Audrey is 1 Year Old!

Audrey turned 1 on Thursday! I can hardly believe a year has already gone by. We started the day by opening the gifts my grandparents sent for Audrey and Jackson. Then we stopped by Miss Ginny's Bakery for blueberry scones, which I ate almost daily while I was pregnant with Audrey and even requested while I was in the hospital just after she was born. We took extra scones to Audrey's class as a special birthday breakfast.

We picked Audrey up early from school to take her to her 1 year well child checkup. I know...it's a little cruel. She is doing great though! She was around the 65th percentile in height and a little above the 75th percentile in weight. She got two shots, but recovered quickly from the sting.

Afterwards, we picked up Jackson and headed home to play in the backyard and await Nana's arrival. Nana made it in town just in time for dinner and to give them both more gifts. It made for the perfect end to a great day.

As for developmental milestones for this month, Audrey has decided she likes trying to drink from a big girl cup! Most of the water ends up in her lap, but she thinks it's great!

We've started dropping her bottles, and as of today, she's only getting a bottle in the evenings, which we intend to stop next week or when we run out of formula. She has done well with the transition to whole milk, and she can out eat any of us!

She didn't get any new teeth this month. However, she's been chewing on her finger a lot lately, so I suspect one will be coming soon.

She's walking like a pro and has even learned to walk backwards...mostly to back into your lap if she wants to sit there.

She loves to run around and give hugs, especially to babies. We think this is something she has learned from all of the hugs Jackson has given her. If someone seems smaller than her, she wants to bend down and give them a hug just like he does to her! Here's an example from this weekend when their cousin, Mitchell, was in town.

More than anything she wants to do everything Jackson does, and so far he loves that!

Audrey has been and continues to be such a wonderful addition to our family. She brings so much joy to our home! Here are pictures from each month of her life so far. It just amazes me how quickly they grow and change!

Mardi Gras Beads

Jackson always liked beads, but I think Audrey is obsessed. If she sees beads, she MUST wear them, and she puts them on all by herself...all of them!

She had on every bead we own with the exception of three, which Jackson rescued...one for Mommy, one for Daddy, and one for Jackson. To be honest, we were surprised she could walk with all of them on, but she did! There are more in the album.

Pop's Visit for Audrey's B-day

I've got so much to write about that I don't know where to begin. I'll try to break things down into several posts, but be warned...I have a LOT of pictures to share. Hope you enjoy them!

Last weekend my Dad came for a visit to celebrate Audrey's upcoming birthday. We spent a lot of time doing party preparations, but I did snap a few pictures of them opening their presents. Since I'm guessing he didn't have any wrapping paper on hand, this is what he came up with instead...pretty special! We even managed to save them from being torn, so both kiddos have continued to enjoy them.

Jackson really enjoyed the fact that he got gifts for Audrey's birthday too. By the end of the week, I'm pretty sure JD had opened more gifts than Audrey. That changed at her party this weekend though.

Both Audrey and Jackson enjoyed their weekend with Pop!

Mardi Gras in Shreveport!

Last weekend we made our way to Shreveport to spend some time with Ross' family and attend the Centaur Krewe's Mardi Gras parade. We had such a great time! Ross' Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Laura threw a great party. They reserved a spot along the route, had karaoke, lots of good food, and wonderful people to share in the festivities. It was also a celebration of Ross' cousin, Jessie's 21st birthday!

Our friends, Heath, Barbara, and Carter, joined us at the parade as well, which was a huge treat! Jackson was in heaven. We got to the parade site early, and once they closed off the street the party got started. Jackson and Audrey both enjoyed playing in the street, and we all had fun just being silly. Here are some pictures of the pre-parade action.

This hat was a hit! Everyone enjoyed it...even Granddad!

The karaoke went over well too. There were all kinds of random people stepping up to the mic by the end of the night!

This was the first time we've ever intentionally allowed Jackson and Audrey's bedtime schedules to be thrown out the window. Audrey is usually in bed at 6, and Jackson is usually down for the night at 7. Since the parade didn't even get to us until around 8 or so, we definitely didn't keep to our usual schedule. Audrey passed out just as the floats were beginning to arrive, but Jackson found his second (or third) wind and enjoyed every moment of the parade. He got lots of good stuff too...beads, balls, a bear, and some toys! We decided to make our way home about 3/4 of the way through the parade because it was getting so late and Audrey was no longer sleeping.

Here are some pics from the parade and the beginning of JD and Audrey's bead collection...

The birthday girl, Jessie!

Here are some pictures of a couple of the interesting floats...the cow was JD's favorite!

Before leaving town on Sunday we got to visit with Ross' Grandfather. Jackson and Audrey were both a little shy, but we really enjoyed our brief visit.

The weekend was well worth the trip, and we hope to do it again next year. Huge thanks to Ronnie and Laura for putting together such a fun set up! There are more pictures of the fun in the album.