6 Things I Learned in 12 Months From 22lb Little Boy

Below is a list of the things I have learned from my son in the past year. Who knew how much 9lbs 7oz can change a persons life. Happy Birthday little man.

1. When life gives you lemons...scream at the top of your lungs so you can get some !#%$&% lemonade.

2. True friends are hard to come by, treasure the ones you have.

3. Butt dimples and thigh rolls are cuter than we give them credit for.

4. Always take the time to enjoy a good book. 5.Be careful because as slow and tedious as some days may seem, a year can pass you by in the blink of an eye.

5. Family is everything...

Livestock Man

We snuck away last weekend to San Francisco to be with my Dad when he accepted an award for California's Livestock Man of the Year. It was a truly amazing ceremony held at the Cow Palace during the Grand National Rodeo. So, if you're ever at the Cow Palace for a concert look on the wall and you will see my Dad's picture on the wall until there is not a wall anymore. Way to go Gramdpa "J"Dapper Dan was my date, isn't he handsome. :-) You know who these people are.

We made our way around Sausalito when we met up with Miguel or soon to be Dr. Miguel once he finishes at Cal. It was a great trip overall, but it was kind of lonesome with out the little man around. As we traveled Adrian and I made mental notes of all the neat places we will be able to take him when it's his turn to visit the big city.

Hanging Out San Diego Style

How much did we spend on a crib? Our second child is going to be given a doggie bed instead of a crib, pots and pans instead of toys and a doggie water bowl for a swimming pool. I don't know why we spend a small fortune on material things for this guy when he is just as happy with Raumi's hand me downs.

I would call Austin a "Mamma's Boy", but I have seen first hand that those "Mamma's Boys" grow up to be 6'4" fighting machines. We'll just say he is fond of his mother as long as his needs are being met.

Next Stop, Balboa Park

My parents were able to meet us in SD on Thursday so we decided to make the tourist rounds to Balboa Park. I highly recommend the Air/Space Museum they have an incredible display on our Solar System.

After being married for thirty six years, this is what my parents call mariage counseling. :-) If I was a bettin' woman I would be putting my money on my Mom.

Spring Break in San Diego

This was truly a vacation for the ENTIRE family. Raumi got a chance to sniff a few behinds while we were out of town when we stopped at Dog Beach. Raumi couldn't believe all the hard bodies at dog beach. I guess they haven't been enjoying country living like Raumi.
Austin had a chance to run his fingers though the sand for the first time and he LOVED every minute of it. Had the weather not taken a turn for the worse we would have stayed all day. I can't wait until this summer when he really gets a chance to roll around in the sand, especially sand that is NOT at dog beach...if you get my drift.
Raumi had to defend our honor while we were there too. You know how ferocious those "min-pin's" can be. This sight alone left all pit bulls on the beach terrified.

New Hat

Well, we have a ton of catching up to do so we will start with Austin's new "digs". Austin got this cool camo hat and if you can believe it he actually keeps it on his head long enough for me to take some pics.

Termites? Beaver?

Okay, so the other night Austin was throwing a rare tantrum before bed. We didn' t know what was going on, he was fed, bathed and had his story. This guy is usually like clockwork when it comes to bed time. But Friday night he had different plans. Being the dilligent parents we are we didn't want to give in to his spoiled tantrum so we left him in his crib and let him cry. I had even done the "mommy crawl" into his room to make sure that he wasn't stuck or hurt in any way. Finally, after about 45minutes of keeping the neighborhood awake he either passed out, lost conciousness or just decided to go give up because it was quiet until 8am the next morning. After the coast was clear we went in to make sure he wasn't blue and this was the condition of his beautiful crib. He had used his four little teeth to let us know just how made he was at us. I am assuming he was teething, but we have yet to see any new pearly whites sprouting. I just want to know if my homeowners is going to cover this?

Chucky, is it you?

Shameless Cameo

I should have mentioned in the intro to Austin's blog that there would indeed be a few shameless cameo's of the other star in our family, our precious Corgi. I figure Raumi deserves a little attention considering that this newly mobile little boy has decided to make pulling her ears, tugging on her whiskers, smacking her back and poking her nose his personal mission in life.

We also wanted our devoted readers to know that Austin is not the only one learning new skills in our house. For the past few days Adrian and I have been trying to figure out why the pillows on our bed have been ruffled when we get home. We of course assumed it was Raumi but we couldn't figure out how she was getting up on the bed. We tried endlessly to entice her to jump on the bed for us but she always "acted" like she couldn't jump up on her own. The operative term being, "acted", because the other day I came out of the shower to find the scene in the photo above. I had finally caught her red handed because when I got in the shower she was on the floor. I think the funniest part is that she still pretends like she is helpless and can't get on the bed on her own. Sometimes, I think our dog thinks she is smarter than us. :-)

Hello, are you there?

This picture does not do justice to Austin's newest trick but you get the jist of it. Austin's most recent milestone is to hold his toy phone to his ear and say what sounds like, "hello?" it's totally hilarious. I don't know where he models this behavior from it must be all those hours his dad spends on the phone.

Outdoor man

I see you!!!
Just doing a little upside down reading.

Since Austin was born he has been a lover of the outdoors. When he was a newborn and crying non stop I would just pack him in his Bjorn and stand in the front yard and that would make him happy. I guess we don't have to worry about having a little couch potatoe on our hands. Since our weather has been beautiful the past few weeks he is getting to enjoy some time outside again. We set him and his toys on his blanket and he is happy for hours on end.

When the "cat's" away...

This is what the house looks like when Adrian goes to work.

Peyton, Kalia, Austin, Remington & Tre.

Alas...Snow!!

Bass Lake

Austin is now an old hand at going to "the cabin", I figure by our next trip he will be ready to chop some wood with his dad. On this trip we went with our buddies the Stricklands. You can see what a ladies man our lil' A-Ross is. It is always nice to go with the girls because they are better than hiring a baby sitter.

I am not real sure why we spend money on toys when A-Ross is so entertained with a bag of diapers, a ziploc and a spoon. Hmmm? Who's really the fool??

Yosemite

We went in search of snow. We had jackets, boots, beanies, etc. but all we found were beautiful views. I guess there are worse fates. Austin experienced his first Yosemite winter and for any of you California natives you can tell by the photo of Yosemite Valley just how snowless it really was.

Although, not the greatest photo you will please notice that the dog and the boy are looking in the same general direction. That in and of itself is a formidable task.

Traveling Buddy

If you follow the blog you know that Austin regularly hits the highways. As prudent parents we thought it was imperative that A-Ross find a traveling pal. Austin found Chongo at Old Navy and it has been happy days since then. This is the two of them before we hit the road to San Diego Tuesday.

Fifth haircut

Well, being the slacker mother that I am I finally have photos of Austin's 5th haircut. I wish I would have had the camera the first 4 times because as he has gotten older the haircuts are looking more and more like a wrestling match than a haircut.

RJ

This past weekend A-Ross made yet another trip to Brawley and San Diego. Unfortunately this trip was not recreational trip. Austin's Uncle RJ (my older brother) lost a courageous 15 month battle with brain tumor. Austin was just happy that he got to hang out with his Uncle for the past 9 months and create some pretty cool memories.

Weekend at Grammy's

Two weekends ago Adrian and I went down south for a visit and this was the look on Austin's face when he found out he got to stay with his "Grammy". Someone needs to let me know when they hit that age when they actually notice their parents are gone. Upon our return the dog was more excited to see us than the boy. At least we know he is in good hands while we're gone.

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"Barba" Que 2007

Okay, so we are a little behind on our blogging, but read on because we have tons to catch you up on. A few weeks ago Austin made his official debut at the annual Barba family get together. Needless to say, he was a hit!!




Austin, getting to know a few of his cousins. I think next year we are going to be in trouble when they are all mobile :-)
Tia Andrea and you know the other two.

Grandpa Mike always elicites a smile from A-Ross, especially since he has figured out how to grab that rellay cool fuzzy thing on his face.

Eat my shorts Orwell...

Ah, now that I have selected a fine piece of literature I can get down to some reading.

Now that I am 8 months old, I can finally open these contraptions on my own.

I always skip to the juicy parts in the middle...

This book is hilarious, I wonder how it ends.

Mom, could you please get that dang camera out of my face, I am trying to read here. Jeesh, what does a guy have to do to get some peace and quiet??