7 Months

I can't believe our sweet little Dyl-baby is 7 months old. He is so big, full of such personality, and so mobile!  

Mobility brings bumps and bruises, of course, as evidenced here:

But he doesn't seem to mind.

He is cruising already.  He started cruising along furniture just before his 7-month birthday.  He can also crawl on hands-and-knees, which is SO CUTE.  Owen didn't crawl until he was 11 months old.  A 6 month old crawler is just too adorable- his body is just so little (well, big for his age, but still, little in that it doesn't seem like he should be crawling yet!)

He can stand up on his tip-toes and reach across the coffee table for things.  He's persistent, and intent on getting what he wants.

 Sleep is still crazy.  I'm just going with the flow.  I really haven't put much thought or energy into getting him to sleep better.  I just... I am just trying to survive on whatever sleep I get!  He's happy, so whatever.

 Dylan finally loves eating.  His first true love was cucumber, but LOVES avocado as well.  Now he eats with gusto and really enjoys nearly everything we put in front of him.  We're still BLW with the soft food chunks, which is hilarious.  He does NOT want anyone else to put food in his mouth.  HE has to do it.  And applesauce (the only puree we've given) is a NO GO.  He gags on it.  Let that soak in for a moment.  He gags on applesauce.  He does not gag on soft food chunks.  What a funny kid.

 His eyes are still the dark green color.  It's pretty awesome.  I hope it's here to stay.

He loves clapping!  He especially loves that everyone else around him starts to clap when he does.

He is quite a talker, but no discernible words yet.  Obviously he is spending all his energy on moving around the house.

He loves taking baths with Owen, playing with Sophie, putting EVERYTHING in his mouth, and trying to find all the shoes in the house (so he can put them in his mouth)....

He's a healthy 22 lbs, and we take every chance we get to love on every single one of those arm rolls because you know what?  They go away.  My formerly-chubby three year old is proof positive.

Central WA part two

Would you believe me if I told you I didn't edit these photos?

Not one little bit.

That has absolutely nothing to do with my photography skills (of which I have very few) and more to do with the amazing natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest.

As we drove back to Portland from our hotel in Central WA, Kraig and I had the rare opportunity to chit-chat while the boys napped in the backseat.  Kraig's new store and life with two young boys has not allowed us much time to catch up.  Like, zero time.  So we indulged.

We were also indulging in one of Kraig's very rare days off.  One where we didn't have errands to run or groceries to get or a house to clean.  It may have been a one-day vacation, but it was a vacation.  An adventure, even.

So we stopped off where we pleased, we ate snacks and drank plenty of coffee.  We laughed and laughed and laughed.

 We hugged and played.  We breathed deeply as we enjoyed scenic vistas and fresh air.

It was fantastic.

Someone had to, uh, make use of the "pirate grass".  Hey!  Adventure!

And these guys.  Oh, my.

 The whoosh, whoosh, whoosh is so impressive.

When you're standing right underneath one, it almost seems like it will knock you over as it pushes the air.

Pure beauty.

Amazing.

 We may or may not have ended up on a tiny dirt road on the side of a mountain in our rental vehicle, wondering how to get turned around but laughing all the while.

Adventure.

We stopped off in Hood River again, this time to see the railroad and visit Kraig's favorite brewery.

 It was quite a weekend.

Off to Central WA we go!

My good friend Leah flew to Portland from Detroit for a short visit on her way to Holden Village in Central WA.  We offered to drive her up to Lake Chelan where she would start her journey, by boat, to Holden.  It is a 6 hour drive on a good day, so we were a little nervous to see how the boys would do.  

Since she had never been out west before, we decided we HAD to stop off at the Falls to show her!  She and I quickly jumped out of the car with Owen, snapped a few pics, then got back in and were on our way.  

Our next stop was Hood River, OR which is one of Kraig's favorite little towns.

enjoying his lunch

fountain outside the cafe

We were making fairly good time until we hit stopped traffic in Washington.  That delay, coupled with a VERY sleepy and fussy baby caused us to have to change our plans.  We were going to drive all the way to Chelan to drop off Leah, then the four of us would turn back and stay overnight about 2 hours from Chelan.  We'd then complete the last 4 hours the next day.  Well, had we done that we wouldn't have gotten back to the hotel until midnight.  So we had Kraig drop off the boys and me, drive Leah by himself and come back late.  It worked better this way, though I was sad to miss out on more time with Leah as well as the beautiful scenery as they drove in the Cascades.  Sigh.  I guess we'll have to make that drive again sometime....

Best Friends

Meet Dylan's best friend.

She is exactly two weeks older than him.  Isn't she adorable?

We love her.  Her mom and dad are equally as wonderful :-)

Father's Day Outtakes

Father's Day

After our ridiculous 4 mile hike in 90-degree weather on Mother's Day, I can't blame Kraig for wanting to have a relaxing Father's Day.  How very different our respective special days were says a lot about our individual experiences as parents.  I am home 24/7 with the littles, so when I get the chance I like to get OUT.  I like to take in big sights, breathe in fresh air, and experience life outside our little 900 square foot home. 

Kraig?  He gets out almost every day.  So given the chance, he likes to put up his feet and enjoy some quality time at home.  

Both are valid choices :-)

Kraig wanted to take the boys to his favorite local coffee roaster.  I haven't yet seen this fabulous place, but I can see why Kraig loves it just from looking at these photos (I haven't tried the coffee, either!)

We indulged in delicious treats- homemade and otherwise.  Kraig took a few naps.  It was a wonderful day!

Happy Father's Day, Kraig!  We love you!