Catch Up - Grayson's first "real" Yellowstone trip

I feel like a broken record (or as kids now days would understand- an ipod on repeat). I am so sorry I haven't updated. I am mostly apologizing to myself, but if anybody else has missed us- I am saying this to you as well.

So, let's start catching up.

In September I decided we needed a weekend away, so we headed over to my sister Joyce's house and took Grayson through Yellowstone park for the first time other than a quick drive through at 2 months old.

He loved it! We loved it! He saw a few animals, but the fires, among other things, had made it so less animals were out. But he did get to see a buffalo.

So excited to be in Yellowstone.

Photographer in training?

After a fun filled day- we came home to find not 1, not 2 but 3 Moose in Joyce's "backyard".

It was a fun weekend. I feel so grateful for this beautiful world Heavenly Father has created for us.

Zoo

It is hard to believe that the summer is winding down. We only have one week left until school starts up. I feel a little overwhelmed with everything going on for us, but excited as well.

For those who do not know, Mike and I struggled to start a family for nearly 8 years before we were told Grayson was on the way. We were thrilled last summer when we found out we were expecting after only 2 rounds of clomid (a pill fertility drug) to help me ovulate. Unfortunately, we ended up losing that pregnancy, and have been going through fertility treatments ever since. This month, we have returned to our fertility specialist to start more aggressive treatment. So I have a lot of appointments, and lots of hormones running through my body.

Mike has been on mandatory "extended scheduling" (overtime) because they are super busy at work. He has been working 60-70 hours a week, and while the paychecks are amazing, it makes for one tired daddy. We are just happy that his schedule starts at 5 am, so he is still home in time for dinner and a little time with Grayson before his bedtime.

Grayson is growing up way to fast. He has amazed me with how much his vocabulary has grown. He comes up with some of the funnest little games as well. He loves to run, dance, and he is super social. He loves animals and we have spent a lot of time at the zoo, making good use of our annual pass. We also are going to take him to the fair (on family day when no smoking is allowed) for him to see all those animals.

Speaking of the zoo, we went today and did the butterfly exhibit, as well as other fun stuff.

Hoping to find some more fun things to do this week before school starts!

MK Nature Centet

More Catch Up

Here are some pictures from my phone! YAY!

Risky Business

Cosmic Bowling

Finally Meeting his Uncle Joey

Mini Golf

Paddle Boats with Mike's niece and nephew

Day at the Beach- well, Sandy Point

Bad Blogging Mommy

UH OH! As Grayson would say!
I guess I am in big trouble. 2 months without a entry. BAD BECCA!!!!!

So, let's play catch up.

Mike:
Took summer classes and had 2 classes that both required weekly essays among other things. He was also working about 50 hours a week.

Me:
I have been doing a lot of crafting. I have a site for these crafts. They are all Disney crafts and posts. www.loveourdisney.com
I have enjoyed getting out and doing things with Grayson this summer. We have made good use of our zoo pass.

Grayson:
Growing like a weed. It is amazing to see how much he is changing. His vocabulary continues to amaze me. He has an amazing sense of humor. He is super social. Very polite, and plays really well with other kids considering he is an only child and doesn't get a lot of play dates.

The Family As A Whole:
We have had Mike's niece down here at the beginning of the summer, and then his niece and nephew down here these last few weeks. We have had a lot of friends who have given us passes to places, coupons, etc to use to go do things with them so it has been a fun filled time.

Mike's cousin, who was the ring bearer at our wedding passed away in July. It was a very sad situation. As a mother, I hope my son never feels that alone and desperate that he feels he needs to leave this world in that manner. The trip up for the memorial was bittersweet. Obviously there is the obvious reason that it was bitter, but it was nice to get to see family. Grayson finally met his Uncle Joey.

I have been bad at taking a lot of pictures, having a decent cell phone camera has made it hard. I am going to try to start posting from my phone to fix that, but until then, here are a few I have taken since I last posted.

I just realized the majority of those are from the zoo trips we have taken. Grayson LOVES the zoo, and will go on and on for days-weeks about how "zoo is fun".
Of course, there were a few others. A day at Settlers Park playing in the water and then a squirt gun fight and a sparkler from the 4th of July.

I have a lot more pictures to share, but they are on my phone. I will download the mobile app and post away!

Look Who Is Two!

I can't believe how fast time flies. Grayson turned 2 on the 20th of May. My little baby is growing up!

"Shake Shake"

So to start- He had his well baby child visit on May 21st. He is 22 lbs even and 30 7/8" long. Perfectly proportioned and a tiny little bottle of energy! He is meeting or exceeding all of his milestones.

This age is challenging- Grayson is the king of tantrums- but so much fun at the same time. He is learning so much stuff. He can count to 10 with a little assistance. Unassisted it goes something like "one, two, five seven, eight, nine, ten". He can tell you his name- and is getting the pronounciation down pretty good. He can answer how old he is and his favorite color. If you ask who his best friend is he will say "Grayson" even though Mike has been trying to get him to say "Daddy"

He is very imaginative and loves to play with things in all different ways. He also loves figuring stuff out. He, unfortunately, has figured out how to unbuckle the harness chest clip on his carseat, can undo infant seats, knows how to tell if a wii remote is on/working (that tiny little blue light), and so much more. He loves figuring things out. Reminds me a lot of his uncle Eric.

He also is quite the ham- like Daddy. He gets comedic timing pretty good for a 2 year old and loves to make people laugh. He loves doing things like wearing our shoes and if you ask his name while he is doing so he will tell you he is the person who's shoes he is wearing.

Grayson knows too many words for me to count and is getting really good at using 2-3 word phrases. He still babbles tons, but like I have said before, he talks a lot more than a lot of kids, so it is expected. He still uses quite a bit of sign language which is nice.

Some funny stories:
Grayson likes to pray. A lot. So when we say the blessing before eating, he will look around, and if somebody is folding their arms "good enough" for him, he will call them out. Quite often "Coo Coo" (Cuckoo- or Mike's mom- another cute story I will tell in a different post) is the culprit. He also likes to yell "amen" at the end of the prayer.

I must get annoyed with Mike a lot in front of Grayson, and use his name when annoyed. Now, if Mike is doing something Grayson doesn't like, and doesn't stop when he says "Daddy" you here "Mike STOP!" or my favorite was one day he said "Mike stop noyying me"

We had a small party for Grayson the night before his birthday. He got some pig food (coins for his piggy bank) and some great educational toys (thank you!!! I was happy not to see more of the same old toys)

I made a cake and decorated it a little. I definitely need more practice.

One of his favorite gifts were some Melissa and Doug puzzles from his Almost-Auntie Brena

And of course, he loved cake!

And after chowing down for a few minutes, he decided we needed to say a prayer- even though we had prayed before dinner (at the party).

I think he enjoyed the cake.

I can't believe my little guy is two already! Time is flying by so fast.