Sneaky little boy

Nathaniel has been having lots of fun with the Tupperware drawer and the bottom closet shelf in the kitchen. I've decided these are fair game and don't keep anything there that I wouldn't let him play with/disorganize. Well he recently figured out how to open the box of crackers on the closet shelf. He can also open Ziploc bags now too! Previously he would bring me the box and "ask" (with a grunt of course) if he could have some. Sometimes I say yes, sometimes it's a no. Well now he knows how to open the box himself and so he will get into them on his own while my back is turned toward the sink. Today he was doing something in the closet, then made a bee line for the laundry room and shut the door. He likes to shut doors so I usually just listen at first and give him a minute before I go in and check on him. Well, I didn't hear him playing with the shoe rack or the laundry machine door which is usually what he is doing in there, so I went and opened the door. Guess who had a handful of Wheat Thins in his hand. It was all I could do to keep a straight face and say, "Nathaniel did you ask Mom for a cracker?" "Put those back in the box and put the box back on the shelf". I was proud of him for obeying even though he was so sad he didn't get his cracker.

Playing with the hose

Guess what Daddy showed Nathaniel today....

Swimming

Well it looks like Summer has finally arrived here in Portland and it's forecasted to go away by the end of the week so we have been trying to make the most of it and get to the pool. Ken took Nathaniel last night to the club and they splashed around for a bit.... till some toddler without a swim diaper went #2 and everyone had to evacuate :-( My mommy quiet time was cut short :-( Oh well. Today was almost in the 80's so we got together with a friend and went to the wading pool nearby. I was surprised there was hardly anyone there! Nathaniel totally loved the water and even though he got his face wet a few times never cried about it. Hope summer sticks around longer than the weather men say it will.

Nathaniel loves berries!

I don't think we've met a berry he doesn't like. These are "Hood" Strawberries. The best kind in town :-)

Thank you Oma and Papa!

My parents took care of Nathaniel this last weekend and Mommy and Daddy got a much needed break. This was only the second time we have been apart from Nathaniel for more than 12 hours (the other time was our trip to Mexico which I spent the entire time barfing). We had a very nice weekend and were actually able to go out for dinner and to a movie Friday night. Saturday we worked hard on getting the new baby room ready and Sunday we were definitely ready to see our sweet little boy. Thanks for watching Nathaniel! He had so much fun, it looked like he hardly missed us.

Happy Father's Day

Nathaniel made the cutest card for Daddy for Father's Day.

What do I do all day?

Watch this amazing little boy discover his world.

Nathaniel found his eyes

I took this video a few weeks ago, but haven't had a chance to post it yet. One day we were sitting there and Nathaniel started just blinking his eyes at me... as if he just discovered he had them. Later on I took this video of him and Daddy.

Already eating me out of house and home!

Yes, my son eats like it's going out of style! Never mind that he is in the 3% on the weight charts. I'm actually very proud of him. Today he consumed an entire ear of corn by himself (my Midwest family must be so proud!). That was in addition to the chicken/broccoli pasta and his cottage cheese. I can only imagine what 2 little boys can eat! Ken thinks we will have to buy them each their own large pizza when they get bigger.




Oma and Papa let Nathaniel finish his own Dea's in and out burger on the way home from church this weekend.

Lost and still not found

I'm am so frustrated with this mommy brain of mine. I have lost my swimsuit bottoms. Just when I was thinking I was so great about going to swim class ever day they offer it (5x a week). I suspect it went in the towel bin at the club... and they told me at the front desk they thought they saw it, but so far it hasn't made it into the correct Lost & Found box :-( I know this may seem trivial, but it is sooo frustrating to buy another pregnancy suit with only 7 weeks left to go. I do have a back up suit, but I was hoping to not have to use it in the chlorine everyday. It's mostly just the frustration I need to get over. I keep holding out that it will show up, but today I did actually go to two stores looking for some bottoms. Maybe I should buy some new ones, just so the old ones will show up!

Ball Poppin Fun

First Haircut

My little boy is growing up so fast! We went to the Barber today for his first haircut. He sat very still (for most of it) and was curious about the buzzing sound coming from the machine in the Barber's hand. The Barber showed him a mirror so he could approve the cut and then Nathaniel paid in cash and waited for his change. What a sweet boy.

Jr. Rose Parade tradition

Another good friend of mine (Bonnie) and I started a tradition 4 years ago to walk in the Jr. Rose Parade. I think she had a 2&3 year old at the time. Yesterday was a test of that tradition with the forecast for pouring down rain. It came down to a game time decision and we decided to go for it anyway (We are both Native Oregonians and don't mind a few sprinkles). Thankfully that is all we had a few sprinkles throughout the route. We had an "Emergency Vehicle" Theme. Garrett (her oldest and not pictured) was a Policeman on his bicycle. Maddie and Andrew were in the Fire Truck and Nathaniel and I were the Ambulance/Nurse.



It was fun... a tiring walk for someone who is 8 months along, but it was fun. When we got to the end we found a place to sit and watched the parade. Nathaniel was mesmerized by all the people walking by and loved the bands. His favorite group were the Jugglers who pulled 3 balls out of their pockets right in front of us and started to juggle. Nathaniel was out of my lap in an instant and following them down the street hoping one of them would share the ball with him. I was sitting Indian style so he got a good 20 foot head start on me. That little boy will do anything for a ball.

College Buds

Steph is one of those friends you make in college that will be around for the rest of my life. We've had lots of fun together including vacations in Hawaii, Mexico and Israel. Everywhere we go people ask if we were sisters... kindred spirits for sure. I could go on and on, but I won't :-) I was so excited when she announced at Christmas that she was pregnant... because that meant we were both very close in our due dates (10 days to be exact!). Although I've been showing for much longer than she has, I'm excited to see that she is finally catching up to my size :-)Love you Steph!