It's the year of the retro-post. Happy Fourth of July!

Pay no attention to the post date.

I would say it's been a crazy year, but I'm beginning to think they're ALL crazy. So, no excuses. I'm spending more time with Shepard these days due to a later bedtime, so I think my blog-time must have been in the evenings after he went to bed. But I can't remember because I'm so flippin' tired.  :)

Shepard's day care has a great tradition of doing a Fourth of July parade each year. Each class makes t-shirts and hats, the fire truck comes out, and a four-piece jazz band...and they go around the block in their strollers, wagons, golf carts, etc. ALL decked out with stars and stripes. It's great fun. Jerod got to go this year and take some photos (it was on July 3, and I had to work). It's such a big deal for the kids. When they come back in to the gym, they get sno cones and there are bouncy houses. It's a big party.

Parade-goers. Lots of parents and grandparents.

Shepard in the bouncy house

The fire fighter let the kids sit up in the fire truck!

Then, he let Shepard hold a real fire hat.

The squinty-eyed smile of late.

Passing time before the big parade.

A trip to Gigi and Pops' house

We did a mini-cation in July. It's almost hard to remember now. It rained a lot. Shepard didn't really notice. He was as happy as can be. We did have one nice day at Stone Mountain that little man is STILL talking about...he loved the cable car up the mountain! And, he got to ride a BIG TRAIN for the first time.

Here are some highlights...(click on photo to view larger)

Shepard got to play with Alina. They have learned the art of "cheeeeeese!"

Reconnecting with my old roommate, Sara. (Alina's mommy)

New friends are always fun to laugh with.

(Stone Mountain train) Here it comes!

Ready to ride the rails!!

 

The gang's all here.

Train whistles are VERY LOUD.

 

With the engineer.

Cable car. Ride to the top of the mountain and see "broccoli trees" below.

On top of Stone Mountain

Group shot. Downtown Atlanta in the background.

 

Making "Pops" look super-tall

 

It's a beautiful butterfly.

Ready to ride to the top.

Mom on Stone Mountain.

Holding on to the little climbing monkey.

Catching butterflies.

Oooh. I found a sandbox! Fun anywhere.

Carving on Stone Mountain and site of the Laser Show.

We found this awesome toy at a Charlotte park when we got home.

 

Three. The Movie.

It's epic-lengthed. Seriously. Way too long, but time is moving along so quickly that I don't want to skip anything and forget it. So, if you have 15 minutes to watch the sweetest little guy on the planet, here's your chance.

Coming soon...THREE. THE MOVIE.

But until that big ole video uploads...amuse yourself with this. "Froggie" and Shepard recently. An interview.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHEPARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 We celebrated Shepard's third birthday on Saturday with a few (ok, 40 or so) of our friends and family. It was also a bit of a housewarming, as we've not really done that yet either. It was great fun. And a lovely, breezy June day (how often does THAT happen?).

(remember to click on the pictures to see them all larger)

Thank you to everyone who came, for all the gifts (which we'll have to dole out a few at a time!) and for being our friends.

Daddy shows Shepard how to make the hammock work. (pre-party set-up pajamas)

 

Father's Day fun and fail

Lest you think life with our dear little fellow is all bliss and frolicking through fields of wildflowers...we had the oddest thing happen. Up 'til now, little man did not that the music truck that went by also doled out delightful ice creams. In our new neighborhood, we don't have a regular ride-by, as we have probably pulled the average age of the neighbors down to a sprightly 58 with our presence. We would hear one on the main road outside the neighborhood a lot, but I thought it would be cruel to tell him it was a truck full of treats that was not going to come to our house. So I just called it the music truck.

On Father's Day, we decided to take a trip over to Shepard's favorite local park, the "waterfall park." It's Glencairn Gardens about two miles away.

This kid really loves him some fountains.

It was a nice evening, and we had been strolling around the park for the better part of an hour when we heard the "music truck." Shepard was intrigued and trying to see where it was coming from. We made it up to the top deck of the balcony area and there it was!

We decided to let the cat out of the bag, so to speak, and spring for an ice cream for him. Thus, he'd know the secret of the music truck. It doles out magical, sugary goodness.

 We asked him several times what kind of ice cream he'd like. Fruity, chocolate, popsicle? He wouldn't answer...a common occurrence, frankly. He often pretends to ignore our questions as a means of control. Given his usual preferences, I opted for a chocolate-coated ice cream bar for him after explaining that Mommy was going to choose if he didn't. He still didn't.

 We unwrapped it and gave it to him. He nearly knocked it out of my hands. "NO! YUCKY! NO CHOCOLATE!"

What? When have you ever turned down chocolate? "I DON'T WANT ANY!"

Really? I explained that it would start to melt in the heat if he didn't eat it or at least try it. Then Daddy and I took a turn each at taking a bite and telling him how yummy it was. The thing was melting, y'all! We spent several minutes trying to convince our child TO EAT ICE CREAM.

He proceeded to melt too. Loudly. For a long time. Turns out he wanted fruity. When I threw the melty messy rest of it away, he really put on a show for the mosquitoes and park patrons.

Well, I don't read minds. I'm not sure how long it's going to take him to figure that out. His attempts at control and forced mind-reading are not going to end well. And I'm really thinking he's not getting any more ice cream truck surprises anytime soon either.

Just one of those nights, I guess. I didn't get pictures of the meltdown because my camera battery died (darn it!). But after all this fun and a delightful evening...yep. Meltdown. Ah, life with a preschooler. The mood changes on a dime. Or in this case, on a $2 ice cream. God love him.

Summertime!

We've pulled out the sprinklers, crashed our friends' and families' pools and are well on our way to having a summer of fun. Popsicles on the front porch are a near-nightly staple. And Shepard discovered fire flies this week.

We hit a milestone a few weeks ago. My little man stayed overnight with someone OTHER than a parent. He went to "Camp Giles" for a few days in Georgia. I thought if I started talking to him about it on Monday of that week that he would be prepared to be temporarily separated from the two human beings who love him most and have not stopped thinking of him since the moment they knew of his existence. I told him he was going to stay with Gigi and Pops for a few days in Georgia. What did he think of that?
"YES!" he said, excitedly.
When I picked him up from school later that day, he said, "Where my Gigi?"
Then, he talked about it the rest of the week. I guess he was ready.

 Mommy nearly didn't let him get down the driveway, but he was so excited waving "bye, Mommy!" that I had to let him go. I'm sure it's the first of many mini-goodbyes that will evoke tears. I'm so happy that he enjoys adventures and spending time with family. Here are a few pics of his trip to Georgia.

Pops and Shepard enjoy a crazy-ocean-horse.

Pay no attention to the finger in the upper left corner.

What's summer without a good picnic?

SLIDE!

We stay outside doing something most evenings. Sidewalk art is always fun.

Daddy is taking a porch-moment. I gotta say, the new porch is AWESOME.

Happy Summer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now if we could just work on this whole humidity issue...