A visit from PA!

So Paul's Dad was due for some training at work, and he managed to get himself signed up for some training in Lewisville - that's just a little closer than New Jersey!! So while David was in training all week, and while I was at work (boo!), Beth and the boys went on lots of adventures!

First stop: Aquarium!!

 

Flamingos, or as Henry calls them, "MINGOS!"

 

Second stop: ZOO!!! (Henry refers to it as "The zoo!!!!" There must be a "the" and there must be more than one exclamation point.)

It was so nice to have Beth around to feed Walter at the drop of a hat. He was one happy boy all week long!

This child is OBSESSED with gorillas. OBSESSED!!!!!  He gets so excited to look at pictures of them, talk about them, etc.  And fairly soon after they get brought up, you will hear him pipe up and yell, "Bite you!" (which typically comes out "Bite choo!").  Yes, he's also obsessed with things that bite.  I blame this on the fact that the child was bit at daycare approximately 30 times this last spring.  I wish I was exaggerating.

 

 

If only he had an attention span longer than 5 seconds... maybe we could get a good picture. :)

 

Another bonus of having grandparents in town to help with the kiddos - you can actually get a few projects done. Like getting Henry's water table assembled!

 He LOVES it!

On Saturday, Henry had some extra energy to burn.  Best way to blow off steam? Jumpstreet, of course!!!!

Putting Grandma and Grandpa to work - "SWIIIINNNNGG!"

 

Showing Grandma and Grandpa the gorilla at the top of the bounce house.

 

Life with Henry Meredith: A blur!

 Quick snack break.

 Another way to burn some energy? SPLASH PARK!!

 Walter was super excited to be there. :)  See those thigh rolls?!? Yup, he's chunkin' up!

 Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

Snack time.

 

So glad Grandma and Grandpa could come for the week. Now to get them here permanently so the boys could hang out with them more often!!

Rice Cereal!

We bought rice cereal for Walter to eat the week he turned 4 months (July 4th).  We forgot (read lost track of time) to feed it to him until Saturday.  I waited until after his afternoon nap to ensure he was hungry.

 He gobbled it up! I couldn't seem to get it to his mouth fast enough. My mom helped me feed him yesterday, and she said he ate like a baby bird - such an accurate description!

 Food continues to be a hit for this guy!  Such a sweet, healthy baby!!

Airplane!

On Saturday, we were looking for a morning, pre-nap activity for Henry.  My parents needed a ride to the airport, so we thought Henry would enjoy the trip.  DFW is such a busy airport that I knew he would get to see a lot of planes taking off and landing.  Plus, he LOVES his Gigi and Papa and wasn't going to get to see them for a few days.  Henry was chipper, happy, and excited about the trip.  Until we were about 10 minutes away from the airport and he discovered we were not, in fact, riding on an airplane, but only looking at them from our vehicle.  Let the meltdown ensue....

St. Louis

We took our first family family vacation as a family of 4 to visit Gracie, and it was a TOTAL success!! I was very nervous [understatement].  The trek through the airport was concern #1.

 2 suitcases, 2 strollers, 2 car seats, 2 pieces of luggage, 2 diaper bags, and 1 pack-n-play later, we got ourselves checked in!

Walter slept and ate pretty much the whole time we traveled,

and Henry made new friends, watched planes, and talked about planes nonstop.

 

Concern #2 was not getting any sleep since we'd be on the go and in a new place:

Sleep was not an issue for this crew!

At the suggestion of one of Gracie's friends, we checked out the City Museum.  It was awesome!!

There was a bus that hung off the roof (18 stories):


There was a Ferris wheel on the roof:

Ball pits galore:

An airplane:

A fire truck:

A train:

Big Boy (which terrified Henry!):

And a window with pinwheels in the elevator!!

Later that afternoon, we went to the Arch. The 4th festivities went on all weekend, so there was plenty to do!

We also got lucky enough to catch an air show. Henry LOVED it!

  Walter also got quite a bit of entertainment from the excitement.

We also took an afternoon trip to the zoo.  Henry has a serious fascination with animals, so we are still talking our zoo trip, two weeks later!

 The sea lion exhibit was fabulous. 

 We spent a lot of time looking at the monkeys, Henry's favorite animal of the moment. 

Henry also rode on the carousel while we waited for Aunt Gracie to get off call and meet us. 

 

I had Walter dressed all cute and appropriate for zoo day.... but alas, we had a little accident and had to change. Typical for this child. :)

 

Henry loved the train.  He did not love the train ride being over.

We were lucky enough to make it to the zoo two weeks after this elephant was born.  Isn't it ADORABLE?!?

 

Such a good Aunt. Henry is still asking if we're going to see Aunt Gracie when we load up in the car.

 

 We also braved one dinner out in public.  We decided on Fitz's (family friendly).  We managed to keep Henry entertained for the 30 minute wait.

 And got lucky enough to be seated next to the bottling machines.  That gave us at least 2 minutes of peace during dinner....

 "Cheese!"

I could not be prouder of this girl.  She may be tiny, but she's one brilliant, kind, beautiful woman.  She's also brave - she let this crazy crew come visit her 3 days into her fellowship.  I know this next year is going to fly by, and then she will be free to rule the world.  Well, the pediatric ophthalmology world, that is. :)