Boots, Ducks and Dinner, Oh My!

These Boots are Made for Walkin'... and Running, and Jumping, and Sleeping...

Yep. We have that child. The child that can be seen running around in late summer wearing a t-shirt, shorts and moon boots. Henners has found his moon boots that were a gift from Grandma Granny a year ago and has decided they are the only way to step out in style...literally. After about a week of wearing these boots to school, to the store, in the house, to a parade and one half-hearted attempt to wear them in the bath, Jeremy and I decided to buy Henry some more comfortable and "outfit appropriate" shoes.

You all should have seen the expression on his face when we walked into Reams last Sunday and he saw the wall of cowboy boots. He actually let out a little cry of excitement. I panicked when he first saw the red boots in his size, since they looked more like girl boots than anything. But he was more than happy with his purchase of brown boots we made that day. The first night, after much coaxing to get them off his feet for bedtime, Henry still insisted that they were within eye shot. Folks, he seriously just sat and admired them all night.

Ducks Need Lovin' Too

So, after Henry was outfitted in his new boots, the fam headed to the Dinosaur Park in Ogden. However, all Henry cared to see was the museum portion (with all the dinosaurs and mammoths in skeleton form) and the ducks in the duck pond. We probably spent $7.50 in quarters feeding the ducks -- the "green ones", the "white ones" and the "brown ones". He even was able to feed a couple of agressive fish too.

Dinner Relay Race
Sunday we celebrated Grandma Lauri's birthday by going out to lunch with the family. Henry got a kick out of the live lobsters in the tank and asked the Hostess several times if he could pet them. When the answer came back no time and time again, he turned his sights to the sweeper broom and proceeded to do her side work in the foyer. Still, no petting privileges were given. Poor guy.

We then had a nice meal followed by a rigorous exercise routine of running around outside of the restaurant "real fast". Henry first coaxed Karly into running around the restaurant by flashing his blue eyes and big grin. You see, we've all been around him enough to know what he was up to. Lucky for Henry, Karly didn't know any better. The rest of the table sat and enjoyed our meal and waved every few laps as Henry dragged Karly around the building.

Next up, the Grandma Relay Race. Once we were all outside, Henry convinced Grandma Granny to relay race with him up and down the sidewalk. He bamboozled Karly a couple of times again too. Later, it was a short game of "stop and go" with Mom. I swear, Henners is the best cardio workout.

Where Have We Been?

Summer is Like, So Over..
Hooray for the cooler weather. Any colder temperature fans out there? It was too hot to blog...or at least, that's my story. I'm including some pics below of random activities I wasn't able to post earlier. They include hunting for varmits in our backyard, Henry seducing our server (not actual incriminating evidence, just photos to remember the night by) and cousin lovin'.

Better Late Than Really Really Late

What Happened?
Umm...I wish I could say that there were technical errors that have kept me from logging in and posting what we've been up to, but let's just chalk it up to 1 part laziness, 1 part being busy, and another part laziness. I solemly promise to do a better job, until I get busy/lazy again.

I Want My Booger Back
Jeremy and Henry were out on a ride a few weeks ago and Jeremy heard Henry shriek from the back seat, "Help, Daddy, help me!". Jeremy turned around to find Henners thrusting his little
finger toward him. On this finger sat a huge booger! Jeremy asked Henry if he wanted him to take the booger from him. Henry nodded, and with that, they were on their way.

Half a dozen stoplights later Jeremy hears, "Dad? Can have booger back?"

Jeremy asked Henry if he was sure he wanted it back. Henry nodded yes. So being the good Dad he is, Jeremy nicely handed it back and the two went on their way.

I Want My Booger Back (Part Deux)
The next day, Henry and I were out running errands and I hear the following from the back seat, "Mum-mum? You want Henry's booger?"

I'd already heard about the "booger" so I said yes. By this time it was hard and all rolled into a ball. I took it from him, he thanked me and threw it out the window. Henry has not asked about the booger since.

Fun in The Boiling Utah Sun
For our summer vacation this year we decided to stay put. We took about 10 days off of work and camped, went to the zoo, hit Gateway and the Children's museum, 2 dinosaur parks, a handfull of pizza parlors (Henry's favorite right now), a baseball game and swimming in between. We were plenty busy, so much that about 3 times Henry turned to me and actually said, "Mum-mum, I tired. I want to nap".

Slippery When Wet
About a week ago, our neighborhood held its annual "Water Fight Social". The night before, we bought Henry a few water guns and let him practice on Grandma JoAnn and Grandpa Brent(Thanks, guys!) so he'd be all ready for the main event. It paid off, because once Henry saw all the other kids "packin'" he knew just what to do. He had such a blast! He ran around for almost an entire hour at the park with about 100 other kids/adults. Then the city brought the fire truck out and squirted all the kids down with thier giant hoses. He loved it!

May Days

Leapin' Lizards
Mother’s Day this year was so much fun. Jeremy and Henry really spoiled me and treated me so special (not unlike any other day of the year). The night before, Jeremy promised me a breakfast in bed of fresh fruit and yummy baked goods. However, when morning rolled around, Henry jumped in our bed and loudly announced that he would like pancakes. So, pancakes it was!

We spent the rest of the day visiting all the Grandmas and stopping off for lunch at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants. Toward the end of our meal, Henry was restless and began playing with some toy cars and small rubber lizards that we brought for him. Henry decided that throwing the lizard at Mom would be fun. On his first attempt, he over threw me by about 2 feet and the lizard landed in a plate of food of the family seated directly behind us! They laughed it off, as did the rest of the immediate restaurant. I asked Jeremy what we should do. He replied, “First, let’s pay for their meal, then let’s get Henry a sports agent.”

Speaking Too Soon
Wednesday Jeremy and I thought it might be fun to take Hank to the Dinosaur Park for the evening. We told him to pack himself up and get ready because we were taking him to see the dinosaurs! All the way there he kept asking if he would see the “Sharp Tooth” (Tyrannosaurus). He was naming all the dinosaurs he knows and we even made a little song about them too. As we pulled up to the park, we noticed a special function was going on and that the park was closed to the public. Jeremy and I had the privilege of explaining to a 2-year old the concept of “closed”.

Dinosaurs: The Sequel
Friday morning Henry and I headed back to the Dinosaur Park. This time when we pulled up there were around 8 elementary school buses. Again, I feared we wouldn't get in. This time I was going to do whatever I could to sneek us in. But, it turns out I didn't need to. We just had to share the park with lots of roudy elementary school kids. Can anyone say fun?

Liar Liar!

The Great Serpant
Henry is a liar! A few days ago, my alert neighbor and Henry's crush, Michelle, notified me that there was a snake under my car in our driveway. Hearing this, Henry got all excited and just had to see the snake. It ended up being a very small, very fast water snake (about 12 inches long, and as big around as my pinkie finger). So, picture two women, shreiking at this fast and slithering thing and a 2-year old trying to chase it. Well, this beast was far too crafty for the three of us, so help had to be called in for the job in the form of Michelle's husband, Paul.

Paul reluctantly arrived on the scene only after we exaggerated the size and aggressiveness of the snake. After he finished laughing at us, he quickly gathered up the snake and brought it over for our inspection. I tried to get Henry to pet it, but he was having NO PART of that! He recoiled and clung to me for dear life. I even touched it a few times to see that if that would coax him. Nuh-uh!

After thanking Paul for "saving our life", Henry and I went back inside the house. Henry then immediately went to his cubby where he keeps all his rubber and wooden snakes and played with them for the rest of the evening.

The next day when Jeremy got home, I overheard Henry telling Jeremy how he "petted the snake" and he "caught 'em". I corrected him and told him that he didn't even want to touch the snake. However, Henry insisted he had "petted" that thing. I've also heard Henry and Michelle talking about the events of that day and every time, he says he helped Paul "petted the snake" and "get 'em".

The great snake hunter


Looking for more snakes?

Vay-Cay

The Aviator
So our little trip to Seattle this month marked Henry's first time on an airplane. He loved the airport and all the people and planes! Honestly, we could have probably just spent three days there and he would've been thrilled. Once we were on the plane, Henry made fast friends with Joan, the flight attendant, and scored on treats, drinks and several winks! He mostly looked out the window and said, "We go real fast!"

The Great Northwest
Well, the weather was wonderful for us in Seattle and we hit the streets and sights immediately. Henry was super excited that there was a train "up high in the air" that ran by our hotel (the Monorail). We walked the town and took in tons of good food.

The boys at the Space Needle

Waiting on the Monorail

Riding on the Monorail

Boys Day Out
I was busy with a day-long conference on Friday, so Jeremy and Henry hit the town together. Although Jeremy tried to keep Henry in the hotel room as long as possible in the morning, once Henry saw I had my shoes on, he insisted that he get his on too. They visited the Seattle Center first, looking for our favorite breakfast place. Jeremy was sad to find that it had relocated and changed up their menu and they wouldn't be open until 12:00. They then walked on down to the waterfront to tour the Aquarium. Henry was facinated with the otters and the sharks. Next, it was clam chowder time! Although Hank wasn't too impressed with Seattle's finest soup, he did like the complimentary oyster crackers. They next walked Pike's Place Market and watched all the vendors setting up for the day.
Something at the Aquarium caught his eye

Jeremy & Henry at lunch on the waterfront

Henry and the famous Pike's Place Market Pig

See-at-l
There was more fun to be had the final days of our vacation. We hung out at the Seattle Children's Museum where Henry got to meet Bob the Builder face to face. (He wasn't impressed.) But he did enjoy the interactive Bob the Builder display of kid-sized construction trucks and tools for him to use. We stayed and played until Hank could play no more. He fell asleep on our way back to the hotel. He slept and slept, and snored and SNORED!

Fun at the Seattle Children's Museum

More fun at the Seattle Children's Museum

Something Smells The third night we ordered in some Thai food (again, Henry was not impressed.) So, Jeremy ran and picked up a slice of pizza across the street. This slice of cheese pizza was so laden with garlic that you could smell it coming, I swear. To make a long story, short, has anyone ever smelled a 2-year-old running around a confined area such as a hotel room working up a sweat after he's eaten garlic?

Hotel fun

Even more hotel fun

The Emerald City The last few days of our trip were dedicated to Hank since he'd been such a good sport riding around the city in his stroller. We visited the Pacific Science Center and hung out at the Seattle Center just running around and playing at the small carnival where the World's Fair was once held.

"Going real fast" in the Seattle Center Park

Pacific Science Center Dinosaur Exhibit

Pigs can fly!

Tired, cranky boy

Hungy boy

Driving at the fair at the Space Needle

Driving at the fair at the Space Needle

Zoorific!

Beasty Boy
Friday the 27th, Henry and I loaded up and went to the Hogle Zoo with my friend Sara and her daughter Madeleine (9 mos). When I told Henry we were going to meet Sara at her house, he immediately got excited. Then he began talking about dinosaurs and named every character from The Land Before Time (LBT) series. It then dawned on me that he thought we were going to visit CERA, the Tirceratops, from the LBT series. I had to quickly correct him, but he insisted that we were off to see a dinosaur. Imagine his disapointment when we arrived and Sara, not CERA, answered the door! Henry's disappointment quickly faded when he discovered Sara has two dogs (a huge Malamute who Henry called a "Woof" and a black lab mix who Henry dubbed "Max"- after our Max). As a matter of fact, for future reference, Henry insists that all black dogs are "Maxes". Next, off to the Zoo where Hank knows his way around quite well. We ran, not walked, to the elephant exhibit, the bears and the zebras. Henry's favorite was the very, very humid and stinky Reptile Room with all the snakes and crocodiles. He ran back and forth for about 20 minutes to each window that held any snake. After my hair had completely frizzed out and Henry was drenched in sweat, we called it quits and went to visit the African animals.

Artsy-Fartsy
Here is one of Hank's latest creations. We fingerpainted this week and practiced our colors. Busy, Busy, Busy
On Saturday, Henry and I made the trek up to visit Grandma JoAnn and Grandpa Brent. Grandma had just cleaned the house in time for Henry to wreck it completely! He played at the park, chased bubbles, watched movies, hung out in the dog run and threw decorative rocks in the creek. (sorry, Mom!)

Fun at the park

The dog run

Hot
Sunday was hot. There's no other way to describe it. It set a record for the month of April. True it was only 86 degrees, but still, when you're not used to that weather so early, you must take the necessary precautions...swim trunks, swimming pool and popcicles (in that order).

"Look at me!"

Water baby

"Do I have something on my face?

Un-lucky Charms