I haven't blogged in almost 2 months. Why? I guess I was too busy living. Which is a good problem to have. The boys definitely kept me busy this summer. I will try to do a summer summary, since I start back to work next week and Gavin goes back to school on the 19th. I will have a 1st grader...imagine that? We have a new backpack full of school supplies ready to go. I think he is excited, but I am sure he will be nervous that first day until he gets into the swing of things. Gavin will have Mrs. Ritter (formerly Mrs. Pelster) for his teacher. Mrs. Ritter was my teacher in Kindergarten and 2nd grade, which seems crazy because she must have been a baby when she started teaching. She isn't an "old" teacher. She has always been one of my favorite teachers, so I am excited that she will teach Gavin this year.
I posted last in June, and talked about how busy we were with Bible School, T-ball, swimming lessons, doctor/dentist appts, etc... The month flew by. In July, we spent Ernie's birthday at the new waterpark in Norfolk. We spent the 4th of July at the Ewing park on the giant blow-up waterslide, and then drove back in to watch fireworks that night. Asher fell asleep during the fireworks. Callum was just annoyed that he wasn't able to fall asleep. We had Asher's 4th birthday party, which turned into a large party with a pinata, fireworks, and a broken playhouse window. Here are some shots from that night:
I made the boys dress up one morning and do a mini-photo shoot in the front yard. My goofy boys!!
With the rain in late July/early August, we were able to do a few family day trips in July and August. We went to the buffalo ranch in Niobrara and then drove up to Gavins Point Damn. We went to Bass Pro Shop and the Omaha zoo. The boys were able to go fishing, swimming, to a few rodeos, and to a demolition derby. We kept them busy.
Callum is almost a year old now. He is babbling like crazy, and calls Ernie "dada" and me "mama." He understands simple directions. He likes to stand at the refrigerator and we tell him "duck" when we need to open/close the door. It is so funny watching him duck his head down. Callum is doing three different crawls: normal crawling, army/belly crawling, and now bear crawling. He sometimes will go across the room doing all three methods. If he is on a surface he isn't familiar with or is rough like cement, he bear crawls all the way. He is cruising around furniture and letting go to stand on his own for 5 seconds. I have given him strict instructions that he is NOT allowed to walk until after Uncle Nate's wedding. :) He has just recently starting eating real food. He is still a peanut. His 12-month clothes are nice and roomy. There is no baby fat on this baby. The other boys were so chubby around this age, but he has no rolls. He is a very happy boy. All you have to do is catch his eye, and he breaks into a huge grin as he makes his loud "inhale" squeal.
Gavin finally lost his first tooth. He was so sad last year because he was the only child in his class who hadn't lost a tooth. He has had a loose tooth since May, but it just wouldn't come out. In the pickup on the way home one day, we were talking about it. Asher said, "Let me pull it out!" He reached over and yep, pulled it out. The tooth went flying through the pickup. I don't know if Asher actually intended to pull it out, because he immediately started bawling and saying, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it." I think he was also afraid that he lost Gavin's tooth. He was hysterical. We found the tooth on the floor, calmed down Asher, and watched Gavin smile the entire way home. He was so proud! Before bed that night, I finally got to get out the Tooth Fairy pillow I ordered a year ago for this special occasion.
August is going to be a busy month with school starting, Callum's 1st birthday, and Nate's wedding!
