Splish! Splash! I was takin' a bath!

Baby's first mohawk.

A little of this and that...

Max is about three months away from his second birthday. How this is possible I'll never know, because just a few weeks ago I was trying to keep mittens on his hands so he wouldn't scratch his delicate newborn skin. Next thing I know we will be moving him in to his college dorm!

Isn't this shirt a riot? Our neighbors got it for him when they went on a trip to Nashville.

These days when people ask, "How old is your son?" Ben and I have started to reply, "Almost two." Max is talking up a storm, stringing words together, counting (in English and Spanish!), identifying many letters, mastering eating with utensils, and is in to everything (if you have a drink near the edge of a table, look out!).

Thank goodness he can't quite turn the doorknobs just yet!

To boot, he's been moved in to his "big boy" car seat which he loves. Now he can see out the windows and announces every type of vehicle we pass. This means car rides entail a chorus of, "Big truck! Bus! Car! SUV! Jeep! Van! Daddy's car!" from the backseat (all black cars are, "Daddy's car!" haha).

He's had a "real" haircut before, but this most recent haircut really made him look grown-up. His face is thinning out and he's starting to look more like a little boy! On a side note, we were able to get the same lady, Kay, who cut his hair last time. It's impressive how well she can cut hair with Max wiggling and turning his head all over the place!

This is the face we get sometimes in response to, "Say cheese!"

The not-so-fun part of "almost two" is the tantrums. Who knew being served food on a plate when you want your food in a bowl would be so distressing! We've just been taking it in stride and know that "this too shall pass". Ah, how perspective changes once you're no longer sleep deprived first time parents.  :-)

Max was "reading" a catalog that came in the mail while Ben and I were talking in the kitchen. I guess we were talking too loudly because Max went off by himself to sit in the blanket basket and enjoy a little privacy. haha

Last quick thing I want to remember for myself...

When we were in Hilton Head I was putting Max down for a nap one day. We were saying a quick prayer before I laid him down and he tagged on a little prayer of his own, "Mommy. Daddy. Happy. Amen." That little boy just melts my heart!! Being a mommy is pretty much the best thing in the whole entire world.

Hilton Head Island: Family Vacation 2014

We had a great time visiting Hilton Head Island, South Carolina with friends! We made the trek to the beach and rented a house together for some fun in the sun. It was an "exciting" week with six adults, two toddlers, and a dog under one roof!

Here are some photos and highlights from our trip:

 

Forget the baby slides. Max prefers the big kid twisty slides!

Walter showing Max proper frisbee throwing technique...

There was an awesome (free!) petting zoo and horse stables not too far from our rental house. Max and Saskia loved seeing and feeding the animals.

I wish I could accurately describe Max's love for Denise. He lit up and shouted "Deese!" ("Denise!") when she'd walk in the room, run off with her to play on the beach, and in the few days after we returned home he'd walk around the house looking for her saying, "Deese? Deese?" The scene below was a common one during our trip!

Kirsten had an awesome bubble wand that produced tons of bubbles. The kids loved chasing them and trying to pop bubbles!

One of my (Laura) personal favorite photos from the trip!

Hmm... I think Saskia was ready for a snack.

Daddy and Steve teach Max about throwing a football.

Super Man heads to the shore!

Sandy cheeks!!

Max loved taking Abby (the dog) on walks--especially when he got to hold the leash all by himself!

Toddler Mariachi Band! (or two one year old kids shaking plastic maracas)

The whole gang with a self-timer photo!

We put the babies in pajamas and went out for ice cream right before bedtime one evening! This is about as wild and crazy as things got on vacation. :-)

The area of Hilton Head where we were staying, Sea Pines, has a free trolley. We thought the kids might enjoy riding, but it was a hot day so the Mamas rode the trolley for two stops and the Dad's followed behind in the van so we could hop off and get back to air conditioning. :-)  Max and Saskia were in awe (probably from riding in a vehicle with no car seat!) and kept saying, "Choo choo! Choo choo!"

Max was really excited to see this construction equipment from afar, so I brought him over to get a closer look. He started hanging on a little tighter and when I tried to stand him on the steps for a photo he practically climbed up me to get away. As you can see from the photo he was hanging on so tightly that I could let go! "Look Ma! No hands!"