Listen, I know this post is long overdue, but it has been a hellacious week. Please do not make me go into it right now. But we ended the week on a high note: Connor's 1st birthday party!

At Megan's request, we had an Elmo/Sesame Street party. Connor really does love Elmo, so it was a perfect fit.

The Elmo cake.



Connor's cake. Yes, red icing. Fun stuff.



First, we had sandwiches and fixings for lunch.



Then we had cake. I don't have any pictures of this, but the kids around him blew out the candles. He didn't seem to mind. Then, he wasn't quite sure about the icing.



He got into it a little more with Justin's help.



I'm not really smart sometimes, and it showed more than once today. Like the time I tied balloons to Connor's highchair....



He was red from head to toe.



The older kids played stick the nose on Elmo.



After a very much needed bath, Connor opened presents. He got some really fun toys, cute shoes, and some fashionable clothes.



This is Megan's present to Connor with a drawing of a pteranodon.



And, as almost a rite of passage, he got a big boy quad from Aunt Kelly/Aunt Taryn. The kids were all very helpful in showing him how to ride it...notice my slight concern?



As for the check-up details, we went to the Dr. on Friday. Connor looks great. He's 23 lbs 2 oz (50th percentile) and is 31 inches tall (75th percentile). He says: dog, down, shoes, hi, one, dada, mom-mom, and no-no. He's been walking for months and has now perfected a slight little run. He drinks from a cup instead of a bottle. He LOVES his sister, and the two of them play together pretty well. There's the occasional outburst, but they got along just fine most of the time. We no longer rock to sleep at night, as he would much rather just go to sleep on his own. If I try to rock him he gets rather annoyed. He has 5 teeth completely through and 3 more just hovering right at the gums. He claps; gives kisses; makes the sound of a dinosaur, cow, duck, and spits like a camel; knows/shows his head, tongue, and ear; and fake laughs/coughs and mimics like a dang parrot. He sure keeps life interesting around here. And he has the most infectious laugh. Happy birthday, Connor!!

Yesterday, we went to Megan's buddy Georgia's 4th birthday party at the zoo. We decided to spend the day out there as a family.

Connor was excited as soon as he got out of the car!



His pointer finger worked overtime. He had lots and lots of things to point at...animals, sister, etc.



Megan checking out the flamingos and the meerkats.





Meg being a big sister helper. She didn't mean to run into the tree once or twice.



Megan and Jackson feeding the birds.



And climbing all over the kangaroo.



Georgia, the beautiful birthday girl. And check out those cupcakes...my very talented friend, Kez, made the candies on top. Cute stuff!



The kids got to see:

a parrot (that said "Happy Birthday!" to Georgia)



an alligator



a possum (no pic) and a penguin



Both kids were exhausted after the party, so we headed out. Happy birthday, Georgia!

No offense to Grandpa, but I forgot to put these pictures up this weekend!!!

Grandpa waited until the ice melted off the roads and then came down for some snowy fun before it all melted away. Megan, Jayden, Karah and Grandpa played "sledding" which really translated into Grandpa running back and forth across the backyard while pulling 3 wiggly children. He referred to himself as the "one-man open sleigh". HEY!







Connor, the Fuss, stayed inside and gave me grief.



(Consequently, the presumed cause of all the recent grief broke through his top gums today. Welcome, Tooth #5.)

I used to have my own scrapbook room in this house. One that was my very own. But it has slowly turned into "our" scrapbook room. I don't mind at all. It's so fun to watch Megan's little, okay huge, imagination work. She tries hard to "follow the scrapbooking rules" (whatever those are) and loves to create. Aunt Krissa got her a Hello Kitty scrapbook kit for her birthday. Last night she Hello Kittied all over the place. And it was a hoot.





Her very first page, which was about her being a big sister. It says, "Big Sister" in her handwriting.

Okay people, despite the following pictures we STILL live in Texas. We had 2 days of record setting snow, with over 12 inches officially recorded. It snowed for over 24 hours, and it is still around.

Daddy and Megan got up at the crack of dawn yesterday morning to go make yet another snowman. Connor and I stayed warm and cozy in the house (well, except for when I ran out to snap a few pictures).







Meet "Joe Snow"


And then we tried snow again with Connor. The child does not like snow. Does not.




Megan spent several hours out in the snow over the past 2 days. And a little snow didn't stand in the way of her and her neighborhood friends playing on the play set. In fact, apparently it's really fun to throw snowballs at the person swinging! :)

Okay, I'm ready for it to all melt and float away. Fresh snow is pretty...dirty, melting snow is ugly. It sure was fun though!

Making snow angels


Mr. Connor isn't quite sure about the snow. He had his hands up in the air the entire time.


Then he fell and was really not happy about the snow.


Megan shared her snow with her brother. So sweet.


Megan cleaned off her slide.


Megan and I built a snowman.
Packing the base.


Making the body.


Putting the finishing touches on the face. We used Potato Head parts. Megan's idea.


Megan named him Frosty. Very original.




(Oh, and I took the pics of us building a snowman with my camera remote. That was VERY handy to have!!!)

Today was proof that my dad is perhaps the most patient man in the entire world. He called to say that he'd like to help us get our plants started for the spring and could he and Megan do that this afternoon. Of course. He brought the trays, dirt, seeds, and Jayden, and they all three got down to gardening business. Jayden and Megan proclaimed themselves to be "expert gardeners".

First they filled the trays with dirt.


Then they planted the seeds. I know this first one is a little blurry, but I loved her face - the concentration face.




And they watered them in...with a lot of water.




Unfortunately seeds do not instantly pop up, so it'll be 7-10 LONG days of "Can I check on my seeds?"

Also, my dad brought me my own herb garden! We are SO having something with basil tomorrow night for dinner.