He's 18 months

When we decided to move back to Utah my mom was eager to soak up every remaining minute with Noah. He lovee having all of her attention. She took him on her walks, he'd follow her around the house vacuuming or "help" her with laundry. Whatever it was, he was Grandma's and Grandpa's little sidekick. We have been so incredibly blessed to receive so much help and support from my parents. They are truly gems. 

 Noah sat there motionless for a good 15 minutes while Grandma tickled his head.

 We finally got our first snowfall, it wasn't much, but we still took Noah out sledding. He wasn't really sure what to think about it.

The last few weeks of November we took a trip down to Utah to visit Dayne's parents. Whenever we go up to their cabin it's like we are going to a resort. All of the trees are gorgeous, the cabin is incredible, and there are so many fun things to do.

They designed the upstairs of the garage into a play area for all of their grand kids. It's what kids dream about.

Noah turned 18 months in November and is a toddler in every way. He loves running around exploring every inch of things. His favorite foods are fruit such as cuties, strawberries or blueberries. He loves watching "Mona" (Moana) and playing with anything that resembles a ball. He started going to Nursery and absolutely loves it. As soon as we open the door he runs in and doesn't look back. Snacks, toys, and other kids, it doesn't get better than that! 

Celebrations & Holidays

For Dayne's birthday we convinced my mom and dad to go the Mount Rushmore and Devil's Point with us. It was one of the things on Dayne's list he wanted to be sure to do before moving. It was fun being able to hike around, go to a fun park, and explore the Black Hills area. 

 In October we made a quick trip to the Tri Cities, Washington to celebrate my Grandma's 90th birthday. It is always so fun to watch Noah play with his cousins. A lot of my family was there so of course we played a LOT of cards. Grandma Miller made Noah a quilt so we had to snag a picture.

I can tell Noah is getting bored with his toys because he is getting into more and more mischief. Which I really shouldn't laugh about, but sometimes you just have to. I know I've said this a lot already, but he's definitely keeping me on my toes! He is such a funny kid. When he had the planter pot on his head he'd walk towards me and after every few steps he'd lift it up a tiny bit to make sure he was still on track. 

 We took on the task of carving pumpkins this year. I was a little nervous since I had seen so many posts on Facebook of kids hating the inner guts of pumpkins, but to my surprise Noah was having a blast! He even pulled out a few handfuls. It all went down hill when we lit the candle and turned off the lights. For whatever reason, he wasn't a fan of that.

 We were excited to take Noah out trick-or-treating (and no, not just so we could have the candy, although it may have been a factor) I couldn't pass up a muscle cop costume, he was just so dang cute! At first Noah was hesitant and probably pretty confused about it all, but by the end he was holding his own bucket, helping knock on the doors and helping himself to the bucket of goodies neighbors held out for him. I think I can say that we all had a blast!

Summer 2017

This summer has flown by. The last blog I wrote was in July, it's now the end of November. So, let me catch you up.

Dayne's work sponsored a night at the zoo for all of their employees and their families. Noah loved the train ride (although his face doesn't really show it), looking at the tigers and beavers and of course snacking on a snow cone. It was a fun event! Billings Clinic has been great to work for. Although we are happy and excited for our next adventure, it will be hard saying good-bye to our friends and family we have here.

In August we made a quick trip to East Wenatchee, Washington for my high school 10 year reunion.  Noah was dang good! He always surprises me at how well he does in the car for long road trips.

I was a little nervous about going to my reunion since I haven't been back to my old stomping grounds in 8 years. Luckily I had/have pretty great friends and we didn't skip a beat. I loved being able to talk with everyone and hear what everyone has going on in their lives.

In August we took Noah to the Montana State Fair. He's too little for all of the toys, but he absolutely loved going to the dog show and walking around the FFA area.

This summer we spent a lot of time helping my parents in their garden and take care of their yard. I kid you not, Noah loved sitting on our laps while mowing the lawn. Every time we opened the garage he would bolt to the lawn mower and hop on up. We loved being able to soak up the sunshine!

Noah loves ALL things sports. He can even mumble out a slightly recognizable basketball, baseball, football and soccer ball. Dayne is a little hurt he hasn't been able to introduce water polo yet! He really is the best daddy around. He loves chasing him, tickling him, giving him horsy rides, and singing him to sleep.

In September Dayne had a work trip that took him out of town over my birthday. So Mom and I took Noah to Idaho to visit family and friends from college. It was weird not having Dayne around but Noah was definitely the life of the party. He just cracks me up! He does this thing where he'll fake laugh, so I'll fake laugh, then he'll laugh and pretty soon we are both just laughing uncontrollably. Him and Dayne know how to brighten my day.

Miller Reunion

 We spent the week of July 4th in Swan Valley with parents, my siblings and their families. It was a little chaotic, but for the most part it was really fun. It was great being able to spend some quality time with my brothers and sisters and watch our kids play together. 

 One of the many fun things we did was have our own firework show! Noah loved watching all the bright colors and of course cried at the loud ones (sorry buddy).

Throughout the week we made a few stops for some yummy square ice cream. When my Dad was a kid his family would make sure to stop here even if it was quite a bit out of their way. So of course we have to keep that tradition a live, luckily it was only a few blocks from where we were staying. 

 Dayne and my Dad helped all the kids build their own marshmallow guns. It was all fun and games, trying to shoot our pathetic pop bottle targets, but by the end it was a friendly war between my brother and sister. Which for me, was fun to watch!

 We took a day trip to Jackson Hole, WY and saw all the "must see's" and did all the "must do's". This is a shot with the glorious Teton's behind us and the other is up at the Alpine Slide which we actually couldn't do since it closed for the day due to lightening.

 

Grandma helped all of the grandkids make bead lizards. Jena was a pro so she helped Dayne make one for Noah. She is the only girl out of the 14 grandkids so she typically wanted to play with the adults instead of the rowdy boys, I don't blame her! 

We spent some time at the Heisi Hot Springs and Noah LOVED being in the pool! I really should have brought a floaty for him because he was all for splashing around and being thrown in the air by Dayne. We had such a fun week just being with everyone and we are already excited for the next time we can all be together.

And just like that we have a ONE year old!

These last few months have been a whirlwind. Dayne had some float time he needed to use so we took a quick trip down to Dayne's family cabin. Papa Shaw made signs for each of the grand kids so of course we had to take a quick ATV ride and check out "Noah's Nook".

Noah was a little leery of the ATV but Dayne made sure to show him a good time. And of course went way too fast and made too many sharp turns and bumps for having a one year old on board. 

Although this picture doesn't show it, Noah had a blast exploring every nook (ha, get it? Noah's Nook?) and cranny. Grandma and Papa transformed the loft above their garage into a child's dream room. Complete with slide and ball pit, trampoline, basketball arcade games, and fun wall paintings. Needless to say, Noah loved every minute spent up there. 

My sister and her cute boys were in town for awhile so Grandma and Grandpa Miller's house was a party 24/7. They loved drinking their bottle and sippy cup together, and of course playing peek-a-boo under the table.

 

 Noah's personality is really starting to come out. He is constantly doing something goofy and smiling as big as he possibly can. He always has to have something in each hand and something in his mouth all at the same time.

 

 This little munchkin turned ONE in May and every day he is showing more and more signs of toddlerism (that should be a word). He is all about having fun! He loves being chased, tickled, and just smiled at. He will bring you a book if he wants you to read to him. He walks every where and gets into every thing. He will try just about anything to get your attention, which isn't always a good thing. I am so incredibly grateful for this little boy in my life. One of my favorite times of the day is reading to him before bed and how he snuggles in my neck while singing to him. UHG I just LOVE him. He truly is a miracle and I cannot even find the words to explain how much I adore this little boy.