I'm Felix. My Mommy and Daddy Made Me.

Lately, Felix has said the cutest things. We often have long discussions starting with what seemed an innocuous statement by myself, followed by a series of Felix repeating "why?" and then my exhausting attempts to explain the universe. Somehow, we got onto the subject of his birth and my wise little son now easily declares that his mommy and daddy really wanted him and so made him. When a little friend of his was trying to learn his name he proudly introduced himself as, "I'm Felix. My mommy and daddy made me."

This morning as we were cuddling in bed before we had committed to getting up, Felix announced, "I'm ready to be a man." When I explained that it would involve sleeping all night in his own bed, he agreed that he wasn't quite ready.

One thing he says that I'm reluctant to teach the proper term is when he is hungry he says he is hungry and when he is thirsty he says he is, "drinky", such as, "Can I have apple juice? I'm very drinky."

The picture I've included is from a day in downtown Seattle where I was responsible for all the kids in the picture, by myself, with one stroller. We had quite the adventure, including finding our way from Westlake to the waterfront and then splurging on a cab ride back. At the point of the picture, I'm waiting outside the car for the keys and decided to prop all the kids up on a wall where they can't get down without my help and then half-heartedly threatening to walk away from them. A bystander was so amused, he offered to take a picture and email it to me. As far as what Felix was saying at this point, I'm sure it was a lot of, "I wanna hold you, Mommy."

Sorry my posts are far and few between, any opportunity to get on the computer without Felix's protests are usually used for billable work. I've got great babysitting lined up for the rest of the summer though so hopefully you'll hear more from me! I had to add, just now he clipped his nails, he says, so he could "see his bones". Which reminds me of the frequent question he asks when handed a bottle of water these days, "Are there bones in it?" This took a little explanation from his grandma, apparently he choked on water, down the wrong tube, and my Grandma Hoffman's joke, "Were there bones in that water?" really stuck with him. Love, Renae

The 4th of Goodbye

How is that for a sappy title?
Almost every year as a family we spend the 4th of July at Downtown Bellevue Park. We get there at about 1:00pm, spend the day enjoying the playground, the vendors and attractions the park has brought in, and relaxing with each other while awaiting the fireworks show later in the evening. For this reason, it has become one of my favorite holidays. This year we missed the 4th of July with the family. Renae accompanied me on a trip to New York City for a softball tournament. We had such a great time there, and I got to play in Central Park, but I still have some regret about missing Independence Day with Felix. Last year he was interested in the fireworks, though he did fall asleep halfway through the display. This year he anticipated the fireworks and had an understanding and excitement for what was coming. He spent the 4th with Grandma Deanna and Grandpa Lee in Mount Vernon and had a wonderful time. When Renae and I got back, he told us all about the big explosions. That made me even more wistful for what I missed. The picture above is from the water park down the street from us. It has nothing to do with the 4th, and because we were in NYC, we don't have any pictures from that occasion. This picture is from July though.