First Zoo Day

With the nice spring weather settling in, we decided to take Easton to the zoo for the first time!

(However, I've recently discovered I'm almost too sensitive to go to the zoo because all animals remind me of Jake and I feel like they're all depressed and want to be home in the wild with their families... but anyways)

We had a lot of fun pointing out all the animals to him, especially the ones that we've seen a lot in our books. On the car ride over, he was very vocal and active and then we got to the zoo and he slipped into 100% observation mode--no smiling, no playing, just taking everything in. I'd say he definitely gets his observation skills from his dad.

^^ flamingos

 ^^ giraffes 

 ^^ grizzly bear - looks like theres no glass between them, but there is ;)

 ^^ look at the sweet little baby elephant! And the big elephants kept making their elephant noises, which was the first time I've ever heard that in person and not in a Disney cartoon movie

 

It was a pretty exhausting day... Sure he was held and pushed in the stroller, but taking everything in was mentally draining, I'm sure. But we got a family pass for the year, so come visit us! 

And the day we went, the passes happened to be $5 off, so to celebrate our first family zoo day, we used that extra $5 for a photo booth souvenir!

^^ Hahahaha our enthusiasm is overwhelming ^^

Day Trip to the Wichita Mountains

Since this week is Blaine's Spring Break, we decided to have an Oklahoma stay-cation to explore more of our lovely state. So we borrowed a baby backpack from a friend and headed an hour and 45 minutes southwest to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and Mount Scott.
It was a pretty nice day, just pretty windy.
(It's Oklahoma, plus we were on top of a mountain)

Compared to the mountains of Utah, Colorado, and Montana that we're so used to, Mt. Scott's 2464 feet were pretty dinky. But it sure stuck out compared to the rest of the flat terrain. Plus, it was just really nice to explore somewhere new. We saw a couple Buffalo and a Longhorn, plus a bunny that ran past Jake.

Jake was even able to come on the family outing and he LOVED it. He wants to be free to roam and explore and run... and roll in Buffalo chips...

True story. I had to wipe him off with baby wipes and then have him lay on a towel for the ride home. Yes, sometimes having a dog can feel like a burden, but having Jake with us made the trip more fun because he was SO excited. Look at that face!

Blaine and Easton went out onto one of the cliffs and me and Jake stood on the other side, but Jake kept crying and trying to go to them. It was cute and funny. He never wants to be left out of ANYTHING.

 ^^ can you see Jakes head in the bottom corner? he was jealous ^^

There was a military base nearby who kept testing some equipment, so we kept hearing big booms.

^^ Jake makes friends everywhere he goes. It's so interesting to see how different the interaction is between Jake and people/kids that feel comfortable with him, and with those that don't

Once we were done with Mt. Scott, we explored the wildlife refuge. I was scared that a buffalo would come stampeding down the trail and kill us, but that didn't happen.

Our 8 month old baby boy. He's growing up so fast.

^^ Look at that lion emerging from the brush ^^

 ^^ Seriously, he was SO happy. He LOVES running and exploring.
I guess we better settle down on a lot of land.

^^ We traveled to the Southwest. i.e. Cactus

 ^^ What a cutie ;)

Easton's first bottom tooth poked through and so he's been sucking on his top lip to make it feel better. He looks silly, but he's so funny

It was a fun family outing, and certainly wore out Easton.

Easton: 8 Months

Easton is now 8 months old! I can't even believe how quickly time has flown by! 

He is a happy, beautiful, active boy that loves his mom, dad, and puppy.

Speaking of active, he scoots around like crazy! Its more of an army crawl--he reaches out with his fists and forearms, pushes off with his right foot, and tucks his left foot behind as he scoots forward. 

 

 

When we're in the living room (where we spend most our indoor time), his 2 favorite places to get to are the floor vent by the fireplace and the sliding glass door to watch Jake. 

He LOVES Jake. He thinks the things he does are funny. And every day on our walk, he watches Jake while he rides in the stroller. And when Easton his trying to roll away while I'm changing his diaper, the only thing that catches his attention and makes him hold still is if I say, "Where's Jake?!"

Easton also LOVES being outside. I let him sit in the grass for the first time last week to take some pictures and he liked feeling the grass and trying to put it in his mouth. With the weather being so nice lately, we not only go for a walk, but we spend a lot of time outside everyday. 

We play fetch with Jake and watch him explore, we eat our lunch on our patio furniture, and wait for Blaine to get home.

Easton LOVES books. We read everyday, but usually only repeat his favorite couple of books. He also made his first trip to the library last month, but wasn't too interested in those books yet.

Blaine taught him how to pull the cord to turn his light on and off, 

so they do that a couple of times in a row.

 He's sitting in the shopping carts on his own now... well, only in certain stores ;)

Easton and I cuddle in my bed most the night most every night. 

I love our special snuggle time... but I've been exhausted for 2 months. 

He can't pull himself up, but he has excellent balance and strength if you stand him up and set him up against something... hopefully he never hurts himself doing that on the fireplace.

He like's his sippy cup and has finally got the hang of it... sort of

Easton is extremely observant, doesn't understand the concept of falling off the side of the bed, and likes grabbing our hair or face and trying to eat our noses, cheeks, and chins. 

He makes us smile everyday.