Sic 'Em Bears (Hook 'Em Horns)

One of the perks of Kevin being a coach is the chance to get free tickets to college sporting events--something we definitely don't take advantage of enough. Lucky for us, we live near a certain college where the sports are very good. Saturday, we went to the UT vs Baylor basketball game. There was a great crowd... What's a boy to do when his dad's favorite team in the Big 12 is UT with his second favorite being Baylor...plus, his mom has an undergraduate degree from Baylor and a graduate degree from UT? Well, dress in green and spend half the time in Daddy's burnt orange lap and half the time in Mommy's Baylor Bear lap...

In case you don't follow college basketball, let me tell you, we lucked out, and it was an AWESOME game. The game was pretty close the entire time, with Baylor actually keeping the lead, then at the end when it looked like UT might come back for the win, the game goes into OVERTIME! Ultimately, Baylor won the game with a score of 80-77! Go Bears!!!! It was so exciting to see Baylor pull off the win. Win or lose, though, it was a great family day...

Papa's boy

Jake and I went to visit my parents for a couple days. As always, Jake had a great time and was extra spoiled! He definitely seemed to be a Papa's boy. He reached up for Papa to be held and he cried when Papa left the room (usually something he only does with me). I think he already knows he has Papa wrapped around his little finger and that Papa will do anything for him. One of the special gifts of being a parent for me is the opportunity I have to see Jake's interactions with my parents. It's really a blessing to see how much they love him and how much fun they have being together. Here's Papa's boy with Papa himself playing a horsey game...Grandmama bought Jake this cute little puppy that walks, wags his tail and barks. Jake had a fun time hanging out with his very own pet, Duke the Dachsund...Although Duke the Dachsund was pretty popular, I have to say the pet Jake was most interested in was Ms Kitty. Here's a shot of Ms Kitty all by herself, happy and content...Ms Kitty stays to herself in my parents' room when we come to visit, but Jake insisted he visit her. He really wanted to pet her and play with her, but Ms Kitty didn't seem too interested in all the attention. Jake even got her little ball and threw it for her...

Is that a look of fear in Ms Kitty's eyes?

Jake also decided to try out Ms Kitty's fun toys. Ooohhh, this feels pretty cool, no wonder Ms. Kitty likes this thing...

Fun with family

Kevin's parents were in town this weekend, so we got to have lots of fun time with Nana and Big T. According to the weatherman, it was going to be in the upper 60's on Saturday, so we decided to go to the park. We grabbed lunch and headed there--good thing I brought our jackets! The wind was really strong so it was chillier than expected, but we were still able to enjoy a great afternoon. Here we are with our Golden Chick lunch...
Yum, yum. I love mashed potatoes and cream gravy...

I specifically chose Champion Park because we've never been and I'm always on the outlook for good places to take Jake (especially the free kind!). Although the park didn't have a good playground area, it had a great sand "dinosaur dig" area. Jake definitely enjoyed his time in the sand...

While there, we were able to capture some good family pics. Daddy and me...Our family of 3...Jake and Nana. Isn't his hair awesome? I told you, it was windy...Before we headed out, Jake got an intro lesson to rock skipping...well, maybe just rock throwing in the creek...

The reason...

...I haven't blogged in a while is my camera is broken :-(. I made the mistake of trying to multi-task and take a picture while holding Skylar on the leash while we were on a walk. A tug on the leash from Skylar, and the next thing I know, the camera hit the ground. It did not recover from the fall, and we're deciding now whether to have it repaired, or buy a new one. Until then, I sadly have no new pictures to add. Since the holidays, it's been nice to get back into our "normal life." Some of the latest happenings, in bullet format, are:

*We hosted play group at our house Friday! It was so much fun, and Jake did a wonderful job sharing his toys and his house.

*Wednesday Mom to Mom group is back! I think both Jake and I are equally happy about this. I really enjoy the time with other moms away from the kids, and I think Jake has a great time playing in the nursery.

*We've really enjoyed playing with all the new toys from Christmas and birthday. Jake loves his basketball goal, and now "dribbles." I think his other favs are the blocks and his car ramp.

*Jake just started bringing me toys and books, then sitting in my lap so that we can read/play together. I LOVE this! It's really a wonderful Mommy moment for him to come and sit on my lap.

*Jake got his first REAL hair cut. We have trimmed above his ears and on his neck before, but this time Daddy brought out the clippers! I was a little nervous at first, but am so happy we did it. Jake looks great.

*Jake's been doing so well with table food and gets to try lots of new things especially when we're out. Lately, he's enjoyed Ikea meatballs, Mighty Fine hamburger, Chick-fil-a nuggets, and a Chipotle burrito--all in bite-sized, Jake pieces, of course.

Well, since it will be a little bit before we resolve the camera issue, I'll leave you with a few more pictures from Jake's birthday. Here we are with the cake--a rocket ship, in case you can't tell...

Kevin and I got him a t-ball set. He'll need to grow into a little bit, but we're thinking he be ready to swing away by the time summer hits...Nana and Big T got him this cool rocket ship tent. He wasn't sure about it at first, but all it took was thowing his balls inside to help him muster up the courage to go inside...Papa and Grandmama got him this super cool tricycle. It is made so he will grow into it. Right now, there is a pole so he can be pushed, a seat belt and footrests. Eventually, we can remove those things and he will be able to pedal on his own. He loves it, and you can see the look of pride on his face as he gets on and holds onto the handle bars. We've been able to take it out a couple times already and it's great fun.

THE BIG ONE.

Today is Jake's first birthday. I'm a little tired from a fun filled today, so instead of lots of words, I'll just get to the good stuff--the cake pictures! It's quite a progression as you will see...

Daddy adds his flair to the event in an attempt to emulate Mel Gibson in "Braveheart."

Yeah!!!! Cake!!!!

And finally, this is where we end up after the 1st birthday cake fun. Obviously not quite as fun as eating...