Absolute Joy

Happy 4th of July!

It was a wonderful 4th of July. Max is finally old enough that we were able to enjoy it with him. Next year maybe he'll ride in the parade, but this year he was content to just watch it, and run around.

We met up with Grandpa Paul and Grandma Pat for the parade in the morning. Paul was really excited about seeing the new EGR firetruck, and hopefully catching some candy. It was a bit cool in the morning, and looked like it could rain at any second. Max had half of his "Fourth of July outfit" on (Thanks Aunt Corinne!) and loved sitting on my shoulders watching all of the ruckus around him.

The Firetruck

After Max's nap we hopped in the car and drove out to see Grandma Sharon and Grandpa Steve. It was a beautiful day out at Morrison Lake (though the mosquitoes were a bit thick). Dinner was great, ladder golf was a blast, and even though the Tigers lost- it was a great day! Max loved his chocolate chip cookies, cheeze curls, chocolate milk, and whatever else Grandma Sharon fed him when we weren't looking.

Max was intrigued at first by the fireworks. He really liked the ones across the lake, he kept pointing to them and calling them 'babies', but I guess we should have expected that. Once we started shooting them off from 100 feet from him he decided that he no longer had any interest in the fireworks, and we took him inside. Being as it was 90 minutes past his bedtime, I can't say that I blame him.

We got him home by 11pm, and he quickly went to sleep. He slept until 9:45 this morning, and while I'm sure it'll make a mess of his nap schedule, it sure was nice sleeping in.

Hope your Fourth was as fun as ours. We'll post again soon.

Photo Update

Max with his first "restaurant balloon" (from Red Robin)

Everytime I see this picture I want to add little animated "Disney Bluebirds" into it.

Max likes to sit in his activity table. Grandma Sharon bought him a chair, he still likes the table better.

Max wandering the garage during our annual bbq.

Max in his pool. He likes it, though only for a few minutes at a time.

At the playground

I cut him down one of Grandma's brooms so that it's his size. He absolutely loves it.

Max at the play area in the "Dirt Mall". It's a great place because it's always empty, air-conditioned, and carpeted throughout.

We took him swimming at the Mitchell's pool a few weeks ago. He absolutely hated every minute of it.

He may hate the pool, but I totally dig his awesome trunks!

Go Wings!!!!

Thanks Great Aunt Jane and Great Uncle Denny!

See Ya Uncle Ben

Thanks for coming to town and playing with us Uncle Ben. We'll miss you.
Hope to see you again soon!

Trip to the Zoo

Ben and Bobbie Jo took Max to the zoo. He got to pet a few goats, saw the penguins and fish, and sat on John Ball's well worn knee. It was a nice day, and a great trip for Mom, Uncle Ben and Max.

Photo Update

Meijer Garden

Uncle Ben made a detour from a wedding in Chicago to spend a week in GR. We only found out a few days before his arrival and it was an awesome surprise. It happened to fall into the week that I had taken off from work (to remodel the kitchen) so everything worked out perfectly.

He and I took The Bean to Fredrick Meijer Botanical Garden on Friday, and the kid had a blast. He got to stretch his legs, mess with the plants (and pull the heads off of a few of them). He also got completely soaked playing in the many fountains that they have setup throughout the beautiful campus.

Inside the hedge maze

AWESOME!!

Running through the tree house in the children's area.

More water

We've renewed our membership, and expect that we'll be back (with a change of clothes) very soon!

Curiousity

He's a curious little bugger.

As he walks around he points at things, lots of things. We initially thought it was because he wanted those things, but we're starting to think he just wants to know what they are. He's processing it all. He has a few words down, not just words that parents can understand, but actual words;

• up
• cookie
  
• baby
• uh boom
• ucky
• yes (yeah, yeah, yeah)
  

He mimics us when he finds words he likes. We can't get him to say them again but it's fun. I have come to the conclusion I must start watching my "colorful" language from now on, or I foresee many trips to the principal's office in his future.
He's trying so hard to talk. We have many little conversations with him now. His end consists almost entirely of jibberish, but you can tell he thinks he having a full dialog with us.
He likes responding to questions with a nod of the head (usually "yes"). He sings a lot. In the car, along with his toys. He sings with that sweet little kid voice. It's cute.

His personality is growing more every day. He's a wild kid. He doesn't get into as much as he used to, but there's a whole new world that he's just about able to reach awaiting him. A whole new set of challenges await!

Brown Bear

Bobbie Jo just called to let me know that Max just pulled down his "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, what do you see" book off of the shelf and said something that could be interpreted (by a parent) as "Brown Bear" (it was two words that started with 'B')!

He wants to talk so badly, and is getting so close.