Lovely Manito Park

One of our favorite things about living in Spokane is Manito Park. They have many flower gardens in this park alone, but we always come back to the rose garden. Unfortunately many of the roses were already starting to wither, but the dahlia section (my personal favorite) was in full bloom. The people here really know how to make and maintain great parks. I am going to miss it come winter and then graduation. Spokane has won my heart; it is truly enchanting.

 Can you spot Ezra in one of the three pictures above?

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

7 Months: 18.4 lb. - likes to scream -  says "blah, blah, blah" and "Dada" - can't get enough of my glasses

8 Months: 19.4 lb. - says "Mama" - does not like meat - is an excellent little traveler

9 Months: 21.4 lb. - got his first tooth - learned to clap

10 Months: 20.5 lb. - super smiley and playful - called "Sweet Pea" and "Honey Bee"

11 Months: 20.8 lb. - officially crawling - can stand up holding onto things - baby talks all day long

 

Our Summer (Part 2)

After a wonderful Fourth of July, Ezra and I were off to visit family in Houston. Here Ezra got to reconnect with his cousin Lincoln and meet his newest cousin, Phoenix! It was a blast watching Ezra interact with everyone.

Bath time is always a favorite at our house, but it is waaaay better with Lincoln around. Throw in some organic bell peppers from Grandma Sears' garden and a toy or two from the early 90's and you've got yourself a perfect memory. 

Can you sense his excitement? Ezra loves Phoenix!

 We got to go to Kemah for food, fireworks, and live entertainment. We also hit up the busy Houston Zoo, where the weather could not have hotter or muggier. Regardless, it was a perfect day and a perfect vacation. It was over far too soon.

Just days after returning to Vegas, we were off again to the magnificent Grand Canyon. I have always wanted to see this world wonder, but no picture could have ever prepared me for its vast grandeur. We walked along the southern rim, viewing the simply gorgeous landscape. I couldn't help but try to spot all the signs of mass wasting since my natural disasters class was just completed. I am so glad I decided to take that class because it added a whole new element to the experience.

  

Our final days in Vegas were spent enjoying the sunshine. We went on a lot of walks this summer. Below is a picture of Joe and Ezra "chicken bowling." Don't worry... no chickens were harmed. We also got to (finally) go see Veronic. We were supposed to see Celine Dion for our anniversary, but after two cancelled shows we exchanged our tickets for Veronic just before we were scheduled to leave Vegas. It was a fun night. Veronic is extremely talented and our seats were less than a foot from the stage! Since it was our last night with free babysitting and no school, we made a night of it, stopping at M&M World, Hershey World, the Bellagio, and to munch on crepes, and frozen hot chocolate. The night was splendid, with exception to me stepping on some broken glass on the dirty strip. Thank goodness my shoes were just thick enough that I didn't get stuck too badly and that a kind passerby came to my rescue.

Now Summer is over and we have made the long trek back to Spokane. It is chilly up here where the air is clean and clear and crisp. Autumn in Spokane is beautiful to behold; I anxiously await the changing of the leaves. It was a beautifully hot Summer, but now it is time to change gears. School has just begun and everything feels new. I hope this picture of Ezra wrangling a moose will help you get into the Fall spirit!

Our Summer (Part 1)

There never seemed to be enough time to post to the blog this Summer, let alone sort through all the billions of pictures I take of Ezra every day. Well, I finally got all those pictures under control! Ready for baby overload? Here is part one of our Summer (mostly) in pictures.

We drove all the way down from Spokane to Vegas, allowing this little boy to meet his great-grandmothers:

Great-Grandma Sears introduced him to ice cream.

Great-Grandma Behra

Great-Grandma Meservy

Once we arrived in Vegas, the fun began:

 Ezra wasn't so sure about Cleo at first, but soon he loved her so much that he would scream and demand I take him over to her every time she came near.

Mandalay Bay Aquarium

 Before long we were off to Anaheim for Ezra's first trip to Disneyland!

 Ezra's first ride was Dumbo the Flying Elephant. He loved it, but meeting the characters was his absolute favorite. He even got to ride some rides with Grandma and Grandpa. 

It was an excellent weekend of firsts: Disneyland, the beach, and the pool.

Once we got back to Vegas, Ezra's favorite activities always involved getting into shenanigans with Evie or riding the sweet red rocking horse to the tune of the William Tell Overture or Bonanza.

He also got to attend his first parade (unless you count us walking in last years parade when I was pregnant with him) for his first Fourth of July. The Summerlin Parade was incredibly well done and worth the heat.