More August pics...before November's over

Here are some more pictures from August, meaning on either side of the reunion trip to Tillamook. Next will be September, really!

One of Reunan's first food adventures - at just over 5 months.

So, so sleepy and teething. But, he really wanted to watch his brother building.

Saul's having fun!

Classic Reunan - shaking a toy, body tense in effort. Notice the toes on on foot pointed and the other not.
Now, start noticing his feet throughout pictures - one foot tensed and the other not.

I remember those warm days. I also remember when Reunan was content just laying on this blanket. What a difference two months makes between 6 and 8 months!

Sweaty Saul playing with his brother.

When Reunan would help Aaron water near dusk and then fall asleep in the pack.
Can't remember the last time he fell asleep in there.

A happy husband. Jim & Patty's black tiger mocha and homemade waffles with garden fresh blueberry in the grid pattern.

Playing.

Laundry baskets are fun!

Hey, what's Saul doing over there?!

Swinging, big boy style!

And, the creative train track play begins. Two nights in the kitchen and we moved the creativity to the dining room. A few days of that and we moved it to the living room. And then we re-arranged the living room. Next, we will be rearranging his room. The boy loves to pretend and we love to encourage it - just not right where we're walking!

20 year high school reunion

Seriously?! 20 years since highschool?! Has it really been that long. Apparently, the answer is 'yes'. Back in March, when Reunan was just a few weeks old, Jill and I were talking about our reunion and the realities of trying to attend with such little babies. We decided to get a house for all of us to share. It was going to be so much fun!

It took some effort to find a place, but we did and we were excited as it was down on the beach in Netarts. After seeing how well Kate and Saul played together in June, I was even more excited. And then....the sand hill behind our rental house collapsed and we couldn't stay there. We found another place for Jill to stay and Aaron and the kids and I stayed at Grandma's. It all worked out just fine, though we did not get nearly as much fun time with Jill, Doug and the kids as I would have liked. Another time, I guess.

For the reunion evening itself, we had grandparents watch the boys. Originally, we would have had Jill's parents and Tom and Barbara and my parents all with the kids. Doesn't that sound fun?! Instead, Jon and Ginny were at Jill and Doug's rental with the kids. And, Barbara and Tom were with my Grandma Simmons taking care of our boys. How lucky are we?! It was such great fun.

Below are just a few pictures from the fun weekend. I didn't get nearly as many as I'd thought. Still, this reflects the fun of mid-August, Tillamook County Fair, reunion weekend! What's missing, though, is a picture of Jill and me together. Another thing for another time.

Kate and Saul swimming in a warm little pool of water on the beach near Netarts.
They had so much fun together!

Another angle. In the distance you can see the row of homes including the original rental we would have been staying in....and the construction vehicles working to move sand.
Grandpas and boys.

Grandmas and boys.

Reunan sitting on the table. Grandma Simmons in the background
enjoying the boys running all around.

Saul loved the ferris wheel! He had no fear and smiled so big!

On the beach in Oceanside with my dad.

Reunan watching all the action. I think Saul was playing baseball on the beach at this point.

My Grandma Simmons with two of her great grandsons.

Reunan at 6 months

The below was written right after Reunan turned 6 months. Now that he's 7 months, I think I'll post it! Oops!

Reunan's 6 month statistics are pretty impressive:

• Weight: 19 lbs. 3 oz. (80th percentile)


• Height: 26 1/2 inc. (90th percentile)


• Head circumference: 97th percentile - do inches really matter at that point?!

So far, he's remaining a little leaner than his big brother, though neither boy is petite!



The not-so-little guy is determined to grow up quickly! The last few weeks have involved a lot of teething. His bottom two teeth popped through 3 months ago. And now his top two teeth are fully popped through. This evening I noticed that the next set of teeth is just starting to show white through the gums. Basically, we'll have a 7 month old with 6 teeth!

Reunan's stability is only increasing! He loves to sit up and watch Saul. His own toys are not nearly as exciting as Saul's and he very intently says, "oooh, oooh" alot while charging all of his arm and leg muscles and showing us how much he would like to reach everything.

Jill and Jade (and our kids)

It seems like months ago now....because it was months ago! Shortly before I returned to work, we had a great visit with Jill, Kate and little Max. How fun to have such a great friend with kids so similar in age - and not at all planned, of course!

Saul and Kate running to the park.

Swinging fun.
Tire swing and kiddos.

Back from the park, now time for the sandbox.

And snack/lunch for 3 of the 5 in this picture.

Post sandbox and pre-nap bath time = very happy kiddos.

Reunan playing while the big kids bathe.

Max chillin' in the swing. I remember when Reunan was that small in the swing....

Happy kids eating lunch. The power of suggestion with these two was crazy. "I have to go potty." "Me, too!" "I want some milk." "Momma, I'm thirsty. I want some milk." It wasn't that one followed the other in the same order, it was that they both latched on to the idea of whomever suggested it first.

Cannon Beach Part 3 - visitors!

On the Friday of our week in Cannon Beach, Pappa Tom, Grammy Barbara and Auntie Alexandra came to visit and brought Lizzie the puppy along! We were all very happy to see everyone, Saul especially so. However, he wasn't so sure about Lizzie, and still isn't. She so wants to play with him and is clearly used to children. But, Saul doesn't seem comfortable when he can't predict what's going to happen and instead avoids Lizzie. Sad!

We took a nice walk to the beach, though it was the one day that the wind was crazy and chilly, despite the beautiful skies. We also relaxed around the cottage and got a little walk into town before getting a last visit to the beach before they headed back to Portland. It sure was nice to share some time with family! Pictures of our fun day are below.

Sleepy Monk, coffee spot between the cottage and the beach. Yummmm.

Lizzie enjoying her first beach experience.
Saul loves his Auntie Alexandra. He loved spending extra time with her. Notice the hood despite the bright blue sky. This to protect from the heavy breeze.

Saul posing.

Lizzie immediately discovering the benefits of soft sand.

Reunan sleeping again.

Relaxing back at the cottage.

Pappa and a sleepy Reunan.

Beautiful!

Tired puppy sums up the day!

Cannon Beach - part 2 (rainy day fun)

So apparently I'm uploading CB pictures backwards! The first part of the trip was the rainy part - we spent a lot of time bundling up and playing on the beach with an extra set of clothes for Saul at the ready so that we could change him before the walk home. We learned from our cold Easter weekend experience! We also spent a lot of time inside playing. Alex and Todd have the most amazing, low, sturdy coffee table. I'm sure they never intended for it to be a kid play station, but it worked perfectly.

With all the wet weather, we also decided to copy Michelle and Jeff in our beach-time adventures. We drove up to Seaside to go on the carousel. We discovered that Saul has absolutely no fear of these things! When he saw it - the first time I think he's seen anything of it's kind - he charged it and tried to get through the gate to get on at that moment! Who knew! We had to explain the idea of waiting in line, paying and waiting our turn to get on. I got to go with him two times. As we were paying and entering the second time, he told me I could go "stand with Dadda." I told him I needed to stay with him because he was a young boy and the guy wouldn't let him ride if a parent wasn't with him. Later, after the ride, I asked him why he didn't want me with him. He said, "Well, Momma, the other kids didn't have their mommy with them." Oh, no! Really?! His independence and awareness of these things has really started all ready. As shown in the pictures, though, he did let Aaron go with him two more times. Lucky boy!

Reunan was so great on this trip. He slept well, enjoyed stroller time more than he had to-date and generally adjusted to the situation. We had so much time relaxing with our boys!

Reunan making eyes at owl.

Opening his marble maze for the first time (it was a birthday present).
Starting the building process.

Very proud boy!

Playing with the final piece of work.

Reunan sleeping through the action.

Playing on the beach on a windy evening.

The carousel!

And again!

Lunch at Fort George brewery.

Reunan sleeping through lunch.

Love this picture - each boy with his evening drink of choice (beer and milk) while watching a little tv before bed (note you can just see Reunan swaddled behind Saul's head).

Happy boy!