saying goodbye.

saying goodbye after having a house full of visitors is the WORST.  i've lived away from home for ten years now & it's still really hard every time my family or besties leave.  this time was no exception, although it was maybe a tad easier being able to say good-bye in shifts instead of everyone leaving at once and going from house-full to house-empty!

monday night after the zoo trip, mindy & ruthie headed to the airport so we said goodbye in the mcdonald's parking lot after a late afternoon ice cream stop...

and then on tuesday morning my mom, dad & charlie left for their drive back to missouri...

 while we were standing around in the front yard, brady coerced charlie into a game of "throw the binky & pick it up" :)

(see it mid-air??)

charlie "helps" brady reach the bink.

these two are always taking pics...wonder where i get it?

we were crazy for attempting a grammy-papa-grandbabies photo...not everyone was in the mood (elena) but i think we got a couple cute ones.  of course the giraffe & zebra had to be part of the photo.

charlie says a loving goodbye to kate.

and we of course had to do a grandpa price goodbye as they drove away.  helped me manage the tears!

 we were so glad the lootens were able to stay a couple extra days, and we took them to the airport thursday evening.  these two were excited about flying again!

thank you everyone for coming!!!  best weekend ever.

more pics from birthday week...

here are some more highlights from birthday week...

you & your cousins were in constant play mode.  you took full advantage of the playroom (never been more thankful for that space!) & just went crazy with the girls.  it was so awesome to have my three favorite little people all so close.  here you all three display your stuffed animals from the zoo trip...

papa joined in the fun!

you love to be thrown in the air, and i love to hear you laugh, so we do this lots.

we read lots of books this weekend & while you aren't too fond of sitting still for long anymore, one night after your bath you were still & calm so we read.

we played lots & lots of pig ball!

enjoying your new tool bench from uncle charlie with laney, who was your constant companion.

wrestle time with uncle josh!!

helping papa do some work one morning.

snuggle fest!

water park with the cousins.

tuesday afternoon we took the babies & went to old town for lunch and to walk around.  at the end of the shopping & eating, we went to the water splash park so the big girls could play.  they had an absolute blast running around & shrieking even though they were freezing!

while they played, brady took his afternoon nap in the shade.  it's a rough life!

on the way home laney entertained him and it was so sweet to hear her playing with him!!

zoo day!

on monday, memorial day, we headed down to the denver zoo - all fourteen of us!!

you were very excited & started clapping as we walked in.

the ever-present ball in hand.

it was a hot, hot day so we found a shady area to rest after lunch and let you out of the stroller for a bit to crawl around.

your cousins really love you!!

by the train ride, you were way overdue for a nap and had a small meltdown while we waited for the train to start moving.  once you had something different to look at you were cool.

 naptime immediately followed the train...

"helping" feed yourself lunch!  mama forgot to pack a hat for you so daddy found you one in the gift shop - and it made you look like such a big boy.  you're so cute in ball caps i can't stand it!!

we borrowed the huntington's sequoia for the zoo drive to maximize seating options - and you and your cousins looked so cute packed in the back row. 

birthday party pics.

some cell phone pics from your big first birthday party!!

hanging with your nanny megs.

the weather was beautiful & we all loved just hanging out on the patio & back yard.

we had yard games & a slip-n-slide for the older kiddos.

LOVE.

you loved all the present-mania! especially this drum from aunt kate.

you had lots of help breaking in your new toys.

 cake time was anticlimactic.  you weren't too sure about it, ate a few bites but overall you just wanted down so you could play more :)

happy first birthday sweet boy!  it was so much fun to celebrate you with some of our nearest & dearest friends and family.