true boy tales: Soaking up the sun

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Soaking up the sun

Not too much blog-worthy news lately. We've just been enjoying this weather (doesn't get any better than its been this week). We got this pool off of Craigslist after seeing how much Bennett's been loving his cousin, Piper's. But its not a permanent fixture. A) because there's a tiny hole in the top blown-up ring that we have yet to find and B) because we're pretty sure you can't have a pool this big (its probably chest deep on Bennett if it were filled all the way) without a fenced in yard. So anyway, its fine as-is for the time being but we'll probably re-sell it and find a replacement.

In the pool with our neighbor kids-- Bennett gets SO excited when he sees Jack and Sophie (on the right) outside and bolts for the door (usually before I get any clothes on him. Our whole neighborhood has now seen my naked son):

This is Bennett's latest pool progress:

I'm so proud of him! Now we just have to get those water wings off.

And Dawson, happy as a clam, with our good friend, Caitlin:

Don't let his smile fool you. He's actually been quite a beast at home lately. Mostly because he's been teething nonstop but he also gets so mad and just yells and yells if he has to wait at all for food. I've desperately been trying to teach him the sign for "more", thinking that'll help! He's a very determined guy already and won't sit still for a second. Bennett freaks out whenever Dawson heads for one of his puzzles he's working on. I've been hearing this a lot lately: "Put him in his saucer, Mom." He's already cruising around furniture and climbing. I found him on top of my sister's coffee table the other day! At this age, Bennett would sit completely in awe for an entire Baby Einstein movie. I tried one once for Dawson and I'm pretty sure he didn't look at the TV for more than 3 seconds. He's exactly like his brother, though, that if we're out of the house, he's perfectly content. Thank the Lord for that.

More to come soon...my best friend, Candy, arrives from CA in 5 days!! We're packing the week full of fun stuff. I cannot wait!

2 comments:

mandaJuly 2, 2010 at 8:26 AM
Bennett is a total stud!!
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AnonymousJuly 7, 2010 at 6:33 PM
Hi there! I found you blog through Jenise. I live in Ankeny and am interested in knowing which church is offering tumbling. Would you please email me at selbher@gmail.com?

Thanks-
Teri Selbher
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for the book lovers {my recent favorites}:

Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan: An incredibly haunting medical memoir. There's a lot of medical info to read through but I didn't find those parts boring and difficult to wade through. I thought she shared just enough. But if you like a book that's easy to read, this isn't it. I couldn't get this one out of my mind for a very long time. An unforgettable true story.
Me Before You by JoJo Moyes and What Alice Forgot by Lianne Moriarty: I'm just going to lump these two together because they're in the same category. I'm calling them deep chick lit. A perfect summer book to get lost in. Read them. Both. I promise you from the bottom of my heart that you will LOVE them. (I liked them both way better than Where'd You Go, Bernadette.)
These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner: Most of my favorite books have a main character with a whole lotta grit. I wasn't quite sure about this one when I first started it but, oh, did it sweep me in and not let me go til the last page. I also love a book that makes me "emote out loud" as I like to think of it. This one had me smiling all the way through and crying my eyes out at the end. It follows a young girl through her life in the Arizona Territories in the late 1800's. A must read for anyone who likes Historical Fiction.
Someone Knows My Name by Lawrence Hill. I LOVED this book. Its a very well researched historical fiction novel about a young girl kidnapped from her village in Africa and sold into slavery. It follows her through her whole life and the unbelievable heartache and trauma she lives through. I've been telling people I liked it as much as Unbroken but the main character is so much more endearing and has so much spunk.
Another Place at the Table by Kathy Harrison. I have a thing for modern day memoirs of utterly heartbreaking stories (Like Breaking Night and Blackbird). This is a Foster mother's first-hand account of the children she took in over the years and the unbelievable trauma they went through before they came to her.
Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls. I loved this lighthearted yet emotional story of a strong woman making the best of a hard life in the Southwest, beginning in the 1930's. I love her writing style--just cuts to the point of every story without too much "fluff" and yet tells it in a way that you can picture everything in vivid detail. Her memoir, The Glass Castle, is one of my all-time favorites, and this true-life novel about her grandmother didn't disappoint.
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. Modern day fiction about a girl raised in Foster homes and her struggles throughout life. She learns about the Victorian Era language of flowers and that becomes a huge part of her life. I finished it in two days. An easy read but very emotional and moving.
Zeitoun by Dave Eggers. The true story of a man's experience after Hurricane Katrina when he decided not to evacuate in order to look after several properties he owned. Quite an unbelievable story and so hard to believe this happened in the US only a few years ago.