathtime is no longer a fun time for me as Evan has decided that instead of playing with his toys he wants to throw them at me. I have confiscated all of his bath cups because he only liked to throw them when they were full of water (and he typically aimed at my face). I don't want to be a mean mommy so I still give him some toys, but I started taking shelter. Here is a video I took last night of a typical bathtime with Ev.

New Necklace

Evan and I have been feeling a little under the weather the past week so we haven't really been up to much this week. We enjoyed watching Utah beat BYU to a pulp and that is about it for excitement. I have been trying to get a funny video of Ev all week, but he hasn't been in the best spirits. One theme throughout all the videos is the wearing of only one sock, and always on the left foot. I think he is starting a new trend.

Last night as I was putting his PJ's on, he decided it was time to play before I could finish getting his shirt on. So here is Evan playing with his shapes wearing a "Handy Manny Necklace". :)

P.S. I wanted to wish both of my sisters a Happy Birthday J-me on the 22nd, and Brandi today. :)

I Miss the Muss!

Around mid August, I am aglow with an excitement that is not there any other time of year. Those who know me, know that it is college football on the horizon that makes me so excited. I have memories since the '80's of going to football with my Mom and Grandma (among others). Sitting a few rows back from Mama Lou every season and hearing her heckle the early leavers, watching "Bubbles" do her dance during the 3rd quarter, and staring at Luther Ellis 4 seasons in a row are memories that will be with me always. I remember being carried to my seat because of my broken leg, and even when Dad came to the game and realized he was too sick to stay and he went and layed down in the car and listened to the game on the radio with the windows down so he could still hear the excitement from the crowd. Man, I miss all that!!!
Well, still a true Ute fan, I am tied to my computer (or on the rare occasions the TV) to listen/watch the Utes take on their foes. This season has not disappointed, at least not in the wins catagory. There have been tears, (no joke, I actually cried at the end of the TCU game), and lots of cheers, and even some four letter words that shouldn't be repeated.

This week the 11-0 Utes take on the "Team Down South" otherwise known as BYU (or in my household BY-Poo), a rivalry that dates back to 1896! The stakes are high for #7 Utah, because if they can pull out a victory we will once again bust the stupid BCS and get a real bowl berth. Oh the the thought of a repeat of our 2004 season brings a tear to my eye. I am sure I am not the only one (Randy) who still gets weepy watching the highlight video. Heck, my niece was named after our QB that year for heaven's sake!

So in a nutshell, I can only pray that the Utes will bring home the Beehive Boot this weekend. Oh that I would be home to see "U" flashing on Saturday night and stand with the other alumni and fans at Rice Eccles and sing "Utah Man" with pride!

My List

I have done the things BOLDED (I obviously don't get out much). :)

1. STARTED YOUR OWN BLOG 2. SLEPT UNDER THE STARS 3. PLAYED IN A BAND (rock band that is) 4. Visited Hawaii 5. Watched a meteor shower 6. Given more than you can afford to charity 7. BEEN TO DISNEYLAND 8. CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN 9. Held a praying mantis 10. SANG A SOLO 11. Bungee jumped 12. Visited Paris 13. Watched a lightning storm at sea 14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. 15. Adopted a child 16.HAD FOOD POISONING 17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty. 18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France 20. Slept on an overnight train 21. HAD A PILLOW FIGHT 22. Hitch hiked 23. TAKEN A SICK DAY WHEN YOU ARE NOT ILL 24. BUILT A SNOW FORT 25. Held a lamb 26. GONE SKINNY DIPPING 27. Run a Marathon 28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 29. SEEN A TOTAL ECLIPSE 30. WATCHED A SUNRISE OR SUNSET 31. HIT A HOME RUN . 32. Been on a cruise 33. Seen Niagra Falls in person 34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors 35. SEEN AN AMISH COMMUNITY 36. Taught yourself a new language 37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied 38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person 39. GONE ROCK CLIMBING 40. Seen Michelangelo’s David 41. SUNG KAREOKEE 42. Seen Old Faithful Guyser erupt 43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant 44. Visited Africa 45. WALKED ON A BEACH BY MOONLIGHT 46. Been transported in an ambulance 47. Had your portrait painted 48. Gone deep sea fishing 49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris 51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling 52. KISSED IN THE RAIN 53.PLAYED IN THE MUD 54. GONE TO A DRIVE IN THEATER 55. Been in a movie or a TV show 56. Visited the Great Wall of China 57. Started a Business 58. TAKEN A MARTIAL ARTS CLASS 59. Visited Russia 60. Served at a Soup Kitchen 61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies 62. Gone whale watching 63. GOT FLOWERS FOR NO REASON 64. DONATED BLOOD, PLATLETS, PLASMA 65. Gone sky diving 66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp 67. BOUNCED A CHECK 68. Flown in a helicopter 69. SAVED A FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY 70. Visited the Lincoln Monument 71. EATEN CAVIAR. 72. Pieced a quilt 73. STOOD IN TIMES SQUARE 74. Toured the Everglades 75. BEEN FIRED FROM A JOB 76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London 77. BROKEN A BONE 78. Been on a speeding motorcycle 79. SEEN THE GRAND CANYON IN PERSON 80. Published a book 81. Visited the Vatican 82. BOUGHT A BRAND NEW CAR 83. Walked in Jerusalem 84. HAD YOUR PICTURE IN THE NEWSPAPER 85. read the entire bible 86. VISITED THE WHITE HOUSE 87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating 88. HAD CHICKENPOX 89. SAVED SOMEONE’S LIFE 90. Sat on a jury 91.MET SOMEONE FAMOUS 92. JOINED A BOOK CLUB 93. LOST A LOVED ONE 94. HAD A BABY 95. Seen the Alamo in person 96. SWAM IN THE GREAT SALT LAKE 97. Been involved in a law suit 98. OWNED A CELL PHONE 99. Been stung by a bee.
I thought this was really fun, so now, copy and paste this into your own post, and BOLD the one's you've done.

Evan Version 1.0

Happy 1st Birthday Evan!!!!!!!

It is crazy to think how much has changed this year. Evan is such a big boy now that it is difficult to rembember him when he was just a little baby, though little is relative in his case because he was so huge. I decided for his first birthday blog that I would remind some of you what Evan was like before the blog started. The picture above was taken by Robert during Evan's first trip to SLC when he was only 6 weeks old.

This video is the first time Evan rolled over (on February 20, 2008). I was super lucky to be video taping at the exact moment it occured. How lucky is that?

Here is the first time I was able to get Evan's "stink eye" on camera. He was only 5 days old and already had an attitude...some things never change.

Below is a super funny video that I can watch over and over. The beginning of the video is just Evan being cute and slobbery. But be patient, the funny part is at the end. Those of you with sensitive tummies might want to stop watching at about 29 seconds.

I have to stop here because this blog could go on forever and I am getting teary eyed going through all of the pictures of my sweet little one. This has been an amazing year, made a million times better because I got to share it with Evan (and for a few days Aaron too). We look forward to many many more. I love you Monster!!!

It's My Party...

"It's My Party & I'll Cry If I Want To."

Evan is proving to be less than a party animal! The more people that arrived at the house, the more upset he became. It is true that the house proved to be far too small for the amount of people who came to celebrate our happy day, but an upset birthday boy definitely didn't help our cause.

We had a super cute cake for him to dig into and make a mess, but much like me, once his hands were dirty he was annoyed and only wanted to eat cake and ice cream if I fed it to him from a spoon. What a silly boy!

He received tons of fun presents, but as luck would have it, he was only interested in his old toys. I guess with all the chaos he was looking for some normalcy. You can tell from this video that he was pretty excited to play with his old "star stick" more than the new toys. But, don't fret, he has played with new toys all day today.

The festivities came to an early end when Evan decided that he would way rather take a nap than have a party. But woke up ready to go and kicked balloons around for the rest of the night in the party room until his bedtime when the balloons "disappeared".

Boo!!!

Nothing is better than listening to Evan play when he wakes up from his naps! It helps that I have a baby moniter and can listen without him even knowing. Today he was in bed singing to himself. It was so cute I had to call Aaron and let him listen too. All day he has been saying "Boo" and sometimes "Bubble". He will even sometimes mimic what I say to him, what a smarty. Here are some Boo's and a Bubble. :)

New Bathroom!!!

So I am totally lame and forgot to blog the new bathroom!!! I can't believe I let it slip my mind. So, here are some before pictures.

Notice the big huge (and ugly) mirror and Hollywood lights. Not to mention the floor to ceiling peach Asian villiage wall paper that made me want to throw up in my mouth everytime I walked in there. If that wasn't bad enough, how about the long golden shower curtain (one panel only) that didn't close so you could see all of Evan's toys all the time. Nice isn't it. Who puts this stuff up on purpose??

It is difficult to get the full effect of the Asian villiages that are on this heinous wallpaper, so as not to disappoint, I took a close up before ripping it all down.

When Wendy and Sara (Aaron's mom and sister) were here, they helped me finish taking down the wall paper and we even took down the horrible popcorn ceilings in there. We also painted, replaced all of the wall fixtures and lighting, and mirror. We also added a pretty new shelf and some cute little penguin accents. Here is the finished product. I don't know about you all, but we LOVE it!!!! It is a much happier bathroom and Evan loves to play in there.

There you have it. Isn't it pretty???

Spoons

Evan has been working on a new trick this week...eating with a spoon. I just introduced the spoon a few days ago and he already has the idea. I have to scoop the food for him, but he gets most of it in his mouth. I think it helps that it is like a toothbrush because he has been brushing his own teeth for a few months now. He is such a quick learner and makes me so happy!

This second video isn't anything super exciting, but I love when he wakes up from nap and his hair is messy. I tried to take a picture, but it didn't turn out, so I thought I would take a video of his reaction when his Baby Einstein video starts, and give everyone a good look at his super funny hair. :)

The Fair

This weekend Evan and I joined our friends and went to the the fair. I have to admit this was the first time I have been to a fair. Can't say I was really missing out on much. Pretty sad when the highlight of the day was when a kid vomited off of a spinny ride. Only a tiny amount got on Evan's pants, poor Hayden and JJ got the brunt of it. Gross!!!

We tried to go into the Jaguar's stadium and take a look around, but it was locked so the kids had a fun time climbing on the Jaguar. Well, everyone except Evan who was content to just run along the sidwalk towards the road.

Afterwards we all headed to a nice dinner where the kids played a fun game of Drama Island (I think that was what it was called). Luckily Evan and I won a few times, though it was often a toss up between me and the bottle of Mayonaisse. I promised Hayden and Owen that they would be on the blog this time around so here is the video we took of them at dinner. :)

30 Minutes Straight!

Evan is really getting smarter and more creative every day as he heads towards the big #1. He spent a good part of the morning walking around poking his head into different rooms and saying "Hi" and running on to the next. He has also decided his favorite toy is a small music player that was meant to fit inside of a bear and plays white noise, animal sounds and music. We used to use the white noise part to put Evan to sleep, though it usally worked faster on Aaron and me. Well, now he carries it with him every where he goes and changes songs often (sometimes a little too often), but cries if it is switched to white noise or animal noises.

After his bath tonight he decided he wanted to play one of his favorite games. He loves to close himself into a room and wait for someone to knock and open the door and then he shuts it again. The only bad thing about it is that if you don't open the door in a timely manner, he will find something rotten to get himself into, his preference is the bathroom cabinets where he likes to empty everything onto the floor...good times. I decided tonight to pull out the camera so you could enjoy his favorite game too!!! I hope you all like it.

My Blog's Biggest Fan

Everyone already knows this isn't a blog about me so much as it is my tribute to my favorite person in the whole world...Evan. One of his new favorite things to do is to watch all his Evan videos from the past and reminisce about what a cute baby he was/is. His favorite video of all time is the "Hi Dada" video. Here is a new video of him watching himself be cute.

Not So Happy Halloween

This picture pretty much says it all!!! Evan and I had a super busy day yesterday starting at the voting polls, then to the Little Gym where he tired himself out so much that he was asleep before we even left the parking lot. So, when it came time for Trick or Treating he had just about had it. I have to admit that I was stressed out as well due to a much longer drive onto base than usual.

So, we went along with our friends for a few houses and then came home to pass out candy to the millions of kids who came to our house. Evan loved the Trick or Treaters and made it to the door even before I did when the bell rang.

Evan did get a chance to party like a penguin at Trunk or Treat last week though and won funniest costume. He won the hearts of the judges because of his very penguin-like waddle. I was so proud. :) He was a happy little penguin that day but mostly wanted to chase around the big boys who wer throwing the football. He still doesn't quite understand that he is a baby.

Crazy Baby

Ev had a pretty interesting day yesterday. It started out with him getting his leg stuck in his crib...yep stuck. I was contemplating getting the saw and chopping slats from off the crib to get his leg loose. Then I thought about calling 911, but in the end all it took was soaping him up and giving a few good tugs. Poor little one. Now I need to think of some way to keep him from trying to climb out, which is how I think the stuck leg came about. I think maybe the crib wanted revenge since Evan has been slowly wearing away the varnish on his crib for the last few months anyway. Here is the damage done.

Since my last post was about one of the thing in the house that Evan isn't allowed to play with but does anyway, I think a follow up is in store. In addition to the blinds, he is not supposed to play with the TV stand which houses our DVD's. Here is what happens when I turn my back for a few moments... yep, he is definitely inside...at least from the waist up. I think most of you can see why I call him Monster. :)

The Blinds

Ok, so Evan is allowed to play with almost everything in my house. The only exceptions are the verticle blinds and the TV stand. Evan however thinks these are the only fun toys in the house. Today while I was trying to get him dressed, he ran away (as usual) and this is where he went...

Bathroom In Progress

The bathroom is almost complete. It was a tough job and I was sure lucky to have Sara and Wendy there to help! We had a lot of work to do including scraping the yucky popcorn ceiling which made the biggest mess!!! I still have a few decorative touches to add so I am not going to reveal the finished product yet, but here is a few pictures of us working hard. :)



I'll have the final before and after pictures soon. :) I also will have some pictures of the outside of the house that looks awesome thanks mostly to David, but Sara, Wendy and even I also put some work into it. Sad to say, but I already have some projects on my list for their next visit. He he...Maybe I am a slave driver.

Our Trip

My Oh My where does the time go. One minute I am packing and the next minute it is over and I haven't blogged a bit. Shame on me. Better late than never right? Here is the story.

Our trip started with a bit of a snag as our plane was broken and we had to sit in the airport for almost 6 more hours than expected...yuck. Ev was a trooper as were the nice strangers who helped me out when I needed it. When we arrived in Vegas it was great. Ali turned to Evan and said "Nice to meet you Evan" it was so cute. We loved playing at the Weaver's new house and before we knew it, it was time to leave for SLC. The kids were awesome for the long car ride and being in SLC is always awesome.

We had a chance to spend the day with the Hampshire's and seeing all the cousins together was great. Evan had a wonderful time and managed to almost outlast the big kids staying up and running around until 10:30pm! The kids played so well together and it was just an all around great day.

We also had a great time with Amy...Evan was almost as excited about it as I was. :) I also had the rare chance for a girls day out, which consisted of dinner at Spaghetti Factory and about two hours of chatting in the parking lot afterwards. It was good times!

When we returned to Vegas again we decided that we needed to get out and see some of the sites so we went to Sigfreid and Roy's Secret Garden. The older kids loved it and Ev was just excited to be taken for a walk in his stroller. Afterwards we walked over to Caesar's Palace to walk through the mall and find FAO Swartz. There the kids had a blast. Here is Ev on the big piano. He didn't weigh enough to actually play it, but the girls played some great music.

Ready To Go!!!

As most of you know, Evan and I are taking a trip tomorrow. We are going to spend some time visiting the Weaver family and their new house and take a road trip to Salt Lake City to visit the rest of my family. I couldn't be more excited!!! As I started packing, Evan seemed to be really excited too, as shown in the picture below. He actually cried when I took him out of the suitcase!!!

He is a little traveler for sure. Once we drive to SLC he will have been to 13 states and Washington DC. All this and he is only 10 1/2 months old!!!

He has finally gotten his 4th upper tooth and is as funny as ever. I can't wait for my family to get to know him again!!!

Bath Time

Happy Tuesday!

Evan was having a tough day today, tooth #7 is trying to make its way through the gums so he wasn't feeling the best. Luckily once the Tylenol kicked in he was feeling better and was as cute as ever. He was being such a cutie that we played around in the tub for awhile. Here is a video of him being a chatter bug.


He really doesn't like to lay down (unless he is sleepy) so he doesn't like to get his diaper on. One way I have learned to work around this is to play with different toys. This week, his very favorite toy is a Will Smith Men In Black doll that J-me bought for me when I started applying for the Secret Service. He hasn't quite mastered which button makes him talk, but he loves it.

It is his 10 month birthday tomorrow so I will hopefully post a birthday blog tomorrow. I just love this kid!!!

On My Toes...

Evan is really keeping me on my toes lately. He is now walking everywhere and hardly crawls at all anymore. He has started running too, and only has problems when he is carrying one of his bouncy balls around and then he bounces off of stuff and he doesn't like that very much. Here is a funny video of him playing around.

He also has a new (horrible) habit of rolling away while having his diaper changed. Here is a picture of him after he had his diaper changed tonight...luckily I was able to get the diaper on before he took off. :) Unfortunately he hid under the dining room table so it took a few minutes for me to get him and get his pants on.

He still really loves Baby Einstein. He watches Baby Lullabies every night before bed. He usually will sit on my lap and snuggle, but last night he wanted to sit in front of the TV. I thought it looked so cute, little boy in front of a big TV.

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Eating is his favorite thing. He loves to try to feed himself nowdays, but sometimes his food gets stuck in his big hands and I find it later...gross. He loves Zweback toast and makes a huge mess with it. Here is another video of him trying to figure out his sippy cup. He does really well usually, but this time he picked it up upside down and it threw him for a loop. By the way, that ball his is touching weighs about 5 pounds and is his new favorite thing to throw on the tile...it might not last much longer. I'm surprised he hasn't dropped it on his foot yet (knock on wood).

Wow I am chatty tonight. I will end now. Hope you liked the update.

The Hot Tamale Train

As most of you know, So You Think You Can Dance is my very favorite show. Today me, Evan and our friends Holly and Oliver had the opportunity to meet Mary Murphy one of the judges. It took everything I had not to ask her to have more Wade Robson and Shane Sparks routines. :) Not really. Both Holly and I got really shy and just uttered a few things. Here is a picture.

Just in case you were all wondering, I am not pregnant, this is just a very unfortunate shirt that I don't plan on wearing anymore after seeing this picture.

Silly Boy!!!

Hello everyone! Ev has been doing wonderful. He is getting so smart and walking around the house like it is second nature. He is definitely a little explorer who wants to figure everything out. Right now he loves to open and close doors (regular and cabinet) and he is still addicted to Baby Einstein, though I learned today that farm animals and water creatures make him cry. We might try again tomorrow since maybe he was just crabby today. He is getting better at listening and only goes to "time out" a few times a day for playing with the TV or the blinds.

He loves to play with balls of all sizes especially his big one since he can pick it up and throw it and chase after it over and over. Once I find the pump to my exercise ball more fun will ensue. He wants to start typing now, so I better call an end to this post. I'll send more later. :)

Stacker!

Evan has been playing with his stacking cups all morning! He loves them. I actually went to Toys R Us and bought him some larger ones this morning. He loves for me to build a tower and then he crashes it down...we do it about 1007 times per day. Here is a cute video of him walking to his tower.

We will blog more soon once Aaron is home and I can stay online longer. Go Utes...kick off is in 2 hours!!!

Walking Boy!!!!

On Sunday Evan turned 9 months old. He is learning things so fast I can't believe it! last week he learned to clap, yesterday he did the sign language sign for "milk" and today he took his first steps!!!

We were playing with some new friends and he just let go and started walking. I don't think he even realized that he wasn't hanging on to something. :)

He is loving playing with cars and even makes a vroom sounds as he drives them around. It makes laugh so much. He loves it when I chase him saying "I'm gonna get you" and tickle him when I catch him. He will start to crawl away and then always turns around and lays down right in front of me. He definitely gives me reasons to laugh every day!!!

What A Big Boy!

Evan is really loving the new house he is cruising everywhere he can go. I had to bring out the blockade pillows again though since he has learned to open the cabinet doors and drag out all of the DVDs. He is clapping so well now and will do it even when he is crying and upset...it is a little funny. :) Here is a good video of him walking behind his new walker/car.

More House Pictures

Ok, here are the pictures of the living room I had to take 3 of them, so use your imagination to configure them. :) I think it looks great and really feels homey.

This is the living room looking through the kitchen to the dining room. The front door is on the left, just down from the from door is the den (not ready to be pictured yet).

This is the living room from the hall way.

And here is the media center. I am still trying to figure out how to hide the cords going to the TV...I'm accepting suggestions. The media center has been the biggest change (besides the paint) since it used to look like this:

We Survived!!!!!!

We did it! We survived the move! We are adjusting well to Florida and love the daily rain storms and the super friendly people (nice change from VA Beach).

We still have a long way to go before the house is completely ready and until then I am going to be working super hard on my TDL and getting things in order. I get a little closer every day though. Here is a picture of the dining room and the entry way, the first two rooms that were finished. I will post living room pictures soon too...no promise on the rest of the house. It is a work in progress. :)

Here is the dining room, there are a couple of things that need to be added (like a center piece) but I am super happy about how it turned out.

Here is the entry way...it looks really great. It is hard to really see it though, since it has a big mirror that is reflecting the door. I can only take credit for about 5% of the decorating though, I couldn't have done it without Wendy (Aaron's mom) she was a HUGE help!!! (Thanks again Wendy)

Evan loves the new house and spends most of his time hammering on the kitchen tile. He learned to clap today and has also gotten tooth #6!!!