Year 2, Day 6

Colton made his triumphant return to the babysitter's house today.  He was just fine and seemed happy to be back and playing with his friends.  He was also happy to see mom pick him up and play with her and Chipper once he was back home.  For dinner, Colton joined mom and dad for dinner at Outback Steakhouse.  Even though he had a big order of chicken fingers and mashed potatoes to eat, colton's favorite seemed to be the tomatoes from mom's salad...go figure!

Year 2, Days 4-5

Well, the bad news is Colton is still home "sick." Actually, he spent yesterday at Meme and Papa's house and today at home with mom.  The good news is he went to the doctor for his 1 year old checkup and appears to be in perfect health.  She believes his tummy issues may have to do with the amoxicilin he is on.  As for his 1 year stats, baby boy now measures 29 inches long and weighs 19 pounds, 4 ounces.  He is in the 25th percentile, nice and petite:) 

Year 2, Day 3

Uhhhh...Colton spent another sick day at home today, this time with dad (who now admits that being at home with baby boy is no vacation!).  Colton woke up with throw up in his bed (gross, huh) and then continued to have an upset belly throughout the day.  Despite his tummy issues, though, he was in a fantastic mood when mom got home, so we're keeping our fingers crossed that this is just a quick bug.

Year 2, Day 2

Colton spent his day recovering from his big birthday party yesterday.  He joined Meme, Papa, Papa Sr., Doris, mom, and dad for lunch at Chick's.  After lunch, he went back to Meme and Papa's to do a little more visiting before heading home for the afternoon.  At home, he played, ate some green beans and spaghetti, and drank his milk to get ready for the week!

Year 2, Day 1

Happy birthday to our sweet baby boy!  Colton had a fantastic first birthday party today with most of his favorite people in the world there to celebrate with him.  Instead of trying to explain it in words, we figured we'd let the pictures do the talking (there will be more coming later when the cd arrives)...

Day 365

Colton spent his last day as a baby (we've been told being one and walking officially makes him a toddler) with his Aunt Genna.  She took him by Meme and Papa's house and then to mom's school to have a birthday party with her students.  Colton had a blast playing with all of the first graders.  He particularly loved the playground.  At night, he went back to Meme and Papa's house because Papa Sr. and Doris were in town for his big birthday party in the morning.  Although it was super late, he joined everyone for dinner at Bubba's.  He was a trooper, but was definitely ready to head home and go to bed.

Day 364

Colton returned to the babysitter's house this morning.  He spent a nice day there, playing with all of his friends.  Then, when he got home, he was happy to find Aunt Genna there ready to play and get his birthday weekend started.  He even stayed with her and Chipper for a little bit while mom and dad had to go to an awards banquet. 

Day 363 1/2

We noticed today that somewhere along the way we have gotten a day off, and with Colton's big first birthday approaching, we wanted to make sure we got this right!  With that out of the way, Colton spent his day at home today with his grandmother while his antibiotic went to work on his strep throat.  Baby boy was in good spirits and when mom got home, he got a chance to show off his new cutest thing: backing himself up and scooting his way down the steps.  For dinner, he joined mom and dad for Mexcian and then came home to go to bed:)

Day 363

Well, it's official...Colton is officially battling strep throat again.  Although, this boy is one tough guy because he is not running a fever and is playing and eating completely normal.  Still, he is sick, so mom and he stayed home today.  The good news is she was finally able to capture a pretty decent video of little man walking (she had been trying for a few days, but never could get him to comply when the camera was out)...enjoy:

Day 362

Colton woke up in a fussy, fussy mood this morning.  The babysitters had mentioned Friday that they suspected he may have an ear infection, but after his fantastic mood all weekend, we had pretty much disregarded that.  So after his morning fussiness, Mom was not necessarily surprised to pick him up this afternoon to find out he had a slight fever (aaahhh)...he has a dr. appointment first thing in the morning and hopefully we can kick whatever this nastiness is out, especially since some very important visitors will be joining him in just a few days for his big first birthday celebration.  The good news is Colton's spirits seemed to be just fine and he was very pleased to find dad had (finally) fixed the front door so he and his brother could spend their day looking out that.

Day 361

Colton had a nice, lazy Sunday at home...in fact, he didn't get out of his pajamas all day!  Have no fear, though, baby boy was still full of action.  The day seemed to have helped his walking skills...at one point, he was even able to walk about halfway across our living room!  He also managed to cause lots of mischief, as is becoming typical of Colton.  But luckily he's pretty darn cute doing it...

Days 359 and 360

Colton has had a busy couple days celebrating mom's big 30th birthday.  On Friday night, he joined mom and dad for dinner at the Wild Wing.  His grandmother met them there, and then took Colton home so mom and dad could stay out for a little bit by themselves.  On Saturday, Colton enjoyed a bagel breakfast with mom and dad and then headed to Mt. Trashmore for a walk around the lake and his first swinging experience.  At night, he joined Meme, Papa, Aunt KC, mom, and dad for dinner at One Fish Two Fish.  While his rainbow ravioli were delicious, he really loved the brownie sundae he had for dessert!

Day 358

And he's off...Colton officially took his first steps today (and then some).  While the most he has been able to string together is 4 in a row, baby boy is most definitely walking.  And with all the practice he seems to enjoy getting, we don't think it will be long until he is full steam ahead!  Colton was able to show off his new trick at mom's friend Mary's house for a St. Patrick's party there.  He had a good time, but was completely worn out and fell asleep as soon as he hit the car!

Day 357

Colton had a busy day...spending the bulk of it at the babysitter's house and then running a couple of errands with mom.  Once home, Colton was eager to practice his walking skills...he even took two tiny steps on his own before going back to crawling.  We think he's waiting until mom's birthday on Saturday to give her this wonderful present. 

Day 356

Colton had a good day at the babysitter's house, but woke up from his afternoon nap in quite the mood.  Mom had planned to stop at the grocery store on the way home, but Colton's screaming in the back seat changed that plan.  Luckily, a bottle seemed to fix that problem, and Colton was good as new and in a fantastic mood by the end of it.  Good thing, too, because he had an important dinner date with mom, Aunt KC, and Meme to get to (Dad was at dinner with Papa, Uncle Ryan, and the other work men). 

Day 355

Colton awoke in a FABULOUS mood today, clapping his hands excitedly when he saw mom in his room.  As much fun as he had with Meme and Papa, I think baby boy is as excited as the rest of us to be home:)  After spending his day at the babysitter's house, he seemed to continue his good mood at home, having a blast playing with mom and Chipper. 

Days 350-354

For those of you who did not know (although I don't think there is anyone reading this that didn't), mom and dad spent the last few days in New Orleans, away from baby boy for the first time ever.  Mom had a little nervous breakdown upon leaving, but recovered and enjoyed the vacation.  Colton spent his days with Meme and Papa, who seemed to take exceptional care of baby boy (although he was not a fan of Meme's bath giving style).  The best part was Colton was at the airport to surprise mom and dad as they got off the plane.  It took him a little bit to understand who was back, but once he did, you could tell he had missed mom and dad as much as they had missed him.  And then once he finally got back home to Chipper, it was clear all 4 family members were ecstatic to be back together (Chipper gave Colton a big kiss, and Colton returned it with a big smile).  As much fun as the trip was, we certainly feel very lucky to have so much fantasticness to come home to.  This picture is courtesy of Meme's cell phone, sent to mom and dad over the weekend

Day 349

Thank goodness Colton seemed to be in a much better mood today.  Mom thinks it may have been the cheese quesadilla or oatmeal raisin cookie he had for dinner, both of which he devoured!  Either way, Colton was a lot of fun tonight, although we appear no closer to walking and mom and dad are set to leave in just a couple days...

Day 348

Colton returned triumphantly to his babysitter's house today.  All of his friends were happy to see him, although Zoe, the babysitter's dog, probably was not as Colton beat on her (she is much more patient than Chipper who usually bolts too fast for Colton to be able to get him).  Once home, Colton was quite fussy...we're hoping his two newest teeth coming in, which supposedly are the most painful, are the culprit.  Even with his fussiness, mom tried to get Colton to drink from yet another sippy cup.  Despite the promise shown in this picture, we were completely unsucessful once again...

Days 346 and 347

Yay!!! Colton was feeling better just in time for the weekend and was therefore able to enjoy every minute of it.  Dad was working the Home Show Saturday morning, so mom and Colton hit the mall.  Colton was a very good sport as mom tried on clothes...he even clapped in encouragement a few times (such a sweet boy!).  At night, Colton went to Shorebreak with mom and dad to meet Uncle Ryan, Aunt KC, Davy and Michelle for the ODU basketball game.  He was happy to cheer them to victory, although it made for quite the late night for him.  On Sunday, Dad was working the home show again so Colton got dragged on mom's errands once again, but then got to come home and relax for the rest of the day.

Day 345

Colton woke up without a fever today (yay!), but headed over to Meme and Papa's house for the morning just to be safe.  When mom came to pick him up at lunchtime, she was happy to find baby boy fever free, feeling better, and playing happily.  Once home, Colton continued to play, exploring EVERYTHING he could get his little hands on.  He even seems to already be tapping into his future as he couldn't seem to keep his hands off of the air conditioner vents!  At night, he joined mom, dad, and Uncle Jordan for dinner at Wild Wing (of course), although dad insists Colton enjoys going there as much as he does because of all the attention he gets there.

Day 344

Colton woke up with his fever still in full gear, so he headed to Meme's house for the day.  She took good care of him, and when mom showed up to pick him up at the end of the day, he appeared to be feeling better.  At home, he played, ate, and got closer and closer to taking his first steps.  Hopefully, baby boy will be back at 100% soon so we can make more progress.

Day 343

Whew!  We finally got an 11 month portrait of baby boy.  It took a little help from Colton's best friend, Lovie, and baby boy feeling a little under the weather, but we have success.  Colton headed to the doctor today because his fever keeps coming back.  Luckily he only seems to have a virus, so it's just a matter of being patient and waiting this thing out.  Although a little more tired than usual, Colton did seem to be in pretty good spirits and had a good time with mom and Chipper for the day:)

Day 342

Colton had a good day at the babysitter's house, but when mom showed up to pick him up, he had a fever (100.4).  It looks like we will be staying home tomorrow...hopefully this explains why baby boy has been a little more tempermental lately.  Once home, Colton appeared to be in good spirits at times, but a little extra fussy at other.  We have a doctor's appointment scheduled for the morning, so hopefully baby boy will be back to 100% soon.