Cake Attempt Number 1...

Here is my first attempt at making a monkey birthday cake for Nico. I think it turned out pretty well. I brought it to playgroup today. I got pretty good reviews! It was delicious and that's all that counts.

VACATION...

David and I just got back from a wonderful (and relaxing) vacation with some of our best friends in the world!!! We, along with Tracy and Jeremy and Bethany and Stephen, took a 6 day cruise last week. It was hard to leave the little man for so long, but it was good for David and I to get away and remember that we are more than just Nico's parents.

On board the Celebrity Century in Miami. Where's my umbrella drink?
Day 2: Southernmost point in Key West, FL.

Our cruise ship docked in Key West.

Formal night. Unfortunately, I got hit with some sea-sickness and couldn't make it through dinner :(

Lindsey and David before dinner.

Moving is Fun...

So for those of you that don't know, we have sold our sweet house. We love this house. She is our first home. We, along with our families, put a lot of sweat, elbow grease and a little blood into making this house a home. This is the place where we came after getting married. This is where we sat many evenings with great friends. This is where we brought our beautiful first-born home from the hospital. This is where he learned to walk. We love this house. Nico is not as sentimental as I am. He is loving the packing process...boxes and stuff EVERYWHERE!!!

Box top on Mattie's bed.
Trying to get the computer. He knows he can stand on his tippy toes and reach just a bit higher.

More boxes.

Why do we even buy toys?!?!

More Toy Box Fun...

I looked up from checking my email the other day and found Nico IN his toy box! Such a little monkey!

Snack Trap...

We bought Nico a snack trap the other day. It's great. It keeps me from having to constantly refill his little tray on his stroller when we're out. It's supposed to keep him from spilling everywhere (it doesn't really do that). I thought it might take a while for him to figure it out, but her pretty much got it right away.

Sitting on Mattie's bed eating some banana flavored puffs.
Ah-ha!

So smart!

Talking Up a Storm...

Nico loves to talk and make sounds. He knows several words. He can say: papa, hat, dog, ball, bye-bye (actually says this when we set the house alarm), bite, ice, duck, quack-quack, drip dry (don't ask). He can make monkey sounds when asked. He points to things that he wants and holds his little hand up to his ear when he sees a phone.

I tried to get a video of him talking and playing with his helicopter, but he wasn't too cooperative :)

Ball, Ball, Ball...

We were bumming around the house the other day and I decided to open up one of Nico's Christmas presents (I've kept some of them put up for days just like this). I opened a little pull-behind helicopter. He had more fun playing with the string and the BALLS that came with it than the actual helicopter.

Showing mommy the ball.
Mattie and Nico

Handsome little man!

More balls :)

Pasta Face...

Nico really likes feeding himself these days. Hard to believe any made it into his mouth, I know, but he is pretty efficient.

More My Gym...

We have been going to My Gym for a couple of weeks now and Nico LOVES it!!! He is really big into balls right now and they have all kinds of balls there: big balls, small balls, bouncy balls and even a ball pit!

Not sure what he's doing here.
Crawling all over the mats.

...and playing with a BALL!!!