Lincoln's New Style

As Lincoln gets older, we are enjoying seeing his personality emerge. As part of this process, he has started to develop his own personal sense of style. As you can see, his preferred hairstyle is the "bedhead" look, which consists of a poof of straw-like hair at the back of his head that defies all attempts at brushing. He also trends towards the "alternative" look with his body art - multiple tattoos that indicate he'll either be a rock star or a Starbucks barrista when he grows up.

Ukrainian Adoption

Some of you know this, but I'm sure some of you don't.  Recently, a coworker of mine and his wife traveled to Ukraine to adopt three children (siblings ages 2, 3, and 4).  

They have been chronicling their adventures in a private blog until they kids were officially theirs.  Well, the kids are theirs, and their blog is now public.  So if you're interested in their adventure, check out their New Family Recipe.

GO VOTE!

A Tale of Two Babies...

I just realized that I haven't posted much about the new baby.  Yes, I am indeed still pregnant, and "Baby Brother King" is still due for arrival at Christmas.  We have most of the items purchased for his room - a crib (more on that further down in the post), a dresser, and a hefty supply of newborn diapers - but we're still in the process of putting it all together so no photos yet!  The nursery theme is "jungle animals", and here you can see Baby Brother in his "native habitat" as we enjoy an especially warm fall day.

And speaking of babies..."Big Brother King" has hit yet another milestone on the way from babyhood to kid-hood.  A few weeks ago Grandma King brought down Scott's old twin bed and we officially moved Lincoln from the crib to the "Big Boy Bed".  Lincoln loves his new bed and didn't mind at all giving his crib to baby brother.  Unfortunately, he did manage to fall out of the bed a couple of times before we wised up and bought a guardrail, but since then there have been no mis-haps and no toddlers wandering around the house at midnight.

Lincoln Bear-ly contains his Halloween excitement

Today, Lincoln's schedule was chock-full of Halloween activities and he got a lot of use out of his "scary bear" costume (which his cousin Everett was kind enough to let him borrow).  His daycare had a big afternoon party (Linda and I were invited too).  It was fun seeing all the kids and meeting some of the parents that we only see in passing every morning and evening.

After the daycare party, we went to our old neighborhood to trick-or-treat at Tracy and Joni's, Rudy's, and Butch & Bev's (Despite the name, Butch & Bev's is actually a residence and not a steak house or a bar).

We wrapped up the evening trick-or-treating around our neighborhood.  Lincoln had a lot of fun, but by the end of the night he was dragging his candy bucket and was ready to go inside to count his haul.  We let him pick out one piece of candy and put the rest up "for safe keeping".

Here are a few pictures from the day.  We also have exclusive video footage of his very first "trick or treat".

What a weekend

Last weekend we had an exciting time that included visits from my parents, Linda's parents, and Lincoln's cousin Everett.  The excitement boiled over at dinner one night when Lincoln fell out of his chair (while goofing around), smacked his head on our tile floor, and got his first real shiner.

It took us a few days before we could laugh at the situation, and I felt really bad dropping Lincoln off at daycare on Monday with a swollen, black eye.  Anyway, we finally got Lincoln to pose for these pictures of his battle scars.

Not for the faint of heart

We've recently discovered video evidence of the fabled multi-colored ghost.  This exclusive video is all that survived the frightening encounter.  Watch at your own risk!

Fall is in the air

It's starting to feel like Fall, and we've taken advantage of the great weather by getting some yard work done (Lincoln helped fertilize) and making a trip to the petting zoo with Mary, Randy, and Everett.

Two Exciting Weekends

Since the last post, we've had two very eventful weekends. Last weekend we had a mini-reunion with our Bradley friends. After just over two years Jonas, Lincoln, and Amari have grown into three wonderful (and very different) kids. We managed to get a picture of the three of them together as they played with the most popular toy of the night - "Chicken Race". Who knew that two chickens racing down a track could be so fun?

This weekend we went to my friend Jayne's (with her fiance Cecil) annual end-of-summer party.  They have a great wooded area around their house, and there's always a lot of fun stuff going on.  Lincoln broke away from the party for a bit to play some b-ball in the back yard (you can't see it in the photo, but there is actually a basketball court).

In the front yard Scott took Lincoln for a spin in the go-cart.  After a few trips around the house, all Lincoln could say is "again, daddy!"  All-in-all, another great party and another great weekend.

Last, but not least, here's a short video of Scott and Lincoln cruising in the go-cart.

Dig Dug

Last weekend Scott, Lincoln, and I went down to Suburban Lawn and Garden to pick out a new tree for our front yard.  We chose a red maple and they'll come and plant it next week.  Of course, that meant that we would have to dig up the sad little half-dead tree that was already there.  Scott and I were busy, so we told Lincoln to get to work.

As you can see, he did a great job.  The tree was small, but it took a big hole to dig it out.

Scott pitched in to help fill in the hole.  Now we're all set for our new tree!

Tour of Missouri Bring the Pros (and the Wannabes) to Town

Monday marked the kickoff of the the 2nd Tour of Missouri professional cycling race.  If you follow our blog, you know that my Dad had become quite an avid cyclist, and of course, Tracy and I have followed along (spending thousands in the process).

Well, my parents were in town this weekend for work, and they stuck around until Monday to watch the first stage of the Tour.  We also had some fun on Sunday, as Tracy, Dad, and I rode in a 40 mile charity ride associated with the Tour.  

Here are some pictures from the weekend.  We'll see if you can tell which pics are of the pros and which ones are of the wannabes.

In case anyone is still confused about who the pros are, here's a hint.  That's me in the middle of that last picture (on top of the podium) ;).

Food!

It's no secret that Lincoln is not a big eater, and up until about a month ago that had been evidenced by the daily reports we get from his daycare - they show us how much he's eaten out of each of his meals.  Last month we received a very pleasant surprise - he'd eaten *all* of his breakfast, lunch, and snack!!  We were so excited, we took a photo of the evidence:

Now if we could just get him to go in the potty!

In other food news, I thought I would post this photo of Lincoln "helping" me make pasta sauce.  He does pretty well pouring things into the pot, but sometimes he gets a little overzealous when he stirs.  You can see how hard he's concentrating, trying not to spill anything.

I know what we did this summer.

We spent last week on our first real summer vacation since Lincoln was born.  In total, we spent around 24 hours on the road. Lincoln handled it remarkably well - at least as good as Linda and I did.

Our adventure started in Estes Park, CO.  Linda's sister, Mary, found a great cabin with a beautiful view overlooking Estes Park.  It had more than enough room for the eight of us - Linda, Lincoln, Mary, Randy, Everett, Linda's parents, and me.

We started our first morning in the mountains with a nice, family hike around Bear Lake.

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After Bear Lake, Linda, Mary, Randy, Everett (in the pack), and I got a little more adventurous and did the 2.5 mile route to Alberta Falls.  It was very nice.

Later we tested Lincoln's sea legs with a cruise around Lake Estes in paddle boat.  Lincoln really enjoyed it - we were surprised.

Our trip ended in Nebraska with my parents.  We spent a day-and-a-half with them and got to go to the river, as well as visit Great Grandma (although Lincoln didn't get to ride on Great Grandma's scooter).

A New Toy for Linda

For a couple of months I have become increasingly interested in weaving - it seems like a natural extension of my knitting (plus it's a lot faster).  Two weeks ago I took at weaving class at the Yarn Barn in Lawrence to see if it was something I would actually enjoy before investing a lot of money (and space).  Well, I loved the class and ordered my very own weaving loom! The loom I bought is a smaller loom that doesn't take up much space (in the photos it is in "weaving mode", but it folds to about 1/3 that width), and it's pretty enough to sit out "in the open".  Scott took some pictures of me getting it set up:

Here you can see that I was successful at the setup and got all of the pieces working properly.  I was planning on talking to Lincoln about "mommy's loom" and how he should be very careful with it, but this morning he said that he was afraid that the loom would "eat" him, so I don't think I have to worry about him playing with it.  (Being "eaten" is a big fear for Lincoln right now.  He has also expressed a fear that bugs would eat him, too).

Ultimate Summer League Pictures

Saturday marked the end of another season of ultimate frisbee summer league.  Linda and Lincoln came out to watch the tournament.  They were an inspiration - we made it to semi-finals.

Below is a picture of Lincoln congratulating me after a hard-fought point, and here are some more pictures from a teammate.

Going on a Bear Hunt - Round 2

A few months ago we posted a short video of Lincoln "reading" his favorite book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt." Well, Lincoln is a bit older and a bit wiser, so now he's moved on to acting out the book. We hope you enjoy it.

By the way, the book starts with: "We're going on a bear hunt, we're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day. We're not scared." You may need the translation.



P.S. Lincoln got to spend the weekend with my parents. They were in town for a market, and then stayed on Monday to spend the whole day with Lincoln - complete with a trip to the petting zoo. He loved it, and sadly spent most of Tuesday asking where Grandma and Grandpa went. On the way to daycare, he saw a green van and was certain it was them. I had to convince him that they went home. Very sad.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Lincoln and I were hanging out last night while Scott was winning yet another ultimate game.  As Lincoln played in one of the cloth boxes I bought for our new office, he mentioned that he would like to introduce you to someone very special...

... his soon-to-be little brother!  Yesterday morning we had an ultrasound and learned that not only does his little sibling enjoy kicking mommy (no comment on how weird it is to see someone kicking your bladder via sonogram), but we also have photographic evidence that the "little one" is officially a "little guy".  The photo below is actually showing his arm and face, but we're keeping the photo of his "bits" for later embarrassment with the ladies.

Lincoln Reconnects with Old Friends, and Makes New Ones

We had quite the busy weekend this week.  On Saturday evening Lincoln got to reconnect with some old pals at a birthday party (he managed not to "help" open presents), and on Sunday he got his first visit to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead, a petting zoo in Overland Park.  We had a lot of fun even though our car thermometer showed 94 degrees when we left at 11:30 in the morning.

Of course,  a petting zoo would not be complete without goats.  Our first stop was by the full size goats.  The goat in this photo was tall enough to reach over the fence and give Lincoln a "kiss" while Scott was holding him. 
Later we got to go inside a pen of smaller goats for some "hands on" feeding.  The goats loved Lincoln, even when he wasn't holding any food.  They started swarming him the minute we entered the pen, prompting Lincoln to announce later that the goats were "mean".  No permanent damage, though - and Lincoln did manage to feed a couple (although in this photo he's not holding any food).

Deanna Rose also has dairy cows.  Inside the barn you can see real-life calves and a huge cow.  Lincoln showed minimal interest in the real cow, though, and went straight towards the fake cow with the fake udder that kids could "milk".

All in all it was  a fun morning, and we look forward to coming back - hopefully when it's not quite so hot!

Happy birthday, Dr. Hauner!

One more year has flown by. Happy birthday, Linda. We hope you had a great day.

More Travel Adventures

As promised, here are some more photos from our South Dakota trip. No trip to SD would be complete without a visit to the World Famous Corn Palace. You can't really tell in the photo, but the corn palace is decorated in...Corn! Naturally-colored maize is used to create the murals on the outer walls.

And what do you do at a Corn Palace? Why, get your photo taken as an ear of corn! The inside of the "palace" is actually an auditorium that houses a big souvenir shop during the day.

At the house, Lincoln had lots of fun stuff to do, like digging in the dirt with daddy.

He also learned a new "swinging" technique. Unfortunately we didn't get any photos of Lincoln at the pool, but he had lots of fun playing with my cousin Chase.

Finally on the trip home Scott and Lincoln got a photo op at a strategically placed tractor. Climbing on a tractor is a great way to break up a looooong drive.  

4th of July Fun

This year We took a 4th of July road trip to South Dakota to Linda's aunt and uncle's house. Linda's aunts, uncles, and cousins came from all over the country for the weekend, and it was great seeing everyone.

We were nervous about the nearly 10 hour trip, but Lincoln did very well in the car. Each way he needed a couple of hours of his new TV obsession (The Little Einsteins) to keep him pacified, but overall it was an easy drive. We'll post pictures of our "scenic stops" in the next post.

We stayed for 3 nights and had a great time. Jerry and Irene have a great house that overlooks the Missouri river. It has a small indoor swimming pool and comes with all the great lake toys - boat, jet ski, etc. We could have stayed an entire week and not gotten bored.

Here are some pictures from the trip...and yes, that is a picture of a turkey being deep-fried in the driveway (this is America, right?).