Mommy Style

We celebrated Karen's 31st birthday on Thursday 'mommy style'...that is a play date and lunch. Cristina and Sophia hosted with a yummy lunch and lots of wet fun in their backyard. Before heading to the pool, the mommies munched on chicken Caesar salad, pasta, and fruit while the toddlers did their thing. Which included some sharing practice, chasing the dog, opening every cabinet in the kitchen, and very loud squealing matches. This was all accomplished in between bites of a 'lunch on the go'. No time to eat when there is playing to be done. Sophia, Miller, Wesley Kate, and Jack were relieved when lunch was over because that meant swim time. Outdoors was full of more fun. In and out of the pool seemed to be the toddler game of choice. This game can also be translated as "mommy chases me around the pool". When they weren't running around the pool, Miller seemed to enjoy driving the toy car around the edge, Sophia showed off her aquatic skills, Jack learned to dump water on himself (he was aiming for his head), and Wesley Kate observed these mobile little ones with an intense stare. I would have to say that Karen had it the easiest. Rightfully so, it was her birthday celebration after all. We actually tried to pose the kiddos for a photo around the pool...ha!, that was the joke of the day...can you guess which picture it is? Yes, the one with all of the mommy legs. It was in an effort to situate the little swimmers and then run. Obviously it didn't work. However, I think we still got some cute shots of the fun.

Jack At One

So we had Jack's "walking" pictures taken recently. I held off as long as I could, considering a pending move. Then I decided I just couldn't risk missing this stage of his life. So Lisa Russo offered to hold our pictures for us until we eventually sell and move. That way I could figure out wall space, decorating, Jack's new room etc. before I place an order. Because at this point, who knows where I'm going to put the pictures I have now, much less the new ones. When I initially viewed the slideshow, I was slightly disappointed. NOTHING against Lisa, she is fabulous. It was her subject. We did the session in the early am before the heat and at the time Jack was still a slave to his morning nap. So once we finally got Jack fed, dressed and to the location, he was only about 40 minutes short of nap time. Lisa had to work fast. Not too mention, Jack is not always a morning person and depending on the scenery and the people it can take him a few minutes to warm up (not usually, but on ocassion). By the time he got settled in his new environment pure exhaustion had already set in. So his usual big blue eyes were small and glazed over. And his smiles were few and far between. Clay and I did everything short of standing on our heads to make that kiddo smile. Of course, Daddy was able to get the real grins out of him. But, I think if Jack could have talked, he would have said, "enough already, take me to my bed and my lovey". And did I mention that during the week of the session, Jack had begun practicing a new face that resembled a scrunched up scowl? You'll see it in the slide show and know exactly what I'm talking about. Which,by the way, is the last time I've seen it. I guess practice makes perfect...good timing on that one Jack! And lastly, I must mention that he is a toddler on the move, which I'm sure makes it a challenge to photograph. But, the good news is we got some great family shots, which is something I can never get. And after watching it a zillion times, I actually started falling in love with the many facial expressions. With out further ado, I present...Jack at One the Slideshow. Enjoy!
Beware the slideshow takes about 3 minutes to upload the first time you view it. You can see the status of the upload by scrolling down and watching the bar.

Jack At One the Slideshow

What's Been Going On

It's been almost a week since I last posted, so I thought I would fill everyone in on what's been going on at The Cibula household. Nothing too exciting, but since so many people have been asking about the house I'll start with that. It's been a whole week with no showings. This whole 'house for sale' thing has been very hit or miss. Some weeks we've had as many as 4 showings and then this week nothing. How odd. However, we've come close to getting an offer twice now. But, close doesn't count. One couple came by 3 times just to decide the deck was too high for their little ones, which by the way are 5 year old triplets. The other couple wanted to pick out the new roof that we are having put on the house, so we said, 'sure, with an offer'. Unfortunately, we just found out today that the deal on their current house selling fell through, so now they have to look in a lower price range. Such a bummer! But, the good news is everyone who has looked at the house has loved it. It just seems to be the lack of a backyard that is holding us up. With that feedback, we had the backyard minimally landscaped with a wooded area, a wood chipped area for a play set, and a very small patch of grass. Nothing too fancy. However, we've only had 1 showing since that completion and it was the "too high deck" people. We are still holding out faith and know that the right buyers will come eventually. Say some prayers for us, please.

In other news...we are having teeth trouble around here. And this time it's not Jack. I actually started feeling a little tooth discomfort at the beginning of the week. By Thursday it was unbearable. If you can believe this , I have a wisdom tooth coming in. I thought I had the bottom 2 taken out when I was in college. Apparently it was only 1 on the bottom because my jaw on the left side is throbbing. (I never claimed to have a great memory.) The oral surgeon wanted me to have it taken out today and I actually considered it. However, we are throwing a couple's baby shower for a friend in the neighborhood on Saturday. When I told the nurse this, she said, and I quote..."you might be alright by then, just don't talk a lot". With that advice, I decided to postpone the surgery until late Monday. I have one painful weekend ahead of me. Poor Clay had to rearrange his work schedule so he can take me and pick me up and we had to find a sitter for Jack on Monday. Now, the question is what am I going to do about Tuesday, not being able to talk and downing pain meds? Anyone want a toddler on Tuesday?

Other than those two cheerful tidbits (ha!), Jack is doing great. I'm still trying to figure out his napping issues, but that is a whole other post in it's self. I'll update you all soon, in hopes of soliciting some advice. He is still busy, happy, and eating me out of house and home. Speaking of eating, I ordered Jack some of those Snacktraps. Possibly one of the best toddler inventions yet (Thanks Allison for introducing me). It took him a while to get the hang of it. His hand occasionally got stuck in the trap and he would moan and shake his trapped hand around until I could rescue him. But, with food being the motivation, he figured out the trick to getting the food out without trapping his hand in no time. So, on that note, here are some pics of Jack sporting his new food gadget. After all what is a post without pictures? Happy weekend to you all!

15 Months and Going

It's time for a little Jack update. I've decided since his first birthday to take every three months to celebrate him in detail. This means I will do it again at 18 months, then 21 months, then 2 years old, you get the picture....no more monthly b'day celebrations blog style. I figured baby #2 (which does not exist at this point) will have a hard act to follow with all of the documentation that I've done for Jack. So, therefore I'm slowing down on his monthly updates and monthly albums. It will make me feel better considering I want everything to be as even as possible for my little ones. This being my 100th post it only seems fitting to celebrate my favorite little man. So, on to Jack...

Jack is no longer walking, he is running. He makes laps through the house, in the yard, and in any public place that his two feet hit the ground. And to think I ever worried about losing my baby weight...ha! He does still have a cautious side to him. When he reaches a step or bump in the sidewalk, he stops, holds his hand up for assistance, and then takes off again. I appreciate his hesitation as it has prevented any major spills so far. Unless, you count the one at the park with the wood chips implanted in his head. But, at least no broken bones and no goose eggs, and I say that knowing the day will come, I'm sure. Another example of his cautious side...he has to watch 15 kids go down the tunnel at the park before he is ready to give it a try. Maybe he's going to be a thinker instead of a doer? I must admit though, he is quite a busy body. No standing still...just go, go, going. But, mainly with activities he is familiar with, like his toys, books, and eating.

Of his toys, he loves anything with wheels. Cars, trucks, buses, vans, bikes, they are all "vrooms vrooms" to him and he is fascinated. We continue to tell him the name instead of the sounds of these vehicles in hopes that he will use the words...still waiting though. He still loves his books. All of his favorite books have animals in them. Again, he points out the animals and makes the sounds for them. His animals of choice are ducks, dogs, and monkeys. Quite a selection there, huh? He doesn't mind the pages with pictures of food on them either. If it's something really tasty, he'll point to it and say, "mmmmm". That is usually followed by a trip to the pantry or fridge pleading for a snack.

He fascinates me everyday with the new things he does. His new talent is opening doors, closing himself out while saying, "bye bye mama". Luckily he hasn't escaped too far yet. He has just recently begun climbing on his riding toys and trying to scootch around. He gets frustrated at the fact he can only make it about a foot away....his legs just aren't quite long enough yet. Another of Jack's tricks includes going to the pantry, pulling out the tupperware container of dog treats, while repeating "woof, woof". He has actually managed to open it a couple of times...this is Cosby's little piece of heaven in a chaotic household. But of all his new talents, the one that always puts a smile on my face is his singing. His two tunes...Row, Row Your Boat and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. We sing the boat song in rounds with me starting and Jack joining in right on cue. His version sounds like this..."wo, wo, wo, wo wo". He has actually begun to add some merrily's and boat's in there on occasion. And as for Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, he gets his hands going to make the star and hums along. I always tell him, 'he has the most beautiful singing voice I have ever heard' and his face lights up and he continues on.

As for language development, we are progressing. Even though I can't understand everything he is saying, he always makes it very clear what he wants. He has a language all his own with pauses and change in tone. He's speaking in complete sentences, just a foregin languge to me. He does have a handful of "words" that are clear and have true meaning. Some of them are the sounds, but I think that should count, right? Here are a few...

woof woof= dog

ki=kitty cat

fuuh=flower (usually followed by an exaggerated sniff)

bye bye= bye bye

I=hi

ello=hello

quu quu=duck

ooh ooh=monkey (that's suppose to be a monkey sound)

moooo=cow

uveee=lovey

obee=Cosby

ni ni=night night

vroom vroom= car or anything with wheels

sheeze=cheeze

mama=mommy

dada=daddy

e=elephant

oh oh oh=go, go go

uh oh=uh oh

He is still a fabulous sleeper. Although, I think we are starting a transition phase. We are getting close to that time when one nap is all he will need. He still loves his crib and his sleep, so it will be interesting to see when that downsize actually comes. But, I do feel something is going on. He goes down for his morning nap like clockwork at 9:30 am and snoozes for almost 2 hours. But, his afternoon nap time is becoming the funny one. He wants to go to his crib and doesn't put up a complaint, but when he gets in there, he has recently begun talking to himself for about an hour. When he does finally fall into a deep slumber it can last up to two hours again. We've actually had to wake him lately at the 2 hour mark to avoid messing up bedtime. I'm a very confused Mommy right now when it comes to naps. I've started pulling out all of my sleeping bibles to see what is going on. From what I can gather, I'm going to have to help him drop that am nap before he tries to drop the afternoon nap on me. I guess we'll start working on that in the next couple of couple of weeks. At least he is sleeping though. Night time is still 12 hours...7:30pm to 7:30 am. And he always wakes up with a smile. I love that morning smile, it makes getting up well worth it for me.

Eating is still one of his favorite activities. I think he and I eat similar sized portions! I guess, when you are always on the go, you need those calories. I keep waiting for his appetite to slow down...no signs of that yet. His favorite food is watermelon. Give him a slice of watermelon on the back deck and he thinks he is in heaven. The trick is getting the rind away from him once he's finished-very challenging! Other than that he loves all fruit, grilled cheese sandwiches, string cheese, bread, applesauce, yogurt, steamed veggies, and all of the other toddler staples. Not a big fan of meat though. I've started giving him veggie nuggets and that seems to do the protein trick.

Naturally, this leads me into the physical aspect of Jack. I'm not exactly sure how much he weighs, but he is huge. I would have to guess about 27lbs and that is only a guess. However, it kills my back to carry him. Thank goodness he is a walker now. He has a stocky frame, similar to a football player. I'm guessing he won't stay like this because there is no one on either side of our families built like him. It all remains to be seen though. He has definitley put on an inch or two since his 12 month update. Again, I'm not sure exactly how tall he is, I just know he can't walk under the kitchen table anymore. Or even close for that matter! When I buy him clothes these days, I usually go for the 2T's. Occasionally they are slightly big, but usually after a washing we are good to go with a little room to grow. Other than that, the only other major change is he's actually starting to show signs of getting hair. YEA! And it is white blonde. He looks exaclty like his Daddy's babies pictures. I think that makes him a pretty lucky toddler.

I know I've said this about about other phases of his life, but this is truly one of my favorites. His little personality is blossoming everyday and it is so fun to watch. He keeps me on my toes with his go, go going and I love it!

Photography is not my speciality, especially when it comes to a toddler on the move. So enjoy the action shots of my little one and keep in mind I was chasing him all the while (not to mention the lighting was horrible).

Patterson is One

Jack and I were so bummed when we got the invitation to Patterson's First Birthday party and it was scheduled for the same weekend we were gone to Quebec. The invites were too cute with a Luau theme and swimming to go with it. We had to make up for lost time, so Jack and I piled in the car today, bathing suits and all, and celebrated a belated b'day with little P. Donna filled up the pool, pulled out the toys, and cooked grilled cheese for us. It was like a party all over again. We were excited when we arrived and Wesley Kate and Karen were already there to greet us. We munched on our lunch and then headed out to the pool. Patterson immediately did a nose dive in and splashed around to his hearts content. Unfortunately, Jack wasn't in a wet mood, so he chose to stand on the side of the pool with toys in hand. Sorry Donna for all of your pool prep work...maybe next time! I eventually took him out and he pleasurably ran around the yard. My boy likes to be on the move these days. Wesley Kate joined the boys in the pool after sunbathing in the yard for a bit. What a girly girl, and oh, so precious! She's got her Momma's big blue eyes. A change of clothes later we headed inside for the toys. Jack sported his new Quebec tee-shirt that Mommy and Daddy got him last week on vacation. It's a 2t and it's already snug. I even hung it up to dry after I washed it. What am I going to do with this growing boy? He had to of worked some calories off once we got inside, because he was on the move making his rounds from toy to toy showing the little ones how it is done. His favorite must have been the ball pit. After WK had her go at it, Jack hopped in and kicked balls everywhere. Again, sorry Donna, there is no telling where you found balls after we left today. We had a great time and loved celebrating a belated birthday with the gang...as far as Jack and I are concerned it was as good as the real thing. Welcome to the club Patterson!

5 Days Later

Bon jour! We are back from our wonderful vacation in Quebec City. I missed Jack immensely, just as I knew I would. But, on the flip side it was such a treat to fall in love with my hubby all over again. The escape from house selling and baby duty was a long time over due. It was also reassuring to know he was in good hands while we were away. Our trip was packed from departure until arrival home. Quebec is an amazing city with a quaint French feel. I felt that I was farther from home than I actually was. Here is a"journal" of our 5 day escape. I don't blame you if you cant make it all the way through...I just wanted to store it in Blog land while its fresh in my head for my own memories.

Day #1:

This was departure day. A flood of mixed emotions consumed me...missing Jack, the house, Cosby, did I pack right?, etc.,etc. We arrived at the airport on time and boarded with no problem. However, we sat on the runway for an entire hour supposedly due to weather. Yuck! We had a connecting flight to catch in Detroit and we were majorly stressing at this point. We finally took off and landed, of course, an hour late. We sprinted through the Detroit airport, which if you have ever been there is a VERY long sprint. The airport is designed like one long, on going, never ending tunnel. We finally arrived at our gate at 6:37, only to have missed our flight by 10 minutes. Such a bummer! Wouldn't you know that the next flight wasn't until 7 am the following morning. So much for my anticipated "sleeping in". So a few dinner vouchers and hotel voucher later, we were booked for tomorrow's flight and off to eat. Not quite what I expected for my first vacation dinner...Chilis Too in the airport...I don't recommend it. After dinner we headed down to baggage claim and guess what? No luggage. Are you kidding me? Both times that Clay and I have flown out of the country this has happened to me. By this time, I was so over tired and ready to end this day. After talking to the 'oh, so helpful' baggage service department we decided to wait in hopes that it might show in the next hour. So off to book our room at the airport hotel phone. The voucher offered us one night at the the Days Inn for $50. We opted out and booked our own room near the Airport. We got an overnight kit from the ticket desk and headed down the escalator to take one more hopeless look for our luggage and by the grace of God there it was spinning around the conveyor belt. It was like looking at heaven from the top of that escalator...woohoo! Maybe a night in Detroit wasn't going to be so bad after all. Well, at least maybe not as miserable.

Night one in Detroit...not exactly as planned. But a place to sleep at least.

Day#2:

Alas, we arrive in Quebec early afternoon and with luggage! We immediately checked into a beautiful French style castle called the Chateau De Frontenac. Everyone was so friendly and helpful which was a warm welcome from the airport drama. We headed out to get a quick bite to eat at an outdoor cafe and then met our guide for a walking tour of the city. Nothing like walking through a hilly city for 3 hours after spending an entire day on your feet running through airports. However, Mike, our guide was fabulous and showed us all of the ends and outs of the city. He covered everything from the history to the night life and he even threw a little French humor in there. That was $20 well spent. After exhausting our feet once again, we headed back to the Frontenac for a little rest and clean up. Night life...here we come! It was dinner and a concert for our first evening. Quebec was celebrating its 400 year anniversary complete with a giant music festival. Clay checked the schedule and to my luck (and I am being sarcastic), Stone Temple Pilots were playing. Lucky me! So we bought weekend passes and joined all of the rockers for an evening of music. I was pleasantly surprised when I recognized all but 3 songs. Clay, of course, enjoyed every minute of it which was great because it was his vacation too. So, it made the frigid outdoor temps and my lack of initial enthusiasm well worth it.

The Frontenac...quite a step up from our Detroit hotel, eh? The inside was amazing.

Mike, our walking tour guide. Note the umbrella, it was raining on and off during the tour.

A view of the city streets. I think it should be called quaint Quebec. It was adorable.

Day #3

Our feet sorely needed a rest. So, we rented a car and drove about 15 minutes over to the Isle DE' Orleans. It felt like the French country side. Absolutely gorgeous with rolling fields, wineries and strawberry patches galore. We stopped at the information booth and rented a CD that gives you a tour of the island as you drive. Unfortunately, it expects you to go the speed limit and that didn't happen with Clay driving. So, we occasionally had to skip around. I still thought it was a very creative idea. We stopped at a famous little Chateau for lunch which took FOREVER. The French never seem to be in a hurry. The food and the atmosphere were great though. We followed that up with dessert at the the local Chocolaterie. We each ordered ice cream dipped in the thickest most delicious dark chocolate you have ever tasted. I would honestly compare it to Godiva, it was that good. About 4 bites and I was on chocolate overload though. We continued our drive around the island stopping at a historic home, a cheese shop, and a strawberry field. We even got out and picked our own batch of strawberries in the field. We filled the container about half way and then had to call it quits. Neither of us would make very good farmers. We left the island and still had a few hours with the car so we headed over to the Parc de la Chute Montmorency which is a giant waterfall. Again, gorgeous! And the last stop in the car was to the oldest Church in North America, Sainte Anne de Beaupre. It was incredible. We even bought a tiny statue of St Joseph to help us sell our house. I'll be burying it in the yard this week. After returning the car, we got ready for our evening out. We went to dinner at a truly authentic Canadian restaurant. I think the only thing on the menu was meat. Good thing neither of us are vegetarians. I had bison and pheasant and Clay had some meat pie thing with who knows what in it. We actually had to call the waitress over to point out the meats and what they were. It was good, but I don't think I ever want to eat that much meat in one sitting again. We stopped at a Canadian Pub on the way back home and listened to some great live French music. We couldn't understand a word and I think the musician realized it, so he threw in a few English tunes to pacify us. It was definitely a great day and night. I think my favorite of the whole trip.

Dessert at the Chocolaterie...I was about to bust out of those jeans at that point.

My first strawberry picking experience ever and possibly my last if it's up to Clay.

This is all we got...like I said, we wouldn't make very good farmers or pickers for that matter.

The gorgeous waterfall behind us. Look how far we are and we were still getting wet.

This picture doesn't do the church justice...it was beautiful. It reminded me of the cathedrals in Italy.

Day#4

This was suppose to be our hot air balloon ride day. When the concierge called the balloon people to schedule it, they said they couldn't guarantee the wind to be "right" today and we had to get there 3 hours before hand to prepare and it wasn't even a for sure deal. So, we opted out and decided to walk the city and take a boat ride over to a nearby port. It was an absolutely beautiful day. The first day that I could actually take my cardigan off...loved it! We walked the streets, had lunch, bought Jack a tee, and ate divine pastries at an outdoor pastry shop...yum yum! We boarded the boat in the late afternoon and enjoyed the beautiful scenery on all sides. Once we landed, we rented bikes at the port and cruised up the river on the bike path. I, of course, had a sun dress on, so pedaling was a bit of a challenge. Nothing I couldn't handle though. Although, Clay found it very humorous. All I needed was a basket on the front of my bike full of flowers and I would have looked like a true French lady. Night #4 was very mellow with dinner follwed by ice cream. By the way, did I mention I must have gained at least 5lbs on this trip? Dessert was a standard after every meal. Off to bed early because we were back to the dreaded airport on day #5.

More dessert...this time a chocolate eclair for Clay and a Raspberry Creme for me...more lbs...but, oh so good!

Our boat ride on a warm sunny day. Our hotel is right over my head in the background.

Biking along the St. Lawrence river, dress and all. The weather was fabulous...no cardigan for the first time.

Day#5

Yea! The day to see Jack...or so I thought. We ate breakfast at the Bistro in our hotel, which was the best english egg muffin I have ever had. It put McDonald's to shame. We checked out of the hotel and took a taxi to the Quebec airport. Everything was running smooth and we were on schedule to see Jack at 5:30 pm. UNTIL...we landed in Detroit. Of course, our flight home was delayed. And this time for 2 hours. Did I mention that I would be perfectly happy if I NEVER went back to the Detroit airport again? By this time, we knew every nook and cranny of that place, including all of the restaurants. No Chilis Too this time. We chose sandwiches and then returned to the gate only to find our flight delayed another 15 min. All that ran through my mind was, 'if we leave right now, I can see Jack for 20 min, 10 min 5 min (you name it depending the delay), before bed time". Unfortunately, my time ran out and we didn't get home until an hour and a half after J's bed time. Way too late to try to keep him up. We went in to his nursery and kissed our snoozing angel good night. I am not a morning person, but I could not wait to get up the next morning to see him. And when I did finally get to see him, I swear he had grown taller and had more hair. I squeezed him and kissed all over him. MMMM...love that baby!

The hotel bistro looked out over the boardwalk and the river. It was great people watching.

Canada, Here We Come!

Clay and I are preparing for our long awaited vacation to Quebec. Grammy and Grampa are on their way up from Florida, as we speak, to take care of our little guy. As excited as I am to have 5 days with my hubby, I can't get rid of this nagging feeling that I'm going to miss Jack beyond control. I can't imagine traveling without a diaper bag, not having a toddler to chase around, and not tucking him into bed at night. I just know I'm going to be thinking about him nonstop and wondering what he is playing, what he is eating, how he is napping, if he has a dirty diaper, etc, etc. Will he miss me this much? Doubtful, I'm sure he will be spoiled rotten with love and endless attention. We all deserve this...a vacation for Mommy and Daddy and a vacation of sorts for little J. Clay and I have a wonderful trip planned filled with lots of sight seeing, late dinners (as opposed to our normal 6:00 meal time), sleeping in...ahhh, and even a hot air balloon ride. Oh, I'm sure there will be much to share when we return...there always is when Clay and I go on vacation. So,until then Bon Voyage and hugs and kisses to my little one!

Silly Spoon

Jack has a new fascination with silverware or in his case plastic ware. He has decided that he likes to try to dip his spoon into applesauce, yogurt, and baby food jars (yes, we occasionally still pull out some baby food if our dinner isn't to his liking or if Daddy is traveling and the kitchen is closed). He hasn't perfected the skill of actually getting a whole bite on his spoon yet, so I often have to fill it and then hand it over to him. BUT!, he can make it to his mouth which is a drastic improvement from just a month ago. He even likes to give the fork a try. He will stab anything on his tray, including fruit, cheese, veggies, and even bread. He seems to be slightly more talented when it comes to the fork, but far from an expert. I decided to catch his "silverware" skills on video this week. And wouldn't you know that as soon as I turned the camera on, Jack turned into a big ham. Instead of handing the spoon over for a refill like he normally does, he decided to play "come and get it". He thought it was so funny to psych Mommy out before actually handing the spoon over. His giggles were so cute that I couldn't resit sharing. Although it's not what I had in mind when I pulled out the camcorder, it sure was fun to see silly Jack in action...and this time with his spoon! Bon Apetite!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our Little Firecracker

Jack was full of explosive energy this 4th of July. I have never been so worn out from chasing him around as I was today. We attended my Aunt Mary and Uncle Bob's annual 4th of July cookout. It is always great fun and I love seeing my cousins who are home from college. The afternoon is usually packed with eating, swimming and socializing. But, this year it was full of chasing. I chased Jack in the house, out of the house, to the pool, out of the pool, to the food table, through the kitchen, in the yard...you name it, I was there...several times at that. Jack was the first to greet anyone who came through the front door and always there to wave his 'bye byes' as guests left. He did lounge for a brief 2 minutes in the pool chair, but that was about the extent of it. I don't know who was more tired on the way home...Jack or myself. Seeing as how Jack's bedtime is well before the fireworks show, he must have known that we would miss out. So he energetically gave us our own show with Jack starring as the most brilliant firecracker of all! Happy 4th to all and I hope yours was a bit more relaxing than ours.

An all too brief lounge in the pool.

Catch me if you can.

'You don't think I'm actually going to sit here with this ball, do you?'

The Dumbacher crew...with a few extras.

This Is What Summer Is All About...

Eating watermelon on the front porch in your diaper

MMMM...those farmers know how to grow them