Learning to Ride

So Evan got his first big boy bike for Christmas, but due to the cold winter weather, he really hasn't had an opportunity to try it out. The first opportunity we had, we bundled him up, strapped on his helmet, and took that bike for a spin on the road.

Here are some pictures of Evan's first bike ride:


Safety first! He looked so cute in his little helmet!



Daddy helps Evan learn to pedal.

Evan's Wild West Adventure Show

So Evan has been obsessed with cowboys and their stuff for a while--probably because of his favorite shows Backyardigans and Dora. As a result, Aunt Naomi had to load him up with all the cowboy accessories he could ever want, including guns, and Aunt Jessica and Uncle Paul gave him a cool Melissa & Doug stick horse to ride! Eddie is a big believer that teaching kids to "respect" guns at an early age is very important so that when they are older and may come into contact with the real things, they will not be in a dangerous situation. I have come to agree with his reasoning as I know that the kids who usually do get hurt from firearms are those who do not know what guns are and what they can do. So for now, it all looks like fun and games, but we hope that we are teaching him to "respect" guns too!

Here are some pictures of Evan getting all dressed up in his cute cowboy outfit and putting on a western show for us:


"I'm the Sheriff in this here town. There ain't room in this town for the both of us!"



Ridin' into town on his good ol' trusty steed!



Stick 'em up!



"Don't make me have to shoot you, bandit!"

Celebrating Daddy's Birthday

Chef Evan and his Mommy made Daddy a cake for his birthday this year. Yes, this was Evan's first experience in the kitchen, and he did great! What a chef he will be! All that was missing was a cute chef's hat and apron, but we will definitely have one next time!

Here are some pictures of Chef Evan at work:


Pretending like he's doing a commercial for Duncan Hines! :-)



Stirring is serious business!



The first ingredient is in.



Cheese!



Adding the eggs. He's a pro!



Putting some muscle into it.





The Party


The finished product. Yes, that would be 32 candles on the cake!











Evan, call the fire department! That cake is a real fire hazard! :-)




Evan helps Daddy blow out his candles!




Cheese. "We did it, Mommy!"




Evan samples his work.




Aunt 'Omi joins the fun!




Grandma samples the masterpiece.




Cousin Jason comes to the party!


A Special Visitor


Cousin Toby comes to visit! He misses his Mama, but his Aunt Naomi is taking very good care of him! :-)




Toby on the prowl!




Evan meets cousin Toby and makes friends!

Yes, our kid is a genius!

So potty training is still going exceptionally well. How long does it take before you can officially say your kid is fully potty trained? He has been wearing big boy pants every day for going on two weeks with little to no accidents every day! Today, at school, he even took on the role of potty trainer as he instructed a classmate on the potty training techniques.

When a fellow classmate had an accident in his pants, Evan told him: "You need to pee pee in the potty not in your pants. You need some new ones." Then, he proceeded to open the diaper cabinet, found the kid's name (yes, he reads his name and the other students' in his class correctly, mind you!), and pulled out a pull up for the kid.

I know...he AMAZES us too! :-)

Happy, Happy Birthday, Baby!

I am so glad this beautiful little guy was born 32 years ago:




Yes, this wonderful, handsome, *sexy* man is all mine! Sorry, ladies, but I snagged the best!



Dear Eddie (a/k/a Eddie Pooh a/k/a Super Daddy),

So on this very special day, I just wanted to tell you how much you mean to me! You are truly amazing! Here are a few reasons why I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you:

You are a great kisser.




You are my best friend.



You are my biggest fan.



You gave me this beautiful gift.



You made me a Mommy.



You are the most incredible Daddy in the world. You are even staying home on your birthday to take care of our sick little boy! Thank you so much!



You are so much fun.



You are my heart.



You are my soulmate.



So make a wish and blow out your candles...



I hope all your dreams are already coming true!

Love always and forever,

Your Wife

A Few More Pictures from the Weekend

I saw this little piece of art at Evan's school and just loved it!



Evan has finally found a favorite stuffed friend. He got this puppy from Mommy's school and Mommy actually wanted to keep it put up for him so it wouldn't get messed up, but Daddy let him have it! :-( But it is so sweet how he loves on this puppy and wants it to go everywhere with him. In the car, to school (I do convince him to leave it in the car), in the bathroom to watch him go potty, take a bath, and brush his teeth, and especially to bed. He always wants to make sure his puppy is taken care of!



Mommy gives Evan his first haircut with the new clippers. We actually snapped this picture right after we started while he was still happy. That didn't last long!



Uncle Paul shows Evan and Lanny how to play Wii mini golf! They both liked to just hit the ball as hard as they could and get it in the water!



Christmas/New Year's with Grandma Connie! Mommy, Aunt Jessica & Emma took her out for a girls' day to get her hair cut, go shopping, and have a nice lunch at the Thai restaurant, a favorite for Emma. Emma's old au pair was from Thailand!

Starting the New Year out with a bang!

When I actually make a New Year's Resolution, I don't play around! My one and only New Year's Resolution was to get the boy potty trained before he turns 3! We decided that a long holiday weekend was the best time to start so Evan started wearing big boy undies all day long on New Year's weekend. We bought this great portable potty seat that folds up to make it easy to carry in purse or diaper bag. It is so much easier than trying to hold them over a toilet in a public bathroom! We took it everywhere with us this weekend...the mall, restaurants, Uncle Paul and Aunt Jessica's house, church. I highly recommend these seats! We actually bought one for the house too because it came in Evan's favorite character (Diego) with a matching step stool. Evan wore big boy pants all weekend with no accidents! Yes, we were pretty amazed! I guess he was just ready.

We were nervous about sending Evan to school in big boy underwear because we just didn't know what to expect from him. Would he keep up the progress or would he revert back to his old ways of pee peeing in his pants? We just had to try because we were too far into this process to turn back. So he proudly walked into daycare with his big boy pants on, and I informed his teacher of our progress. She was very excited. All day at work, Mommy thought about her boy and wondered how he was doing. When she finally arrived to pick him up at 6:00 p.m., he was still in the same clothes, and his teacher said he would have been in the same underwear except he made a little "skid mark" in his underwear. Pooping in the potty has been a slightly more difficult task to accomplish, but he is trying very hard! We are now on our second day of wearing our big boy pants to school with no accidents! Yay!

So I just have to post these cute pictures of my boy in his first big boy underpants. I actually met this nice lady in "Buy Buy Baby" that was potty training her twins (a boy and a girl) who were the same age as Evan. She was buying these cute underpants that were slightly thicker in the front to help keep clothes dry in case of accidents. I love them!


Evan was not too thrilled about "modeling" his underpants for the camera. I guess he doesn't want to be an underwear model.



Oops, he's about to go potty! No more pictures!




Evan dressed as a Panther's football player. I added this picture because he was actually holding himself here because he had to go potty! Looks just like a little man. ;-)

Potty Training is easy peasy!

Yes, we are pushing on with the potty training and are going hard core now! Today, Evan wore one pair of big boy underwear all day long. No accidents...until 7:30 tonight when we were at Red Lobster! He decided he wanted to go check out the lobster tank and then after getting over to the tank proclaimed "I'm pee-peeing!" He said the lobster tank made him pee-pee...smart boy! He knows the sound of water makes you have to go! :-)

We plan to keep up this pace and keep Evan in big boy underwear during the daytime. Please pray because we are so ready for him to be fully potty trained! Goodbye, diapers!!!

And can I just say, his little tushy looks so cute in his little under pants! ;-)

Au revoir, Hasta la vista, Arrivederci, 2009!

And in other words, "Goodbye!" You will be missed so dearly! When I think back and read about all the happy memories you gave to me, I feel so blessed! How could so many good things have happened to one person in one year? Amazing! Miraculous!

So how do I end an incredible year on this blog?

Well, I have decided that the most appropriate way to end this year of blogging is with a prayer of thanks and supplication for continued blessings in the coming year! Here goes:

____________________________________________

Dear Lord,

You have blessed our family so much this year with steady jobs (in the midst of economic chaos), a beautiful new house, happy vacations, great health (even in these times of swine flu epidemics), many happy and cherished memories together, and most importantly, Your love and mercy! Thank You with all my heart!

Although we may have had our trials and tribulations this year, I honestly cannot remember much about them! There are just too many good things to remember! Thank You for no regrets!

Tonight as we welcome in the New Year with our precious family, please help us to look forward to the coming year and all the treasures that await us! It is so easy to dwell on the past when the past is so pleasant, but You did not create us to dwell in the past! You created us to move forward each day to accomplish Your will for our lives!

With thankful and grateful hearts, we ask all these things in Your name, Jesus! Amen.
___________________________________________

Here's to a better year than ever! May God bless us all!

Video: Christmas Morning

Video: A special video of Evan waking up on Christmas morning to his Mommy and Daddy singing to him! Then, he heads downstairs and spies all his presents from Santa. He tells us about everything he sees!







Video: Evan gets a "real" dinosaur!