This picture deserves it's own post.

Sappy time..... How cute is Tad with his daddy?!

We took this the same time as our quick family pictures and I LOVE this picture. I haven't given an update on Fred for awhile, and with it being Father's day weekend, it's a good time to share.

Fred's been working hard studying for the MCAT, he'll take it in another month, but we won't have test results for awhile, and we won't hear back from Med Schools for even longer! We're on our way though! Between studying, he also found time to apply for a new job! He started this last week and loves it. For privacy issues, I'm not going to name the place, but I will tell you it's a SUPER-Science-Geek job! He works in a lab and helps isolate DNA for testing. (Who would have thought I would marry such a nerd?) He also decided to keep his old job as a CNA. It doesn't leave us much time together, so I'm glad I'm not working and we don't have another schedule to work around.
Fred is such a good dad and like all dad's thinks his little boy is the best thing ever! I often have to tell him to quit teasing Tad though. He loves to tickle him, but it often turns to harrassing him, just to see if he'll respond, I'm glad Tad doesn't realize it yet.
A few weeks ago, Fred walked into Sacrament meeting and Tad walked straight to him and raised his arms to be lifted up. He sat on daddy's lap for awhile. He definitely knows his daddy and loves him. I hope he grows up to be a lot like his Dad.

Who has curls?

Tad's hair has been bugging me for awhile, remember the crazy hair from January? He'd grown a few more of those and it seemed like just the hair over his ears was growing. So, enough of the threatening to cut it, I finally just did it Sunday morning. You can't really tell, but I can!
He was the wiggliest little boy, until I gave him some nail polish bottles to hold. It was starting to curl around the ears. I wonder if he'll have just a little curl like dad's or be super curly like mine? After it all fills in we'll let it grow and see.

We went to Henefer for church on Father's Day for a cousin's missionary homecoming. Tad of course was too excited about all the people to sleep. Trent's talk had everyone laughing as he compared sayings his dad uses to experiences on his mission - starting with "If you worked as much as you talked, you'd be done working by now." (Trent is a bit of a talker!) :} But we've missed him!
After a delicious meal we headed home (oh, how I love family parties!) I forgot to take Tad's 10 month pictures (seriously?!) so I made Fred stop at the park in Henefer so we could take a few quick family pictures. (Crystal rode home with us, so we had a great photographer to help Tad look towards the camera.) Maybe around 18 months we'll get a professional one done, but he changes so much that these quick ones work for now.


Crystal took this picture as we were leaving and said I had to post it to show my true feelings about family pictures..... is it excitement to be done or anxiety?

He's crawling.... but that's not what he wants

Tad has finally started crawling. Belly off the ground, hands and knees moving, it's slow, but he does it. He doesn't love to be on his hands and knees unless you get down and crawl with him, then he'll laugh. But that's still not what he wants to do.

He'd rather walk, crawling is just a way to get there. He'll crawl until he can get to something to pull himself to standing. And..... he started WALKING this week! Not just the cruising along the couch or between people, WALKING! He loves to walk along the walls of the house and a couple of times I've seen him walk from one doorway to another because he can't reach to hold on. I thought that was daring of him. Thursday, Fred and I were chatting in the front room and Tad was by the entertainment center playing with his toys. All of a sudden we look at Tad and he's in the middle of the room walking towards us?!? He won't come if you try to get him to, he'll just sit there and wimper like he's scared, but if he wants to, he'll just walk wherever!

Thumb sucker

Tad randomly started sucking his thumb when he was 3 months old. He's never taken a pacifier and luckily for us he only sucks his thumb when he's tired or just getting up from a nap. Lately he's started sucking it whenever he finds his blanket. I had laundry sitting in the front room and he decided to pull things out. When he got to his blanket (or bib made out of the same material) he'd put his thumb in his mouth and put his head down on the blanket. It's so nice that he tells us when he's ready for a nap!
The next day in his adventures around the kitchen (we joke that he has 4-wheel drive because he can find a way over / around anything), he found the little basket under his highchair where we keep his bibs, when he got to a cloth bib he put his thumb in his mouth and put his head down. (Thumb in, fingers straight out.)

He is a crazy kid! He's starting to understand "no" and often shakes his head at us. Digging in the laundry basket I asked him if he could find his blanket and he shook his head at me. Sometimes I wonder if he's going to make himself dizzy, but he just thinks he's funny.

We are mean parents.... (and other randomness)

Today while Tad took his nap, Fred worked on my car, I did a little weeding in the garden. Then we climbed on the roof to turn on the swamp cooler - (The older I get, the more afraid of heights I am.) We also turned on the sprinklers and adjusted them. Which gave me the idea to bring Tad outside and let (make?) him play in them.

He didn't cry at all and didn't mind it after the intial shock. I'll have to use the little sprinkler on the hose next time so he'll walk right up to it.

This is how I've started finding Tad when he's supposed to be going to sleep.....




And, a few pictures from our Memorial Day weekend. Fred worked most of it, but did have Monday off and we went to Henefer for graves on my mom's side of the family and a picnic with the cousins. Unfortunately they didn't have any lambs for Tad to play with, but they did have a cute puppy. He didn't seem to like him at first, he wasn't scared of it, just more interested in watching it.

Finally, Fred thought Tad's face was hilarious while I trimmed his fingernails. It often feels like a wrestling match because Tad hates to be restrained.

Here comes trouble!

Tad is starting to show more and more of his personality. He's definitely got a mischievous side. He's starting to understand when we tell him not to touch things: the VCR, the laptop, and mom's curtains he'll leave alone, daddy's plants are just too much fun (if I've just watered them he'll play in the extra water)! Splashing in the bathtub is a must for him. He'll stop when he splashes too much into his mouth or eyes but he never cries.
He LOVES to walk everywhere and has learned to walk from the couch to the rocking chair, stop at the side table to pull all his books onto the floor then continue into the kitchen where he can hold onto his walker and get into everything! It's fun to help him walk between Fred & I because he's so proud of himself when he reaches us.
Splashing & Walking are 2 of his VERY favorite things and good activities when he needs to be entertained.
(Practicing walking between Fred & I - he's getting much better than when I took this video.)


(Splashing in the tub. I think he could go for hours - so when I'm done, I start to drain the water, when the water's gone, it's time to get out.)