Birthday Surprise

Waiting for his surprise!

Rafe said, "OH, MY GOODNESS!"

The happy dance

The happy boy!

Rafe received an early birthday present from Pop, Gram, Nana, and Papa yesterday - a play set! It was really hard to keep it a surprise. Rafe and I ran errands all morning while they were putting it together and I kept the blinds in our house closed (which I NEVER do!) After Rafe's nap the swing set was complete. I made him go outside and close his eyes. Before he saw it I asked him what he thought his surprise might be. Rafe enthusiastically said, "Is it a cat?" Unfortunately it was not a cat, but I don't think he was disappointed. He started jumping up and down and of course ran straight to the glider swing. That is all he really wanted. As if we don't get up early enough in the mornings, Rafe was out swinging this morning at 6:15. I was prepared for that!!

Thank you Pop, Gram, Nana and Papa for the wonderful gift. He absolutely loves it!

Miss Batman

After church today we headed to Pop and Gram's house since Daddy was at work :( Rafe had his usual Batman gear on (cape, mask and gloves) and disappeared into their garage. Moments later he appeared looking like this! He was so proud of himself!

A Sweet Prayer

This is Rafe's sweet prayer every night:

"Now I nay me down to fleep. Pray the morning soul to keep. Bless Mommy, Daddy, Gram and Pop, Nana and Papa, all cousins and friends. Help me good boy. Amen.

Picking Blueberries

Rafe got to do something tonight he has never done - pick blueberries! He has been wanting to pick fruit for a long time so we went with Pop and Gram to pick theirs. Rafe does not even like to eat blueberries. He would occasionally "gag" one down just to show Caroline that he liked them (when he really didn't). However, tonight he tasted one from every bush. I think he liked the idea of getting to eat straight from the bush. I was pleasantly surprised at how clean he came out of the blueberry patch. He only smashed one. We will see if the excitement of eating them continues in the morning with his cereal!

A Fun Wednesday

Rafe and William going for a spin

William trying out the water slide

Rafe air-born on the "flip and flide"

The gator was a big hit

"Now this is FUN!"

Rafe and William LOVE the squirt bottles.

Lunchtime

Adorable cousin Jay

The host family: Tiffany, William and Jay

Rafe and I spent the day with my cousin, Tiffany, and her boys, William and Jay for a play date at their house. Rafe absolutely had a ball. The kids enjoyed the inflatable water slide, slip and slide and pools. It was a great day to be outside. All of the moms were wishing we had been in the water, too. Thank you, Tiffany, for such a wonderful time. We really had a blast!!

2001

I added background music to our blog today. Enjoy!!

Rafe doing the "flip and flide"

Rafe has really enjoyed his "flip and flide" this summer. Here he is this afternoon showing off:

Cha-Cha Slide

One of Rafe's favorite things to do is dance. He is DEFINITELY my child. We have nightly talent shows at home and we love doing the cha-cha slide. We went to Monkey Joe's and Rafe was able to perform it there. He was so excited. (Sorry the video is sideways. I will remember next time to turn my camera!!)

Summer of Snakes

Well, Rafe and I had another run-in with a snake this morning. We were out for our daily walk. Rafe always had a particular spot that he likes to collect a stick from. I reached down to get him one and continued pushing the jogging stroller. Suddenly I felt the tires run over something in the road and then I stepped on it. I then turned around to see this "stick" we had hit and discovered it was in fact a snake. Of course Rafe was so excited and wanted to get out and "look it over." I, on the other hand, wanted to run. Although I am not a big fan of snakes, I did feel awful that my stroller "injured" (as I told Rafe) him. Rafe immediately called his daddy to tell him about our newest encounter with a snake. Cory asked us to describe it and said it was probably just a Garter snake. WHO CARES??!! Hours later we went back to see the snake and take a picture. Sorry it is so gross!

Reedy River Falls

Yes we have new tattoos!!

Today Rafe and I went to Reedy River Falls with Nana. Rafe had a great time feeding the ducks. He got closer and closer to them and did not understand why he couldn't pick one up. We would be feeding a couple of ducks and hundreds more would come out of nowhere. It's amazing what they will do for stale bread! Next Rafe enjoyed running around in the sprinklers at the park. It looked so refreshing I wish I had joined him!!