Holidays

It's been a little while since we've posted...long enough that I was reprimanded by my little sister Jenny for not updating the blog enough. It is getting more difficult to take pictures of Spencer which is probably why our posts are fewer and farther between. He is either walking all over and won't stop long enough for a picture or if he sees the camera he wants it and comes to attack me until I give it to him or put it away.

But we have been doing well and staying pretty busy lately. We stayed in Oklahoma for Thanksgiving. My parents went to Arizona to see my brothers new baby Ewen over the holiday, so we had a Thanksgiving dinner by ourselves. I had a lot of fun cooking everything and we all had fun eating it! Bryce helped "cook" by entertaining Spencer which was very helpful.

Spencer enjoying our Thanksgiving feast.

Spencer is growing and getting into everything! He is walking all over the place and learning lots of new tricks. Here is his latest:

He loves to put his finger in things...his nose, my nose, his binky, any little hole he can find. He also really likes to poke his eyes and hit himself in the face. I don't like when he does this and so usually try to stop him but apparently that just makes it even funnier.

He also loves to throw his hands up and walk around in circles.

He does lots of funny things. He is a great baby. He is a great sleeper too! He sleeps all night these days and usually just plays in his crib until we come get him in the morning. And he loves to go outside. It has been getting pretty cold here lately. We went on a little walk this afternoon and I bundled him up in his big coat.


Spencer all bundled up and ready to explore!

Tonight we went to a Christmas party for Bryce's work. It was a lot of fun and Santa even came to celebrate with everyone! Spencer was not too fond of Santa though...he hated him in fact.


I'm sure Spencer will like Santa once he figures out that is who brings him his presents on Christmas!

First Steps!

Spencer took his first steps tonight!



We are pretty excited for him right now, but I'm sure as he gets better and is harder to chase after and can get into more trouble we won't be as excited. =)

Halloween!

Last Wednesday my mom, Spencer, and I drove up to Kansas to visit my older sister Jessica and her family. We went with them to their ward's trunk or treat that night. It was fun to see all the kids in their costumes and Spencer really enjoyed all the candy he was able to eat!

Sabrina (the bride), Grace (Jasmine from Aladdin), Benson (reptile veterinarian), and Spencer (Simba from Lion King)

Spencer helping Aunt Jessica hand out candy in the trunk.

Sabrina sharing her sucker with Spencer. He would not leave her alone after she starting sharing with him.

We had a fun time on our short trip to Kansas. We got to go to the mall and play at the play place and do a little shopping. While we were there the Spencer and Breeny rode on a helicopter!


Riding in the helicopter.

Then on Halloween we dressed Spencer up and took him over to my Aunt Julie's house to show off his costume (which was one of my cousins old costumes) and get some candy! We tried to put a little make-up on his face so he had a black nose a whiskers but that didn't work out so well. He screamed and screamed while we tried putting it on and then he just wiped his nose and cheeks with his tears so it all came off anyway. I did end up getting a little spot of black on his nose...but that was about all we could do!

Spencer really enjoyed Halloween this year because he can now eat the candy! He was going crazy at the trunk-or-treat because they had candy corns all over the tables and so he kept trying to climb up on the table to grab some or would crawl on the floor to find pieces that had dropped. He loves his sweets!

Fall

I love fall. I love the colors, the smells, the weather...it is all wonderful. And it is definitely fall here because there are so many leaves on the ground! So on Saturday we were out in the yard and decided to make a pile of leaves for Spencer to play in. He didn't enjoy being in the pile of leaves but he did like picking up leaves and sticks and examining them (and then trying to eat them).

Eating bugs! I didn't realize when I was taking the picture that Spencer was sticking a snail in his mouth...

For Spencer's birthday my mom bought him a new Sunday outfit. He wore it to church today and looked so cute in it! Sarah and I decided at church that we would draw a moustache on him when we got home because it just looked like it would go with his outfit. So here are a few pictures of our little banker. =)

He wasn't very happy about being drawn on with make-up...

But it looked pretty funny/cute. We are thinking now that maybe he should be a little banker for Halloween!

I can't even take him seriously like this...

First Haircut

Spencer finally got his first haircut. It was just a little trim of the sides because they were out of control. Not really I guess, but it was getting pretty long and starting to flip out on the sides. Anyway, my mom did it and he was surprisingly good during it and held pretty still.











This is the best not blurry after shot of Spencer's haircut.



My mom cut Spencer and Benson's hair the same morning while they were visiting. It was so fun to see Spencer playing with his cousins. He is just getting so big I can hardly stand it. I took a video of Spencer and Breeny playing together. Breeny kept building a house and Spencer would try to knock it down so I tried to get it on tape. This video also gives a better view of Spencer's new haircut.



(the video isn't wanting to post and i want to go to bed, so i'll try it again later)

S'mores!

This past weekend my Grandpa Burkinshaw flew out and stayed with us for a few days. My sister Jessica, her husband Mike, and her kids all came down too since grandpa was visiting. While they were here we had a little campfire in the backyard. And made some s'mores! So good! Just ask Spencer...

He loved them! And he ate the entire s'more!

Finishing it off.

Grace and Breeny enjoying their s'mores.

Grandpa Jeff with Grace and Spencer

Daddy holding Spencer back from the fire. He really wanted to just get down and crawl, but that was obviously not an option.

We had a great time and were so glad we got to spend some time with Grandpa Burkinshaw!

Happy 1st Birthday Spencer!!

My little baby is one year old today! I can't believe it's already been one year...

He is such a great baby and I'm not sure what we ever did without him. He is into everything and learning all kinds of new things. He loves to clap, play peek-a-boo, and give kisses. He's still not too interested in walking but he can sure crawl fast! He has even started crawling on his feet instead of his knees. It looks pretty silly but I assume his knees need a break sometimes so that is what he does. He has mastered climbing down the stairs without going down head first. And he can even climb off the couch by himself and without falling. He is getting taller. I know this because he can reach and pull down a lot more than he used to be able to. He loves being outside and of course tries to eat all the leaves, dirt, and rocks he can find. And he is definitely into testing his limits. He always looks at me when he knows he's getting into something he's not supposed to and when I come to get him he just makes his mess even faster. I was wiping up the floor the other day after he had eaten. He was still in his chair and I was looking up telling him what a sweet baby he was. Then he looks at me, looks at the food on his tray, grabs a huge handful and dumps it on the floor right where I just cleaned. Maybe he just didn't like me calling him a sweet baby? But he still is.

Anyway, he had a great birthday. He got lots of great new clothes (which mommy loved) and a lot of great new toys (which Spencer loved)! He has lots of people who love him and we are very grateful for all our family! I made Spencer's cakes, with the help of my mom, and I think they turned out pretty cute. We used fondant for the caterpillar which was so easy! We did a Baby Einstein theme since he loves to watch his Baby Einstein DVD's.


Spencer eyeing the cake!

Spencer's little cake.

Spencer tried to eat one of the fondant balls that made up the caterpillar...they are edible but not very tasty.

Destroying his cake! He loved every minute of this and wouldn't stop saying "mmmm, mmmm, mmmm" which he usually says now anytime he's eating anything. And as you can see his little birthday boy sign didn't last very long.

Riding his new toy from Aunt Julie which also turns into a walker. I'm sure this will provide hours of entertainment!

It was a great birthday and we are so grateful for the past year with Spencer. He is such a sweet and happy baby and we love him very much!

Go Cougars!

Go BYU!

This post is a little old I know, but for Labor Day weekend Bryce, Spencer, and I went to Houston for baby Sam's (my brother John's new baby) blessing. Of course that Saturday was the big BYU OU game in Dallas. And thanks to Craig and Sharayne, Bryce was able to get a ticket to the game! He was so excited...I'm sure if any of you know Bryce and BYU football you could understand. He had been wanting to go since he knew we were moving to Oklahoma so I'm glad it worked out that he could go. Anyway, so we drove down and stayed in Dallas on Friday night. Then we dropped Bryce off with Sharayne and my parents, Sarah, Spencer and I drove the rest of the way to Houston.

Here is Spencer with Aunt Sharayne. We only got to spend a few minutes with her so we are excited for Christmas when we'll have a more time to hang out with her and everyone else in Bryce's family!

After we dropped him off, Bryce and Sharayne went to the JFK memorial where he was assassinated. After that they picked Craig up and headed over to the game.

Craig, Sharayne, and Bryce

The amazing stadium and gigantic HD screen.

I should probably let Bryce write about this because I am sure he would have a lot to say. But I am pretty sure he loved every minute and he came home with a very hoarse voice. He texted me after the game and said "That was the third best event in my life next to marrying you and spencer's birth!!!!!!" Pretty ridiculous I know but I'm sure it's the truth. =)

The Beach

While Bryce was in Dallas getting ready for the football game, Spencer and I got to go to the beach with everyone! It was Spencer's first experience at a real beach and I think he mostly liked it. He loved crawling in the sand and getting dirty for a while. He did get tired of the it though I think and was ready to go home and take a bath and be able to crawl around on a clean floor.

Mommy and Spencer walking in the ocean!

Crawling in the messy sand.

This was the dirtiest he got. I caught him eating some sand a few times, and then he fell on his face getting it even dirtier.

Finally clean! Well, Spencer was anyway. Obviously wearing white shorts was probably not the smartest idea.

After the beach we all went to John and Emily's to eat pizza and watch BYU play against OU. Spencer was pretty wild and all over the place so I didn't pay too much attention to the game until the end. We were all pretty excited to see BYU win! It is too bad about Bradford getting hurt though. Since we are living in Oklahoma we (or maybe I should just say I because Bryce only cheers for OU if it will help BYU go up in the polls) are still cheering for Oklahoma. Hopefully both BYU and OU will keep winning so everyone around me will be happy! =)

Sam's Blessing

And finally the whole reason we drove down the Texas, little Sam's baby blessing. We are so grateful to my parents for letting us ride down with them and for my Uncle Mark and Aunt Wendy for letting us stay at their house. We were really glad to be there and to finally meet baby Sam! He is such a cute baby. It was also fun to see John and Emily and their cute house!

Family picture after church.

Sam with Breeny, Ben, and Grace. Spencer was exhausted after church and so wasn't awake to take pictures with the other cousins.

Me with baby Sam. He is such a cute little baby. And so tiny! It's hard to believe that Spencer used to be his size! He seems like a giant next to him now.

The blessing was so nice and I really am so glad we got to be there for it. Hopefully we'll be seeing more of John and Emily and Sam now that we're living a little closer to them!

Spencer wanted to try Uncle John's pull up bar. Isn't he so strong?

Duck Pond!

This week here in Oklahoma the weather has been really nice, well until yesterday anyway. It wasn't very humid and it was only in like the 70's. So one night we decided it was time to take Spencer to meet some ducks at the duck pond. I think that he liked them...he didn't really get really excited or really scared or anything. There are some big white ducks that are really loud and kind of mean. We were feeding a few ducks and they came running over honking at us. They were all getting really close and so Spencer and I decided it was time to get away from them. Bryce fed them a little but they were honking and getting closer and closer to him so he turned around to walk away and one of them snapped at his back! It was so funny. Anyway, it was a fun little trip and we know to try and stay away from the mean white ducks.

Bryce and Spencer with our favorite duck. This one was even taking the bread out of Bryce's hand. Spencer's face looks a little concerned, but he really loved the duck.

Spencer is into everything these days. He loves to go through drawers and cupboards and just pull everything out.

He also really loves climbing down the stairs. There are four little stairs that lead up to his room and he is getting good at climbing down them. It would be easier if he just went down them backwards, but he has to start out going head first and then he'll eventually turn sideways and get to the bottom. I haven't let him try this on the big stairs yet because I am sure that he would just roll down them. But these little ones are good practice for him.

Update on Spencer

And of course I can't ever post anything without adding in a few pictures of Spencer.

I suppose with being mobile and climbing on everything there are going to be lots of falls and a few injuries. Well, this has been Spencer's first big injury (and it probably isn't really that big, it's just seems big to me, ha). So he fell on the wood floor and bit his tongue! Doesn't it look painful? Every time I see it or think about it, it makes my tongue hurt. But Spencer apparently has a pretty high pain tolerance (or I'm just a huge pansy). So he fell and was bleeding a lot. He was pretty upset at first, as you can imagine, but since it happened he hasn't really acted like it bothers him much. He still eats and chews on anything he gets his hands on. He even sticks his tongue out and grabs it with his hand and pulls on it! I make him stop because it's just too much for me. But he's doing pretty good and hopefully it will heal quickly!

Spencer's pool hair do. I think his hair gets blonder everytime he is outside in the sun!

Swimming in the pool! He really did not like this at all, although he is getting more used to and starting to enjoy the pool.

Spencer in his old man pants. Actually, all his pants can do this. Poor kid is definitely going to be short. These are 9 months pants and they are still too long on him!

And in case anyone wonders why Spencer is so spoiled and gets whatever he wants, this is why. Who can say no to this face??