Uhhm... Guess What?

Okay, Okay... Not a lot of excuses... Although- if you look at the dates- we haven't posted since last March- Some 9 Months Ago...

Hmm- Oh yeah- Boden's getting a little brother! Here in the next week and a half actually- So, I'd have to say that our excuse is that we've been slowly coming to grips with the fact that our sanity is about to completely leave us.

January 10th is the day that is set at the hospital for P3 to come into this world (the 3rd Peanut if you will). So- in the mean time, we've been working with Boden to entertain himself... short of sticking him in a closet and ignoring him. The B. has now figured out my I-Pod... If I had more time tonight, we have some great video of him rocking out... but this will have to do.

Christmas with the Cowboy Gear

Everybody- I give you CORN!

So- Our apologies for not really being able to update you on the last while... But the big highlights are a trip to California, Boden's turning 2 (in May!), everybody we know getting pregnant, and PapaSteve got knocked out by a goose (hopefully more of that to come later).

At any rate- Give us a prayer... we're about a week and a half to having another boy hitting the ground...

Love you all-

Uhmm... Sorry- Its March Now

Well- I can give you a litany of excuses- but instead, I'll just do what you came here for and show da'boy (That's Boden's multi-cultural name)

As you may or may not know- Its been a couple of months of holding our breath and waiting for news for many of our friends and family. New to the crew in the last six weeks are Carter Jacob and Corrina Marie. Mr. Carter decided to make a dramatic entrance into the world for Jake and Whitney- and Miss Corrina decided she'd rather stay warm and not brave the world. Carter (friend) and Corrina (cousin) were supposed to arrive at about the same time, but do to their individual birthing perogatives- there ended up being five or six weeks between them... All things are good though- and Mr. B. gets to go visit his new cousin next week...

Boden is approaching 2 now... he's about 5 or 6 weeks away I suppose. His little personality is starting to be very clear- and I suppose some of this is just developmental. But he is becoming very strongly opinionated about his clothes for the day- and he's also going through little obsessions... case in point. I'm not sure if you can figure out the theme of these pictures- all taken within about a week of each other...

The boy is certainly going to be a country bumpkin. At least that's what it seems. That or a rock star- but we'll just see. Its been next to impossible to keep him inside- it may just be spring fever- but it doesn't seem to matter what time of day it is or how cold it is outside. About the only thing that's held him back is when he's sick- and even then, he'd usually rather spend a few hours in the backyard if possible. B. is all about critters right now- unfortunately for the neighbors, we've been out in our PJs looking at elk at 6:15 in the morning- simply because we must.

Boden is now starting to be a chatter-box as well. Mom and dad are going to have to start watching their mouths I'm afraid... in the last couple weeks, Boden has boldly declared that there are "no dump" (in his pants, that is), that "I'm cute," that he's had "good burps" and other related and inappropriate verbage. He's also discovered that he and I are "both men" and that he'd like "momma, outside, now." I'm not quite sure who to blame for this- but its likely Elway.

Currently, he's been in a bit of a momma's boy stage. Okay- not a bit... a whole lot. Momma is just about the only thing in the universe. If he

could, he'd be strapped to her. But on a rare occasion, we do have some fella time... like trying to point out the moon while we're laying in the backyard. I'm thinking that we just need a few more trips to bass pro or something.

At any rate- that's about it for now. Summer is coming- so I'm sure we'll have more

shortly.

Cheerio-

Crazy hair, crazy face, and crazy independence

So once again, its been a while...and boy is Boden changing. Getting a little defiant, picking up a word a day at least, and about as funny as they come. We've been working on counting, the ABCs and body parts. Just today on the ride home from daycare, I asked Boden where his nose was (correctly identified), then how many holes it had...9. His favorite numbers are 2 and 9, favorite colors - blue and yellow. He is also really interested in his "belbo" (elbow) and Welway (Elway)...we figure correct pronunciation will come with time.

His imagination seems to be in overdrive...

but we can't always figure out what he is thinking....exhibit A

Although most definitely all boy, Boden is also becoming quite independent, as is evidenced in his dressing. He really wanted THESE socks on RIGHT NOW... and in case you can't tell, he is wearing plaid pj pants, boots, a blue sweat shirt, his camo coat, and on top of it all, a second camo coat that fit at six months while swinging...very styling!
Boden's "Crazy Face" - becoming a legendCrazy hair - always best when waking up from a nap...look at those curls!

It's Been a While!

Alright, Alright... its been a bit long since we've updated... a lot can happen in a couple months. Is hunting season a good excuse?

The B. is going a bit nuts currently. He's coming off a pretty good bout with the stomach bug and croup, but he appears to be on the rebound. The last we chatted, he was all about popsicles and Danner the dog. A lot has happened since then- so we'll have to give you the readers' digest update.

Not that he wasn't before- but Boden has become even more increasingly, totally, and unquestionably ALL BOY. Our neighbor gave us a bunch of dirt from a constuction project to build a great big burm in the backyard- and instead, it became the worlds greatest dirt and mud slide- with no prompting whatsoever. The behavior has carried over into a number of different facets of our young son's life- bailing off the couch, racing down the big kids' slide, taking face-first diggers in the dirt road, wrestling elk... I'm serious! Look!So we spent most of the late summer evenings and early fall out on the golf course chasing the elk, bugling at the elk, kicking the elk poo... But it did make for some nice pictures. Boden lives for the outside now- he has for quite a while. The kiddo will wake up in the morning and we'll find him standing in his crib pointing at his coat. I suppose his love of the outdoors and refusal to put on any weight at all are both encouraging signs that we may miss the childhood obesity epidemic! Here's looking at the bright side heh?

Mylea and Todd... and little mini Bayless in the oven (yeah! mini Bayless on the way!) stopped in for a few days of spoiling and all around tom-foolery. They were generally helpful to have around to entertain Boden and allow us to be total slacker-parents. They were also generally helpful in fostering our child's love of music. In addition, they were generally unhelpful at nurturing the bad habits of keep away, throw the ball of yarn in the bathtub and protesting... (just you wait- your time is coming). By way of news- we can expect the Bayless plum-grabber toward the end of February. I can't believe our family is allowing a Texan to be born into the clan!





Boden got to head up to Fort Collins to visit our good friends Brian and Andi... and their little girl Courtney. We're fairly certain that Courtney's sister, Samantha, has the hots for Boden's brother Soren- but that's a whole different story. At least they get to be the best of friends with Jesus. Meanwhile- back here- Boden got to attend his first CSU football game with Courtney, Brian and I. I'll be honest- the ram-pride is a little down right now... even an ole washed-up, has-been might have a shot at playing for football in Hughes Stadium right now. On the upnote- Boden got to share a little bath time with Courtney. It might have been a little exciting for them both- but don't worry, they were fully supervised.

Like any good family from the sticks of Colorado, we had to spend some time in the fall doing hick things... riding ATVs in the backyard, taking a breather on a pile of gourds, dressing up like cowboys... and turkey-indians for that matter. We did our best to have fun with it- And Mr. B's turkey call is coming right along.





Probably the highlight of the fall- and for almost anytime for that matter- was getting to have the boy spend a little time with both Great-Grandpas. Stephanie was able to make it out to the Grand Valley while I was real busy to spend some time with Grandpa Jack... or Boppa- and we all made it out to Iowa to visit Grandpa Bud. We can never get enough of those opportunities...



That's about all we got for now. I wish I could show you a little more now- but its time for daddy to go to bed.

Merry Christmas everybody- please enjoy it and slow down just a little. Love you all.

CHRISTMAS TIME! This is from the Christmas Program at Boden's Day Care last week. You'll notice his fine musical accumen with the jingle bells (the only elf that can even do it) and his situational awareness to both join in with the standing ovation and curtain call. Let's be honest though- he's not so good at staying in place once he picked momma out of the crowd.


THE FLIRT IS ON! Here is a quick one of Boden learning the fine art of making a woman melt. You can see this particular winking skill is still a work in progress- but if winking with one eye is good- wouldn't winking with both eyes be better? Just think about it.


A SHORT INTERVIEW: The boy is getting increasingly verbal- and he's starting to form short sentences that maybe only mom, dad and the stuffed animals can decipher. Of course he quieted down a bit once the camera came on- but the opinions and preferences (particularly for momma's or daddy's food and drink) are becoming quite apparent.

Boden and Danner

We knew that Boden loved Elway. We knew he loved dogs...but boy o boy does he like puppies! Although in some of these pictures, it looks a little more like a tackle, those are definitely hugs. Its pretty cute...but to those loving grandparents out there - no, we don't need a puppy...one rambunctious all-boy toddler is plenty. But feel free to bring any puppies by for a visit and noogie.

POPSICLES!!!

Oh Goodness... Did we hit on a good one here. Mr. B. went absolutely crazy for his first popsicle on the back porch. So did Elway the dog. So did momma... after Elway the dog. Then Elway the dog, then Boden, then Elway the dog, Daddy, back to Boden and so-forth. It was nothing short of yummy and delicious.

This was absolutely hilarious... and yes, there is a moonwalk in here. You'll notice the conspicuous absence of a white, Michael Jackson glove. You can like the music, you just don't have to live it.

Hope you laugh as hard as we did. Cheerio.

He's got the Jive

I'm not particularly sure that you can say that one who listens to bluegrass has... jive. But if there is an exception to the rule, we may have found it. While he doesn't particularly discriminate, Boden certainly has a bit of an affinity for the banjo and mandolin...

Its a funny thing- B. will just break out in new dance moves, then forget about it entirely, only to pick right back up where he started. You'll see there's the rump shake, the head bob, cool guy arm swing, foot tap, and leg twitch, all at different junctures through this little snippet.

This is fairly classic Boden. nonchalantly removing all things from toy box and stopping to wave at the neighbors, when suddenly, the music grips him and he has no other option but to let it out! you just gotta go with it- life is short.

This is a bit lengthy, but well worth the time. I hope you enjoy it...

So Quickly to a Little Boy

Life in the last two months with Boden has been an incredibly fast transition. I suppose that's how it works with wee-bitty ankle biters. But it does seem to be increasing at a break-neck pace. The boy has been on his feet and running around now for almost two months- he just hit 15 months this week. He's no longer toddling around- he's at an all out sprint when he has the room. We've been out back doing a few gassers- football season is starting, so we may as well have him in shape.

Perhaps the most concerning turn in all of this, is the social development and skills that have become so readily apparent. For example- Take a peak at this picture with Tia Korona (AKA the sister-in-law). My Steph had just taught Boden how to kiss. Wouldn't you know it- the first young, pretty lady that walks through the door (other than momma, of course), the boy gets ahold of either side of her face, pulls her in, and plants a big'ole wet one on the girl. If you look closely- you can even see that Korona's trying to pull the kid away by the back of his shirt- But Mr. B. would rather have a long, drawn out and lingering smacker... I did not teach him this. Good instincts though. We just need to work on social appropriateness- she was just a couple weeks from marrying another man!

Speaking of which- Uncle Erik and Tia Korona just got hitched (and all the people said hurray). A great deal of thought, concern and preparation went into this for Boden. While he didn't have a direct role in the official proceedings- he did fight the happy couple for the spotlight during the festivities. I'm not sure how often we caught him flirting with the bridesmaids- but figuring that one of them was his momma, we let it slide.

However- we decided it was time to start figuring out the hair on this kid. If we had a good picture of the back of his melon, you'd see three consecutive cowlicks, that reverse in the direction with each swirl... counter clockwise, clockwise, counter clockwise. This is going to take some effort. I tried to comb the kids hair down in a respectable manner. But its fairly obvious that he's not the buttoned-down type. So- we went with it. Hawaiian shirts and floppy hair... I'm not making this up. You remember the Bo-hawk... now it has all the more glory. This is about all we can do.

Alright- so its a bit redneck...I guess you are what you are. We had a daddy-son day while Steph was at a conference... so what to do? Go to Bass Pro Shop of course. I had to find the kid a decent hat to start training the growing Boden-mullet... or the Bollet as I think we'll call it. This was the best I could do. Steph told me later that it was a little over the top taking the kid in a white shirt with cut-off sleeves- but I can honestly say it was an accident! At least it had some hawaiian print on the front. The best part of Bass Pro? I'm fairly certain the boy would say it was all the critters that he got to growl at. I'm guessing he thinks that not only do bears and wolves growl... but so do elk, zebras, bison, beavers, ducks, you name it.

More to come later... it just takes a bit longer to get some video up- but it's on its way. Until then... enjoy.

The Beginning of Trouble

Boden's School is teaching him a great many things. One of the very important skills in life is to know how to push junk around. There always seems to be a need to push things from one place to another- One never knows when company is coming over unexpectedly and you'll have to shove all your miscellaneous items under the couch!

So- he's been practicing this new found skill in all sorts of manners. The latest caught on film is the kitchen chair. This was all fine and dandy until Steph and I had the light bulb come on that this is the first step to getting into more trouble. The next thing we'll find is Boden sneaking onto the counter for more cookies... after that- who knows. He's also been utilizing the tub of butter, wicker baskets, the ottoman and the like.

On the plus side, we've discovered some new techniques for training to compete in the STRONG BABY CHALLENGE that's coming to town soon. You can see that Steph jumped a little ahead of the game by placing her full one hundred pounds on the chair... I think we need to train in a little more incremental manner... low sets, high reps; pyramids; etc.- but that will have to be a decision we come to over a glass of wine. I'm not sure we should rush the kid along that fast- its just too hard on his joints at this age. He's got a good naturally wide and powerful base though- don't you think?

Enough Said