8 months: Sudden Independence

What happened to my little baby who used to lay on the floor batting at toys? Those days are long gone and a new little independent man has replaced him. It seemed as if the second he figured out how to crawl life became so much more exciting for both him and I! Within a few days of crawling he was pulling himself up on practically everything, taking steps while holding onto our hands, holding his own bottle, getting bathed in the "big boy tub", getting his teeth brushed, and wanting everything that was on our plates. He could care less about his toys now. It's all about standing.....on everything. Windows, chairs, doors. cabinets, refrigerator, and mommy's legs. I don't even want to think about how much longer we have until he is walking! He has a new found joy in chasing the cats around the house which has resulted in a few scratches from Apollo.

On the positive side he is able to entertain himself for a longer amount of time which allows me to get a few things done but I have to make sure to check on him frequently to see what he is getting into. The feeding himself a bottle thing is really nice too!



Baby proofing went into full swing a couple of weeks ago with door locks going on, ledge covers on the fireplace, outlet covers, and disposing of the nightlight in Easton's room that plugs into the outlet. He now has a freestanding one on a high ledge! We still have a few gates to purchase along with toilet locks and a few other odds and ends.

Daddy's Day Fun

Easton greeted us on Sunday morning around 6:00. We brought him in bed with us to hang out for a bit. Larry got his Father's Day gift (see photo) and Easton was eager to help him rip the paper off. We had fingerpainted the mat of the picture frame! I made breakfast and then we went to the Home Depot. I had gotten Larry a new hammer and of course picked the wrong one so he exchanged that for a different one. We ended up replanting our flower bed in the front of the house as the vincas that went crazy last year would not grow? We ended up putting in canteloupe, watermelon, peppers, zucchini, yellow squash and some pumpkin seeds. I know it sounds like a lot but the chances of them all surviving are slim. With any luck we will have pumpkins by Halloween! Larry went for a hike in the afternoon while Easton was napping. All in all it was a fun-filled, yet uneventful day. Happy 1st Father's Day!

3 Little Words

Raiding the Fridge!

3 Little Words

Precious Little Madeline

I can't just add three words because I am so proud to be an aunt again. My brother Nate and his wife Bethel welcomed their newest addition to the Ellis family last week. Madeline Rae Ellis. 7lb. 12 oz. I'm sure little sister Karigan is adjusting to life as a big sis. Congrats Nate and Bethel. We can't wait to meet her!!!

Easton Crawling

E's First Camping Trip

So we spent all day Thursday running ragged around town trying to get the trailer packed for our big camping trip. We left on Friday morning stopping for breakfast on the way out at a great new little place close to home. We got up to the Mogollon Rim outside of Payson around 11 and spent a good hour trying to locate the "perfect spot" that Larry and I had spotted at the end of last year. We drove back and forth trying to follow a stupid drawing that I had made on the map. We did finally find it but it had already been snagged. We eneded up at our trusty spot that we camp at almost every trip. It is nice and big and not too close to the road so that the dogs can run free. Easton slept the whole trip up there which was great. We hung around camp most of Friday unpacking and letting Easton take in the fresh air. He was on the ground ousided and low and behold he starts crawling! Towards the dirt of course! Since it was chilly we tried to put a hat on but that was a challenge. He thought it was so funny to pull them off. So.......Mommy found the one that strapped under the chin!

We attempted co-sleeping for the first time on Friday night since it was going to be in the 40's, which is cold for us Arizonans! Needless to say nobody slept real well. Saturday we got up and cooked some breakfast. Easton was getting fussy so we went into the trailer and turned on the heater for a bit. He was much happier playing on the floor with a bowl and spoon where it was nice and warm with no wind. We went for a couple of little hikes on Saturday and Easton loved his backpack! He had a great time! When we got back to camp we let him play on the turf ouside of the trailer and he had a fabulous time playing with the puppies! We got some really cute photos.

Napping was a whole nother issue! There was just so much going on that he didn't want to nap. When we would finally get him down he would only sleep for about a half hour. By Saturday evening Larry and I were looking at each other totally beat. We made a split decision to pack up and go home. We threw everything in to the camper and took off around 7:30 pm. E slept the whole way home until 9:30. He slept all night until 5, ate, then went back to sleep until 8am! I think he was worn out!

All in all it was an adventure and I think we will be more prepared next time around. Mid July is looking pretty hopeful :)

3 Little Words

Slobbery Puppy Kisses!


These were just a few of the great shots I got on our camping trip this weekend. I'll post the slideshow of all the pics later along with a rundown of the short trip.