Year of the Maximus

Phil gave me this video as a dvd for one of my Christmas presents. It is pretty awesome, so I wanted to make sure to share it with everyone. We had to put it in 4 parts due to size limits on YouTube. Hope you enjoy it!

Part 1: See how easily entertained he can be


Part 2: Hear all the awful noises coming from his body


Part 3: Fun pics from this past year


Part 4: More fun pics from this past year



He has a First Word, we will try to get that up soon for you guys.

Birthday party

Max's first birthday is December 7. I can't believe that it has been a year already. This time last year, Phil and I were preparing for a c-section for a baby that we did not even know the sex of yet. Now, we have experienced so much joy and love for this little guy, and we couldn't imagine our lives without him!

We celebrated Max's first birthday at Chucky Cheese with some close family and friends. When we got there, we put Max in the car with Chucky and he loved it. When the real Chucky came walking around, I thought for sure that Max would be scared of him. I couldn't have been more wrong. Max immediately reached out for Chucky and started pulling his fur and grabbing for his nose. I have more pictures that I may post later, but I wanted to at least get these out for people to see.


After the party at Chucky Cheese, we went back to our place for cake and presents with the grandparents. Here are some pictures from the after party.



This is a picture of me on my first birthday. My dad sent this to me, and I thought it was kind of cool to see this picture next to Max's first birthday picture.

Bubbles

Max was being a little fuss pot the other night, so we tried to distract him with bubbles. Turns out he loves to try to "catch" them. He was so cute...I just had to share these pictures.

Our little monkey

Well, with Halloween just around the corner, I have been on the search for the perfect costume. Phil and I decided that he should be a monkey because that is how he acts on a daily basis. I found this costume at Old Navy for 50% off, and I couldn't resist trying it on him. Phil really wants to take him trick or treating so daddy can have the treats. We'll see!!!

First haircut

So, Max's hair was getting really shaggy. I talked about cutting it for about a month, but people kept telling me to let it grow. After a failed attempt at cutting it myself (the poor kid had uneven side burns for a little while), I just broke down and let the professionals handle it. As you can see in the picture, he loved it! The lady cut his hair in about 6 minutes and did a really good job! He looked like a 3 year old with his short hair, but he definitely needed it!

Visit to Pittsburgh

Max officially took his first plane ride this past weekend, and he did great! On the way there, he fell asleep for the first 5 minutes, but then woke up when they came over the loud speaker to say that it was ok to use "approved electronic devices". After that, he was awake and into everything! He was very squirmy and hard to control, but he did not cry, even though he has an ear infection in both ears. What a trooper! On the way home, he slept the entire time. What a good boy!

Our trip was good. We went to visit Aunt Shawnda and Uncle Barry (one of my best friends and her husband). We just did a lot of shopping and eating and he jumped around quite a bit in a borrowed exersaucer. Here are some pictures of the highlights.



One night, we took Max out to the backyard to crawl around and burn some energy. This is one picture that I caught of him. Too funny!


Sometimes Max needs to voice his opinion, and he can only do that when he screams at the top of his lungs. That is what he is doing in this picture.


Max loves to get a hold of his wipes (before they are used). Here, he has one in each hand and one in his mouth. For some reason he likes to suck on them. They are alcohol free, so I just let him do it. I guess that maybe it feels good on his teeth.


Max loved Aunt Shawnda and Uncle Barry!

More tailgating pictures

This is just a funny picture of both of our expressions.


I thought that this was a very cool picture of the boys taking it all in.


This is Phil's infamous tailgating hat. Max got a hold of it and wanted to wear it. I think it fits him perfectly!


I just love this picture. I couldn't resist sharing it.


Max met our close friend Jonesy for the first time.


Max looks like he is getting over tailgating for the day!


This is also a very cool picture of Max at the football game. I like how the sun is setting and you can see the field in the background.


Max outlasted Phil...enough said!

First tailgating experience

Last weekend, Max experienced his first IU tailgate and football game. He did very well considering we were there for 12 hours. We got to the tailgating fields at 10:30am and the game didn't even start until 8pm. We left halfway through the second quarter. The whole day I was just waiting for him to turn sour, but he did awesome. He took 2 one hour naps and "socialized" with all of our friends. Phil actually fell asleep before Max did...imagine that! Anyways, here are some pictures of the highlights. There are more on my sister in law's camera, so I will post those when I can get them.



Phil was trying to get Max to take a nap, but as you can see here, he had no interest in that. He thought he might just play in the driver's seat. Phil was actually holding him there, but you can't see that.


I don't even think this one needs a caption. It kind of explains itself. He is Daddy's boy!


Mommy got tired, too. We took a cat nap together.

Max's chores

So, I was looking at the pictures on the camera one day and surprisingly came across these pictures. Phil said, "Oh yeah, I put him in the washer one day while I did the dishes. He loved it." I was laughing so hard. I just thought they were super funny!

More pool time

We went over to visit Phil's aunt and uncle this past weekend. They have a pool, so Daddy and Max enjoyed some quality pool time together. I thought these pictures were super cute. In the first picture, they are making the exact same expression. What a Daddy's boy!

Mouth fetish

So, Max has this new thing he does where he will just put something in his mouth and let go. He tries to do this with everything. It is pretty funny, so I tried to catch it on film. These are the best I could do. I just crack up every time I look at them.



I just thought this picture was cute. He got so excited, and you can't even see his arms because they are flapping so fast. I just love this guy!

Max's first MLB game

Mommy, Daddy, Max, Grandma, and Cory Showalter all went to the Cubs/Reds baseball game at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati. The sun was shining and the temperature was about 90+ degrees with no wind. Max spent the first 4 or so innings down by the concession stand where there was shade and a nice breeze. He was a pretty good sport at the game considering it was so hot and sunny.

Max's first wedding reception

My best friend, Chass, got married 2 weeks ago, and we had a blast at the wedding. I don't think I will ever be able to look at baby carrots the same, though. Max had carrots for dinner that night, and the carrots ended up all over everyone else's clothes. One of the groomsmen held him and Max puked all down the front of his tux. Then he continued to puke all over anyone that was holding him. His clothes are all stained with carrots along with mommy and daddy's nice clothes. We took our clothes to the dry cleaner, and the lady said, "You may want to give us some extra time with these. They look pretty bad." Max hasn't had carrots since that day.

Phil tried for 2 hours to get Max to fall asleep at the reception. This lady is Chass's mom's best friend. Phil handed Max off to her, and she had him to sleep in 15 minutes. Thank God for baby whisperers.

Grandma turns 60!!!

A couple of weekends ago, we had a family get together at Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri for Grandma's 60th birthday party. Max loved hanging out with the entire family! Here are some highlights from the weekend.

Max got fussy at the party, but GiGi (Max's great grandma) was like a baby whisperer. We handed him over to her, and he immediately calmed down. I guess she has some experience in her 91 years. My Aunt made those hats that we are all wearing. Phil put his on as a "rally cap" and wore it like that all night. We thought that GiGi looked like she was a professional poker (well, maybe bingo) player.



Phil says that this is the look that Max gives him in the middle of the night when he wakes up and doesn't want to go back to sleep. It is very discouraging because we can barely open our eyes, and he is eyes wide open.

Max adores my sister, Aunt Jennifer, and my best friend, who we call Aunt Jacey.


My cousin, Craig, would not let us leave until we got a good picture of him with Max, so here is the best one we got.

This was pretty funny. Max absolutely loves his cousin, Evelyn. Every time she came around, he would be all smiles. Max thought it was the funniest thing when she jumped up and down and made funny noises. If he was fussy or crying for some reason, she would come over and jump up and down for him, and he would immediately change his mood and laugh at her. I need her to live closer!


Mommy came out of her shell during this vacation. Phil and I were able to leave for an entire afternoon and go on the boat that my Aunt and Uncle brought down. (Max stayed on shore with Grandma). We were out on the water for 7 hours and had some drinks. We stopped for dinner at this little bar on the water, and this is just one picture of many that shows how we were the life of the party. We had a great time!

Grandma, GiGi, Max, and Charles (my nephew) welcome us home after spending all day on the water. This picture was taken from the boat.