Sunflowers!

The Saturday evening after we'd returned from Jamaica, we threw the kids in the car and went on a hunt for some sunflowers.  Actually, we were headed directly to a friend's house that lives out in the country - she had said we could borrow the sunflowers in her backyard for pictures anytime.  But, when we got there (unannounced), we realized they were having a party in their backyard (where the sunflowers are!).  Obviously we didn't want to interrupt so we turned around to leave.  But then Katie Wynn spotted the cutest double adirondack swing so we had to do some quick swinging before getting the heck outta dodge!

Isn't this swing just the cutest thing you've ever seen?  I seriously want one.  Who wants to help build me one?  (Dad?)

I still haven't actually told my friend that we were at her house and borrowed her swing.  I guess I should probably do that sometime. 

I had already promised Katie Wynn that we'd see some really big yellow flowers, so we set out to find ourselves a different field of sunflowers.  I knew there were some close because my mother-in-law had seen them when they were in town.  We passed one field that looked like it was almost dead, before driving up on a perfect field of the big yellow flowers.

And the first one out of the car and into the flowers was this dude.

Katie Wynn wasted no time finding a broken sunflower that she could carry around with her.  For the whole photoshoot.

I just love how they were planted in evenly spaced rows.  :)

This picture totally cracks me up.  Doesn't it look like she's popping her neck like she's going off on somebody?  

Right across the gravel road from the field of sunflowers was a rusty barn-shed-thing.  We used it as a backdrop for a few pictures.  Some of the cutest ones are on Matt's phone, though!

No pictures of Thomas in front of the barn-shed-thing because he was way more interested in the gravel road.  Of course.

Follow the sun, sunflowers.

Here's a bee, just doing its thing.

Katie Wynn went back into the field...

...and then we lost her.

If she wanted to switch to a different row to walk down, she would look at the sunflowers and then say, "Hey Mama, you open this door for me?" meaning, could I hold the sunflower stems to the side so she could walk through.  

Anywhere she goes, he goes too.

"Hey, wook Mama!  I found a wittle bitty one!"

Did I mention that this photshoot took place on July 11th?  And that it was, like, a thousand degrees outside?  Yea, we were pretty sweaty.

It was a hot and fun adventure.  To be honest, I wish we could do it again, but I'm guessing the sunflowers are all gone now.  (Right?)  I'd like to have a redo and go right after dinner instead of right before.  I think that would make happier kids and be better lighting.  Oh well, next year, I guess!

UPDATE:  Here are a couple bonus sunflower pics from the phone.  :)

A Day at the Zoo

I guess it's fitting to talk about Thomas's first trip to the zoo right after posting the pics from his petting zoo party.  In reality, the two events were three weeks apart.  But for blog purposes, we'll jump right to it!

We had one Saturday were the weather cooled off just a hair and so we jumped at the opportunity to take the kids to the zoo.  It was Thomas's first trip ever, but it was Katie Wynn's first trip where she actually realized there were animals there!  The timing was actually great because she was STILL talking about all the "amimals" from Thomas's party, so she was so excited to get to see them again.

Katie Wynn did an excellent job of watching the animals through the lookout fences for a few minutes and then would exclaim, "Let's go see MORE amimals!"

We wandered into the sea lion area right before a show was about to start, so it seemed like the perfect spot to sit down to rest and eat the snacks we had packed.

I was probably the most into the sea lion show.  They were so fun to watch!  There were two that were performing tricks for us.  One was the average sea lion weight - 200-300 pounds but the other one was close to 800 pounds.  He was ENORMOUS!

We took the wagon to the zoo instead of the strollers and it worked out perfectly.  It was so great for holding the kids plus all of our stuff, and it was easy to get them in and out when they wanted to see something.  This wagon has definitely been worth the purchase!

As the morning wore on, the sun started heating things up a tad.  We figured a ride on the train would help cool us off.  Both kids LOVED riding it!  We took some pics while waiting for the other riders to board the train.

Thomas had zero interest in sitting still while the train was parked.  As soon as the whistle blew and the engine started, though, he hopped up in my lap and was content staying there.  He was almost in a trance as we rode!

We made a quick pass through the birds before heading out of the zoo for lunch.  

We had the absolute best weather day for a trip to the zoo.  And both kids really enjoyed it!  Katie Wynn has asked to go back so there will be future trips, I'm sure.  If only we could get another break from this extreme heat!  Maybe this fall...

Petting Zoo Party, Take Two!

When Katie Wynn turned one, we had a petting zoo birthday party for her.  It was so much fun that we decided to do a repeat party for Thomas's first birthday.  I had already made up my mind that that's what we'd do, so when I called the girl that brought the animals to KW's party and learned that she no longer did birthday parties, I hit the internet to find another petting zoo.  At Katie Wynn's party, we had a pony, a bunny, a couple of chickens, and a donkey and we were really pleased with that.  But for Thomas's party, I hired Happy Times Farm and let me tell you, their petting zoo is LEGIT.  

Their website said they would bring around 30 animals but I'm not sure that it registered with me just exactly how many animals that is!  And I think we had way more than that.  Let's see, there was a pig, 4 baby ducks, 6 of the softest rabbits ever, 3 guinea pigs (I think), a couple chickens, a llama, a horse, a donkey, a goat, some kind of small cow, and about 25 sheep and lambs.  By my count, that's closer to 50 animals!  They pulled up in a trailer and just kept bringing animals out and setting their pens up in the yard.  Then they opened up a small compartment and out ran all the sheep.  It was crazy!

Before we get into all the animal petting action, let's back up just a little to the party decorations.  And by "decorations," I mean the very few things I set out the day of the party.  I tried to keep things simple for this party.  I did zero crafting, no sewing, and no major baking (just a quick cake for Thomas!).  In fact, I got on Oriental Trading and ordered every single thing from them, including the party favors.  The invitations we sent out (this design from etsy) had blue gingham on it so I used that as the color scheme.  Oriental Trading came through with plates, napkins, and cups to match!

We used the lemonade stand that we built for KW's party again and I added some plastic gingham flags from Oriental Trading.  It was Anna's idea to put the inflatable animals on top.  :)

These inflatable animals were awesome and I think I got something like 12 of them for ten bucks!  Most of them went home with our party guests but we still play with the sheep and cow that were left over.

We requested donations to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in lieu of gifts for Thomas.  We were able to send a good-sized check to them after the party was over!

Now, on to the fun party pics!  Like most one-year-olds, Thomas had no idea that all of the hoopla was for him.  (Katie Wynn, on the other hand, though it was all for her.)

Oh, before I forget - just like with Katie Wynn's birthday parties, I hired a photographer (Kasey McAlpin - find her on Facebook) to take pictures throughout the party.  She gets credit for all the photos in this post!  Also, Katie Wynn had a busted up face from an accident on the driveway (read more about it here) so her face was scabbed up at the party.  

I'm not going to try to narrate these pictures - there are way too many!  Just enjoy these snapshots from throughout the party.  And, if you see one of your child, I probably already have it printed to send to you!  (Click on any image to see it bigger.)

When it came time to eat, we made sure there was hand sanitizer readily available!  Just like the decorations, we kept our menu super simple: hot dogs, chips, and drinks.  That's it!

We gave Thomas his cake as everyone finished eating, and it was kinda a non-event.  The slight breeze kept the candle from staying lit so we couldn't even help him blow it out!  I put animal cookies on top of the cake and, in hindsight, that was a bad idea.  He just pulled off one of them and wanted to munch on it.  Anna finally smooshed his hand into the cake but he didn't like having it on his hands at all!

After Thomas had his cake, I brought out dessert for everyone else: Parker's Water Ice.  It's one of my very favorite treats!  It's like a sno cone that's the texture of sorbet.  So good and so perfect for a hot day!  Of course, the parents may have been cringing at the bright red and bright blue - hopefully all clothes came clean!

Since we had a photographer on hand, we took a few quick family pictures.  I would've tried to get more but we were all so sweaty that I didn't think it was worth it!  

As our little guests said goodbye, they got to pick out a couple of farm animal books to take home with them.  (Thanks again, Oriental Trading!)

With our guests leaving, it was time for the animals to load back onto the trailer and head to their next event.  We waved goodbye and with that, our petting zoo party was over.  :(

Since the party, Katie Wynn has asked at least 12 times if Thomas could have another birthday so that we could do it again.  And every time we go to someone else's party she asks if the "amimals" will be there.  It's safe to assume that she had a really good time!  Who knows, maybe we'll be doing it again.  But first, I've got to figure out how to explain to a two-year-old that her birthday is still months away...

Monthly Themed Pictures

The last set of monthly pictures were themed for each month.  I did this same set for Katie Wynn too.  Some months I copied her set up for Thomas but some months are totally different.  I tried not to spend much time on these (mostly because I never have much time to spare) so Thomas just had a few minutes in front of the camera and if I got something good, then great!  And if I didn't, oh well.

Katie Wynn's watermelon picture was so cute!  Thomas's was...not.  He couldn't sit up and there were gnats and I just remember being SO hot and ready to go back inside.  But look, he can blow bubbles!

This was my favorite picture of him for a while.  I just love that wide open grin and those almost winking eyes!  I think this was his first time to go swimming...or, barely put his toes in the water, rather.  

Can you believe that even after looking this cute in his golf hat, his Daddy still didn't let him tag along for his Saturday morning golf game?!

Pumpkins plus football equals fall!

This was one of my favorites with Katie Wynn and one of my favorites with Thomas too!  Maybe this December I'll try to get one with the two of them wrapped up in lights together.  That shouldn't be too hard, right?

Cutest little snow bunny I know...even if there wasn't any snow!  The way he's biting on that bottom lip just kills me.

Smacked with red kisses from Mama during the month of love!  

Just like Katie Wynn, he's a WEE-BIT IRISH.  With a whole lot of green glitter to pick out of his hair!  Not the best costume choice when it comes to clean-up.  The April bunny ears pictures is hands-down my favorite of these.  He thought these ears were hilarious and was so cute with them on!  I could do a whole post with pictures of this photoshoot.  I chose this one because you can tell he's sucking in his breath from laughing.

He wouldn't sit still for a picture on the beach, so pool side is the best we could do.  And you can't even see the pool!  :)

And finally, he's ONE!  Katie Wynn wore this same party hat for her 12th month photo too. 

Is it bad that I'm kinda relieved I don't have to remember to take pictures every month anymore?  That's one reminder I can remove from my calendar.  Don't worry, you know there won't be a shortage of other pictures of my kids!  :)

Brother and Sister Pics

The second set of monthly pics that I did of Katie Wynn were of her and me on our front steps.  They were fun but really hard to pull off since I had to have another person around to take our picture during a time when we were both clean and dressed and it was daylight outside.  Tricky when your husband leaves for work at the crack of dawn and we're a hot mess by the time we all get home.  So, with Thomas I thought instead of pictures with me, I'd do pictures of him with Katie Wynn.  I'd be able to be the photographer so they'd be much easier.

Right?

If you think the answer to that is yes then you've never tried to take pictures of a toddler and a baby in the same chair together.  NOT an easy task, I tell ya.  But I have a picture for every month so, success!  My method for choosing the official picture for each month was to just find the one where they were both somewhat clear and in focus.  For nearly every month, I have a picture where he is totally adorable but she's a blurry ghost and vice versa.  If only I could cut and paste the good ones of them together.

When I went back to pick out these pictures, I knew that he would look so different in the early months than he does now - babies change a lot in their first year!  What I wasn't expecting, though, was how little Katie Wynn looks too!  It's crazy to think this time last year she was still attached to a paci.  That seems like a lifetime ago.  Anyway, here they are...

I chose this chair in the living room for a neutral backdrop and because we get natural light in there.  That window behind them usually ended up being way too bright, though.  Which month's photo is your favorite?  Or, which set of outfits are your favorite?  :)  I think my favorites are months 8, 9, and 10.

Here's a bonus pic from month eight to end this post.  She loves him a little too hard sometimes!