ten months.

wow. ten months.

two months away from one.

crazy.

ten months might be my new favorite age (although i'm sure i'll say this same thing in the future)

parker is turning into such a little guy.

he knows when to turn on the smile (esp. cheesy ones)

when to pout,

when he's up to know good...

it's so fun to see that little personality grow.

current stats:

height: not sure...probably a bit taller than 9 months

weight: about 20.5lbs (some days he feels a lot heavier!)

teeth: 6!! with one more on the way (four on top, two on bottom)

food likes: oatmeal with berries, blueberries, crackers, avocados, anything we eat, hummus and cheese! oh my he loves cheese!

food dislikes: nothing really...although we have to give him any veggies before pulling out cheese otherwise he wont eat them

skills: not crawling yet...but some major scooting!

pulling himself up into standing position

blowing bubbles

making loud noises

going underwater

***sorry for bad picture quality...he moves much to fast for my camera now :( probably should invest in a better one! and we have black out shades up in his room for sleeping...too difficult to move or take down for pictures!***

michigan. part three.

almost done!

are you sad?

don't worry...i have some posts non-michigan related for this week too.

lucky you ;)

ok, thursday!

normal morning routine.

decided the beach was a good choice for the afternoon.

i haven't mentioned the weather much...but let me just say it was perfect!

warm but no too warm.

sunny. blue skies. awesome.

so the beach.

brandon, parker and i headed out...oh let me mention it took us almost 2 hours to get ready and walk out the door!

mary was going to met us there (taking a break from vacation bible school fun)

 ah yes...this is the life

 sand!

 dad! my shorts are too big!!

 this is awesome!

 shade for p, sun for grandma

 brandon kayaked

 parker loved being tossed into the water

 let me get my hat!

 

 worn out

 mom, dad, i need a nap!

 once parker napped and we got cleaned up.

garth, brandon, parker and i headed down to saugatuck for dinner.

we ate at Phils...so good!

the three boys :)

after dinner, garth and mary hung out with p so we could go out for a bit!

three dates in 10 days! monkies! we were spoiled!

we went to downtown holland to a new spot...our brew

such a neat place...and good!

also we may or may not have stopped for ice cream at kilwins

there's no picture so i don't think it happened ;)

friday was pretty low key.

parker woke up with a bad cold so plans were cancelled so we wouldnt get people sick.

we headed over to jenny's for one last chance to play with cousins.

molly and macen are too cute and too funny.

parker loved hanging out with them!

just like we loved hanging out with jenny!

friday evening we went out for one last family dinner at the piper.

yum! 

doesn't p look sooo grown up?

saturday morning, after a rough night with the sickie, garth and mary took parker for a long car ride so we could nap. parker napped in the car and we napped in bed.

brandon then started to make an awesome lunch.

chicken and asparagus! tasty!

we packed and relaxed.

then it was time to head to the airport.

we were sad to leave but thrilled that it wouldn't be too long before we were back.

 we had a long trip home but parker, even though he was sick, is quite the charmer in the airport.

smiling and chatting with anyone who happened to walk by.

we arrived home around 12...went to bed.

so good to be home!

michigan. part two.

so sunday was spent having parker "meet" the family!

so fun to see everyone and visit.

as always the time was too short...luckily we will see people again in august.

monday again started early (let's just assume everyday started before 7) ;)

brandon and landon (second baby he's ever held!)

after breakfast and naps we headed downtown.

we all stopped in the bank to say hello to cathy...who had been dying to meet the little guys!

we then went to the bike shop, found jenny

and headed to lunch! yum!

after lunch we took the boys to grandma's work to show them off to all the ladies.

they were a big hit!

then it was back to downtown for some more walking!

can i just say i love downtown holland. it's small, cute, friendly

and perfect for a quick walk. it's one thing i miss...a lot!

parker fell asleep on our walk and i successfully transferred him to his carseat without him waking up!

first time ever! hooray!

we then headed to aunt deb's for some beach time :)

the grandma's played and the mom's and dad's relaxed on the beach!

thanks for the break!

landon, molly, parker and mason

tuesday was picture day!

breakfast and naps were done.

at 11, jillian (soon to be the newest member of the family) came to take our pictures!

they went great...let me just say i am sooo excited to see them.

parker was a ham.

i have never seen him smile sooo much.

he was smiling even when he wasnt getting his picture taken...what a goon :)

then the engbers had to head home :(

we took a few more pictures...lots of hugs 

and wishing for august!

 wait...you're going home :(

tuesday afternoon, we headed to saugatuck for a quick walk.

and of course some swing time!

tired but i'll swing

hey! why is someone else swinging?

okay...this is fun

tuesday evening, brandon, parker and i met up with cathy and the boys for dinner.

we went to public in zeeland...so good!

it was fun to see them and catch up

i can't believe how grown up they are...

 wednesday....

breakfast, naps...you know the drill.

we headed to hope college (complete with a trip to jp's)

we showed p around campus, got him a sweatshirt,

and let him be the star of another photo shoot...

 then headed home for lunch

and a trip to the zoo!

parker loved the drums around the zoo,

and the monkeys, penguins and birds

alright...one last post! tomorrow...its tough fitting in 10 days into one post ;)

michigan. part one.

as i sit here this monday morning

it's raining and we are in seattle (no surprise)

it seems to be the perfect start to a week post vacation.

rainy...allows us to relax and not feel like we must go for a walk or be productive.

of course, bran and i have been up since 5:30 (thanks, p) 

who might i add is still sleeping...in our bed...

anyways...

michigan.

it was all we wanted it to be.

sure we didnt sleep as much as we wanted

but we did relax, see family and friends, eat good food and soaked in some sunshine!

not sure how many parts we'll have here but i want to get it all in so parker can one day look back and re-experience! so here we go!

we left early thursday morning...i mean early! jer picked us up at 5! yes 5 am!

we got to the airport, went thru security, feed p some oatmeal and got coffee.

we boarded early and got settled. parker was a champ, sleeping for part of the way and flirting the rest.

parker and bran sooo excited for the flight!

garth and mary picked us up and we headed home...it was our first time going to their new house! 

it's awesome! we spent the rest of the day getting settled and hanging out.

friday we woke up early. we hung out at home for most of the morning, letting parker eat and nap. we then headed out to a bbq to met up with some friends. it was fun to introduce p to all of brandon's buddies!

that night we had the rehearsal dinner for beany and katie's wedding! date number one for brandon and i!

 parker had a date with grandma and grandpa...i think they had fun ;)

 sunset on friday night

while brandon practiced, i took a few pictures of the beach...i missed it so much! we then headed out for some fun with t &l at new holland brewery. parker was sleeping at home so we figured we should take advantage! we got home around 11:30...party animals ;)

saturday was another early morning...how come babies don't understand vacation means sleep?

anyways...brandon headed out for the day. golf, food, friends, wedding pictures, wedding, reception...tough life right?

parker and i hung out with grandma and waiting for the arrival of erica, kyle and landon!

we were sooo excited to met landon! parker was pumped to met his cousin :)

we all went to the farmer's market and then i got ready for the wedding.

 my picture date ;)

the wedding was beautiful...the weather was chilly but no rain!

the bride and groom looked amazing!

 the happy couple!

 boys

 :)

 beany, katie, and us 

a beautiful ending!

we had such a fun night of eating, laughing, catching up with friends, a little dancing and playing at the beach!

sunday was again...early! brandon slept in, parker went down for a nap before church.

i went to church with the rest of the fam while b and p slept and rested.

sunday was low key with lots of naps for tired mamas and babies...landon and parker seemed to agree that waking at 5am was a good idea.

sunday evening was full! the lokker and deur clans were coming over to met parker and landon (and to see their parents too...but mainly the babies ;) )

but these babies were cranky! so the dad's took them for a drive so they could nap!

10 minute drive = 1 hour nap! hooray

 once they woke up everyone was there ready to meet them!

 p and ellie

 parker was fascinated with cousin macen

 parker and great grandpa lokker

 parker and great grandma deur (i think he gave her a record number of high 5's!)

 it was so fun to see everyone. it had been over a year and a half so it was good to catch up!

i think part one is long enough...stay tuned for part two tomorrow (or sometime this week).