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Shewww from amber Dicus on Vimeo.

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Ready Set Go from amber Dicus on Vimeo.

TA DA!!

TA DA!! from amber Dicus on Vimeo.

Morning Struggles

Sam spent the night with Grand recently, and these are some photos she took of him the next morning. This is him trying to stay awake, because I made Mom promise not to let him take a morning nap. (We are STRUGGLING with naps right now. Morning naps, three hours after he wakes up, are a cinch. Afternoon naps, however, are nonexistent.) And yes, after seeing these, I relented and the child took a morning nap. He wins AGAIN!

Here's a few more pictures from Sam's swimming lessons. I've got lots of video coming for you, so stay tuned! It'll take me a while to export and upload them, so be patient.

Swimming Lessons

Here are some pictures from Sam's swimming lessons last week. We decided Sam would do much better with Ashley taking him, rather than me, and I think they have really enjoyed their "hub & cub" time together. (Yes, I'm quoting Ash there.)

Sam has done great with the lessons. Ash said he hasn't cried, just been rather laid back about the whole thing. Of course he wasn't so laid back the day I attended. I got a few photos but was soon banished to outside the gate where the little one couldn't see me. Oh well ...

We've got two more lessons. Tomorrow's lesson involves him jumping off the side and swimming back to the side. I'm rather glad I get to skip that. Not so sure I could watch that one. I'm planning on attending the last lesson on Tuesday, so hopefully I'll have more photos (and video) after that class. Enjoy!

Kitchen Helper

A huge thank you to Poppa & Nana Beth for the Kitchen Helper stool. This thing is absolutely wonderful! It's a stool that Sam can stand in to help me cook. It's much safer and sturdier than using our dining room chair. Sam is a little apprehensive in it, but he's starting to really like it - especially when we can stand at the sink to play in the water.

Handy Manny

A very special thank you to Grand for the Handy Manny doll & tool set. Sam loves them! He sleeps with Manny every night now, and the tools get moved from one spot to another all day long. They keep him very busy.

Go Cubs

Check out Sam's brand new Chicago Cubs baseball cap. It came directly from Wrigley Field thanks to Pop & Gracie. They recently made a trip to Chicago and brought Sam home this great new hat that matches Daddy's, as well as a Chicago Cubs t-shirt. He looks too cute in all of it!

A cute little giggly video of Sam at dinner last night. Of course he was laughing much harder before I got out the camera, but this is still quite adorable.

Untitled from amber Dicus on Vimeo.

Lake Fun

It was such a fabulous day today, Sam and I headed to the lake for a little outside fun. He loved playing in the water and throwing rocks. Grand and Granddaddy's dog, Penny, joined us. Sam has renamed her "Baby." He talks about Baby all the time. There are lots more pictures on grandsboy. Enjoy!

Cooking

Sam's new favorite pastime - cooking. He loves standing at the counter helping me cook. He'll start yelling "cook, cook" and go get the leather chair from the dining room table and slide it over to the kitchen counter. So far his favorite thing to "cook" is a measuring cup full of water that he stirs with a measuring spoon (and slurps the water from).

B.O.B.

For some reason, Sam has decided Bob, the big ol bear, should spend his days laying on the couch. Every morning Sam drags him up on the couch, where he lays all day long, every day. Really doesn't leave much room for anything, or anyone, else on the couch.

Brilliant

I've been trying to teach Sam colors this week. He has learned that Bob, the big-ol-bear, is brown, as are the pillows on the couch. Today we worked on the color green. I pointed out that I had on a green shirt. I also showed him that his chair is green. Then I looked around the room and said "What else is green?" under my breath, to myself. Sam walked right to his table and picked up his plastic alligator, which is totally green. Brilliant!

4th of July Fun

As promised, there are now lots of photos posted on grandsboy from Sam's recent vacation at G&Gs. Enjoy!

Happy Birthday Granddaddy

We hosted a birthday dinner tonight at NottaFarm for Granddaddy. Sam got his very first taste of Nanny's chocolate pie. He had no trouble pronouncing the word "pie" immediately! He buzzed around this house like crazy for over an hour. I'll post all the birthday pictures on grandsboy.

Happy Birthday Granddaddy! We love you!

Happy 4th of July

Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th. Sam spent the holiday with Grand and Granddaddy, while Ash and I headed south to the beach for a few days alone. Glorious! We celebrated the sixth anniversary of our engagement while watching fireworks on the beach. It was wonderful, but I know you're not here for stories and/or pictures of us. You're here for the boy. G&G took some great pictures of Sam at their house, but I don't have them on my computer yet. I'll try to upload them to grandsboy in the next few days, so be on the lookout.

And a very special thank you to G&G for babysitting while we were gone - babysitting Sam, the dogs, the cat and the flowers. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.