what happened to the camera craze?!

I guess we got busy, or the new is wearing off of our sweet little boy! Just kidding, Josiah just keeps getting cuter and more precious, but our over-the-top obsession to photograph every smile is starting to fade a bit. Our 11 mo photo folder has about 10 pics in it...and the Grandma's took them all! So lest I admit defeat before Si's first birthday, I will post what we have and assume that I am not likely to look back 10 years from now and mourn the gaping hole that seems to have become June of 2010!

Si and I took a trip to WA while Caleb was on a mission trip with the church. These pictures might look a little "wetter" than what we've had in AZ. I think we can "claim to fame" for at least a week that we recently tied Antarctica for the lowest humidity ever recorded. Those are the kind of stats you get excited about when you live in the desert. Thank goodness we'll be in Oregon for a bit in August! Looking forward to some more respite from the heat!

Summer!!!

Triple digits is an understatement here in beautiful AZ since the entire past week was around 111 degrees. I think it's safe to say the desert summer is upon us.

Thankfully, even though we don't have a pool at our house, we have had some great opportunities to pull Si's adorable swim trunks out of the dresser! Just last weekend, my mom visited for a week and we stayed a few nights at one of her BlueGreen properties! Sometimes pools, housekeepers and a day off are just what the doctor ordered!

Si loves the water so much I am convinced he must be hiding fins and gills under his skin somewhere.

This amazing raft/floaty was a huge blessing on our little retreat. We could keep the babe shaded and also allow him to float and kick around safely without having to hold him the whole time. Usually, I think the whole baby industry is way out of control with products that you "think you need" but really are just bound to encourage entitled, bored and sensory-overloaded children. But this floaty is not one of those items!

We borrowed it from a girl friend in case anyone is thinking it is a little girly for a manly-man like my son!


Si is fearless; loves to jump in head first, kick, float, etc, So safety first, people: swimming lessons here we come!

It is a little sad that summer is upon us here in AZ because I fully recognize how much Josiah loves to be outdoors. I mean, he is truly a different child when we get him outside. For instance, indoors (he's still perfect, BUT) he needs toys and a lot more direction to really be content. Get him outside, and he instantly relaxes, uses his own creativity to explore, and is just content in a whole different way than he is inside. I love it! My plan to make him hate video games is coming along quite nicely.

The problem is, that at this amazing developmental/mileston-y time between crawling and walking, it is so darn hot here that we can really only have him outside in the yard to play between 6 and 7 am. That makes for a long stretch of day for any child to be inside, and that much more for an almost-walking, budding outdoor-enthusiast like Si. So we will have to be creative...at this point, "creative" is SPF 85 sunscreen (who knew they made that?!) and friend's pools. Let me know if you have other sanity-saving summer tips for desperate moms!

Si turned 11 months this week and I will have to post a big update soon. I will be in Yakima all week while Caleb is on a mission trip. Si and I are going to hang out with my parents so that I can work without buying childcare for a week. Now that I say it, it sounds a little foolish to fly 1500 miles to avoid paying a babysitter for a week.

Maybe I should just call my little excursion what it really is: NOT TRIPLE DIGITS!