Post For Jocelyn

Hi, it's me... it's been a long time, like since Christmas Eve... but I had a moment, and a friend (Jocelyn) who really, really wanted a new blog post, so here it is:

McKenna is a little girl now, she walks and talks and knows what she wants, before we know it she'll be off to college at the University of Colorado (if she knows what's good for her, and wants us to pay for it).

She loves the finer things in life, like a good filet mignon or prime rib, a fine wine and dinner with friends and family (here is a video of her at Christmas Dinner):

She has learned a foreign language (if you watch closely she'll sign 'shoes'):

She has learned what things are called (notice the blanket):

She has taken an interest in interior design and decorating (yes, that's the Pottery Barn Kids Catalogue):

She's ridden exotic animals:

She's learned to love cooking:

She has eaten sushi:

She has discovered a deep love for literature (and monkeys):

All in all McKenna is a joy to have around, we laugh so hard we cry most days. It's so fun to see her little personality develop... her language skills are changing on a daily basis too; her favorite words currently are: No, Uh huh...,This is a..., Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Grammy, Where, Why, What is this, Cereal, Baby, Puppy (or Rar-Rar), Doggy, Kitty, More, All Done, Shoe, Sock, Blanket, Milk, Drink, Water, Waffle, Please, Thank you, Welcome (instead of you're welcome), Sorry, Up, Buckle, Tree, Leaf, Down, Book, Going, Eat, Sleepy, Stairs, Brush Teeth, OK, etc... I'm sure there are more but I can't think of them off the top of my head. It's hard to believe that in 4 short months she'll be two. Where did that time go? Feels like yesterday I was painfully swollen, 7,000 lbs and praying she would leave the human hot tub she was living in. Glad she's on the outside, it's a lot more fun for all of us.

That's all for now!

Christmas Eve Snow!

So we awoke this morning to a FOOT of snow in our front yard! How fun is it to have a white Christmas, even if it's a white Christmas Eve... So of course we had to put McKenna in her snow suit, traipse her outside, and make her play in it. She's walking, but apparently snow walking is harder than she expected...

Then of course we had to pile up a whole bunch of snow and toss her in it...

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family near and far! We miss those of you who can't be with us this Christmas season...

Love: John, Lindsay & McKenna Boyle

Playing with Grandma's New Camera

John, McKenna and I visited my mom and step-dad in California last week to walk in the Huntington Beach Alzheimer's walk and attend my friend Jocelyn's bridal shower. We were able visit with Aunt Blair & Uncle Jared, see my cousins and spend time with Great-Grandpa, we had a great time!

My Mom got new camera for her upcoming birthday (November 29th... only 21 shopping days left) so of course we needed to try it out... since John and I are 'professionals' (most of the good shots are as a direct result of the camera being amazing, not us being amazing).

Here are some of the fun photos we took:

It was Halloween while we were in California, we brought along McKenna's costume. She was a Marshmallow Peep this year, and lasted in her costume for about 10 minutes. Just long enough for this photo op (taken with our point and shoot, don't blame the nice camera for the bad lighting):

Basically, I'm compiling black mail photos for her senior ad in her high school yearbook. I believe all parents should do this. Pretty pictures aren't nearly as entertaining to look at. Something has to make her ad stand out other than her amazing looks. Hopefully she doesn't hate me for my evil nature... maybe she'll appreciate it one day, or at least have sufficient fodder for her Mommy Dearest novel.

A Visit From Grandma!

I'm going to stop making excuses for not blogging more often. I'm busy. That's going to be my permanent excuse. Hopefully McKenna will forgive me some day. This is for you McKenna... Your mom had a job, a one year old, a husband, and a very active travel schedule during this period of your life... sorry I didn't spend more time blogging, but honestly, I wanted to spend more time with you rather than writing about you.

That being said, I do have a moment for a quick update! Our little baby girl isn't so little anymore... she's still not walking (which is totally fine by us, seeing as she's easier to chase when she's crawling), she does cruise around the furniture, walls, stairs, bookcase, trunk, coffee table, she talks constantly and uses her baby crack, er, Baby Sigining Time experience for good use, she can sign: eat, more, all done, baby, bear, bug, please, shoes, sleep, book... I'm sure there are more she hasn't mastered yet so to me they don't look like anything.

She still loves her red wagon that Aunt Blair got her for her birthday. Here are some photos of her climbing in, out, around, on top of, over it etc...

Also, Grandma came to visit this month! We had so much fun... sadly, McKenna was coming down with the flu during most of Grandma's visit (yes, the real flu, not the stomach flu) so she wasn't her normal outgoing self. She did let Grandma hold her while she watched Baby Signing Time. Here are some pictures:

And finally, here's one picture of her wearing a sweatshirt that Nancy Cowden bought for her last fall, and I thought she'd never fit into it... look how tall she is now!

Blogging Sabatical is Over...

Alright, enough is enough. No more heckling people...I will post. I had to go back to work in the office full time after McKenna's birthday on the 24th of July, and thus have run out of time for blogging... not to mention the fact that McKenna had the stomach flu for a week... so I will take a few moments to update everyone on what's been going on in BMac's life.

Since my last post, McKenna has learned all sorts of new tricks, is a crawling speed demon, has learned to say: 'wow,' 'baby,' 'bear,' 'yah,' and 'no.' She no longer drinks from a bottle, drinks cow's milk instead of formula and has proven to be quite the adventurous eater. Some of her favorite foods include, salmon, filet mignon, tilapia, barbecued chicken, grilled vegetables, corn on the cob (or off the cob in her case) and grilled pizza (yes, really grilled, as in made on the grill).

She had a fantastic birthday, complete with 40 of her closest friends (I'm still recovering from that shindig). Her Aunt Blair sent her a sweet Radio Flyer wagon for her birthday, here she is with it after I put it together:



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The night before her birthday, we made pizza on the grill... as you can see she thoroughly enjoyed it:

Then on her actual birthday we took her to the municipal water park, called the Broomfield Bay. She had a blast, but John and I were less enthusiastic... it was probably the most dangerous pool we've ever been to, and in my estimation they needed about twice as many guards on their main pool (I have high standards, Wild Rivers has ruined me). Here are some pictures of us in the pool:



As I mentioned earlier, we had a huge party for BMac's Birthday, we had about 40 people in our little house... which would have been fine, if people could have spent time in the yard as originally planned, but of course, like a typical Colorado summer day, it rained.

Here's a picture from the party:
Here's a link to the rest of the pics.

BMac also had the worst stomach flu I've ever experienced a few weeks ago... even though she doesn't look sick in these pictures, she really was... but I needed to take pictures of her new reading chair...
Ok. That's all I've got for now... More in the future, I promise.

Amazing Crawling Baby...

I know it's been a while, but we've been busy! John and I went to Mexico for a week and while we were away McKenna started to test out her motoring skills... I don't consider it legitimate crawling, what she's doing now is legit.

Here was her previous method of moving... which was extremely frustrating to her...

Then she finally did it! Here she is crawling successfully forward (deliberately at least) for the first time on video:

And because of her new crawling ability, she's found the stairs...

I can't believe how much faster she's become since I made these videos. I'll have to shoot some more so that you all can see the newer, speedier McKenna. I'm beginning preparations for the first birthday extravaganza... more on that later.

McKenna's First French Kiss...

So while I was in Illinois visiting my friends the Pittman's... holding cute little Sam and running around with Josh, McKenna was at home breaking rules...  I know now that I cannot wait to have the birds and bees talk with my 10 month old daughter... she is way too advanced to not receive the 'how far is too far' speech.  I've warned her multiple times that boys are only interested in one thing, yet she still didn't listen to me.  Thankfully Dad was there to capture the moment on video so that I could explain which parts of her actions were inappropriate.  McKenna, when you're reading this later in life, know that I was only acting in your best interests and I understand that it's tempting to make out with every boy that asks... I know Jack is handsome, but that isn't an excuse.  All I want is for you to have a little self control. That's it. That's all I ask.  Wait for mister right, not mister right now.   Here's the offending behavior with McKenna and Jack:

 

I think I'm going to go wash her mouth out with soap now... mostly because I kiss that mouth, and apparently she gives kisses to any person (or animal) that's willing.   

Eww...