My thoughtful husband

JD Sr came home from work on Thursday of this past week and told me that he had something fun planned for us to do on Saturday, but he wanted it to be a surprise. I couldn't wait to find out what the activity would be, and I tried a couple of times to get it out of him but to no avail. Finally Saturday arrived, and after breakfast, we piled into the car and began driving to an unknown destination. After about 20 minutes, we arrived at a blueberry farm, and we were there to pick blueberries. We had such a great time, and JD jr thought he had found paradise here on earth when he realized that one of his favorite fruits was growing in abundance all around him. He grazed the bushes and stuffed his face while JD Sr and I worked together to fill up the large bucket that we purchased for only $5.00! It was a really nice way to spend time together as a family, and now I have enough blueberries in my freezer to last until JD is ready for kindergarten!

Fun in the sprinkler

This past week has been especially hot, so I decided to take JD outside one day to play in the sprinkler. He had a blast sticking his face in the spray of water and squatting down beside it until he was completely soaked from head to toe. I must admit that I stood in the path of the spraying water also, wearing regular clothes and shoes, and it felt wonderful! It's hard to believe that summer will be over before we know it. I hope everyone is having a great one!

A Visit from Aunt Ju-C and Uncle D

JD's Aunt Ju-C and Uncle D (Julie and David) came for a visit this past weekend, and we had a great time. JD loved all of the extra attention that he got while they were here, as he always does whenever we have company. We made a trip to the pool on Saturday and had lots of fun just hanging out together. One of JD's favorite parts of the visit was waking up each morning to realize that there was a dog in the house (David and Julie brought their greyhound, Ally). This was evidenced by the fact that the first thing he said when he awoke was "Dog...dog...dog". His Aunt Ju-C took care of getting him out of bed and feeding him his breakfast each day that they were here, which was very nice for me to get a few extra minutes of sleep. She will make a great mom some day!

Proud as a peacock!

I decided to go to Babies-R-Us this afternoon to buy one of those training bowls with the big suction cup on the bottom. (Thanks for the great idea, Mama!) For JD's dinner, I made corn with butter and sour cream, and I put it in his new bowl, stuck it to his tray, and handed him a new easy-grip spoon that I also bought today. John David and I both stood by his chair and cheered and applauded with each scoop and bite that he took, all by himself! Maybe he could have been doing this before now or maybe he's ahead of schedule, but it doesn't matter to me -- I am just SO proud of my big boy!

He was quite proud of himself too as he grinned really big with his mouth full of corn and clapped for himself with spoon in hand.

What a momentous evening we had!

4th of July

We had a great time celebrating the 4th of July together with JD's Nana and Paw-Paw here in Winston-Salem. JD looked so patriotic as he donned his red, white, and blue ensemble, complete with star-shaped head gear. We watched a fireworks show that was put on by Tanglewood Park, and based on the number of people that were there, it was apparently the place to be!

JD enjoyed watching the fireworks and said, "Boom!" as they burst in the air. We left before the grand finale because it was way past JD's bedtime, and he was not very pleased when he discovered that we were not going to let him get down off of the back of the jeep to run around in the field where we were parked. At that point, we decided to call it a night and head home as JD Sr had a very early morning the next day.

I hope everyone enjoyed the holiday as much as we did! May God continue to bless and protect our great nation!

Such a little ham!

JD always keeps me laughing with his silly antics. He and Aunt Jemima have become great friends, as he LOVES waffles and french toast for breakfast. Of course, I think he would eat paper if it had syrup on it. Don't worry, the cap was closed on the bottle!

He got to spend time with our dog, America, over the 4th of July holiday while his Nana and Paw-Paw were here visiting. He absolutely loves America and thinks she's his own personal toy. She tolerates his poking and pulling very well, I must say.

His personality is really blossoming as he will say, "Hey!" and "Bye!" very emphatically and with a strong southern drawl to complete strangers. His vocabulary also continues to grow every day. He said his first phrase yesterday: "Yucky Bug" when he pointed to a fly that had come inside uninvited. I suppose he has heard me say that phrase a number of times as I've pointed to bugs outside.

It never ceases to amaze me how attentive babies are to every little thing we say and do!