Splish Splash!!

With summer here we have been escaping the heat with some water!! We had a great memorial day weekend extended into Tuesday with splashing in Calin's little pool, sprinklers under the trampoline, and a trip to the rec center pool!!!  We are so glad Calin loves the water so much!! It is so much fun to see him so happy!!

Although we did pose him like this, he then stayed like this for a while just
enjoying himself!! He is such a cheese sometimes! 

Fun with cousins! 

He loved running across the trampoline through the water.

He would even sit right in the middle in the water splashing up and would just giggle. 

Cute picture with cousins!  He loves them!
He just laughs and giggles and smiles when they are around. 

We got to the rec center and got in and about 30 seconds later they blew the whistle for their break/pool check.  We were freezing waiting to get back in (it was really windy) and took some pictures to distract us. 

This was the only picture of like 20 that I finally got him to look at me.
He was just watching everyone and everything around him. 

Loved the slide with Dad! 

Don't mind my wet dog smashed down hair! 

He loved this slide in the little kids area of the pool.  He just kept pointing to it wanting to go over there.  It is right by the open walls though and the wind was making it freezing over there.  He loved it anyways! 

Happy slide! 

Water in the face! 

Yea for summer!!

New Favorites and Tricks

Robby had this old wagon he used to use for skim boarding.  He decided to clean it up for Calin to use.

Calin LOVES it!!  We take him on a walk almost every day in the wagon and he hates it when it is time to get out.  He loves to go and see the neighborhood goats, horses, and cows.  He is pretty amazing how excited he gets about everything!

He always holds on with two hands like this.  Safety first! 

Heading out with Dad! 

He just loves it so much! 

Visiting the goats. 

Visiting the horses. 

Trying to feed the horse. 

Playing in the fort while all the chairs were
in the living room so we could mop the floor. 

Fun times with Dad!

 Calin has also been loving climbing up the stairs!  There are some stairs at our church building that he loves to go up too!

Calin has also learned to play hide-and-go-seek with Robby.  It's not perfect but we think it's pretty good for an 11 month old!  He is such an awesomely smart little boy! 

Sometimes it takes him a minute to get going. 

Sometimes he gets a little distracted when looking, but eventually gets there!  

And of course...He is Walking!!  So at church today he was walking up and down the edge of the chairs in the aisle of our overflow section in the back.  At one point he let go of the chairs, took 3 steps, and then grabbed the chair again.  It was pretty funny because he had quite the audience with everyone in the overflow.  I was so proud.  However, with Robby up on the stand, I felt really bad and was sad to tell him that he missed Calin's first steps.  So I tell Robby and he says to me, "actually you missed his first steps".  Apparently while I was doing some church stuff last night Robby got Calin to take a few steps and I was the one who missed it!!  Oh well. :) I guess they were his first for both of us! He then did it again this afternoon while we were skyping with my parents.  We are so proud and excited for him! 

Robby finished school last week and we are so excited for all the summer fun!! He has a week off before he starts his summer painting job and we are excited to have a week full sun and fun! 

A Picture Collection of the Last Few Weeks

We had quite a bit of rain a two weeks ago and Calin didn't mind the rain at all! When he is walking with us he knows where he wants to go and leads you right there.  Out into the rain was where he wanted to be! 

Soaked but happy!

Loves playing with these with Dad!

Playing Baseball with Dad

Reading stories

Riding the wiggle bike at the Salley's 

Calin enjoyed watching and "playing" with Bandit my Uncle and Aunt's dog at Great Grandma's house.

Enjoying the farm animals at Great Grandma's on Mother's Day.

Playing in the hose pot at Great Grandma's. 

Grandma Mielke came for Mother's Day Weekend and it was great to have her here! 

More playing in the pot! 

One quick ride before Grandma left for the airport. :( 

We went to Aunt Ami's for Mother's Day dessert after dinner at my

 great grandma's and Calin was loving this game with the cousins! 

 First "haircut!  Calin has these few LONG hairs on the back and by his ears.  They have been tickling his ears lately and he was looking pretty scraggly so we thought we should cut them.  He is so wiggly though so we were nervous to try scissors right by his ears.  So Robby used his trimmer.  It sort of worked.  Some of the hairs (the like 5 long ones that there were) are still a little long.

11 months!!

Calin is 11 months!! 

*Sometimes holds his brush and "brushes" his hair.

*Is excellent at waving at everyone! He especially gets excited with people he knows and starts excitedly waving both hands!

*Responds to the questions "What does a scary dinosaur say?", when Robby asks, with a little growl. (most of the time)

*Knows what a horse is and makes a horse noise when he sees one or  when we go on a walk to see the horses a couple blocks away he starts making it on the way.  It is not the "neigh" noise, but the lip vibrating noise that horses do.  He does his own original noise most of the time, but sometimes gets confused and does it at the wrong times.  Or maybe he is smarter than we think and totally knows what he is doing, but we don't??!! ;)

*LOVES watching the birds as much if not more than ever.  He is always pointing at them and making sure we see them too.

*Also still LOVES watching airplanes (and the rare helicopter) too.  Tonight a helicopter flew right over our backyard and he was practically squealing with delight.  He is so smart that when Robby bought a new glider the other day (not put together yet and not looking like an airplane) he took it in his hand and flew the package around and made his airplane noises.  As soon as he hears the noise of an airplane he looks around in the sky to find it.  He can also spot them in the sky without hearing them, but sees the plane and the trail it leaves behind.

*He also notices other things flying, like butterflies, and enjoys watching them too.

*Is getting really brave in the pool and after watching my mom and I put our faces in, he tried to put his in too.  It surprised him, but I love that he his getting braver!

*Stands on his own very occasionally and only for like 10 seconds or less.  He gets nervous after he falls down.

*Still in size 3 diapers.

*His two top teeth are coming in, VERY SLOWLY (that will be 4 teeth once those come in)

*Still not the best sleeper, but we take what we can get...:)

*Loves to play ladder ball!

*Always wants to be down on the ground walking (with our help)

*LOVES to be outside.  If we are walking around the house with him he almost always heads to the door.

*Likes to sing "Wheels on the Bus",  "Old McDonald", If You're Happy and You Know It (and will clap with us most of the time).

*Likes to read...although he has a hard time laying down to read or sitting in our laps.  He likes to sit next to us and move around but still listens and looks at the pages.  In the book "Little Blue Truck" there is a part where the truck goes "bump bump bump into the mud" and he will make the "bump bump bump noise.

*Knows what the moon is and the last few days has even been pointing to it during the day since it has been up when it is still light.

*Is an excellent watering partner in the garden and loves to put his hand in the water and let it splash all over him.

*Does not like to wear shoes unless he is walking around.  If he sits down or gets picked up he just kicks them off.

*Is quite a tease.  He will often go to give you something and then laughs and pulls it away.  He does little things like this fairly often and thinks he is so funny.

*Likes to play with pens and pencils whenever he can get his hands on them.  We quickly try to take them away which often is not a pleasant experience for him.

*Often falling and getting little bumps and bruises.  It seems like he has a new scratch every day and we have no idea where it came from.  We definitely have a little boy on our hands!

*Just today he started making the "more" sign.  I have been working on it with him for months and he finally made it today with me.  He did not do it for more food on his own but we are getting there!  Yea for progress on communication!!

We just can't get enough of him!! 

A sampling of life lately....

Life has been busy and full of fun lately, but I guess nothing has seemed super exciting or out of the ordinary to blog about.  However, here are a few things that have been happening lately that may or may not be exciting.  I have not been great at taking pictures but have a few of some of the things.

*Calin has been my running partner in the mornings, and sometimes we wait and Robby comes with us when it hasn't been too hot in the afternoon or evening.  Calin is an excellent cheerleader and keeps us going!

*We have been trying to spend lots of time outside enjoying this beautiful spring weather before it gets too hot to enjoy being outside!

*Went to the Southern Utah Culinary Festival and enjoyed sampling some of the local restaurants yummy food!

Robby and Calin enjoying the evening at the food festival!
Calin even got to have a few bites ! 

*Went to the park one Saturday with Hollie, Preston and Gracie and enjoyed flying airplanes, flying kites, playing on all the fun toys and Calin especially loved swinging.  He just started giggling the minute he got on!

*Enjoyed taking Robby swimming with us one evening since we usually go during the day.  It was fun to have him there with us!

*Lots of work outside on the yard-planting grass (filling in some bare patches), watering, weeding-it is never ending!! Calin enjoyed playing in the rocks one day while I was weeding and managed to get two rocks down his shirt.  Such a boy!

*Planting and tending the garden.  Calin likes to come out with us help. He even tries to help with the shovel and hose sometimes. He especially likes to play in the water and get himself soaked!

The left side of the garden
(I love how the garden looks at the beginning of the season all neat and no weeds!)

The middle part of the garden.  I had to document it all this year
since we are pretty proud of it! 

The right side of the garden.
I'm getting so excited to have some yummy tomatoes! 

*Calin has been trying lots of new foods and is starting to enjoy many new things.  He is always looking at our food and wanting to have whatever we are having.  I try to make dinner that has at least one thing we can give him that is on our plates too so he doesn't feel left out.  His new favorites are scrambled eggs, pieces of banana, pieces of bread (also likes to have a little peanut butter spread on there), pieces of green beans, and anything else we can give him that he can mash up in his mouth pretty easily since he still only has two teeth.  

*Lots of busy nights at the church for YW's and bishopric meetings! Calin does not always love spending Tuesday nights at the church but the leaders and girls do what they can to help keep him happy and entertained!  How can he not love being around a bunch of cute girls!

"Brown Bear" and the "First Counting Book" have been such a help!
I'm so glad he loves books! 

*Lots of walks around the neighborhood to enjoy the outside some more!  This is right after Calin and Robby went for a walk.  

So cute with his hat on backwards trying to be all cool. 

 *Robby spent a lot of time working on a greenhouse that should be really useful next winter!

*Lots of work on cleaning up our carport.  LOTS of cockroaches were discovered under a pile of wood...YIKES!!

*I enjoyed two weeks in a row at church being complimented on being a good mom.  Sundays are hard for me and I am always worn out from trying to keep Calin happy and entertained.  It was really nice to have two different women on two different weeks acknowledge that I was doing a good job.  Sometimes I feel like such a failure when I end up out in the hall for half of sacrament meeting, but it was good to know that I was at least doing something right.  Glad to have such wonderful people out there who recognize what others are doing.  I hope I can watch out for others that I can compliment and help make their day too!

Lastly, we were out watering the garden tonight.  It cooled down quite a bit today from the 80's and 90's it has been and was down in the 60's-70's with a LOT of wind!!  We noticed these three little birds when we first got out there that we thought were just out looking for food.  However, after watching them for a while we realized they were 3 little baby birds that must have gotten blown out of their nest with all the wind.  The mom (we think) kept coming to check up on them but obviously didn't know what to do to help her babies that didn't seem to be able to fly yet.  These poor little birds kept trying to huddle together (probably to stay warm since it was so cold). It was very sad to watch and not be able to do much to help.  We tried to help make a little nest for them to stay warm in, but it just scared them more than helped.  They eventually made it up into a little corner of our yard in a bunch of bushes.  Hopefully that keeps them safe and warm for the night! 

Mostly life is just really great right now!  We are loving every minute with Calin and love spending time together as a family!!