Start of Summer

We kicked off Summer yesterday with a Memorial Day BBQ in Baytown hosted by Amy & Mark. The best part was dining outdoors--a luxury we don't experience at our house for lack of a patio.

Blame it on Ike

I ate a mango last week and it bit me back. I love mangoes and I've eaten plenty in my life, but quite suddenly my skin finds them disagreeable. My lips usually blister up but this last reaction looks like I rubbed a handful of poison ivy all over my face. My cheek is swollen and bumpy, my neck and chin are crimson, and it's all been itching like crazy. As you can see, fortunately (or unfortunately?) it doesn't look nearly as bad as it feels:. 

The internet tells me that mango sap contains the same chemical as poison ivy, hence the similar reaction. I believe I must've been sensitized to it after my run-in with poison ivy while doing Hurricane Ike cleanup a few years ago. (Clearly, I had no idea what poison ivy looks like.) In this instance, the malady looked as bad as it felt and lasted for almost 2 weeks:

For now I'm avoiding mangoes. sigh. delicious tantalizing mangoes.  I will miss them, but appreciate not wanting to take a palm sander to my face even more.

Funny Face

Mr. Clark has been pulling funny faces this week by sucking in his lips. The look is enhanced, of course, when he makes accompanying bug eyes.

Why Dads are More Fun

Why is it that no matter how ridiculous moms can be that dads are just more fun? I'm doing a study to find out. So far the findings are:

1. They let you play with the best toys

2. They teach you cool stuff

3. They let you get into trouble...just a little.

Busy Body

Meet Mr. Busy.  

Clark has become quite a busy body in the last couple of weeks. He's gotten really good at crawling and has taken his exploring to a new level. I have to work harder to keep up with him. He also takes every opportunity he can to pull himself up to standing. I'm amazed at how strong his tiny muscles are!

Sprinkles: A Story

I had my first Sprinkles cupcake today.

Chocolate Marshmallow flavor.  Here it is at the halfway point:

It was pretty good.  Obviously.

Sorry, Husband, I tried to save you some but it ran out faster than I thought.  Also, don't panic that I broke the food budget on a cupcake.  Unlike the lady in front of me in line who paid $39 for her order (of 12) I didn't pay a dime.

Cliff Notes of this story: Sprinkles - 1, my mom pooch...also 1! Everyone wins!

Business Trip

While Steve took a business trip this last week, Clark and I took our own business trip. Clark learned the ropes of his grandpa's cabinet shop:

smiled and giggled

greeted, and was held by his adoring cousins

learned tumbling moves from his cousins

played on the swings

and on the lawn

toured Grandma and Grandpa's "wood house"

and of course played with lots and lots of toys.

We got a lot of work done on our trip! 

B Family Reunion

We just returned from a family reunion in Seguin, Texas (not to be confused with Sequin or Segway).

As long as we were passing by, we decided to stop at the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham, TX for a tour to see how my favorite ice cream is made.

The grounds on the property where we stayed were lovely. (The house itself is...not pictured.  We'll leave it at that.)

We picnicked in San Antonio and

the men played lots of basketball.

There was plenty of cousin time

 and aunt/uncle/grandparent/sibling time

Clark went swimming for the first time. 

There were pool races 

and running races.

We had a wonderful time!

Us + Trees

If you like looking at pretty trees, a cute baby, and a mom and/or a dad all at the same time, feast your eyes on these little numbers:

We were here yesterday taking some pictures of our friends so we snapped some of us all gussied up in our best Saturday casuals. yesss!!