Look Who's Laughing

The video speaks for itself.

First 'meal'

We attempted to feed Jack some rice cereal before bed the other night. Here are the messy results.

Jack's new trick

Jack has started rolling around!  It's been fun to watch him become a little more mobile, but he's already woken himself up from a few naps and a night's sleep because he freaks himself out in his new position.  We'll slowly get adjusted to this.  In the meantime, we'll enjoy the little milestone.  Enjoy the video.

Road trip!

Yesterday we took Jack on a little road trip up to Jerome.  It seemed fitting, since that was the first road trip Angie and I ever took together.  We loaded up the cars, and with Aunt Emily, Uncle Paul, Grandma & Grandpa Shellum and Uncle Dan in tow, we headed to an elevation of 5,200 feet.
Jack did wonderfully on the drive.  He slept a great deal of the way, then woke up to tell us all about his dreams.  We got into town, and spent the afternoon wandering the colorful streets and shops of the old mining town. 
Jerome has an interesting history and culture.  The town is filled with bikers, artists and hippies who all enjoy the laid back living, 'high' elevation, and the lax drinking laws in town.  The rule goes:  As long as you are on the fifth step in the amphitheater, you can drink in public.  So Jack tried to mix with the locals and slammed a bottle right on the stairs next to them.
We made it back to town in time for a great Mexican dinner, and after such a busy day, Jack was happy to take a bath and get rocked to sleep. 

Jack's new shirt to commemorate his first road trip

At lunch with Uncle Dan

The view from the town's 'steps'

Drinking on the steps.  "Don't hassle me I'm local"

Jack's thoughts

Jack has started to have some of his own views on things.  We're pretty sure that here, he is telling us that we're doing 'ok' as parents so far, but the heat is getting a little ridiculous.  He also seems to have a joke in there somewhere.  He thinks it's hilarious.  We're thinking the punchline has something to do with a Pollack or an Irishman.

Just Another Day in Paradise

Jack is somehow surviving this Arizona heat. Ben and I have been spending a lot of our free time in the pool with him. That's about the only way we know to beat the heat! We also experienced an unbelievable dust storm. It left our pool in shambles. I just had to post a picture of it. I'm sure many of you saw it on the news. Yes, it was that surreal. Click on the imbedded link to view some footage for those that are out of the loop.

We didn't make it out for fireworks on the fourth of July, but that was more because the adults didn't want to sit in the heat and humidity. Yes, we do get humidity. Ben delighted us all with some firework action in the street in front of our house. Officer Dan had no objections. :)

I start back to school on the 15th of July so that date is rapidly approaching. Luckily Ben doesn't go back until the 4th of August so Jack has some time before he starts going to his daycare. We are lucky to have gotten the last spot in a wonderful in-home childcare. Robin is a former kindergarten teacher and only takes in Chandler teachers' kids so she will be on the same school schedule as us. I am looking forward to getting back to work, but I think after one day I'll have my fill and want to be back home hanging out with this little boy. Enjoy the new pictures!

The electric blue line is where our pool vac attempted to clean after dust storm 2011.

He looks like he's up to no good, doesn't he?

Hanging out on the counter while mom made cookies!

Boy, those cookies were hard work!

Feet zerberts are the best!

My parents waited WAAAAAY too long to buy me a swing!

A Fantastic Visit

This past week we had some visitors staying with us.  Angie's sister Katie planned a trip to Arizona with her husband, Mike, and their son Ethan.  After quite a few rounds of debates, the decision was made to drive from Minnesota rather than fly.  As it turns out, Ethan did exceptionally well.  Personally, being trapped in a rear-facing car seat for 26 hours sounds like hell to me.  But when Ethan walked through the door on Friday night, he just looked a little dazed.
The week was spent relaxing as much as possible.  Every morning started out early with either Jack or Ethan announcing the arrival of dawn.  After a little coffee, some breakfast and maybe a brief morning nap, we were usually in the pool enjoying the sun.  Jack has spent lots of time in the pool, and his cousin Ethan took to it just as well.  He floated in his raft, 'jumped' off the side, and doused himself and those around him with some pretty big splashes.
Angie and Katie also took the boys to the Scottsdale train park, but with the temperature floating around 110 degrees, the trip didn't last too long.  Ethan was able to ride the train though, and he and his mom really seemed to have fun.
As for the rest of the visit, we made great use of our pool and had an amazing time just hanging out. It was a very special visit. The boys will hopefully spend many more summers together as they grow. We couldn't have asked for easier guests. Thank you Powell family for a great week. We miss you already.

Mike and Ethan- day 1

One of the many naps taken this week

Just hanging around

Reading Ethan's favorite book "What Do You Say?"

  Just don't make the Lion's roar too loud.

At the train park

For Kesley

Uncle Dan's girlfriend, Kesley, has sworn off social networking sites like facebook to use her time more wisely as she prepares for her MCAT's.  However, she told us the other day that she's still checking our blog as a way to stay connected, waste a little bit of time online and check out the newest pictures of Jack.
So our thanks go out to Kesley, and to those of you who follow the blog and encourage us to "post more pictures."  As Jack turns three months old today, it's another great reminder of how many people are thinking about our new family and wishing us well.

Thanks.

wearing dad's hat

three months old TODAY