Funday Tuesday?!?

The weather in Duluth is FINALLY starting to shape up. I suppose now that I wrote that the weather will turn on us. Anyhow, we were able to get outside for almost the whole day today. It was a blast. We made a huge hopscotch game on the driveway and also did some fun drawings. I also taught Cousin Kaa-Kaa how to play two square. It was very fun. Brooks did great as well. He crawled in the dirt, got his pants full of chalk and got numerous rides in his "car". Once in a while I had to remind his cousins to hang onto him while he was riding in his car. It was a pretty funny sight glancing over to see Brooks flying down the driveway in his car with no one holding onto him. He had no clue that was was on his own and would just smile at me. He had no injuries today though, which was a good sign.

Kennedy is a master at hopscotch. She helped me make the game and did the number 8 all by herself. I don't know if you can see it well but she did a really good job. She has grown up so much.

Now that Brooks has 9 teeth that are fully in and 3 more molars that are partly in he does really well with apples. We've let him eat them in the past at Cub Foods (they give free apples to kids, you know!) but now we feel like he can "really" eat them with no problem. They also happen to be one of his favorite foods because they look like a ball of course!

Our stubborn little guy has no desire to walk. I take that back, he does want to walk, but only with the help of his shopping cart. When we try to get him to walk to us without help he lays down on the floor, arches his back and cries. Everyone tells us that he will walk "in his own time" so I guess we will keep waiting. He does like to stand on his own for long period of times. Sometimes I wonder if he even knows he isn't hanging onto anything.

Okay, I know it is a little sad when I (Heather) draw a love note to myself on the driveway. It isn't that Greg doesn't love me, but I must have been needing attention today while he was busy at work. If anyone asks, I will deny that I wrote this love letter to myself! Hee!

Happy Birthday Cousin Kaa-Kaa!

Our beautiful cousin and niece turned 5 years old today. Brooks knows her by name. He calls her "Kaa-Kaa". She has become one of Brooks absolute favorite people in the whole world.
Kennedy has endless energy and such a sweet spirit.
We love you to the moon and back Kennedy Shea. You are a sweet, sweet girl.

Beautiful Weather and a Buzz Cut!

Brooks got a buzz cut on Monday night. He is now just like his daddy. Brooks has hair that grows like a weed and has had 4 or 5 haircuts already. I was excited to see what he looked like with a buzz and I must say he is rather handsome. Brooks had a great day today. We had to go tot he doctor because he had been running a fever for the last 4 days but today (the day of his appointment) he had no fever. Typical. Anyhow, we are glad we went. Brooks was diagnosed with Roseola. It is basically baby mumps--it starts with a fever for 3-7 days and after the fever is gone a rash occurs on the trunk of his body. So far the fever is gone, his lymph nodes in the back of his head are still swollen BUT he does not have "the rash" yet. We will continue to pray that the doctor was wrong and that Brooks does not get the rash.

We were able to go out tonight for a walk to enjoy the almost 70 degree weather. We went and checked out some mountain bike trails by our house. They are really wet, but Brooks loved being outside.

When we got home we played outside, rode bikes with our cousins and continued to enjoy the beautiful evening.

I love this picture. Two peas in a pod with their buzz cuts.

Greg bought me this cruiser bike last year. It is so much fun. When I rode it to the gym last year I felt like I was 8 years old again. It even has back-pedal brakes. You can't see it well in this picture, but the seat has leopard print and the paint job is flowers. I love it! The neighbor boys who are in high school must think I am a nut, but I don't care. Life is great.

Better Picture with Great Grandpa

I noticed that I posted the wrong picture of Brooks with his Great Grandpa. I am sure it doesn't really matter, but here is the better of the two pictures. Read our post below for a description. Thanks!

Weekend Activities!

Brooks got to spend a little bit of time with his Grandma and Grandpa Johnson on Friday! They were on their way out of town, so they stopped by to hitch a ride to the airport. Brooks ever so kindly brought his Grandpa his favorite book so that Grandpa could read it to him. Brooks still points at a duck when we ask him where the cow is and still points at the cat when we ask him where the snake it. That's okay though, we are sure he'll get it someday!

Grandpa Johnson gets to read to Brooks!

Grandpa and Grandma Johnson with Brooks.

Brooks had a VERY big moment on Saturday night. He had his first non-family member babysitter. The babysitter came over at 5:00. She fed Brooks, played with him and even put him to bed. We feel really blessed to have a church family that includes young girls to babysit Brooks. We felt like he was in great hands. We had a practice round on Tuesday night while I stayed home (in the kitchen) while the babysitters (two sisters) got to know Brooks. Brooks has been known to cry when he is scared and doesn't recognize a face, so we thought it would be good to have them meet before the big night. Anyhow, Brooks did great (according to the sitter) and didn't even cry when we left! Yeah Brooks! We had a wonderful dinner out at Timberlodge and then went to the craft store and Barnes and Noble. It was really relaxing and fun. We are super excited to have a sitter at least once a week all summer. It is so healthy for us and for Brooks.

Tonight, we got to see Great Grandpa Lundstrom. He just had his hip replaced and is recovering at a local rehab unit. We haven't seen him in a week or so and he looks terrific. We are so happy with the progress he is making and are thrilled to see him looking like his "old" self again. He is such a riot. He brings monkeys to rehab and rubber chickens to OT. I am sure the therapists just love him and get a kick out of him. Brooks really loves his Great Grandpa and actually reaches out to sit on his lap. We are so happy we were able to spend time with him tonight. We had a great weekend, Brooks is in bed and we are ready to wind down. We have a very busy week ahead of us as our dear little Cousin Kennedy turns 5 and we have LOTS of partying to do. We get to go to the Edge Waterpark, have a family party and a friends party. Rumor has it Kennedy is getting a bike for her birthday. We are so excited to watch her learn to ride it. Love to all!

More Pictures of the Park!

Brooks ended up having no socks or shoes on for most of the afternoon. I felt a little bit bad, but realized that he is a BOY and he would be just fine!

Loving the tire.

Playing TIC-TAC-TOE!

Getting Used to the Dirt!

Today was Brooks' first time experiencing the dirt. We went to Playfront Park in Duluth because the weather was amazing! We didn't even need our jackets. We got unloaded from the van and set Brooks down to play. He was going to have nothing to do with the dirt. He cried and stood up right away and hung onto Auntie S'ers for dear life. Once he decided to sit down in the dirt, he sat in one spot for almost 40 minutes because he did not want to get his hands dirty! I had to remind Brooks that he was a boy! Finally, after almost an hour he got some courage and got his hands dirty. Once he realized it wasn't that bad, he had a blast. He took one tumble and came up with a mouth full of rocks--but no major damage.

Here is Brooks hanging on for dear life. "Please don't let me go Auntie S'ers! At least pick me up!"

Here is the spot that Brooks sat in for a very long time. He was content playing with his shovel and clapping for himself. His cousins tried to get him to come and play with the big kids, but he wasn't so sure.

We tried out the swing and he wasn't really a fan. He only wanted to eat his goldfish. He didn't like going high on the swing.

FINALLY! We ended up having a blast. He got a lot more courage and climbed on everything, played in the dirt and took some spills. When we got home this afternoon, he went right into the bathtub and down for a nap. He didn't make a peep. He was very obviously exhausted. We are so thankful for nice weather and can't wait for all the outdoor adventures to come! Now Brooks will have two full days with only his Daddy because I am heading out of town for work. Bummer. I can't stand being away from my buddy.

Cute Pictures

Here are some cute pictures of Brooks playing in his playroom. Enjoy!

Dedication

On Sunday, Brooks was dedicated to the Lord at our church. We are so blessed that we have a healthy, happy baby boy. We praise the Lord for Brooks and have made it our "mission" to raise Brooks as a strong Christian man. We love our church and are excited that we will be able to bring Brooks up in such a great environment surrounded by so many prayer warriors.

Here is Pastor Rolf praying for Brooks. We were surprised that Brooks didn't cry when he got handed off to Pastor Rolf. I guess it helps that he is not only our pastor but also a good family friend!

The girls came to Brooks' dedication with their matching dresses on. This is the best picture we were able to get. I think it is actually pretty good.

Here is Brooks standing in the back row of the church enjoying the music.

We had less than a 10 minute drive home, but Brooks managed to fall asleep by the time we hit our driveway. It was a long day with lots of attention given to Brooks.