Playdate

We had two of my good friends from high school over today with their kids. The boys are a little bit older than Blake, but he did his best to keep up with them.

Blake, Jace and Oliver having some lunch together.

This is Sofie, Oliver's new little sister - what a beauty!

This is Brayden, Jace's little brother, he is very sweet.

The babies kept each other company while we chased the big boys around!

Blow your nose...

We had some friends over to play today. Prior to their arrival I asked Blake to blow his nose (another new skill!) and I handed him a tissue. A few moments later Blake was saying "Louis, blow nose" - so I followed him out side and this is what I saw:

Somersaults

Blake has been learning how to do a somersault in Little Gym. Just in the past week or two he has figured out how do do it all by himself...and he LOVES it! He does them up and down the hall, in the yard, etc. Here is my boy in action:

My sweet, sweet boy

I keep telling Blake his birthday is still over a month away, however this has not stopped him from acting more and more like a two year old. He is becoming so independent, he wants to put his own shoes on, buckle his own seat belt etc. After one of our more trying days last week I was getting Blake ready for bed. Every time I put him to bed I read him a story, we snuggle a little and I always whisper to him "I love you so much" and give him a little hug. That night he whispered back "I love so much" and gave me a little hug. Now, every time I put him to bed he says "I love so much" and gives me a hug and a kiss. It seriously makes every sleepless night and trying moment over the last two years worth every second.

Little Driver

Prior to going on the boat today, Chad had to rearrange our cars in the driveway/garage. I was trying to get things together for the boat, so Chad put Blake on his lap to do a little "driving".

Then Blake hit the water and decided to drive the boat as well. He took us in circles by Seward Park.

New Yard Completed!

The yard was completed on Friday and we are so happy with it. We had to stay off it all weekend, but Blake and Lou are ready to play! Blake playing in our new backyard!

(this isn't new, but all our roses are in bloom!)

Father's Day/Busy Weekend!

We've had a busy couple of days with lots of fun visitors. Thursday evening Chad's parents drove up and joined us for dinner on their way to SeaTac. They were headed out of town to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary! Saturday evening Todd, Lisa, Gage and Jake stopped by for dinner and ended up staying the night. It was really fun to get the cousins together, Blake just loves them and they keep him very entertained! They must have worn him out too, Blake slept in on Sunday morning - Gage and Jake, come back soon! We all had huckleberry pancakes Sunday morning and then everyone headed home. Sunday evening my family came over for a Father's Day bbq. Blake and Grandad opening a father's day gift.

Jake, Gage and Blake having some dinner together.

The boys

Huckleberry pancake face - Blake wasn't really into my photo shoot.

Blake and Grammy at our Father's Day BBQ. This is the only picture I have from our bbq - sorry Dad & Grandpa!

New Yard

We are getting some work done in our backyard. I didn't know landscapers doubled as babysitters...Blake has been glued to the windows all week!

Little Gym Graduation

Blake completed another class at the Little Gym today. We had so much fun, I watched Blake learn more and more, he took instruction well from Teacher Sandy and he became more independent throughout our class. At the beginning of each class everyone goes around the circle and says their name and their child's name. By the end of our class, most of the kids were introducing themselves. Blake can say his name..."Blate" (all of his "k"s are "t"s). We would practice the song at home "my name is Leslie and what is your name?" and Blake would respond with "no". This went on all semester. Well today, our last class was no different, he still won't say his name, oh well - maybe next class! Hanging on the bars.
This is Ella, one of Blake's most favorite people. Blake and Ella take two classes together, but she has been in Canada visiting family the last two weeks. For two weeks all I've heard is "Ella, Canada". I think he was happy to see her back in class today. As we drove away Blake kept saying "bye bye Ella". Luckily we'll see her again tomorrow :)

Blake on the low balance beam.

Helping put the balls away.

Getting his graduation ribbon from Teacher Sandy. Blake is never overly impressed with the ribbons - I kept the first one he ever got, this one didn't even make it to the car.

Waiting for his sticker at the end of class.

Eastern Graduation

My cousin Ashley graduated from Eastern Washington University this past weekend. Alison, Chad, Blake and I took off for Spokane on Friday so we could see her graduate. We got to the stadium in Cheney pretty early Saturday morning...so by the time graduation started Blake was done. Chad and Blake missed it, but Alison and I were happy to be there. It was great to see the rest of my family too. We celebrated with a party at my Aunt and Uncle's home that afternoon.

The Graduate!!

Chad and Blake touring the Eastern campus.

Playing a little soccer at my Aunt and Uncle's house.



Blake and my cousin Krista.

Blake and Ashley

Silly Boy

Chad and Blake went to grab a few things at Target this morning. They came back with a new stool that is tall enough for Blake to stand at the counter and see what is going on...or grab what ever is in sight! Making some important calls on the blackberry.

More from the garden

I have peonies growing in my yard! They are so pretty, one of my favorites, so I had to post a picture. So far, they are dog and boy proof, we'll see how they last.

Relaxing Weekend

We decided to have a low key weekend. The last few weeks we have been running around like crazy, Chad and I felt like we kept passing by each other on they way in or out of the house. It was so nice to relax and get a few things done around the house. Saturday night Chad made dinner (a rare treat at our house!). He neatly chopped up all the fixings for fried rice and Blake enjoyed eating them all!

Here Blake is snacking on some red cabbage, although the peppers seem to be his favorite.

Summer Treat

I was at the park the other day and some friends mentioned giving popsicles to their kids. I hadn't thought about giving Blake popsicles, so we tried it. Blake loves his summer treat!

Nice sharing...

It's been fun to see what pops up around our new house. So far, I haven't killed the roses!