Dean's Improved Counting Skills (caught on video!)

Wow! I was trying to get some footage of Dean "counting," and ended up with this. This is his first time counting from 2 to 10 (I have to start him with 1) all by himself!




What a smart boy!

Cheers!

Trekkie Training (continued)

He's made progress...




Cheers!

Dino's "New Math"

I overheard Dean counting the pieces in one of his puzzles...

"Two, eee, foe, fie, sick, nie, TEN! YAAAAY!"

Spring Break at the Beach: Year Two

It was our second year spending Spring Break in Seaside with Beka's family (the Thomas side). We had a great time and came back with all kinds of photos. Dean was old enough to enjoy the beach, interaction with his cousins, and plenty of attention from grandparents, aunts, and uncles.

Enjoy the photos!

The second day we were there, we went down to the beach after dinner and the weather was wonderful. There was no wind and it was almost warm enough to not wear a coat. Dean and Beka looked especially "cool" in their sunglasses.

I think this will replace our current family photo on the blog. What a great shot of Dean smiling!

The next few photos were some great, "artistic" shots I took while the sun was setting.

I especially like this one!

Here's Beka and her sisters Jennifer and Christina

Dean and his uncle Greg found a sand dollar further down the beach. At one point, Dean decided he'd see if it was edible. Fortunately, it didn't break.

Dean enjoyed his first experience with wet sand. It was fun to watch him try to figure it out... not so fun to clean up the mess afterward.


As I mentioned above, Dean enjoyed playing with his cousins. Dean and Joel played with blocks on several occasions, though it took Dean some time to figure out that it wasn't fun for other kids when he knocked down their "towers" (even though it's great fun at home).

The "family shot" circa 2009

Ah yes... what fun to have kids gang up on me to try to tickle me (not really). Aliya and Emma did their best to overpower me, and even Dean got in on the action. I'm glad they enjoyed themselves... and no one got hurt.

Dean spent a lot of time being excited that one of his "papas" were around.


Cheers!

Trekkie Training

Need I say more?

Cheers!

Arctic Blast - Part 3

After the snow stopped around dusk last night, I was struck by how peaceful it was outside and tried to capture it with some long-exposure photographs.

This is a neighbor's house (I've always liked that house) taken from our driveway. The blue glow of dusk, combined with the snow is amazing!

This is our house (Christmas tree through the window), taken from across the street.

The street we live on... by this time, the sky was dark.

Cheers!

Arctic Blast - Part 2

Here are some new photos from "out Sandy way." All of these were taken from inside through the windows, but they don't look too bad. We have significantly more snow than in the photos from the post from last night (probably about 12 inches more).

This photo is of our backyard. As you can see, the arborvitae are seriously leaning under the weight of the ice and snow. I don't look forward to this spring when I have talk to the landlord of that property and try to convince him to trim those... yikes!

I just cleared that car off yesterday! As you can see, the mailbox pole is slowly being buried, as is the Japanese maple.

The snow on our deck is piling up. We're taking bets new as to whether or not the snow will reach the rail.

The Chinese cherry tree is leaning under the weight of the ice and snow, too.

With the arborvitae leaning down, we can see chimneys for three houses from our bedroom window now. Those trees in the background are magnificent!

Here's my "artsy" photo... actually, Beka's "artsy" photo. Nicely done, Bek!

One more photo of the maple in the backyard with ice and snow, and the neighbor's fence in the background.

Cheers!