Happy Birthday to Matt

Matt's 34th birthday was July 9th. We got together with his parents and his sister's family to celebrate the day. Christopher helped his cousin Angie put the candles on Daddy's birthday cake.

Then he helped him blow the candles out.

And since he is getting on in years, Matt also needed help unwrapping his presents. Christopher was so excited that kept singing Happy Birthday to Matt and also telling everyone that it was his birthday too. Matt got a super soaker water gun from the nephews for use in the pool. It's getting well-used!

Finally

Christopher is starting to be more interested in trying to dress himself - part of the 2 1/2 year old "I can do it myself" phase, which is loads of fun (sometimes). He actually did get that shoe on completely by himself. And he was very proud.


We are finally getting some rain. This was the first we had received in months. Christopher and I got out our umbrella, shook the dust off, and walked to the mailbox. The picture is kind of dark, but he had taken over possession of the umbrella (once again, "I can do it myself!") and so I was sheltering on the porch.

June - part 3

Yep, you should scroll down to part 1 if you're just starting. I didn't turn my brain back on before posting these pictures and I should have done it backwards!
Post trek:

Hanging out with Hannah in the new backyard grass:


Trying on "big boy" underwear for the first time:


Although he looks like he's posing, he was actually telling me to cut the tag out of the back. Underwear models are so sensitive...

June - part 2

Christopher also went to the lake and dug under rocks with a stick...


and looked for ladybugs in the grass with Grandma. He had a great time while we were trekking.


So did we for the most part - except for when Emily's foot very nearly got run over by a handcart wheel. Luckily the wheel didn't roll all the way over or we're pretty sure something would have broken. As it was, it merely got really squished. Could have been worse!

June

A little over a month ago, Matt & Emily went on a pioneer trek with youth from church. You can't see us, but here are some of the kdis from our group pulling the handcart. This was an easy stretch of the trek, flat with no rocks. It wasn't all like that. We'll have more pictures of that later!


While we were gone Christopher went up to Flagstaff with Grandma & Grandpa Truitt and experienced the joy of being the center of the universe when Dara and the cousins arrived. He got to: Watch movies with Aaron...


...see deer and goats and peacocks at the deer farm...


...go horseback riding for the first time...Grandma says he was a natural...


...and go bowling for the first time...I think a contraption like that would help my score significantly...