happy halloween partner!

i wasn't sure what the dude was going to be for halloween this year...that was until i was in crazy 8's (cute kids store in dulles town center if you're not familiar with it) and saw these irresistible felt chaps!!  the price was absolutely perfect for them, and i figured i had enough time to find the other pieces of his costume.

thanks to grana, she was in the grocery store when she saw the sheriff's badge and gun set on clearance.  and then when she came for the dude's birthday she brought along an authentic junior cowboy's hat!  multipurposed his first birthday shirt and we were good to go!

so may i present to you...cowboy dude!

surprisingly, the dude kept his hat on pretty well. only a couple did he take it off and throw it to the ground.  

our first stop of the night was next door to the clay's house.  we were able to catch a shot of the two dudes in their costumes.  liam was a pretty rad monster!  graham scored some candy from a couple other houses, but call me a mean mommy...i didn't let him eat any of it.  i mean come on...the kid didn't even want to eat his chocolate birthday cake, why would i think he would like hershey's chocolate!  :)

hope everyone had a safe and fun halloween!

lazy sunday

we were all kind of cooped up in the house yesterday due to the snow, and sunday didn't seem to be much different.  no snow, but it just felt right to be a little lazy, hang out in our pj's, and watch some football!!  oh, and i made some beef stew.  yum!

not only did my boys appreciate a relaxing day...so did our little miss mojo!

snow-tober

what is going on?!  snow in october!!!  i've lived in northern virginia my whole life, and never have i remembered having snow before halloween!  craziness!!  it did accumulate on the grass, cars, pumpkins, tables, etc...but on the front step and sidewalks it was only really slush.  guess graham won't be out long in his costume since it's not a super warm one!

ps...sorry for the vertical videos.  i'm going to be better about taking the videos horizontally on my new iphone. new phone, new tricks!

new toys!

thanks again to everyone who gave the dude some pretty awesome toys for his birthday.  even though he has played with every single toy he got, i think it's safe to say he has a couple favorites!

uh oh

so i finally got a video of the dude saying 'uh oh!'  it only happens in the very beginning, so feel free to stop the video afterwards if you don't want to watch the rest!

5th tooth!

hmmmm, this probably didn't help the dude's mood at his party.  his 5th tooth (his upper left lateral incisor) cut through today.  from the looks of it, i don't think the upper right lateral incisor is too far away either!

cake part duex

here is our second attempt at birthday cake.  this was the night after his birthday party.  i'm not sure, but i think it's the texture of the icing that he doesn't like.  silly dude!

i'm having so much fun my dear, but i really 'mustache!'

the mustache bash was a success!  complete with mustaches for everyone, famous mustaches in history scattered on the walls, mustaches strategically placed on pictures and mirrors, and quite a cute little dude timeline.  

 

the dude had such a good time playing with his friends, it wasn't until it was time for cake that we had a little bit of a meltdown.  in his defense though, he wasn't really feeling well (we were at the doctors in the morning due to a cough...but he's fine), and he's starting to get used to just one nap a day.  so he was a little bit off his A-game.  

we didn't have much success with him getting covered in chocolate like i had hoped.  but we did have success putting him down for a little siesta and everyone else enjoyed his cake!

once the dude woke up from his nap he was very energized and ready for gifts!  thank you everyone!  i don't think there was gift he didn't like!  we even got him ripping the paper off presents at one point.  guess he's getting ready for christmas! 

all in all, i think the dude had quite the first birthday celebration. 

he might not know it yet, but he's one lucky dude.  he's got some of the best friends and family!

i know we had a blast...but now we really 'mustache!'

365 days. 8,766 hours. 31,556,926 seconds.

yes, our little dude is ONE!!!    he is officially a BIG dude!!  i can't believe the day is finally here.

dude, you have been so special to us.  i never thought i could love something or someone the way that i love you.  you light up a room with your smile and warm my heart with you cuddles.  as much as i don't want you to get any bigger, i can't wait to see what lies in store for you!

you will always have my love and support.
HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY DUDE!!!

stats:
 weight - 24lbs 10oz (76%)
height - 28 inches (5%)
head circumference - 19.75 inches (100%!)

here's what you've been up to:
- still wearing size 4 diapers during the day and 5's at night
- still sleep like a champ!
- not walking on your own yet but it definitely won't be long.  you're little mister independent and won't hold our fingers and walk, but you'll use pretty much anything else to help you move around.
- started saying 'uh oh'
- you've mastered the sippy cup
- you love to sit and read books and play peek-a-boo
- took your first flight to florida and did perfect!
- went to the ocean for the first time and LOVED it!
- you love pretty much anything with red sauce on it...pizza, pasta, raviolis, etc.
- you know how to hold your hands up for a 'touchdown'

grana is here!!!!

we are so excited....grana is here!!!

she flew in just for the little dude's birthday.

unfortunately grampa couldn't come this time, but we'll make sure he comes out the next time!  ;)  well and no worries...we'll be seeing all of you texas hertels in a few weeks!

grana bought the dude a new book with touch and feel animals.  he especially loves the last page...the baby hedgehog!  it's the spikey side of velcro.  too cute!

reduce, reuse and recycle

no, we don't need any expensive or high-end toys.  all the dude needs is some recyclable materials!

new word!

Uh-oh (expression)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Uh-oh is a ubiquitous interjection or expression of dismay in the English language, usually said in anticipation of something bad about to happen, with the sly admittance of guilt that one may have caused something bad to happen, or perceiving that something bad has already happened. The speaker often gives vent to the expression immediately upon learning or perceiving of something that presages disaster. It is an expression usually acquired very early in life, typically as early as the toddler stage. It is one of only a few words or phrases in English commonly pronounced with aglottal stop.

ze germans

only were we allowed to occasionally call ralf and isa "ze germans!"  over the past three years though, they have truly become two of our best friends (well four if you count pluto and leica).  we found out last week that they were suddenly going back to germany....for good!!!  we were heartbroken and literally in tears.  we only had one week left to spend with them.  not fair!!

we will miss:

 - sweet and spicy german mustard

 - budvar (sp?) 

- gluvine (sp?)

- authentic german meals

- get drunk in the driveway parties

- long walks with the dogs

- play dates for the dogs (and parents!)

- little wimp

- dance dance revolution

- 3d tv

- the murano

- going to our secret spot in algonkian park

- ralf

- isa

- lt. pluto

- leica

(and isa, how dare we....we didn't get a picture of the two of us at brunch before you guys left!!)

we love all of you, wish you safe travels, good luck in future endeavors, and see you soon!

time to start planning the sanner inaugural trip to germany!!

it's a mustache bash!

so this is a shameless plug for myself, but i'm pretty proud of the cute invitation i designed for the little dude's birthday.  hand drew the mustache and tie!  and i'm usually a pretty big self critic of my work, but this was an exception.  i think it turned out even better than what i saw in my head!!  

can't wait!!!

the disappearing dude!

peek-a-boo is by far one of the dude's favorite games.  he recently figured out he can use his plate when he's done eating to 'hide' behind.  i think it's hilarious how he smushes his face up against the back of the plate.  and i'm not sure if he's trying to say peek-a-boo or not, but maybe 'a-de-de-de' is how he says it?!

we're ready for some football!

florida family

we love our florida family so much!!!  and we're happy to have a new addition to the sanner family soon. a big congratulations to colin and stephanie who are officially engaged!!

and i'm SO happy that we got such a good family picture of the three of us.

home sweet home

as much fun as we had in florida, the dude was happy to be home as well.  it was like christmas all over again.  he had played with so many different toys in florida, the ones he had at home were like new again!

i think he was also happy to be able to stretch his legs.  :)

so long, farewell

unfortunately it's sunday, and that means we have to head home today.  :(

it also means i was stressing a little (not as much as the way down though) thinking about how graham was going to be on the plane.  the only reason why i was worried was because he slept the entire way to the airport....hmmmm....would he sleep on the plane?!

we again, munched on some melon and cereal before getting on the plane.  i had my bottle of milk ready for take off, and away we went.  he was definitely a little squirmier this time around, but we turned on yo gabba gabba and within 30 minutes or so the dude was fast asleep again.

the lady sitting next to us definitely wasn't as cool as the lady coming down to florida.  i could tell she was a little apprehensive about sitting next to the three of us.  but to her surprise, it was the kids in the row in front of us that were the loud ones!  graham didn't make a peep, and then he was asleep for the second half of the flight.  take that lady!!!

i got my bottle ready for the descent, but as you can see from the picture below, yeah....didn't need it.  the dude didn't wake up while we were descending, landing, or deplaning!!  he was wiped out!!

we all had a blast hanging out with everyone though and can't wait until we can do it again soon!

love all of you!

kool kousins!!

the little dude has some pretty 'kool kousins,' kaelin and kamrin!!!

i don't know what he's going to do when we get back home.  he's going to be so bored!  he had so much fun playing with both of them, reading books, playing in the ocean, visiting kaelin's school, and having his very first hot dog with them!

the dude is very lucky to have cousins like you.  can't wait until we see you again!!

beach cookout

couldn't have asked for better weather for our sanner family beach cookout!  80's, sunny and a slight breeze.  oh yeah...and the water temperature was about 78!!!  perfect!

we all met at the beach around 2 and commenced to play in the ocean.  the dude, once again, loved everything about the ocean, and was even crawling towards it!!  his appetite for sand was still there.  at least until i think he actually tasted it.  then it was hard for him to get the sand out of his mouth, with sand on his hands!  funny!

the dude got knocked over a couple times by some waves and didn't drink too much seawater, but i think it was enough for him to realize the ocean is stronger than him!  after the two fairly big tumbles and wash outs, he decided to just crawl around on the sand and play with his rake.  fine with me!!!  

we were going to make sure to put him in the water before we left so he could remember how awesome the ocean was, but yeah....dude wiped out!!!

and grady has mad skills on a steal of a deal charcoal grill on the beach.  even with wind. he cooked up some mighty delicious hamburgers and hotdogs.  thanks hun!!!

peek-a-boo

how did CB know that peek-a-boo was one of the dude's favorite games!!!