Luke's Birthday Week

We've had a lot of fun celebrating Lucas this week. Last Monday he turned 32. On his birthday Levi and I met him for lunch and had a special dinner together at home. Levi gave him the card he helped me pick out. It wasn't a birthday card but there was a picture of a puppy on the front and apparently that's all that mattered to Levi.Joel, Kelly, Ruby, and Ben came over for dinner to celebrate the next night. Ruby colored this card especially for her Uncle Luke.

To help celebrate, Levi decided to pitch in on some household chores.

Grandpa, Gran, and Grandma Dickson came over tonight for another birthday dinner. They brought steak, potatoes, corn, and cake. Levi enjoyed having such special visitors.

The handsome birthday boy!

Here he is humoring me and blowing out non-existent candles.

Camping Trip

This weekend Levi went on his first camping trip. We were invited by Joel and Kelly to join them and some of Kelly's family and her family's in-laws down at the Lake of the Ozarks. The weather was amazing- mid to low 70s- which is highly unusual for Missouri in July and made things all the more enjoyable. We had a great time, especially Levi. The only problem was that he did not want to sleep. The tent was just too much fun to settle down at night or for naps. He went on his first hike, first boat ride, and his first cave exploration. Little cousin Ben was initially unhappy about the cave tour but then entertained us all with his whoops and hollers. Levi and Ruby, the spunky spelunkers, especially enjoyed getting to hold the special lanterns. Levi exited the cave even dirtier than when he went in. Ruby was a litle disappointed that she didn't get to see more bats. I was not.

Here are a few pictures- unfortunately my camera battery died so I only got a few.

Before we left, Daddy and Levi set up the tent in the front room to test it out. The three of us slept in there on a shared air mattress. Not exactly roomy.
Ben had so much fun on the beach!

These two are so cute interacting with each other- lots of kisses and hugs.

They share a love of dirt and rocks.

Happy Birthday Mom/Nana!

Mom, I hope you had a great birthday. I hope you realize how special you are to all of us. I hope you know that you are very much appreciated. I hope this picture makes you laugh as hard as I did. What a pair.

love,
Amber

Levi at Play

Levi figured out how to turn the faucet on and off leading to much fun and much eco-unfriendly water usage. He discovered this cane that Great-grandma Corzine left behind after her visit. He calls it a 'mah-merrr' (hammer) and thumps around with it.

Levi got to have some fun play time with Jerrika and Makenzie today. He calls them both 'Zinzee' and talked about them for a long time after they left to go home.

Travel Home

Our travel home home this weekend was extended due to some weather-related delays. It took us three flights that started when Levi should have been napping and finished at midnight. Levi was a real trooper but that was a lot to ask of a 20 month old. Here are a few pictures of two of our most effective distraction tools: a sucker and extra access to the pacifier.

First, the sucker. Yum, grape flavor...

Then in goes the paci- to cleanse the palette perhaps?

A few licks...

back to the paci...

Repeat the above steps until the flight lands in Chicago.

Sweet Land of Liberty

Happy 4th of July! We hope you had a fun day of celebrating. Look how much Levi has grown since last year.

We are still here in Providence and got to start the day off with taking Levi to the neighborhood parade. The kids all decorate their bikes and wagons for the parade. Levi was especially glad to see that many, many puppies take part as well.

Vacation Continued

Luke and I spent a wonderful day together in Newport. Levi stayed home with Nana, Papa, and Ya-ya where, among other things, he enjoyed playing outside and going to the hardware store. We took a boat tour around the harbour.It's hard to make out, but this lobsterman is showing off a SIXTEEN pound lobster they caught that morning. Whoa.

Here's a yacht Luke and I are considering purchasing. It's over 300 feet long. I suppose we could make do with that.

Isn't this house on the rock striking? As you can see the weather turned windy and foggy while we were out on our boat ride.

Mom and Dad treated us to some very good seafood while we were visiting. We had a great dinner out in Stonington, CT.

Random Vacation Pics

Levi enjoying some of the new books Nana and Papa bought for him.
His hair really needed a trim. He had the full attention of two stylists.

Levi loves anything with wheels and was thrilled to find this cart. He entertained himself at The Gap while the girls shopped.

He has really been soaking up the time with Nana and Papa.

Here he is showcasing his musical skills.

I love Levi's nickname for his Auntie Lea: Ya-ya.

Time Off

We have been on vacation this week and have really been enjoying our time together. Here are a few pictures of us at the Providence Zoo.

The Week

We spent last Sunday in Leavenworth visiting at Mom and Dad Dickson's. Here Levi is getting a little tutorial about all the buttons on the camera. As you can see he is quite interested. It's not often he is encouraged to actually touch the camera.
Sometimes Levi really cracks his Gran up. How cute are they? Levi has REALLY been enjoying blueberries lately.

Luke did some serious tree trimming at our place this week. Levi was watching from the upstairs window and everytime Luke started up the saw Levi said, "HAW!" Every time a limb fell to the ground Levi said, "YAY!" Look at these two taking a drink- Luke from his pop can and Levi from his sippy cup.

Levi got to play with two of his buddies this week, Micah and Daniel. Daniel pushed one of the toy bins away from the wall far enough to make a 'barn'. He announced that they were three cows in the barn. He is 3 1/2 and uses a lot of imagination in his play. Levi is definitely not at that level yet. As I talked about taking a picture of the cows in the barn Levi came over to look at the camera and was disappointed that I didn't actually take any pictures of real cows. He looked at me with a questioning, "Moo?"

My baby is getting so big! Look at those feet.

Father's Day 2009

Dear Daddy,


Happy Father’s Day! Mama and I are glad for a day to celebrate what a wonderful Dad you are.


I am excited to give you some presents. I had lots of ideas and wanted to give you some of my very favorite things- you know, like maybe a school bus, a squirrel, potato chips, a puppy, or a baby. Mama said we could give you some potato chips but the others will have to wait a little bit.

I watch you very closely and want to do whatever you are doing. After you go to work and Mama and I sit down for breakfast, we hold hands and she says a prayer. Then I lean down and kiss her hand- just like you do after our supper time prayer. She really likes that.

It’s great how you always look out for me. You were concerned that I might get scared by the doctors wearing masks when I went to the hospital to get tubes in my ears. You made a special trip to bring home some masks for us to play with. The next day when we went to the hospital, I wasn’t afraid at all.

It’s great how you help me settle back to sleep after I’ve had a bad dream. Thank you for making meal time, bath time, play time, and errands so much fun. Thank you for wrestling with me, praying for me, and singing to me. We have so much fun together and it’s just going to get better as I get older. We’ll be able to go camping and golfing and I can help you mow the lawn!

From the day you heard that I was on the way, you have thrown everything you have into being a great Dad. You never hold back. As I said last year, thanks for how you take such good care of me and Mama. She says she hopes I grow up to be just like you. I do, too.

Love,
Levi

A Little Light Reading

Levi sat down for a quiet evening with his paci and a book he had seen his Daddy perusing. (by 'quiet evening' I mean 20 seconds of being still)

Earlier this evening Levi went with Lucas to run by the grocery. As they parked the car Levi said, "Pray? pray?" Lucas obliged with a quick prayer. After the Amen, Levi then said, "Pray? more, more?" So Lucas said another prayer. A third time Levi asked for more praying and a third time Lucas said a prayer. Finally, Levi was satisfied and ready to climb out of the car for his outing.