Applause

The Great Backyard Games of 2008

We had a ton of fun this weekend with many friends who traveled from near and far to play ping-pong (and Cornhole and Horseshoes and Bocce) in the first annual "Beers and Balls" Ping Pong Championship. I got to see many old friends of mine and meet a few new ones, both 2- and 4-legged, which of course made me smile a lot. Chris Koerth (Murray, UT) was the Singles Tournament Champion, so he got the coveted red satin jacket. Laik's mom and dad (Brad & Raecale Stull, Smithfield, UT) dominated in the doubles category, but all they got was bragging rights.
Raecale and Laik play with me on the swing

Paula and Tom love me lots

Bailey (5-month-old Mastiff puppy) and I get acquainted

Super-Dad Brad and me

Chillin' with Chris (the Champion!)

Hey - check me out with the hot babe! Jackie and I hit it off big time.

Laik brought his sprinkler toy for us to play in. I gotta get me one of them!

Laik and me playing together on the exersaucer.

The 2008 Champion sports a well-deserved and hard-earned jacket. If he looks a little tired it's because the competition was so fierce and because it didn't end until almost 4 in the morning. Pongers are hard-core!

New Toys

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Ethan for loaning me his... er... I'm not sure what it's called but it's WAY COOL because 1) it's made of brightly colored plastic, 2) it lights up, and 3) it makes noise! It's supposed to encourage me to pull myself up to standing but Mom says she's not so sure she's ready for that yet. The ota toy (get it?) that I just got is a really big truck. I don't get to drive it but I do get to hang out in the back seat and feel the wind on my face while I play with some of my littler toys.

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today was my daddy's birthday. He and Mommy went out to dinner and when they came home I was wide awake and ready to party! Our nice neighbors came over and they all sang to him and ate carrot cake. Phil wanted to give me a taste but apparently there's a rule that says if you don't sing, you don't get any cake. It's not like I didn't want to sing. I was just too busy thinking about the CRAWLING I did today!

More cousin fun

I am SO lucky! My Grandma Deb and cousin Rhiannon came to visit me on Sunday evening on their way home to Montana. Rhiannon and I hung out on the swing and she helped me take a bath. In the morning we played on the trampoline together. She's such a sweetie. She says she can't wait until I'm 2 years old so I can chase her around.

Cuzzins

Yesterday we visited my cousins McKenzy and Max in Ogden. I'm so lucky to have cousins who love me like they do! Max and I were bath buddies again and Kenzy fed me carrots and even burped me. My fun Aunt Brooke fixed my hair into a real mohawk and I must say I look pretty cool that way. Grandma Debby took great care of the three of us kids while our parents went out on the town. We all had a great time and I can't wait to get together with them again.

Swingin'

That last video was such a big hit, I thought I'd share another one with you. My nice friend Alec gave me this swing a long time ago and I'm finally big enough to use it (under proper adult supervision, of course). Grandmas, you might want to close your eyes for this one. I do all my own stunts. And a note to everyone else - don't bother rubbing your eyes or spit-shining your glasses. That smudge is from the camera. WHEEEEE!!!

I get around

Let me first apologize to the Beach Boys for using one of their song titles in my subject line, and to the rest of you for injecting said Beach Boys song into your subconscious. I hope you can fall asleep tonight without visions of Annette Funicello and surfboards dancing around in your head... ANYWAY, check me out! I'm finally putting my roundness to work for me - I can roll and roll and roll and you get the idea. Crawling is next on the agenda. Anybody got any kneepads I can borrow?

Road trip! (my first one)

It's official - I'm King of the Road. We just got back from 7 days of good ol' American gas-guzzling and burger-eating fun. Well, I didn't get to eat any burgers but I did get to try some new foods like smashed up baked potato and bits of provolone cheese. On the second day of our trip I got to see my second cousin Henry for the second time. He's 5 days older than me so its fun to compare notes with him. On the third through the fifth day I got to spend time with my cool, purple-haired cousin Rhiannon and her family. We enjoyed some neat thunderstorms and some fireworks and some great relaxation time. I enjoyed playing with rocks and sticks at the lake near Grandma Deb's while the dogs fetched logs and Daddy helped Rhiannon fine-tune her swimming and rock-skipping skills. On the way home from Grandma Deb's I bagged my second and third National Parks: Yellowstone and Grand Teton. I liked the scenery but could have done without the mosquitoes. Daddy and I got home this afternoon after dropping Mommy off at work. We got everything unloaded, I said hello to my toys, and Daddy pushed me in the stroller to the post office to get the mail. After 6 days on the road I'm glad to be back home and sleeping in my cozy crib. As you might expect I have lots of photos to share with you.

I'm 8 months old!

Holy cow, I'm a big boy. I can sit up all by myself and I can roll over (back to front and front to back) and I just started scooting backwards on my belly and getting up on all fours. Mommy and Daddy better hurry up with the childproofing! Today we're leaving for a week-long vacation. Woo hoo! I'm going to Idaho, Montana and Wyoming and I'll get to see family from Mommy's side AND Daddy's side. I can't wait. Is it time to go yet?