Hot Dog! He's One and a Half!

On July 23rd Grant turned 18 months and since I'm using this blog as a great record of Grant's life, I thought I'd make note of all the fun things he is up to. Each day we are learning that Grant is quite the character. He loves to make people smile and we see him hamming it up pretty frequently. His number one audience would probably be his grandparents! He loves to make them smile!
Each week Grant seems to have a few new words to add to his list. Currently we hear a lot of Mama, Dada, no, Elmo, adog (apparently we say "a dog" more than just "dog", so we think Grant figures it's just one word), tractor, truck, choo choo, Amen, please, thank you, teeth, bye bye, and night night.

He also continues to sign "more" and "all done". These have been a great help with our communication considering he uses these two signs in many contexts..."more" play, "more" tickle, "more" outside. And his most recent sign it "toothbrush". He continues to love to brush his teeth (the brushing part is still negotiable, there is still a lot of sucking going on :). He has even become quite good at getting a drink from the faucet, just like Dad does. We recently got him a little step stool, so this has added another level of independence and fun to this activity.

Some other favorite things to do for Grant include playing with his cars, trucks, trains, and tractors. For whatever reason he loves to line them up all over the house. Yesterday they were lined up on the table, then on the tv stand, then on our bed, then his rocking chair...I think there were about five other places as well. He will also line them up all over his train tracks-under one bridge, then another-and this usually keeps him busy for quite some time.

Another love...music and dancing! He will come into our room, turn the radio up full blast and dance away. His dancing usually includes moving in a circle but he more recently has started moving his arms and head as well. It's quite entertaining. Recently we've found the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song "Hot Dog" at the end of the show, which has become quite catchy and usually gets Grant up on his feet and moving. :) Other songs he likes to hear/sing are Old McDonald, where he chimes in with "E"; Five Green and Speckled Frogs, adding the "yum, yum"; Five Little Monkeys, he likes to shake his finger; The Wheels on the Bus, and the ABC's.

Grant still loves the outdoors, swimming, and riding in the van. He is constantly asking to go "bye bye". He loves to wrestle, be tickled, and help out around the house. His little giggle and mannerisms just brighten our day. He continues to be a very tall, at his 18 month check-up he was 33 1/2 in (95th percentile) and 26 lbs (50 percentile). It's been a fun year and 1/2, excited to see what the next holds! :)

Grant's First Camping Adventure

Last weekend we were bound and determined to go camping. However, we woke up Saturday to clouds and a gloomy weekend forecast. We were hesitant to commit to camping with the forecast so decided to head out for a coffee and enjoy the Overland Park Farmer's Market. On our stroll home it started to pour so we ended up running home and getting soaked (Grant thought this was hilarious, he was giggling all the way). Once we did make it home Nick and I decided we were not spending our weekend indoors and went to weather.com to find a camping destination where the sun was shining. We were successful and by mid afternoon were on our way to Perry Lake.


This was our first time to Perry Lake and we were very impressed! We found a great little shaded camping site that had a beautiful view of the lake. To no surprise Grant had a blast. He was enjoying the freedom of the outdoors, playing in the tent, and eating marshmallows (Nick and I were unaware how many each of us had given him till later that night).


Our evening turned out great and we thought we were going to make it through the night rain free. But about 3am we did get hit with a good amount of thunder, lightning, and rain. We loaded the van with the few things we had outside then sat back and listened to the storm come through. We thought for sure Grant would be waking up any minute with all the racket but he slept through the entire thing! So after the thunder and lightning calmed down and I was assured we were going to stay dry, we went back to sleep.

We were really looking forward to having coffee made from on our campfire Sunday morning, but we awoke to a very muddy campsite. So we ended up getting a great breakfast from a little saloon which that wasn't far from the campgrounds. It was a nice end to a our 24 hour camping adventure and I think we all enjoyed getting out of the city for a bit. And now that we know Grant is such a good camper we are already planning our next outing!

Thomas the Train!

Last Friday a friend invited Grant and I to go see Thomas the train in Baldwin, KS. So off we went for a fun little morning. We thought we were just headed out to have a nice little train ride but little did we know that this is quite the event. They had multiple tents set up with activities including a petting zoo. Grant decided he just liked to look at the animals and not get too close, so that is just what we did. He also thought it was fun to have his first train ride (probably the best part being that he did not have to be in a carseat to travel). Our morning ended with some hungry kids eating very well at Wheatstate Pizza in the cute downtown Baldwin. Here's a few pictures of the morning and Grant with his good buddy Ali.

May

I can't believe it's already June! I'm wondering what happened to May but remembering back, it was a pretty eventful month. This would also be my excuse for not keeping up on our blog the entire month. So here's a quick recap of the Sutko's May...
We kicked off the month with Nick and I running our 1st 1/2 marathon. We did it in Lincoln and could not of had a better experience. The day was beautiful, the course was flat, and the entire 13 miles were lined with people cheering us on. And yes we did survive it with a grand finish on the Husker 50 yard line!

Kansas City had some pretty nice weather in May and this was when we quickly learned that Grant could spend everyday-all day outdoors. He loves being outside and is constantly bringing us he shoes (which means I want to go outside). So we spent a lot of time at the park, where we did a lot of swinging and going down slides. Grant is a big fan of going head first down the slides. We also went for a lot of walks/runs, rode tricycles, had picnics, and played ball.

We did get hit with about a week straight of rain and then we were thankful that we had found this train table steal on Craig's list. Grant loves running his trains and cars all over the table...and has found it's even more fun to get up on the table. Nick and I put a great track together, only to have that destroyed in about 5 min by Grant the next morning...I think the tracks may be more fun for him at a later age :)

We've also been brushing our teeth a lot. Grant has decided that brushing his teeth is one of his favorite things to do. Or maybe I should say sitting in the sink sucking all the toothpaste and water out of his brush is a favorite thing to do.

The end of the month brought a surprise 60th birthday for my mom. We pulled off the surprise and my mom's excitement to see all the grandkids come running out yelling "Happy Birthday" was priceless.

The day after the party we left Grant to spend a fun weekend with his Mimi and Papa while Nick and I took off for our first weekend getaway. We headed out to Boulder for the Bolder Boulder race and a fun Memorial weekend. It was very relaxing and nice to finish a meal, sleep in, and just do as we wish. It also made it easy for us to enjoy knowing Grant was having a blast in Kearney. I don't even think he noticed when we left Saturday he was so excited to enjoy everything my Mom and Dad had set up and planned for him.
May was a nice kickoff to our summer and only has us looking forward to what the rest of the summer has in store! Hope you are all enjoying your start to summer as well!

Springtime Beauty

After a wonderful Easter weekend in Omaha, Grant, Nick, and I got on the road to make our way back to KC. However, before we even made it out of Omaha our car started having problems. So after an extra night in Omaha (as you can see in the pics from Heidi's backyard-Grant was not one bit sad we had to stay), finding out our transmission was gone, debating to fix or not fix it, and some very quick vehicle shopping- we purchased a mini van. Yes, I did say mini van... a Sienna to be exact...and we love it! Nick asked me if I ever thought I'd be heading back to my 10 year class reunion in a mini van and I have to say I sure did not.
Between traveling, work, a few road races, and just life- Grant and I finally had a day that we could just piddle around and enjoy all the beautiful sights and colors that KC's springtime has to offer. This was also our first day to really see how functional the Sienna is with our day to day grind. So off we went on our day making our first stop at Corinth, which holds our favorite coffee shop and has Grant's favorite cinnamon roll. This is the area Nick and I lived in right when we moved to KC in the Spring of 07, so it was fun to see our old apartment street lined with the white blossoming trees, just as they were when we pulled in on our first day.
Then we headed over to the Waldo/Brookside area and enjoyed their trees and flowers of all colors. Grant was enjoying every minute of our ride because in the van he sits so high that he can see out all the windows. (I also must mention if a Zac Brown Band song comes on he'll start clapping his hands, swinging his legs, and smile from ear to ear.) Then we were off to the Plaza. Here we enjoyed the park and Grant especially liked the fountain. We brought a few of his cars (most days he has one in each hand and rarely lets them go) and he played and played with these. His face was priceless when he let one of them go into the fountain, I think he thought he would never see that car again. Then he was so excited when I fished it out for him...pretty sure if he could say more he would of said I was the best Mom ever. :)
After the park we made a stop at Barnes and Noble so Grant could play with the Thomas Train Set. This is yet another one of his loves. He runs those trains all over. This last picture is of Grant walking...yes he is finally walking! He started taking steps the week after Easter and each day has gotten better and better with it. It's about the most adorable thing to see because he spreads his legs a little too wide, has his chest out, and arms just kind of everywhere. And even if there is a tumble hear and there he just keeps getting up and trying to go as fast as he can... I am sure he will be running before we know it! I also have to laugh at this picture because he happens to have his Husker shirt on and the John Deer hat that his cousins are letting us borrow...if you didn't know better you would think he was a little Nebraska farm kid. :)

ARIZONA

This year we decided we needed something to break up the long winter we were having and with that came the idea to take a little vacation to Arizona to visit Nick's Grandma. We were a little nervous about the flight since this would be Grant's first (and I was a little worried about the thought of taking care of a baby and managing to not puke myself). As Nick worded it "Grant earned his wings!". He did such an awesome job and actually snuggled up and slept through most the flights.We had a fun first morning drinking coffee and hanging out with Nick's Grandma and friend Ray, then off we went to enjoy the day at ASU. We enjoyed a great little lunch on the patio at one of the local burger joints (and about choked when after a couple beers and 3 meals our check totaled under $20- good old college hangouts!).
We strolled through campus, checked out the main street, and conquered a hike up the AZU hill...I think it was called Hayden's Butte?? We were definitely sweating after making it up that thing with a stroller.That night Nick's Grandma offered to stay with Grant so Nick and I could head to a rodeo with his Uncle Bob to watch his cousin Judd. His cousin is a rodeo clown and watching him definitely sent our hearts racing. This place had a small arena for bull riding, live music, food, drink, and a few bonfires. It was quite the set up and to make it even more exciting because his cousin was able to get us seats on the back side inches away from the fence. Being that close puts bull riding in a whole new level of excitement (there was one time I thought I might have to jump the fence and use some of my nursing skills). (no pics forgot the camera)
I have to mention our rental vehicle because it was a smaller 4 door truck and Grant loved it! He was finally able to see what the rest of see when driving- he was sitting up high and facing forward. Everytime we looked back at him he was smiling. (Since arriving home we have now flipped his carseat to forward facing and car rides have become much more enjoyable.)
The next day we hit up the ballpark...there was no way we were going to be in Arizona literally minutes away from where the Royals were having Spring training and not see a game (Nick's thoughts of course). We soon found out if you are going to have a kid at the ballpark this is the way to do it. This was a smaller stadium with a huge lawn open for outfield seating. There were tons of adults and kids with blankets laid out enjoying the game. And that's exactly what we did. Grant loved it because there were kids to play with everywhere and we had brought a bag of toys so we quickly had a few friends join our area.

`Our last day we headed to Nick's Aunt and Uncle's home. Unfortunately, Nick's Grandma was feeling a little under the weather on our visit so did not join us :( When we arrived at Bob and Connie's, Bob took us the nearby sky diving place. He said it's open everyday and they constantly have jumpers, whether it be military or the average joe. It was pretty neat to see the sky diver's take off in the plans, watch the plans in the air, see the little specs come out of the plane, and land! After that we headed back to Bob and Connie's.
We had heard they had moved into a new house with a pool but wow we had no idea we were headed to what we felt was similar to a resort! Needless to say the heated salt water pool, hot tub, lounging area, fire pit, and outdoor kitchen were amazing! And Grant was ecstatic to be splashing around in the water.These last few pics of Grant at the airport prior to us leaving AZ. I had to laugh because the picture of him with his sippy cup and snack cup are how we saw Grant most of the trip. Drinking and eating his goldfish...actually he did not even have to be drinking and eating just as long as they were in his hands. Then there is Grant watching the planes come in eating his goldfish off the ledge. So cute! We had a great trip and were sad to leave. We had a lot of fun staying with Nick's Grandma and Grant getting some Great Grandma time. And it was great to see some more of his family as well!

Birthday Week

The second week in March (yes I've really been needing to post but just getting around to it) was my birthday. I think this may of been the first time I've every truly had a birthday week. It started out Friday night (my real b-day was Monday) with some of our good friends making a surprise stop with TCBY ice cream cake! The cake was delicious and it was so fun to hang out with these guys. I worked the weekend, then came my actual day. Another good friend invited Grant and I over for lunch and a playdate, it was the perfect way to spend a gorgeous afternoon. Then Nick was so cute and lined up a sitter, rounded up some more good friends, and off we went to Blanc Burger (which is one of my favorite burger joints). Then home for ice cream cake again (this one was Sheridan's and it was absolutely delicious). Did I forget to mention our little pre Blanc Burger/Grant bedtime birthday celebration. Here is a picture from that...

A candle stuck with gum to a frozen cupcake :) We had to make something work to get that candle to stay on the cupcake. And Grant did finally get the cupcake and loved every bite of it.

This did not end the Birthday festivities. Wednesday, my co-workers planned a little birthday potluck and Thursday we were off to Arizona! I could not of asked for a better week!