First Steps!

It's official! He's walking! Tagg actually took his first steps, about 3 altogether from couch to couch, on Friday June 27th while Scott and I were both watching. We looked at each other like - did we really just see that?!?!? But then he was just back to standing and crawling until yesterday.

We were joking that we've been pushing him down when he was just getting the hang of it because we didn't want him walking at Lake Powell over the 4th weekend. What a good guy to wait till we got home!

He's still not too sure what to do with this walking business but he's pretty proud when he makes it a few steps, and so are we!

Party, Party, Party...

In the grand Harmer tradition, Tagg started celebrating his first birthday a little early. We had a party on July 19th since so many of our friends were going to be out for the Pioneer Day holiday weekend, and Tami, Jake and Porter were here for OR (Outdoor Retailers). It was a great excuse to get everyone together and celebrate all of the summer birthdays.

Tagg's birthday present from Mom and Dad was a little...hmmm, over the top?! Like he's going to be able to use this any time soon! At least the friends that visit him will enjoy it for a year or so. We got a great deal on the playset at CostCo (that will teach me to run in for formula!) and the best part? It was all put together. We were quite a sight, loading it into the bed of the truck with forklift and driving through town, ducking under every single traffic light.

Once we had it home...problem. How do we get it out of the truck, over the fence and into the yard. Solution? Mormons! Haha. Our amazingly wonderful neighbor recruited about 16 guys from church (thank goodness they were looking for any excuse to leave early!) who showed up in shirts and ties and hucked this thing out of the truck and over the fence in about 15 minutes. It was like a modern-day Amish barn raising!

The party was great. Tagg spent most of it dragging Aunt Blah-Blah (Becky) and Uncle Marc around while he kicked his ball and laughed at the dogs, and well...everything! We also had a blow-up bounce house on loan from some friends which was pretty fun. It was so hot that a waterslide version would have been good but it was still fun!

We got to spend some time with Tami, Jake and Porter who were in from Minnesota. Porter's birthday was just a month ago so the boys shared some birthday cake. Tagg really went to town. Apparently, Nothing Bundt Cakes are the way to go for 1-year-old birthdays! (Who can blame him? They really are delightful!)

The boys got to have a "tubby" after all the cake-eating, which was also pretty cute. Tagg actually probably enjoyed the splashing in the tub more than his actual birthday present!

I Am One! I Am One-derful!

Who's the cool dude?!

Tagg's first birthday. It's so amazing that it's been a full year already. It's been such an emotional time for us, remembering the emotional roller coaster we were on last year at this time - pure joy, thankfulness, fear, happiness, empathy. We feel so incredibly blessed and thankful that we are here today to celebrate not only Tagg's first birthday, but also everything in our lives and in his birth family's lives that reinforce what a wonderful, unique and cherished experience this is. We love Tagg more than either of us ever thought possible, and just when you think your heart is as full of love as it could ever be, it grows a little more. We love how much he is our family. We love his accomplishments, his moods, his smiles and giggles, his emerging personality, his love of books, mac n' cheese, watermelon, balls, saying "bad dog" and making cheez faces. We love that his birth family gave us a gift for which there will never be enough thanks, and that we can celebrate their successes along with them. Celebrate. It's a perfect word for an idyllic situation. We don't just celebrate today...we celebrate every day!

We had a fabulous party for Tagg on his birthday. Aunt Kris was in town from California and, true to form, she took the festivities to a whole new level (cute fish from the bathroom = party decorations!)

Mom and Aunt Kris did a great job coordinating the food and the decorations. Aunt Tiff got the hook-up on a bunch of amazing posters and invites. Brooke and Canyon were in town from Seattle and the rest of the Harmer clan were able to join us for bounce-housing, washoes and sliding. Even Morgan got in on the birthday act...or maybe she just wanted to be the princess for a minute.

We still had the bounce house and the swing set which wer big hits with kids young and old (hello, Uncle Marc!).

Tagg's friends and family were so generous with his gifts. I can't imagine a one-year-old who needs as many clothes and toys as he has but we're grateful that he's just spoiled enough. Tagg enjoyed his birthday cake with just as much enthusiasm as the first one (broccoli may never have a chance!) and took advantage of the family for walks and ball kicking. Hey...whatever! "I'm the birthday boy!" He's a very lucky boy to be loved as much as he is, by everyone in his life. Happy birthday, little man!!

Mem-rees...

We headed to Powell for Memorial Day. The boat was finally back in the water after a little (major) engine work and as of Monday the weather was supposed to be gorgeous. We got a fabulous sunshade and umbrellas and rafts for Tagg thinking that the weather was supposed to be awesome. Instead, it rained for 4 of the 5 days...and hard! You can't see how much it poured from this picture but the little white thing is a rain drop...one of millions! It was noisy and there were waterfalls galore. Overall, an eventful trip...we lost the stroller out of the truck on the way down (saved but for some road rash), the dogs had their first trip in kennels in the back of the truck, Marc & Becky almost got hit by lightning and their windshield broke in the wind, we blew an engine and the generator but generally had a blast! We ended up camping in the Rincon the one night we were able to make it out of the slips with Scott's cousin and his boys.

In between rain storms, we played washoes, wakeboarded, surfed and water skied. It was really awesome! It was such a joy to be in our favorite place with all the sibs. Marc & Becky and Tiff are the best aunts and uncles! This little outfit was one that Marc (Mr. 4.0) & Becky (our new college graduate - congrats, girl!) got for his baby shower. It's been on a stuffed dog until recently. He really rocked the crabs!

This little Nike outfit was a gift from Aunt Kris and Uncle Hank and it was so freaking cute on him. He's into mostly 12 month clothes at this point. At his 9 month check up he was 29.5 inches (80+ percentile) and 20.5 lbs (35%). Tall and skinny...shocker!

Lisa and Tiff have been training for their Wasatch Back relay race in June. We both unintentionally signed up for harder runs than last year - more hills, longer runs - and are trying our best to train for them. One of our training challenges...hiking in Park City to get a little altitude training.

Our friend Jen and her dog, Spaulding, took us on a great hike. Tagg thought it was hysterical. Apparently, trying to grab mommy's hair is waaaay more fascinating than the woods and the dogs and stuff. At least he had fun! Mommy thought she was going to choke, pass out or end up with a broken back. Dude...you are heavy! Seriously, though, it was a great hike and we look forward to doing more soon!

Time Flies!

Can't believe it's been a month since we posted. Where to start? Tagg is as fabulous as ever. His new favorite toys are the simple things: wooden blocks, tupperware (photographic evidence), splashing water without cracking a smile, one of Lisa's necklaces and a sunscreen stick. Go figure! He giggles, he babbles, he loves his books, he seems to be ambidextrous, he's fast as a whip when he crawls.

We had a great Mother's Day (are they all as great as the first one? I can only hope!). Tagg and Scott got mommy a digital picture frame for her office loaded with pictures and Tagg got a cute little frame with his hand-prints that says "Someday when I am so tall, this is to remind you that once my hands were quite small." How cute is that? Flowers, brunch...what a day!

He sprouted a couple of new teeth - one on top and one on bottom over Memorial at Lake Powell. He's standing pretty well and took a couple of steps AND said mama when Lisa left the room...but he hasn't repeated any of it so we're not sure if we can count it. Whatever! Sure we can! He's digging solid food and is quite adept at smacking any offending pureed stuff out of the way. He's quick!

He's still sleeping like a champ, probably because he spends his days chasing cousin Ashley around the house and tormenting the dog. He's decided that screaming is more fun than talking. Wow, the eardrums! He's also a great help with the laundry...loves to unstack anything that's been folded and helps with Lisa's bras.

We've so enjoyed spring and being able to be outside, although it seems like it's been more rainy than usual this year. We finally broke and got Tagg a walker. He's so close to actually walking (like actually holding his bottle on his own - sure, he can do it but if we will...why bother!). He cruises! And he loves chasing the dogs! It's a good thing we started him the day before lawn day so he had some weeds to use a speed bumps. He's quick!

Cutest Baby in the World!!

Way back on March 12th (Lisa's bday present ... funny, it used to be shoes!), we had a new set of pictures taken of Tagg. They're priceless, the best gift ever ... just like him. He is by far the cutest baby in the world!

I Love Stairs!!

Just a week after he started crawling, Tagg decided to tackle the stairs. Successfully. Now he goes turbo-charged straight for them every chance he gets. That's really cute when he looks up at you when you walk in the door, smiles and books it across the floor to give you loves. When he's heading for the stairs, it's a little scary! We've actually taken to blocking them with the Grayco. If we could just teach him to get down backwards, it would be a lot less stressful but he's all about going head first. Crazy kid!

(P.S. Don't let the initial crying fool you. That's his fake cry!)

Tagg has been so fascinated by the dog water that we decided to give him his own splash pool outside. It's hysterical! He just loves to splash and play in the water. And we love that it's not the dog water! (Morgan's pretty happy about it too.) How fun will it be when it's warm enough for a pool?!