Back Yard Bliss

First off, I have to say, I LOVE that we have a back yard. I also love that the weather has been a bit cooler so we can use it! We've grilled, and wagoned, and chalked, and rocked. It's been so nice!














The big news of this week has been Pencil. He is an amazingly effective crawler now. He knows that if he high-tails it to kitchen table he may find some of Sockie's dropped cereals. He has learned to raise his arms to signal that he's ready to be lifted up. He knows how to 'coconut' someone by bonking his head on theirs.





















And, as my photos show, he can pull up on the couch. (or my legs, or the bench, or his sister) He fell as I tried to get him to smile (he's ok- I promise!) But he got right back up, and the third picture was the charm!
As a final exertion of his new independence he has started to cut his first tooth. He is a little cranky about it, but we're hanging in there. When it appears, I'll post pics.

Rain!

We had a real rainstorm today. The temperature dropped to the 70's and we went outside to just enjoy the weather.











"Oh, he's sleeping Naked! How cute!" said Grapes upon entering the van after school. We won't mention the fact that at the grocery store moments before he had exploded his diaper and created a smelly mess. So cute!


We have aunt Maymay visiting this week, and we've had a million laughs together.
*Sockie called her 'Megan' instead of Maymay just to tease her (they tease each other SO much!)
*Grapes refused any snack ideas, so Megan asked if she was ANTI. Grapes asked what anti meant. Megan answered, "it means you don't like it" and Grapes responded, "Oh, Like Antibacterial."
*We had salsa for dinner. Sockie took one bite then said, "IT SO FICEY! I CAN'T BREATHE!"
*We introduced Sockie to peanut butter and banana sandwiches. It includes two of the things he is addicted to, so it was an instant hit.
*Maymay got an owie, and sockie turned and kissed her. His kiss happened to land right on her bum.

The doctor and I got to go on a date last night as well. (THANK YOU MAYMAY!) and I got to spend some of my birthday monies. (THANK YOU FAMILY!!) We went to a little pizza place that was SUPER yummy, and Target. It was so great.

Growing Grapes

Grapes started first grade this week. FIRST grade!! Where did the time go?? Wasn't she just a baby in my arms or a bow-legged toddler?
She has enjoyed it (all two days so far) and I hope it is a great year for her. She is such a great, enthusiastic, and hard working girl!

BUT the other day she had a classic dramatic fit- she looked at us a shouted "I want what I want and you have to give it to me! NOW!" (With a foot stomp) The doctor and I just laughed at her. She was a little surprised, so she ended up laughing with us.

Sockie's new favorite song to sing is "Where is Sockie?" He will run down the hall and hide. Then when I sing "Where is Sockie? Where is Sockie?" he will run back to me and shout/sing "Hewe I am! Hewe I am!" (although to add dramatic effect he sometimes waits until I sing my first part 2 or 3 times) then I'll sing "How are you today, sir?" To which the song replies, Very well, I thank you. but He answers "Welcome Hank you." Then I sing "Run away run away" and he returns to the hallway for us to begin again. To his credit, he will give other people turns to be "missing" as long as he gets another turn too.
I love my kids!

Mini-Vacation

This weekend the Doctor had a retreat for work. It was a chance for all the new interns to get to know one another and have some time to 'let their hair down.' The hospital got rooms at a local resort for the 10 interns and their families. (read significant others, because only two interns have children. Joe and his wife have a one year old, and we have THREE kids.) There was a dinner at the nice restaurant and we got to stay in a nice hotel room. I was nervous about bringing kids and staying, but it was mostly a great experience.







The room they got for us was huge. (Thankfully. THREE kids, remember?) Sockie got to sleep on the transformer couch/bed. Very exciting. Grapes got a queen bed to herself. Pencil had plenty of room for his pack-n-play near the sitting area. The balcony overlooked the beautiful pool and desert view. PLUS- the bathroom was fantastic. I didn't get any bathroom pics though. The doctor and Grapes swam in the pool before dinner. Sockie was not interested (despite the new spiderman swim trunks) so he and I watched Disney channel while Pencil took a nap.
Dinner was in a private room in the nice hotel restaurant. Pencil whined to be fed the whole time-- two containers of babyfood and a million cereal puffs were apparently not enough. Sockie was playing all over- at the windows, under the table, on the nearby benches. And Grapes was crunching ice and flipping water with her straw... it was a zoo. Thankfully the group was pretty laid back, so I wasn't quite as self conscious about our kids. But mostly they did very well. They loved the triple chocolate mousse. (And I'm not not gonna lie- so did I!)
The power went off in the middle of the night because we had a big rainstorm. (the monsoons are not a myth!) so after putting us all back to sleep, we slept like babies. What a happy mini-vacation!

Pictures

This is Sockie, being a camera monkey.

Grapes's room is not painted yet (the plan is for a pale purple) but she LOVES having her own space. She even keeps it fairly clean. She says, "I LOVE my room. No more brothers bothering me! It feels slightly better."

Arizona

The Doctor has started working, and while it is a huge blessing, he has not been home as much as he was right before graduation. Pencil has been close to crawling for days now, and I was afraid the doctor would miss it, so I've kept the camera ready. I actually caught 'Pencil's' first scoots/crawls. It was amazing! Desert life is ever the experience. From cockroaches in my laundry to exploding sodas in the new car, we're slowly figuring things out. (yes- it was hot enough to burst open a Dr. Pepper in the front seat of 'Carla' our new Toyota. And yes, we named Fred's new sweetheart Carla. We miss Hilda the Ford Escort, but as always, life presses on.)We enjoy the days when the thermometer reads less than 100 (they have been few) and we have loved seeing rain. (once, for about 10 minutes. Apparently here the rain tends to evaporate before actually hitting the ground. Who knew?) We love and miss you all!

We're Bloggers!

In an attempt to stay connected with our friends and family (who seemingly circle the globe!) we've started a blog. We will include the newsiest news and possibly the most mundane of moments, but maybe you'd like the share them with us. Stay tuned! We hope we all enjoy the ride!