Cody turns ONE!

It came fast, I still can't believe he is one already. We had a couple friends over for a small party on the actual day. Cody had green icing from head to toe and needed a bath immediately. His second taste of cake went really well, I think he knew what to expect this time. Such a cutie!

First Day of Preschool 2008

Brayden went back to school today and things went so smoothly. I was so worried because he has been off all summer and bumming around the house. I thought it would be hard for him to get back in the swing of things but he seemed to adjust just fine. The school fairy came to visit him this morning and brought a new transformer backpack filled with new school clothes and some new Star Wars toys to take with him to school. He loved the idea of the school fairy and was so excited about the backpack. He practically ran into school when we got there and even forgot to say bye to me. He was so happy playing with toys when I left it was so great to see him so happy on the first day.
After school, I picked him up and he was all smiles again. When I asked him about his teacher Ms. Debbie he response was "She is awesome!" I probed further and asked what made her so great and he said she was great cause she played good legos. I am so excited for the year and hope today was a sign of things to come.

Reference: Feb, 25, 2006

If you have time, you have to go back and look at the blog in Feb. 2006 when Brayden was eating mustard. The pictures are almost identical to the ones in this blog. I know I always say my boys are the most different things on earth but sometimes they even surprise me and do things exactly the same. Today was one of those days! When Cody pulled out the mustard from the fridge I almost died, I couldn't believe both boys could love squirting mustard in their mouths, maybe all kids like mustard squirted in their mouths? Who knows? All I know is my sister is gaging reading this.

Radijazz

Cody had his first trip to Radijazz today. The boys had a blast bouncing around on all the equipment. Cody liked the slide best.

Cody's Family Birthday Party

We celebrated Cody's birthday a little early because some of the family were going to be in town for the long Labor Day weekend. We had a blast all weekend with everyone and I think everyone really enjoyed themselves. I know Brayden had a blast with Zoey, Chance and Cole. I know Cody loved being the center of attention for a little while and Bill and I loved having the extra hands. Saturday we went to the pool all day and then Bill and I went to the first Longhorn football game of the season. I love kicking the season off with a nice win! We had Cody's party on Sunday with the Corman's, Boyce's and McDaniel's, bowling with the Bunger's that night and then on Monday we went to Wimberely to the Blue Hole. It was a full weekend that will require some sleep recovery but lots of fun!I spent 3 hours on the cake and it did not turn out like it was supposed to. I used the wrong icing obviously and the cake fell and it was a total mess. Next time I will just buy the cake from HEB.Cody didn't notice that the cake was not pretty and ate it anyway. He didn't like it at first but then he got the hang of it. I think he enjoyed squishing it between his fingers more than eating it though.Cousins, Zoey, Cole, Chance and Big Brother BraydenWalking behind his new shopping cartStanding up without holding on, something he just learned how to do this weekend.

Jordan and Charlie come to visit

Yea, so cute Jordan and Charlie stop by for a visit. Charlie didn't quite know what to think of the crazy McDaniel house but I think he fit in nicely.

close up and personal

The sweetest boy you'll ever meet - Cody McDaniel. He is not on the fast track like his big brother but he is winning the hearts of every person he meets with his sweet smile and cute dimple. He is so easy going and laid back and such a joy to be around. He is going to be a year old soon and I cannot believe how fast the year has flown by.

tunnel vision

Cody loves being outside. Brayden earned the privilege of going outside by himslef now and whenever he goes and shuts the door Cody cries and cries because he wants to be out there too. He is so happy when I open the door to let him explore. He doesn't even seem to mind that it is 95+ degrees outside. His favorite toy this week is the tunnel. He just laughs and laughs and crawls through the tunnel all afternoon long.

Tickle me Cody

Cody will laugh all day if you tickle him. He has a gurgle laugh sometimes which makes us laugh so much! Brayden got in on the tickling at the end.

Wii fit hula hoop

I'm sure some of you have seen the girl on-line doing the hula hoop in her underwear. Well here is my version...my husband not in his underwear but surprised by the camera while doing the hula hoop on the Wii.

Things Cody learned from our dog

Cody loves animals. He is enamered by both Lily and Meeko and follows them around all day talking to them. He has picked up several things from them recently while learning new things. I am hoping he can start picking up some human qualities soon, maybe not Brayden's bad ones but some of his good ones :0

1. sticking his tongue out - Lily does this and now Cody picked it up and every time he sees her he has to do it.
2. shaking his head - Cody falls over from dizzyness when he tries to shake his head like Lily does when she is playing witha toy.
3. Entering the dog door - yes I think this might be Cody's favorite past time, push the door open, watch it swing shut.
4. Dog bowls - especially the water one - loves to pour it all over himself. Thank God he is not drinking it yet.
5. Dog toys - I got Lily a special bone for her birthday this year (aug.1st). She ate it, buried it, re-ate it, re-buried it and got it really nice and yucky. Guess where I found it yesterday....in Cody's mouth!!!!

I am hoping Cody picks a better role model soon, I don't know how much more gross dog stuff I can take.

On Lake Austin

We took a Saturday boat ride with Brayden. We left Cody at my mom's house, he isn't so keen on the life jacket part of the boat nor the windy part so he is not much fun to bring. Brayden on the other hand acts like he was born to boat and that it's his life calling. He is a natural and loves every minute of it. Ihave never seen him so calm and so quiet and just enjoying the day. It is weird to know that he is confined in a small space yet he is so content.

Cody is crawling

Better late than never. I think Cody just needed a little more time to figure out that there were things out there that he wanted to touch and that he could actually get to without being picked up. He was also very graceful from the start, like he had been practicing in his mind what the perfect crawl would look like. He keeps his left leg a little underneath him just in case he has to sit quickly. We also learned that Cody can do the splits, the center splits like gymnasts do on the beam, Cody can do them on the floor. It is so weird to watch him go back into the splits to take a seat, I can't believe it doesn't hurt. And of course there is the smile every inch of the way.The start of the splits, boths legs at this point will shoot out to the sides so he can sit down, ouch!!Plank positionHis newest trick -sticking his tongue out.

Picky eater loves snack bars

Cody is slowly eating more and more table food and as we introduce it to him, he is becoming more and more picky. I am having trouble finding things that he will eat, but today was my lucky day. Sunny days snack bars, strawberry, whew, what a relief he LOVES them, finally something I can say he LOVES. Here are the pictures.

Let's go to Luckenbach

Just a random Sunday night trip to Luckenbach, Texas. Bill and I have only been once before and the kids have never been. We went out there to see a concert from some of Crystal and Brett's high school friends. Brayden had a great time chasing the roosters and chickens and cats and Cody just liked being outside. It was a nice short trip, complete with t-shirt purchase.

Fourth of July

This year for the fourth we went to my mom's house for the parade in her neighborhood. It's much smaller than our parade and at the end there are two gigantic waterslides for the kids and TONS of food. Cody rode in the wagon this year and Brayden got to ride in his car. Chance, Cole and Abby were in town and they all had their bikes decorated for the big parade.

After the parade and swimming Bill, Mikey and I took all the kids out on the boat. Johnny and JoLynn graciously let us borrow their boat for the summer-what nice parents we have!! This was the first boat trip Bill and I had taken by ourselves so I was a little nervous - I think the last time I drove a boat was in college. Everything went sooo smoothly. The kids had a great time on the UFO - the big three seater tube and Chance and Abby both tried to knee board, it looked more like knee drag, but I think they had fun trying. We found a spot on Lake Austin that wasn't too busy, there were a million boaters out there, not like I expected anything else on the actual July 4th holiday. I give the trip an A+, everyone had fun and the virgin boat trip was a success. I guess that means we can take it out a lot more often now :) I have pictures from the actual boat ride, I think I was so nervous about everything else I forgot the camera, next time I will take pictures.

That night we watched the fireworks from Nanny and G-Daddy's deck. The house across the lake puts on the most spectacular firework show, it is just like being on town lake, only we have our own private showing. This year Brayden actually stayed outside to watch them, he was only scared a little bit.All the kids ready to go. Cole, Abby, Chance, Brayden and CodyBrayden stuffing down the biggest donut I have ever seen, I had to include this picture cause it makes me laugh every time I see it.Cody in the wagon with the pinwheelBrayden on the waterslideAll the kids with Bill