1, 2, 3... To the Zoo

What is becoming our annual zoo trip with Nani occurred in early May.

 This year we got to ride the train!

 Always a favorite - feeding the parakeets

 Here birdy birdy! Here!

Buddy's Big Day

People often ask me if I notice a difference between Buddy and my girls. Sometimes yes, and sometimes no. I would describe him as "all boy," as if I really know what that means. I guess when I say it I mean that he is a different experience. He is into EVERYTHING, especially anything he shouldn't be. He is so curious, so verbal, so adventurous, so full of spirit, full of laughter, so driven, so tenacious and determined. He is so sweet and loving. He loves to sing. He laughs socially so that no one can laugh without him joining in. He looks so much like me and acts so much like his daddy. He is mama's boy and he is daddy's boy. He talks and talks - a constant babbler of nonsense and plenty of real words. He would rather be outside than just about anywhere (except maybe for the bathroom where he likes to see what he can put in the potty). He is Buddy, not Geoff or Geoffrey, not Stephen or Steve, just Buddy. And now, he is one.

 Testing out this cake

 With all but the oldest and youngest of the local cousins

 Oh yes, he did. He cleaned the entire plate. Slowly, methodically, tiny bite by tiny bite until there was nothing left.

 Straight into the tub!

 Checking out the gifts

 Everything a little boy could want, toy trucks, a lawn mower, and somewhere he is allowed to splash (but he still gets into the dog bowls and the toilet when mommy isn't quick enough to redirect his attention).

Yes, he LOVES the water!

 Our newest cousin, Lyssette. The girls really outnumber the boys so Wyatt and Buddy are going to have to stick together for sure!

Big Birthday boy - what a handsome fella!

Long Time Overdue

Well, I am way past due on a blog update, so here we go with as many posts as I can manage to come up with in a short period of time. (Only think I have time for 2 posts tonight, but check back soon, because I have a lot of catching up to do!)

I am not certain why I got so behind on the blog, but no complaints, because I am back and I have plenty of pictures to share. It feels like the summer has blown by. I think my last post was shortly after Claire's ballet recital in early May. Then came the birth of my sister's newest addition, for which I got to play doula (labor assistant). That was an awesome experience, one more thing I am honored to have been able to share with my sister and truly one of my best friends in this world! Then Geoff was out of town for several days leaving me to single mom it for a bit. Then Buddy had his first birthday. Then we all got sick. Then I took the kids on a week long trip to visit their great-grandmothers in two states. Somewhere in there throw in two visits from Nani and Pop and such and it is now the end of July and time for me to catch up our life in pictures! So, without further ado, happy viewing!

 Sweet sisters

 A nice long visit with Pop

 A little mini waterpark backyard adventure

 During Geoff's out of town time, the kids and I went to Home Depot and bought paint. Several return trips later I finally had a color I could live with and with help from a dear friend, the living, dining and kitchen were finally all painted and put back together before Geoff returned! Now all that hasn't been painted in our house is our bedroom, which certainly needs it since we had that lovely hole in our wall patched... (The girls room which has been painted recently now has a hole in the wall which needs patching - ahh the joys of little kids).

 Loving his water table - birthday gift from Nani and Pop

 He didn't think much of being dressed up by his sisters. They still aren't quite sure why boys don't wear hairbows.

 I shall call him "minimer"

 We love to play in the water!

I remember buying this swingset for Claire and wondering if we would have 3 little ones to fill all 3 swings. Well, yep, that turned out not to be much of a problem! :)

Moving into May

 The kitty was curled up in Buddy's drawer!

 Love that look on his face. He finally (mostly) plays with the sand rather than eats it

 Not sure what this look was about...

 Evie did this and said, "Look mommy, I'm Santa Claus!" She is so creative about these sorts of ideas. When she scribbles, she will tell me what she is drawing and it is always something elaborate. The other day she said she was drawing a helicopter over the ocean. And when she explained it I could see that was not a bad description.

 The happy dancer after her recital with all her flowers. I will devote a whole post to the recital when I get the pictures and videos collected.

 Trying on mommy's shoes

 This boy loves to eat!

He copied his sisters who were strolling their baby doll by putting his snuggiemonkey in this train car and pushing it around.

 Sweet boy having a sick day in the big bean bag

All ready to dance!

Another April Post

April turned out to be a busy month! And May started with a bang and we are all (except thankfully Geoff) fighting RSV right now (it is winning the fight...). But I thought I'd throw a few pictures up here. I am waiting on Nani to get me the videos and pictures she took at Claire's recital to do a big recital post. It was so incredibly wonderful! I couldn't be more proud of my big girl. And then of course in May we will celebrate little man's 1st birthday. So a lot to look forward to. For now, I will try to play a bit of catch up (as usual)...

 Silly sisters

 Cousins love to swing

 Claire's trophy at dance class

 On the trampoline with mommy

 She LOVES Aubie (as she should!)

 Happy boy in the swing

 Sisters in the old Hallquist camping hammock which was resurrected when I spotted it in our shed

 The simple joy a balloon gives to a child. Don't give my girls birthday presents, just bring them balloons!

 Making a sand birthday cake

 Claire with her prize from the Chunnennuggee Fair

Claire at her dress rehearsal: first position!

 Buddy loves the dogs!

 First face painting experience (at the Chunnennuggee Fair)

Nothing better than eating a banana, unless it's eating a banana while wearing a monkey shirt!

Reading with Poppa