First Birthday "Paw-ty"

If you are a regular reader on this blog, you are well aware of the love affair we have going on at our house.  No, not me and the mister.  I'm talking about Palmer and Boston.  Palmer wakes up every morning and is THRILLED to see the dog.  Every. Single. Morning. He happily exclaims, "DOOOG!!!".

So, it seemed only appropriate to have a puppy-themed party.

(Unfortunately, the second guest of honor, Boston, was tucked away in our master bathroom during the party because he was sick with pancreatitis.  Boston and I had some quality time 5am at the pet ER on the morning of the party.)

Puppy balloons greeting guests outside and inside.  (Special shout out to Jeff on the balloon creation.)

One Year Banner:

The spread.  Yes, that is puppy chow in the dog bowls

Favors:

We pulled out the water table and a ball pit in the backyard.  All of the kids had a ball on the 85-degree day playing with the toys and enjoying bubbles.

I'm sure none of you are surprised that Palmer quickly and easily plowed thru his smash cake.  Without a flinch, Palmer started shoveling in the cake.  He was upset that his mean mom didn't let him finish the entire dessert.  I figured I already had a sick dog and didn't want a sick child, too!

Obligatory family photos:

 And before Palmer broke my necklace:

WHAT'S FOR SNACK?

BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S ROSEMARY CASHEWS:  We went pretty low-key with the party food: cupcakes, puppy chow and rosemary cashews.  I had several people ask me for the cashew recipe, so here you go.  The snack is a perfect blend of sweet, salty and spicy.  And it's super fast to make.  You can't go wrong!

We are so fortunate to be surrounded by so many good friends and family.  And Palmer already has such a good posse of little buddies to run around with.  We all had a blast!

Happy Birthday, One Year Old!

-Bethany

Wordless Wednesday

-Bethany

1st Year Update

I'm okay...I'mokayi'mokayi'mokayi'mokay.  That's what I repeated in my head all weekend to keep the tears back.

When did I turn into such a sap?  I mean, in high school I was known as "Stone Cold Thomas".  So, why am I weepy over this little boy's first birthday?

Because this boy means the world to me and I'm thrilled with the wonderful year he's had.  Mr. Palmer is one year old.

One-Year Stats:
Height: 31 inches (85th percentile)
Weight: 24 lbs, 14 oz (80th percentile)
Head: 45 cm (23rd percentile)
Number of Teeth: 6

Likes:
-Golf clubs: Rick bought Palmer a golf club set a few weeks ago.  Palmer is rarely seen without his golf clubs.  He has also figured out how to hit the golf ball with the club, so there are always little plastic golf balls scattered around the house.

-Sticks: What else does a man need besides a stick?  (And maybe some dirt.)

-Eating acorns: Unfortunately, Palmer can't kick the squirrel's habit of eating acorns.  The choking hazard gives me much excitement on a daily basis.

-Waving: Palmer is quite the social fellow these days.  Everywhere we go, he waves to the people he meets.  Luckily, most people can't resist Palmer's charm and happily engage and wave back.

-Dogs: Palmer continues to love dogs.  He now recognizes neighboring dogs barking and without even seeing the dogs, will happily exclaim, "DOG!". Imagine his excitement when he got his very own dog to walk from Aunt Adrienne.  This little (upside down) dog is from Adrienne's trip in Paris, so we've named him "Pierre".

-Hugs: Palmer gives hugs.  I love that he can understand us now and when we say things like, "Give mommy a hug" or "Give Boston a hug" he really comprehends and will give us a hug.  It melts my heart.

-Running: Palmer believes that he is so good at walking, he can now run.  Unfortunately, his body can't keep up with his brain and he ends up falling a ton because he goes too fast.  But, the boy is tough and brushes off the falls and keeps on attempting to run.

Happy 1st birthday, Palmer!
-Bethany

How Did We Get Here?

Tomorrow is the boy's 1st birthday.  I've been weepy and nostalgic all week.  Enjoy my journey down the past year's memory lane:

First Day:

What a year!
-Bethany

On the Road

I received a lot of concerned emails after posting yesterday's Wordless Wednesday photo.

Here's the skinny: I went to Austin for a friend's wedding over the weekend.  Rick held down the fort and took Palmer to the lake house for the day.  Mid-afternoon, Rick texted me the head injury photos and no explanation.

My response via text: "Holy crap. That looks really bad.  Is he okay?"
Rick: no response
Me: "I would definitely ice that."
Rick: "Palmer doesn't like ice."
Me:  "Frozen peas?"
Rick: "Palmer doesn't like peas."
Me:  "Please make sure to keep a good eye on him when he takes his upcoming nap."

This is where mama bear lets go and trusts her very capable husband.

The short of the story, Palmer is just fine.  He falls a lot these days and hit his head on a table.  The swelling went down by the next morning.

And how did that nap go?  Well, apparently Palmer and Rick fell asleep together.  Palmer woke up before Rick and quietly disassembled a potted plant.  Rick said Palmer scattered flower petals all over the room.

Who?  This sweet boy?  Not possible.

Palmer and Rick's solo adventures continued because when I returned from the wedding, I got a call from ABC News to do some storm chasing for World News Tonight and Good Morning America.  I quickly drove up to Oklahoma only to spend the next three days making our way south of San Antonio and covering 1270 miles along the way.

We were paired with some professional storm chasers (you may have seen their Discovery Channel show.)  Loaded with all of their incoming weather data from the crazy Dominator vehicle, we were on top of where to find the right place.

Unfortunately, we never saw an actual twister because we made a decision to break away once the sun went down (it's, obviously, more dangerous at dark).  A twister was spotted at nightfall and the guys from the Dominator took this picture from their cameras:

We drove thru the night to check out the damage and filed for Good Morning America just in time.

A good adventure, but I'm glad to be back with the boys.  We've got a first birthday party to finish planning!

Special thanks to Nana for helping out at home while I was away!

-Bethany