Lake with Aunt Kay and Chance

Aunt Kay and Chance came for a quick visit, so we took them out on the boat. With all the boat ramps closed due to the low water, we pretty much had the lake to ourselves (plus we were there pretty early in the morning). Chance and Duane had fun wakeboarding. Dax had a fun time playing "copy cat" with Chance. Here are a few pics that Annette took:

Getting ready for the fun


Chance and Dax


Chance


That kid is really fun to watch!


Duane had fun, too

Ethan's 2nd Birthday Party

Dax's friend, Ethan, celebrated his 2nd birthday today. (His birthday was actually a week ago, but he was sick, so the party was postponed.) The party was at Gymboree. Everyone had a fun time, and they actually had a place to burn off all the extra energy from the cupcakes!

Hugs for the birthday boy


With buddy, Benjamin

Jumping fun

Momentary sadness when he and Ethan bonked heads


We're working hard to earn those cupcakes!

Aquarena Springs with Katie and Baba

Katie is visiting her grandma (Baba) in San Antonio, so we decided to meet them in San Marcos at Aquarena Springs. Back when I was a kid, they had a show with Ralph the Swimming Pig and an underwater ballet with "mermaids". It's since been taken over by Texas State University and is focused on conservation education. It's just as beautiful and you can still take the glass-bottom boat tours. Dax really enjoyed seeing the fish and the turtles. He was even able to see the "bubbles" from the underwater springs. The best part, though, was seeing Katie and Baba. he loves them so much. He was hanging on Katie, and taking her hat off and putting it on, and following her around like a shadow, and through it all, she was so patient with him. We're going to see her in Maine in a few more weeks, so this was a great preview of the fun we're going to have.

With Katie and Baba on the glass-bottom boat at Aquarena Springs


Checking out the aquariums


Burning off energy


Eating Mexican food with Katie


Dax loves Katie and Baba!

No Crying

Dax set a record today: no crying for 36 hours! This included waking up, getting dressed, getting in the car seat, and the real kicker: brushing teeth and going to bed twice! He even slept in until 7:00am this morning (sure beats the usual 5:15!). Not sure what I did to deserve this, and I know that one day these won't be major news, but for now, I'm enjoying it!

Teddy Bear Picnic

The Austin Symphony hosts Art in the Park on Wednesdays during the summer. We'd never been, but wanted to check it out, so we met our friends, Elisabeth and Mrs Kirsch there. Today the theme was Teddy Bear Picnic. There were stories and songs and the musicians showed off their instruments. A very fun morning!

Dax and his teddy bear, Tansy


Learning about a French horn from one of the symphony players

Dax shared his bear with Elisabeth


A fun morning with Elisabeth and Mrs Kirsch

Dane Visit

Dane came for a visit for a few days. We loved having him and we're excited that he'll soon be going to school in San Antonio. Maybe we'll be able to have him visit more often, since he'll be so close.

Dane wakeboarding


Dax thought he'd try wakeboarding, too


Good times on Lake Travis


Dax is really getting brave with the swimming - he pushes away from us so he can swim "myself!"


He swam so far that Momma had to go get him

Chef Hat

Dax thought the tortilla warmer made a good chef hat.

2-Year Check Up and Tomatoes

Dax went for his 2-yr well check with Dr. Petropoulos. She said he looked "great!" She was also pleased with his speech. She reminded us that at 18 months, he only spoke 10 words. Wow! Now, it's too many to count! He was great about doing whatever she asked: lay down, open your mouth, whatever. He definitely listened well--if only he did that with us all the time! :) He wasn't a fan of the shots, but he, as usual, recovered quickly and took a great nap afterwards.

Here are his stats:
Height: 34.5 in (50th %) [this was the first time to measure him standing up]
Weight: 23.75 lb (6th %) [an improvement from 1st %!!]
Head Circumference: 48.4 cm
BMI: 14.8 (6th %)

After the doctor appointment, we stopped at the farm stand up the street from us. Today Dax picked out some tiny orange tomatoes. So, for snack he got to try them. He dipped some in ranch, but some he just popped like candy. I'm so glad he enjoys healthy food!

Dipping is serious business


Tomatoes are yummy!

Happy

Today at dinner, completely out of the blue, Dax said, "I'm happy." It was so sweet. And it made mommy so happy that she almost cried.

Happy Birthday, America!

For the 4th, we joined the neighborhood parade. At the end of the parade, there was a fire truck for the kiddos to climb on. Dax waited his turn pretty patiently, and he was pretty fired up about it. After the parade, we had Ethan and his parents, plus Grandma, over for some bbq chicken sandwiches (made in the crockpot, so no one had to get any hotter by cooking), and blueberry pie for dessert. An All-American Day!

Ready for the parade!


Waving to the Sherriff who kicked off the parade


Bringing up the rear (even the blue-hairs are ahead of us!)


Checking out the fire truck


I'm TWO!

Mobile Loaves & Fishes - Part II

This was our second week to do the Mobile Loaves and Fishes volunteering. We had a smaller work-force, but we still finished in record time, thanks to our little helpers.

The "experienced" crew: Cindy, Jennifer, Karen & Elise (with Elisabeth & Dax, of course)


Elisabeth and Dax set up an assembly line for packing the applesauce containers. They were a good team.