our little climber

A few weeks ago I bought a little tykes climber off craigs list and Brent picked it up after work. Colin couldnt wait for us to put it together and started climbing on it right from the start. Its so cute to see him run out to it first thing and start playing on it. He loves to climb up the slide and also slide down backwards (we're going to have to teach him the correct playground safety rules one day) Colin also likes to pick the peppers from grandpa's garden and then run over to his playground, crawl under it and eat his veggies!

our beautiful family

A rare picture with all three of us looking right at the camera. And Colin is even smiling a little!

chocolate and trash cans

Colin's Aunt Mary has been getting ready to go off to college which means Colin has gotten to play with some pretty cool stuff. Mary has been storing her things in the living room as they are bought/packed up. His favorite thing to play with was her trash can. At first it was great to throw his toys in but then he figured if toys had that much fun it in - why not try it himself. The good thing about having all mary's things in the living room is that they are blocking Colin from the candy dish that grandma and grandpa keep stocked just for Colin. Luckily he hasn't figured out how to climb the mountain of things to get to the chocolate.

beach bum

A few weeks ago I took Colin to the beach and then met Brent and our friend Mike for dinner. Colin loved the sand and when I wasn't looking he kept trying to get his sandy hand in my mouth. Sand is not so fun and is sticky and gross when you eat it. Colin loved watching the kids dig for crabs and would go up to them and try to take their toys when they weren't looking. (we have since bought Colin his own set of sand toys) Colin's favorite part of the day was the little spout on the boardwalk where you wash your feet off. He loved playing in the water and thought it was great watching everyone get sand off them. Afterwards we were sitting on a bench watching the people walk by when a policeman on a bike stopped by. Colin was eating his goldfish crackers and immediately put the bag behind his back (I guess so the policeman wouldnt take them) but the policeman asked if Colin was hiding dope in his diaper! I wasn't sure if that was a joke or not but I don't think we look like the kind of people who would do that. And really who jokes about that? I thought Va beach was a family friendly place. At least he didn't look in Colin's diaper and Colin didnt have to share his goldfish!

Mommy May I?

So Colin has become attached to the neighbors dogs. They have two Shih Tzu's who have recently become parents. All the puppies have been sold but 2 and they are SO CUTE! We have come to love these puppies and they also love Colin. Colin visits them at least 12 times a day. The minute we go outside he's over to see the dogs. He goes over to the fence and tries to grab them. At first it was poking out their eyes (which we had to stop), but then it was petting them and hoping they would lick his hands! He now sticks his feet between the fence so they can tickle his toes. Once they start licking him, he laughs and laughs. And of course goes back for more! The whole doggie family comes running when they see Colin and he has fun running back and forth and seeing them follow him. On Sunday we walked outside and to Colin's delight the puppies had gotten out! He had fun running around with them until we put the dogs back in their yard. It was so cute seeing them jump up to kiss him. And then to Colins joy he discovered the hole where they were escaping through so he would go and stand in front of the hole, slap his hands to his stomach and they would come out and play. Unfortunately we told the owners and they quickly fixed the hole. But Colin still goes over there and tries to get them to come out and cries when they dont. Petting them through the fence isnt as good as having them jump all over them. Every day we talk about buying one of them, but then realize how much they cost. Pure bred these puppies are expensive. I'm hoping the owners give one to us since we've rescued them from the dangers of cars several times! We hope to get a dog one day soon though. If you would like to contribute to Colins doggie fund he would be eternally grateful.

Fierce Face

You know the saying "When you have kids I hope you get one just like you".... well Colin is turning into his mother already. Colin and I make the same "fierce" face as my parents call it. Colin makes this face all the time now - only he's not so fierce when he does it. He's down right adorable! Lets hope he picks up all the other great qualities of his mother.

So smart!

Colin can play Connect Four and loves it! Now the rules are a little different since he is only 13 months old but that hand eye coordination is amazing!

A few weeks ago we decided to take Colin to the local swimming pool. He has loved his swimming class and we thought he would enjoy this pool just as much. As you can see in the picture they have a kids mini water park too. And that was the problem. We didnt think that in Colin's swim class there were only babies who were held and maybe splashed a little bit here and there. Plus the water was heated and it was generally calm and quiet with music playing in the background. Flash forward to the public pool where its noisy and kids are running and splashing everywhere. Plus this kids area has all these sprinkler type things where water is going everywhere. A little scary for our little boy.

We met some friends at the pool who have a 10 month old and their baby was swimming around and loved it. Colin clung to us for dear life in the beginning and eventually warmed up to it. Until we put him down the slide and since then we can't get him to take a bath. We made progress a few nights ago when he sat down in the bath for a few minutes. Hopefully our next trip to the pool will be less scary and he'll enjoy it.

Ball

Besides saying mama, dada, and dog Colin has learned a new word - BALL. We were walking in the store the other day and passed the bin with all the bouncy balls and he pointed and clearly said ball. He was so proud of himself I had to buy him one and he told everyone in the store that it was a "ball." He LOVES balls and likes to pick one up out of the bin outside, take a few steps and throw it off the deck. Then he goes back and gets another ball and continues until all the balls are in the yard. Its funny because some of the balls are as big as he is! Today he was making unusual noises in his crib as he was suppossedly taking a nap and when I peaked in on him he was straining to get a little ball that was on his bookshelf. He kept repeating ball as he tried to make his arm longer. Apparently the grunting was suppossed to make him able to reach it. I couldn't resist and went in and gave him the ball. He is now napping with one of his balls.

Growing up

Yes, its true. Kids grow up. I mean, we all have right? Well, maybe physically, but we all love the days when we were kids. Abigail and I are loving the fact that we get to act like kids again. Lets see..... we've taught Colin how to give "rasberries," we have built forts with him, we play hide and seek, and we took him to the pool for the first time! The water was too cold for him, but it didn't stop us from giving it a try.

The funniest part was that we went to buy him new swimmers (they are diapers designed for swimming for those of you who don't know), and later figured out they were pink with Dora all over them! So I have been embarrassed for him, but its a good thing he has swim trunks on over top or we would be getting some funny looks.

Another thing Colin loves to do is "water the plants" with his daddy and use a shovel. We went out and bought him a kids shovel, so he likes to follow his dad outside and help. Problem is, all he likes to do is pick and pull on the plants!

Day in the yard

So the weather has gotten warm, and we've been living most of our days outside. Our deck is by far our favorite part of the house as we eat dinner out there nightly. It always allows Colin to have some time to walk/waddle around in the yard and have some fun learning things. The last couple days he has been learning what a hose is, and how water "sometimes" comes out of it. Little does he know that we control it! At times he tries to drink out of it, and others he tries to water the plants like his dad. Today he was wearing jeans, and as he became annoyed he tried to "wiggle" out of them. Well, as you can see in this picture he succeeded!

the birthday cake

This was Colins chance to eat sugar (real sugar and not the "cookies" mommy pretends to give him) We were so excited to see Colin smear cake all over himself. he was very tired from all the excitement of the day.. His aunts and uncle were home and we not only played at the playground all afternoon but there were DOGS! (colins favorite) Angela and James brought their dog AJ while Angela's mom Debbie brought her dog Lizzie. All that excitement made it hard at first to get into the whole cake eating but Colin figured it out and loved it.

Colin is 1 year old!

So Colin is now a year old. We can hardly believe it, but it just gets better every day. He makes us laugh more than ever now as his personality is really coming out. He is such a little helper and likes to give things to us to carry for him. He also likes to pass us the telephone to tell us we have a "call" to answer!

He has been crawling for months now, and is just about ready to walk on his own. He walks pretty well and takes about as many steps as we can convince him to take. Most of the time he walks us around grabbing our hands and taking us somewhere. It ends with us picking him up and taking him where WE want him to go!

Here he is at the playground on his birthday stylin with his "birthday mohawk!" His aunts came down the stairs with big smiles on their faces followed by Colin not having a clue. I think it will toughen him up a bit, you know, make kids think twice about messing with him! The mohawk lasted only a day, but I think his self confidence has remained high.

uh - oh

Catch me if you can

happy easter

Our little model

America's next "top model" is here. All we have to do is work on his smile for the camera. Here is Colin posing on a brand new red camero with titanium blue rims. He has been rated one of the "top upcoming" child models for the 2007 class.

The "Enforcer"

Colin likes to do what most boys do. Play in the dirt and TEAR things apart. Here is a picture of him ripping up one of daddy's plants. Of course I become the "enforcer" as Abigail loves to let him do his thing and play around and get dirty. The other day she had one of her girls over, and I was setting up the grill. I look over, and there is Colin sitting on the ground with his hand in this green pot you see digging in the dirt. Abigail just laughs as her and Kaitlin just watch him pick up handfuls of dirt and put it back in the pot. As i'm talking to them they take their eyes off of Colin for ONE second, and next thing I know he's got DIRT all over his face, and in his mouth!!!!!! Abigail finally got him to spit it out, but she kept laughing. I know Colin might have thought it was an oreo dessert or something, but by the look on his face, I'm pretty sure it didn't taste like it. The poor thing tried to get the dirt out of his mouth with his dirty hand and couldnt understand why more dirt kept getting in his mouth. He hasn't tried to eat dirt since. I know Colin will get into many things we don't want him to, but with it getting warmer outside, it seems that number of things is rising! And he is fast! It only took a second for him to stop playing in the dirt and PULL on my plant.

Becoming a daddy's boy

He's not quite a year old year (turns 11 months old in 2 days), but Colin is starting to become a "little man." I was gone for about 8 days on a trip to Chicago and it was the LONGEST 8 days away from my family I have ever experienced. Okay, it was only the second time I have been away from Abigail for a week in our marriage, but first being away from Colin for more than one day. The trip was absolutely amazing and eye opening, but as the days wore on, I found myself looking at the three pictures I had of Colin quite often. I have so much respect for people in the military who are forced to leave their family for prolonged periods of time. I don't know how they do it.

So when I finally saw Colin, I think I must have squeezed the snot out of him. I have heard kids sometimes forget their parents early on (well, dads anyways!) when they are not around for a while, but I think Colin knew right away dad was back! Being a dad is the most amazing thing ever. Abigail and I joke about have 5+ kids because we enjoy it so much. Reality probablly won't allow that though... and the fact that we need sleep one of these days!

Nap time at our house

Today I think Colin learned the art of getting out of a nap... or at least attempting to get out of a nap. Around nap time I took him into his room, sat in the rocking chair and started singing him some songs (which we do every time) He started to get sleepy and likes to put his hand in my face as he is drifting off to sleep. Well this time he managed to stick his hand in my mouth as I'm singing and apparently it tickled. He started to giggle which made me laugh (big mistake) and thus the nap time was pushed aside as Colin, now wide eyed and ready to play, wanted to be tickled again and tried to stick his hand in my mouth over and over. I stopped singing to him and just tried to rock him to calm him down and hopefully make him sleepy again. Our little boy is smart and tried to pry my mouth open with his finger. When that didn't work he eventually stopped and started rubbing his eyes. Nap time take 2.... this time he decided to stick his pacifier in MY mouth and actually got it in the first time - which was just as funny as his hand being tickled - maybe even funnier to him. At this point I just stick him in his crib for a few minutes hoping he'll tire himself out. I left to take a load of laundry to the basement and as I'm coming up the stairs I hear our ceiling light shaking that is directly under his room. Colin is now standing up and jumping up and down in his crib and shaking it so hard I'm afraid he'll hurt himself. He thought it was extremely fun and much better than a nap. As I'm getting him down for the 4th or 5th time (I've lost track by now) he all of a sudden starts clapping. FOR THE FIRST TIME! And how do you not praise something you've been trying to teach him for a while. I praise him and then start our nap time routine all over again but Colin is so proud of himself he keeps clapping - with a huge grin on his face. And he is really cute doing it - it was all I could do not to smile at him. He eventually fell asleep after and hour and a half and is now sleeping peacefully and will hopefully do it for a long time. I need a nap after all that. Lets hope this is a one time event and doesn't happen tomorrow during nap times.

Let's Go Swimming

We have been taking a baby swim class through the university and Colin is quite the swimmer. Well... he really just loves to chew on the balls but he LOVES the pool. Now when we go he likes to stand at the glass fence surrounding the pool and excitedly slap his hand on the glass until its time for us to get in the pool. His mommy is hoping he becomes a good swimmer! He must drink a gallon of pool water each week (by choice-he lunges his mouth towards the water so he can drink it) and doesnt like getting his head wet. We have yet to put his face under water. He likes it when Brent goes under the water and blows bubbles. We learn sign language each week but Colin is more interested in getting in the water. Last time we learned the sign for wait but I don't think Colin will attempt to learn that one any time soon. He loves the froggy float toy and likes to lounge back and relax when we put him in it, at the same time tries to monopolize all the balls and collect them all as we pass them. His motto is if one tastes good the rest must be even better! He goes more for the green balls than any other and loves this big green beach ball - its a challenge for him because he can't get his arms around it and it always gets away from him. That doesn't stop him from trying. Its been great to get to know other parents and kids Colins age. And you never get too old to play in the pool! I think we get more excited about going than Colin.

Driving along in my automobile...

One day last fall I went running, passed a yard sale and came home with this amazing find - a jeep for Colin! It has been in our basement all winter and Colin recently discovered it when he was helping me do laundry a few weeks ago. He really just wanted to chew on the car but last week the weather finally got warm and we brought it up on our deck and Colin rode around in it. He wasn't too sure about it and just wanted to get out, crawl around and put berries in his mouth. He's a fast one and I caught him slipping them in his mouth just in time. The walker toy (we're not really sure what its called) that's in the background is Colins favorite thing. He crawls over to it, stands up and walks with it back and forth. He has learned to redirect it and go all over the place - and can even dodge people and toys! He is so proud of himself and every time wears a huge smile on his face. We're so proud of our little boy!

one last snowfall!

Yesterday we got 8 inches of snow - hopefully the last we will see this year. Colin didnt make this snowman but his parents sure had fun making it. Colin wasn't sure what to make of the snowman and after a few minutes outside he did a faceplant into the snow and wanted to go back inside.

Weekend at the farm

We spent a weekend at the farm a few weeks ago to celebrate my birthday. Its funny how with our students I feel old but with the other moms in our playgroup I feel so young - I wonder if you ever really feel your age... But we had a great weekend at the farm with lots of family. Colin loved the warm weather and being outside everyday. Unfortunately its been so cold here that he hasn't been able to play outside since. (there are 8 inches of snow on the ground right now - spring please come soon)

I wanna be just like Daddy!

Colin loves being where we are and doing whatever we are doing. Here he is "getting ready" with Daddy one morning. It might not look like it but he is getting more hair. Its really cute because a few strands will stick up... good thing Daddy fixed that in this picture!

Back in Action!

Yes, it has been almost a month now since our last post. Our computer had a hard drive crash, so we were relying on Best Buy and their SLOW service. Of course a ton has happend since our last post as Colin is now 10 months old. Pulling himself up has been the norm, but lately he's been moving around tables, and moving on walls. This one picture shows one of his favorite things to do. Get into the fridge and pull himself up. As he goes up, all the food goes down! He pulls everything and anything he gets his hands on. Not many casualties, but a galloon of milk did pop open! It was rescued after loosing half of its container.

Another thing he has enjoyed doing is giving high and low fives! He is a team player let me tell you. We love how much he smiles and laughs with us. He also has his little basketball hoop mastered. Of course I am super proud as a father. I joke with people that he is dunking already. Okay, so its only about two feet tall, but he's developing quickly. haha

our little handyman

This past weekend I got out the measuring tape to measure as I tried to rearrange our furniture once again to make things more childproof. Brent picked up the measuring tape and started showing it to Colin who thought it was a game - see how fast you can grab the end before it winds back up. Who needs toys when Daddy's tools are this much fun!

Colin the Rhino!

We have had tons of fun with Colin lately. His personality comes out more every day. One of our favorite things that he has started doing is his "Rhino" impersonation! As most of you know, his crawling speed is at "maximum velocity" so we chase him around the house all the time on our knees (makes it a little more fun as we would probablly catch him pretty quick otherwise!). Lately, as we chase after him, he turns around and starts crawling the opposite direction giggling the whole way. Well, as he's moving as fast as he can, he tends to lower his head occasionally trying to use it as a battling ram or something. I guess you have to see it for yourselves, but to us it is absolutely hilarious. We think he thinks that if he lowers his head, it will help him pick up speed or something! ha

He also now has "almost" 5 teeth! As you see in this picture, he definitely has four, but his fifth one is coming in on the bottom. I was amazed Abigail got this shot, but he's showing off the few pearly whites that he does have! What a stinkin cutie.