Happy Halloween!

Before we get to what costume Rocco wore for Halloween, I first wanted to show off his outfit that he wore to daycare today:

His onesie says 'Teething Bites', which it does. Literally and figuratively. Ouch for mommy. But anyways - his onesie couldn't be more appropriate since he is finally(!) getting some teeth in. Two to be exact.

Getting back to his costume - last year after Halloween, Scott and I saw a cute cow costume on clearance and bought it for Rocco to wear this year. It turns out the costume is even cuter on him than we thought it would be!

Rocco makes a very cute little cow I must say. However, he wasn't the biggest fan of the hoodie part of the costume at first:

I'm pretty sure he was thinking "Get this THING off me. Now!", but after a couple of minutes he got used to it. To get into the spirit, Scott and I also dressed up as dairy farmers. We had a silver pail/bucket (like a farmer would use to milk a cow - and yes I realize that with Rocco obviously being a boy cow, that doesn't work out, but whatever) to hold candy to give out to the neighborhood kids. It was a really nice night and we enjoyed meeting a lot of neighbors for the first time, some of which have kids near Rocco's age.  Dressing up this year as a family was a lot of fun, so we're already trying to figure out what we're going to be next year!

Happy Halloween!!

Footie Pajamas

It's finally cold enough to warrant putting Rocco back into footie pajamas and these Halloween ones are perfect for Halloween Eve.

My Favorite Fall Photo

It's that time of year - where everyone finds a pumpkin patch, not to buy a pumpkin, but to use it as a fun fall backdrop to take a photo of their child(ren). I had every intention of joining the masses for the very first time this year (Rocco was only a couple of weeks old this time last year), but then we got busy, and all of a sudden it was almost Halloween. Lucky for me, Rocco's daycare had a little fall display set up outside their front door, so I used that!  So here is Rocco's official 'pumpkin patch' photo (minus the patch). It's just about my most favorite photo I have taken. Ever.

Sea World Halloween Spooktacular

We have annual passes to Sea World, so we had to go while they still had their Halloween Spooktacular going on at the park.

That's steam coming out of the shell, not just a blurry photo for the record.

Next year, we need to remember to bring him in his costume! All the other kids were so cute dressed up - I wish I could have taken some photos of them, but I didn't want to look like a creeper.

You Are My Sunshine - Birthday Party!

The past year has had a lot of ups and downs, but through it all, Rocco really has been our "sunshine" when "skies are gray". I also sing him "You are my sunshine" on a rather regular basis, so it was fitting to use that as the theme for his first birthday party. We didn't go all out - just some decorations, ordered food from Sonny's BBQ (sunny, sonny, get it?), and had family and just a few friends come over (thanks Lindsay and Andrew for making the drive!). It was a great time - Rocco loved all his presents. He did not love his smash cake though, for the record. Here's some photos!

Decorations:

Guests:

It's my party...

...and I can cry if I want to!

Watch Rocco Grow- A Year in Review, Video!

Now that all of the monthly calendar photos are over (or ARE THEY?!), it's time for me to share a secret. I have not only been taking photos of Rocco every month. I have also been taking short video clips. So here's a compilation of those photos and videos taken over the past year. My beautiful, beautiful, baby boy:

(P.S. - click on the cog wheel and select 1080 HD)

12 Months Old!

This is a very bittersweet post. This is the last of the calendar photos. But before we get to that, let's review how Rocco has changed in the past month.

He has:
- learned how to express "no", rather vehemently I might add, by shaking his head back and forth. If you are trying to give him food he does not want (which is almost everything), the head shake is also accompanied by an arm waving you off.
- learned to say "cat". Casey is not impressed haha!
- learned to pull to a standing position with our help. We're still working on getting him to do this independently.
- begun to "walk" while we hold his hands, if he's in the mood anyways.
- started to wear shoes. Daycare requires it and he just looks cute wearing them.

I'm just so shocked he's already 1 year old. Rocco is shocked too:

Here's his 1 year stats from the pediatrician:
Weight - 21 pounds 4 ounces (48th percentile)
Height - 31.5 inches (96th percentile)