Walter's 2nd Birthday

On September 3rd, my baby turned two years old! I can hardly believe that I have a two-year-old.  It feels surreal. We have learned more life lessons through this little guy than we could have ever imagined. Here are some things about Walter:

-He is as sweet and sensitive as they come. I love his tender, loving personality. 

-He's starting the mimic words! Especially "b" words, like bubbles, balloon, bike, bean, baby, bowl, bike.

-He still uses his sign language a lot.

-He loves animals! Especially "pff's" (dogs) and "eoww's" (cats)

-He loves visiting family. He starts squealing whenever we pull up to one of his grandmas' houses.

-He's starting to really like nursery. 

-His church pants are size 12 months. Most of his other pants are 18 months now though and if we roll the legs he can wear 2T. His shirts are all 2T/24 months though. As my dad says, "He rides high on the saddle."

-He loves to help his mommy get ready in the morning. He likes to put on my makeup and help me with my hair. 

-He loves puzzles! Puzzles are one of the few things he can stand to do for over 5 minutes.

-Actually, he can look at pictures/videos of himself for the longest amount of time.

-He loves electronics

-He loves going shopping and pointing at all of the balloons.

-He makes lots of animal noises: cats, dogs, horses, ducks, fish, birds, bears, lions, sheep, and cows.

-He can't say, 1 or 2, but he can say 3, because that usually means something's about to happen (like his daddy tossing him).

-He's very helpful around the house. He helps me fold towels, unload the dishwasher, and wipe up spills.

-He's interested in everything that's going on around him. He never gets bored.

-Whenever he gets excited about something (tv show, tortilla chips, bubbles, balloons, daddy coming home) he squeals and claps.

This lucky boy got TWO parties this year! One with my family and one with Levi's.

For dinner we had Walter's favorite meal...Breakfast! My mom make gluten-free waffles--which were amazing--bacon, and eggs. 

 For dessert I made Pavlova cookies. I love Walter's face in this picture.

 Needless to say, he loved them!

 From his Granny and Gramps, he got some fun coloring books, paint, crayons, and special treasure box!

 Walter got jealous of Granny's apron, so she let him wear it. 

Partying is hard work!

Thanks everyone who was able to come!

For the Johnson party, Grandma made some delicious enchiladas  One of the only meals where Walter will eat everything offered!

More pavlova cookies!

He was pro at blowing them out.

This picture is a good representation of those "terrible twos" that seemed to arrive a few months ago.

Best way to fix a tantrum? Bubbles!

From his Grandma and Grandpa he got red tricycle! Walter calls it his "bike" and has me take him on rides as much as possible.

Some cousins had a hard time with Walter hogging his new toy...

So he made sure to share.

Thanks everyone who helped us celebrate Walter's birthday!

I can't even believe how much we love this little boy. Happy birthday, Walter! We're so excited to see what new adventures this next year takes us on!

I'm not ready for Summer to end...

I can already feel the crisp of Autumn in the air. While I love Fall, it always makes me dread the Winter. Sigh... But our Summer was fun this year! We did a lot. Here are a bunch of pictures:

My friend, Amanda, had a baby. Walter liked holding the little guy.

Walter and I went with my family to The Homestead in Midway for my Mom's family reunion. Walter and his cousin, Miles, had a good time in the sprinklers.

On one of the days, there was a hike. I don't know why I thought Walter and I could do it. It was a few miles, but it was all up hill on rocky terrain. Walter and I only made it about half a mile when I realized it was getting a little sketchy, so we made our way back down and picked wild flowers and played around while we waited for everyone else to finish.

Walter loves helping me water our plants with his his, "moo."

For the 24th, we went to the Bountiful parade. It was painfully hot.

Walter took a bunch of flags, stuck them in some turf, and then clapped. Yay, America!

Walter is such a sweet boy. He loves taking care of his baby in his new rocking chair.

I bought some strawberries and while they were still in the bag, Walter took them out and proceeded to take a single bite out of every, single one. He refused to eat the whole thing. I guess the first bite really is the best.

Out to lunch with my mom and sisters. Krista was on a break from Pharmacy school, so it was a lot of fun to get to hang out with her before all the stress of a new year started.

Walter loves helping me with the towels. I'll fold them, and then it's his job to go put them in the drawer. This time, they weren't all fitting, so he got frustrated and pulled them all out and walked away.

"Helping" Carter fall asleep.

Thanks to generous family (Thanks Robyn!) Walter I got to go to Cherry Hill several times this year. It was so much fun! We're going to be sure to buy a pass next year!

Playing piano with Granny is one of his favorite things. I love how much my boy loves music.

Maggie's 16th birthday

Don't let this picture fool you: Walter is not potty trained. We just got the potty so that he could get used to it. He has yet to actually "use" it. 

Walter wearing the cute shirt project his Grandma Jolene and Aunt Sophie headed.

He loves walking the dog.

Walter loved fireworks on the 4th when we were at my aunt Katherine's house. But it was daytime and they weren't loud. When Levi and I bought a few for the him, he didn't like them as much, because it was dark and lots of loud fireworks were going on around us. But that doesn't mean he didn't find them exciting. 

So exciting, in fact, that he grabbed a sparkler and burned his little hand. Poor guy :(

From swimming, to boating, this boy loves water!

Here's one of Walter after he destroyed some of my makeup.

 He sure loves his new cousin, baby Issac. 

 Lots of cute cousin pictures.

Haley's family came to town! It was so much fun to hang out with them. One day we went up to Mueller park and had hot dogs and s'mores with all the cousins. 

We've had such a fun summer!