Button Pusher's Paradise

We ventured out to the Science Museum on Saturday to let Nicholas have a little fun pushing buttons and yanking levers to his heart's content.  It was so entertaining watching him sprint from one exhibit to the next, full of unbridled excitement.  Although he was a little all over the place, he did a pretty good job of sticking close to me and Greg.  But you got to get out in the world if you ever want them to learn what's expected of them, right.  Even if it's slightly embarrassing at times.  After we finished up at the museum, we went out for lunch and then home to to do some more swimming.  He seems to love it more and more every time we go and it that makes me very happy. 

He's very into astronauts right now.  He tells me every day

that he's going to be one when he grows up so he was very

happy to take this picture. 

Checking to make sure the detectives are doing their

job properly at this very grisly crime scene.

I can't believe he wanted to do this but he actually went down this two story, spiral slide

inside the Omniplex.  He got turned around backyards at one point and slammed into by a

few kids, but he made it out alive and even went for another ride. 

Last night, we ran to Wal-Mart to get Nicholas a replacement pool for the backyard. I took this video of him practicing his diving skills but didn't realize at the time that it wasn't recording sound.  But no worries, I think you'll get the idea anyway.  He did this no less than 30 times. 

Father's Day '11

My husband is quite simply an amazing man.  But more than that, he's an amazing father and I'm even more in love with him because of it.  He has always shared an equal responsiblity for the parenting of our child and he does so without a single complaint.  Watching my boys together is one of the greatest joys that life has to offer.  I adore him.  Nicholas adores him.  And we spent the day Sunday telling him so.  We ♥ you, Daddy!

The Father's Day present Nicholas made for Daddy at school.   

And I wanted to include a picture of the present we made for Papa.  It's a keepsake garden

stone that we made special for him, complete with Nicholas' 3 year old handprints and

tiny helicopters.  It came out really nice and I hope he will treasure it for a long, long time. 

 Those hands won't look that tiny forever.   



Nicholas the Fish

I am absolutely thrilled about this one - Nicholas is swimming!  Well, he wears floaties but he's kicking and paddling like a machine and even going under water a little without crying.  I was worried after the last few summers of him showing very little interest in the water.  When I was a little girl, my brother and I pretty much lived in the water all summer long so it was inconceivable to me that any child wouldn't love it the very same way.  But I think he just needed one more year under his belt to really grasp the fun of it and grasped it he has.  Greg and I had really wanted to take him to a swim class this year, but with our split schedules and the amount of time it required we just couldn't make it work.  So I vowed that I would teach him myself and that's what we've been doing the last few weeks.  We've spent several afternoons at our neighborhood pool and he's come so far in such a short time.  He went from hanging onto my neck to wearing his floaties and basically supporting himself in the water, going from one end of the pool to the other and back again.  Over and over.  He also loves to jump to me from the side of the pool and he's quickly learning to hold his breath when he goes a little under or spit the water out if he gets any in his mouth.  We were both really excited to show Daddy the results after all the work we've been doing and this weekend was the perfect opportunity when we went to the lake house.  I was also curious to see how he handled the new environment where you can't see what's beneath you. But it was cake, baby!  He started out cautiously, but he was swimming all over in no time and jumping to us from the back of the boat.  We were anchored in really deep water and that boy didn't care one single bit!  Our friends and neighbors, Mike & Emerald, joined us for the weekend and the five of us had a total blast.  The weather was HOT which made the water feel perfect and we spent hours floating, swimming, and tubing.  Yesterday, Mike and Nicholas swam all the way from the boat to the shore to throw rocks, which was a 50 yard swim at least.  I couldn't believe his stamina.  But alas, our amazing weekend couldn't last forever and we had to eventually head for home.  None of us were ready to get back to reality after such a healthy dose of R&R, that's for sure!

I took a break from my big camera this weekend but the iPhone does a pretty decent job.  And it's a lot more manageable sometimes!  Plus it's got some cool apps that let you have some editing fun.

 One very tired little boy on the drive home.

Catch Up

I've been sick this week and I'm frantically trying to catch up on everything that has fallen behind during my period of infirmity.  Yes I know.  I've been sick.  Again.  But I'm getting well and I fully intend for this to be the last time for a very long time!  One of the things on my list was to update the blog with some pictures from the weekend.  On Saturday night, Nicholas and I tagged along with Greg who was bowling with a group of friends during a benefit for Officer Chad Peery.  He's an Oklahoma City police officer who received horrific injuries during his off duty time while watching a basketball game at a local pub.  The bartender had asked for his assistance in removing some unruly customers, who brutally attacked Officer Peery and left life-changing effects.  His friends and colleagues, along with his community, have truly rallied around him and his family to raise money for his rising healthcare costs and to help them out during their time of need.  We had taken Nicholas bowling once before and as soon as he saw those bowling balls and pins just waiting to be knocked down, he couldn't think of anything else.  So Greg snuck him on an open lane for a few throws with the promise that we would bring him back soon to bowl a whole game.  The best part of this video is by far the hands on the hips.  He stood there watching that ball inch it's way down to the pins with his hands firmly on his hips the entire time.  I couldn't see his face, but I'm sure it was pinched with concentration.  I wish I had recorded his first throw because as soon as the ball hit, he ran to me yelling "I DID IT" with the proudest smile on his face.  After finishing up there, we met up with Rumble and the Oklahoma City PD's K-9 mascot for some pictures.  Nicholas is a huge Thunder fan so getting to hang with Rumble was a very big deal. 

Party! Party! Party!

We partied Saturday.  We partied like it was our job and carried on well into the night.  Nicholas was in his element, having all his friends around to play and celebrate his day with him.  I think the whole party was a great success and I just want to say thank you to all of our wonderful family and friends who joined us for Nicholas' big night.  It means the world to see your child swallowed up by so much love and affection. 

A bicycle was our big present to him. He hasn't quite mastered pedaling so he's not super

excited about it yet. It won't be but a few short years until he realizes what a bike

truly represents in a kid's life - a tiny bit of freedom from a grown-up's world.

Yes, the party was such a great time and I don't think Nicholas will ever be bored again after getting so many awesome new toys.  We spent Sunday cleaning everything up and trying to get in a little family time R&R. This entire weekend was such a time of happiness for my family and I know none of us will ever forget it.  I really don't know how it's possible, but each year seems to be better than the last.  My heart feels very full today and that is absolutely priceless.