LUCY

I just realized its been SOOOOO LONG since I've blogged that I have written about our dear new puppy, Lucy!  Lucy is a mini goldendoodle.  She is loving, pretty calm if you can believe it, and not yet fully potty trained.  We're still working on that.  I think she is almost full grown now.  She'll get up to 20 pounds and is hypoallergenic!  We love her!

Best Friends

There is something special about watching relationships form before your eyes, especially friendships.  Friendships that you know will last the length of time.  I was lucky enough to have 11 (first) cousins with some close 2nd cousins, as well.  But, I never lived close to them.  We would see each other for a couple holidays a year and that was usually it.  We loved those gatherings:  playing board games, swimming, eating.  They were the best.  

My heart overflows when I see Parker with his cousins.  He LOVES them.  Parker already has 5 cousins and I know he'll continue to have more.  However, there seems to be one particular cousin that has a special place in his heart for our Parker Bug.  Benjamin says Parker (and Carson) are his BEST FRIENDS.  Never mind that Parker is 3 years younger than Ben.  Never mind that Parker doesn't talk and just became a solid walker.  Ben LOVES Parker and P loves Ben.  It is just the most wonderful thing I've ever seen.  Parker's eyes light up when he gets to see his buddy and I hope that this reaction continues throughout their lives.  Because cousins are a wonderful thing to have.

As you can see, these 2 have the same Kermit shirt on.  Ben got the same one as a birthday gift and he wanted to be sure and wear it when he could be with Parker ALL DAY LONG!

Pushing each other is the walker?  Sounds like good teamwork to me!

Oh my goodness.  It's embarrassing how long its been since I've blogged.  Time just creeps away from me.  Especially since my quiet time is oh so limited when Parker is napping.  Our little baby is 8 months now and is growing just too fast.  Just yesterday he started walking with his Radio Flyer Wagon walker-I couldn't believe it!  This kid is on the move!  He loves to get into everything and, of course, loves the things he shouldn't the most-like cords, plugs, vents.  Oh joy.  Here are some pictures that bring joy to my heart.

Getting on the pony at Kate Dolata's 2nd Birthday Barnyard Boogie Bash.  (say that 3 times)  At first he wasn't too sure.

...and then he was ALL ABOUT IT!  He loved this little pony and realized he could pull its hair just like our dog's fur.

Parker LOVES to eat

Pulling himself up is another one of his favorites.  The couch?  A chair?  His exersaucer?  Anything that is tall will work for him!

6 Months Old

It's hard to imagine what life was like 6 months ago...actually, let me remind you.  Our house was one giant mess!  We got countertops put in our new kitchen just 3 days before Parker was born and I was so glad to be able to cook something!  Parker has brought continual joy to our lives.  We just cannot believe how blessed we've been with this little guy.  He is SO HAPPY and showing us more and more personality every day.  He still has no teeth and LOVES to sit up by himself.  He is fairly independent and seems to have no desire to learn how to roll from his tummy to his back-he has mastered the reverse over a month ago.  We're looking forward to his first Christmas and know that it will be our cheapest in the many many coming years!  We love you Parks!

Happy Halloween

Although I'm not the biggest Halloween fan, I was excited to pass out candy to trick-or-treaters in our new neighborhood.  We purchased our favorite candy (of course), Reese's PB cups and Reese's Pieces and then got some non-peanut candy for those with allergies (typical teacher thing to do).  WELL...we only had about 15 kids-apparently our hood is not the place to hang.  Oh well, we were better off because when we answered the door, Parker screamed and cried in terror from our friends dressed in ladybug, tiger and monkey costumes.  How scary!  Apparently, Halloween is not Parker's favorite holiday either.  He dressed up as a cowboy...which he pee'ed through by noon.

4 Month %

Yesterday Parker had his big 4 month checkup and shots.  To much surprise, Parker is quite average.  

Weight:    14 pounds 14 ounces ----- 45%

Height:     25 inches ----- 50%

His head now, on the other hand, seems to be quite large!  He is in the 95%!

As I would say to my kinders with large heads - "You must be SO SMART!"  That's it, we've got a genius on our hands!  Seriously though, I don't think it looks extraordinarily big.

Stanley Lane Pumpkin Patch

Notice that the sign says "Piggies will bite"...I think we'll look from afar

I was so excited to head to the pumpkin patch for fun-not for a field trip!  It's amazing how much more relaxing it can be when you go with your own family, rather than 60+ kids and 40+ adults!  And on a sunny day!  I wish we could have stayed longer, but Joel had to get back to work.  :)