big birthday boy

Our little man is now one! He is looking more and more like a little boy and less like my sweet baby. Although still quite sweet most of the time. With a splash of ornery. On Lawrence's birthday we met Corey for lunch and then he met us at the park after work. He normally doesn't get to go with us because we typically go during mom hours. Lawrence showed off his balancing skills by standing on the wood chips in the wind. We have decided that he is holding out on us with the walking. He's able. Just doesn't want it bad enough and hasn't perfected it in his mind.

Lawrence loves to drop his toys and then throw his arms out. Instead of saying 'uh oh' he makes this little high pitched sound that 'says' so much.

The paper still ranks pretty high. But toys are becoming more of a hit.

And then there is the cake. This kid eats everything. Fruits, veggies, beans, dirt, bugs, wood chips, coffee beans... And because he eats so well we haven't wanted to mess it up with sweets, so he has had basically none to date. Even three days past his birthday - none.

He ate a respectable dinner of black beans, squash, peas, carrots, french toast (w/o the cinnamon, sugar, or syrup of course), grapes, and banana. In the much anticipated moment I placed a cupcake on his tray. And then the meltdown. I think it was due in part to him asking for more banana and this is what he gets. Partially due to the fact that it fell over and made a mess of his tray which he normally keeps quite tidy - he eats everything on his tray and what he doesn't want he disposes of. And it was also getting late which probably contributed.

So no cake or frosting made it to the mouth. Needless to say, I'm not real concerned. He's a Bevan - he will find his sweet tooth.

Possibly this weekend at his family birthday party. I heard the cake is going to be fabulous!

Okay, I actually made a cake that looks like a frog for this weekend! I can't wait to share the pictures with you.

spring makes me smile

I love Spring! I think it's my favorite. It used to be summer till I moved back to Kansas. Speaking of summer - it was 100 degrees yesterday :( It is way too early for that. Anyway, we have enjoyed a lot of outings this spring and here are some highlights.


We enjoyed Tanganeka Wildlife Park with Nana, Aunt Jennifer, and Cousin Lynn. We had some time with them in April and it was wonderful.

Lawrence LOVES his straw sippy. I never knew that drinking would be so much fun! Once his thirst is quenched, he just keeps drinking and spits it out instead of swallowing.

"It's all fun and games until somebody gets choked... "

This is actually all innocent. It's hard to get those squirmy babies to stay right where you want them!

This is our sweet little Lawrence throwing a fit. Face flat on whatever surface he happens to be sitting on. You laugh. Well, actually we do to, which is part of why we just walk away!

"Is it a ball? Is it an egg?"

"It didn't bounce quite like a ball. Guess it's an egg!"

Lawrence dressed in his Easter best!






My first Mother's day was pretty special!

"Eeeewww! I'm the one that gives the kisses around here."

The PERFECT Mother's Day lillies and card! I have two pretty sweet boys in my life :)

big steps

Updates from my neck of the woods:

~~My baby took his first steps!!! :( !!! I don't know if I am more excited or sad. I guess I can't call him my baby anymore. Corey and I had just gotten home from dinner out ALONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (thanks mom) - when he walked between us several times. Pretty cool.

~~I have been distracted with projects lately. My writing has been focused on a book that I am doing for Lawrence that will tell his birth story. Hopefully someday he will appreciate it. But if not, then I will. I did all the work anyway. At the same time, I am also trying to get his scrapbook all up to date with his major accomplishments of the last year and pictures. He has worked hard this year!

~~We are enjoying the Spring. I will post some pictures soon.

Have a happy day!

pizza on the bar-b!

I have always wanted to make pizza on the grill but just haven’t ever tried it. Since I have been on a homemade pizza kick, and the spring weather makes me want to put everything on the grill, and Shi was here visiting… it was the perfect excuse! I follow the blog Our Best Bites and they had some directions that assured me it would be a success on the first try. So Shi and I started fixing our dinner around 4:30.

First things first -- picture op! We didn't even eat pineapple, but somehow it made it to the pictures!

By this time we are warmed up and ready to get our hands dirty.

Lawrence played an important roll. He played contently and wasn't too needy.



We made everything from scratch - except the cheese. And I guess not the veggies either because our garden is barely sprouting. And not the meat because we don't have chickens or cows in our back yard. But we did make an alfredo sauce, marinara sauce, and pizza dough.

Then for the strategic part. When we raised the lid to the grill we had to work as quickly as possible to get the pizza's loaded and the lid down so our "oven" would stay hot. We planned who would do what. In the end, it didn't really matter because it took long enough that the grill had to warm up again anyway.




This process took awhile since we made four different pizzas with all different toppings. My hubby was getting hungry but he still wanted to be part of the picture magic.



We sat down to eat after 7:00 that night! Shiloh and I were wiped. BUT, the end product was well worth the wait. I think we need our own show - 'Cooking Made Cute' or 'Dinner In Just 3 Hours'.

nothing like an old friend

I am so tardy with my blogging. I have had a series of Spring Break guests and it feels like it has taken the week to get caught back up.

My dear friend, Shiloh, spent part of her Spring Break with me here in Kansas. There is nothing quite like having an old friend to hang out with. Not that she is that old numerically, but I have known her for years. Seven to be exact – I had to think about that one. I still remember the Sunday morning that she and her sister stood up in front of the whole career group and got introduced. We all became pretty quick friends since they were also from the true Midwest (Nebraska) and we lived in the same apartment complex. We had a ton of fun thru the years, some tears, ate a lot of great food, and experienced a lot of life together. My mind is flipping thru the numerous memories as I write!

First on our agenda was shopping for sunglasses…

I don't think you understand - I HATE Sunglass shopping...

My face is sooooooooo narrow, and most of these glasses are like what my mom wore back in the day...

So it helps to have a good friend to say yea or neigh. And the winner is.....

None of the above!

The rest of our adventures will follow shortly!

the new jeep in my life

The first Jeep I loved was a 2005 silver soft-top Wrangler, aka Roxy. She was my ‘fun loving/loud/rugged/single then newly married/I’m still young/and sorta cool’ vehicle. She got sent away to a caring family once I got prego and the likelihood of needing a step stool to get in and out was inevitable. Sniff sniff. I knew I would have another Jeep someday, but I never imagined my day would come so soon! And here she is. She doesn’t have a name yet.

We actually aren’t that good of friends either. And I have a feeling we may bicker for awhile before we learn to get along. The reason for this new Jeep in my life? Well, I am going to train for a half marathon! That’s it folks – it is in writing – can’t back out now. My friend Sarah and I did quite a bit of running in college and thought it would be so fun to run a half together! It took a lot to convince her. And when I got her convinced, it hit me that that meant I had to do it too. Oh crap. It sounded like a much better idea for her. So where do I begin with this post-pregnancy body that has plenty of soft spots? Apparently with a Jeep stroller. If only it had overdrive.

9 months

Lawrence is 9 months old already! Actually closer to 10 at this point. He is a healthy boy - in the 81st percentile for height, 49th for weight, and 43rd for head circumfrence. He is keeping us on our toes with lots of crawling and scooting. And he is doing really well at feeding himself little veggies. We had some pictures taken the other day which was a lot of fun. This was the first time he has shown a little more personality when someone had a camera in his face.




Lawrence loves to play peek-a-boo! One day his dog said 'peek-a-boo, I see you' and he put his hands up on his face and pulled them away real quick! I don't know why I am so amazed when I realize he is learning things.

These pictures need rotated.

And oh yeah - he is saying 'Mama' and 'Dada'.