Halloween Pals on Parade...

"Ella, you make a very lovely little pink flower!"

Charlie Brown enjoys some grub.

Cousin Aaron "Bear" (minus the fuzzy bear head and ears)

A bright and happy sunflower, Charlie's friend Maddy.

Jack, the drum-playin' fireman.

Sweet Little Ben, a rosy-cheeked bumble bee.

"Good Grief!"

This photo might be a little confusing, but subtract the hatchet stolen from a nearby "fireman," squint to see the brown zig zag at the bottom of the yellow shirt and voila --it's "Charlie Brown"! We figured, with the bald head and the name, it was the perfect fit. We spent the day at Strong Museum's Halloween party hanging out with friends then did a little trick-or-treating that evening. Charlie had a great time (especially since there were no "Lucys" nearby to call him a knucklehead).

More Camping Photos...

"If I'd have known food could taste like this..."

"....I never would've forced down those cooked carrots."

Charlie's first camping trip was to Allegany State Park last weekend. Weather was a bit chilly, but we were able to enjoy great outdoor meals, take the boys on a brisk afternoon hike and have a great campfire. Grandma brought Blo-pops along for a snack and Bob decided to let Charlie try his. As illustrated in photos #1 and #2, Charlie was initially trying his darndest to get the sucker inside of his mouth. As you can see by the third photo, he eventually caught on. He jammed the sucker inside his cheek and proceeded to make loud sucking noises while his eyes lit up with a newfound glee. Notice his unhappy expression in photo #4 when Dad took the sucker back.

Take me out to the ballgame...

Charlie's first baseball game was a Red Wings playoff game a few weeks back. The boys (Charlie and his cousin Aaron) looked so cute in their sporty outfits, but the rain forced us to call the game early, for the boys that is. We'll definitely be going back though; Charlie was fascinated by the game...well, I guess he was more fascinated by the people in front of us, watching his cousin clap and yell and, most especially, by the crinkly bag of peanuts.

Six months and still swingin'

Our little (well not so little) boy is six months old. It seems like he is doing something new every day. New syllables--"da da" and "ba ba," new foods-- avocado and bananas, new discoveries--how to bang on his high chair tray, throw things off his high chair tray again and again, and how to poke himself in the eye (hopefully this was a learning experience and will not be repeated by Charlie). Charlie was 21.1 lbs at his 6 month appointment and 27 3/4 inches long. The pediatrician said that he has moved from linebacker to lineman and advised us to check the weight limitations on our car seat (Charlie was a little offended). He had more shots, but handled it pretty well and got three very exciting bandaids to show for his pain: Elmo, Blues Clues, and Hello Kitty (again, a little offended).

It's sad to see the summer end as it marks the close of the first and a very special stage of our son's life. But, it's exciting too, to realize that nearly every day brings something new for us to love about him.

Mama's little boy

Hmmm, perhaps Charlie is outgrowing his infant seat?

We were at Eastman House for a picnic and Charlie started to look sleepy. We put him in his infant seat thinking he would maybe drop off for a nap. Pretty soon we saw his head pop out the top of the seat and his hands using the roof to climb out to freedom.

Can't get enough of those toes...

Hangin' with my buddy Abel

Apparently Charlie finds his Dad's lower back pain amusing. I think our little boy's days in the Baby Bjorn are numbered. Weighing in at over 20 lbs., this kid should be on a big wheel!

Charlie Visits our Nation's Capital

Jen had to go down to D.C. for a grant review, so Charlie and Bob came down mid-week to spend some time strolling around the capitol. We visited all the monuments so that Char could pay his respects to the founding fathers of our great nation. He liked the World War II Memorial the best because of all the cool fountains. Mom and Dad had to do an impromptu diaper change near the White House, not sure if that was a political commentary on Charlie's part...

Hittin' the Hotel Pool

Charlie is a pro at swimming now and loves to "swim" with his legs and arms all going at once. We had fun at the hotel pool in DC and had to laugh when some other people there asked us how old Charlie was and said they had been guessing his age. When we told them he was (nearly) 5 months, they looked really surprised and said one had guessed 7 months and one 10 months! Charlie's girth is quite deceiving...

"It's ok mom, the doctor said I could have solids..."

Charlie's encounter with Mozart...the dog!

A weekend wedding and Charlie's new Aunt!

Learning to Laugh

Almost 5 months old!

Charlie at the Pig Show!

Charlie's cousins, Emily and Jayne Bannister, competed in the pig show at the Orleans County 4H Fair. Charlie decided to don his overalls and check it out. He actually loved it! He was passed around from Aunt Jan, to Uncle Stu, to Great Grandma, to Cousin Victoria... but never took his eyes off of the action. Congrats to Jayne and Emily on their impressive performances; those pigs are not very cooperative!

Charlie's Dedication

Friends and family were with us to celebrate Charlie's dedication last weekend. It was a very special service and it meant a lot to us that all of you came to stand beside Charlie on this day! He was pretty tuckered out after all the picnic festivities and decided to skip out on the water balloon toss to take a nap. Thanks for the cake Grandma!

Charlies 1st swim

Fourth of July

Charlie had a pretty exciting Fourth of July. He got to meet his Great Grandma and lots of cousins and Aunts and Uncles on Grandma Susan's side of the family. And...he rolled over for the first time--on July 3rd, he rolled from belly to back and on July 4th, from back to front! His dad kept trying to get him to do it once we got home (since Dad wasn't there for the first roll in Malone) and Charlie was not interested. Then, when he finally did roll over, his parents were clapping and whooping so loud that it scared him and made him cry!