8/12

Maybe you find a pretty mural on the day before the last day of the month and you still have yet to take your monthly family picture because you're not lazy, you're busy and you're never home this month and back to now--you're probably wearing Griz stuff because you just watched half of a football game in the pouring rain (although that's not why you're wearing the stuff, you just are because you're a good fan) and so you stop at the mural even though you look ridiculous and your husband gives you one shot and you take it with your phone on the ground in the middle of a parking lot (and if there's anything more terrifying than the fact that your phone [read-whole life] could be crushed by oncoming traffic at any time, I don't know what that thing would be) and you take your one shot and it's decent and so you take it and run. You're running because it's raining. Again. And you are a dumb mom who didn't pack a coat for her baby or herself or her husband. But that can be remedied with beers for the adults and apple juice for the baby.

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Maddox Currently

Maddox is currently 17 months and he...

Shakes his head no. Possibly my new favorite talent that Maddox can do. If you ask him a yes or no question he will always, always shake his head no. And sometimes it is accompanied by a "Ni, ni, ni." Which is his very adorable way of saying "no."

Climbs in chairs and sits like a big boy. At some point over the last few weeks, Maddox has learned that climbing in chairs and sitting like a big boy is the bees knees. And so, every chair that he sees he must sit in. It really doesn't matter if it's an arm chair or a folding chair or a chair that is slightly too high off the ground--this little monkey will grab hold and squirm his way into the chair and pull himself up by his teeth if he has to. Then he flips around and sits on his bottom, looks at me and lets out one laugh: the loudest, cutest "AH HA!" And gives the biggest grin for his accomplishment. 

Cuddles. There was a point in time where this little love was over any and all cuddles. It broke my heart for a few minutes but now he's back at it. Maybe it's the new teeth he's getting or the fact that he wasn't feeling well a few weeks ago. Whatever it is, if you ask him for a cuddle, he'll run up to you and wrap his arms around your neck and lay his head on your shoulder and sit with you for minutes on end. He's fallen asleep on both Evan and I in the past week this way and it's almost like having a new born and I am seriously not complaining.

Loves "This little piggy..." This is his very favorite game to play. Ever. In the history of the world. I do it one time and this kid signs "more! more! more!" over and over again until I've literally said "this little piggy" four hundred and nine times and he's still not over it. I like it switch it up a little bit because one can only handle it so many times but it really is his very favorite. It's so much his favorite that if he's in the mood for some toe tickles, he will come up to my bare feet and grab my big toes and say, "Diiiiiiis! Diiiiiiiis!" until I tell him the story of his little piggies.

Has stinky piggies. I bought Maddox some Keen sandals at the beginning of the summer. And those things reek. I mean, I did not know that baby shoes could smell so rank. But they can. And so, we started smelling his feet and saying, "PEEEEE YOOOOU!" And now if we say, "Maddox, do you have stinky piggies?" He sticks his foot in the air or in our faces and about dies of laughter when we say, "PEEE YOU!" But seriously guys, they stink.

Insists on feeding himself. There is hardly any meal where Maddox isn't in charge of his own spoon and/or fork. Things get slightly messy around here so I try and stick to finger foods that are easily cleaned off of baby, high chair, floor and me. Ha.

Knows what sounds a... cat says (more like "mow" and less like "meow"). A crocodile/gator chomps (he claps his hands together. It's adorable.). Roars like a bear (which sounds eerily similar to a lion).

Signs: "More." Has mastered "thank you." We're working on "you're welcome."

New words: Baaah! (Ball).

8/12 [a year of dates]

We've known for most of this year that August would be the craziest month we've probably maybe ever had. Between a friends wedding, a trip to Denver, shooting a wedding, a staff retreat (for Evan) and taking my brother back to school, we were looking at being in town for a total of like five days. We checked our calendar for possible date nights and I am not kidding when I say there were three. THREE DAYS where we could have a date. And all but one of those days fell on the day before vacation, which if you know anything about me, you know that I am like a last minute pro when it comes to anything and so the day before a vacation is like the most hectic and worst day ever.

So we took that one golden day and we held on tight. Evan even took the entire day off of work so that we could have literally ONE day just us. Because we are out of town every weekend this month. So we needed just some family time.

And also a date.

We went to a quaint little vodka and gin distillery for some Moscow Mules because those have become my mascot for the month of August. I had a huckleberry one in Yellowstone and now I'm hooked. I used to hate them and now I love them and I tell every single person about how amazing they are and I spend a lot of time researching where I can buy the perfect copper mug because I have yet to fine THEE mug and they just aren't the same when you drink them out of a mason jar even though that's also adorable.

ANYWAY.

This little distillery used to be my favorite bar when I was a young bar hopper (I now avoid most bars like the plague). But then it closed down literally a week after Evan turned 21 (sad) and recently reopened to this. It's perfect and I love it and I forgive those four years I lost because now the crowd is much older and classier. Which is now my kind of place.

And also perfect for a little date night action. Raspberry & Blackberry Moscow Mules = hashtag perfection.

We also got pizza and watched some football and then made homemade MM's because, you know. Can't stop/won't stop or whatever.

The weekend

This past weekend my little family trekked it south for a wedding in Yellowstone. I've been maybe two times and I live two hours from one entrance and three from another. I mean, get it together girlfriend.

One of Evan's besties was getting married and Evan was in the wedding so we rented a little condo in Gardiner with some friends and spent some time in the park hunting all the animals (not with guns, just with our eagle eyes) and Evan spent some time up close and personal with a mama grizzly and her baby. YEP.

It was a total blast and I cannot wait for Maddox to be a little bit older so he can enjoy it even more. Although, on our way out of the park we stopped to watch some buffalo grazing on the side of the road (fairly close to us and Evan + our friends Erin and Logan got OUT OF THE CARS and were all, "These things look so nice but they're so mean! They can run 40mph and jump 8ft! We're going to stand out here!" And I sat in the car because I am chicken and also I did not want to die by being mauled by a buffalo tribe (you guys, I HATE buffalo). Anyway, where I was going with this story is that we were pulled over and I rolled down the back window so that Maddox could look out and he pointed right to the buffalo and said, "OOOOH!" So, I know he enjoyed it just a teensy bit, but it will be SO. MUCH. FUN. when he's a little bit older.

We woke up at 4:30 on Friday morning to get into the park before anyone else. I lovelovelove early mornings on vacation. I will get up super early to get a jump on my day. And I don't care what anyone else wants to do. You either come with or you don't. BUT I'M GOING.

Our goal was to get to the Canyon by sunrise. We wanted to hike down to it and watch the sun come up through the Canyon and over the falls. But that plan was foiled by this adorable bear cub and its mama. We came around a corner and saw a handful of people staring at a hill and so we stopped, hoping for something good (because Lord knows everyone stops for chipmunks and antelope and I have those things in my backyard on the daily, I don't need to stop for them in the YNP). No one would tell us what they were looking at, which was annoying but my gosh people are rude in that place.

We finally figured out that there were bears on the hill and so, Evan, being the crazy that he is, walked all the way up the road to just below the bears. I mean, he had half a hill at a pretty great slope between them, but I was like a million miles back. The bears casually moved down the hill into picture taking range and then eventually on the road, like a couple hundred feet from where Evan was hanging out. There was a park ranger with them who was keeping everyone in check but I was just like, "Ya'll are dumb." And I headed back to the car because I wasn't about to get mauled by a grizzly in the YNP. Also, the baby was losing its mind--crying and grunting and growling because it was so uncomfortable. The mama was just eating bugs and wandering around, oblivious to the fact that her baby was not loving life. But dang, that baby is so adorable.

We finally got to the falls much later than we had anticipated (hashtag worth it) and Maddox LOVED it. He just wanted to run around on the little platform (terrifying!) and kept pointing at the water and yelling "hey! hey!" He's adorable. It's true. The hike is 3/4 of a mile like straight up and down and Evan carried him down AND up because he's the best and I had a mild heart attack on the way back up because apparently I am very much out of shape and my lungs hate me. We hung out on the waterfall for a good little while because we couldn't get over how breathtakingly beautiful it was. That whole area is so magnificent and I was in awe the entire time.

Maddox was obviously the cutest attendant to the wedding on Saturday. That little bow tie! His button up striped shirt! His face! Presh. The only thing even coming close to Maddox would be my bestie Erin and I. We matched on accident. Maybe on purpose. I told her I was wearing a coral colored dress and then changed my mind last minute so that when she showed up we were like, "Oh! Whoops!" No one was surprised.

On our final morning, we drove back home through the park because our goal was to see some moose. Moosen? Mooses? Meese? (ha. ha. ha.) We didn't see any. We saw another bear and about a bajillion buffalo and we climbed down to the river/waterfall and Evan and Logan hiked up the river (Logan is that tiny lime green dot in that first picture of the collage) and over a million boulders to get to the waterfall and the rest of us stayed at the river and threw rocks and laughed at foreigners because we are mean. But we are the smart ones because Evan smashed up his knee and Logan lost a flip flop and then those two had to hike all the way back up all battered and shoeless while the rest of us chuckled because like I said, we're mean.

But all in all, it was a wonderful vacation. I'm so blessed that this place is basically my backyard (give or take a few hundo miles). It's so beautiful and I'm so glad I was able to experience it with my friends. I mean, family vacas are always a good time but adding our friends to the mix was just the best thing ever.

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The other night Maddox and I were winding down outside. It's my favorite time of the day when we can just sit outside and play together. Usually I bring a book and call it a success if I can read more than a page. Usually he finds a toy (like that new BFF rock) and he throws it at the cat and the dog and wanders around picking up dirt and sticks and leaves and pulling all of my flowers off of my plants.

Those are our evenings.

But this particular evening I was sitting in my chair when I realized it was quiet. I looked up from my spot on the end of the table to see that my sweet baby boy had climbed in his own chair and was sitting quietly playing with that little rock. I sprinted inside to get my camera and prayed that he would still be sitting in his chair when I returned (he's the master of moving positions when he's being especially cute). I snapped these real quick before my battery died (of course) but they're perfect.

I want to keep these nights forever and ever. I know that the next stage will bring super fun things and make me love this boy even more than I do right this very second as I contemplate going and waking him up just so I can hear his laugh and cuddle him BUT. I love this stage so dang much. Everything. He's so perfect, it makes my heart swell. I am so lucky that he's mine. 

This, forever and ever

Letting him be little.