June Bug

It's summer! Hip-Hip-Hooray! The school year ended and we've been bored to tears! Oh wait...that's not how the story goes! School did end! Yah! Mark needs a break! But really, his break was only the first weekend. And, I'm sure it wasn't much of a break as there was likely something I was nagging him about =)! The daily strength & conditioning of the football team is never ending, a Youth Football Camp was underway the first Monday school was out, as well as basketball camps! (I don't know if that receives an exclamation mark or not.) Yes, Mark loves to coach but he's so busy and aside from it catching up to me, it does eventually catch up to him as well! Jump ahead a few weeks and he's started classes at UD to finish his Masters. Of course, one might question why he's taking 2 classes 2 days a week in Dayton and there are certainly a few good reasons for this! One being that he doesn't have to worry about transferring of credits (or not transferring is more like it) and the word "Xavier" is profanity in our house. UC might have been a possibility but again, Mark bleeds red & blue (when he's not bleeding orange & black), so, he's once again walking the sidewalks of the Ghetto! (I'm a tad jealous, however I can no longer conquer the Beast, but I am a decent cornhole player if I do say so myself!) So much for a summer break! But, with all the hustle of coaching and learning Mark's found himself on the golf course a few times, lacing up his cleats for a friendly game of kickball on Wednesday evenings, and slathering on the sunscreen for a little fun-in-the-sun with his favorites!

But, enough about the big boy! Lets get to the little (big) boy! Jack's personality is blooming! The good and the bad! He knows how to melt our hearts (as seen in a previous entry) and he is full of smiles and giggles! He's starting to show his frustration when he doesn't get what he wants when he wants it (Mark says this is the Erin in him) and sometimes when he can't figure out how to do something (probably a patience thing...I guess this is another Erin flaw).

Cheese Face! (Big boy drinking out of Mommy's cup!)

He is talking up a storm! His sounds do sometimes sound like words! Aside from "mama" & "dada" sometimes it sounds like he says "yeah" and "car". Even a "Jack" could be made out. We find it humorous! Speaking of words, he loves his books! He's starting to bring us books to read. Of course its the same few over and over and over again! His favorites are Moo, Baa, LaLaLa; The Bedtime Book; and So Big! (with Baby Elmo).

Helping empty the dishwasher! (Starting chores early!)

As for the other fun things we've learning this month...we love to play Peekaboo! Sometimes I have to start it, other times he'll take a pillow or towel and cover his face! He has learned to climb the stairs! We've added another gate to the childproofing since I caught him up 2 steps last night! Its not that I don't want him to learn to climb the steps safely, its just that he doesn't realize where the edge is and tries to sit down when he's done. (We also go off the couch head first...its a game, I didn't think about that one when we started it!) I digress! He's become better at feeding himself and can use his sippy all by himself! We're still struggling with meal time though. I have a hard time getting him to eat his pureed foods and he's not eating a lot of table foods yet. When he decides he's done or doesn't want to eat the food in front of him, he either spits it out or throws it on the floor. (We really need a dog!) He loves to watch big kids wherever we are and will even watch Kate Plus Ei8ht with me, loves the movie "Bolt" (Jack wants a dog too!), and not only does he love playing with wheels (his cars, trucks, stroller, etc) he is obsessed with the garden hose.

He was playing with the wheels, but as soon as I got the camera, he wanted to get as close as possible and CHEESE!

June didn't have many major events (we're saving those for July)! But we did go to Jeff & Susie's to swim a couple of times (the 2nd time was much better than the 1st); Woodland Mound Waterpark (brr, it was cold); and Columbus for a long weekend with the whole family! We had a great time letting Mom/Lolly take care of all of us, hanging out, playing with Ben, eating, drinking, and laughing! Jack didn't take but 5 minutes to warm up to his Lolly! He made Ben cry a few times! And only let Uncle JB or Aunt Elizabeth hold him if he was getting a bottle! Such a stinker! However, it didn't stop either one of them from stealing hugs and kisses and making wall art out of Jack! (Its a weird thing JB does!) The boys before golf. (Yes, this was slightly planned!)

Happy Father's Day!

Jack & Ben, searching for Cheerios!

I think Ben wants some too!

Phew! Finally with both boys with their heads up!

Hugging or wrestling? Next year is going to be great!

Petting zoo! (Jack was more interested in the hay and crocs!)

Looking at the elephants!

Acting like the chimpanzee's in the trees we just saw!

Running to mom! Can't wait to see the Bonobos!

Curb Appeal

Its obvious this blog entry isn't about the little guy but about a big house project we completed this month! And, when I say we, I mean the landscape crew at DB Lawn & Landscaping! Mark, Jack, and I went to the Home & Garden Show early this spring, hoping to get some names of potential companies to replace a crumbling retaining wall. And that we did! I entered our name in a drawing for a $1,500 free makeover and we won! (When it comes to home improvement, $1,500 doesn't go very far, but it helped!) I'm just glad we decided to leave it up to a crew of professionals to do the entire project as I think it might have taken Mark (and a few willing friends and family members) ALL summer to complete! Especially with some rain delays we had! So, here are the before, duing, and after shots! Now, its time for me to go water!

The Befores:

The Durings:

The Afters:

Happy Dad's Day!

Our silly boy knows just how to melt our hearts!

Scooter

Here is a video of how we've been getting around the past few months! Jack never really got to his knees and now when he does, he's usually pushing a car or truck! But it's effective! (And yes, we treat our son like a puppy!)

We think walking is just around the corner!

May Days!

The month of May has come and gone with the blink of an eye! Wowzers were we busy! Jack had his 9 month appointment at the beginning of the month...23 lbs! (I'll have to fill you in on the height at his next appointment. Mark took him and misplaced Jack's sticker and didn't remember how tall. But, he is tall! And his feet are huge!)

Swinging!

Like I said, it was a busy month! At the very end of April Jack got another black eye. And, he had only himself to blame. He learned how to pull himself up on a few things...mostly his Leap 'n Learn music table. So, while he was at Eva's he tried to pull himself up on a kiddie-sized chair. All went toppling over. Poor guy! But, he healed quickly! The beginning of the month brought us Mark's annual golf trip. So, Jack and I packed up and headed to Columbus for a weekend with Lolly & Poppy! What fun for all! The following weekend I was finally able to go out to Denver to meet Baby Ben! He is so precious, tiny, and seems so much easier than Jack ever was! Bless his heart!

Elizabeth and I assembled Ben's highchair! (Don't ask how long it took!)

Nana & Papa came down to help Mark with Jack for the weekend. I know Nana & Papa enjoyed themselves and I received a message from Mark on Saturday (while Elizabeth and I were getting pedicures!) saying that he was ready for me to come home! Because he was exhausted! "Exhausted"! Really? He had help! But, apparently he was doing MY jobs and his parents were doing his jobs! *Visualize stunned look on my face* Interesting...very interesting! =) Although, while I was away, Mark did tackle another bout of sleep training and we once again have an all night sleeper! What a feat! And boy am I thankful that I didn't have to endure 3 nights of 2 hour crying episodes! We made an unexpected trip to Coldwater this month because Mark's high school football coach lost his battle to cancer. We attended a beautiful tribute to Coach Reed and enjoyed visiting with family! And finally, we spent Jack's first Memorial Day on the road as well. And quite literally, most of the weekend was on the road! We celebrated Olivia's 1st Birthday

The Dietz's & The Bruns'

The Daddy's & The Baby's

Trying out Olivia's chair!

on Saturday and in order to make the trip easier on Jack (and probably us too) we pit-stopped (longer than a pit-stop) in Columbus. And, seeing as it was Memorial Weekend there were a lot of out-of-state Kensinger's in-state for the Memorial Day festivities in South Salem, so Jack met some of his great-aunts & uncles! Lots of traveling and lots of fun this month!

Poppy pulling me in Mom & Aunt Elizabeth's old wagon! (It sure is old!)

And, in between all this traveling we have been having a grand 'ole time! We cut 3 more teeth! All on top! The first two were quite a feat...causing runny diapers, diaper rash, and upset tummy! (I never thought I'd be so over-joyed as I was when I felt his top two teeth come through!) Jack has mastered the art of pulling himself up!

He's now starting to take steps along furniture and loves to hold on to our fingers and take a little stroll! Speaking of strolling...we 'competed' in our first 5K as a family. We walked the Forest Hills Education Foundation 5K and finished in a time of 56:45! (Hopefully we'll set a PR in our next 5K!)

I got a medal too! Yah me!

He took his first dip in his kiddie pool too! He didn't like it quite as much as I was hoping (he loves bath time) and the second attempt was more successful than the first.

Mom spent a lot of time slathering me in sunscreen...the least I can do inbetween fusses is try to like it!

I like rocking in this chair SO much better!

HI!

Oh yeah, I almost forgot, we celebrated my birthday this month too! What a wonderful year its been!