Happy Thirteen Months!

The last couple of weeks have flown by.  We have been passing around a cold that we are all finally getting over--at least that's what we are telling ourselves!  Before sickness set in, we celebrated Elliott and Isaac's thirteenth month with a weekend at home and a walk to the neighborhood park.  The boys are still too small to enjoy most of the playground, but it was a nice afternoon for a walk, some swinging, and lots of mulch-eating! 

Isaac is a little apprehensive with both Daddy and Elliott behind him!

The monthly "sticker" pictures have been a challenge for the last twelve months.  It has been one of those activities that we strategize about the night before, thinking about the best scenarios, new distraction techniques, and last-ditch efforts so we get a non-crying picture at the very least.  So, now that the boys are thirteen months old, what do we do?  Order a set for the next twelve months, of course!  We are gluttons for punishment!  For the next twelve months, we vow to be a little more relaxed with the sessions.  Our expectations are lower, or shall we say, more realistic--we are hoping to see most of their faces without any tears.  We have also lowered our seating choice as you will see below.  Hopefully that will lower our stress level since the boys won't have far to fall when they hurl themselves forward!

Isaac at 13 months...
Cruises quickly, barely holding on to anything
Signs more, eat, Dad, Mom, and dog.
Says Dada, Mama, Otto (more like Ah-wo), Uh-oh (yes we can tell a difference from Otto), hi, and bye
Still a silly, happy boy who is starting to test his limits!

Elliott at 13 months...
Also cruising, but slightly more cautious than his brother.
Signs more, eat, Dad, Mom, dog, and ball.
Says dog, ball, Dada, Mama, hi, and bye.
Still our little engineer, he continues to observe how things work and fit together!

For the first month of this new year, I think we met our expectations!