Present and cake.

Riley had a fun birthday, well at least he seemed to. I'm pretty sure he had no clue what all the fuss was about, but he smiled a lot so I'll take that as enjoying his birthday! His day started by being serenaded by his Granny as soon as he woke up. After breakfast he was off for his one year photo shoot. Riley is usually the smiliest baby I have ever met, but put him in an unfamiliar setting where the only thing you want him to do is smile and what does he do? He sits there with a mixed look of confusion and fear on his face. Not so good for pictures. Luckily after about 10 minutes he got use to it and was back to his smiley self. We got some great pictures! The biggest hit of the day were the balloons we got him. He was fascinated by them! Jokingly I bonked him on the head with one and he thought it was hilarious. He kept pointing to the balloons and squawking at me to do it again. Present opening was much more exciting for Tyler than it was for Riley! Riley enjoyed tearing the paper off, but then had no interest in the actual present! He liked chewing on the wrapping paper though! For their first couple of birthdays I like to give the boys one present for every year old they are (for obvious reasons this tradition will not go past 4). Since it doesn't take long to open one present we had plenty of time for cake. And boy did we need it! Once we put the cake in front of him he got a little bit of icing on his finger and then just sat there. He'd stare at his finger then look around, then stare at his finger some more, then look at us. This went on for about 5 minutes before he attempted to put his finger in his mouth. He smeared most of the icing on his chin, but he must have gotten a taste of the icing because he was quicker to put his finger in his mouth the second time. For the first 20 minutes he was eating the icing one finger tip at a time and he managed to stay pretty clean. I was starting to think I wasn't going to get the messy cake pictures I really wanted. Then he discovered he could pick up the plate the cake was sitting on and the mess began! My friend Lindsey (who is the best cake maker I know) made two cakes, one for everyone to enjoy and a little one just for the birthday boy. When Tyler saw the two cakes he pointed to the little one and asked if it was for Riley, to which I said yes. Then his face lit up and his eyes got big when he pointed to the bigger cake and said, "And that one is for me!" Without further ado here are the pictures...

He wasn't a big fan of the hat!

Riley got to invite one friend over, so he picked Shilo (and her parents got to tag along too)!

"I'm suppose to do what with this?"

"I guess I'll have another taste."

"This stuff is pretty good!"

"Do I have to eat the whole thing?"

Finally a smile!

We literally took him out back and hosed him off after he was done!

Summer fun...

July is almost over and I have hardly blogged this month. Here is a look at what we've been up to so far this summer.

Tyler at the pool with some of his friends. Spencer was in town for a visit!

Riley and Stephanie chillin in the pool.

Mason, Tyler and Spencer.

The boys resting after a long afternoon in the pool.

Ready to watch fireworks on the 4th.

Part of the fun of having 2 boys is getting to dress them alike. I got them these matching pj's.

Helping Greg blow out his candles.

Caleb, Tyler and Greg.

We had a girls night while Vanessa was in town. Good friends + yummy sushi + hilarious movie = a great night!

We took Tyler to see the new Ice Age movie. He loved it, and Riley even sat through it!

I thought he looked so cute with his big tub of popcorn!

Riley got a hair cut!

Matt has been itching to cut Riley's hair for a while now and after I was asked if he was a girl at the store the other day I finally let him! He really did need a trim! Here are some before pictures...

He did really well and sat still almost the whole time. I didn't think to get the camera out until after Matt was done cutting his hair, so all I have are the after pictures.

More catch-up! I took these about two weeks ago. This was the first time we got the walker out and at first he just wanted to push it on his knees. Then I had Tyler show him how to push it and after that he was cruising around like a pro! He's a lot faster now!

I'm WAY behind!

I know Father's Day was a couple of weeks ago, but I've been busy so I'm just now posting pictures from it! We had a nice relaxing day. I was planning on making Matt a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting (his favorite) but Tyler wanted to make cupcakes instead. This is the first time I've made cupcakes with Tyler, we usually make blueberry muffins, so he kept telling Matt we were making muffin cakes!

I have been blessed with three fathers in my life. First, I have a Father in Heaven who I know loves me. He hears and answers my prayers and I see His blessings in my life everyday. Second, I was raised by a very loving, patient and hard working father. My dad has always supported me in everything I've ever done. He took me on my first white water rafting trip. When I needed SCUBA certification for my future dream job, he got certified with me and then took us to the Keys for our first diving trip. He took me out to Idaho and got me all set up in my first dorm room at Ricks College. He didn't hesitate to say yes when I asked if I could spend a semester in Russia. He arranged all my flights to and from school for the four years I was in college. He helped me move down to Miami and get settled in. He gave Matt his blessing when he asked for permission to marry me. He gave me the wedding of my dreams, but more important, he was there to see me get married and danced with me at the reception. He gave Tyler his name and blessing, and was in the circle for Riley. He is a wonderful grandpa! I love you dad! Third, I have a husband who is an amazing father! Since I've started working recently Matt has gotten a lot more one-on-one time with the boys. It's been an easy adjustment for the boys because Matt has always been a very hands on dad. If I don't get all my errands run before I have to go to work Matt will load the boys in the car and go to the store for me. He also takes them swimming, cooks dinner and bathes and puts them to bed. Tyler is always excited when Matt gets home from work, and Riley's face lites up when he sees daddy! Thank you for everything you do honey, I love you!

Tyler mixed up the batter. He was a little perplexed when it turned red!

He insisted on doing it all by himself!

Showing off the results of his hard work!

This is why I either buy my kids birthday cakes or have someone else make them. Clearly I'm no Lindsey!

My boys!

Tyler discovered he loves red velvet cake as well!

Sharing with daddy, since it was Father's day!

I tried to sneak a picture of Riley laying on Matt's chest, and as you can see it didn't work!

A visit with Mel.

Two weekends ago we went down to Ft. Lauderdale to spend a couple of days with Mel. We had a great time! We spent Saturday afternoon at the beach. Lately Tyler has wanted nothing to do with the ocean, but Aunt Mel coaxed him into getting in and he ended up loving it! Saturday night Mel babysat while Matt and I went out to celebrate our anniversary. Mel made us reservations at a resturant called High Life Cafe which is owned by a former 'Top Chef' contestant. 'Top Chef' happens to be one of my favorite shows so I was really excited! The food was amazing and meeting Carlos was really cool! We had planned on going to the drive in as well, but we thought it was going to rain so we went to the regular theater instead. While we were gone the boys (well mostly Tyler) enjoyed pizza, popcorn and movies with their auntie! After a bath and a bottle Riley didn't feel the need to stay up and wait for us, but Tyler was having too much fun to sleep. Thanks again for a wonderful night off Mel! We hung out until late afternoon on Sunday before heading home.

I think he was trying to touch his relfection!

Riley's first time in the ocean!

This is why I will no longer wear a bikini next to Mel!

A quick picture before we went out.