Father and son... (or also known as Big Dan and Little Dan).

What more could a little boy want?

The little rebel!

Maybe next time we could visit a winery:-)

This past weekend, Russell and I went to Portland for lovely Laura's bridal shower. She is getting married at the end of October. Alysun and I hosted the shower on Saturday afternoon and we later went to Red Robin's for dinner- courtesy of Bonnie Ruth (Laura's mom). Russell was thrilled with the helium balloon on his high-chair at the restaurant. On Sunday morning, before our flight home, Laura took us to the Farmer's Market in downtown Portland. There were many fresh flowers and fruit and veggies- too bad I couldn't bring some home with us! We did take a bag of apples, and a bag of grapes, though- thanks once again to the Peter family:-)

Alysun and the spread we prepared. The chocolate cake was so rich and creamy and almost sinful... the bundt cake was lemony and with the fruit and tea, it made for a nice afternoon:-)

Hangin' out at the bridal shower on Saturday. He did so well.

110% Mr. Personality!

My friend, Sangeeta, came over for a visit. We celebrated Brittany's 21st birthday and had a great time catching up:-)

Grandpa and baby Russell after a 'walk' around the block in Cobble Hill.

We celebrated my Dad's retirement from 35 years of teaching. After going out for dinner, we had an ice-cream cake at home.

What a wonderful picture:-)

Four generations: 1912, 1947, 1979, & 2006! (Mother-son, mother-son)

August 30th- Half Moon Bay. We spent the afternoon with Dan's cousins and their daughter. It was the perfect beach day.

Yeah- summer days!!

Dan's cousin Jon, and his wife Maria and baby girl Joanie (2 yrs old).

Family picture:-)

Our Piano Player

Playing Piano

Clip is 42 seconds long. We recently bought the piano from my Bible study leader:-)

Goodnight, Moon...

Recent Video Clip- 51 seconds

Play Day with Beckett

Turn up the volume to hear them play:-)

Future Texas Aggie?

"There is nothing like that first cup of java in the morning to get your busy day started!"

Six months old!

He weighs in at 17 lbs, 10 oz; and his length is 27 1/4 inches (50% and 75% relatively)... he's had a little growth spurt! He loves holding his feeting and rolling around on the floor- we've given up hope that he'll roll over. The doctor said he'd probably just start crawling at this point. He seems to be a happy little boy and woo's the ladies with his flirty smiles (and two front teeth).

We love our little boy:-)

We visited Dan's parents in Tucson, AZ, over the weekend. Russell did quite well on the flights and charmed the stewardess' (okay, PC- 'flight attendants').

We visited Fort "A-choo" (well, it sounds like that but I can't spell it) in the Arizona desert. It was an old Army base.

Three generations!

"Okay, bow your heads..."

"Let us pray..."

Almost six months old! Russell is starting to eat rice cereal with three of his daily meals. Yumm. Dan did the first feeding! Check out the video clip.

Russell
(there are two clips- one of his eating, the other of his push-ups... beware- these may seem uneventful to anyone but the parents of this baby boy!)

We (yes, even Dan) spent July 4th in Lodi, CA, with Dan's cousins and their wives and two children (total 9 adults, 3 children). It was a comfortable 90F and we all had lots to eat with burgers and salads and chocolate pudding:-) The girls leave tomorrow for San Diego, and Candice goes back to B.C.

Ready for another day on the town with Mom and the three aunts, Candice, Brit, and Andrea! So much fun and attention for him!

Our little pride and joy!

The infamous sisters...

Flower garden at the GG Bridge.

Santa Cruz! Summer has officially arrived now that we have been to the beach and have been nicely burned to a crisp! My three sisters are down to visit for a week and we went to the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz for the day, and then down to Monterey for the night and next day. Dan had to work, but Russell did GREAT in his stroller- he just loves to watch everyone and everything. He only had one 5 minute screaming match, and then he was done. We are so proud of him!

My three sisters on one of the rides at Santa Cruz's Boardwalk.

Look at what washed up on the shore in Monterey!

A closer up look...

I think we'll keep him:-)

"Mom and Dad and I are going to the pool today. I wear a special swim diaper to keep the pool clean;-) I sure love my stroller, though, and anywhere we go in it, I am so happy! It has been too hot lately to go to the park and the pool is fun as long as Mom or Dad holds on to me tightly."

Hangin' with Dad at the pool...

and hangin' with Mom.

"Only one shot, Dad? I'm sure Mom wants me to have two!"

Russell's favorite pasttime is figuring out how many fingers/thumbs can fit in his little mouth all at once. Yesterday, I stuck my finger in to feel his gums, and he is cutting his bottom two teeth! Wow. He isn't crabby (yet?) but we are armed with Orajel just in case:-)

"Aunt Laura in Vancouver would be proud that I match the flowers! They are called gerber daisys. I guess that would make me a Gerber baby!"

"Mom and Dad bought this Jumperoo off their favorite site, Craigslist- I think they are trying to hide the fact that there are real toy stores with aisles of new toys for kids like me. Anyway, my swing was too slow for me. I need to continually wave my hands and kick my feet."

Dan's sister, Bev, and her husband, Kurt, came to visit us for the weekend. It was wonderful to see them once again and we enjoy a lot of good conversation and some tasty meals- especially at Kurt's Aunt Linda's in Oakland. "Thanks Aunt Bev for the bright blue blanket!"

Taking an early morning nap in the Big Bed. We think Russell wishes for pillows in his crib but not quite yet.

Four months old!

Four months old! Last year at this time we just found out we were pregnant. A lot has changed:-) At Russell's pedi appt, he was 15 lb, 11oz and 25 3/4 inches (total gain of 8 lbs, 11 oz, and 6 inches).
Russ loves to suck on his fingers and/or thumb and he likes to kick the water in his little bathtub at night. During the day, he is spending more time on his belly but still doesn't like to be there very long because it inhibits his leg and arm movement.
He is doing much better on our 'outings' to the stores, church, and the mall but I still don't grocery shop with him as it is too much to handle until he can sit in the seat of the cart.
Lately, he has been more talkative and it is so amazing to watch him 'talk' to us with his sounds. He looks so sincere and animated when he speaks that I wish we could understand him.
We've been able to leave Russ with some friends on occasion in the evenings. After arriving, I'll feed him once more and lay him on the hosts' bed and he falls asleep. This has given Dan and I some time to ourselves just to go out on dates.
Anyway, just a litte update:-)