Max's 1st Birthday

My baby is one!  Man, this year has gone by so quickly.  More than any other child, the months just flew by, and I got a little choked up when Shawn and I were talking about this fact.  Max celebrated the day like most of his other days.  Lots of eating, lots of sleeping, and lots of attention! 

 Jack's 1st year birthday cake tear apart set the bar pretty high for all of the rest of our kids.  It is a tough act to follow, but I had high hopes for Max.  He seems to have a sweet tooth and doesn't mind getting a little messy.  But alas, he fell into the Sam-Lyv category of tasting the frosting and deciding that this wasn't worth all the mess.  We gave him a fork to encourage him that the cake was edible, but he just did a typical Max = tore it apart and then (this is my favorite part) throw it piece by messy-sticky piece onto the floor.  

We did get to FaceTime Grandma and Grandpa Summers, and so they joined the cake eating party!  I love technology for this reason.  We gave up getting him to try to eat the cake after this and settled for an awesome bath instead.  This boy LOVES his bath! 

Here are some fun facts about Max:

At age 1 he is not walking, and doesn't seem to have any intention on righting that wrong in the immediate future.

He is a fairly picky eater - not a fan of fruits and veggies, but loves yogurts, cheese, crackers, etc.  So you can imagine how insane this makes me, as I worry about him getting all the nutrients he needs, since he's done nursing.

He weighs 23 lbs. 3 oz; 30 3/4 inches tall, and has a whopper of a head!!  OFF of the charts!!

He sleeps ok - mostly through the nights, with an occasional exception, and naps one long nap after lunch.  My kids didn't ever get the memo that babies are supposed to sleep and want to sleep as much as possible… seriously I'm not that exciting, we're not out adventuring and playing, why don't they sleep???

Max has the sweetest, cuddliest, scrunchiest personality!  I love this.  He always lays his head on my shoulder right before I lay him down, and I can rock him back to sleep, which is something my others never let me do.

He loves to disorganize my organization - his favorite places: the DVD case, the tupperware drawer, the tablecloths cabinet, the dishwasher; the dish soap and the toilet are other favorites!

He doesn't like toys, he loves to be outside.  He has crazy hair and the only way to fix it is a mohawk, since it sticks up anyways.  He makes really funny random faces.

He's a chatter box but doesn't really say words = he can say sounds like: Mama, Dada, hot, uh-oh, and yes.

I am so grateful for the blessing that Max is my life.  When I get pregnant I always wonder what this next child will bring into our family, and as soon as they arrive it is like they were ALWAYS there.  He is such a handsome, happy boy.

Last fun fact -  You know you have a problem when the doctor says, "I don't know what is with your boys and their testicles, but…"- the doctor noticed that one of his testicles felt smaller than the other. Jack has had "issues" and he'll be going in for his 2nd surgery to secure the 2nd little fella in December.  To make sure all was well down there, we had to get an ultra-sound.  It turned out to be fine, and the tech thought that maybe when Max cried they tend to go up.  (He was SCREAMING bloody murder at both exams)…so all is well, my future posterity is still a possibility!  I expect a thank you from my boys and their wives in the future!)

Pretty Spooky

We love Halloween.  Dressing up has become a tradition for Shawn and I as well, and we could not resist taking advantage of "looking" the part this year.  Shawn's been wanting to do a Wayne and Garth costume for a while, but this year my hair is long enough-the right color-and I'm without baby; so Game On!  

 The kids dressed to match taking us to a Galaxy Far Far Away!  It was easy, cheap and fun!  All but Max loved their costume.  Poor guy he last about 15 minutes in his.

 Luke Skywalker

 Darth Vader

 Princess Leah

Master Yoda - a sad Master Yoda!

 Our pumpkins were a neighborhood hit.  Shawn's is always the favorite...can you guess which one is his?


This year the kids hit up only our neighborhood, but came home with sacks overflowing!  They decided (and I'm SOOOO thankful that they did) to cash in their candy for cold hard Cash!  A local dentist donates the candy he collects to the troops and gets cavity free kiddos walking away with a little spending money: so it's a win-win!  They kids totaled $14 = 14 lbs of candy!

 Lyv had the hardest time parting with hers so she ended up with a ziploc bag full of her favorites.  I can't say I blame her.  I was able to pass out candy with Max as my helper, while Shawn took the olders out.  They had an awesome night!  I already can't wait for next Halloween.

Halloween Fun

Is it me or do Halloween festivities last for 2 weeks?  I'm not complaining, but by the time Halloween is over I'm ready for a vacation.  We carved our pumpkins Monday for FHE and the kids all pulled out their own guts this year.  Sam did his own carving completely on his own.  Jack attempted not to cut his fingers off, but he caved in and opted for my help.  Lyv was just happy to have a pumpkin with sharp teeth.  

 This girl LOVES Halloween!  I think the holiday was specifically designed for her.  She was able to dress up 3 different costumes to attend parties and trick or treat!  She made a pretty cute Tinker Bell...but she also insisted on a dinosaur.  Really?  I finally get a girl to dress up in frilly, sparkly things and she opts for a roaring dinosaur!  Oh well.....

 What is Halloween at our house without our traditional sugar cookie decorating?  Not Halloween.  This is the first year that Sam missed out, his own choice, but Jack and Lyv are the ones that truly appreciate frosting cookies.  They eat the frosting off the spoon and dump a truck load of sprinkles on each scrumptious bite!  We even introduced Max to the sugar cookie rush...... He didn't think it was too shabby.  It is a good warm up to his first birthday cake.

 This week got a friendly visit from our neighbors the ducks.  I think the New York ducks passed the word along to their western country cousins, because these ducks came right to the patio to get bread.  It was fun for Max to see them waddling around. He kept pounding on the window saying.. Da,Da, Da!

I can't get away from these awful boobs!

Seriously....this is Jack reading me a book titled, Dinosaur Detective Undercover!  The word was Blob...but he kept on reading it wrong - Boob.  I was totally cracking up because that word still doesn't mean a whole lot to him at this point in time.  Here's what he read:

"This is very alarming! I can't get away from these awful boobs!  Go away! he shouted at the boobs!"

"He began to sit up.  As he sat up he noticed two large boobs moving toward him under the blanket."

"I had a bad dream.  I was being chased by boobs!" When I woke up it was true.  Detective Dinosaur began to sit up, and the boobs moved under his blanket.  Just then Cadet Kitty pounced on the moving boobs."

"Brave Kitty!  Ouch! Get those boobs! Ouch! OUCH!

How do you hold it together at times like these?  Well I couldn't tell you because I was laughing hysterically, and Jack just thought that the story was seriously funny!

My sweet, innocent boy!  If only I keep this attitude during his teenage years!

Grove of the Patriarchs - Mount Rainier National Park

We had the a gorgeous drive up to Mount Rainier National Park today.  The fall colors were out in their full splendor, and it was breath taking!  I commented to Shawn that I'm turning into my mother, because she used to always make comments on how beautiful the scenery was when we were driving, and we would roll our eyes and moan about how it was just a tree!  Now I find that my "maturity" has given me a greater appreciation for God's creations and for the change in seasons.  We've live in several parts of the country and have witnessed several beautiful falls - the one thing that stood out today was the depth and variety that we have here.  The colors ranged from deep green to vibrant yellows and reds.  These colors were found in all kinds of trees both coniferous and deciduous (wow! where did that botany lesson come from?) We were thrilled to see mountains...actual sheer rock jutting out atop the tree line.  It was amazing!

We hiked a short trail to the Grove of the Patriarchs were there are 3 trees that are over 1000 years old!  These trees were HUGE!  My favorite was the cedar - it's colors were gorgeous.  The kids loved the trail and it was the perfect afternoon outing.  Thank your Heavenly Father for such beauty.

My Little Pumpkins

I found the best Halloween decoration idea on Pinterest - easiest, cheapest, and most kid approved decoration yet!  

 Since I was snapping photos, I couldn't resist getting a few shots of the kids - Max and Jack's were my favorites.

 Jack has also taken to photography, and I find 20 random photos of the floor or the rug on the camera everyday.  Here's one shot he took of Lyv and I that actually wasn't too bad....we had to practice a few times, but he's getting there.

1 more month of PURE Baby!

Where has the time gone? Honestly writing this down brings a heaviness to my heart.  My Max is 11 months, only 1 more month of baby left in him.  I'm so sad by this, but I do love this stage.  Max continues to be very sweet and loves to cuddle and snuggle.  He has started to eat better and is drinking milk, so I'll be weaning him soon.  Again another milestone that I'm sad is approaching.  He loves to nurse and will come up to me when he's ready and start to gnaw on my legs, my hands, my face - I think he thinks I'm edible.  A little scary and Hannibal Lectorish!) 

He LOVES being outside and crawls all over the yard in search of dirt and rocks.  He is already down to one nap - why are my kids not into sleeping? But he is so content and happy I don't miss having him down for two.  He is such a good - happy boy.  He'll play with toys in his room for 15-20 on his own, and I love that.  He's found the joy of the splashing in the toilet bowl - GROSS!!  He love it though.....ugh. It is hard to keep both bathroom doors constantly closed and toilet lids all down with 5 people + occasional neighborhood friends around.  

He also continues to terrorize the house, but in a very habitual and predictable manner.  He has key areas that are always his favorites. 

 #1) Tupperware drawer - filled with an array of lids and bowls, so much fun in such a small area.

 #2) The wii and skylander baskets - again a lot for a little effort.

 #3) His newest attraction the marker cup on the easel.  For so long I was able to hide this little beauty from him, but he finally figured it out.

One would ask - why bother cleaning it up and/or why not put it high enough that he can't reach it.  First, I like to know that if he's going to do this, he has "safe" messes to make. Second, I like the small reminders of his presence!  A good reminder that maybe I've been trying to do to many other things when I should take a break and spend it with Max-O. Finally, I have a sneaky suspicion that he's inherited Jack's Where there's a Will, There's A Way mentality and putting them up high would only lead to precarious situations and possible trips to the ER.  I'm not ready for Head Wound Harry, Jr.  At least not yet.