Walk In the Park

This past week before everyone I know got sick with the illness that "Plague Monkey Spencer Larsen" brought around, we spent a lovely Tuesday evening with Grandma Karen, Aunt Becca, Sera, Gabe, Ryan (Who had the plague at that point.), and myself. We went to Veterans Memorial Park right by the West Jordan City Hall. It was so nice to spend our one night a week with Sera outside and playing. I feel bad that Ryan was sick but he took one for the team and spent most of the time lying on a blanket while the rest of us played.

We took lots of pictures that night. Becca loved taking Gabe the every spot at the park. And Sera, being so grown up, played with some kids her own age. I try not to hover over Sera when at the park because she would rather play with kids than with me or Ryan. But she did occasionally swing by and say hi.

This picture is of Aunt Becca and Grandma Karen pushing Gabe in the swing. As you can see, Gabe "thrilled."

And then it was Mommy's turn to push Gabe. And again...he could hardly contain his excitement.

Here we see Gabe enjoying some time in the grass. He kept trying to crawl away from us and we kept chasing him down. Just look at his bright blue eyes! If he wasn't so cute, I might not chase after him...JUST KIDDING BUBS!

And finally we have a video of Gabe and his new favorite thing: a balloon. All day we have been listening to the same squeals of delight. I secretly keep hoping that the balloon will pop but I haven't gotten lucky...yet...

Let him eat cake!

Tonight we spent the evening at my Mom and Dad's house. Mom usually does a big dinner on Sunday and so we decided to join them. It was my favorite meal: Pot roast, carrots, mashed potatoes with gravy, and salad. YUM!

I was in charge of dessert and so I went with my standby: strawberry short cake. Ryan doesn't care for more sweet stuff but he does like strawberry short cake. And while we were are enjoying our after dinner treat, my sister made the mistake of giving Gabe a taste of whip cream. His eyes got wide and he started going after her plate like a moth to a flame. He was a baby on a mission. So after we all finished our cake we made sure that our plates still had whip cream and strawberry juice and then...we let Gabe take care of the rest!

As you can see, he wanted to eat the plate along with what was on it.

Hope you enjoyed your Sunday evening as much as Gabe obviously did. Love you all!

9 Month Birthday

Happy 9 Month Birthday!!

As you can see Bubs, your 9 month picture is not like your previous birthday pics. You are not lying down and I am certainly not trying measure you. You would not have such a thing. Around our house now, if you are not standing, then you are crawling to place where you can pull yourself up. In this past month you have gone from my cute stationary cherub to a lightning-fast howler monkey of doom. And please know, I say that with all the love in my heart.

I am not sure where the past 4 weeks have gone but I can probably guess that you had something to do with it. You love taking things that you shouldn't have and either shoving them DIRECTLY into your mouth and crawling away with them and throwing them across the room. Your chubby little fingers always seem to find something the grab and then cling to with a grip I can only compare to the Jaws of Life.

You are fixated on my hair, my cellphone, my jewelry, the remote control, and about any beverage that we leave out. And of course, the more we say "No" the more you seem to want it. And once you grab it, believe you me, we have to pry your five Anaconda Strength fingers from around it all while trying to avoid getting bit by your 2 sharp teeth. And when we finally are able to force you to let go, you scream like you were just forced to look directly into the sun for five hours straight all while the "It's a Small World" song plays on repeat in your ears.



You have become stubborn and are gaining a certain amount of independence. You want what you want and you want it RIGHT NOW DAMN IT! DO NOT MAKE ME TELL YOU TWICE WOMAN! But you laugh more too. And it is becoming easier to make you smile. As you learn and grow you are beginning to see the world in a whole new light.

You are learning more and more each day. You can now wave Hi and clap your hands. You definitely are familiar with your name and know when we are talking to you. And you say "Da da da da da" like it is the only word that you will EVER need to know. Your father loves it when you say this-he feels so special. And I will admit here, that as cute as I find your babbling, I wish you would say Mama too. But I know that day is not far away.

You are growing bigger and stronger too. And are eating so much and losing that baby fat that I love. Your chubby little legs are getting more muscle and thinning out. I knew this was going to happen but it is a little sad to see them go. You are becoming a little boy and less of my tiny baby. And because of all this moving and growing, you are beginning to really value your naps which remind me that no matter how big you get, when you sleep, you will always look like my precious tiny baby.

You love exploring your surroundings. You want to climb over, crawl into, and look at everything you can. This past month you have really started figuring out your world and how things work. And sometimes this works to your advantage while other times you get yourself stuck and are not quite sure how to get yourself out.

But no matter how much you grow and how smart you get, I have realized that you will forever be my little boy.

So happy 9 month birthday Gabriel. You are crawling like mad, standing up, "talking" all the time, and I simply cannot get enough of you! You have taught me so much about love and I cannot wait to see you grow even more. Please never stop smiling at me and always continue to learn. You make me proud and have given me the best 9 months of my life.

Happy birthday Bubba!

Love always, Mommy