new nickname

Yesterday we came up with a nickname for Daniel. It is kind of long, but very descriptive of what he is up to lately as a busy 13-month old-
"Sticky, clicky, climbin' Ricky"

Daniel of course likes to feed himself- hence he is sticky. He is always making some noise with his mouth, either a clicking sound, or a car sound. And, last but not least, he is climbing everything! And his middle name is Richard. So we are constantly pulling chairs away from the tables, pulling him down from the couch and toilets, everywhere! We are considering some gates big enough to block him out from the kitchen. I just don't know what Nathan would think of gates, he's not big enough to get over I don't think. Nathan has officially entered the inquisitive stage. He wants to know "why" and "how" about everything. Today we were drawing pictures of brains for him. And talking about why we have to keep going to the bathroom over and over. Sometimes it is so overwhelming trying to answer all his questions. We did check out the non-fiction kids section of the library last week, so that is good. I just want to find of a book of answers to all the random questions he asks, any suggestions?? I guess I better study up.

So we are busy....

Quote from Nathan:
"When you take stickers off your shirt, they roll up like taquitos."

We are heading in to the final weeks of our marathon prep, its in 1 month! We are planning on a long run this weekend, 20 miles, and then tapering off. I am excited for it, a little nervous though. 26 miles is a LONG run. At least we are not going for any time records. 5+ hours sounds good to me!

Daniel's First Haircut

I can't seem to figure out how to move pictures around in this post, so they are a little out of order! The first few are post hair cut. He held still really well and got a pretty good cut, I think!

He wiggled a bit while I was cutting in front, so it got a little crooked, but its kind of cute.

Here he is before church wearing his new shoes! He walks really well in them.


Now these next ones are his 1-year old pics we had done before his hair cut. He did such a good job smiling and holding still for the camera.

Scott thinks this one really looks like one of his baby pictures!

This one showcases his mischievious look...he is getting quite good at it lately. We are having trouble keeping him off any tables or chairs around the house! Its kind of scary to walk in the kitchen and see him standing there!

August rain

Today has been a cool, cloudy day. It is even raining outside right now. Nathan and Daniel and I went outside to play and it was so pleasant! I do love summer, but cool days certainly are appreciated! Daniel is walking everywhere, including in the mushy plums in the grass. I need to find shoes for him now. I think it would be a good idea to acclimatize him to footwear before we go to Greece/Germany.

Here is Nathan at his swimming lessons. He loves going, and he is doing well. He has even jumped off the diving board a couple of times!

Here is the "daddy express." It is pretty slow moving though with 2 wiggly boys in tow.

We just celebrated Scott's birthday on Sunday, I think he had a good day. 29 years young now! Nathan was very excited to pick out dad's present- he got him BBQ chips and some candy! It was fun watching him when Scott opened the present, he was just beaming. We made him a football cake too- in honor of the upcoming football season.

Nathan is starting preschool this fall, and he is excited about going. I asked him what he wants to learn there and he said he wants to learn how to be a knight and a soldier. Hopefully he won't be too disappointed learning his ABC's! He is excited that 2 of his cousins will be there too, Landon and Tyson.

Scott helped Nathan make a knight's helmet, a sword and a shield.

Daniel had his 1 year check-up, here are his stats:
weight: 25lb 12 oz. (70th percentile)
height: 31.7 inches (90th percentile)
head circumference: 19 inches (95th percentile)
So, I guess he will be a tall, smart boy! He has discovered toilets- he likes to walk in the bathroom and wait for us to find him, and then starts to lift the toilet lid and splash in the water! Although, he is learning that it is a "no-no." Yesterday, when I walked in the bathroom, he shook his head and said, "na-na." It was pretty cute. He had his 1-year pictures this week, so we are planning on cutting his mullet hair. Our baby will be all grown up. I put away burp clothes and receiving blankets, and outgrown clothes this week too. But he is certainly a fun little boy to have around!

We are starting to really plan our trip to see Scott's parents in Greece next month. We will get to see Athens the day after we fly in, and then we will take a train to Thessaloniki in northern Greece to stay with his parents for almost a week. I am a little nervous about all the traveling with 2 little kids, but I do think they will do well. Nathan has proven to be a good little traveler, and Daniel did very well on his first trip overseas in June. After our time in Greece, we are flying to Berlin and meeting my parents and Erik and Anne to run the marathon with Erik and Dad. I hope we will be okay. We did great as far as training goes in the spring and June, but with all the fun family trips in June and July, we have been struggling to get ready for the marathon. I am just hoping to make it- it may get kind of ugly in the end though... I am sure that Scott will do well. He has done a great job running. He meets with a guy in the ward and they do early morning Saturday runs with a group of guys. And they go much faster than I do, so its a good challenge for Scott. It will make for a fun trip though. I am especially excited for Greece part. I have never been there, so it will be fun to go somewhere new.