Bath Time

I am loving these photos! Talli just uploaded them so I wanted to make sure that everyone saw them. Bob & Talli came for a visit a few weeks ago to meet Liam and hang out with us a little. They helped me out with Murdoch on numerous occasions and one night they helped with Murdoch's bath. Right now Murdoch enjoys taking a bath with someone which is a bit of overhead but he really enjoys it and we have found that he is really enjoying the water. Plus now you can just go in for a little while and then he 'swims' around by himself while you just watch. Anyway - Bob took a bath with Murdoch while I cooked dinner which was such a luxury! I hope you enjoy the pictures!

How you know you are living with a toddler.....

1) When you go to bed you have brush graham cracker crumbs out of your own bed. Yes I said this would never happen and it is yet another thing that I just said who cares to when I was tired. I got home with Murdoch, Andy was installing trim in the bedroom and he really wanted to watch so I got a box of graham crackers and a cup of milk and Murdoch sat in my lap eating away and making little noises as Andy worked with a big smile on his face. It was worth it! I got to just recline in bed for 30 minutes and he barely moved! Nothing a little sheet change won't take care of!

2) Your dog now has to be on a diet because of the carb comma she is in due to a sudden large intake of crackers, cheerios, cheese, and juice! Deucey needs those curves back!

3) Instead of actually asking your husband for the remote control you make a weird noise that is similar to what your son makes when he is pointing at some thing that he wants.

4) Your husband's response to #3 say please and you have to do that in sign language :)

5) Your child says yeah to every question you ask him. I guess this is better than no but I have found this so funny that I started saying it all of the time - including work and I can't stop!

The first chore

Murdoch has learned his first chore! Before Andy leaves for work Deucey has to go in her crate - she tends to destroy things if she is not confirmed while we are gone - I don't know why - I guess she just likes having us around. So every morning Andy gets a treat, Deucey runs and gets in the crate waiting for the treat, the door is closed and Andy and Murdoch are off to school/work. Murdoch has mastered this chore so he is helping Andy become more efficient in the mornings. It took about three days for him to get it - the first two mornings he would show Deucey the treat but he wouldn't let go of it - as you can imagine this didn't go over very well with Deucey. But now he does it all except get the treat - he is too short - and lock the door of the crate - the coordination is not quite there but I am sure it will be soon. I think the next thing on Andy's list is figuring out how he can apply this to getting a beer out of the fridge...

Ole

Andy taught Murdoch 'Ole' over the weekend in Maine and was showing it off the other night. It is so funny that Murdoch gets so excited - almost to the point of falling down - actually he did fall down once in this video. It is funny the little things that you can now teach Murdoch. Andy has also taught him to put Deucey in her crate in the mornings. Andy gives Murdoch a treat, he takes it, walks to Deucey's crate, she goes in, he gives her the treat, and then he closes the door. I think there will be a beer involved in these stories pretty soon. Enjoy the day!

When NO is still cute

Murdoch has learned what 'no' and 'don't' mean but right now he can't say them, at least verbally so it hasn't become an annoying habit, yet, so I thought I would do a little memory post - I haven't done on in forever! Now if you tell him no or don't, he usually shakes his head and smiles back at you. This has caused a lot of smiling and laughter from both Andy and myself. Though this is funny now it is going to be a royal pain pretty soon so we really need to stop it. He also shakes his hand and forearm back and forth when he doesn't want something - I think I need to get a video of that because it is hard to explain and it is something that makes me smile so I want to have it for the future.

We are going out for a date night tonight - we are finally going to see The Dark Knight. This will be my first movie in a theatre since the birth of Murdoch and the movie is supposed to be very good so I am really looking forward to it. Andy and I need to make a point to have time that is just for the two of us - that is often lost when you have a little person in the house. Though he is a great source of joy, laughter, and happiness we need to remember that we also have a world that doesn't include him and what he does every second of the day.

Enjoy the weekend - we are looking to survive the 3-6 inches of rain this weekend!

My first haircut!

These pictures are older than the other ones, this is closer to the beginning of August but I wanted to post them because it is a big moment. Murdoch was born with hair, lost a lot of it, grew it back, and how he has developed curls. Today the humidity has been on the rise and he has a ton of little curls. It is so cute! There is the before and after.

Other than that we are just enjoying the long weekend. Lots of house work - we are trying to get our family room back in order - Andy has people coming over on Monday for their fantasy football draft so we need somewhere for people to sit. Tonight he is at a soccer game so I thought I would do a quick post and then go to bed early - a headache that won't go away! But I am laying in bed listening to the dryer - odd I know but I just used the new washer and dryer on the second floor for the first time - what a luxury - I don't have to go into the basement to do laundry anymore! Oh the stupid stuff that makes me happy these days :)

Happy Birthday Murdoch!

Okay so this is a day late because going over the whole birthing saga - you will just have to humor me. So it is one year and one day! And I can't believe how much you have grown, changed, and how much you have changed and added to our lives! We got a great video of you yesterday AM - I love how happy you are when you wake up. I love walking into your room with you standing in your crib with the biggest smile so happy to see me - I just know it is going to kill me that as you get older I won't get that huge smile in the mornings. I love the fact that right now we are your whole world - or at least most of it. It is so easy right now - in general we control everything but it is going to get so much harder as you get older when you have all of the outside influences that mold and shape you into the person that you will eventually be. It is hard for me to even think about that piece of your life and it actually makes me sad because my baby will no longer be my baby. One of our major goals for you is to raise you to be an independent person but that is also one of the most painful things that will happen because I know I will want to take care of you and shelter you from things forever when I know I can't. It is going to be a very big struggle between my heart and my head.

I can go on forever like this so I will end it now. I just want to let you know that I love you to the point that I want to squeeze you so hard it would kill you. I will always love you no matter what.

Here is a little message from your grandmother in STL:

Dear Murdoch, Just think, one year ago we all received the most precious gift which was you! To quote Fred Rogers - You don't ever have to do anything sensational to love or be loved. You can never imagine how many people already love you, including me. Happy First Birthday, I am with you in thought. Love - Gram Parsons

All of my love!