My buddy and Me

It was a fun weekend with my buddy! David was in NY at his cousin's wedding, which I am so disappointed I could not attend. Pfizer had scheduled a state-wide meeting for this past Thursday and Friday, then 3 weeks ago cancelled it and moved it to Harrison's birthday!!! :0 I am thrilled, let me tell you... :( Anyways, I was so mad I could not attend, but Harrison and I made some good fun for ourselves here in Houston.

Jaxton turned ONE on Saturday and we partied at Monkey Bizness - it was an amazing place, full of entertainment and fun. We can't wait to have a play date with the big boy very soon! After church on Sunday, we had my friend Lindsey over brunch and David's cousin Nancy for dinner. It was a wonderful weekend, which made it very, very difficult to drive away from Harrison this morning.

Mama Steph trying to feed Jaxton some healthy bites before diving into the cake!

I love my Riley Roos - thanks for telling us about them, Miss Lisa!

That was fun, Mama!

And... goodnight.

Just a little further!

Man, I am pooped. Nothing like being waited on hand-and-foot, while watching Baby Einstein with by lovey.

Cowboy 1st Birthday!

Several months ago, David gave me the dates of his weekend MBA guys' trip for Fantasy Football drafting (this is a very important weekend that occurs annually!!). So, as soon as he told me the dates, I booked a ticket to GA to see my Grandmother and parents. A few weeks ago, I decided to celebrate Harrison's bday in GA in addition to a family celebration in Houston. I am so glad David agreed to doing this and was okay with missing out on 1 of the 3 bday celebrations Harrison will have!

Harrison was a trooper in his little cowboy vest, shirt, and boots that I bought a size big so he could wear them to the Houston Rodeo in February!!! And, I say he was a "trooper" because the child skipped all of his naps that day. I'm not sure what was going on, but he would not sleep for the life of me! I was expecting him to be ultra fussy, but he really wasn't in as bad of a mood as I thought and downed his cake just like I knew he would.... I am ashamed to say that I completely forgot to cut Harrison's big birthday cake. Me - of all people - who's favorite food is icing, forgot!!! I guess in the midst of giving Harrison his cake and then doing a costume change into an adorable birthday jon-jon that my Mom made him, I just completely forgot. So, I'm sorry to all of those who were eyeing the cake and didn't get a chance to eat any!

Cowboy Grandaddy got out one of his horses and gave pony rides to the kids.... It was hysterical seeing their expressions. Ava and Sara Elizabeth were the stars of the day - they couldn't get enough of the horse. Addie and Harrison were just not feeling it, but Ford and MJ were studs and sat on top of that huge horse like they owned him!!! I have included all the pictures on the link below for you to see the hilarious faces of these adorable children! (Thanks, Mr. Matt, for assisting Cowboy Grandaddy with the kiddos!!)

http://picasaweb.google.com/Aubreyslye/HarrisonSFirstBirthday?feat=directlink

I was so sad to leave on Sunday. Instead of crying now, we all just tear up a little, but it's never an easy goodbye to my parents or grandmother. Thankfully, they are flying out next Thursday and babysitting for several nights while David whisks me away for a relaxing vacation for my 30th!!! I can't wait!





Grandaddy, Harrison and Grand

You're the best walking assistant, Grandma Great!

Our little cowboy - the boots didn't last long!!

Happy First Birthday Harrison!

What now?

Cleaned up after my outfit change into my Grand's handmade Birthday Jon-Jon

I was so excited to see my girlfriends and their babies... I always wish there were more hours in the day to sit down and chit chat with each of them - the time flew by and before I knew it, the party was over. :(

Joanna, Brooke, Katie, myself, Erin, MaryBeth, Julie, Sam, Jenny

Not in the mood for a horsey ride???

" And then, Jack went up the hill.... "

MJ Economos about to tackle Harrison!!!

Are we having a party, mama?

The CAKE! UGH - so mad I forgot to cut it.

Oh well, we took care of it with spoons after the party....

Cowboy Grandaddy, Cowgirl Great, and Cowgirl Grand (already changed out of costume)
There is no denying that my Grandma and Mom are just as addicted to icing as I am!!!! Yes, those are spoons, and yes, we dove in!!!

I LOVE my Grand and Grandaddy's birthday gift - I can now "walk" by myself!

Catch me if you can, Grand!!!

Grandma Great in her favorite spot!!! On the front porch with a glass of vino!!

Look - I have one too!

Downward Dog....

Digging up the mint in Grand's herb garden

Sailing away in Grandaddy's beautiful homemade sailboat!!! (Somebody is definitely having fun in retirement!!! This is the same man who used a hammer to fix everything growing up!!!!)

You are funny, Grandaddy!

The Tooth Fairy Finally Visits!

This time, the tooth fairy came to finally deposit a tooth for Harrison. It's official - at 11 months, Harrison has a tooth breaking through!!!
It's right here, Mama!

We went to Brandon's 1st birthday party this weekend. Harrison wanted to dive into the cake, but settled for playing Brandon's big yellow truck with BIG wheels - there is something about wheels that Harrison cannot get enough of!

Don't go, Brandon - I want to play some more!!!

We also visited with the Howards at their house... 4 little boys under 3 in one house! They were so cute all eating together. Harrison loved playing with the "big boys!"

Seaside Beach Trip 2009

This week we returned from a trip to the beach with our dear friends, the Zorns. We each had a playmate - David finally had someone to throw the football with, I was able to spend countless hours talking about anything and everything to one of my best friends, and Harrison was able to test his toy stealing abilities with Nathan. The two were an absolute trip. Harrison spent his days following Nathan around to see what cool toy he was playing with. He loved being with Nathan and smiled from ear to ear when they ate side by side together! I know they both enjoyed their time together and I am sure Harrison is already going through Nathan withdrawals after his refusal to eat today!

Our trip unfortunately started off on a bit of a sour note the very first full day. I've always had a love affair with white beaches and clear water, but it officially ended this year. Not an hour after we were on the beach, David and I took Harrison waist deep into the brilliant, clear blue ocean. We looked about 30 yards to our left and there we 2 guys fishing who so calmly warned us that there WAS A SHARK SWIMMING OUR WAY. WHAT THE HECK? I immediately picked up Harrison out of his raft and ran as fast as I could, my heart beating out of my chest and my bikini bottoms hanging off my bottom. David hung behind and slowly walked behind us to assess the shark's whereabouts. The 6 foot shark was swimming with a mission, fast as anything I ever want to see swim, and was coming our way. At one point, it was 15 feet away, as I began my run to shore, calling Lisa's name, and thinking I was going to have to toss her Harrison as I got pulled to sea. It was one of the scariest moment I have ever had in my entire life. When David got to shore behind me, we screamed to the other children to get out of the water, and a storm of Dads ensued split seconds afterwards, yanking their children off their rafts. All the while, I am watching the shark swim towards the 8 and 10 year olds dangling their little feet from their rafts. I am pretty sure this event took about 5 years off my life. And you can rest assured that after I had a not-so-sweet conversation with the young men who were fishing down the beach from us, that about 5-10 years were taken off their life too. Needless to say, I did not go past knee deep in the ocean the rest of our trip and we are headed to Colorado for vacation next summer!

After the shark encounter on the first day, we never looked back on the drama and had the time of our lives for the remaining 4 days. We celebrated the babies' birthdays - Harrison turned 11 months on the particular evening and Nathan is turning 1 this weekend. It was a good trial run before Harrison's birthday party in GA. And after witnessing the damage my son did to his cupcake, I fear I have passed along the love of icing gene from my Grandma and Mom. Nathan wasn't as fired up about his cupcake, so we are keeping our fingers crossed that his dives in this weekend at his birthday party - at least for his Mama's sake so she can get some good pics!!!

We were so sad to leave each other - we always have a hard time saying our goodbyes. But, I know the Zorns were ready to get back to Denver, as they finally found their dream home and are about to pack up their house here in Houston for the final furniture move. I have a feeling we'll be out to visit sooner rather than later, which is what keeps us going!

Are you sure you're ready for vacation, David?

Harrison, you're supposed to answer the phone when I call you.

Gimmie your cupcake Nathan!!!

Yes, I'm trying to fit this entire cupcake in my mouth.

Hey, buddy, I dropped my cupcake in my lap. Hand yours over or it's blue icing in your pretty blonde hair.

Even though you steal my stuff, I still luv you Harrison.

Mom finally let me down to crawl on the pavers. Bathtime/scrub time will be next, I'm sure.

My buddy and Me

Gee, you're a pretty piece of rubber.

You're just the BEST!

I really want to walk, but I can't get the top of my body on top of the lower part of my body from this position.

Let's go DADDY!

Double Dare me?

No more stealing from me, Harrison!


















To see even MORE pictures (this was just a short preview of the 300+ that I took!!), click on:

http://picasaweb.google.com/Aubreyslye/SeasideBeachTrip2009?feat=directlink