Fall day

So I didn't think about the fact that by wearing camo little Koen would blend right in with the leaves. So here's his head.

Ahh, summer.

Eggceptional

Our little chickies have given us their first batch of eggs and they are so unbelievably good. There is nothing like a rich yellow yoke and crisp, thick shell. No longer do we need to pay $3.99 for a dozen local organic eggs, which lasts us four days on average. Or worse, throw our money away on crappy Lucerne or EggLand's Best. Yes, folks, this is where it's at. Next up, a dairy cow:)

Mmmm...kay.

So for the past week or so, our little monkey has picked up on a couple words that we say quite often, now that we've been paying attention to it. His first official word at 15 1/2 months is "mmmkay", translation, "okay". "Koen, would you like to help me feed the chickies?" "Mmmkay." Love it. His second word is "eye". His third word is "yeah." He is signing up a storm, and by now has added "shoes", "all done", "water", "bird", "cat", "ball", "spin", "sleep", "brush", "please" and "thank you" to his repertoire. He picks up on signs as fast as we can teach them, so I've ordered a couple more Signing Times DVDs so I can keep up with him... yes, they're mostly for me.

Why talk when you can sing?

What else is new, oh yes, he has developed a high pitch squeal that he makes whenever any cat is around and then he proceeds to chase it, hoping he might get a fist around that tail so he can swing the poor thing like a toy. Sorry Nano, Ruby and Roxy, ugh.

It is so much fun to watch this kid develop, and he's got such an interesting little personality. The other day I left my banana peel on the table next to our couch and when he noticed it, he grabbed it and marched it right over to the trash can, shut the lid and I swear that kid rolled his eyes. And on another occasion he tripped over his batman bucket, threw a bit of a fit and after I hugged on him and settled him down he went over to that batman bucket, opened the cupboard door where some of his toys are stored, threw it in and slammed the door closed walking away in a huff. Wait, is he trying to say I keep an unkempt household?

I just started taking him to tumbling class in The Dalles, which he absolutely loves. The uneven floor mats, trampolines, obstacle courses and beach balls are a safe alternative to the gopher traps, thorny blackberry bushes, chemicals, and machinery he gets to play with here on the orchard. Til next time...

Denbrook Reunion 2012

Omi

Cousin Janette and Cutie Levi

Water Balloon Fight

Levi and Aunt Vicki

Local Wild Fire Affect on Sun
Additional Denbrook/Hampton Family Reunion Pics

Baby's first hair cut

Before Hair Cut

After. Nice.

Pool time at the Denbrook's, first week in August.

Shirt? Check. Shoes? Check. No one said anything about no pants.

Summer Fun

Lovin his new toy from Grandma! Little man is 1 year 1 month old here.

Happy Birthday Koen

Okay, so I'm a little late on the birthday post, but summer is busy! Little man turned one on June 2nd, and it leaves me wondering where my baby has gone to. With a mouth full of pearly white teeth, sometimes he looks two and that makes me even crazier. The birthday bash was a complete success. I chose a Cheerios theme which included an AMAZING chocolate Cheerios cake his cousin made for him, chocolate dipped strawberries dusted in Cheerios powder, Cheerio marshmallow treats, Cheerio trail mix and party mix. Flowers were placed in a Cheerios box vase and mason jars were filled with all the different Cheerios flavors. I also made a banner out of Cheerios boxes. It was both inexpensive and great marketing for the Cheerios brand. You're welcome General Mills. My brother took amazing professional photos (accendoimages.com), which I will forever be grateful for. All in all it was a blast. Our little guy is changing in leaps and bounds and my cheeks hurt from smiling so much. He started walking on June 5th, and then either lost his confidence in the following days, or decided it was taking way too long when he could just crun. Yes crun. This kid is so fast as a crawler, that he crawl-runs, therefore cruns. When we ask him to walk he will oblige - most of the time - but it's really like asking a smoker to switch to Camel Lights when he clearly prefers the originals. I've tried introducing whole cows milk and goats milk, but cows milk gives him a rash, and he's not a huge fan of goats milk. I don't blame him. He also is not doing egg whites and strawberries yet; for some reason his system is still intolerant to these guys. We'll try 'er again down the road. This month he started pointing at everything for its description. Here are a few items that he's got nicely lodged in his little memory: eyes, belly button, nose, light, diapers, antlers, fridge, microwave, truck, window, kitty, water, peaches, socks, books, "money tree" and "buddha" (a plant and figurine we have in the house). It's fun to watch him so focused looking for these things when we ask where they are. And it's nice to know what he wants now, for instance, pointing at the microwave means he's hungry. He chooses the book he'd like to read, chooses the color of his cloth diaper, points to foods that he would like to eat, etc, etc... and now I've bored all of you who don't have kids, or do and have been through this phase, to full on tears. At one he is also oozing a bit of baby testosterone. I was holding him in one of our local shops awhile back, and all of a sudden I hear what can only be described as a loud, womanizing cat call coming from my child; in one swift motion he had tucked his chin in and tilted his head, squinted his flirty eyes, revealed his huge toothy grin, arched his back and puffed out his chest... I look over my shoulder to see what would cause such a reaction in my boy and before me was this buxom blonde hottie that had clearly stolen my child's heart. She also was a bit taken back, and the look on her face told me she felt both flattery and violation at the same time. Boy am I in trouble with this one.

Celebrity look-a-like contest

Is it just me, or does my hubby resemble actor Scott Foley - I mean, down to the mole by his nose? Every time I see this guy in shows like Grey's Anatomy or The Unit, I think hmmm, yummy. That's good news for Justin.

Daddy time

Koen, 11 months old, chilling out on Dad's lap.

A little too close for comfort...

Dishwasher stunt

Koen's new favorite game is to crawl up in the dishwasher and see how high he can go before I come to his rescue. Today I captured his progression. It's funny, he could be two rooms away and when we pull down that dishwasher door he comes crawl-running with a panic look on his face like he's afraid he missed his window. Koen is exactly 10 months old today.

Oh my Osh Kosh

We bought these overalls at a garage sale and I could be a tad biased, but what a cutie! Koen is 9 months old here.

Ari ZONE a

While Justin was on training detail in San Francisco, Koen and I decided to take a trip down to Arizona for 10 days and soak in some sunshine. Yes, this dry desert zone puts a smile on my face when Hood River has nothing to offer but gray, drizzle and dreary. Last time I was here I was 6 months pregnant and looked about 8 months pregnant by the time I came back home. Sunshine, heat and palm trees are surely what I signed up for on this trip. That's why when it snowed on day two of my vacation I was imagining myself and a battered cartoon version of the storm cloud in a dark, urban underground venue laying it out full-on Fight Club style. The storm was brief though and I was back in tee shirt and shorts for the remainder of the trip. Koen thrived taking in all the new sights, textures and sounds. He thoroughly enjoyed the pool at the RV Park where my parents are staying, otherwise known as Grand-Coco-pah, where in order to obtain membership you must be 80, or wear Depends, or look as if you had a day tour on the sun itself (sans sunscreen), or own a dog the size of a cat or smaller in which you cart around in a baby stroller or bejeweled mobi wrap, or have invested in a set of veneers, or own a set of golf clubs particularly if you don't own a cat-sized dog, or have at least 9 great grand children, or can't figure out why the corrupt state government took away your drivers license but you still drive anyway, or you are retired. My parents fall under the retired category. Ko and I stayed on the Marine Corp Air Station base in Yuma, which was a great experience. I took him on daily walks to the park where he enjoyed the bucket swing and slide for the first time and he love, love, loved it. I have awesome video of him laughing hysterically. We ate well, slept well, enjoyed long walks and hikes, and my little guy was an absolute champ. He owed me. The plane ride from Eugene to Phoenix was a bit like labor; horribly painful for Mom until baby landed, only during labor I didn't have 20 onlookers, so I think the plane ride was worse. I was considering making it a one way ticket, but alas a taxi ride back to Oregon would have been a budget buster. I think he sensed my dread because he was an angel on the way back and I am no longer afraid to fly with a baby.

Alfalfa!

Justin and I are hoping Koen keeps his little mini mohawk. It's the cutest!

Regal Roxy cat with halo of light, unedited

7 1/2 months young

Snow Day . Koen is 7 1/2 months old

Hood River got dumped on last week, so we took advantage of the photo opportunity. Koen didn't act like the snow was any big deal; he was just happy to get out of the house and get some fresh air. His snow suit is adorable (another great Goodwill find) and I will cry when he outgrows it. This little guy is quickly exiting the infant baby stage. He's crawling all over the place and I long for the days that I could leave him in the middle of the living room to take a pee and know he would be alright. Time to set up the pack 'n play, his small baby prison. He's going to love it!