big day...

i went grocery shopping on sunday.

i must admit i shed a tear as i grabbed my first container of whole milk for max.

not quite sure why, but at that point i think i realized that max is no longer a baby.

here he is with his first sippy cup of milk.

taking his first drink.

hey, uncle denny, this stuff is pretty good!

trying out corn on the cob for the first time.

playing with daddy on his police motorcycle.

another great dinner and enjoyable evening at grama's house!

house projects...

so, we have been working on the house to get it ready to put it up for sale.

max has been very patient and also quiet helpful!

here he is loading the rubbermaid tote with whatever he could find.

side effects...

daddy went to get tested for allergies this week.
he found out he is allergic to cats, grass, dust mites, molds, and a few trees.

the doctor prescribed him nose spray and a steroid.
well, he had a bit of a bad reaction to the medicines.

he was experiencing a horrible throbbing pain in his teeth and gums.
i honestly thought i was going to have to take him to the emergency room on friday night.

he's feeling better now...but this is how he was feeling this weekend.

what a difference a year makes...

the past year has been full of adventures, laughter, tears, challenges, memories, and lots of love.

maxwell joseph, thank you for showing us how to be parents, for letting us love you, and for making us a family.

happy first birthday max!

today was max's first birthday.
we had a phenomenal day celebrating!

we wondered how to start the day...
for those of you who know drew, he loves sweets.

so, the day began with a "birthday donut" that daddy went to get from manderfield's.

he dug right in...with both hands.

the donut caused a little mess.


we headed up for a bath and then some play time.


while max was sleeping...daddy designed some artwork in the lawn. ("max is 1")


after max's nap, we loaded up in the car and headed to green bay to the n.e.w. zoo.

we checked out so many animals...monkeys, lions, a bear, prairie dogs, birds, giraffes, an otter, penguins, bobcats, moose, fish, and a badger.

he loved the lions and was meowing at them.

max even got to ride a lion with daddy!

look at this...too cute.

we went to see the giraffes and realized that we were there during feeding time.

max got to feed the giraffes a few leaves.

after giving maggie and libby treats...he knew just what to do.

max waited patiently for his first merry-go-round ride.

mommy was so excited to get to take this ride with max.

after the zoo, we headed home and rested.
then we met grama, becky, and nate out for dinner to celebrate.

max got a few bites of ice cream to end the night.


becky took max to check out the fish.


our happy 1 year old!


walking and giggling with daddy.


family photo!

the most handsome boys in town!

what a start to the week...

whew....what a start to the week.

max got to spend some time with his grampa mark.

grampa stayed for a few days after max's party to visit and help us with some house projects.

he's been playing his new piano from mommy and daddy all week.

look at that cute bottom!

this is one of his new favorite things to do. he loves to stand here and look out the front door.

here's the first picture that i got where you can really see that top tooth.

this little guy is always on the move.


on wednesday, after spending the morning and afternoon playing, daddy and max came to a family night at youth go to visit mommy.

a year ago today...

a year ago today, i received a phone call requesting an appointment.

a year ago today, i had a feeling that something was in the air.

a year ago today, i had a visitor that would change our lives forever.

a year ago today, a mother had the courage to ask drew and i if we would be open to adopting her unborn child.

a year ago today, we stayed up for hours crying, laughing, praying, hoping, doubting, questioning, and dreaming.

a year ago today, we became parents and we didn't even know it yet.

max's first birthday party...

today we celebrated max's first birthday.

we were so lucky to have so many family and friends join us for this special day!

teddy and denny manned the grill and cooked up some delicious hamburgers and hot dogs.

here is max's cake that becky made from scratch!

and here is the sock monkey cake that diane made.

what a lucky boy!

waiting patiently to dig into his cake!

diggin in...

the only family photo we got today...

mmmmmm....cake.

thanks to everyone who celebrated with us today.

max's birthday is friday.

we are still working on coming up with a special tradition to start...any ideas???

happy father's day...

max is lucky to have such an amazing daddy!

happy first father's day drew.
we love you!

things to remember...

as i prep the final details for max's first birthday party tomorrow (his actual birthday is june 25), there are some things that he is doing right now that i want to make sure to remember.

max loves the dogs. he has recently taken to feeding libby bits and pieces of his breakfast/lunch/snack/dinner...whatever he's eating, he wants to share with libby. it's too cute!

he's becoming so talkative. we hear new noises and sounds every day. he's up to about 4-5 animal noises...monkey, lion, kitty, bird, and cow.

i love to watch max read. he'll crawl right over to his pile of books, search to pick out exactly the one he wants, and then he'll page through it and read the story to himself. i just can't explain how precious this is.

when we are playing, if i get in crawl position and get really low to the ground, max crawls over to me with a big smile on his face and rests his forehead on mine.

max likes to share with his mommy and daddy. he snuggles with his blanket and then offers it to us for a snuggle too.

he gives such sweet little kisses. and will give one to almost anyone.

and finally, i got my first real hug today. daddy was holding max in the living room and i walked over. max leaned in and wrapped those little arms around me and just held on. awwww....i just can't get enough of this little one!

great (but pictureless) day...

well...i left our camera at a friends house last night and have been missed many photo opportunities today.

we went to the farmers market in appleton this morning. max had a great time. he did some serious people watching, got to visit with his aunt heidi, and enjoy the sunshine!

after the market we headed home for nap time. drew and i enjoyed some time outside in the sun, relaxing and playing with the dogs.

our little guy woke up and we headed to the youth go brat fry and drew had lunch. we visited with my staff and some of the kids and then headed to do a little bit of shopping.

we got home and missed our "window of opportunity" for a nap. so i dressed max in his swimsuit and we played in the kiddie pool.

what a wonderful summer day for the hicks family!
you'll just have to take my word for it and imagine our cute little guy playing, smiling, and having fun!!!

a few new tricks...

max is such a good copy-cat.
here's a video of him sympathy coughing and blowing kisses.

many faces of max...

we just love this little guy.

bath time fun.


check out that crazy hair.

why so serious?

who couldn't love that face?