Baby Beaver

I remember the first day Andrew tried to gnaw on the back of one of my parents chairs. My mom said that this was normal and that babies do this to break in new teeth. I thought she was outright NUTS!!! And then, Andrew proved that Grandma was right! Ahhh shucks!

Yes, I am aware that they have guards for the railings of the crib to avoid these unsightly marks but of course, by the time I found some that actually fit Andrew's crib, Andrew had already managed to do this:

Who me?? I didn't do anything!

Don't let that cute little tooshie distract you from the beaver marks on the crib!

Look at those chompers!

Thus, the reason he has earned the name: Baby Beaver

Mommy's Lil Firecracker

Andrew's first 4th of July was quite the busy one! We made several stops in our day and ended it with by far the best fireworks experience I have ever been apart of! Sadly, as always, Daddy was at work and wasn't able to share Andrew's first 4th of July festivities with us.

Our day started with a trip to see some of Andrew's buddies at a pool party/BBQ at Travis and Courtney's! It was so great to see everyone and see all of their little munchkins. I say little but of course, they are all swimming, running, and talking machines. It seems like just yesterday this crew was hanging out and enjoying fun in the sun with cocktails...kid-free! My, my, my how times have changed! With half a dozen children running around, I think it is safe to say that we have become grown-ups (or at least fulfilling grown up responsibilities!).

We didn't get to stay for long as we headed over to our next stop for dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house! Grandma had bought Andrew an extra special outfit for the day that she absolutely had to see. With American flags printed on the shorts and red, white, and blue all over the shirt, Andrew was showing his Patriotic pride!

After, we headed over to our final stop of the day! We were invited to watch the City of Temecula's firework show from the Fire Station over looking the park. Andrew enjoyed meeting all of the Barnett ladies and saying hello to Baby Barnett #4. Erin was due on Friday so we were excited to see her! They kept this baby's gender a surprise and I am certain the whole Barnett family was surprised when they broke the girl trend and welcomed a healthy baby boy! Andrew is so excited to have a new buddy!! Congrats again to the Barnett family!

The firework spectacular was about to start! We took our seats (which mind you, were all of 300 feet away from the firework launching spot!) We were literally right underneath the fireworks. I was leery of letting Andrew watch the fireworks because I wasn't sure on how he would react. Based on his fascination for lights, I thought he would love them! However, the booms were what concerned me. So you can imagine my surprise when he ripped off the headphones and preferred my hands over his ears and sat in fascination. The fascination obviously grew to be overwhelming because imagine this...the kid fell ASLEEP!!! Who falls asleep during a fireworks show?? This one apparently! The whole crew couldn't believe it!
The fireworks were breath taking! Especially the finale, which seriously exploded right above us. It was like an IMAX panoramic display of colors and shapes. I was moved to tears it was so beautiful! Truly, this is the only way to see fireworks! I have been spoiled by this experience and I regret to say that I don't think anything will ever compare! Thank you to the Palmer Family for the invitation!

Andrew's first 4th of July was very eventful and I look forward to watching my little man enjoy many more fireworks shows to come...assuming he doesn't sleep through them! :)

Happy 4th of July from my little Firecracker!

Chuck E Cheese

The childhood memories of the fun had at Chuck E. Cheese while growing up seem vague. I can't remember the last time I was at Chuck E. Cheese's. So you can imagine the excitement Kyle and I Andrew had when we were invited to William's 2nd Birthday Bash at our old childhood hot spot! Clearly, you can tell who was more excited to visit the mouse! Andrew had no idea what he was in for! Daddy even drove straight from work to come check out the fun and reminisce in his childhood days!!
Andrew seemed overwhelmed by the all the fun and games. It is certainly not like either Kyle or I remembered. The ball houses are gone (apparently there were several lawsuits involving child suffocation...where have I been to have missed this??) To a kid, this place is still over the top fun but there is something to be said about not wanting to grow up. The magic certainly becomes a thing of the past. However, the look on my son's face throughout the entire extravaganza and seeing the magic form for him, made it all worthwhile. It was at that moment that both Kyle and I realized that our role is to make the memories happen for Andrew so that he can experience the magic as we did! But don't think for a second that we are going to stop being kids at heart! It might be a different jingle but "I don't want to grow up, I'm a Toys-R-Us kid!"

Thank you Katie and William for allowing our little family to be apart of your special day!