Happy 4th of July

So far today, we hit the parade in Monmouth. We packed light, expecting to have to fight for a space, but it was great. We could have brought a canopy and the kitchen sink. We found parking easy and got to sit on nice cushy grass. We are already planning on doing it again next year... after we buy a canopy - it was HOT! :o)

When the man wakes from his nap, we are headed to a friend's house for a BBQ and late fireworks.

Benjamin learned what the ice cream man looks like and already knows the music that accompanies him!

Flashback!

This was taken at 11 weeks. I have always loved this picture!

Yogurt Morning

Memorial Weekend at the Beach

We headed to the coast this weekend with the Kossow Clan and Chris. It was fun! The Man really enjoyed the beach. We made his first sandcastle, which he promptly destroyed. He isn't much for patience in building with blocks or anything for that matter!

I love this first picture. We did not build this, but he did pose in it shortly before he completely destroyed it.

"Touch" football on the beach. I watched. Someone had to stay with the kid and dog, right???

Chasing bugs.

The Man LOVES playing softball. He likes to swing his little wooden bat (thanks Spencer!) and hit a super soft baseball looking ball. He begs for it CONSTANTLY. Our last night on the coast, the Kossow's played with him in the garage. Here are some shots of swinging, missing, and hitting, but overall, LOVING it.

I LOVE these two pictures too. What a cool dude. He had a great time building his first "sandcastle". It really was only three buckets of sand lined up in a row, and it only lasted 8.2 seconds before forces made it unrecognizable, but he still had fun.

Notice the butt of his pants says "Life is Good". PERFECT for this day!

He liked chasing "bugs" across the sand. He followed them a long time.

Reading with the boys.

We also got to visit with PapaNana. (Benjamin refers to them as one unit, sometimes PapaNana and sometimes NanaPapa.) He went down in the engine room with Papa and Paul snapped some pics.

1st Professional Haircut

I finally gave in and took him to Supercuts for a haircut. We had been okay trimming the edges, but the body itself was SO LONG! The people there were great but for $13 and 4 minutes of their time, I don't think I will be doing that again - talk about overcharging for a 2 year-old's haircut! 3 days later and I am still annoyed by it! (Does anyone have a better child-friendly barber in the Corvallis area?)

Here's the obligatory before and after shot. It IS better though!