Happy Birthday Braden

Braden celebrated his 6th birthday Sunday at Pump It Up! It is a storefront full of inflatable jump toys.

Sean was very cautious about the whole thing. He had been on a bounce toy at about 12 months and immediately started crying. When we first got to the place he did not want to go within 2 feet of the inflatables. Then we charged up one that was a slide and we slid down - which he thought was great fun. After doing that a few times we got inside one of the bounce toys and jsut sat together for about 30 minutes. I would try to lift him off of me and put him on the surface and he would vigorously shake his head. While he was in my lap he had a great time. Eventually he kind of warmed up to the idea.

Sean making sure the Bounce Monster is not out to get him

Sean checks on Gillian

Sean waits for his cake

Braden had a great dinosaur cake

Abagail reads to Sean while Braden lets them borrow his Birthday King chair

At Braden's house afterwords playing games

Lake Sheldon Park

Sean and I spent Saturday night at Grandma (Ama) and Dziadziu's (Juju's) house. It was his first night ever there. At 9pm he decided it was time for bed and pointed towards the bedrooms and said " 'ed?" - he went right to sleep.

Sunday morning we drove to Lake Sheldon State Park to go bird watching. The park was very cool. It is a former 1950's fish hatchery adjacent to the lake. After the hatchery closed the ponds went wild and were then taken over by the state. Very nice wild life watching area. Kids can fish on the weekend and poles are provided.

Sean checks out the pond

Stay a school bus length away from alligators

The alligator hissed at Dziadziu

Sean tries to break free

Sean is now all about sitting on chairs and benches

New Chair Update

The first thing Sean has done when entering the house all weekend is go to his new chair. In this picture he reads one of his books...

Where's Mommy

Mommy is spending the weekend with her friends in the Hill Country - her first overnights without Sean! That must mean that she trusts daddy alone with Sean. Well, kinda. So far Saturday Barb, Grandma AND Uncle Greg have called to check on Sean. I am expecting a call from Nana, who is in Italy, any second now.

Our first project for the day was putting together a little Adirondack chair that showed up at the front door last night from Grandpa and Nana.

Sean helps out

When Mommy is not here Sean gets to use Dad's tools

I'm not sure you did this right, Dad...

Thanks Nana and Grandpa! As soon as it was together Sean sat right down in it!

Friday night we went to the Galveston County Fair and Rodeo BBQ cook-off. ISP has 4 "lots" which means we have a big booth and 4 entries to all of 15+ competitions. We did not win anything this year. We had a great time and Sean spent the evening playing with lemons and bell peppers in an Igloo cooler.

Saturday was yard work and exercise. Saturday afternoon we took Sean to the kids pool at the YMCA - he had a great time playing with the 3 fountains at the entrance to the pool and then wading into waist deep.

Sunday we finally made it to our church, the Co-Cathedral's, new building. Very, very nice.

We then met Darlene at Discovery Green. Discovery is the new park in downtown Houston near the convention center. A park with its own website!

Radio controlled sailboats on the pond

Splash park

After Discovery Green we headed to the Houston International Festival:

Sean gets ice cream while we listen to Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience

Sean and a little horse

Dad and Sean

Johnson's and Misc.

Sean with his books

Godchild Morgan takes a nap in Sean's crib

Abagail, Sean and Mackenzie dance

Sean with his hat from Uncle Phil and Aunt Bonnie in Wyoming - he will only wear it backwards!

Sean Update (don't let him see us talking about him!)

Sean has done a very cool thing the last two nights - asked to go to bed! First with Barbara last night: she read three books and was rocking with him. He pointed at his crib so Barbara put him in it. He laid down and went to sleep. It was a near repeat with me tonight - after two books he pointed at his crib and said " 'ed?" I put him in and he was out. He seems to be wanting to sleep more at night now and less during the day.

I forgot to post that during vacation he learned how to drink out of a straw. His dad did not figure that out until he was 5 years old. If he outpaces dad at this pace he will learn differential equations before the age of 39!

He definitely understands much more than he can say. If you say "where is the fish" he will look around until he finds a fish. He attempts to follow other instructions/questions - if he is in the mood.

Today he learned, much to the chagrin of mom, the fun of playing with sticks! I was working on the flower beds and he picked up a stick and started pretending he was using a shovel. I then started to do different things with the shovel and he would copy me.

See the two new picture posts, below... CIAO!

Baby Ducks at the Park

Sean tackles a new play structure at Tom Bass Park in Pearland

Grandma had scouted ahead and found the baby ducks

Swinging with Grandma

Sean's First Haircut

Sean and Laura at Tease Me! Hair Salon. Laura has been cutting Daddy's, Grandma's and Dziadziu's hair for well over a decade.

Sean was sleepy and stoic

Sean tries out a new hair style

I know you can't tell from my "Before" haircut - but things up there were getting out of control

Sean gets his first ever lollipop from Laura for his patience

Bluebonnet Sunday

Yep, its spring in Texas - time for bluebonnet pictures

Elissa, Ike Heider and Sean

Bluebonnet Caravan - 7 cars, 15 adults, 7 kids

Picnic at Washington on the Brazos (first capitol of the Republic of Texas

Joanne pulls Sean and Elissa

Kevin and Clinton get the kite going while their honeys look on in admiration

Denise pulls all three future Pt. Aransas kids in the wagon