I Want to Ride my Bicycle

Here's Braden riding his tricyle he received for his 2nd Birthday. His legs are plenty long now and he loves riding with Daddy. Lots of fun!

For the Birds

"George"

"Caw, Caw...etc." Yep, that's what we woke up to at 6:20am this morning. We had a crow stuck in our fireplace. He has been there since at least yesterday. We named him "George" for various reasons I will leave you to ponder on. After multiple attempts from different angles and tools Mike finally saved the crow. A chimney sweep pole with a wire coat hangar eventually did the trick. That's my McGyver. The crow hung on with his claws and Mike pulled him out on the coat hangar. He was a little stunned at first to see daylight again. He called for his friends who eventually came and then flew away. Though we've seen him in our grass and we know its him because we've memorized his distinct call that we've heard over and over and over. Mike says, "I got something accomplished this weekend. It only took 3 hours to do it." Actually, we also had a great hike to Little Si mountain. It's about 30 miles outside of Seattle. Shorts and t-shirt/sweatshirt weather and about 5 miles. Perfect scenario for hiking. Braden hiked some and was carried mostly by Daddy. The great thing about being pregnant is that I am responsible for carrying the water, food, and diapers. Not so bad, considering Dad has the 30lb child on his back. I still lag up the hills though. I guess its okay to give my self some slack. Anyways, it was a great hike, a nice fern gully to walk through, rock climbers, and a nice view at the top.

Big Boy Bed

So, since Braden seemed ready for a "Big Boy Bed" we decided to give it a try. We found this cute race car bed on craigslist. Its been about a week now and everyday and night are better. He does a great job now of staying in his bed until Mommy or Daddy come to get him and he's able to settle down more easily for his nightly slumber. Braden loved showing his Auntie Michelle his new bed on Skype too.

We met with a baby and her mommy yesterday and Braden helped to give the baby the bottle and really loved to give the baby his pacifier too. I think he's getting used to babies at daycare and this is helping him know what to expect. He's going to be a great big brother and a really good helper.

The rest of the family is doing well too. Darwin and Chewy just got back with Braden and I from a jog/walk this morning. It's supposed to be 83 degrees today so we headed out early. Needless to say the dogs were tired when we got back. (which is exactly how I like them) But when we got home Braden wanted "to go running with Darwin." So, Darwin got a little extra workout. Good thing Darwin's such a good sport. Then Braden and I played a little baseball. We might have to break out the fans from the storage area above the garage. It's funny, but whenever it's 70 degrees or higher now we put on the AC in the car. I guess we've become acclimated to the northwest weather.

I have to head back to work tommorrow which is really hard when the weather is so nice. But I can't complain. Poor Mike is working really hard. Though he got home a little earlier yesterday so was able to get a nap in and some baseball with Braden. Also, he got a 90 mile bike ride in on Saturday, and wasn't even that sore. I guess the stairs at work are helping him keep in shape. Braden and I even took a little bike ride around the block yesterday. It felt great to be on a bike again. I can't wait to ride on dirt again...