Sick Little Lovie

Parker in a special moment. He is always after the remote. So when I'm feeling generous, I take the batteries out and give it to him. No, the t.v. was not on.
Two weeks ago, Parker had a cold that turned into pneumonia. We did antibiotics, steroids, nebulizer treatments, 3 trips to the doctor and less sleep than normal (for Parker and I, don't fret your pretty little head worrying about Brett). The first nebulizer treatment at the doctors office took both Brett and I holding Parker down. He was screaming and thrashing about. By the time it was done, Parker's hair was soaking wet from sweat and he even had sweaty pit marks on his shirt. Thank goodness the other treatments were easier! I must admit, I was hoping that since he was so sick, he would be a little lethargic but alas, Parker was as active as ever- just cranky. That little sweatheart is all better now!

Fall Festival

Parker and Brett.

In September, we went to a local fall festival. It was really great for being such a small town. Our ward had a booth set up about food storage and two famililes are now taking the discussions.
Ahh, how cute. Parker's first run in with the police.

There was a free petting zoo at the festival. It was really large, with a variety of animals. I think I enjoyed it as much as Parker. This cute cow followed Parker around most of the time he was there.

We had a blast chasing the ducks and chickens, till we found out we weren't supposed to.

This was a huge yak/cow/? that was laying down. Parker walked over, grabbed his horns and shook his head back and forth. I was sure Parker had upset him, but he just layed there.

Momma's big walkin boy!

Parker thought the bunnies were all right, but he really liked the big animals and the moving animals.

I cannot imagine driving one of these...

But Parker was ready to try!

A balloon topped the day off.

Minty Fresh

Minty Fresh Breath Boy
The Evidence

Last month, Parker was apparently able to reach a pack of gum from the pack n play while we were watching the W triplets. It was one of those "its too quiet" moments when I realized something was wrong. Luckly there was no damage, just minty fresh breath. He chewed one piece of gum with the wrapper on, but spit it out.

Parker's First Haircut

Before
Before

After

After

The first haircut was needed but kinda sad. Granna cut his hair and I kept a little for the baby book. I wished I had kept some of his newborn hair for the baby book, oh well.

The Great Minnesota Get Together

Best Fair Food this year: Deep Fried Pickles, way better than the previous year.
My mom loves the french fries.

Turns out Parker does too! Parker inhaled the french fries and cheese curds, thats my boy!

Courtney and Parker got matching cow tattoos (we got a little worried when it wouldn't wash off with scrubbing for four days, BUT it was temporary thank goodness)

Footlong corn dog. We've learned that Corn Dawgs is the best, much better than pronto pup.

The crowd.

Doesn't he look like a sleepy turtle here?

Minnesota State Fair 2010. Oh, the long awaited fair. We missed it last year because of a certain newborn who had come our way. The year before that was my first year. I was a skeptic at first, having moved 10 times I've been to my fair share of fairs (pun intended). But this fair is epic. It's number two in the nation, behind Texas but only because their fair runs longer. By daily attendance, we are number one. Our first year was a learning curve. Once you learn your way around, it becomes a lot easier to schedule. For example, buy the giant bucket of chocolate chip cookies BEFORE you go to the dairy barn, then sit down with your $1 unlimited glass of milk and voila! milk and cookies till you vomit. Also, don't go on senior day, those senior citz will run you down with the rentable electric wheelchair and cut you off in line (true story). Even my grandma won't go on senior day, nuff said. Finally, go in a group. This way, you can share food so you eat less which really means you save room to eat more. The one thing I missed this year, chicken fried bacon. But I did manage deep fried pickles (x2), cookies, milk, lemonade, corn dog, french fries and cheese curds. While standing in line for the corn dog, I told Brett "I've waited two years for this corn dog." and the woman in front of us gave me a smile. No, she was not making fun of me, she was saying, "its all worth it, isn't it?" cause she's from Minnesota and she understands. You truly won't believe it unless you see it. Minnesota State Fair 2011 anyone? The tickets set us back $22, $15 for parking, and $60 for food. Was it worth it? Heck yeah. I was this close to wearing elastic waist pants, but the good (bad) thing about bringing a baby is that he only lasted 4 hours, so I didn't need them. Next year I may look into the campgrounds available there and make it a two day event.

Going up North to the Lake

Grandpa Lindsay and Parker
Grandma Lindsay and Parker

Parker eating Nilla wafers with cousin Michael.

Parker playing with the cousins.

Parker enjoying the lake.

Me and my baby.

Our footprints in the sand.

In August, Brett's parents came for a two week visit. We spent some of that time at Brett's brother's lake house. Parker enjoyed the water and I got to see one of my favorite shops, Christmas Point. At the store, I found a couch that I liked, even if it was a bit pricey. But, instead of being able to buy two of those couches, we decided to fix the transmission on our car (ugg!).

Parker's First Birthday Party

Just some of the food. Nachos, hot dogs, chili, bbq beef, coleslaw, caramel popcorn, confetti cupcakes, animal crackers, fruit, veggie tray and candy were more than even the 30 guests could eat!
Some of the good company.

Party favors. Sippy cups filled with animal crackers.

Presents!

Just before the party started.

Parker LOVED playing with his baby friends!

Parker's cousins were sure to help open the gifts!

Sorry, I forgot to turn the picture. This is the free Byerlys cake that is available to custom order for baby's first birthday!

Parker enjoyed the attention when everyone sang to him and liked the cake too. He mostly ate the frosting and didn't get too messy.

Parker loved hitting the balloons Aunt Annie brought!

Yeah, I know Parker won't remember this and that it was mostly for me, but who wouldn't want to celebrate this guy? Plus, it was a good excuse to get the family and friends together. We loved seeing everyone, but I felt like I didn't get the chance to mingle as much as I wanted. Such is the life of a hostess! Parker missed his naps that day and I was really worried about a "its my party and I'll cry if I want to" scene. But, Parker was a great host and made sure to play with all his friends, smile when we sang to him, and shared his toys. What a guy!