Wrenching on the Jeep!

A couple weeks ago, I'm sad to say, I gave a little love tap to a VW Jetta so the good folks at State Farm cut me a check to fix my bumper.  What else could I do but get a new one (packaged with a winch, D-Rings, and grill guard)?  The new bumper was delivered the other day so after dinner I decided to tackle the beast.  We still had some time before bedtime so I got to have some awesome under the Jeep time with my boy.

He eventually thought it was a little dangerous under there so he got some protection.  Also notice the tool everyone needs when working on a Jeep; a stud finder.

We finally got the bumper off and even Mommy got in on the project by removing the factory fog lamps.

Nothing like getting your hands dirty!

Wait, I think I've seen this before.

Growing Up

The little booger is growing up! He says he's getting tall like his daddy and he's SO BIG now. The other night he insisted on playing out back by himself (closely supervised through the screen door).

Playground!

While we were eating breakfast, the little booger asked if we could go to the playground today. I said sure-- we could go to the playground after school and dinner. The little stinker scarfed down his breakfast, got dressed in a flash, and then announced that he was ready to go to the playground. Whoops! Have you ever tried to explain something to a not-quite three-year old? Yikes. Anyway, we went to the playground tonight and had a blast.

Look at how big he's getting!

Hat?

I don't know if you remember us talking about the kindermusik song about the silly mouse who gets dressed by putting his pants on his head and his underpants on his elbow.  Well the kid is at it again.  For the last few days the boy has been putting on his clothes and then putting on a "hat" to go down and eat breakfast.

Poor kid.  His head is bigger than his waist as you can tell from the deformed left eye.  That should change at some point (I think).

Traffic Jam

The little booger *really* doesn't spend a lot of time stuck in traffic, but he finds it fascinating. All of his toy cars were in a big traffic jam tonight.

Big Saturday

We had a big day today. We went hiking in the local arboretum-- the little stinker double-checked all of my map reading.

"Let me see what the picture says!"

He also took a self portrait,

"Cheese!"

a photograph of me,

The little guy kept telling me to back up.

and one of his daddy.

Eric's back there, I promise...

Then we bought a bike and a bike helmet!

Whee!

What a day! He should sleep like a rock tonight... we all will.

He's Got Talent!

The little guy picked up his guitar tonight and said "Good morning!" When I said "Good morning!" back, here's what he did.
He's a natural!

He Got Mail!

The little booger's Grandma and Gramps sent him some stickers in the mail. He was SO happy to get them that he let me take his picture showing the front of the card,

the back of the card,

and what it looks like balanced on his head (the stickers all fell out that way).

Cool Nights

It feels like summer is starting to wind down... the nights are getting pretty chilly. We're leaving our windows open (we're suckers for fresh air), but that means we are eating breakfast in 55 degree weather.

Spa Treatments

The little guy kicked back and relaxed after a long day of playing...

... My turn is next!

Boys of Summer

Well, softball season is over for Eric's team. After their game tonight, the little booger ran the bases several times at another (empty) field. He ran around for over half an hour!

One day he'll have batting gloves and wrist bands that fit. (Maybe he'll run the bases in the right direction then, too.)

Saturday, in the Park!

Well, technically we spent the day at a resort, but still...

Eric played golf, so the little stinker and I did other stuff with two cousins, one aunt, and Nana. We played mini-golf (sort of), went on a walk, saw boats, fed fish and ducks, played on a playground, and played cornhole (sort of).

This is a new, but efficient, approach to the game.

His mini-golf techniques could use a little work, but he's got time to improve.

Then we got to see daddy, his two brothers, and Pops finish up their round of golf.

What a great day!

Ouch!

After dinner tonight, the little dude fell and hit the back of his head on the floor pretty hard. Stomach-churning injuries get extra love and attention, so he got half an episode of Yo Gabba Gabba along with lots of hugs and snuggles. Watching a show when he's hurt sometimes helps him calm down, but it also lets us keep a close eye on, in this case, his rapidly growing goose-egg. I am paranoid about head injuries and concussions.

The little stinker said (through his tears) that he wanted to watch the show but he needed to breathe first. What? We finally figured out that he thought he needed to have a breathing treatment to watch Yo Gabba Gabba. It took some explaining, but he settled down for about half an episode without his nebulizer.

My work shirt and pajama pants are a good look, huh. Eric's a lucky guy!

A Tale of Two Playtimes

Here's what playtime with Mommy looks like at our house:

He made a track for his trains and showed me how far the trains could go on it.

Here's what playtime with Daddy looks like at our house:

He was screaming with laughter and almost fell off the couch headfirst.

I'm glad he has both of us.

Manly-Man

The little dude and his dad sometimes take a shower together after softball games. The other night, they came downstairs in matching towels. I've cropped most of Eric out of the picture (you're welcome, E).

One of the Boys

The little stinker loves going to softball games, but he wants to be out on the field SO badly it's heartbreaking. Here he is hanging out with the boys (he was literally the gatekeeper).

After the game was over, he had fun climbing on a big pile of gravel in the parking lot. He wears his daddy's wristbands (they are elbowbands for him) as part of his "softball clothes."

I Cantaloupe with You!

Oh, honeydew! (hahahahaha)

It's absolutely ridiculous, but if I don't cut up a cantaloupe the day I get it home from the store I never will. This week is one of the weeks where I did cut it up, so here's the little stinkpot enjoying the fruit course during his pre-softball-game dinner.

When we got to the ball field, I asked if he wanted to go to the playground for a bit. He said no. When I asked why, he said that going to the playground would make Daddy's team sad. What a sweetheart!

We survived VBS!

We had a whirlwind weekend with VBS at church. The little guy's class made the cutest lighthouses.

He's also been singing "This Little Light of Mine" and part of a song that goes "Get up! Get up! Time to go tell the world!" at the top of his lungs (even in the grocery store-- yikes!). The grocery store incident resulted in me saying "Could you please tell the world in a quieter voice?" Makes total sense, right?

The little stinkpot also got a haircut yesterday. He took a few pictures of it himself, but they all look like this: 

Maybe tomorrow...

I'm on a boat!

We took a ferry to and from the beach-- it was a nice break out of the car. The little booger enjoyed the boat ride. He really liked looking over the railings at the people below (especially the guy with no hairs).

 The water was gorgeous! What a great alternative to the Garden State Parkway, right?

Mud!

What more do you need than a big bucket full of wet sand?

Not much!

Back home!

We're back home from a conference and a vacation. Although the little dude didn't particularly enjoy a windy day at the beach, he had fun the rest of the trip.

A Boy and His Duck

It cracks me up when the little stinkpot packs his stuff. "I'll take ALL MY SHOES" is his current attitude towards packing. Here he is, getting ready to go to his Nana and Pop's house with his duck:

He's having a blast!

Laundry Basket, Part 2

Not only did he turn the laundry basket into a turtle shell, he pretended to be asleep in a crib like a baby. This one took some prep work, but looked pretty comfortable.