Joining us at the table

This week we decided it was time Owen join us at the table. He seems to like it much better than sitting in the corner in his high-chair. As always, however, any transition means some sort of new dilemma. Now that Owen is using a plate and utensils we are always on high alert for flying food. Already, he's tossed a plate of spaghetti on the floor and likes to fling oatmeal off his spoon. I keep telling myself that this is just a phase, and that he won't always treat his plate as a frisbee and his utensils as drum sticks. Until we've completely conquered this problem, Owen's chair will be sitting on a large plastic mat.

Breakfast Conversation

Here's a short video of a conversation with Owen at breakfast this morning. He still says very little that we understand, but he sure does have a lot to say.

My Sis is Engaged!!

This past weekend, Justin proposed to Rachel while on a weekend get-away to Port Townsend! Several individuals (Mom, Clint, Dad, Robin, Scott, Justin's parents) were in the know about this except myself. Justin refers to Rachel and I as the "Golden Girls" and believes we tell each other everything...we probably do. Justin thought I'd blow the big surprise so no one was allowed to tell me the news prior to the proposal. I think it was just as well, because when Rachel called me to share the news, I truly was surprised.

I am so excited and happy for the two of them!! Justin is a wonderful guy and we're thrilled that he'll soon be officially part of the family. Uncle Justin...I hope he is ready for that!

Here's a picture of Rachel's beautiful wedding band. Oh, and in case you are wondering, her new last name will be Read. Rachel Read...it definitely has a nice ring to it!

Congratulations Ray-Ray and Justin! We love you!!

Father's Day

We celebrated Father's Day this year with a marshmallow roast in our brand new fire pit. The fire pit project has been on the to-do list since we put in the yard two summers ago. This weekend, Scott was able to get the first phase done. The next phase involves digging out a 4 foot edge around the pit, laying flag stone, and then laying sod in between the stones.

Thank you Daddy, for all your hard work and everything you do for us! We love you!

We had a fun night...sang some songs, poked at the fire, and ate way too many marshmallows!

Also, I wanted to give a quick update on Tatum's forehead. Unfortunately, her incision opened up for the second time on Friday night (she tripped and fell into the wall). We returned to Children's ER for 9 more sutures. Hopefully this will be the last time for a long time!! The Surgeon said this was very uncommon and perhaps just a case of serious bad luck. We return to Children's at the end of the week to have the sutures removed and to discuss the impact of these misfortunes with her Surgeon. Tatum is doing great...she's bounced right back after both accidents.

Bummer!!

This weekend Tatum had a small post-op setback. On Sunday, her incision opened up about a 1/2 inch in length. We really have no idea how it happened. She was playing with Owen downstairs when Scott went down to peek in on them and noticed her bloody forehead. That meant a trip to Children's ER for a few more sutures. Tatum definitely did not like this visit (either did I), but seemed to quickly recover once the procedure was over. The smile really returned to her face when they gave her a little stuffed kitten. We go in on Thursday to get the sutures removed and then hopefully she'll be back on the road to recovery.

Dancing Queen

This video was taken following a puppet show at the zoo. At the conclusion of the show they invited all the kids in the audience to come on the stage and dance with the puppets. Here's Tate displaying some of her finest dance moves!

Tatum's new look

Here she is...all taped up and sutures removed. Today, Tatum had her 1 week post-op appointment to remove her sutures. She was very brave and did a fantastic job of lying still for the nurse practitioner. I'm so thankful that she enjoys her visits to the doctor's office. Her main concern this visit was that she get to hold the stitches once they were removed...I'm not going to complain about that!


Keeping her taped for the next six weeks is going to be a pain. However, taping will greatly improve the look of her scar in the long run, so it's well worth the hassle.

Since we were in the area we decided as long as it wasn't raining we'd hit the zoo...and we were so glad we did! Perhaps because we were nearly the only ones there, we had one on one time with the elephant and giraffe trainers and the animals! Tatum even had the opportunity to feed a giraffe. We learned a lot at the zoo today...it was one of our best trips yet!