Brotherly Love

Macabe loves to hold his new baby brother. Bennett isn't always as sure it's that fun, but he knows kisses from Mac are definitely wet! What a treat! This week Bennett is five weeks old already and weighed in at 11 lbs, 4 oz. The first glimpses of smiles came on Monday and Daddy is still trying to catch sight of one. We unfortunately haven't caught one with the camera yet either. The leaves are starting to change and we are thankful for the many warm blankets and sweaters Grandma Lepard has been working on. Maybe this weekend we'll go out and find a "numkin" as Macabe's two favorite things to point out are "numkins" and "da moooon". Two signs that fall is surely upon us.

Brother Bennett Arrives!

On September 2nd at 5:32 a.m., Bennett Boaz made his way into the world and showed his precious face to his loving family. All four grandparents were able to visit the hospital and see the growing family. Everyone is well and feeling blessed.



Bennett weighed in at 8lbs, 4oz. and quite quickly surpassed his birth weight. So far we are not sure who he looks like. Any thoughts?


Macabe has been a great helper, throwing away diapers, bringing his toys to share and pointing out all of his body parts that he can identify. Of course, he gets a little jealous from time to time, but overall, they seem to be warming up to one another. Stay tuned for more updates!

A Few Favorite Faces

These are the faces that Mom loves!Am I ready for the swimsuit edition?
No, my head is not inside this bubble!
Yes, I love to husk corn, and I can never wait to eat it!
We have had a lot of excitement this month and there is only more to come. We've had a visit to Walloon Lake to see Chris and Natalie. Grampa took me on some fun boat rides. Oh, how I love the wind in my face when we go fast! We visited Uncle Brad at the Midland County Fair. (No, he wasn't on display with the other 4H animals; he had a booth for work.) There were lots of animals I got to see up close. I really like feeding the sheep. And last week, the neighbors had some trucks working in the backyard. I had some friends over to watch the trucks with me. They had to go home before all the additional excitement of the fire trucks and bucket trucks that had to make a last minute showing. Of course, with all this excitement, there is only more to come. I get to meet my little brother soon, counting down the days!

Buddies...

A boy and his dog...Lucy has become one of my best buddies. We like to play catch together, and I love to climb on her. Sometimes though I have to chase her around the house because she runs away from me! She sure can make me laugh.
Ask me where my baby brother is...This time I have it right. I give him hugs and kisses whenever I can. Sometimes when you ask me where he is though, I lift my own shirt and stick my finger in my belly button. I have been reading books about bringing home a baby and being a big brother. My favorite is to wave to the baby and say hi as well as slobber on the pages, giving out kisses.
My new bike from daddy's friend...I love my new bike even though I can't quite reach the pedals on it yet. It has such a fun bell that I can make go. Daddy's friend, Bill, has twin boys who were too big for their bikes, so I got one for my brother too. Thanks, Mr. Bill!
Another of my best buddies...I love going places and visiting with my friend Alyssa. We went to the museum together and had a blast. Niether of us wanted to wear the smocks to keep us dry, so we got pretty wet. It's a good thing our mommies decided to save the water play until the end. We will have to go back sometime.
More water fun...For some reason I think I would like to jump right in here and play inside the water parts. Water play is one of my favorite things to explore, but don't be shocked when you can't get me to sit down in the bathtub. No matter how hard you try, you won't get me to give in. You'll have to use the cup and pour the water over me. Mom and Dad wonder what the difference is in the bath water, but I haven't told them yet. It's too good to keep them guessing!

Summer Splashes

July has been a lot of fun around Midland. It has been warm enough to go swimming, spend lots of time outdoors and got to the spray parks. This is Mom and me at the spray park. I am just getting acquainted in this picture. You should see some of the later pictures...I am absolutely soaked, and so is Mom! What fun we have!



We have also gone to the Children's Zoo in the area. This is Dad and me petting Andy the cow. Ask me what a cow says! I love to learn new animal noises. It keeps Mom and Dad laughing.
And of course, I love the water and my truck so much that I even beg Mom and Dad to ride in the rain. Notice that Mom and Dad are in the garage staying dry while I ventured out into the driveway to get wet. Yeah Summer!

Busy as a Bee

Last weekend we went with Uncle Brad and Aunt Kristin to the Bay City River Roar. I couldn't believe how fast those boats went. It was so fun. Besides, lots of people were watching me and talking about how cute I was, so excited about the boats and coordinating shirts with Dad.
Yesterday Mom took me to the library for "Touch a Truck Day." I got a new fire hat and construction hat. It was fun to sit in the driver's seat of the fire engine, but I really liked to drive the gian municipal lawn mower. Maybe Daddy should get a riding mower!


Over Father's Day, GrampS and Grammy came for a visit. This is the finger painting I made for GrampS. I think he liked it. I know he liked all of my new tricks. There are even more tricks up my sleeve now. I love to walk all over the place, especially at home. I do best if I have a destination in mind, but you can start to find me wandering more. I can even pull myself up in the middle of the room now. Also, you should ask me what animals say. My favorites are a cow, horse, fish, sheep, doggie and bird.

Bubbles, Bikes and Bottoms Up!

What a busy time it has been for us now that the weather has warmed up. I have been outside riding my bike, getting pulled behind Mom and Dad's bike, trying really hard to walk, and on rainy days, I like to smash bubbles with my cymbals indoors. I took my frist few steps when Dad was away in Asia for a few weeks and I have been trying to run around ever since. The only part I still have trouble with is the getting to the standing position without anything to pull up on. So you'll often find me walking around like a gorrilla with my buns high in the air. And you should see me on my bike! I am a regular old speed demon. That's why they put the helmet on me. Besides, Mom and Dad always wear one.


With the hot weather, I went to Down Gardens for storytime today and they had the sprinklers on for us. I had so much fun getting me and Mama wet. Boy did I get tuckered out after that! I think I get to go swimming this weekend at Gramma and Grampa's cottage. We are going to go with Uncle Brad and Aunt Kristin.

On another note, I am getting excited about being a big brother. I like to give mom's growing belly a hug. Did you know that we are going to turn our house into wrestle-mania? We are going to have another boy in the house. Oh yeah!