Our Other Kids

Most of you know that our first babies were of the four legged variety. Murphy and Guinness celebrated their 7th birthday on July 5th. While a birthday party is always a fun occasion, I find that the birthday of a beloved pet is bittersweet. It means that they are another year older in a life that is designed to be too short. Oh well, we can cherish them while we have them. They are such blessings in our lives. I know I am biased but I think that Springer Spaniels are the best family dogs! They love you with all of their heart and soul and would do anything for their families. They are so good with Charlie and he loves them too! Happy Birthday Murphy and Guinny!

Pool Time

I picked up an inflatable pool from Target for quick dips to cool off in the backyard. This summer has been very hot (the week before last it was 101 degrees with humidity levels bringing it up to 107 degrees)! John has been working hard trying to get the backyard in shape and afterwards, he'll jump in the little pool with Charliebones! John made me promise not to upload pictures of him but I can tell you that the two of them together look like a polar bear and it's cub! Our children might hate us when we are older for getting together and ensuring that they will forever have arctic tans!! That's okay, we are doing our part to stimulate the sunscreen economy! Here are some cute pics from June. Notice the diaper (note to self: do not use the Pampers Baby Dry with the microbeads in the swimming pool!). I think we could use it as a flotation device.

Summer Splash Park

Lots of adventures are open to us now that our little guy is on two feet! This summer, we have had a lot of fun going to the park, the neighborhood pool, and the splashparks in the area. Charlie is very brave when it comes to the fountains at the splashpark. He is courageous enough to go through the tallest, fiercest fountains. Daddy is super proud of his boy. There were other mothers there trying to get their 4 and 5 year olds to do it and they were too scared! Not our Charlie (maybe he is just too young to be afraid). I laugh because he gets this very determined look on his face before going through a big fountain as if to say "I don't really want to do this but I've got to do it!". I don't know why he does it when he doesn't seem to particulary enjoy it. All boy, I guess! He keeps us guessing and laughing!

I Am Walking!!

Okay, so I have been a very big slack when it comes to keeping our blog up to date! On May 23rd, Charlie took his first steps without holding on to anything!! Yeah! We were so proud. At first, he took a couple of steps from his Aunt Erin to me. Erin predicted that within the week he'd be walking around the house. Sure enough, the next day he was off! On May 26th, he began clapping!! We had been trying to get him to clap for months. He liked to bang his hands on the table or highchair but he would never give clapping a try. Now, he claps all the time. We joke that he "toots his own horn", because he claps for himself at every accomplishment! So cute. The other day, we were eating dinner at the clubhouse and an older gentleman asked Charlie if he was going to be a "ladies man" when he grew up. Charlie looked at him very seriously and then began clapping!! We had a good laugh.

Here is a pic of Charlie on his 2nd day of walking. Better late than never getting these pictures up I guess!