Lions, Tigers, and Bears - Oh My!

Aunt Leslie and cousins Abby and Ashley came up from Lexington for a trip to the zoo with us on Monday. We had a great time seeing the animals, riding the train, and having a picnic lunch. I think Warner may have noticed the big animals, but I'm not sure he was overly impressed with the smaller ones. Most of the time he was more interested in chewing on the fence outside an exhibit rather than what was in the exhibit. Ha!
Here are the girls and Warner on the train. He enjoyed the ride around the zoo in this better than his stroller.
The dirt on the park bench was very interesting as well ...

A New Trick

Warner mastered this trick a few weeks ago. Take a look ...

Never Say Never

Well, we did it. We bought a minivan. Therefore I owe my mother $100 and everyone else an explanation.

Kevin's truck has served us well, but with over 205,000 miles on the odometer, it was time to get rid of it. Seeing as we drive our cars into the ground, we knew the truck replacement would be it for many years. Our hope is that God will bless us with more children, and if that is the case, the room a minivan provides will be needed. But I must say, even with one child, the extra space is nice.

Here's one final picture of Kevin with his truck:
I've learned my lesson. Never say never.

Girls (plus Warner) Trip

We took a girls trip to Chicago earlier this week. The original destination was Lake Cumberland, but since my parents are moving to Dallas, we thought a final trip to the windy city was in order.
"The Girls" included Grandma Warner, Aunt Debbie, MaNell, Emme, Aunt Kathy, Katie, Mom, and me. We spent Monday in Geneva - a lovely town west of the city with the cutest shops and restaurants around. Then Tuesday we went downtown.
We walked to the train station from my parents' house (about a 15 minute walk), then rode the train downtown. It was the neatest experience! It reminded me of being in Europe and that I love public transportation. Ha! Here we are at Ogilvie Station. Warner had a blast too!
We then proceeded to walk walk felt like 10 miles downtown. It probably wasn't that much, and I suppose we walked off our lunch at Cheesecake Factory and dessert of Garrett's popcorn, so it was worth it. Our first stop was Millennium Park.
Here is "the bean". Warner loved this, as he could see his reflection in it.
Here's our "group picture" at the bean. Notice Emme's face. I love it.
The rest of our trip was spent at my parents' house. Warner loved watching Emme, and she just cooed over him. She still thinks he's her baby brother. Mom, Warner, and I left Wednesday afternoon for Cincinnati, and have been enjoying Grammie's company at our house since. She leaves today for the lake, and then for Texas ...

I scream, you scream ...

... we all scream for ice cream!  Or, sorbet.  Close enough.  Kevin and I are weird, over-protective parents who don't want our child exposed to an abundance of sugar.  So, we haven't given Warner ice cream yet, but we have given him sorbet.  I'm sure sorbet has a ton of sugar, but it feels like it's better than ice cream.  In any event, Warner loves the stuff.  He's not going to know what hit him when he gets the REAL stuff.  Here's Warner walking up to the window at Bruster's.  Two of his favorite things: walking (with help) and food.

Thanks everyone!

Warner has been happy the recipient of hand-me-down toys lately. His friend Ethan let him borrow a few of the toys that he has outgrown, including the one pictured below.We were in Lexington this past Saturday for the Platt family reunion, and Leslie gave us two items that Abby and Ashley have outgrown - an outdoor house:...and a swing:I'm really excited about the swing because I was about to buy one last week. Instead, I spent $2 at the Home Depot on hardware to attach the donated swing to the bottom of our deck. I must admit I'm pretty proud of myself - I attached it this morning while Warner napped. I even used the electric drill. Watch out - all of my time spent watching HGTV has finally paid off.

Couldn't Help Myself

I'm so excited that Warner's hair is long enough to spike in the bathtub.
Kevin says Warner can be a fan of whichever baseball team he wants. I wonder which team he's hoping Warner will choose?

Children's Museum

We made our first visit to the Cincinnati Children's Museum earlier this week. My friends Kelly and Candace, along with their sons Ethan and Will, invited Warner and me on their trip. I wasn't sure if it would be age-appropriate for Warner, but there actually were a few areas specifically for kids who don't walk yet. Warner loved all of the new things to see and touch, and especially enjoyed watching all of the other children. I'm already planning on an annual membership for us for Warner's birthday.

Fourth of July

This post is long overdue. In my defense, we returned late Sunday after being at the lake for 9 days. It's taken a little while to get back into the swing of things!

For my family, the Fourth of July and Lake Cumberland (or any TVA lake) go hand in hand. Kudos to those who know what TVA stands for. :) Woodson Bend Resort is the icing on the cake for summer vacations. It feels like home - probably because my parents have moved so much in the past 10 years. Whatever the reason, it might be my favorite place on earth.

We split our time between Kevin's parents house and my parents condo, which was nice. At the condo there were plenty of visitors - my aunt Kathy and cousins Katie and Timothy visited for a few days. Then my dad joined us, followed by Justin, my cousin Josh, his wife Lisa, and their daughter Sarah. Josh has been celebrating the Fourth with us for probably 15 years, so everything felt "right" except of course Meredith not being there. The mood wasn't quite as festive this year, but we did still enjoy our time together. The week was full of waterskiing, golf, eating, laughing, and napping (yay for Grandparents!).We enjoyed dinner at the Platt's on my dad's birthday. This is the best picture I could get of all of the grandparents with Warner.We took Leslie, Abby, Ashley, and Linda on the boat for a few hours. It was Abby and Ashley's first time on the lake. They weren't too sure about doing anything behind the boat, but they enjoyed the swimming!It's an annual tradition to ride the boat from Woodson Bend to Lee's Ford Marina (about a 45 minute boat ride) for dinner. The food at Lee's Ford is mediocre at best. The ride there is much more fun than the actual dinner.Warner fell asleep in the bow of the boat and I made a makeshift tent to block the sun. We wore him out.