Random This & That

It's been a while since I posted any pictures...so I scrounged up these photos from the past few weeks. James is in constant motion. I've noticed that I have less time to spruce him up for photo shoots, and most of the pictures I have of him are a blur. Literally. My kitchen is in a constant state of disarray; "his cupboard" is always emptied all over the floor, and toys are sprinkled from the living room throughout the house. I figure it's pretty normal, though.

James is 10 months now! And he officially took his first step and regained his balance over the weekend. He's able to stand on his own for several seconds at a time, too. It won't be long til he's walking on his own! With still only two teeth (bottom and center), he's usually gnawing on something and drooling everywhere!

my little laundry helper...it's too risky to leave him alone upstairs while I gather the laundry when it's done, and this was the best way to carry him along with the clothes back upstairs!

we had a pop-in visit from Grandma

we've had quite the tomato crop! we chose the 'better boy' variety and boy, oh boy are they great! we've been picking six or seven at a time and some of them are huge! my favorite thing to do with the extras is peel, dice, and freeze them for soups and chili this winter.

Touring Around Town

We've been so busy! Last Wednesday our Danish relative, Vibe (pronounce Vee-beh), arrived and, while she's staying with my parents, we have been helping to 'host' her by showing her around the area. It's fun to see your own city from "tourist" perspective. I've gotten to experience a few things for the first time myself! We had been to this farm petting zoo before, but James was much more into the cows this time around. He even made mooing sounds when he saw them!

What a great view of the city!

After a nice Spanish dinner of tapas, we went to a jazz club! It was a really nice, and the music was great! Mark stayed at home to babysit James, so we'll have to go again!

Baseball! I hadn't been to a game since I was pregnant with James. The weather was gorgeous and my feet weren't swollen this time!

Unfortunately, our team lost. But we had a great time anyway. I told Vibe she looked 'all-American' in her team T-shirt and cute new cropped jean capris!

We have a few more events planned with her, blueberry picking included! First, though, she's going to spend a few days with my grandparents.

Summer Swim with Cousins

James has just LOVED having his big cousins stay with us this week. Jacob and Brock (and their mom Shari) are spending the week with us and attending a b-ball camp in town. We think James has been enjoying all the extra attention and entertainment! Yesterday the boys filled up the pool for James and then decided to join him. They didn't last long (obviously..there was hardly room) but James lasted about 15 minutes, despite the chilly temperature. He just splashed away!

This was pretty posed, but doesn't he looks so smart? We ate at a Chinese restaurant with Ricky, Kristen, and Elianna. James sure made friends with everybody there. Tonight we ate out again (at Olive Garden) and just about decided our days of dining out with him are numbered. It's a lot of work to keep him entertained that long!

4th of July!

We were so thankful to get to spend time with Mark's family in the Ozarks over the weekend. Twenty four hours before we were to leave, James was running a really high temperature that lingered two days. He had every test imaginable run on him and were even told we should leave town! In the end, he had a virus, roseola, which resulted in a really mild rash Monday afternoon. Saturday morning, however, his fever had broken and we were able to join the rest of the family for a wonderful time! James loves his Aunt Jody. We have visits from her on a weekly basis, so he's most familiar with her.

So many cooks in the kitchen! Mark's five older sisters, niece, and mom are all in this picture!

Crawling on the dock

the best shot out of three attempts...at least we're all looking at the camera!

swim time at the pool near our cabins--Mark was doing a great job entertaining the nieces and nephews

"okay, I'm ready for more!"

coloring...

Captain Mark on the pontoon on his birthday!

"Happy Birthday, Daddy!"

Looking at the lake

This one is for Joel and Elizabeth...and my mom. My mom made the grocery cart cover (palm trees and monkeys patterned fabric) and Joel and Elizabeth gave him his cute Cubs onesie, which finally fits!

Snip snip

James needed his hair cut. I found myself constantly tucking his hair behind his ears and brushing his 'bangs' off to the side. He was sort of looking like a scraggly ragamuffin baby. On more than one occasion, strangers at the grocery store referred to him as "she", so I figured it was time. Now, my mom cut all the boys' hair in my family growing up. To this day, she still cuts my dad's hair, too. So I thought I'd try my hand at it.

We were pretty surprised at how well behaved he was. We had out an arsenal of toys and kitchen gadgets to distract him, as well as his favorite books. Books actually did the trick! Mark read the same four or five books to him over and over until I was finished. In this photo, James was trying to figure out what I was doing! It was the only time he 'checked', because Mark put down the books to snap a picture.

The finished product. I was really pleased with the haircut. It was really more of a trim, though. And I don't expect it to always be this easy. But it was a nice first attempt!