Tag Archives: august

22 Memories From My 22nd Month Since Going Dad

Only two more monthly memories posts after this one until I take a different approach. Much like the memories, I’ll never stop sharing, but we only have a finite amount of time each day, and an increasing number of memories will take more than I’m willing to use. Plus, it’s better spent making new memories with my family.

Our little flower is blossoming more and more, and just like I’ve probably said in the past several all of these posts, growing so fast and doing so much! Well, like I said, there’s only a finite amount of time, so I’ll get to it.

1. Right after we got back from our Colorado family vacation, Mommy had to go on a business trip and was gone for almost a week. This was the longest time we spent apart, and we missed her dearly.

2. In order to get our Mommy/Wifey fix, we utilized Skype each night. It was always late, but I’d sit on the kitchen floor with you as video-chatted together. Of course, you’d hardly sit still, but you did give kisses to Mommy through the phone.

3. Before school was back in session, we made use of the playground at the elementary school nearby. You climbed up the equipment and went down the slide non-stop for the first time and obviously had a blast.

4. Then, as school started and everyone was posting pics of their kids’ first day, we rubbed it in that it was just another fun day together at our house.

5. While Mommy was still away, I brought you over to our friend’s house to try out their trampoline. As active as you’ve become, I thought you’d easily get right to jumping, but it turned out that you must be afraid of being above ground.

Yeah, I'm fine right here, thank you.
Yeah, I’m fine right here, thank you.

6. At least you had fun playing catch with their dog. I think he enjoyed it too!

Throwing ball to Arkus

 

7. I captured my favorite picture of you to date and had it printed and framed using Pictli. Now we have it right above the sink to enjoy each day.

my sunday photo, #MySundayPhoto, toddlers, parenting

 

8. Mowing with you had always been tedious as I didn’t feel safe having you outside as I cut the grass, but with Mommy gone, I decided to give it a try. Turned out to be no problem!

9. Keeping with the “firsts” trend, we walked around our .4 mile loop together in our Soft Star Shoes. That was the most you walked at once and you did great!

10. You wouldn’t keep anything in your crib for the longest time, but this month you finally gave in and accepted the company of your My Happy Pillow bear. Yay progress!

11. Something that has yet to change, is your crazy demon stare into the monitor as you resist sleep.

12. Since you did so well on the school playground equipment, I thought I’d bring you to another playground to climb up and slide on. Instead, your fear of heights came out and you wouldn’t even allow me to go through the obstacles with you. Regression!

13. One of our neighbors was giving away their playhouse and swing set with a slide, and thanks to Mommy for seeing the post, we got it! Only problem was, our slightly sloped backyard made it hard to find a good spot to put it. Until then, we just used the slide by itself where I would lift it with you at the top and Mommy caught you at the bottom.

14. It used to be that we had to read a book out loud during dinner while simultaneously feeding you, but now you enjoy reading the books yourself. And you eat much better too!

15. After going back and forth, we finally settled on a good spot for your playhouse. Now that it’s together, Mommy and I wind up pushing you on the swing and helping you down the slide every day. Sometimes you even try to swing by yourself!

DSC_2692

16. We knew it was coming, and this was the month it happened, you started saying “No” to us. Let this mark the beginning of the backtalk. I hear it ends right around after college….

17. With all of the outside playing, we think you were bit around the diaper lining area which seemed like nothing major at first, but turned into a staph infection. We spent our Labor Day at the ER having it drained and cleaned. Thankfully you’re all better now, but that means all 3 of us have had a bout of MRSA this year. I think Mommy’s love helped your recovery a lot!

Mommy's Comfort in Hospital

18. Randomly, I took your diaper off at an attempt to start potty training you with a method I read about. Several pee puddles later, that was the last attempt for now. We’ll try again once you’re 2 years old. 🙂

19. Feeling confident that you were ready to attempt the trampoline again, I brought you to the Urban Air Trampoline Park. You started off timid, but with the help of the bigger kids, you finally warmed up!

20. Every time we try to comfort you after a little fall, because you’re upset, or something big like staph, we always say “It’s okay.” by habit. Well, you picked up on it and now you say it all the time. When you’re really frustrated or scared, you’ll say itsokay really fast with a strained voice. It’s funny, sad, and, well, funny again.

21. Mommy taught you how to be even more adorable (how is that possible?) by putting your hands to your cheeks. Cuteness galore!

hands-to-cheeks

22. And finally, one of the best animal noises you’ve done up to this point is the bear/lion sound. You make the best (and cutest) roar ever!

Time can be a real jerk for never slowing down, so it’s up to us parents to make the most of our time together. Getting hugs from Avery is the best feeling in the world, unless, that is, it’s getting hugs from Avery and my wife. We have a family hug almost every day that I wouldn’t trade for anything else.

Now I’m off to make more memories, see you back here in another month!

What is your kid currently doing or recently done that you absolutely love/hate? Please share, I’d love to hear!

Roller Coaster Recap: August

Hey guys, welcome to Monday! Or should it be Muuunnnnddaaaaaayyy? Whatever your feelings towards the beginning of the week, it’s the last day of August and boy has it been a wild ride!

Much like a roller coaster (hence the post title), we’ve had plenty of highs and lows in August. Inspired by Tina from Carrots N Cake (she has a handsome 15 month old boy and talks everything from food and fitness), who I’ve been following since the days of my healthy food blog, Just Add Cayenne, I thought I’d do a recap of August by sharing our highs and lows of the month.

I just need to make sure, like her, we end on a high note! Lets get to it, shall we?

High – Meeting with my mom and little brother for a wonderful brunch at Brewed.

Low – Avery getting the weightlifting belt wrapped around her trike and herself and becoming a little frustrated.

DSC_1788

High – Figuring out how to get unstuck on the trike and keep the belt “on”.

DSC_1773

High – Avery’s first time to fly as we went to Colorado our first family vacation!

First Flight Family Selfie

Low – The major change in routine coupled with lack of food and sleep made for a crazy first night. We support co-sleeping, but not under these conditions.

Avery Sleeping with Mommy_2

High – An anniversary surprise for my wife at the Vail Farmers’ Market that almost went Awry, but turned out perfectly!

807A3072

Low – Eating at Sweet Basil in Vail and all of us receiving very poor service. We had to resort to feeding Avery a watermelon and red onion salad that we made!

Avery eating watermelon onion salad

High – Nana and Papa obviously have good taste by keeping several jars of NuttZo in stock. Avery may or may not of finished one jar by herself while we were there. Thanks, Steve and Kathy!

High (literally and figuratively since we were in the mountains!) – Hiking with my wife on beautiful Colorado trails.

DSC_1944

Low – Climbing a tree on the trail and sliding on the trunk to get down. Lots of belly and leg scratches followed.

DSC_1936

HighKayaking  with Kelley in Frisco, Co.

 

High – I could make a whole post with the Highs from our trip, but I’ll wrap it up and say it was just great spending time with family and getting out in the fresh mountain air.

DSC_2073

Low – The flight back from our family vacation was right during Avery’s bedtime. That, plus another day of not eating much or napping meant for a long….long trip home.

High – Our official 8th wedding anniversary with my awesome bronze compass, handwritten card, and kettlebell gifts! Good-bye, 7 year itch!

DSC_2265

Low – Going Mom and to go away for work all week leaving Avery and Daddy feeling quite lonely. We had to take selfies to try and keep happy.

Avery & Daddy Sunset Selfie

High – Avery’s first time to ride in the cart when grocery shopping was a big hit. Since Mommy wasn’t there, she picked the BarkThins for her when she got back.

Low – Not telling Daddy she pooped when obviously…..

High – Climbing on the playground equipment and going down the slide all by herself. It’s bittersweet, but so fun to watch.

Low – I brought her to our friend’s/neighbor’s house to jump on the trampoline, but she was scared to move. Hopefully she’ll do better next time.

DSC_2419

High – Playing with our friend’s dog.

DSC_2443

High – Mommy came back home and all order was restored! Avery was obviously happy.

Avery in blanket

Hope you enjoyed going through some of the highs and lows of our August. Now it’s your turn, share a High, Low, and High point from your month if you’d like in the comments section below. Have a great week!

6 Throwback Thursday Posts from August 2014

Is Throwback Thursday bittersweet for any other parents out there? Bitter, because so many things happen so fast and your baby (even if they’re a teen, they’re still your baby, right?) is growing up. Sweet, because so many proud moments have happened and well, it’s also great that your kid is growing. Not to mention we’re getting older too! Bleh!

Looking back a year ago, we were still holding Avery and rocking her to sleep for naptime and at night, but now that’s a thing of the past. Going Mom has been successful a few times, but I have had no such luck. But that’s what memories are for, right? And since parenting seems to zap our memories sometimes, that’s where the internet (blogging/social media) lends a hand.

Let us now travel back a year to see what I was blogging about in August of 2014. Here are 6 of my favorite posts…

  1. My Wife Wins Again, Our Baby Throws Food, and More Banana Fun Facts #5 – She always wins, and other dads even agreed with this one thing when you have a house of girls. Avery has changed a lot, but she still throws her food every now and then.

    Goodbye, broccoli!!
    Goodbye, broccoli!!
  2. Uh Oh, Our Baby’s First Cold! – We waived her coughs off as no big deal, but then it happened….sickness! Luckily, it ended with this…DSC_1265
  3. Learning to Walk: Is It Wrong to Place Bets On Your Baby? – The funny thing is, I would’ve totally lost all bets since she didn’t start walking until around 3 months later!

    Walker in training.
    Walker in training.
  4. How My Daughter Is Saving My Life – Stress, it had built up for years before Avery, and although having kids is no walk in the park (unless, that is, you’re walking with them in the park), it’s a different kind of stress. I write about that here.

    Daughter vs Dishes....hmm, easy choice!!
    Daughter vs Dishes….hmm, easy choice!!
  5. Free Food And Booze Plus A Flat Tire: Our 7th Wedding Anniversary Recap – How could I not relive this experience as we celebrating moving beyond the itchy phase of marriage?RC and Kelley_Night Out_Splash Pad
  6. Having A Daughter: Learning to Conquer The Fear of Fatherhood – I proudly got this published on The Huffington Post, and hold the words near and dear to my dad heart.DSC_1903

August was a big month last year and it turned out to be a big month this year as well. Maybe I’ll share some of the posts again when August 2016 rolls around. No rush though! Year hear that, time? Easy does it now….

Hope everyone’s week is going well. Going Mom comes back home tomorrow!!! Yay!!!!