4th of July 2012

The 4th of July might be one of my favorite holidays.  Here are our celebrations in 2011 and 2010.  It was a little different this year -- Daddy had to work and Uncle Reggie and Aunt Jaime were home with their new baby girl.

We ventured to the Nappanee 4th of July parade.  Tyson loved it.  He got to ride all around town with grandpa in Uncle John's Gator.  Quinny, grandma and I enjoyed the parade from a shady spot on the route.

Quinny, ever disapproving, waited patiently for the parade to start.

There's just something so American about a small town parade.  The police car started it off.

Flags -- notice the guys watching from the other side of the street -- one with his hand over his heart, the other saluting.

Quinn wasn't too thrilled with all of the loud noises from the horns and sirens but she LOVED her first lollipop. :)

We found Tyson after the parade was over, still sitting in the Gator. :)

Happy Father's Day!

Ryan, you're an amazing father to our sweet babies. 

They love you, they learn from you, they're lucky to have you.  Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all of the fathers in our lives!

Remember these?  Father's Day 2011; Father's Day 2010

Our big three year old!

The night before his birthday, I hung streamers from his door and threw balloons on the floor of his room.

The balloons backfired on me a bit since he woke up just before 5am and brought a balloon into my room :)  Luckily, he went back to sleep easily!

Good morning birthday boy!

I'm THREE!!

His actual birthday fell on a Monday this year and we both had to work so we opened presents later that evening.

I love how he takes the time to read his book before moving on to the next gift.  :)

Lastly, a rare Tyson moment a few days later.  It's not very often that I can catch his sweet face sleeping (without waking him up).

At his 3 year appointment, he weighed 37.2 lbs (95%) and was 39 inches tall (90%).  We have a healthy growing boy!

Happy 3rd Birthday Tyson!

I have never had three years pass by in an instant.  Everyone says it, but it's so true. It feels like yesterday that we were in the hospital waiting for him to arrive.

This sweet little boy has blessed and challenged us in ways we never thought possible.

We are so, so lucky to be your parents.  



It was like we blinked and you grew from a tiny baby to a little boy.

Your ever-emerging personality makes us laugh daily.

Happy Birthday to the sweetest little man I know.  Happy 3 years :)

2011 Year in Review

In January, Tyson worked on his laptop alongside Daddy.

In February, we all had a snow day and I think that's when you decided to stop smiling for the camera.

Mama and Daddy also got to work on Quinn's nursery:

In March, we were too busy to do any blog posts, but work continued on Quinn's nursery and Tyson just kept growing:

In April, we started playing outside with regularity:

Mama put the finishing touches on Quinny's nursery:

May, of course, was a big month around here!  We celebrated Tyson's 2nd birthday:

We also welcomed our baby girl:

In June, we made our first trip to the lake for the summer:

and Quinny turned 1 month old:

We celebrated the 4th of July:

And Tyson moved from his crib to a big boy bed:

In August, we enjoyed the summer at the pool, the lake and the fair:

And Quinn turned 3 months:

In September, Quinn became closely acquainted with Baxter:

And Tyson was a little more interested in his baby sister:

We celebrated Halloween in October:

November was a busy month for us!  We celebrated our 8th Anniversary and Quinn's First Thanksgiving:

In December, enjoyed the holiday season with Sparky the Elf:

It's hard to believe it's almost 2012.  We can't wait to see what the new year has in store for our little family!

Santa!

This year and last year, we visited Santa and Mrs. Claus at the Pendleton Fire Station.  Ryan's Uncle Steve is a volunteer fireman there and he invites us to join their great (and free!) celebration.

A few of Santa's reindeer (or reindeers as Tyson calls them) hang out and wait for Sant to visit all of the little kids:

Hi spooky reindeer eye.

Not just reindeer, we also had cousins!

And more cousins:

Cookies.  Yum.

and more cookies.

A baby sister too!

A little bean bag toss while we're waiting in line...

Finally, a turn to sit on Santa's lap!  Tyson was less than impressed.  He looks a little scared at first, but Morgan and Quinn don't mind at all.

Santa's trying to talk to him and Mr. Sassyface doesn't want anything to do with him:

Quinny's taking in every word.

By now, he's just ready to get the heck out of there!

All in all, he did better than last year.  Look at how teeny Morgan was last Christmas...only 3 months old!

On the way there, asked him what he wanted Santa to bring him for Christmas.  He said "umm, cars."  I asked him what else and his response was, "umm, scissors".  I don't think he got his requests out though.  Maybe next year.