Little Squirt

We were having some fun in the sun out in the backyard a few days ago. Anthony was playing with the water hose and glanced up for this picture. Quite artistic, don't you think?

I just want to squeeze him all the time!!!

Anthony's First Steps

Anthony finally took his first steps about a week and a half ago...he's 14 months. Even at this point, the only time he'll "walk" is when we're all huddled around him clapping and cheering him on! I'm sure it'll be 15+ months before he decides he wants to walk all the time. He is such a fast crawler...I think he feels like walking slows him down too much! But he does do his "bear crawl" (on his hands and feet--not knees) more and more. We're not pushing him...just letting him do it in his own time. However, we were very excited to see him venture out a bit and take some steps all by himself. He just decided to do it one day...yippee!!!

The Big 3-0

Guess who just celebrated the big 3-0?!? We didn't do anything fancy...it's been a bit of a crazy time in our lives recently. I cooked an awesome surf n' turf meal (Mario requested scallops--a new endeavor for me to cook)! And of course I baked his favorite chocolate peanut butter cake. He did say it felt a little strange being 30...that is after I reminded him a few times that he would NEVER be in his 20's again!!!

Best wishes, sweet husband!

I hope and pray your 30's are even BETTER than your 20's!!!

My Little Four-Eyes

Check out the cool light-up glasses Grama brought for Anthony when she came in town!!! Isn't he just the cutest little dweeb that you've ever seen???

Working the glasses...yeah, that's drool--so what?

Wow! Daddy's awesome!!!

Checking out my coolness in the oven "mirror"

Stand and Plop

Anthony started this new trick the night we came back from our weekend getaway...

Can you tell he's a little proud of himself?

He used to cry whenever he plopped down on his bottom from a stand, but now he just thinks it's fun!

American Idol's Youngest Fan

Which one do you think he liked better??? Kris or Adam???

I think (much to his parents' dismay) that Adam may have the upper hand in Anthony's mind. Can you tell he doesn't watch much TV?

Exploring the Pots and Pans Cabinet

The only problem was that he wasn't sure how to get out!!!

Getting Acquainted with "Puppy"

Grama and Grampa brought down "Puppy" when they came to visit. This stuffed animal was Mario's favorite friend growing up. It looks like Anthony likes him too.

Giving Puppy a hug

Mother's Day

Just a couple of shots of me and Anthony on Mother's Day. I'm so honored to be the mommy of such a precious little boy.

Our Austin/San Antonio Trip

We had a blast on our weekend getaway...our first trip that's been just the two of us since Anthony was born. We left Anthony in the very good hands of Mario's mom. He happily waved "bye-bye" as we headed out the door. So, we drove to our first destination--Austin, our state capitol. As we were driving off, it DID feel like we were forgetting something... :(

Mario in front of the capitol building
Mel in front of the capitol building

The grounds were lush and beautiful. We spent a little time taking in some of the history of the site. There were some school groups in there, and we could almost feel the "swine flu" in the air, so we didn't stay long enough to catch it!

We then took a driving tour of the UT Austin campus to see what the big deal was all about...we still don't really get it. We did stop for smoothies on campus with all the 12 year old students (or maybe they only LOOKED that young...or maybe we're just getting OLD!!! Haha!)

We drove a little outside the city to our free hotel, thanks to Mario's Priority Club points. It was a huge room with a jacuzzi!!! Wow!

The next day we drove to the outlet mall and did some shopping before making our way to San Antonio.


An Italian restaurant we ate at on the Riverwalk

Posing on the Riverwalk

San Antonio trolley in front of our hotel

Me in front of our hotel

We went to the symphony one night. We tried to capture the cool lighting effects and artistry in the architecture and decor.

And there we are!

We walked about one and a half miles to the Guenther House--a breakfast restaurant in a renovated old home that's on the same property as the mill where they mill their own flour. We are sitting outside on a bench waiting to be seated.

Still waiting

The sign out front. We had an amazing breakfast consisting of cinnamon raisin bread as a starter. Then we had buttermilk pancakes and biscuits and gravy--everything tasted so fresh! This place is definitely a winner!!!

On our walk back, Mario posed for a snapshot in front of the buildings where they actually mill the flour. We got some souvenirs to take home (aka cinnamon raisin bread mix--yum!)

A pretty and quiet part of the Riverwalk

We of course visited the Alamo and listened to the history of the bravery of the Texans in the face of the Mexican army. It was a surprisingly interesting story.

Behind the Alamo there were men in costume timing how quickly they could load and shoot their muskets. These were the same type of guns used in the battle here. They were able to do it three times in one minute.

Another pretty view of the Riverwalk

Our "night out on the town" dinner at a fancy restaurant--"Biga on da Banks" (j/k...it's "Biga on THE Banks--Mario was just saying it wrong the whole time ;) We had an AMAZING meal! Mario had the roast duck, and I had a fillet mignon. The chef's menu changes everyday because he uses only the freshest organic ingredients, so he never knows what he might find and cook! Our server was wonderful! He liked us so much that he brought us a complimentary dessert!

We left on Sunday to come home, but not before visiting our friends the Duvalls for lunch! I can't believe I didn't take any pictures while we were with them, but we had a fabulous time. Their boys are getting so big, and Cole is an expert at the Wii! Thanks for a wonderful afternoon, guys!

Well, that's our trip in a nutshell...hope you enjoyed it. We couldn't wait to get back home to our own little munchkin, so we threw our plans to make one last stop at the outlet mall out the window (much to Mario's relief, I'm sure) and headed back to see our baby. He was so excited to see us! That huge grin just melts your heart and makes you never want to leave again! But I'm sure we will because we had so much fun, and it sure was nice to have an uninterrupted conversation!!!

Cute Videos!!!

Here are just a couple more cute videos from within the past couple of weeks. The first is Anthony's new dance jig. He really gets those arms going! :) You'll also notice his signature "thumb-suck/ear grab" at the end of the video. He does this ALL the time now! The second is just of him smiling and laughing. I have no idea what he was laughing at--it was just me and him in the room, and I was holding the camera, not doing anything funny. I guess he was just hamming it up! What a happy, sweet, little boy!!! Enjoy!

Easter Basket

Here's a cute video of Anthony opening his Easter basket from Grama and Grampa. Can you tell he's into emptying things??? ;)

Chick-Fil-A Play Place

Anthony and I had a special lunch date a few weeks ago and went to Chick-Fil-A. We had chicken nuggets and waffle fries, and we even shared a milkshake! He LOVED it!!! I let him play in the play area--his first time! He's still too little to climb and slide, but he definitely enjoyed the wall puzzles.

Anthony went to say "hi" to a little boy eating on the other side of the glass. The little boy tried to share his chicken nugget through the window. Haha!

Mandy's Baby Shower

We celebrated Mandy's baby shower over Easter weekend too! We had so much fun putting it all together! Just a couple more weeks to go...we can't wait to meet "Cousin Payne"!!!

Mandy, Justin, and Baby Payne

Mandy, me, and my best friend Kelly (due in June)

Cute little diaper cake

Hope ya'll had fun, Mandy! We love you! Can't wait to see you soon!