Fair

One of my favorite things about summer is going to the county fair. Not only do I get my cotton candy fix, but I also enjoy seeing the animals, the booths, and the interesting people who seem to come out of the woodwork for events like this.

The petting zoo is always a favorite for me, but apparently my boys are not as excited about it. This year was especially fun because there was a baby zebra, a camel (wow!), llamas, and a tiny Shetland pony. So cute! For the record, zebras have very soft fur.

This is the stuff they get excited about...army trucks!

We attended the rattlesnake show, which was more hype than anything. Parker was bored, as you can see. He was a very good boy though.

This was spontaneous brotherly love. Spencer takes good care of Carson.

They each got to choose a couple of rides, so Spencer went on the airplanes.

Carson chose boats, and of course Spencer had to wave right as I took the picture.

Carson doesn't like onions, but I still cook with them anyway. One night he noticed them in his last bite and gagged a little. The episode dredged up a memory for him...

Carson: "Remember that night when I throwed up on my pillow?"

Me: "Yes, that was a long time ago."

Carson (getting tearful): "Yeah, that was a really sad night!"

I guess it's still sad after all this time!

Andy Update

Oh boy, do I have a treat for you! Andy has been doing various camps and activities with the youth of our church, and this post is about some of the fun he's had this summer....

Yes, he is getting a makeover! Things like this happen when you go to girls' camp! (It's very different from Scouts!)

Check out those luscious lashes!! I think we have a new Covergirl!

I wish we could zoom in somehow, but he had his nails done as well. In fact, each nail is a different color, with various designs. He kept the polish on through the weekend and wore it to church!

I like this picture because he's showing off his lovely nails (note the way he delicately fans his fingers) while wearing his "tough guy" Popeye shirt!

This is Andy at the beginning of a mud volleyball game...

And this is Andy after the game.... (Yes, I did actually get his clothes clean again, though we threw away the jeans since they were trashy anyway.)

Baby Smiles

Parker has been smiling for a while now, so here are some fun pictures for you. He is a happy little guy and thinks his brothers are lots of fun. He is also quite ticklish, and diaper-changing elicits giggles every time!

The first smile I caught on camera....

Enjoying Carson's play-by-play of his Lego story

Wow! That was a good one!

Showing off some of his new outfits

He is SO loved, somewhat to his chagrin!

"Are we done yet?"

Sitting up like the big boys. If you can't read his shirt, it says, "Daddy and I agree: Mommy is the boss!" Yes, I bought him that.

Too pooped to party (in more ways than one, I'm sure!)

Looking good in his church clothes. One of these days he'll probably be like Carson and start to cry when I tell him it's "church day."

Furry Friends

Here are a few little updates on our pets....

Andy and Slippy have always had a close relationship, especially when sleeping is the activity at hand.

Spencer caught her in sort of a regal pose here.... Too bad her haircut is a little messy this time. She has taken up the habit of drinking from the dog bowl. She could probably fit her whole body in it. One morning she brazenly waltzed through the living room and helped herself to a long drink while Dakota stood nearby in shock.

Dakota is a wonderful listener for someone learning to read. I only wish she could correct him if he makes a mistake!

Look who's pretty in pink! Dakota got a new flowery collar. She likes to be girly sometimes too. Our poor baby is afraid of thunderstorms and fireworks. We had to get her some "happy pills" for the Fourth of July. Just the neighborhood firecrackers were making her nervous. So the vet gave us a prescription, and on the label it says, "Give 1 to 2 tablets as needed for fireworks." That just really tickled my funny bone. I've seen a lot of prescriptions, but never one for fireworks! Anyway, Andy occasionally sleeps on the couch when the thunder is too scary. Between the dog and the baby, neither of us gets much sleep these days!

These Funny Boys

This is such a busy, but fun place! At times it's overwhelming, but I think of all the "empty nesters" who say they long for the busy days. There's just no comfortable middle ground, I guess.

Spencer started second grade a couple of weeks ago. He seems to enjoy it, and he sits by his good friend from across the street. His teacher has a reward system for doing homework, reading, etc. They earn tickets which they use to buy little prizes at the end of the week. He doesn't seem overly concerned with earning tickets though. Usually it's more important to him to play cars or Legos. I'm not sure how to work with the little boy mentality. I was always an overachiever and this lack of drive is so foreign to me! Andy is teaching me how to cope.

This is what happens if you feed them.... They just keep getting longer and longer! Note how Carson is quickly catching up to Spencer! This morning Carson was trying to unfold his socks. He was having a lot of trouble, but refused my assistance. Finally he threw the socks on the floor and said, "These are the most hardest socks I ever seen!"

Spencer was sitting here reading, and Andy just plopped the baby in his lap. It's not easy to read when there's a wiggly little person in your arms!

Carson is so enamored with his baby brother! He couldn't leave him alone in church yesterday! He kept touching his little toes and hands, leaning in to kiss him, or putting the binky on his head. Quite often he places his hand on Parker's head, grits his teeth, and says, "Parker, Parker, Parker!" He is a cute, squishy baby! A few weeks ago Carson wanted me to play with him, but I told him I had to get the baby to sleep first. So he said, "Just make him burp and then he'll be happy!"

Spencer has also enjoyed the baby, especially since he started smiling. One day he was talking to him and getting lots of big grins. Of course, he was delighted and exclaimed, "He's just like a human!" (Imagine that!)

Meanwhile, I'm still waiting to be able to wear my normal clothes. I'm not very patient and I keep trying things on "just to see." I was doing that one morning, and as usual, it wasn't going well. With disgust, I hung up a skirt and said, "Well that didn't work!" Carson asked, "Is it because of your laaaaarge tummy? I'm glad I don't have a laaaaarge tummy." That made me feel even better!

The Brothers

The last few posts have been mostly about Parker, since he is new and exciting. So here's a little something about the other two. They are so lucky to have each other. They are best pals and I'm excited for Parker to be the third musketeer!

If you can't read it, Spencer presented himself as a Father's Day gift to Andy. He actually did a pretty good job matching colors, especially for a boy!

Carson had never been to the dinosaur park before (the same one that Spencer visited on his first grade field trip recently), so we all went to check it out. He was pretty apprehensive when he first walked in and saw how big and lifelike the dinosaurs were. We kept emphasizing that they were just pretend!!

This dinosaur is probably the scariest one, but by this time he was feeling pretty brave. I think he enjoyed the rest of the park until we went into the museum where they have robotic dinosaurs--a T-Rex and Triceratops--that move and make noises. It's fairly dark in there and it is kinda spooky. As soon as they started moving, Carson let out the most bloodcurdling scream I've ever heard, and it wasn't just one little shriek. It echoed through the building and continued for at least 10 full seconds before he finally took a breath and cried. Poor little guy!

Here is Spencer in the shrubbery, pretending to be a dinosaur....

He might be scary if he wasn't so cute!

In closing, a little anecdote about Spencer: Fairly often, I call Andy between 4:00 and 5:00 to ask him to bring some grocery item on his way home from work. One day Spencer asked me for a snack, but I told him it was too close to dinner time. So he took it upon himself to call his dad and say that "Mom wants you to bring home some cheese." Andy asked if I wanted shredded or brick, so Spencer said, "Brick." So Andy walks in the door with his grocery sack. I asked, "What ya got there?" He said, "I thought you needed cheese." I said, "No, I don't need cheese. If I'd known you were going to the store, I'd have asked for milk." Simultaneously, we yelled, "SPENCER!!" Now whenever Spencer calls his dad, he has to preface his comments with, "I promise, I'm NOT LYING!!"

Parker's Blessing

Whew! Things are busy with three kids, two pets, and one husband (who is really just another kid)! It's been almost two weeks since Parker had his baby blessing at church. He got his own new outfit to wear and he looks even cuter in it now than he did that day!

I'm never crazy about how I look in these pictures, but it's just part of the tradition for the new mother to look fat I guess.

All three boys with Grandma and Grandpa

One child looking pleasant, the other two not so much....

Parker and his closest cousin, Ben, getting to know each other. I think they will be good friends!

Holy smokes Dad!!

These are some more pictures I took today. (I had to hurry before he grows out of the outfit!) You can see how much he has changed just in two weeks!

< I also played dress-up with my live baby doll. He has lots of hats that came with his clothes, but I never use them since they don't stay on more than 30 seconds. So we tried on some hats and took pictures. These are my favorites.

What a face! The fun was over after this shot!

Parker is so well-loved by his brothers. Yesterday he was fussy and everyone was occupied for a minute, so Spencer went in and held his hand and turned on his musical mobile. He is a sweet boy. One day Carson stroked Parker's head very gently and said, "I like his head--it's so soft and furry."