1st Camping Trip

In September, we took a much needed relaxing camping trip with Samuel's God parents and their kids. We so love these friends and it was such a nice trip. We met up in a Michigan beach town, although it was much too cold to swim. Our family got a campsite and set up a tent, and then got a hotel because it was sooo cold at night. We visited town, including a huge farmers market and the beach, a playground, and a yummy ice cream shop! It was a great time and will definitely be a place to visit in the future.

Some pictures, in no particular order (because Blogger app doesn't seem to keep them in order).

Um, yeah...this is our kid...

A couple of classic shots of our boy. Moments like these make us really proud...

Blogger App for iPhone revives this blog

I have upgraded my blogging capabilities and hopefully you will hear from us more often now. I found the Blogger app for iPhone today and since the biggest barrier to blogging for me is simply finding time to sit at the computer, I hope this will help. However, some pictures are on the other camera, so I will still sometimes have to get back on the computer. That said, all the good pictures from Nana T's visit are on the computer...so we will get back to that another day.

Last month, Emmett came to play. These two boys are such good playmates.

It's ALIVE!

Oh my!  It's come back to life...the blog, that is.  I guess this summer has turned out to be busy.

In July, Mommy and Daddy finally planned an anniversary in advance and went to Toronto.  Samuel got to spend a long weekend at "Camp Gramp-a-Gram," e.g. Grandma and Grandpa M's house.  Oh boy, did he have fun.  He got to visit a local petting farm, play with neighbor kid, swing in the special "garden swing" made specially for his visit, and just hang with Grandpa and Grandma.  Here are some pictures they took for us.

"Gee, Mom, this is the biggest diaper bag 

we've ever brought to G'ma and G'pa's."

 Outside heat or inside air-conditioning? 

Nah, I'll just take both.

 Sprinkler time!

 "Helping"

 Snacks with big spoons taste so much better!

 Garden Swing!

 

 That dog is smaller than me!

 Don't worry guys, I'm an expert at this...

 I know it's up there somewhere...

Scared of the big animals, not so worried about these little ones.

So happy to see Mommy and Daddy!

Next blog post: Nana T comes to town!

18 months and growing!

I cannot believe that my little man is 18 months old already!

He is by far more toddler than baby now, but he's still my baby.  This little guy is running, climbing, kicking balls, and doing a million other things every day that simply amaze us.  He is the sweetest little boy, giving us sloppy kisses and hugs many times a day, but he is also quite a stubborn little man, giving us fits sometimes.  He is saying more words each day and babbling sentences and stories that make us wish we knew what he was telling us.  He loves to play in the kitchen, in the freshly (almost) refinished basement, and outdoors in his sandbox and on his swingset.  He has learned how to open the garden gate and likes to wander through the garden.  Fortunately, he's finally learning not to step on all the plants!  So far, he's growing up to be a fine, healthy boy, whom we are very proud of!

We spent a lot of time playing with sprinklers and hoses recently, and it turns out Samuel likes to be really wet!

 

 

 

 

And, here is Samuel helping Mommy bake.  He is quite skilled at pouring ingredients into the bowl.  Still working on mixing, though...

Comings and Goings of May

There isn't a lot to report on little man.  He's getting bigger, babbling more, saying more words, climbing more, running more, getting more teeth...ya know...typical toddler stuff.  We have had lots of fun and activity recently and here are a few highlights.

First popsicle ~ Not so sure about it 

 Loving the big bounce!

Playing in the forts at the nearby forest

Showing off his sandbox, which is his new favorite toy

Bye-bye Grandma Mary

Samuel has learned how to say "bye-bye" to people and things lately and really seems to understand the concept.  We are sad that we had to say "bye-bye" to Great Grandma Mary this week when she went to Heaven.  She was a very special lady and we feel so grateful that Samuel got to meet her last fall.  And, certainly, Mike and I are grateful for the woman she was to us and to everyone whose life she touched.  We will miss you Grandma Mary.