race day...

For Ry's dad's 60th birthday, we gave him racing lessons at the Texas Motor Speedway with Team Texas. We couldn't let Jim do it alone, so Ry got to go for his birthday/Christmas present. We finally got it scheduled and went up labor day weekend. Ry, his dad, his mom, my mom, Tessa, our friend Damien (visiting from NJ), Nate and I were there. There were also about 80 drivers, so we were there for several hours! Ry and his dad each got to go around the lap 10 times, and raced at almost 150 mph.

Funny, Ry has now been watching some NASCAR, and following his car (they drove retired cars!). Jim was in the in Cingular 31 and Ry was in the Old Spice/Home Depot 14 (Tony Stewart's car).

Here are some photos from the event.

Please pray...

for our friends the Whitaker's. They have had lots of complications with the pregnancy of their 5th child, and Kathryn was induced this morning. We are storming heaven for y'all!

Philip Gabriel, pray for them.

Mary Isabelle, pray for them.

Lucy Grace, pray for them.

Luke David, pray for them.

leading mommy...

A couple days ago Nate was getting agitated with me. He wanted me to hold him, then not. So, I decided to take him outside. We sat on the front porch, then we walked to the garage. He played with the door, then took my hand and kept walking - across the driveway, then the grass, across our neighbor's driveway and to their front door. I knocked on their door, and so did Nate.

Their son Eli answered and yelled "Calvin!" (their son who was due the same day as Nate) "Your best friend Nate is here!".

And that is exactly what Nate wanted. We stayed there a few minutes, played, then they had to leave. Nate was satisfied and I am trilled how he showed me what he wanted to do!

14 months!

Well, the teen months are proceeding with gusto! In one word - exploring! Nate is having lots of fun crawling (he's getting much faster), and then a week before turning 14 months, he started walking. I started counting steps, and I think in a week he was up to at least 20 steps. What a mover! And what stops him - he wants to start running and his feet don't move fast enough.

What else? He's figured out how to get off the couch and our bed (on his stomach), and easily maneuver up and down the stairs. The kitchen cabinets are still lots of fun, and he loves to pull things off - like blankets off the couch or towels off the rack. He also pushes everything - bar stools, laundry baskets, his car, toy garage, etc. He's also moved away from taking a bath in his baby tub to the big boy tub (although lately he doesn't like that either).

We're doing good on chores - unloading the washer and dryer (although we are a bit confused why mom loads them), unloading the dishwasher and sweeping with the swiffer. The vacuum is a cool, it can entertain him for awhile.

Other events - my birthday, Tessa neni's graduation, Lauren and Peter's wedding, swim lessons and lots of time playing with friends.

Some favorites:

snack - baby goldfish

appliance - vacuum and washer

tv show - veggie tales

teether - frozen popsicle

game - chase

Nate the model...

So, did you know Nate was famous? Not just all the cool stuff I post on my blog, but he also does some modeling. He works for product, and you can see him here.

He's actually modeling for our friend Kim. She makes tons of cool stuff, like these cool crocheted baby blankets and hats. We just love her stuff, so check it out! She has other blankets too that you can personalize, which have been a favorite gift of ours to give.

Here are some other pics from his photo shoot. A little late (these were taken in April), but I thought you'd like him! Now off to work on this 14 month post!