Grandpa's Visit

Grandpa flew out to visit us and stayed for over a week. We all enjoyed getting to show him what we could do and involved him in all of our activities. How nice it was to have an extra set of hands around. We actually could change our "defense" to man-to-man instead of the zone defense we've been in for 4 months. He got to go camping, bowling, and game-playing at Chuck E. Cheese. He helped us with transitioning the kids into preschool and Joy back to work. He also got to witness Joy coming out of temporary softball retirement to go 2-for-3 hitting in the playoffs.

So this is what you meant by man-to-man defense?

We loved our time with Grandpa.

We got to play all kinds of games with Grandpa, some that he never thought he would be playing.

Griffin enjoyed being carried around by Grandpa and he found some new favorite positions and tried to convince Daddy to pay attention to the "rides" that Grandpa gave him so they could be duplicated later.

What Gusto didn't know is that we knew all along that the code words Sir Charles Italian Ristorante really meant Chuck E. Cheese!

Garrett 4y 3mo

Garrett took a big step this month and started preschool at Grace Lutheran. He has enjoyed his class and has been making friends and helping the teachers. Funny story is that he told a boy who was crying for no reason to "please just stop crying and come play." Well apparently it actually worked. His Jedi mind tricks are more advanced than we imagined. He has also started in the Classical Conversation class which teaches us how to train our minds to memorize and learn. Pretty amazing stuff. He also finished up his swim classes for the summer and has learned how to dive down to the bottom of the pool. He continues to enjoy being an older brother.



Ready or not, here I go to preschool!

Should I do the little diving board or the really tall one? How about both!

Jace and I finished up our last Vacation Bible School Moose Camp together.

Can you believe all this fruit came off of our trees. Yummy!

Don't you think I have the face of a king?

Put your hands up...let's get our groove on.

I saw this pose on an album cover somewhere in Daddy's CD collection.

I'm a firefighter looking for my lost brother...found him...he's so cute.





I was gonna do this by myself, but the kid in front of me freaked out, so the teacher thought I needed her up there with me...maybe I did, but I wasn't about to let her ruin my fun.

Watch me as I transform from a car to a plane to a helicopter to a roller.

Bryce 2y 1mo

Bryce had his first full month above the age of two. His latest thing was getting to do his own class of Kids Love Soccer, where he got to have his brothers watch him perform. This was a most exciting first for him--finally a class for him that he was old enough for. He felt like he had arrived. His favorite video selection lately has been Brainy Baby and he is getting much better at his shapes and colors because of it. He is also enjoying making Hot Wheel tracks with Daddy and performing his daily chores.


I swapped chairs this month with Garrett and for my first assignment I will suggest we buy flowers for Mommy.

I am SPIDERMAN!

Cheeser (you won't see this very often) and Snorter (or you give it a name).

Come check out my dance moves, it goes a little something like this...

I'm applying for a job as a foot clapper, check out my resume.

Griffin 4mo

Griffin is showing us all sorts of different expressions this month. He has started to figure out how to roll over onto his stomach and clearly will laugh at his brothers at times. We are content with enjoying each phase of his growth and are hoping that he continues to enjoy being the baby.
Here is my excited and alert face, and then my very peaceful and content face.

Nothing like a little lovin' from your brothers...gentle please.

I love to recline with my arms folded over my head.

But I also like to go places and see things.

Sometimes I have to get bundled up...

Sometimes I just smile really cute like...

Sometimes Mommy gives me big kisses...and most of the time I'm just really quite happy.

Camp Chinquapin

With our camera on the fritz, we didn't have the ability to take many pictures of our adventures at Camp Chinquapin, the Young Marrieds camping weekend. We came up for half of it this year, staying one night in a cabin. We enjoyed going to Pinecrest Lake where we played the first day and swam. The second day we hiked (Bryce in the backpack, Griffin in the bjorn, Garrett walking) part way around the lake to the dam. The boys loved being dirty and playing with their friends.
What you can't see is that we are all on top of this rock and feeling pretty good about our brotherly accomplishment.

I've got my Yoda walking cane in one hand, and my Captain Rex gun in the other.

Griffin is getting heavier, you can tell by looking at Mommy's flexed muscles!

State Fair 09

We spent the day at the Sacramento State Fair and enjoyed all the excitement of Motocross, water dog jumping, Tractor Pull competitions, and just plain goofing around. We met up with friends Steve and Carrie and Steve and Kacie. All together we had 8 boys and 1 girl.




Jonah and I are finally both 42" so we just had to go on some cool rides together. We tried not to rub it in to our younger brothers that they just aren't tall enough yet...maybe next year...

You be the judge: who has the more excited expression for our box seats for the tractor pull?

My brother tries to remind us that we could have two Bryces at two years old. But Steve seems to have everything under control...right?

The Zoo

We took advantage of a trip to the Bay Area to see the Oakland Zoo. This was Griffin's first zoo experience and we're not sure that he will actually remember being there. The highlight for Garrett and Bryce was watching the Elephants poop. Nothing is quite like it.
I'm not sure what was wrong with my brothers, I mean come on we're on a train, why not smile!

I found the zebra to match my shirt, and then Daddy used the quarter he found to activate the huge view finder.

That's not a two-headed giraffe, Daddy! They only have one head like on my shirt. Come on Dad, I am two, I'm not falling for that one.

Do you think I could hide in this shell if Daddy came to get me?

My two faces of the day: happy/curious and out for the count.

We got to meet up with Mike and Amy and their three boys who were visiting from Maine. A night at Chuck E Cheese was just what the boys wanted for their playtime together. Unfortunately this is where our camera met its demise. Thanks for the memories...