Call The Zoo...A Monkey's Loose!

Happy Halloween!

I was so excited about Halloween this year. I had sweet visions of this first true trick-or-treating experience; Evan would run (more like a waddle in the monkey costume!) from house to house, hold out his little treat bag and smile with glee when it was filled with yummy goodies...

...My expectations may have been too high!

We started the evening at my neighbor's house where we joined all the other kids in the neighborhood for some fun and pizza before leaving for trick-or-treating. Evan had a great time running all around the yard in his costume (which, surprisingly, he didn't bother with too much!) and playing with the other kiddos.

We decided to walk to just a few houses for the "experience" and then call it a night. We loaded Evan into the stroller and away we went. I think it was at about house number two that I realized this was not the experience of my aforementioned visions. Evan just sat in his stroller wondering, I'm sure, why we were taking a walk in the dark, while I walked up to the house holding out his bag and saying "trick-or-treat" for candy. Knowing Evan wouldn't be eating any candy, it felt a little odd to be trick-or-treating for him! At that point we decided to return home to give out candy to all the other little ghosts and goblins.

So, even though Evan was obviously (to everyone but me!) too young to really understand or enjoy Halloween we had a great time dressing him up and watching him play with his little friends. I can't wait for next year when he really will enjoy the night!

It's All In The Genes!

With any new baby comes the age-old question, "Who does he look like?" and Evan has been no exception. On any given day you can talk to someone in my family who says he looks so much like me and someone on Scott's side who says he looks exactly like Scott. We've even had people tell us he looks like both grandfathers and remote cousins!

I must admit, when Evan was born I thought he definitely looked just like his daddy. For the most part, I still do. There are those moments, though, when Evan makes a face or looks at me in a particular way and I see myself - as scary as that is!

So, I thought it would be cute to post baby pictures of Scott and me as well as one of Evan and let you be the judge!

My initial reaction to seeing these pictures right next to each other...holy cow, the resemblance to his Daddy is undeniable! Look at those mouths and smiles!

But, I do think he has my head shape (more narrow than wide) and nose. I'm still deciding on the eyes; it's too close to call!

I'm a Big Boy Now!

Sunday we reached another major milestone with our monkey - his first hair cut. It was a success in the sense that his hair is cut but I'm quite sure he wouldn't consider it his most enjoyable experience!

We decided to brave it and go to the mall before nap time rather than after, hoping to beat the crowds and not compound Evan's as-of-late afternoon crankiness. So we get to Cartoon Cuts just before it opened at 11 am. There was already a line! The first woman in line had THREE kids getting hair cuts. I think at the point I have three kid's hair to cut I would learn to do it myself! (but don't worry - it'll NEVER happen that I have THREE!!!)

So, we sign Evan in and stroll around the mall for a bit, figuring this is going to take a while. Surprisingly (and thankfully!) they called for us at 11:20. I fully expected that Evan would sit calmly in a booster while the woman cut his hair. That's laughable now! I was instructed to sit with him, we were both covered, and she started going to town with the scissors. These people definitely know how to work fast. The scream-fest began at the first cut. While I did manage to console him with Cheerios and a book, most of the time Evan screamed and cried. What felt like an eternity in that chair was maybe 7-10 minutes and he was done. One look at him and I almost cried myself; he looked more like a boy and less a baby. All I had left of his little baby curls were snips in an envelope. How time flies...

Before he realized what was going on...

Feeling pretty confident!

I HATE THIS!




I think I was singing to him...nothing worked!

The end result...big boy!

Zoo Much Fun!

When my friend, Lisa, asked about getting the kiddos together last Friday my first thought was to hang out at the indoor playground at the mall. What Lisa suggested was far more exciting - the local petting zoo!

What a hit! Evan had a great time running up to all the animals to pet them. I thought he might be at least slightly apprehensive - not so much! Inside the petting zoo was a smaller area where there were chickens, ducks, rabbits, and some miniature goats. Being a bit on the germ-o-phobic side, this area made me increasingly anxious; Evan pet the tail of a goat who had just - ahem - relieved himself, tried to climb into the chicken coop, and picked up straw from the ground (but luckily never put it to his mouth!). I resisted the urge to hold him the entire time and instead let him do what he wanted - and then scrubbed his little hands with antibacterial wipes when we were done!

We ended the afternoon with lunch and playing at McDonald's before returning home for some great napping!

Evan petting the goats!

...and the sheep!

Emily and Evan taking in the ducks!

Petting the goat's tail...

Only 6 weeks apart - so cute!

Definitely 100% BOY!!

It's My Birthday and I Won't Eat Cake If I Don't Want To!

We celebrated Evan's big first birthday with a small party at the house. We had seven of his closest friends over for lunch and cake (and, in the end, a water gun battle!) My parents were also able to make it to Maryland for the big event even though it was touchy for a while with Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Here are some pictures from the day...

Birthday Boy!
He wanted absolutely nothing to do with his cake...he ate a little at dinner but that was it. I suppose he doesn't have mommy's sweet tooth!

Evan at Birth and at One Year!
It's so hard to believe just one year ago he was a seven pound little peanut!

I was lucky enough to find monkey party supplies just a couple of weeks before the party. On the table we had one monkey holding a bowl of blue and yellow M&M's and another monkey holding a bowl of gummy bananas...

The Monkey Cake!
An exact copy of the invitation...the bakery did a great job (and it was yummy, too)!

Playing with Friends

Josh is just behind Evan, Micah is to the right, Mason is in the ball cap and Emily is at the bottom left...so many great little friends!

Opening Gifts
Evan is eyeing the Target gift receipt, which he eventually pulled off and began to eat!




I LOVE Ms. Debbie!
He definitely lights up when he sees Ms. Debbie...

In all everyone seemed to have a good time; Mission First Birthday successfully completed!

Eggs-tremely Lucky - Kind Of!

Evan had his first allergy testing today; it actually went much better than I expected.

Let me back up. This all started about two weeks ago when Debbie called me, somewhat alarmed (which made me panic immediately since she's usually pretty cool and calm), and explained that Evan was having an allergic reaction and I should come get him immediately. I was FREAKED! I raced over and was panicked myself when I saw him. Both eyes were almost completely swollen shut and he had large red welts all over his body. We went to the emergency room where he was given epinephrine, benadryl and a steroid. That was that; they couldn't say what he was allergic to but within a couple of hours he was much better. After about three days on benadryl and steroids he was back to his normal self.

The very next day I had him seen by a pediatric allergist. His initial thoughts after talking to me were that Evan has a milk allergy (we've never been able to get rid of the eczema he's had since birth and things seemed worse when I started him on whole milk just a few weeks before). Without knowing for sure, I stopped cow's milk and began rice milk. To me, things seemed much better. The rashy legs and feet seemed clearer than ever. So, imagine my surprise this morning when we learned Evan is allergic to eggs! I immediately felt a combination of lucky (thank goodness it was only eggs!) and overwhelmed (aren't eggs in EVERYTHING?) Milk seemed to have no effect. As I write this I am completely confused; Evan has had eggs in the past and did not seem to have a reaction yet seems much better after being taken off dairy, which he's supposedly not allergic to! We follow up in three months and until then, it's an egg-free diet for the little man.

Here is a picture from the night of the ER visit.

USAFA Class of 98 Reunion Weekend!

Well, we're back from our much-anticipated trip to Colorado Springs, CO for Scott's 10 year college class reunion!

We were lucky enough to have my parents come to Maryland for Evan's birthday (that'll be my next post!) and my mom then stayed to babysit so that Scott and I could enjoy a baby-free weekend in CO. I knew it would be hard to leave Evan but, man, it was REALLY hard! Luckily he was still sleeping when we left Thursday morning or I'm sure I would not have made it out the door. Evan and Granny seemed to do great; he stayed on schedule and Granny got the idea very quickly that you have to keep him busy!

We arrived in Colorado Springs in the early afternoon on Thursday and headed straight to our friend's, the Bebos, house. They moved to the area from San Antonio just a couple of months ago. While we see John quite often since he travels to our area for work, we had not seen Belinda and the kids for 2 1/2 years! It was nice to see the kiddos, the new house and dog, and to play ROCK BAND! I never knew how good a singer I really was (HA!).

Our friends, John and Belinda

On Friday we brought the Bebos along with us to the Academy for a tour. We walked around the grounds for hours checking out Scott's old dorm room, watching the cadets eat lunch (4000 cadets are served at the same time in about 30 minutes!), and shopping at the visitor's center. This was our first chance to see some old friends. It was as much a reunion for me; Scott and I started dating just before his junior year so I got to know a number of his friends during my many visits. Here are some pictures of the Academy....

The Academy Honor Code

"We will not lie, steal or cheat nor tolerate

among us anyone who does."

The Academy Chapel

An Actual Cadet's Room

Cadets Eating Lunch

Friday night was the class dinner at the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame and was really the first chance to see everyone in the same place at the same time. Scott ran into tons of old friends! There was also a great slideshow of pictures class members had submitted from their time at the Academy. After dinner we headed to the Marriott for an after party which was another great chance for Scott to catch up with old friends.

When I tell you this group of people is super-smart and have exciting careers, I am not kidding! From fighter pilots to computer geeks (I say that lovingly since I'm married to one!) working for Microsoft to surgeons, this isthe smartest bunch of go-getters I've ever known. True story; we're at dinner and I start talking to one of Scott's closest friends who I have also met many times over the years. I know she is working somewhere in DC but have forgotten what Scott told me about her. So I ask, "Are you at the Pentagon?" "No", she says, "I work at the White House." She's very cool about it - not at all trying to brag. I press on with more questions and learn that in her role (White House Aide, maybe? I forget the title.) she talks to the PRESIDENT on a weekly basis. Huh?? And many other heads of state; she told a story about Tony Blair telling her he just prefers to be called Tony! As you can tell, I was completely blown away; still am!

Saturday brought the Air Force/Utah football game. We started the day with a drive to the Garden of the Gods and then tailgating with friends before the 2pm game. In the end the Falcons lost but it was great time. We headed to dinner with our good friends, Beth and Tom before calling it a night and preparing for the long trip home. Some pictures from the day...

Garden of the Gods

Falcon Stadium


Cadets march onto the field in groups of 40 squadrons...


...then rush to their seats after the National Anthem!


Tailgating after the game...98 Dominates!!


Scott and Kevin


Beth and Tom Paynter