The party theme was bugs, so the favors were these adorable little bug boxes that the kids stuffed with plastic bugs hid around the yard. How clever! Milo loves his little box. He has been playing with it all morning! Milo was dressed in the bug theme thanks to a friend of Donna's who gave him this 24 mo. outfit when he was 3 months old. It fits just in time.
Lyman and Milo take a wiffle bat swing at the ladybug pinata.Maddie later beat it open with a real golf putter.
Maddie is five! I remember visiting her as a newborn in the hospital like it was yesterday; now she is going to kindergarten. Last night was her party, and, as usual, Jennifer and Kent fed us great food and kept everyone entertained. Maddie was a great hostess, welcoming, sharing and thanking us all through the party. She is such a little lady. Here is her sister Sophie looking adorable in her new glasses and contributing to the group mural.
After many swings of several bat/club weights, the big kids busted the pinata. It was great summer fun. 
We took our last fling of the summer to San Diego where L was performing for four nights. We had a very nice time; one highlight was our day at LegoLand. We also spent a day at the beach, an afternoon on Coronado island with a old college buddy of mine, and down at the harbor where there was a big boat festival. This time in the hotel was much easier then Florida. All I needed to do was relax. I didn't try to put him to sleep at a certain time or in a certain place. I just let him roll around on the big bed with me while I watched TV until he stopped moving and slept. After all, isn't no bedtime and alarm clocks what vacation is all about? 
Lyman complained about the price of admission for a day of super-fun, but then he wanted to spend more money on a game to win Milo a prize, He really liked it for the hour or so he could hold on to it. Somewhere in the park it is lost. 
One of the reasons this park is supposed to be more toddler friendly are these (5?)huge play areas with different themes. Of course, Milo loved banging around in them.
One of the last "attractions" we did was take this little cruise where there was Lego "art" on the banks. Milo really liked the boat ride, and anyone who ever played with these toys has to think these are cool. 
Finally, this is what 5 hours in Legoland will do to a toddler. He's such a great kid; all around us, kids were melting down in huge tantrums. Ours just drifted off, and we headed to the parking lot.
Today was a zoo day. Any day I have M to myself with nothing to do, we head over there; that's what memberships are for, right? He likes it, and that place is so crazy spread out, it's a good workout for me. We spent most of our time today in the play area, but we caught some giraffes on the way out. M loved the giraffes; he squealed, pointed and jabbered at them for quite a while. Animals crack him up. At yesterday's barbecue, L's buddy showed him a picture of the puppy they are buying for some breeder out of state (that's another heated topic for someone else's blog), and M just laughed and laughed at it. Today, we were stopped at a red light, and he pointed his little chubby hand out and laughed and squealed. When I looked the direction of his hand, it was a billboard for that new Chihuahua movie. 
Saturday was such a busy day for this little one. He started with a morning class at Gymboree, had a short nap and then we went to a barbeque party at one of L's buddies. Milo really likes the pool, for about 20 minutes, and then he wants out. Everyone knows, there is a lot of gear and prep for swimming, so it's kind of a drag that it's short fun. He sure looks cute doing it! As you can see, this day wore our guy out! 
Here is M at a recent sound check for a gig L was playing. Doesn't he just look like he knows what's up?
This summer, I was happy to make some changes in my, well, our bedroom. I liked this red, but I wanted a change to something more feminine. What's not really pictured here, is a large red chair that used to dictate everything that went in this room. It had to go to make room for our small computer table that was once in M's room. Toddler curiosity and all those cables in his room was a time bomb waiting to explode; now he can actually play in his room. With the red chair also went some heavy drapes. These new shutters make the room so bright but with ample privacy. We don't ever turn on the lamps now before sundown making them a very green item for your home and well worth the investment!
We had kind of a crazy weekend here. Friday we were supposed to have carpet laid, so Thursday night, Lyman and I started to get our things out of the way. Friday morning, we were up early (but that's not unusual) and continued to move things around and shipped Milo off to daycare. The carpet installers showed up a little late, but we were all ready with CDs stacked in the kitchen, books and small furniture on the patio, more books and linens in the bathtub and closets stuffed as much as they could hold. However, the installers said the salesman measured incorrectly, and they were short 10 feet. After several phone calls, they said they couldn't get the carpet there that day, but they would be back in the morning. We had our whole house tipped upside down and tomorrow we would have a toddler. Stressed, sweaty and dirty from, basically, moving, we went to lunch, shopped a little and picked up Milo. Saturday morning, the guys called, on time, but their truck was broken down 2 blocks from our home. L went to give them a jump, but it was no good. Many, many more phone calls and a few hours later, a new crew of guys picked up our carpet and came to install it. Too bad we had the M factor; this is where L turns into SuperDad. He took him away to a class at Gymboree, drove him around for a nap in the car, took him to get his hair cut, out to lunch, over to a friend's house, another drive thur Starbucks to get another short nap in and home again to the play area by the pool. Whew!
This haircut is great, right? He got the star treatment at the kid salon. They waved toys in face the whole time, let him watch a kids show at his station, blew bubbles, saved his hair in a little bag and presented him with a digital certificate with a before and after picture. How do I know all this? They also took a DVD video. All that for $50.00. No, I did not order that when I made the appointment, they must have just thought that's what his Daddy would want. After missing all the fun while holding down the carpet front, I was happy to have the DVD. Oh yeah, the carpet looks great. It was worth it to teach summer school!
Thank you April for the "How Do Dinasaurs Go to Sleep" book. It's Milo's favorite, so I ordered him how they, "Clean their Roooms, Count to 10 and go to the Doctor" too. This one just arrived in the mail, and we busted it out in the car. 
