Camden's 2nd Birthday

 

Camden celebrated his second birthday a few weeks ago with so many friends and family! We were so happy to see everyone that made it but missed those who couldn't. The theme was a super hero party. We had super suckers (blow pops and tootsie pops), mask-making, a pool, ladderball, food, and good friends.

 

Of course the morning of his birthday weekend we gave him our presents because we were gone all day Saturday at a wedding. He couldn't wait to ride his bike! (aka "Bicyc")

The floor pillow I made him. Tutorial here.

Brad got Cam a pair of binoculars. (aka "knockers" LOL)

Three gen's of Marcov's. My dad, brother and nephew. <3

Hey, it's his party and he can pick his nose if he wants, right?!

 

This year he was SO into The Incredibles and super heroes which is why we chose this theme. I wonder if next year he will request anything and what fun stuff he will be getting into. :) Not too soon, though.



Let the holidays begin, Thanksgiving style

This past weekend was Thanksgiving and we all went down to southern Indiana to visit Brad's family and celebrate. We drove down Wednesday around noon, did some shopping, and then had an amazing dinner (and breakfast, I might add) at Brad's moms house.

 

 

Camden woke up bright eyed and bushy-tailed (little spit fire we've got on our hands). He slept really well in the pack-and-play considering he's maybe slept in it 3 times overnight. We did find out that he doesn't like the pitch black. He screamed until we put a night light in the room, then he went to sleep A-OK. He has one in his room, but I never thought it was that big of a deal. Apparently we need to invest in a small, cheap one to travel with.

 

 

Grandma ABSOLUTELY LOVED having Camden around. Brad was always following him, making sure he wasn't getting into stuff he wasn't supposed to. Me, on the other hand, I was relaxing. I feel like Brad and I have reversed roles since having Camden. I'm the more laid-back one and he's more of the I-have-to-watch-him-at-all-times one. 0:) Love you, babe!

 

 

After breakfast, Camden and Brad looked at some of the Black Friday ads and Cam was picking out and pointing to toys in the ToysRUs ad. It was stinkin' adorable.

 

 

Later Thanksgiving afternoon, we headed over to Brad's aunts house. Luckily there were a few little ones he could play with, but by the time we got here he was tired, had a 15-minute nap, and a banana in place of lunch (so he could eat some Thanksgiving food). Poor kiddo was not happy until he got to inhale, which he did, some turkey and potatoes.

 

 

Then it was picture time and I sorta went a little crazy. :) Someone mentioned a group picture and that their family hadn't had a group picture since before I was around. So while everyone was congregating, I decided to set up a chair stacked with our pack-and-play and some sheets (for stability) on the front lawn and somehow convinced everyone to stand on the porch for a group photo. (See above.)

 

Then I took some of Brad's family. His sister, as we now call her Aunt Rachael, and Camden were playing on the porch and I snapped a few of the one above. It's by far my favorite picture of him and her together. They're so stinkin' adorable!

 

 

I was so happy to also see Rachael's twin, Ryan, at the dinner. I haven't seen him in a long while and it meant so much to everyone to be able to see him there. He also was pretty smitten with Camden; it'd been a while since he's seen him.

 

 

Of course we also got a few family photos (although we are in studio next week so keep an eye out for those photos).

 

Happy Thanksgiving and Holidays to everyone!

The State Fair recap (a month late)

We went to the state fair this year (back in August) and it was SO much more fun than last year because the heat index wasn't 5000. Camden was walking this year, which made it even more fun because he got to participate in more stuff. Brad said maybe a pony ride next year. I'm holding him to that!

 

 

We first went to the DNR building and saw lots of fish!

 

Camden is going to love fishing, I just know it. I'm sure Brad has already purchased (in his head anyways) a little fishing rod for him.

 

We brought snacks, but there were enough halfway-decent options for him to eat lunch. We ended up with the all-beef hot dog (or bract, can't remember) for Cam as well as some fruit we brought ourselves.

 

That's one of the great things about the Indiana State Fair; you can bring your own food or drinks. For the little one, this is very handy although I'd prefer to endulge in some of the fair food myself. 0:)

 

Next, we headed over to the kids area where Camden got to walk along a pathway and pick up (fake, plastic) food and things to put in a bucket. He got to pick up eggs.

 

He also got a free soybean hat (which Brad likes quite a bit).

 

And he got to wear that SUPER-CUTE apron!! Now I'm determined to make him one for helping me bake later on.

 

He got to ride a tractor, which he really enjoyed!!

 

We also got a coupon for a free milkshake from the dairy bar. It was actually big enough for all of us to share as a pre-lunch snack/dessert. It was a REALLY amazing milkshake. As you can see, Camden agrees.

 

He loved the fair and we had so much fun this year~!

 

The above picture is our first trip to the state fair as a family. The bottom picture is from this year. I'm hoping we can keep the tradition each year and get our picture taken every year in front of this same area. It would be really cute to see how we all grow. (Obviously Brad hasn't purchased any new sunglasses since then. Or in like 10 years. Ugh.)

 

One other note is that the first year I really was so grateful for the IMMB's Lactation Station's around the fairgrounds to be able to have a quiet, cooler place to sit down and nurse Cam. They had one this year and informed me that they will no longer be doing it because of the high cost to do it. I really wish they didn't feel that it wasn't a beneficial outreach because it is SO needed!

 

On that note, I probably won't be needing a lactation station any time soon because I'm taking a couple of classes for nursing school prerequisites, working 45+ hours/week and taking care of the home/hubby/toddler. I have a lot on my plate and I appreciate the patience. I also miss my mommy-group friends DEARLY! I can't wait until I get a small break in classes; you know, in like 2 years. More on all of this later. :)