Rain, Rain...

If you are from Utah, you know we've been getting a ton of rain this last week. If you're not from Utah: We've been getting a ton of rain this last week! Jack loves rain. So today, instead of being able to go slide on the yellow slide--or as Jack says, "welwo fass!" (yellow fast)--we went into our front yard and played in the puddles!

Our Beautiful Boy

I took a few videos, which I then turned into a movie in iMovie. It's 2 minutes long, but it's worth it--I promise. If you don't want to spend 2 minutes watching the cutest 18 month old in the world jump in puddles and run from thunder, skip to 1 minute, and you'll get the best of the video.

As you can tell, Michael got home from work while we were still outside playing. I wish with all my heart I had kept recording for 10 more seconds because Jack broke into a huge grin and yelled "Dada!" when he recognized Michael. But you'll have to take my word for it.

Michael is a great dad. My favorite thing in this world is watching Michael and Jack play together. As soon as Michael parked the car, he jumped out and started jumping in puddles with Jack. It's adorable--and you can tell Jack was loving it. Enjoy!

Home Improvements

For a while now I have wanted to paint our front and garage doors. A noticed had been taped to them before we bought our house, and when removed, took with them big sqaures of paint. They've always bothered me, but I just thought that it must be a really difficult job and so never went further than a sigh as I passed by.

Then I found this and this on pinterest. Both these tutorials claimed that the job could be super easy, so I decided it was time. We went out and bought paint (same color for the garage, and a super dark brick red for the front door. (If we wanted to change the color drastically we would have had to go through an HOA approval process. No thanks.)

Both jobs really were easy! I did the front door by myself during one of Jack's naps, and Michael and I did the garage door in under an hour--prep included.

Before

After

Oh, and I made this wreath. And I think you can see the color better in this picture.

Before

After

Splash Park

Have we mentioned yet how much we love living in Eagle Mountain? I mean seriously, running trails, great people, and awesome parks. Who could ask for more?

All summer I've been meaning to take Jack to a splash park that is seriously a 10 minutes walk from our house. I've tried only once before yesterday--which happened to be the week the splash pad was closed for Pony Express Days.

It was AWESOME. I'm not just saying that either. It was one of the best splash parks I've ever seen, and Jack had a blast. He was running around laughing and screaming and Michael and I had a fun time chasing him around and watching him. (Next time we'll be sure to dress to be able to get easier.)

Enjoy some pictures and videos!

Jack and Michael's favorite game

Homemade Goldfish Crackers

So yesterday while Jack was taking his morning nap, I was procrastinating laundry, talking to my sister, and browsing pinterest--when I saw this post about making crackers. And for some reason, I was hit with the sudden need to make crackers. It was super easy, and Jack  loves them even more than "real" goldfish.

I made them a little thick I think, but they still turned out AMAZING

Jack enjoying the fruits of my labors

Take Me Out to the... Birthday Party!

For Jack's first birthday, we had a baseball theme. Basically I was searching pinterest for birthday ideas when I saw the invitation idea, and absolutely fell in love. So I took his picture (super easy since he is SO ADORABLE!) and made this:

     We decided that we would just invite family to this little shin-dig, since our house isn't huge and we are blessed to live by so much family! Going along with the baseball theme, we had hot dogs and nachos for dinner. Super simple, another plus of the theme!

     Jack opened presents (with the help of his cousin Charlotte) and had fun playing with balloons (which we gave him earlier that day) and his cousins, and great-grandmas.

Opening presents

Jack and Great-Grandma Clawson

Jack and Great-Grandma Murray

And of course we ate cake!

 

We had a fun time celebrating Jack's first birthday!!

Jack Michael: One Year Old!

That's right, my BABY is one! I know the people (including myself) love throwing around phrases like, "I can't believe it!" and, "where did the time go?" But seriously. A WHOLE YEAR. It has been a whole year. Crazy.

Jack 1 day old

• Jack loves to walk everywhere. He just recently started wanting to get down while we are carrying him. 
• He also just started to walk backwards... I'm not sure if that is a milestone or not, but he will spend 10 minutes just walking backwards a few steps, forwards, then backwards again. 
• He loves hugs--something that I am really happy about.
• His favorite foods are anything italian or mexican. This boy loves flavorful foods. And yogurt.
• He still throws everything, and his favorite toys are balls.
• His favorite book is our animal touch and feel book. If that is our bedtime story, we have to read it three or four times before mom and dad finally say we are done.
• He goes up stairs, but can't figure out how to go down yet...
• He can however get off the couch by himself, and is VERY proud of it. Last night he kept wanting on the couch, only to get off again by himself. Over and over and over. 
• He LOVES music and likes to "dance"
• And just in the last couple of days will proudly poke one of our noses when we ask.

I know his nose is runny... but I love his face!

I'm sure there is more, but I'll stop there. We had a birthday party, but that will be another post.

Oh, and his 1 year stats: 

18 lbs 14oz (4%)

29.75 in (50%)

Monkeys, Seals, and Lynx: Oh My!

Fact: I will never get better at this whole blog thing. Fact: I will still live. Fact: Our lives are still going on, even if I don't record our adventures. Now on to the zoo!

Jack and I went to the zoo with Michael's sister Coleen and her son, Gabriel, who is about 7 months older than Jack.

We had so much fun! Jack was so incredibly small last year while the weather was nice, so we didn't get outside all that much. We've loved the warm weather over the last couple of weeks and have taken lots of walks and have tried to be outside a lot. The weather for our zoo adventure couldn't have been better.

Sitting on the elephant enjoying the sun

Jack's favorite was definitely the seals. He would have sat there forever watching them swim around if I had let him. It made me really excited for the new and improved aquarium opening this month!

Gabe and Jack watching the seal together

In the gorilla house, the gorilla was very cooperative and eating right next to the window. I though, "perfect! I'll put Jack right next to him so he can get a good look!" Bad idea. As soon as I stood Jack next to the glass, the gorilla looked up from his salad and Jack freaked. He was terrified! I'll admit, gorillas sort of freak me out too. It was sad and funny all at the same time.

Jack pretty much loved any animals that were actually moving. It's so fun to see him start to understand the world around him. The most cooperative animals were the seals, lynx, and polar bear. Some of the monkeys were being fun too.

The lynx

We tried the carousel too, but it just wasn't a hit. I think by that time he was ready for a nap though. Other than the animals, it was just fun to be with Cousin Gabe and play outside!

When we first got on he was okay

But couldn't quite figure out what he was suppose to do

And this week is Jack's first birthday! I can't believe it's been a year!