We're Gonna Party Like It's Your Birthday!

Every birthday should fall on Friday....what a great way to start a weekend! Tanner celebrated hers in style with dinner at a favorite pizza joint (of course...what else would she pick?). We opened gifts, which if you know Tanner, consisted of her favorite things like $1 calculators and a couple of freebies! Tanner usually asks for strange stuff as gifts, like 409 cleaner, so these were right up her alley! On Saturday, we headed out shopping and played at McDs with Hampton. He had his 1st happy meal, but he was not near as interested in it as in playing on all the fun stuff. Sunday we headed to the outlets and scored some great deals for Hampton, then went and grilled out at Bob & Randi's. The only bad thing about the weekend? Somehow, Tanner seemed to miss every single birthday call! She did get everyone's voicemail, though, and they definitely helped make the weekend more special!

our little family

playing at Mickey D's

A special "birthday" pack of drinks...it took Tanner a minute to realize that's how old she is!

Happy Birthday, Mommy!

Hip, hip, hooray.......it's Mommy's birthday!

We've already been celebrating Birthday Week with hot fudge cakes, playdates and other fun stuff, but we're planning to extend the celebration throughout the weekend. Bo thinks Tanner claimed last weekend as birthday weekend, too, but who cares? She who has the birthday makes the rules!

Bucket List

What is it with this kid and buckets? He has an obsession with all of his toy containers! Apparently, the new thing is putting them on your head and walking around with them. Of course, he can't see when he does this, so luckily the bucket doubles as a helmet for running into things. It's good to know that such simple things can provide such unlimited entertainment! I guess all of his Christmas gifts will be coming from Rubbermaid this year....hahaha!

Beach Bound

Since the weather was so nice, we couldn't resist another beach visit this weekend! Especially since we knew Jan had to go back to TN and face who-knows-what kind of weather....it's been rough up there this winter! A fun time was had by all, except for when Bo wouldn't let Hampton go diving face-first into the cold water. It's so bad that Hampton has such a mean Daddy, huh? Don't feel bad too for him....as soon as Hamp headed back to his sand pail, all was well again in his world!

Park Pics

Like we mentioned yesterday, after we went to the Seafood Festival, we headed to the park since it was so close by and we knew Hampton would have fun. We were right...he loved having his Grandpa and Daddy chase him around and play with him on the swings!

Saturday

Well, the day we had been looking forward to finally arrived. We finally felt good enough to get out and enjoy the weather! Saturday morning, we needed to do our weekly Publix run, especially since the sale this week was amazing. While we were out, we decided to head down to the beach, even though we weren't exactly dressed for a beach visit. We made do, though, and just rolled Hamp's britches and sleeves up and let him go at it! We enjoyed our quick visit and headed home to meet Grandpa & Grannie, who was making her first trip to see Hampton in a month. We had lunch with them and once Hampton woke up from his nap, we headed to the annual Seafood Festival so the grandparents could check out the antique cars. After a park visit (more on that tomorrow), we finished up our afternoon with yummy blizzard treats. It was our first day back out and about, and it was a great one!

playing in the sand at the beach

Where else but Publix can you get all of this for less than $23?

Friday Photo

Climbing on top of things is Hampton's newest "skill". Unfortunately we were too busy trying to get him down to snap a photo of him dancing on top of his play table!

Sick and Tired

Well, this last week has been an adventure, to say the least! Last week, Tanner pulled a muscle in her back. Since that meant no picking up a 1-year-old, we had to call in the in-law reinforcements. We were happy to have the help, but it didn't help Tanner's back that she then came down with a sinus infection. Luckily, by Saturday, she was feeling better.

Not to be outdone, though, Bo got sick on Saturday night! We don't know what he picked up, but by Sunday night, Tanner was sick and Hamp had it by Monday. Needless to say, the Valentine's Day plans were cancelled as we all sniffled and coughed around the house. Bo was finally able to go back to work yesterday, but Tanner and Hamp are still under the weather. We are really hoping to all be better soon, especially since the weather is beautiful and we want to get out and enjoy it in case it doesn't stick around!

Hampton's Valentine's Day gift is the combination of his 2 favorite things....music and Elmo. Let's just say that E-L-M-O to the tune of YMCA really gets stuck in your head!

Even though we didn't get out of the house, at least we got a picture of Hampton in his cute outfit!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! We hope everyone has a great one. Don't worry, Grandparents, Aunts, and Uncles......your Valentine's Day picture is late, but will be heading your way shortly!

Friday Photo

Since Hampton is now 15-months old (!!!), we had our scheduled well-baby visit. He's growing like a weed....weighing 27.9 lbs and measuring 32.5 inches. He's in the high 80s percentile-wise, which our Dr. thinks is healthy and perfect.......which meant the Doc wasn't too worried about Hampton's lack of an appetite!

Cookie Monster

Elmo is definitely Hampton's favorite Sesame Street character, but he is most like Cookie Monster! He has become obsessed with them, he calls out for them nonstop, and last week he literally threw a tantrum because we offered him pizza instead of a cookie. And watch out....if you are eating one in front of him, he will take it out of your hand and shove it directly into his mouth!

Hampton was shoving one cookie in his mouth while having another one at the ready!

Buckets of Fun

Hampton has a new fascination with his toy containers. He climbs into them and stays there happily, until he realizes he doesn't know how to get out! Graceful it is not, but it is quite funny!

Weekend Update

This weekend was packed with activity! It was the annual Baldwin County homebuilders' show, and Bo was busy representing MRCS during the 3-day event. Friday night, Bo and Bob went and shmoozed with the other BCHBA members while Randi, Tanner, and Hamp hung out and ordered pizza...yummy! On Saturday, Hampton had a playdate with his buddy Conner. They played hard, and Hampton napped until we headed to our get-together with Paul, Bob, and Randi that night. Sunday, Tanner had to work the nursery at church, so she and Hamp headed there while Bo was back at work. He got home just in time for us to head to a Super Bowl party with a bunch of friends, where Hampton was in the Valentine's Day spirit. At least, he sure did enjoy kissing and hugging Kinley, the little girl that was also there! We wish we'd gotten some pics, but trust us, it was quite the sight to see!

Hampton and Conner in deep discussion

Friday Photo

Grilling Out At Grandpa's

Hampton loves running around outside and he loves seeing his Grandpa, so we combined 2 fun things into one! We surprised Bo's dad with a late-afternoon visit, and we think he was happy to take a break from all the construction he's been doing. Hampton had fun playing with some of his toys that Grandpa keeps on hand, eating burgers, and learning to kick his ball. Once he got the hang of it, there was no stopping him!

soccer world cup, here we come!

fending off the tape measure

Where Hamp Gets His Hair

Everyone always asks where Hampton gets his red hair from. Especially since both Bo and Tanner have very dark hair! Well, here's the secret.....his Grandi! Tanner's mom and Bo's sister both have red hair, so it definitely runs in the family, even if you can't tell it from the two of us!

Picnic at the Park

On Saturday, the weather was amazing here.....it got up to 78! We decided we had to get out and enjoy it, so we headed to the park. We have a great park in Gulf Shores, but it's in the shade, so we decided to go to the one in Orange Beach, which is sunnier. We packed up a yummy lunch of BBQ and all the trimmings, grabbed some outdoor toys, and went on our way. Hampton had a blast swinging on the swings, sliding down the slide, and crawling under all the fun hidey-holes in the castles. He especially loved the tunnels! Once the park filled up, we took it as our cue to take a lunch break. Afterward, we strolled down to the intracoastal and out on the pier. Hampton must have had fun, because he was asleep within 5 minutes of being back in the car!