Hide and Seek

Some fun hide and seek with Grandma... Parker LOVES being chased around the house; when he tries to count every number is "twooooo" and he points; he loves to be startled and nothing seems to scare him

20 months old

when I say, "smile for the camera" I get the following:

bruise on his face... typical

two walks a day... always wants to push his "Mickey Bus"

posing at the aquarium - only because he saw a big kid do it first.  he saw a young girl stand in front of a life-size whale and have her parents take a picture.  when she was done, parker rushed over and stood there and then called out to me to come over.  i asked him if he wanted his picture taken and he said yes, but he seemed very confused.  he stood there waiting patiently as a i got out my phone to snap a photo.  i love the face he is giving... so perplexed as to why he is standing there, but knows that if the big kids are doing it - it must be cool.

Backyard

It has taken over a year to finish our backyard, but it's finally complete.   We would not have been able to do it without our parents - all three sets of them have helped in some way!

Here is what we were starting with.

First, Jake and his step-dad put in some grass for Roxy to use.  Then came sprinklers and a retaining wall.

Look at all those blocks!  Keep in mind it was July 2011 and was very hot!  (Yes, it took us almost six months just to get to this step... we had a newborn...)

What a wall!  I helped with the middle row.... Jake might have gone back to fix it...

Next, was the huge dilemma of how to go about laying concrete or paving stones.  Given the 100 degree heat and the amount of time it took Jake just to complete a wall, I urged him to hire people!  I finally won (barely) and they got started around August 2011.  The first thing they did was level the ground... all the dirt needed to go somewhere while they worked...

When Jake got home from work the first day and saw how much dirt needed to be removed he was so grateful I made him hire people.

Parker (8 or 9 months?) playing in the sand for the pavers.  I can't get over how different he looks. 

Almost ready for the paving stones...

Ahhh... all finished... we got a large canopy thing to block the sun and also the neighbors... we kind of live in a fishbowl and this helps.

Green stuff!!!  More help from the in-laws this weekend (February 2012... yes, a year after we moved in).

Sandbox for Parker!

Finally outside for the cold months...

Now it's hot again and we've made the sandbox a mini pool for Parker.  He also loves playing with the hose, walking along the retaining wall (which makes me nervous), and helping tend to all our plants.  He'll find the flowers and help water them from his bucket, but mostly just dig in the dirt. 

I realized while writing all of this and looking at pictures I didn't have any recent photos.  So, I ran outside while Parker was enjoying a snack (his latest word, by the way) and snapped some pics.  There were toys everywhere and I thought about picking them up... but, that just wouldn't give you a real idea of what our backyard is like.  Let's be honest, there are toys scattered out there all the time. 

Done.  So thank you to all of our family who helped us with this huge project.  We couldn't have done it without you!

Happy Birthday, Sister!

love my sis...

San Diego

 We had such a fun time in San Diego.  Below are just a few of the pictures from our trip.

The Del Mar Fair

 We saw some farm animals, Parker was too scared to ride on the ponies, we ate fair food, and came home.  Parker's favorite part was riding the school bus to and from our car. 

Poway's Old-Fashion Train

 Parker loved holding our boarding tickets.

 After the train ride, Parker got to the eat "the word's smallest sundae" while watching the train.

 Parker loved being in the backyard and playing in the grass.  He was fascinated with the dogs jumping up the retaining wall to play on the slope.  Well, he eventually got his leg up and climbed up the wall!  We were all in shock he could do it.  He became very frustrated when the slope was too steep and he couldn't climb, but Dad came to the rescue and played with him.

 La Jolla to play in the water and see some seals... instead he spotted an airplane.

 Sea World!  My favorite day!  First stop was checking out the cool bridge in the kiddie area.

 We stopped to watch the dolphins before the Shamu show.  Parker almost touched the dolphin as it swam by, but he got scared and the last minute and pulled his hand away.  He still waved at them and loved watching them jump.

 Waiting for the Shamu show... fun, but hot.  He liked seeing them jump and he danced in his seat to the music.

 He loved seeing the big turtles laying in the sun.

 We changed him into swim stuff so he could get wet in the kiddie area.

 Then it was back to the dolphins!

 More Shamu

 Quick family picture before we leave the park... but Parker heard music coming from speakers in the flowers so he stopped for some dancing...and then we left.  (Belly shot: 16 or 17 weeks pregnant - I can't remember)

 Pizza Port (our favorite!) for some pizza and arcade games.

 Coronado for some beach fun.

 Playing in the fountain at the Highlands

 We went to meet our friends, Rachel and Lucy, at the park in Solana Beach so we stopped by the water.

 

There were so many other things we did, but it was hard to remember the camera.  We celebrated my dad's birthday at Stone Brewery, went to Seaport Village, saw a free concert at the Del Mar Fair, met friends in Orange County (Cassie and her son, Jackson), trips to Coronado for family visits and splashing in the bay, lots of trip to my favorite local eateries and time in the pool.  It ended all with a birthday celebration for my grandma.  Such a fun trip.