Sawyer is ONE!

Our little guy Sawyer turned one this past Friday. We feel like the past year has flown by but we've loved every second we've had with him. Sawyer is just a squishy little ball of fun and adds so much to our family with his own little personality. He thinks he's just as big and old as Hudson and tried to prove it when he started walking 2.5 months ago. His current favorite activities include: walking around holding his belly, drinking his ba-ba, dancing and spinning in circles, running back and forth laughing and flapping his arms when he gets excited, pushing Lightning McQueen around the house and trying to mimic words like bye-bye, ma-ma, tiger (that one was a fluke). He loves to be tickled and laugh his hearty little laugh. We love him so much. Happy Birthday DJ Soy Sauce!


Here's a recap of Sawyer's big day:


Pancake breakfast with family complete with a match candle. We had normal candles but we went for excitement instead of convention.


The boys got new shirts for the big day. Hudson was included so he wouldn't feel too left out...not that he didn't pirate all the gifts later anyway :)


Here's a snap shot of Sawyer's Yo Gabba Gabba party. It was crazy and fun...13 kids + 10 adults in one little living room.


Cameron made some really awesome stuff for the party, including 'space invaders' that hung from the ceiling. The kids tried to shoot them down with our stomp rocket.


This is the giant Muno for 'Pin the Eye on the Muno'...


Sawyer LOVED his cupcake and ice cream, although he didn't really catch on to the concept of blowing out the candle :)


Hudson is now the proud owner of his own Gabba Gabba Land complete with all five characters (I realize this means nothing to most of you :), also made by Cameron for the party.

Georgia on My Mind...

First off, I think it is fair to say that GA has the coolest state song ever. Although "Home Means Nevada" will always have a special place in my heart thanks to Nate Mack Monday mornings. Here are some more wonderful things that we encountered during our Christmas trip to the great southern state of Georgia:




Cameron's parents and brother Connor who we love and loved spending time with for the week we were there. They are currently serving as presidents of the GA Atlanta North Mission.



The Yellow River Game Ranch, a.k.a. Redneck Petting Zoo. Deer were running up to us to be fed and petted. There were bears, sheep, chickens, bison, mountain lions, peacocks, donkeys, raccoons, goats, ducks, foxes and much more including this guy:



The MONSTER PIG! The picture does not do him justice. He charged us at full speed for food, which was very slow due to his obesity, but he was ferocious. Hudson wouldn't go within 10 feet of him. He still makes me happy just looking at the picture.



We also visited Stone Mountain on a beautiful, overcast day. We had the grounds to ourselves since it was Christmas Eve.



Christmas! Most notably Sawyer's first Christmas. He carried around two jingle bells the whole time to show his festivity.



We also got to spend time with the Cotterell cousins who came the day after Christmas. We spent our last full day there with everyone in Atlanta at Coke World...



...and the aquarium, which was amazing. The boys loved the sea life.



And last but not least...this beautiful display adorning someone's yard. I was hoping to see some good cliché southern yard decorations and this fit the bill.

The "Two-Year-Old Filter" Applied to Church

It's interesting to see how things filter through the mind of a two-year-old. Every week in church, after every single prayer or "amen", Hudson joyfully exclaims: "Yea! Time for nursery!" Last night during FHE, we sang "Jesus wants me for a sunbeam. He refused to sing anything but "Jesus wants me for a dinosaur" in his best growling voice. When asked, "Who do we pray to?", he answered, "A Ghost". And finally every time we mention President Monson, he yells, "President MONSTER!"