the one from Easter

Lincoln is going through a funk right now. I think the genes he got from his mom are taking over with a vengeance because all he wants to eat is bread. I promise I had a bunch of food on his tray before I took this picture. Anything that isn't bread gets a quick swipe onto the floor. He's slowly breaking out of his bread funk and actually ate some tomatoes and carrots yesterday. It's quite unfortunate he is being so picky during this Easter dinner. He missed out on some of Gma Tina's ribs and sweet potatoes. :)

And guess what was part of Lincoln's Easter basket but not necessarily IN it. 

Papa and Nana Z built his first fort!

I really need to take more pictures to show off their awesome work. His fort came equipped with a little bow & arrow and basket hanging from the entrance....thank goodness for awesome grandparents who go above and beyond to compensate for the parents who didn't even by their own child an Easter basket. :) That's just in their job description of being a grandparent right?

Happy Easter!

our prince turns 1

And here we are, almost a month later...

I've finally found some time to sit and write a post on Lincoln's birthday.....and not just the cliche, "Where does the time go?" and "He's growing up too fast" remarks. I've ran those lines into the ground this past month and even as I'm typing it, I'm thinking, "Seriously, this year has gone by too fast. Please slow down." 

We have a little tradition around here when it comes to birthdays. Ryan was the one who started this tradition actually. Naturally, I didn't love the idea since it started on his birthday, but once I had mine, I was completely on board. The tradition is terribly abused, but hey, it's only once a year. 

Our birthday tradition is as follows: Your birthday celebration isn't just one day, it's the entire week of your birthday!

See why this tradition can get terribly abused? We try and milk it for all we can get by saying

 "......but it's my birthday week!!"

Well, Lincoln had his birthday week alright... and then some. His birthday fell on a Thursday and his birthday party was planned for Saturday. But family got sick and we reschedule his party for the following week, which meant this boy had 9 days of wearing his birthday crown. 

And here we go, pictures over the span of his "birthday week +2 days"

Actual birthday morning.

I was completely stoked to go in there the morning of, video camera in hand, singing happy birthday and cheerfully starting his birthday week celebration. He knew it was a special day alright. He hammed it up for the camera when usually, on any other day, he would have been fussy having to wait any longer than necessary for his breakfast.

Some may think this is bed head, when in fact it's not. That's his hair 24/7. And it's become one of his characteristics I love most about him. 

He suited up for the day in his outfit and crown....

Showing off his teeth....

& smiling for all of mommy's pictures......

......except for this one. 

Maybe because our lunch date with daddy was over. Yes, I'm sure that's what it was. He has a keen sense of when it's time to get back in the car seat and he really dislikes being in his car seat. Almost as much as his dislikes when all the food is gone. Lincoln is weighing just over 23lbs at his one year appointment. 85% for weight, and 95% for height. He's a big boy.

So about that birthday party we were going to have- Well, Papa Z was recovering from being sick, Great Gma had just caught bronchitis, and Uncle Zach was throwing up all night from some food poisoning. Considering we only invited 6 people over and 3 of them were sick, we had to ixnay the par-tay till the following weekend. That just meant more time wearing his crown he loved.  

And the conclusion of his Birthday Week +2 days, we had his party.

We have realized there is a form of true happiness that can only come through being a parent
and we are blessed to be parents of Lincoln. We've rocked with him, sang to him, changed his diaper, fed him, changed his diaper again, stacked blocks with him, re-stacked them after he knocked them down again, read to him, taped pages in the book he tore while we were reading to him, cleaned out the fridge trying to feed his erratic picky appetite, changed his diaper again, bathed him, took him on stroller rides, bike rides, hikes, trips, dressed him, drove him to the doctors, comforted him after shots, hugged him, kissed him, chased after him, gave him piggy-back rides, clapped for him when he rolled over, cheered for him when he started crawling, clapped AND cheered when he started standing, and went full-blown crazy when he started walking.
We do this, happily, because of what Lincoln has given us: he's given us the gift of being HIS parents and all the happiness that comes with it. We love you Lincoln!
At the end of the party, I wanted to get a picture of everyone with Lincoln. Lincoln was everything but cooperative. I can't blame him. He partied hard and it was time for his nap. So even though he wasn't smiling on the outside for these pictures, I'm sure he wanted to on the inside. :)

can i get a refill?

Just a little advice...

The food was good, the entertainment was good, but I advise you not to go during early-bird dinner time unless you want to steal a snow-bird's cane and fight them for a table because, frankly, that's your only option.

We were like vultures trying to get a table, hovering around our prey, breathing down their necks until we were able to swoop in and snatch up a table.

Did I mention the organ is pretty stellar?

Lincoln puckering up for the camera...

I'm sure no one else will find this as hilarious as I do but as I was going through pictures I came across this number. One of those pictures you take when no one is paying attention and you happen to photograph something really funny but don't know it until later on..... yeah, one of those.

Ryan's sister and her family were in town visiting from Rexburg over N.Y.E weekend. I remember one time, when Ryan and I lived in Rexburg, we went over to their house to hang out. Ryan had brought over a Big Gulp soda and left it on their kitchen counter when we walked in. We were hanging out with Lorie in the living room and Ryan went back into the kitchen to grab his soda. Austin, the boy pictured below, was sneakily chugging Ryan's soda and was caught in the act!

Their kids don't get soda very much, so when they do, they consume as much as they can as fast as they can. So when I saw this picture of Ryan giving Austin some soda, Austin's face because he was getting soda, and then Austin's dad watching Ryan give his son soda..... I had to share. Funny stuff. I also like how Grandpa, who is right next to Austin, is smiling as he is watching the whole thing go down.

Oh! And that Ryan's mom is using a disposable camera. People still use those?

We miss you Cannons! Come back and visit!

superstitions

On our last day with the Cannon family, we made a trip out to the Superstition Mountains to do a little hike. 

Technically, I don't think the mountain we hiked was part of the Superstition Mountains...more or less a smaller mountain next to the Superstitions for those who want to enjoy the Superstitions without putting in too much labor. 

But it was the perfect hike

and perfect weather

and perfect company 

and perfect view of the Superstitions. 

I don't know why I love this picture of Lincoln and Ryan so much. 

First thought is "who dresses this boy?"

Second though, "why does he only have one button fastened?"

Doesn't matter. 

Those are just trivial when what really matters is this boy scoring the best view while perched up on daddy's shoulders. 

just testing out the new tripod.

don't mind us, just testing out the new tripod.

our inner-vogue shined through when you have the timer set to take multiple shots.
thanks for the new tripod, little bro.

well Christmas morning ended up being all that I thought it would NOT be. I was stoked for Lincoln to come down and be smiling and giddy and tearing off the wrapping paper..... but then reality kicked in and I remembered he's only 9 months old and he was not, in the least, interested in a toy he couldn't even see because of that dang wrapping paper.

It was still wonderful, of course, because it was still his "First Christmas" and we able to head over to Nana and Papa Z's for the day. He made out like a bandit with some new bath toys, cars, Buzz and Woody, and lots of books. And it was special this year because he was included in our Christmas Eve tradition of new pj's.

I'm pretty sure every picture I got of him that day was that same blank stare. I thought it was because he just woke up....but it lasted all day. I'm sure he was just holding back all the excitement because he was so overwhelmed. :)

Santa was waiting for Lincoln when we got to my parents. I think he was still traumatized from his Santa experience at the mall.

yep, later that afternoon and still sporting the same blank look. I gotta give it to him, he can keep a serious face for quite some time. Merry First Christmas Lincoln! :)  

she's for hire.

This post is to praise my mom and talk about how awesome she is....because she really is. And one of her many many talents is her table settings. Anyone who knows my mom knows how she can find the neatest things at thrift stores. So, whenever we celebrate any holiday with a dinner, the table is always perfectly embellished with her vintage finds. She's proud of her table settings and I'm proud of her and the boys are just happy when we're done taking pictures of it so they can eat. ha. We were taking pictures and decided the red and green Solo cups were a bit distracting so we took them off until dinner time. I'm just excited that one day all her decorations will be passed down to me. :) Shouldn't she start a business?

We had some people over from Peru who didn't speak a lick of English. So when I had a total brain fart and claimed I was 25 but found out I was actually 26... I was extremely happy they couldn't understand everyone correcting me as I sat in complete stupor and shock. I had the excuse that my birthday was only a few months ago and it takes me a solid 6 months to remember my "new" age.

thanksgiving 2014

A Shideler Ranch view + jacuzzi tub + rubber duckies = HAPPY BATH TIME!

I barely took any pictures on my camera. But the few I got was all the proof I needed to show how awesome of a family I married into. Trying to get everyone together for a family photo, and a decent one at that (meaning seeing everyone's face--smiling or not) is always an adventure in itself. There's about 20 more of these photos before we got one "frame-worthy" picture. :) Only downside, we're missing some  family who were in Denver, and Lincoln, who was surprisingly upstairs sleeping through the talent show AND family photo-shoot chaos. He's just too young to expose to that much stress....maybe next year.

I called my parents on Thanksgiving and my mom proudly told me she was making Thanksgiving from scratch!!! Kudos mom! But then my dad said scratch meant opening it from a can. Either way, sounds like mom rocked it this year. :) 

family hike

I'm singing to myself, "It's the most wonderful time of the yearrrrr.........to be in Arizona!"
It's mother nature saying thank-you for putting up with the excessive heat this summer. And the mountains right along our house have been glaring down on us to come hike them. And we did! And we will again! Lincoln fell asleep in his carrier and was out for half of the hike. Must be nice while someone carries you to the top for you to enjoy the view, and then fall asleep on our way down. We're happy to do so, Lincoln. :)