A Walk in the Rain

Monday morning Christian and I went on a walk with Lindy and Anya, despite the fact that we'd been having torrential rains off and on from the hurricane that hit the coast. It wasn't raining at the time, so we figured we were safe...ha! We got to the destination on our walk (the river front where the ducks and geese hang out) and it started to rain, and rained on us until we got back to the cars. Fortunately the kids were mostly covered in their strollers, but Lindy and I were soaked! Of course we didn't have umbrellas either! (And on top of all that, Lindy was one day over due....sorry for dragging you through that!) But the kids didn't mind and they were so happy to splash in the puddles and throw rocks in them once we made it back to the cars. And this is a big step for Christian--we are slowly learning how to share and sharing a rock is a prized possession!

18 Month Stats...a little late

On August 7, Christian went in for his 18 month check up (although he was about 19.5 months), and here are the stats:

Height: 33.75 inches (77%)
Weight: 25 lbs 6 oz (37%)
Head Circ: 48.5 inches (63%)

He is growing well and staying right on the growth curves he's been on since birth. We are so blessed to have such a healthy little boy! Besides good health, Christian is also blessed with a great memory, which did not serve him well at the doctor. The 18 month check-up was a little traumatizing, with him crying every time the doctor or nurse entered the room, and him being terrified of everything they did, including standing on the scale (which he refused to do), measuring his head, and listening to his heart. But I supposed he was rightfully nervous, for he did have to get two shots in the end. But he was a tough little guy! And we went to the park to celebrate.

Squirt Bottles

Christian loves to play with the squirt bottle and calls is the "ch, ch, ch." (You know, the sound it makes when it squirts.) He used to just love to suck the water out the nozzle, but he has recently figured out how to actually make it squirt. The other day I was doing laundry and he climbed into the empty laundry basket with his squirt bottle and started squirting. To his surprise it was going into his mouth! So he opened up wide and every time the water went in, he just laughed hysterically. Unfortunately I wasn't fast enough with the camera to get the best laughs, but you get the idea. And by the end of this activity, he was soaked, and so was every wall in sight. Water is such a fun toy! (Sorry about the loud background noise, the washer was going.)

Monkey Joes

We went to this fun place called Monkey Joe'swith some friends in the ward, full of blow up toys and slides for kids to play on. Christian had so much fun jumping and bouncing and going down the mini slides.
This alligator he is standing on was his favorite

Christian and Riley

Covered Bridge Hike

On Saturday our friends took us to this awesome place near our house to go hiking. We hiked along a path by a river that led to a dam with a waterfall. It was a gorgeous sight with all the green! But the best part about it was the awesome covered bridge at the beginning of the trail with a big pile of rocks by it.

Off to get some rocks!

Coming back with their treasures!

Throwing rocks way down into the river

Christian could have spent the whole day running down the bridge, filling his hands with rocks, running back, throwing them into the river, and then doing it all over again.. He was in heaven!

But instead we continued on our hike with the Salmons.

When we got to the dam, we climbed down to the river, and all Christian wanted to do was play in the water, but it was muddy and slippery and the water was too deep. He wasn't very happy that I made him hold my hand.

Eventually he got his way and sat all by himself on a rock. He is very independent these days. :)

As you can see he had way too much fun in the mud...
By the time we made it back to the car, he definitely looked like an orphan child. I just love that dirty little face!

Falcons Birthday Party

For my birthday I decided that I wanted to go to my first NFL game and cheer on our Atlanta Falcons. On Friday night we went to the preseason game of the Atlanta Falcons vs Tennessee Titans. We had great seats thanks to the Martins and it was a cool atmosphere. Everybody acts like they are the best of friends during the game, giving high fives or sharing your two-bits about how the team is doing and their potential. Some of this camaraderie could be associated with the amount of alcohol that was consumed, but nonetheless it is entertaining. Atlanta beat the Titans 17-3 and Matt Ryan looks like he has the potential to be a good quarterback in the NFL.

I have never had an NFL team to cheer for except for the teams that BYU players were on so I have officially become a Atlanta Falcons fan. Camille and Christian helped me in this quest by giving me a hat and shirt for my birthday.

The Merkleys and Martins

Vince Young was amazing to watch in person

View from our seats

Christian's Musical Skills

Christian's sense of rhythm amazes us at times. I contribute his rhythmic skills to living in the south where people have plenty of rhythm even at a very young age. One thing that I know is that Christian didn't get any type of rhythmic genes from myself.




Christian loves playing the piano and most of the time it isn't too loud. We hope that he continues to love the piano. I love playing the piano and it something that I enjoy doing in my free time.

Playing Outside

Christian had so much fun playing outside in Grandma and Grandpa's backyard. He had a very hard time adjusting to being back in an apartment with out all these fun things to do! Grandma and Grandpa were the best pushers. Christian never wanted me to push if they were around. And "push" was one of Christian's new, and probably most used, words in Utah. He occupied that swing for many minutes a day!

Playing in the sandbox
Christian learned how to jump on a trampoline, something he'd never done before. The first time he tried it, it was quite entertaining! He just used his arms and made them go up and down. Eventually he figured it out and could even jump with both feet at the same time. He alse learned to do a somersault on the trampoline, but can't quite get all the way over on the ground yet.

Sometimes Christian liked to jump:



And sometimes he just liked to run and crash!



Grandma took us to her friend's house who had a nice pond and seven ducks!

Christian learned what fun a hose is.
And how good it tastes! He is do deprived of all these fun things living in an apartment.
Christian also loved pushing Simon's lawnmower around. Thanks for sharing Simon!

Thanks Mom and Dad for everything while we were there! We had a great time and miss being there! We love you!

Great-Grandma and Grandpa Gurr

Christian got to meet his Great-Grandma and Grandpa Gurr for the first time while we were in Utah. We were so glad they came up just in time to see us before we headed home. Thanks for making the trip!

And Happy 80th Birthday to Grandma! We love you!

A last Hoorah with the Merkleys

For our last get together with the Merkleys before Taylor and Grammy headed to Milwaukee and Christian and I headed home, we had a fun picnic dinner at the Cinderella Park, where I hadn't been in years!
Christian loved riding the pumpkin,
and the horse,
and climbing in the tunnels.
And he really enjoyed the new t-ball set Grammy got to play with. He's getting very good at it!
Christian and Papa
Grammy and her grandchildren in the pumpkin

Christian and Grammy

Grammy and Papa with all their grandchildren!

And then on Friday we met Papa, Connor, Camille and Kaitlin for lunch for one last goodbye. Thank you for everything while we were there! We had a wonderful time and miss you already!

Irrigation Day

Christian got to discover the fun of irrigation day at Grandma and Grandpa's house for the first time. We wish we could join the fun more often!
Fishing with Grandma in the big lake
Waiting for the fish to float down the tube

Playing in the water with Grandpa

Hogle Zoo

We went to Hogle Zoo with Grammy and Aunt Camille while we were in Utah, which was a lot of fun for Christian! He has come to love the zoo, as we have enjoyed using our pass here in Atlanta regularly. Unfortunately the elephant display was under construction the day we went, so we missed out on those, but there was still plenty to see...


When we pointed out the bear to Christian he said, "Ball!" Of course he would be more interested in the big hanging ball than the bear.
Those lion fountains are still there!

Grammy, Christian and Camille infront of the elephant exhibit we didn't see

And we even got to ride the train! Christian thought it was very neat....
This was the look on his face the whole train ride, just taking it all in.
And then he had lots of fun playing on the playground.
Crawling in the turtle shell,
and inside the eggs. I love the look on his face in this picture.

And riding down the snake slide with Camille!
And you can't leave the Hogle Zoo without playing with the big rolling ball. Christian was in heaven!
Thanks for the fun zoo trip, Grammy and Camille!