The Whirlwind We Like to Call Summer.

At Wes' last check-up, the pediatrician said "parenting becomes a lot more fun in the summer."  He wasn't kidding.  As our heads hit the pillow each night, it feels like we crammed a week's worth of activity into the past twelve hours, but even our exhaustion can't jade how much fun we've been having.

It's neat how different this summer is from last.  Wes is really experiencing a lot of things for the first time, and his uninhibited excitement and awe is one of our favorite parenting experiences so far.  He offers boundless opportunities to view the world through the eyes of a child, and that's something we've forgotten to do in a long time.

Since most of our friends are teachers, summer break has presented the opportunity for Wes to see a lot of his buddies much more frequently.  It seems like there is always a friend ready to play, and despite all of our garage sale finds, the toy of choice seems to be landscaping rocks :)

Neighbor buddies Ben and Noah in their GIGANTIC sandbox!

Neighbor Lauryn sharing some chalk.

Off to the races!

 

The whole crew in Wes' playhouse.

At capacity!

Wes and Madeleine...future prom dates :)

With all of his buddies home for lunch, Wes wanted Sam to join him instead.

 Wes continues to be a good helper with household chores, especially those that involve water. 




Watering our new tree.

Professor Plum gets a bath.

 

Poor Sean, Wes has a critical eye just like Mom!



Uh, you missed a spot.

Helping Grandpa Miller water flowers.

Checking to make sure the downspouts work.

Wes' favorite new toy also involves water.  We bought him a water table, and like all his other toys, he likes to make sure it meets the highest quality of manufacturing standards.

This kid is the reason for those safety warnings on toys.

One of our favorite places to go is still Uptown Normal.  Wes now roams the sidewalks and peeks in the storefront windows.  We also went to the library's play room for the first time. Note to self: figure out what a "library voice" means.

Wes and Mom's favorite spot at the Coffee Hound.

We also took Wes to visit one of the high schools during break.  What was the coolest thing?  1,700 open lockers, of course!

Have I mentioned we are exhausted?  We are.  But what makes it all worth it?  The cheesy smiles from our backseat boss :)