Break my heart!

Something just happened a bit ago that I thought I should document because this makes the second time Nixon has done something that made me want to cry and shower him with kisses.

Nixon loves the Toy Story movies and is so obsessed with them that he was Buzz Lightyear for Halloween (pictures in another post). I put the movie on for him to watch for the umpteenth time so I could get some serious house cleaning done before I leave town tomorrow. I put him in his high chair to eat lunch but left the movie on so he could eat and watch at the same time (all hell would have broken lose if I dared turn it off before it was over). Anyway, for those not familiar with the movie, there's a scene where Buzz leaps off a balcony to prove to himself that he really is a space ranger that can fly and not just a toy. Unfortunately the sad truth becomes apparent as he crashes to the floor causing his arm to break off. As this happened, Nixon points to the TV and while saying "Buzz" over and over again, starts to cry this horrifically sad cry. In seeing the expression on his face and hearing that sad wailing, I started to tear up but managed to choke it back as I convinced him Buzz was going to be ok. Oh my gosh!!! Talk about heart breaking!

A similar thing happened a few weeks ago as we were leaving Super Walmart after grocery shopping. Nixon LOVES waffles, so the last thing we did was swing by the frozen aisle and pick up a box of Eggo Nutrigrain waffles (yum!). I let him hold them to keep him occupied during checkout. Soon I realized this was a mistake because he was not about to let go of them. The checkout lady was kind enough to hand scan them so he could continue to hold them. When we got to the car, I pulled them from his hands and put them in the bag with the other cold stuff. He of course got upset and started throwing a fit. For the next little while which seemed like forever, I fought with him to get in his carseat. He arched and flailed so much I couldn't get him buckled in. By this time I was seriously considering yanking him up and spanking his butt, but I decided to try a different approach. I pulled him out, sat him on my knee, then explained that as soon as we got home I'd give him back the box of waffles. Of course I don't know how much he really understood, but he calmed down enough to let me buckle him in. Well, as soon as we backed out of our space, he kept saying "waffles" over and over again, then started to cry a very sad little cry. I realized his feelings were hurt because he didn't understand why he couldn't have the waffles since he had been good to get in his carseat. His cry was so sad and sincere that I seriously considered pulling over immediately and giving him the waffles. Nevermind the fact I told him he'd have to wait until we got home (which he obviously didn't understand or was too impatient to wait that long), but luckily he calmed down pretty quickly and we made it home shortly thereafter. Needless to say, Nixon was promptly given the box of waffles as soon as we pulled in the driveway, and we went in and had some for dinner.

Long overdue

Wow, I can't believe I haven't updated this thing since Easter. How sad. Well, here's my attempt to summarize what's been happening with us since then.

First, Nixon started walking around 4/17. Now he runs everywhere and wears me out, but it's so darn cute. He's getting better about not tripping as much.

Here's a video I wanted to share from May. I was cooking dinner and noticed Nixon coming in and out of the kitchen, so I decided to investigate. Here's what I found -


This is a photo Nathan's mom took one weekend she was here. I love it so much. He is the cutest child I've ever seen!


One day I gave Nixon an empty toothpaste box to play with. He kept doing the same thing with it every time he played with it. I call this one "Nixon Scissorhands"


In June we got a 3rd contract on our house and actually closed in late July (finally). I started packing about 2 weeks before closing. Nixon was a big help, as you can see below:



Some other big news includes finding Otis a new home. I know I said we could never give him up, however Nathan and I decided it was best to find him a loving home since we certainly were not being as loving as we needed to be. I think the stress of trying to sell the house, packing, moving, another kid on the way, etc. gave way to Otis not getting the attention or affection he needed. To make a long story short, we found the perfect new home for him. The family lives really close, has a huge yard along with 5 other dogs (they're HUGE animal lovers if you couldn't tell), 2 teenage kids, and a ranch in Oklahoma they take the dogs to every weekend. I'm pretty sure Otis is more in heaven now than he's ever been. Here's a photo of the day we said our goodbye to him at his new home.

We do miss him on occasion (ok, at least I do), but we know he's in a much better and happier place now.

Nixon attended his first baseball game on 7/29. He had more fun running around than anything else, but what do you expect from a 16 month old?


I'll end this post with a video of our unpacking at the new house. I was in the kitchen and knew Nixon was in the front living room climbing on boxes when I heard fussing. I walked in to see what was going on and found this:


I promise I'll post more regularly to keep everyone updated on the adventures of Nixon and his little brother to be!

Happy Easter!

This is technically Nixon's 2nd Easter, but he was only 3 weeks old last year during the holiday, and we were still too tired to make it to church. So, I kind of consider this his first Easter Holiday.

We didn't do anything special mainly because we spent most of the weekend getting Nathan ready to be out of town for a week for a trial, but we managed to do a few things to celebrate. Saturday morning we attended the annual Easter egg hunt at our church. Sunday we did make it to church and Nixon wore his special Easter outfit that Nanaw sent him. It's a little big (his pants kept falling down if the belt wasn't tight), but nonetheless very cute. He also got his first Easter basket with a few goodies - books, a puzzle, stuffed duck, and plastic sports ball eggs full of cheerios. I know, the cheerios are lame, but I certainly was not going to give him candy, and I don't want a bunch of candy around the house for us to eat either. I'm trying to slim down a bit before hopefully having another child. : )

Nixon's 1st haircut

It was time to get Nixon's hair cut. It had gotten so long over the last few weeks that he had a major mullet and comb-over going on. I guess you could say he was looking like Donald Trump from Hickville, Texas. Our friend Emily came over and did a great job cutting it while he squirmed. He seemed a little annoyed while she was working, but he made it through the process and ended up with a great cut. Now our little baby is officially a little boy!

Before
(it didn't usually look quite this bad, but he had just gotten up from a nap)


After

Why we can't give the dog away

Many of you know that I get really irritated with Otis because of his constant whining and flipping out when people come over and have therefore seriously considered giving him away. After watching this video, you tell me if it's still an option...

Videos

Here are 2 videos as promised. They probably aren't that exciting to most of you, but of course I think they are way cute. The second one is one of my favorites. He did that as I was talking on the phone to my mother-in-law. I turned around to find the surprise. By the way, Nixon was only 10 1/2 months old when he crawled down the steps by himself. Every time he would get close to the stairs as soon as he started crawling, I would show him how to turn around and go down feet first. Of course I didn't think it was sinking in until one day, to my astonishment, I turned around to see him on his tummy pushing backwards to go feet first down the stairs. Yes, I know, he's a genius. He definitely takes after his father in that regard. : )

Happy Birthday, Nixon!!

I can't believe it's come and gone already, but Nixon turned one year old on March 2nd. We didn't do anything major for it, however Nathan's family came that weekend to celebrate. We did have a little party with a few presents.



One of his favorite activities - pushing things over


Yay, it's my birthday!!


The "cake"


Ooh, what is that?


Hmm, interesting. Never had anything like this before.


That was too much fun

Long awaited update

It's so crazy how quickly babies grow up. Nixon isn't walking yet, but since his first crawling attempt on Dec 11th, he's extremely mobile now and gets into everything. His latest thing is trying to open the lid on the kitchen trash can. He's pinched his fingers a few times when the lid shuts on him, but that doesn't stop him from trying again. He's also figured out how to open the drawers in the kitchen, so the one that contains his bowls and medicine syringes is a favorite to open and fling everything out. And, he's FINALLY getting his first teeth - both bottom ones are coming in at the same time. He's been exhibiting signs of teething for the last 3 weeks, but the first glimpse of white came a day or 2 after his first birthday.

Nixon is such a happy little boy and loves to laugh. He thought watching Uncle Scottie and Uncle Robbie playing ping pong last weekend in Houston was the most hilarious thing he'd ever seen. I wish I would have gotten it on video. Oh well, maybe next time.

Here are a few photos I've taken since New Year's.

At the Arboretum - Feb 24


Sportin' the mohawk - Feb 9


Wearing daddy's boots - Feb 5


Nixon and his best bud Sabian - Jan 17


Enjoying daddy playing guitar - Jan 16


Nixon's other best bud - Feb 10

Happy New Year!!

Everyone in the house is sleeping right now (including the animals), so I thought I'd update my blog really quickly. Since today is the first day of the new year, I wanted to reflect back on a few things. This time last year, Nathan said "2008 is going to be great". Well, the year certainly has had its ups and downs, but of course the most important thing is the blessing of our first child. The next 7 months were rocky as I returned back to work and Nathan worked at home while keeping Nixon, but our prayers paid off in October when Nathan found a job with a small law firm and I was able to quit work to take care of our home and family. 2008 was great, and despite the country's economic turmoil, I'd like to say that 2009 is going to be fine.

Nixon is really growing and becoming so mobile. On Dec 11th, he took his first crawling steps. He's now a pro and has already learned to climb up the 2 steps going down into our family room. Below are photos from some recent events -

Thanksgiving Day

Dressed to watch dreadful Aggie football

He looks like such a big boy in this photo


Christmas photos

Big bag is going to eat me


Look at my butt (says Merry Christmas in case you can't read it)



His first crawling "steps"


Learning to stand up