Big week!

Wow, what an eventful couple of days we've had! We just got a puppy and a different vehicle! Both are BIG blessings...

This is Grinder (He was named after a coffee grinder!) We adopted him from the Humane Society. He's 8 months old, and we could not ask for a better puppy! We've discussed getting another dog on and off for a good year now, and when I saw this guy I knew he is exactly what we wanted- a German Shepherd mix with a black back, SUPER well behaved and smart. He's already house trained, walks on a leash, sits, etc. He has such a sweet spirit and is very gentle and patient. He's never been around kids before, but he's adjusting to toddler life well. As for Garrett, the more doggies the better in his mind. ;-)



And here is our "new" vehicle: a 2000 Subaru Forrester. We got it for a STEAL, and it fits our needs exactly. We are going to sell the blue car. It's a good car, but this deal was too good to pass up. Basically, for less than $1,000 more we are getting twice the car. It even gets the same if not better gas mileage than the blue car, plus it's all wheel drive & has less miles.


(Garrett is quite tired)
(The back is PERFECT for the pups)

Happy birthday, Garrett!

Wow, Garrett is one year old already! We had a birthday party Sunday night with some friends and family. It was a nice time, and Garrett had no problem being the star of the show. Here's a slew of pictures for those that can't be here in person...

"Happy birthday, dear Garrett..."

I think he shoved the whole cake in his mouth!

Build-a-Bear from Grandma Boni

While I'm posting, may I just brag at all Garrett's new abilities... he can say and sign more than I can remember to list. Just today, he did 3 or 4 more signs and said "tee" for tree. He's quite the explorer climbing on everything. He's such a delight.

Summer Fun

A slew of summer fun pics...

Garrett went to Rachel's day care to play in the water.
(Braiden wasn't enjoying it!)

Here's an update to my veggie garden. We've been enjoying fresh green beans and chives, and the cucumber and squash is starting to go nuts- probably twice as big as when this picture was taken! There are little baby veggies all over the place.

Love the doggie!

July 4th:

Meme shares her brownie.

Grandpa tickles!

Dinner at the lake

Cousins' kids! (Elizabeth, Gabe, Garrett, & Maddy)

Taking a tour of the lake in the pontoon boat.

Sparklers! Mike and Blake set off a bunch of fireworks, and Garrett wasn't scared at all! He just watched all the action, both on the dock and in the sky.

Lake Springfield Beach:

June

June is flying by! Here's what's been going on with us, in no particular order...

Happy Father's Day! This is Garrett sleeping on Daddy's shoulder after church Sunday. Sunday evening, we had Dan & Amy over for dinner. We had a great time!

Garrett is 11 months old! He is starting to say Yeah and no no. He signs food/eat. He's pretty quick at walking around, quite independent.

Here's what the back yard is looking like. The patio is finished!

Yes, this is a photo of GRASS growing in our back yard. It's pretty exciting around here.

Here's Sabastian on his new bed that I made him.

This is just plain cute. :-)

We had a cookout for the Deaf church/community Thursday. It was hot and sticky, but great! We had several visitors, 2 of which were first timers. We just started meeting on Sundays again. It was nice to be back! (We had been meeting on Fridays due to lack of classroom space.)

Back yard renovations

Well, my first official Mother's Day was spent working in the back yard with my parents and husband! Thanks for everyone's hard work! Over the course of a few weeks, we have transformed what was once just dirt and weeds (and some dog surprises) into a new patio, garden, and play place for Garrett! There's lots more work to be done, but things are getting better and better. I also started growing my very first vegetable garden! They are called pyramid gardens, and you're supposed to be able to plant 3 times the plants as regular rows. So far, so good- well, except for the animal who has been eating the seeds and stealing the seedlings!! I've got some chicken wire to put up before I replant any seeds. Humph. Here's some pictures!

Blake's grandparents and cousin & her family were here last weekend. It was a very nice visit. We spent some time outside enjoying the weather. One of the days we invited everybody over to grill for dinner.
Garrett's 10 months old! Recently, he has learned how to "dance," and is now signing about 5 words (milk, more, diaper, bye bye, please...). He can take about 10-15 steps on his own now and continues to love any kind of food we put before him! :-) He weighs 18 lbs 13 oz and is 28.75" tall as of this morning's dr. visit.

9 months old

Garrett had a rough start to being 9 months old. Last Sunday night (the 19th) we went to the E.R. as Garrett had a 103.7 temp. The hospital reading was 105! Poor baby had all kinds of tests and it was decided he probably had an ear infection. I think we left a little after 2 AM. *yawn* Thank the Lord, he is doing so much better now!! He is also standing better and better, can push a walker across the room, and is taking 1 step on his own. He also is signing "more" and clapping. Acutally, they are the same thing- you need context to know the difference, ha ha. As always, here's some pics...

Showing off his Bears outfit from Uncle Shawn & Aunt Lisa

Standing and taking 1 step!
(and yes we put an Illini jersey under the Bears outfit, ha ha)

"First Kiss" - Julie's girl Willow gets a kiss.
(Garrett loves to give kisses!)

9 months old!

and here's a video of Garrett laughing his head off. sorry the lighting is terrible!