Family photos

I've been meaning to post these pictures forever! We had a photo shoot exactly two months ago today, when John was just about six months old, and these are some of my favorites from that shoot. (We bought the rights to the images, so if there are any that catch your fancy, feel free to download them and print them off as you like!)

Playing ball

A couple of weeks ago we bought these really neat plastic nesting bowls that also fit together to make different sized balls. They are perfect for teaching John how to roll a ball! Here is John practicing his new skill with Daddy.

John and Daddy

Here are two cute pictures I took of the boys in Georgetown (Texas) last weekend.

Fun in the car seat.....

One of John's favorite things to do while we're driving is to pull the shade of his car seat down to chew on it and bend it. This he has done for quite some time now.

More recently he has discovered the fun he can have when he gets his feet involved. He props his feet up on the shade and pushes and kicks it.

Several weeks ago, John actually fell asleep with his legs propped up on the shade! And he stayed asleep like that for 45 minutes! What a funny little guy.....

John and Mommy dancing

John really loves dancing, especially to polka and Big Band music. He's definitely an old soul..........

7 months old!

Happy Birthday, little guy! Today you are 7 months old. You have changed so much since January!

John on his birthday, January 8th

John at 1 month

John at 2 months

John at 3 months

John at 4 months

John at 5 months

John at 6 months

John at 7 months

Riding on the swing

John had his first ride on a "real" swing this week when he went to the park with his (girl)friend Elise. He did not seem very comfortable in this swing, perhaps because he's accustomed to his plush one back home.

Back to Chicago!

At the end of July, we headed back to Chicago for my sister's bridal shower. (The hostesses put together a beautiful little luncheon at Naperville Country Club for the bride-to-be. Katharine and Jarey received so many gifts that they had to get creative with how to bring everything back to Oregon with them!)

In just five days time (and with a six-month old in tow), we managed to accomplish an unbelievable number of things on my sister's wedding to-d0-list, including buying my bridesmaid's dress (a Vera Wang!) and matching shoes. But of course we also found time for some non-wedding-related activities. The highlights:

- Introducing John to his Uncle Ethan and Aunt Lindsay! Ethan and Lindsay drove out from the city to meet us for dinner at our favorite Irish pub, Quigley's. John took to his uncle right away, and now likes him better than his parents (sadly, I'm not joking).

- Hanging out with John's other grandparents! (In the same week, John got to see ALL of his grandparents, something which had never happened before!)

- Going to a Cubs game at Wrigley! This was John's third MLB game already! As you might imagine, the weather for this game was WAY better than the weather for the previous two in Texas.

Grandma and Grandpa's visit

Grandma Bonnie and Grandpa Jeff came to stay in mid-July. Their visit was short but full of fun! They enjoyed playing with John in his room, taking him for long walks around the neighborhood in his stroller, and feeding him his cereal.

The highlight of their visit was a trip to Arlington to catch the Rangers-Twins series. Grandma and Grandpa were honored to be present as John watched his very first Twins game, and the Twins did not disappoint, beating the home team 4-1.