Snow! Snow! Snow!

This is the first time that we have been snow bound with Tate and we enjoyed every minute of it. We were mostly lazy the entire time making good food and watching Elmo but we did get out to enjoy watching Tate play in the snow. Tate didn't know what to think about the white stuff on the ground. He just walked around in it and smiled. Travis tried to sled with him but Tate wasn't too fond of the sled (maybe next year). Tate did not have the proper snow clothes so we did have to go in a warm up a couple times throughout the weekend especially when he found the street drain and all the melted snow. He loved splashing in the puddles. Travis was hard at work most of the time building us a snow family. One big snow a year is great and we had a great time but come on spring and summer!

Christmas 2009

Better late than never! Christmas was a blast this year. Tate was really into opening gifts....more than I thought he would be. Santa met us at the Knoxville Zoo this year. We went with Abbie and Izzie and had a wonderful breakfast with Santa. Neither one of them were too scared of Santa. After we ate breakfast we walked around the zoo. There were some animals that weren't out due to the cold weather but boy were we in for a show from the gorillas. They were extremely active!

Below is our first picture of Tate and Izzie together on Santa's lap. What cute cousins!





We made gingerbread houses this year at moms and we did make a mess. Tate just enjoyed eating all the goodies. You'll notice his mouth is red. We had to give both of them a bath to get the red stain off their bodies.



Santa was good to Tate this year. He must have been good in 2009 (he is always good in my book). He got a basketball goal (this is his second - he grew out of his other one), a radio flyer scooter, Encore Elmo, and many more toys and clothes.



Can't wait to see what next year has in store for the Shulars!

Tate's first haircut

Wow...this was harder than I thought it would be. Tate's first "real" haircut was on Wednesday November 25th after dad decided to do some cutting himself in our bathroom the night before. Yikes! I already had an apointment with my hairstylist so we decided to take Tate too. He really just needed a trim...but most of it was cute curls in the back. He did so good. He looked at a book most of the time and the rest just sucked his thumb. Travis held him the whole time at first standing and then in the chair. Now he officially looks like a big boy.

This is a before picture:

Tate's first trip to the Knoxville Zoo

On Saturday November 14th the Knoxville Zoo had a free zoo day so Travis and I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to take Tate. Donations were being taken so we cleaned out our pantry. We arrived a little before the zoo opened because we were afraid of the crowd due to the beautiful weather. The weather was in the 70s in November! What a beautiful day! When we arrived we received a goody bag and free waters. We saw lots of animals...elephants, zebras, lions, giraffes, numerous birds, snakes, gorillas, bears, including penguins (Tate's Halloween costume), etc. The gorillas were the most fun to watch because they are so huge and there movements are human like. We had a great time and can't wait to go back soon!

Tate the Penguin

Halloween this year was special. It is the first year Tate dressed up in a real costume. He was only a month old in 2008 so he wore a "First Halloween" onesie as his costume. This year he was a penguin...a cute one if I must say. Travis and I picked out his costume last season at the childrens place outlet in Pigeon Forge. Halloween was on a Saturday this year so we had a full day. We invited friends over for hotdogs but the rain ruined the plans to cook the dogs over a warm fire. Tate also did not get to actually trick or treat due to the weather but hopefully next year will be better. Tate had lots of kids to play with...Izzie the Minnie Mouse, Sydney and Anniston as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Millie the lady bug, Mackinzie the other Minnie Mouse, Savannah and Maddie the witches, and Maddie the Cat. UT also had a football game that night so everyone stayed and watched the game together. We had a great Halloween 2009! Oh the suspense of what Tate will be next year...

Tate's 1st birthday party

There was a whole lot of planning for this day in our little one's life. The big party was at Victor Ashe Park in Knoxville at 2 pm on Sunday, October 4th. Travis, Tate, and myself have been to this park throughout Tate's first year to walk/run so this was a great place to have his bash. The day before the party I made the cupcakes with the help of my Mamaw. We made regular and mini size cupcakes. I think we actually made around 50 so this took a majority of the day. We also made the kids give aways....Caramel Apples...YUM! This was an experience. My Mamaw was in charge of melting the caramel. This was key because the caramel had to be the perfect temperature. I was in charge of the sprinkles after we applied the caramel. This was so fun! The day of the party there was a chilly cool breeze and the rain held off until we were cleaning up. Everyone actually had to wear their jackets to stay warm. There were around 40 people at the party so we had a big crowd. Tate had a lot of attention but I don't think he liked the part when we sang to him (see below...he he). The day was just like we imagined and I hope Tate knows how much everyone loves him.

Tate's One Year Pictures

Wow! This year has gone by too fast. Our baby boy is already a year old. It has been a wonderful and emotional year. Our lives have truly changed...for the better. We had one of our friends take some pictures for us so we could remember this time in our lives. We took them at Powell park. This was great to take pictures in our home town. We started out in a field behind the park and then moved over to a vacant building beside the railroad tracks due to the downpour. The rain actually made some great pictures. We let Tate play in some puddles which made some memorable moments.

Our cute family...






Love, love, love this pic...


Man to man talk...



Here is one of the pics of Tate playing in the puddles...