Independence Day

For Independence Day, we had a family BBQ at my parents' house.  The whole family was there, except for my sister Sarah and her family, and we had a great time!  It poured rain almost all day, so there was definitely a different feel to the holiday.  The kids had fun inside playing together.  Grayson and my niece and nephew sat at the island coloring while we were getting lunch ready.  Grayson has really been getting into coloring lately.  He knows how to say 'color' and 'crayons.' Which is nice because then he can let me know when he wants to color.

She has the cutest grin!

The older kids were helping my mom get her house put back together after the remodeling at their house finally got finished.  They got the toy room all organized so the kids were able to play in there.

My husband has become the designated grill master since we got here for the summer.  Luckily, he loves to grill, so he doesn't mind too much.  It also helps that he makes a really, really good burger.

After a delicious lunch in which we stuffed our faces in the true American tradition, my nieces and nephews played some games.  Grayson 'plays' too, but mostly he just likes to steal the pieces.

Playing 'Pop the Pig'

Wrestling with Grandpa.  Grayson was not sure how he felt about this.

Rocking with MaryBeth.

Playing Mouse Trap

We ate, played games and of course talked and talked.  The kids watched a movie after dinner and then we headed home.  We are so lucky to be here and be able to spend time with family.

18 months old

I wanted to just post a few fun things about Grayson.  He is going to be 18 months old on Sunday and I can't believe it!  He is getting to be quite the big boy.  He is talking more and more every day.  He really loves trains, I made the mistake of introducing him to Thomas the Train cartoons.  Ever since then I am frequently greeted in the morning with him pointing to the TV and saying "trains?"  If he sees trains anywhere, on a shirt, anything, he gets really excited and keeps talking about it long after we have moved on.  He loves to read books and he absolutely loves the water!!  We recently got him bubble bath and he went nuts!  I thought he loved baths before, but his enjoyment just went up exponentially.  He also really loves rocking chairs, especially when he can climb into them by himself.  He is becoming very independent.

He has learned all the motions to the song "Popcorn Popping" and I think it is one of the cutest things I have ever seen!

He loves corn!  He is a huge mooch when it comes to food.  If you are eating he is immediately your best friend, it does not matter how recently he has eaten either.  He is a little hobbit, what can I say.  This corn on the cob was stolen from his cousins plate after I cut him off one Sunday family dinner.  He had been trying to mooch at the adult table, so he went to the kid's table and stole food from my niece.  He also loves blueberries, but he also likes to feed us as you can see.

Overall, he is a good eater, always willing to try things.  So far the only absolute no is plain broccoli.  He will eat it in things, but not by itself.  

He has also been really into trying on other people's shoes lately.  He will put on anyone's shoes that are sitting around.  Recently, he 'learned' how to whistle.  He heard my mother-in-law whistling and he put his lips together and then squealed really high pitched.  He is very proud of his skills.

In short, my kid is a genius and I love him!!  

Our Summer

I caught Grayson eating butter when I was cooking dinner the other day.  I couldn't resist taking a picture.

On another note (awkward segue I know), we got a membership to the Huntsville Botanical Gardens and have been taking advantage of going there.  We met my mom and my sister and her kids one afternoon for some fun in the children's garden.  I forgot to bring Grayson's swimsuit, but I had extra clothes so in he went!  My niece Anna was so sweet and kept a good eye on him. 

Playing in the water.

After we left the water features, Grayson and his cousin David, got a ride in the wagon.   We headed to the Farmer's market and artists' stroll downtown.  

While we were walking to the Farmer's market, my mom and I passed the house where Trevor and I had our wedding reception almost six years ago.  It was so fun to go by that beautiful building and remember that wonderful day.

Trevor met us at the Farmer's Market after he got done with work and we had some dinner and strolled through the various vendor booths.  It was a really fun night!

Grayson's Haircut

Trevor and I gave Grayson his first haircut when he was almost one.  We used Trevor's clippers and it was too short for our liking.  We tried again a couple months ago trying to just trim a little bit and it didn't end too well.  We stopped before it got too bad so you couldn't really tell, but we realized we were going to have to seek professional help at this point.  Also, now Grayson hates the noise the clippers make so their were many tears in our poor attempt at his second haircut.

When we got here to Alabama, we found a special salon just for kids and decided to give it a shot.  I was really pleased with how it went.  The girl who cut his hair was really quick and did a great job.  He got to sit in a train that he could drive and watch a cartoon while they cut his hair.

Afterwards, they gave him a balloon and he played with it for days.  He was so excited about it.

A Visit From the Utah Moore's

We were blessed to have my husband's parents come out for a visit for a whole week!  It was one action packed incredibly busy week, but we had a lot of fun while they were here.  I picked them up on Tuesday afternoon from the airport and thanks to Skype, Grayson recognized them right away.  He was really excited to see them and he really loved being at the airport.  

We had a fun first evening together and had fun planning what we were going to do.  The next morning, we went to Earlyworks Children's Museum.  It is all hands on and just for kids.  Grayson had a great time.  There is a section especially for toddlers called Biscuit's Backyard and he had a blast.  He spent about 90% of the time at this cool water table.  By the time we left, he was soaked on one side of his body, but he was so happy.

The first thing he went for.

Doing some gardening with Grandpa.

The new cashier is pretty cute.

After we left Biscuit's Backyard, we went to explore the rest of the museum.  They have a huge state map of Alabama on the floor and the inside is set up with different buildings for the kids to explore.  There was a store, a log cabin, a river barge, a mine and some other fun things.  The kids could dress up and so I had to put a coon skin hat on Grayson, and surprisingly he actually put up with it.

They also had a talking tree that would tell various stories about Alabama history.  At first Grayson was a little leary when it started talking and he backed up a little bit.  After he got use to it though he really liked it and kept coming back to it to hear more stories.  He would walk around looking for it and saying "tree, tree" it was really cute.

The last section we went to had a bunch of building blocks and a train table and Grayson was in his element.  When we had to leave he was really upset, but I guess that is a good thing because he was having a lot of fun

Trains with Grandpa.

After the museum, we met Trevor for lunch near his work.  We had a delicious lunch and Grayson really liked being able to see his daddy during the day.  After Grayson's nap we went swimming at our apartment pool which was a lot of fun.  

The next day was my father in law's birthday so I made some sourdough pancakes for breakfast and we enjoyed a relaxing morning.  After breakfast we headed off to Scottsboro so we could go to the Unclaimed Baggage Center.  Trev's parents got tired of hearing how wonderful this store is and they wanted to experience it for themselves.  Let's just say they were true believers by the end of our visit.  It is always a fun lace to visit because you never now what you are going to find.  Due to a little car trouble, we ended up spending the afternoon at home.  In the evening thanks to my wonderful mother, we met up with Trevor downtown at the Farmer's Market.  Unfortunately, it was a slow day there due to weather but we still had fun looking around. Then we headed to our favorite BBQ place for a celebratory birthday dinner.  We had a delicious meal as we always do at Greenbriar and Grayson thoroughly enjoyed all the food especially because he got to try some of everybody's food.  There was a little girl about his age at the table next to us and they had a great time making faces at each other and flirting, it was pretty cute.  We were all stuffed to the gills by the time we left, but it was a good meal.  When we got home, we had time for birthday cake and then watched a movie.

Friday we went garage sale shopping and out to lunch.  Then while Grayson was taking a nap, Trev's parents went to some antique stores with my mom.  We had a fun evening of playing games as a family.

The next day we drove to Chattanooga, TN and spent the day at the aquarium.  We had so much fun!  The aquarium is the best I have ever been to and we had so much fun.

Stingray bay!  We got to pet some stingrays and it was awesome.

A butterfly landed on my hand and Grayson got to hold it.

Grayson loved the penguins!!!

This is as close to a shark I ever want to get.

After we went through the salt water aquarium, we went to the IMAX theater and saw a movie which was really good.  Grayson did a great job and enjoyed his first theater experience.  He even put the 3D classes on for a few minutes.  After the movie we went to a restaurant nearby for lunch before heading to the fresh water aquarium.  Grayson was worn out and fell asleep immediately when we got to the restaurant.  

Having a rest with his new penguin buddy.

Enjoying a delicious lunch.

Then it was on to the fresh water aquarium!

Grayson wanted to pet this snake multiple times.  I thought it was funny.

Father's Day we went over to my parents' house for a big family dinner after church.  We ate and played games, it was a good day.

On Monday we spent the day in Tennessee again, but a little closer to home this time.  We went to Falls Mill, which is a still functioning historic water wheel mill.  We took a tour of the inside and the beautiful grounds and enjoyed the store upstairs.  We bought some tasty pancake mix and other grains that we are excited to try.

They had an old player piano that Grayson really like, he wanted to hear it over and over.

Behind the mill.

Dancing with grandma.

After we left the mill, we headed to my parents' cabin and enjoyed the afternoon there.  It was a beautiful day to sit on the dock and chat.  We also took the paddle boat out for a spin too and had a great time.  After Grayson woke up from his nap, he played for a while and then we headed back home.  

On their last day, we went to the Huntsville Depot Museum.  Grayson loves trains so he was in heaven here!  They have old train cars that you can walk through and we got to explore each one.  

When we got on the engine, the first thing he went for....the puddle of water left there by the rain.  He was crawling around in it and got soaked but in the Alabama heat he dries pretty quickly.  He had fun ringing the bell of the engine and then we moved to the other cars.

Sitting in the caboose.

There was an old fire engine and the first thing he wanted to see was the stuffed dog sitting on the fire engine.

Blowing the horns and whistles!

Next we headed to the 'Little Toots' area.  We were the only ones there so Grayson had free reign to play with all of the cool toys.

Driving a truck.

He was giving the baby kisses, I hope this is foreshadowing of his behavior with any future siblings.

It was a whirlwind trip, but we packed in as much fun as we could.  Grayson sure loved having his grandparents here.  He would run into their room as soon as they would open the door in the morning. It was partially because of the air mattress (man did he love playing on that thing), but it was mostly because he loves his 'papas.' That's right he still calls both of them papa, but hey it works.  How lucky we are to have such wonderful family!

Day in Decatur and Beyond

We spent a day in Decatur hanging out with my sister and her kids.  My friend and her family was able to come too and we had an awesome day.  We started out at the splash pad which of course Grayson loved.  He loves playing with his cousins and they were so great to keep an eye on him.  They showed him all of the fun spots and helped him reach some of the higher toys and water.  I love watching him interact with other kids.

For some reason, Grayson thinks my nephew Trent is the funniest kid in the world.  He laughs hysterically whenever he sees him.  It is pretty entertaining.

He saw the boys under the water and he just laughed and laughed, but he would not venture in himself. He didn't like the taller water features that would get water on his head, but this splash pad was great and had lots of varieties so he had a great time.

After lunch and a nap for the littler kids, we went to Cook's Natural Science Museum.  I went to this museum a lot when I was a kid and it was so much fun to be able to take my own son.

He ran right up to these bears and started jabbering away.  He was very fascinated by them.

This alligator scared me to death when I was a kid, but my tough boy just wanted to pet him.

Watching the fish.

He was very determined to pick up this meteorite.

I went to the Huntsville Botanical Gardens with my mom on morning and we had a great time.  I hadn't been in a long time and I was really impressed with everything they have done over the years.  They have a children's garden which is awesome!  There are tons of water features that the kids can play in, a butterfly house and so much more.  We visited the butterfly house first and Grayson loved all the turtles they had there.  He even got to pet a few.  

As usual, I had to hold him back to keep him out of the water.  I felt bad, but we were meeting some friends for lunch at the Botanical Garden's cafe and we didn't have a lot of time.  He did get to play with this little frog fountain, so at least he was able to play with some water.  

Grayson has started to dance and it is so cute.  He likes to dance with a partner too, mostly he likes to spin around.  When we turn music on he will start to dance.  Sometimes he even asks us to turn some music on.  

Grayson got to play with some worms while my mom was gardening and he was very interested.  We had been doing some digging and he was also loving playing in the dirt too.  After the end of that afternoon he was absolutely filthy.  He would go from the water feature to the dirt in the garden.  Things are just as they should be, little kids should get dirty and play with bugs, I love seeing my little man exploring the world around him.  He can't get enough of playing outside.