Catching Up...

I'm embarrassed that it has been a month since I last posted anything on here. I really wish that I had some amazing story or really fascinating excuse, but the truth is it's been a busy month and blogging was a little low on the priority list! And that sums up the glamourous life of a working Mom:)

We have honestly been very busy. Since Ben's birthday celebration we've had baby showers to attend, more birthday's to celebrate, and even a quick weekend work trip to Orlando. All that and keeping up with a one year old- you get the picture!

Ben is doing great. He is like a little sponge, repeating and mimicking our every word and movement. A few of my favorites:

• He is now saying "Allllll done" when he finishes a meal or snack. This comes out more like "Awwww duh"
• He is standing on his own with no assistance and yes, just tonight he actually took his first couple of steps! Long way to go before he's walking, but it's a start!
• Everything round in shape is "ball" to him. This is by far his favorite word. All of his toy soccer, baseball, basketballs= "ball". Blueberries= "ball". Rocks= "ball". Easter Eggs= "ball". We're working on this one.
• He gets a hold of my cell phone and holds it up to his ear like he's talking. Do you think this is a sign that I'm on my phone too much?

Here are some cute and random recent pictures. By the way, notice that fine looking haircut in the piano pictures! His botched haircut from cookie cutters finally grew out, so I took him to my hair lady in Fishers and she did a fantastic job:)

Ben's new shoes for summer- little Keen's! It was no easy task to track down a shoe to fit his little round foot- this is as close as it gets.

One of his favorite things- pounding away on the piano. I like to think I'm giving him lessons but I think that might be a little premature.

Bathtime! Daddy gave him a little suds hat:)

Barnyard Bash

Prepare yourself... there is an abundance of pictures here! I couldn't help myself. We had so much fun throwing a big birthday party for Ben this past weekend. As you might have guessed, we had a barnyard theme running through the house. The best part was having our families fill up the rooms. Ben is one lucky boy- he has a big family who all love him very much!

All in all- the day was a success. Mom came on Friday stayed with us to help with food, cleaning, and set up. We were very grateful for the extra set of hands! Our final turnout was 23 adults and 6 kids... that is a big crowd for the Vollmer house! We did what we could to provide seating for everyone and some good food and drinks. Mom made her delicious banana slush punch which was probably the biggest hit of all. The only minor glitch was a whole 2 liter of ginger ale spilling on the kitchen floor in the middle of the party- let's just say it was a little bit of a sticky situation. We cleaned it up the best we could, and just shrugged our shoulders and moved on!

Ben had no problem being the center of attention- he loved opening his gifts, playing with his cousins and friends, and tearing into a delicious cake! Nick and I want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who came and made this a very special and memorable day for Ben. Here are some snapshots of the memories we can take with us...

The "cake table"... adorned with a real live barnyard and delicious cupcakes

A few of the cupcakes were decorated to look like little farm animals- how adorable! And that is Ben's smash cake on the left.

Proud Mama and Daddy- and a 1 year old who won't sit still for a picture!

Grandma and Grandpa V got Ben a Jamaican inspired hat on the cruise they just returned from- along with his very first slide!

Ben and his "beep beep"- lucky boy to have his big cousin Anna show him how it works

Ben sharing his new toy so nicely with his cousin Alexa

The Before

The After

What is a party without your best bud?! Thanks for coming Owen!

Aunt Lin and Uncle Frank enjoying a cupcake

My 3 favorite ladies... Grandma Gutwein, Mom, and my sista Allison:)

The Watts'- like I said earlier- what is a party without your best buds?!

Grandma and Grandpa V hold a very squirmy Ben

Aunt Carrie holding little Violet, and Uncle Aaron with the man of the hour

Nick and his Grandma Sams- some pictures are priceless!!

Ben ended his very long day with a bath from Grandma Haring

And of course a little last minute play with his new fridge magnets...

Happy Birthday Ben!

One year ago today we brought you into this world. You were so tiny (okay, at 9lb 3oz maybe not tiny, but you still seemed so small to us!), and so dependent on your Dad and I to care for you. It seems like you have grown literally right before our eyes- every day you discover something new and exciting! I can hardly believe the changes you have made in 365 days.

You make me smile each and every day, all throughout the day. There is not a time that I'm thinking about you that I don't feel my heart clench with love. From the sweet, rumply-haired, sleepy eyed little boy that I get to squeeze first thing each morning, to the on-the-go, determined, curious toddler during the day, and finally the worn out and fully relaxed baby I get to put to bed every evening... I love each and every part of you:)

At 1 year old you are crawling all over the place and walking along furniture or anything else that will give you support. Any day now you will be walking on your own! You are one of the happiest little guys I know- always ready with a heart melting smile when anybody looks your way or talks to you... you have made the day of many strangers by giving them your silly and sweet little 6-tooth grin:) Your dad and I love playing with you, some of your favorite things are being outside as the weather gets nicer, playing with your football, and flipping through books on your own.

We had a great day celebrating your birthday! Dad and I got you a new set of farm animals to play with and a brand new play tent for you to crawl through. I also made you some delicious chocolate cupcakes... maybe this can be a tradition! Here are some pictures from your big day!

Still at a stage where you are more interested in the wrapping paper than the gift inside...

Sitting in the opening of your tent with your favorite football

Thank goodness this thing folds up easily so Dad and I can put it away after you go to bed:)

Mommy made you very special chocolate cupcakes for today- we shared them with your favorite girls at daycare, Nina and Angie.

Life doesn't get much better!

We love you Ben, and can't wait to see what this next year brings us!

Love, Mom

Can it be?

I'm really trying to grasp this... Ben will turn 1 year old in FOUR days!! Where in the world has a whole year gone? I think back to this week last year- I had officially taken maternity leave from work, and I was spending my days pampering my hugely pregnant self and counting down the hours for Ben to arrive. Fast forward 1 year and I can't even begin to piece together everything that has happened over the last 12 months!! Our lives have literally revolved around Ben and his every move, and Nick and I have loved every second of being Mommy and Daddy to our precious boy.

This last weekend we had Ben's 1 year pictures taken by our photographer Mandy. She has done such a great job with all of Ben's pictures to date- I can't wait to see the full gallery from this last shoot! The weather was gorgeous on Saturday so we met at a nature preserve in Fishers. Then afterwards we went back to her studio for a "smash the cake" session- it was adorable! Ben's poor haircut that he got last weekend definitely stood out a little, but even with botched hair he still looks precious!

Check out the "sneak peek" on Mandy's blog here.

More to come on Ben turning one... The big day is Friday and Nick and I plan to have our own little family party that night, then his big birthday party with extended family is the following weekend!

Big Boy

I don't really know what officially makes a "baby" move to being a "toddler", but I think Ben made the transformation right before my eyes. Okay, so there have been a few gradual changes like imitating our speech and motions that have been happening over the last couple of months. He now says a few words like "uh-oh" and "buh-buy" and "football"... which sounds a little bit more like "boo-bah". When you ask him to show you his muscles he flexes and grunts... heehee. But this last weekend there were 2 events that makes me think we have a toddler on our hands.

1. Big Boy car seat. It's a small thing, I know, but there is something about packing away that pumpkin seat knowing that I won't be using it for Ben anymore, just makes me a little sad. It's a big deal to me!! I can only imagine what it will be like when he turns 1 in a couple of weeks and we turn it around to face forward!!

Such a big boy in his very first non-pumpkin car seat!

2. Big Boy haircut. OH, the first haircut. Now this is a story. Ben's hair was getting really long and shaggy, growing over his ears and into his eyes... it was time to get it trimmed up. Well, mistake #1 was taking Ben to Cookie Cutters. Maybe someone out there has had a good experience with this place or something like it, but our experience was a disaster. To make a long story short, let me summarize. Very rude service (in a place meant for kids, really?!), and a hack job for a haircut. I mean, if you blindfolded me and spun me around several times in the middle of the room and then sent me with a comb in one hand and a scissors in the other, I could have trimmed up Ben's hair better than this lady. Regardless of his poorly cut hair, Ben is still adorable. This boy can rock any haircut you give him, when he smiles he'll melt your heart and you will completely forget that his sideburns are uneven:) Check out the before and afters!

The "before" shot- Ben behaved so well the whole time... he was an absolute doll in the chair even though his hair was getting butched.

Spritzed down with a little h2o and ready to go! You can really tell how long some of it was!

He looks like such a little man sitting in this chair! And check out that hair over his ears!

The "after". Ben looks as excited about this haircut as I am.

Wagon Ride

As most of you probably know, Sunday afternoon here in Indiana was unseasonably warm. By mid afternoon, I was going a little stir crazy and needed to get out for a walk. So I got my tennis on, and much to the excitement of Gunther, got out the leash. Well, not wanting to be left out, Ben and Nick bundled up too, and we all headed outside.

Ben has a green "John Deere" wagon that he got from Mark and Aunt Caity for Christmas. So into the wagon Ben went with a few blankets for cushion and we were off!

Needless to say, the fresh air was just the ticket for me, and Ben was loving every second of it too! The wagon was a big hit!

Bienvenidos a Puerto Vallarta!

For those of you who took Spanish at West Central High School with Senora, you might remember the names of our Spanish books... Bienvenidos! This means "welcome" en Espanol. Well, I had a chance to practice my broken Spanglish from high school last week when Nick and I took a much needed getaway trip to Puerto Vallarta with our friends Mike and Erin Watts. So... as the title of this blog states... bienvenidos a Puerto Vallarta!!

We had such an amazing time- much of it having to do with the great company we had while traveling. It was so relaxing to hang out with our friends every day, every evening, with no responsibilities on any of our plates. Erin and I pretty much staked claim to a few lounge chairs by the pool each day, while Mike and Nick wandered the resort, floated in the pool with their beers, and played the "lazy games" to pass time. In the evenings we picked our restaurant of choice for the night, ate dinner, and cozied up in the lounge for drinks and entertainment. Does it get much better?

The one thing tugging at my heart strings every day was thoughts of my precious little boy at home. Nick and I missed Ben like you wouldn't believe, but it was reassuring to know he was in great hands. Nick's parents all took turns rotating down to our house in Indy to stay with Ben, and I know he had a great time being spoiled by his Grandma's and Grandpa. I have to say, even though we missed him, it was so good for Nick and I to have some time on our own to reconnect- all you old married couples out there with kids know what I mean!

So thank you to Mike and Erin for making the trip for Nick and I so memorable! I hope you all enjoy the pictures below- just a little taste of our getaway!

I must have been squeezing Nick's neck a little tight in this one. This was on Thursday evening at the resort when we stayed out until wee hours of the morning acting like young people again... it was so much fun!

Erin and I play a mean game of Jenga. We have the around the neck female water bottles to prove it.

Nick and Mike doing what they can to stay cool in the heat! Drinking a Cantarito- very tasty lime/grapefruit tequila drink...mmmm....

My view from my lounge chair on the beach late one afternoon. Erin and I escaped down here for some peace and quiet to read our books before taking in a massage. Rough life, I know.

Our Canadian friend that we made at the resort snapped this picture of the four of us on the beach. Apparently they don't use the "zoom" feature much in Canada.

Two pretty ladies getting ready for a venture into Puerto Vallarta

Mike and Erin at "Pipi's", the very touristy Mexican restaurant that we ate at downtown.

Nick and I on the other side of the table

Wow. I think I need to enlarge this and frame it.

This is a view of downtown Puerto Vallarta- a very safe and beautiful place to visit in Mexico if you are thinking of going now that you have read about the good time we had!