Feliz Cumpleanos!

Yep- it's true, this guy turned 26 yesterday! Hard to believe, huh? :)

I think his mother should get a present on his birthday every year, because Trav was the "unwanted" fourth child in five years! Haha. Poor Paula had her hands full! And boy am I thankful she endured! Now this goof ball is ALL MINE! :)

So UB doesn't recognize Cinco de Mayo as a holiday.... so poor Trav had to take a final on his special day. :( Besides that, he got to eat donuts for breakfast, open some fun presents, go shopping, eat imatation Cafe Rio for dinner, and have friends over for cake and ice cream!

We went shopping as a fam, and Collin had a great time blowing bubbles while we shopped! This is his latest pastime.

Trav dodged a picture for a while, then finally allowed one.

Ok. I thought this was cool! At Aeropostale, the glass doors on the changing rooms are clear until the worker puts their key in and then it changes so you can't see through anymore. The stall on the left is empty, so you can see the bench, but the one Trav is in, is fogged up! Perhaps you've already seen this, but we never shop anymore, so it was new to me!

Here he is opening his new Badmitton set. Yeah, he's all about Badmitton lately..... I don't know. He also got a soccer ball and baseball tickets.

Hopefully you can tell that this is supposed to be a tooth.... I thought it worked out pretty good, which was shocking, because ideas like that NEVER work out when I try them!

Jacob and Katie got him a nerf gun. He was more than thrilled.

And here is Collin the next morning, still pooped from the previous days activites. :)

OK, so now this story HAS to be shared. If you've ever seen the episode of The Office, when it's Michael's birthday, you'll appreciate this. Late last night, Trav texted my sister Marcie this- "Hey, Happy Birthday Marcie". You see, Michael did this because no one remembered his birthday.... so he would call someone and wish them a Happy Birthday. They would say, "it's not my birthday." And then he would say, "oh, I thought we had the same birthday." After a long pause, they would grumble, "Happy Birthday Michael." Haha. Ok, so Trav sends the text, and Marcie texts back, "Huh? It's Cinco de Mayo.... I'm not Mexican!!" bahahaha. You gotta love Marcie. It didn't even click. My two sisters battle for the dumb blonde award constantly and it's hilarious! I love em' to death! I join in occasionally :) Just ask me about my peanut butter story.... yeah, it's a doozy!

Ok, now I just have to share a few tidbits about my Travy...

1- He is quite the neat person. What I mean by "neat" is... I NEVER have to pick up clothes he's left on the floor. He squeezes the toothpaste tube from the bottom. His shirts are categorized by color. He hates when junk is left in the car. His "toiletries" all have their specific place on the shelf. He always wipes the toilet seat off after he's used it!! I like to joke that since I grew up cleaning the nasty toilet used by my four little brothers, I was blessed with a super clean husband! But best of all, he never complains when I happen to drop some clothes on the floor, squeeze the toothpaste out the middle, or leave some trash in the car. What a sweetie! :)

2- He likes to go shopping. Now I'm not saying that he begs me to go to the mall or even gets excited when I ask him to accompany me inside Forever 21, BUT he also never complains about it either! And he likes getting new clothes even though he hates spending the money.

3- He's a sucker for Drumsticks (the icecream kind), hamburgers, Toblerones, bacon, French Onion Sun Chips, Cafe Rio sweet pork burritos, Pepsi, and roast beef sandwiches. He doesn't so much like mushrooms, tomato soup, ranch, pie (what the... ?!) or fresh tomatoes.

4- He is GREAT with kids. Kids just seem to gravitate to him and he can always get them to laugh. He's a natural with them.

5- He read ALL the Harry Potter books in less than a month.

6- In high school, he favored the sports with the least amount of clothing, i.e. diving and wrestling. He actually got a new speedo for this birthday too! :)

6- He is the perfect man for me and is quite the romantic too. He actually likes talking with me! I hear this is rare for a guy, but we could talk for hours and frequently do :) For our first Christmas he made me the sweetest book he titled "The Bad Day Book". It was full of pictures of him making funny faces with little quotes of reasons why he loves me. It was for me to look at when I was having a bad day to cheer me up. For my 24th birthday I told him I didn't want any presents, I just wanted to have a fun day.... so he managed to find someone to take us flying and we even got to fly a little ourselves, then I got to go shopping, have dinner at my favorite restaurant then laugh the night away at a comedy club. It was my favorite birthday ever.

As Melissa likes to say... I think I won the hubby lottery too! :) I don't know how I got so dang lucky!

Ho Hum

So when you upload the pictures you've taken for the week and they total 47.... 46 of those being of your baby, and one of the spit up running down your back and puddling on your pants, you know you're a mother.

We actually did do a few fun things last week, but for some reason I only think to grab my camera when Collin is smiling. The slightly manic one taken below was right after we spent two and a half hours in the sun at UB north campus last Saturday. Trav helped put on a social for the YSSA. Sadly, I don't even know what that stands for, but it's the new club that recognizes the Mormon religion on campus. I got a mad sunburn favoring one side of my body and I think Collin must have gotten a bit dilusional from all the fresh air :) It was a busy day filled with a baby shower in the morning, the social in the afternoon, grocery shopping, and then a drive out to Genesse College to see a fashion show. We have some friends that manage the Buckle store at the mall and they invited us since some of their clothes were being modeled. To make a long story short, we rush to get ready, rush to pick up the Shaws, rush to grab dinner, rush to get to the college (getting lost first, of course) and by the time we get there, we are 15 min. late and Collin is screaming to be fed. I nurse him in the hall and make it to the fashion show to see the last ten or so minutes. Sigh.

So I went to Target yesterday to look for some shorts for Collin to wear over his onsies since the weather is getting so warm. I bought these denim shorts in "newborn" size. You don't get any smaller than that without going to "preemie" size and I didn't see any of those. I was all excited to go home and put them on him. They didn't fit. Even a little.

I just thought this face was hilarious. Like he's getting ready to fight ya for making fun of him in his oversized pants. Haha.

His latest talents include getting his hands to his mouth then trying to insert his whole fist. He sucks and slobbers as long as he can. I think I've got a future thumb sucker on my hands! He will also lay on this monkey thing I bought that has an arch above him with dangling toys and try to bat at them. It's amazing how simple things like that keep him busy.

Well I have these pics thanks to Rach's blog! Last Friday we went on a picnic and enjoyed the B E Utiful weather! I think I look kinda silly in this pic, like I'm struttin a pose. I was just leaning close to Collin so we fit in the picture.

Here's Rach... posin' with the picnic basket :)

Hooray for Spring! I have been trying to get outside with Collin everyday. I've attempted to go jogging but I don't have a jogging stroller and the front two wheels wig out when I get on rough ground. It violently shakes the whole stroller and Collin's eyes get as big as saucers and his lips purse together. Last time, it kept doing that, so I tried jogging with the stroller on two wheels. I'm sure the neighbors were puzzled.

Oh What a Week!

Well this week was full of surprises- good and bad. On Monday I got a call from one of my best friends from AZ (currently living in Pittsburg where her husband is in dental school) saying she was planning a last minute trip to Buffalo! Hooray! She drove in Tuesday evening with her two kids and stayed until Thursday afternoon. On Wednesday we visited the American side of Niagra Falls...

Collin's first visit to the Falls. (Mom forgot the stroller, so Trav got to lug him around for a couple of hours- oops!)

Then we HAD to take Jess to eat some wings at Duffs. We thought Collin might like a taste of a wing, guess not. KIDDING!! Such a cute family pic, I know. It's the sleepy eye, pitching a fit, sleep deprived combo :)

Well then Thursday brought bad news. Trav's dad had a heart attack early in the morning and so Trav caught a 2:15pm flight home. After I dropped him off at the airport, I had my own little heart attack wondering how I was supposed to wrangle my cute little ball of fiestiness all by myself! Luckily, word spread pretty quick and I had so many friends call to invite me to dinner, offer to help, and express their concern for Trav's dad and our situation. Thank you SO MUCH! Thursday night, the Shaw's brought over a pizza and Rach kept me company on my first night alone. On Friday we had a "play date" at Melissa's house, full of crazy kids and yummy food. Here's a pic of Kandis holding my little guy when she suddenly discovered something wasn't quite right.... His little newborn diaper had slipped off his tiny behind and before I knew it he was "plumin' it!" He has a miniscule tush, just like his dad :)

Then Friday night, Tiff and Creed were kind enough to invite me to dinner. We attempted to make sushi and it turned out delicious! It had been too long since I'd had a Las Vegas Roll!

On Saturday I braved the grocery store and the mall. Of course I drove all the way there and parked when I realized I'd forgotten the darn stroller again!! So my arms got a work out. In the afternoon Collin and I went outside to soak up some rays, but didn't last too long as the wind was determined to blow us away. Saturday night brought games and laughing at the Goodes. Always a good time.

Then on Sunday I decided to take him to church, just for sacrament meeting. I wouldn't call it a success. I spent most of the time in the hall trying to pacify him. At least I got to take the sacrament! Then in the afternoon I listened to him cry while I tried to make food to exchange for food group that night. Poor guy has the hardest time taking naps during the day. I'll admit I was feeling pretty strung out when this happened....

I had just finished cooking the chicken and slicing it on the cutting board, when I went to make one last cut and pushed a little too hard. I didn't realized the board was half way off the counter and in a split second, most of the chicken fell to the ground. Curse words. Luckily, a drawer was open and it caught a good portion of the chicken. Don't worry, my drawers are lined and clean!! But if anyone in food group wants to throw out my casserole, I understand! I wouldn't normally have used it but my poor baby was blue in the face from crying, and I was about to join him. Sunday night, the Gardners invited me over for a Korean dinner (my dad would've loved it). I told Trav, next time we are running low on food, he should just go out of town and I'll be set :) Monday was uneventful, since it rained all day and we stayed indoors. Trav's flight got in at 10pm and thus ended my five days of single parenthood. It will be nice to forget about the Mace I have ready to use in the night stand and to sleep with the lights off in the house. I will say that extreme fatigue probably helped me to not be so alert to house creaks and noises. But I'll just pretend I'm getting braver. My mom told me to use her trick- sleep with a Book of Mormon on your chest with your arms crossed over it. :) My poor mom spent MANY a night alone in a bad neighborhood, while my dad was out of town. I almost tried it, but when I reached down for the book, I realized it was downstairs and I was not about to go down and retrieve it. For those who are wondering, Trav's dad is improving with each day. He's still in intensive care, but his chest tube is out and things are looking better. We have been so blessed, I'm so grateful for so many wonderful friends who looked after me while Trav was gone. ThAnK YoU!

One Month Old!

Here's my sweetie pie! I can't believe it's already been a month. But I guess that's how I'll feel at every milestone he reaches until.... well, forever! I love the tongue he's got going on in this pic.

Such a sweet smile. We like to think he's responding to us with his smiles, but who knows. To be honest, he smiles more at his dad. Don't know what that's all about. I think when he sees me he just wants nummies.

Here he is all stretched out on the table for his one month check up today. The serenity only lasted about two seconds until the doctor got that cold stethoscope on his chest! (By the way, I LOVE Kenmore Pediatrics! Thank you to everyone that suggested it! Even after I pulled out my big ol' list of questions, the doctor was so nice!) So here are his stats: he gained almost a pound since his last visit and is now up to 8lbs 4oz which is 25th percentile. He still measured 21 inches (she said it's hard to be accurate on length) and that is 50th percentile. And now for the head...ready for this...90th percentile!! We've got our own little bobble head. :) Guess you gotta give me props for birthing it, right?! :)

So, kind of random, but I remember my pediatrician's office having a big fish tank just like this! Must be somethin' about kids and fish, I don't know.

Ok, so here's the run down on what Collin's been up to this month!
He had his first bath at about two and half weeks. It took that long for his cord to fall off. He didn't like it at first, but once we got his arms under the water and a warm washcloth on his tummy, he loved it. This kid does NOT like to be cold in the slightest. I think that's why he hates getting his diaper changed so much. We have to keep the space heater on him when changing it.

I think he's a bit indignant that we're taking pictures of him bathing. It's ok kid, we made sure you were modest! :)

"Peace, dudes"

This was his first time out to dinner. I kept him bundled up and covered so no one would touch him. Am I a paranoid mother?

So sleeping rituals have been interesting. He sleeps pretty good at night, going a four hour stretch, then three hours, then two. If Trav doesn't have to go to an early class then he'll take him around 7 or 8 and give me an hour to sleep in. He doesn't love to nap during the day though. Well, I take that back, he'll nap tons if I'm holding him, but he won't go down for a nap on his own. Sigh. Thus, I have learned to do many things one handed. That, or I just don't get much done. More of the latter goes on until Trav gets home and takes him so I can clean, exercise, etc. How do single parents do it??!!

Ok, so Collin makes some pretty funny faces sometimes. Here's a few I've caught on camera....

He's mastered the "scowl". I wish I knew what he was thinking sometimes! Possibly, "Ok, enough with the pictures!"

I LOVE this face. When he gets mad, he stretches out his neck and lets out a wail then pouts that lip out like a champ. I seriously look forward to it. Such the drama king!

"Yes, can I help you". All milk drunk and sleepy. Poor guy has a bad case of baby acne that shows up in this picture but this is the face I sometimes get right after he's eaten. Check out that milk mustache!

"OMG! "

"Cheese!"

Blue Steel!

Ok, before you go calling Child Protective Services, let me explain! Yes, we duct tape our child. You see, he sleeps well when he's swaddled, but he's a wiggler, and can pop out of a swaddle quicker than you can say "sleep deprived!" I read in a book, that a small piece of tape can solve that problem, and it did! I guess when my mom was visiting, he was being really fussy, so Trav took him and swaddled him tight, and as he was handing him back to my mom, Collin, popped an arm up, and busted out of the swaddle, almost like he was saying "Ta Da!" Little Mister Houdini.

See, he likes it!

Down side is, you will find little pieces of tape all around our house, and sometimes there are casualties

.

So, yes, the first month has been fun, exhausting, adventurous, stressful, happy, sad... you get the picture. He's such a good eater and loves his "pacer". He also loves to be held. My mom said that I was quite the snuggler as a baby. I would snuggle until I was sweaty, so I must have passed those genes on! He makes us laugh with his loud and long "toots". Always filling his diaper right after a clean one was put on. Of course. He has "fire hosed" himself in the face while I'm changing his diaper, four times. Trav finally witnessed it yesterday and couldn't even help me clean him up, he was laughing so hard. Which reminds me, while Trav was at church yesterday, I was feeding Collin, when he suddenly pulled away from me, hunched over and spewed milk out of his mouth and NOSE! I swear my heart stopped beating. It was such a scary experience for me, but when I told Trav the story, he started laughing! That is, until he realized I didn't think it was so funny. He's not insensitive, he just knows when to be truly worried, while I have heart attacks over sneezes. Not really, but you know what I mean. :)

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Easter Fun

We decided to have some friends over to enjoy Easter with us. Here are the Shaw's entertaining most of the kids in the group!

We had a yummy ham and potato dinner then decorated eggs to compete against each other in a contest. Trav's family has done this for a few years, and I was the reigning champion! You pair off and roll your egg at the other person's egg so that they collide. Only one egg will crack. Don't know why, but it's true, every time. So if your egg doesn't crack, you go on to the next round.

Trav got a good action shot of my turn. Unfortunately my luck didn't last this year, and I lost to Creed in the first round! :(

Trav beat Megan, but then lost in the next round.

Dave was the winner! He was hilarious. Before he rolled his egg in each round, he made sure that the "bomb" he drew on his egg was facing the front. I guess his strategy worked! He took home the ceramic egg "trophy" for the year.

Next game was ChUbBy BuNnY! Now, this is a game my mother always told me not to play (along with Red Rover)... why you ask? Because you will choke and die! (Dying was a common consequence my mother warned me of for many activities she didn't want us to participate in) Well, apparently she wasn't too far off. Apparently there have been two documented deaths due to playing Chubby Bunny. Luckily, we didn't add a third. Here is Trav with about 9 mallows in. Collin can't believe his father's talent!

Creed and Doug were hanging in there with about 11 marshmallows apiece, but Doug was the final winner with about 13 I think. Yes, he has a HUGE mouth! :)

Then we finished off the night with some dessert and (check out the fancy cake Rachel made).....

.... visiting. I just thought it was funny that Bron and Trav decided to pop a squat on the floor. What a fun Easter- let's do it again next year!

You Have GOT To Be Kidding Me!!

This was the look on Collin's face last night when he saw the evil white stuff!

Maybe I should be feeling sentimental that yesterday Collin saw snow for the first time, but I'm too busy being mortified! Please indulge me while I whine. Things had been going so well! We had some days when it got to 60 degrees! I thought we were in the clear- and then it came. Spring, shmring. It's still winter here in Buffalo New York! And my mom told me that my brothers are already SWIMMING back home in AZ! Woe is me and my white, tannless skin! :(

Admittedly, the grass looked kinda cool. I'm not sure how this happened... but it looked like a thousand icicles on the ground.

And this is the view from our front door this morning. Sigh. Aren't you glad you didn't visit this week mom?! :)