Blueberry Picking

We drove out to Hockley, TX today go pick blueberries at a blueberry farm with our cousins. Clark was an excellent helper, picking only the blue ones. He seemed like a perfect little picker since he could sneak into the bushes and grab those hard-to-reach berries. 

About halfway through our picking time, Clark discovered that he could eat the berries and his picking turned into: "pick one, eat a handful (or two)." That turned into: "shove fistfuls of berries into mouth until bucket is empty, then abandon bucket." 

I ended up taking 2 lbs. + a boy's belly full of berries home. As we left the farm Clark told me "that was fun!" I agreed!

Father's Day 2013

Happy Father's Day!

We had a Father's Day feast with Steve's brothers yesterday graciously hosted by Phil & Jen. I made each of the honorable dads a candy bar favor "suit"able for the occasion. har har. Instructions found here.

Clark and Lana have a great daddy. Clark asks me at least 5 times a day if Daddy is home yet. Steve is very hands-on and loves to take the kids to do fun things. He tells Clark great stories and whenever we ask Clark who he wants to help him bathe, get ready for bed, go potty, etc. it's always "Dad!" Clark always wants to be near Dad, doing whatever he's doing.

We love you, Daddy!

Galveston Island State Park

I can't believe it's taken me so long to take my sand-loving boy to the beach. We finally went on Saturday with our new-to-Houston cousins to Galveston Island State Park. I didn't think Clark could be convinced to do anything but play in sand but he seemed to also love being in the ocean with Daddy.

I hung out with my babe in the shade. p.s. Thank you anonymous gifter that sent her this cute outfit from diapers.com. 

Sam and Clark watching over baby Luke.

Clark's cousins built a sandcastle which he single-handedly destroyed 30 seconds after its completion. He's becoming notorious for dismantling creations made by cousins...

We'll be back, Galveston!

Learning to Ride

When I got Clark a trike for Christmas I assumed he'd instinctively hop on it and pedal as fast as his busy little legs could carry him. But I was wrong. During Lana's naps I've been teaching him how to ride and he's now pedaling by himself for several feet before exclaiming, "I can't go," and needing a push. Before too long I expect he'll be racing around the neighborhood.

As a mom it's very rewarding for me to help my children learn something new.

Sharing Toys

Clark loves entertaining his little sister. He gets out the bin of her baby toys, pulls out a toy, and presents it to her. He waits until she grasps it and holds it for three seconds, then snatches it back and says, "already have that. here's another toy. look at this one," as he gives her another toy. His little game entertains me as well, a couple of times daily, as I watch him work his way through the whole bin of toys one by one. It's very sweet. Clark is a great big brother. Lana seems to agree.

Young Candy-Striper

I attempted making Lana a shirt. I'll let the pictures explain what happened:

It started out as a good idea, then each step I took made things worse. I drafted the pattern from scratch and, granted, this was a muslin--a sewing rough draft--the shirt is...unique? I showed Steve the finished product and he said, "It looks like a candy-striper outfit." I wouldn't call it a complete fail because I learned a couple of new techniques and what to do differently next time.