ISAAC IS OFFICIALLY WALKING!!!

Isaac started walking all on his own on August 19th at 2:05 p.m! He has been taking 2-3 steps all by himself for a little over a month, but has officially taken off.

To see our son walking is indescribable! It hasn't sunk in just yet. The realization that our baby boy is growing up, very fast, is becoming more and more of a reality for us. Soon enough, he will be 1 years old and that is unreal!!! Everything is happening so fast!

Isaac LOVES his new toy train and has been busy pushing it all over the place! Every now and then, he would let go and take a few steps all on his own.

. . . and he's off!!!

Isaac is a walking machine!!!

Occasionally it appears as if Isaac is going to fall down, however he balances himself very well! He is very quick, especially for just starting to walk! I think he is too quick for himself at times, however he really knows how to extend those arms out to help balance. Babies are so smart! Jason and I think that as fast as he started walking, he will be running even faster! Oh boy!!!

I wondered why Isaac was being so quiet! Found him doing his new favorite activity, which is pulling all the toliet paper off the roll! We need to remember to shut all the bathroom doors. Now that he is walking, he is a quick and sneaky little boy!!!

Isaac is ALL over the place!!!

Isaac is so happy and excited to be walking all by himself! He usually has the biggest smile on his face when he walks as if he knows he has accomplished something grand!

I call his walk the "marching band walk"! It's so cute to watch his chubby little legs lift up when he walks! I LOVE it!!! :) At least he is getting a leg workout now!

After dinner, we love to go to the park so we can spend time together as a family and have fun playing!!!

Our little monkey LOVES to swing!!! :)

Our dog, Simba, is such a great dog! Her and Isaac are best buds and it's so cute to watch them interact with one another.

We LOVE taking Simba to the park so she can run around and play. When we lived in IA, our house there had a good-sized yard and she loved it. Poor thing doesn't have that here in AZ, so taking her to the park is such a nice treat for her. She is such an active dog and loves to play!!!

One of the BEST things about living in AZ, the beautiful mountains!!! Gosh, that has to be one of the most goregous views of the mountains here. We always missed the mountains while we lived in IA and now that we are back in AZ, we can't get enough!!! You don't realize what you have until it's gone and being able to enjoy the splendor of the mountains and the outdoors is exactly why we finally feel at home! :)

The BIG 3-0!

Well, it's official! I turned the BIG 3-0 on August 17th. Can't say I was super-excited, but I have embraced it as a new beginning for me and I'm very excited about that!
I want my 30's to be GRAND and I pray God continues to shower me with wisdom and His grace.

Plus, I keep joking with Jason that at least now I can say I'm in my 30's married to a man in his 20's! I'm such a cougar, MEOW!!!! :)

My favorite gift. . .the one from my son, a Willow Tree figurine!

I love collecting them!

The best part about turning 30! Getting to celebrate with my two favorite boys!!!

So happy my beautiful sisters, Angelica and Erika, were there to celebrate with me also!!!

Annie, Sarah R., Birthday Girl, Sarah S. and Stef

Also got to celebrate with my closest friends from Jr. High and High School! I am blessed with some amazing and true friends! Knowing I will have them in my life always is such a comfort and beautiful blessing! God is GREAT!!!

We enjoyed some fabulous food! The BEST marinated chicken breast, grilled salmon with a delicious mustard sauce, pecan-encrusted salmon, portabella mushroom couscous, garlic-parmasean mashed potatoes, roasted veggies, garlic bread, garden salad, chocolate dipped strawberries, banana-split cake, and the most beautifully decorated cupcakes I have every seen!!! I think that was all we had on the menu??? It was soooooo yummy!!!

These beautifully decorated cupcakes were made by my wonderful friend, Annie! She did such an amazing job making and decorating them. I almost didn't want to eat because they were so pretty! They look like they are from the famous cupcake store, Sprinkles!!!

Everyone sings "Happy Birthday"! Still can't believe I'm 30 years old! Sounds so much older than I feel! :)

Women are like fine wine, we just get BETTER and BETTER!!!! :)

Me with my beautiful sister, Angelica!

My beautiful sister, Erika and my adorable nephew Jacob! He is just 5 months and 1 day younger than Isaac. So happy our boys will get to grow up together!

It was a great evening!!!

Spaghetti night and a beautiful sunset!

Mama made a tasty pasta dish and Isaac enjoys spaghetti noodles for the very first time!

After Isaac gets his fill, he discovers how much fun it is to "wear" and play with the spaghetti!

It was such a mess to clean up, but so cute to watch! Not only was Isaac enjoying it, but so were Papa and Mama. Seeing our baby boy have so much fun was worth it!!! We call it a "fun mess", which is always allowed!!! :)

Isaac LOVES to share and this experience was no exception! He was trying to put some spaghetti on Mama also. Soooo cute! :)

After cleaning up our spaghetti-eating-spaghetti-wearing little boy, we went to the park to play and walk around. . . AND of course, take some pictures!!! :)

While at the park, we enjoyed one of Arizona's best qualities. . .the goregous sunsets!!! Nothing like an Arizona sunset with the mountains as a background! It's the BEST!!!

Isaac LOVES to be on Papa's shoulders!!! He already loves being taller than everyone! :)

LOVE this picture of my boys! The sunset in the background is goregous and makes it look even better! The colors are so vibrant and beautiful!!! Gotta love AZ! Yes, it's HOT, but so much to do and see year-round! Hot is good, means you sweat and sweat is good, means you are burning calories!!! :) At least that's how I try to justify it and feel better about living in the desert! :)

Such a sweet picture of Isaac! He is holding his hands in the praying position! We are working on that trick!!! :)

Isaac is growing soooooooo fast! He looks so much older than 11.5 months old in this picture. He is getting so tall! When I look at this picture, I really see Jason a lot! He is starting to look more and more like his Papa.

Just like his Papa! Never wants to look at the camera when you want him to! Jason hates having his picture taken and I have a feeling our son will too! Like father, like son! :)

My little Jason! Such a cutie!!!

Wild man is 11 months old and only getting wilder!

Happy 11 months, Isaac!

So today is August 5, 2008 and our son is officially 11 months old! It is amazing to think that in only 1 month, we will have a 1 year old!!! People always say that time flies when you have children and it is so true. I find myself looking at pictures of Isaac and the changes he has gone through are incredible! I get a little sad that he is growing so fast, but I also get very excited thinking about the future with him and how fun that will be.

Isaac reaches for anything and everything! Nothing is safe!!!

Mama cleans up after Isaac a lot!!!

Isaac is such a handful right now! I can't imagine how much more chaotic our lives will be as he continues to grow! He is certainly ALL BOY! He is into EVERYTHING!!! Nothing is safe within his reach or in his way. Jason and I always wanted to start trying for baby #2 when our first child turned 1 years old, but I'm not sure that is going to happen as originally planned! However, I have also heard that as you have more children, it gets easier because they entertain themselves. If that's the case, we are adopting 3! :) Isaac needs all the entertainment and stimulation he can get!

Isaac has dozens of chew toys to select from, however he prefers his crib!

To save what is left of his crib, I had to improvise before our little beaver ate it all!

The other day Jason said that we should probably consider purchasing a house soon. We fear that the bigger and more active Isaac gets, he will also get destructive! Fortunately, that hasn't happened yet to the house, but can't say that about Isaac's crib. It used to be so beautiful! I can't put Isaac in it anymore without fearing he is going to chew on it, so I had to come up with a creative solution. I wrapped a huge piece of fabric around the crib and tied with my winter scarves that will get no use here in AZ! Since then, the crib is safe from our little beaver!!!

Isaac stands up to check out his new toy!

Isaac immediately started pushing his Lion Push Toy and LOVED it! Just before that, Isaac spilled another cup of water on himself!

Aside from chewing on furniture, Isaac is extremely active and does not sit still for less than 3 seconds! He is not walking on his own, however we think that will happen VERY soon! He continues to walk along the furniture and crawls all over the place! He is extremely fast and mobile. Didn't realize babies can be so quick! To help with his mobility, I went to the toy store to find something that he can play with and found a cute lion push toy. After Jason put it together, Isaac crawled over to it, lifted himself up and immediately started pushing, as though he knew all along what it was for! It certainly keeps Isaac busy and occupied. Isaac loves it! I love it also because it gives Isaac some "alone play time" while I get some stuff done around the house.

Isaac may not be walking on his own just yet, but he pushes the lion walker very fast. He's a quick little boy!

The push toy keeps Isaac entertained, which is great for those moments I need a break or need to get some things done around the house.

Aside from pushing his new toy, Isaac loves to sit on it and just chill! :)

Papa gives Isaac a little push on his new toy.

Lately it has been tough to get anything done as Isaac is requiring more and more attention because of his constant activity! We still play and do learning activities together everyday, however, I really needed something to help keep him entertained that he could do by himself. This lion push toy has been absolutely fabulous!!! :)

I know it's ridiculous to get so many gates, but as desperate as I am to keep Isaac away from the stairs, I need to find one that works! So far, they are all being returned!!!

The first attempt to block access to the stairs. Isaac wasn't too happy!

Another issue we are having is keeping Isaac away from the stairs! He LOVES the stairs and would climb them 50 times a day if we allowed it. He still goes up the stairs quite often, however, it can get a bit tiring for us after a while. I can't keep up with him at times and as quick as he has become, he is even faster on the stairs! There have been a few moments that I have looked away for seconds and before I know it, he is half-way up the stairs. My heart drops when that happens, so a gate for the stairs is definitely a necessity! Unfortunately, after purchasing a variety of gates, we have yet to find one that fits or is strong enough and will not be knocked over by our Bam-Bam. We also need one that is functional and easy access to the stairs for Jason and I! Since we are currently renting, I didn't want to get a gate that required holes to be drilled, but at this point, I'm not concerned about that anymore! Whatever they charge to fix the holes, I'm willing to pay!

After knocking over the previous gates, Isaac doesn't look too concerned with attempt #5!!!

Another one bites the dust!!!

Our temporary gate for the stairs!

Although Isaac is one very active little boy, he is so fun and I can't help but smile and laugh when I think about all the craziness he brings into our lives. Needless to say, Isaac fills our days with tons of entertainment and certainly gives us our workout as much as we chase after him! The crazy part is he is not even walking yet and he is only 11 months old!!! :)

He's such a ham!!! :)

TOUCHDOWN!!! One of Isaac's new tricks, thanks to Papa! :)

Our little "Homie"!!! :)

He may be a handful, but it's worth every gray hair we may get!!! :)