Fat Daddy's

After an amazingly fun time at the cutest lake in North Carolina (I'll let Debbie post the zip line pictures), we were all hungry, dirty and tired . . . a perfect combination for Fat Daddy's! Julia made people out of french fries.

Greg spent some quality time on his BlackBerry.

Andrea and Trenton enjoyed the hot dogs and sausage.

Debbie enjoyed the love of her nieces, nephew and youngest daughter!

Day 1 at Debbie's- June 27, 2009

We headed to beautiful North Carolina to celebrate Julia's birthday (about two weeks after the fact). Since Jonathan was in town, we decided to take a chance and get the cousins in a photo together. Many of you may not be aware of our past attempts with only 6 cousins. Let's just say it wasn't pretty. Well, because of our horrific experiences (yes, plural), Debbie had her friend come to take the picture, and I captured the process. To see the final shot, visit Marusak Madness. Now, you might be asking why Sean is holding Daniel in the first shot, but not the final picture. Well, Sean has this thing where he pretends not to know me. He always asks who I am. On the way out to take the picture, he said he wanted to hold the baby. I told him if he could identify all three of my children, then he could hold the baby. Immediately, he correctly stated Sarah, Emily & Daniel. I was impressed, but not ready to fork over the kid.
I thought I could stump him by adding that he must match each child to the proper name, thinking he'd never know Sarah from Emily (Sean lives with his mom, so we don't see him as much as we see the other cousins). Well, he nailed it, so I passed over the child. Once he had his turn, Kate was there to scoop up the boy!

The Big Boy Cup: June 26, 2009

Daniel is learning how to drink from a sippy cup. Since he can't suck like most babies, he can't use a cup with a valve. We just pull out the valves and throw them away, making the cup anything but spill-proof! The water pours out, so he has to learn how to control the flow by tilting the cup with his hands, or use his tongue on the spout to stop the flow and swallow. Once he masters it, he'll be set for a regular cup!

Best Buddies- Daniel & Uncle Jeff

Love In a Box

Daniel is obsessed with this box that is on the living room floor. He will abandon his blanket full of toys to get it whenever he can. I leave it there for him to play with, despite his many toys.



The other day, he discovered the papers in the box, and he was a very happy camper! I think I'll start putting random toys in the box and wait for him to find them.

Seven Months Old- June 24, 2009

Dance Recital

Since photography was not allowed at the actual recital, my dad was kind enough to endure a lengthy dress rehearsal so we could have some great shots of the dances. The girls did a ballet number and a modern dance. I was on the fence about the dance studio (this was their first year here, but they had both been dancing since they were three and four), but I was amazed at the dances they did. They looked beautiful on stage, and I was very proud of my dancing girls. Next year, Sarah will stay with ballet and modern, but Emily will only be doing modern. I can't wait for the recital next year!

Fun with the Fowlers

While visiting Daniel & Kathy Fowler, we went to see some baby donkeys. Not only were the donkeys tiny because they were babies, but they were miniature donkeys. I thought they should get one as a pet, but alas, Daniel (D) seems to think there is some ordinance against donkeys in the city. Whatever. They were so cute! We also saw a very pregnant donkey. We had hoped she would have her baby while we were there, but she didn't.
After the donkeys, Daniel (D), Greg and the girls went to the fossil museum. The girls were thrilled to dig for fossils, do some rubbings, and dig and discover.

On Sunday, the lawn mower provided hours of entertainment for the girls. Sarah and Emily each had a turn riding the mower around the huge backyard. Fear not, they were sitting with Greg and Daniel (D) made sure the blade was off the entire time.

Daniel(d) loved all of the extra attention from two wonderful friends. We had a great weekend, and the girls are still taking about Taco, perhaps the sweetest dog in the world. I am hoping Daniel (D) has a picture of Daniel (d) with Taco, otherwise we'll have to get one when they visit soon! Also, while we were there, Daniel (d) finally got a tooth!