A little swim

Matthew and I enjoyed our 92 degree afternoon with a little swim in a friend's pool. We went swimming with Ann and Mikayla. Matthew loves the water! They have a lot of toddler friendly "rides" that Matthew was able to enjoy. We stayed in the pool for at least an hour and a half and it was hard getting him out. His poor toes were so shriveled! We are starting swimming lessons for him in the winter. It is nice to know he isn't terrified of the water. Enjoy the new photos!

Matthew's First Trip to the Zoo

We took Matthew to Binder Park Zoo today and he LOVED it! I think he enjoyed the giraffes the most. He got to feed them and laughed the entire time. A few times he tried to put the biscuits in his own mouth, but the giraffes were too quick and got them before he did. He didn't get a chance to feel the goats or take a ride on the carousel because on the ride back from Africa he fell asleep...oh well.

We were entertained by the one month old snow leopard and the two cheetahs. The baby snow leopard weighs six pounds now and once she grows up a bit she will be put in her own enclosure before moving to another zoo to spend her time. One of the cheetahs was scared by some garbage floating in the pond and started growling and showing her teeth. That was a pretty cool sight! Usually the cheetahs and the snow leopard is asleep, but we were lucky to see them all awake and active today.

I am hoping to make a trip to John Ball Zoo with Matthew before I go back to school to see the lions and feed the rays and ride a camel. Until then, enjoy the photos from the zoo!

Walking Udate

Matthew's walking skills have taken off! He walks all around the house without hesitation now. He is learning to take turns and pivot on his feet to change directions without falling. He is much better at balancing his body when he feels like he is going to fall. He is a bit more unstable with his shoes on, but we are working on that. He will walk with his shoes, but not the distances he will barefoot. He will walk from the garage to the mailbox across the street if he is holding onto my finger. Once I let go, he will go about ten feet or so before bear crawling. He has also learned how to squat and stand without holding on to a table or the wall and then take off walking from there.

Last weekend we bought Matthew's bike seat and helmet too. Now I can take him for daily bike rides around the neighborhood and the Celery Flats! At first he wouldn't wear his helmet and that was a challenge, but once we put it on and immediately start moving the bike, he forgets all about it. He LOVES it! I enjoy it too as it gives me another way to work out and get some exercise.

For the first time in over a month, Ryan has the entire weekend off! I have a baby shower to attend today and tonight we are going to dinner and a movie while Aunt Sarah and Uncle Cory watch Matthew. Then tomorrow we are going to Binder Park Zoo to feed the giraffes and the goats and ride on the carousel! I will post pictures at the end of the weekend of our trip. Have a great weekend!

It's a Hot One Today!

The thermometer reached 91 degrees today and Matthew and I needed to cool off, so we played in the pool today. I filled up the water this morning after breakfast so it could heat up until our pool time. After Matthew's afternoon nap we got him ready and hit the pool. By this time the water was nice and warm and it was a refreshing break for Matthew. As he splashed around and enjoyed his toys, the dogs enjoyed the hot walkway and baked in the sun for a while. Ojala took it upon herself to get a few drinks from the pool and dip her paws in a few times as well. I am sure Matthew would love for Ojala to join him in his pool, but I don't think her nails would be too forgiving on the inflatable liner of the pool, so I quickly put an end to that. Maybe they can play together in the dog's pool next time. When Matthew was done playing, he gently climbed out of the pool and bear crawled to the front door telling me he was done for the day. I took some photos of his playtime in the pool. Enjoy!

Enjoying the Week

Matthew's great-grandparents are in town for the week from Arizona. We have spent a lot of time with them over the weekend and this week before they leave to go home this weekend. Uncle Brian, Aunt Cara, and cousin Maia came to town this past weekend to spend time with everyone. It is nice to see the age gap between Maia and Matthew start to shrink. They are able to interact more now and it will only get better. On Sunday I went to Jackson for a bridal shower and Matthew was cared for by the great-grandparents and Grandma Genisio. We went to the casino on Monday and had a good time as well. Last night was Ryan's fishing tournament, so Matthew and I had our traditional Tuesday night dinner at Grandma's. Today Matthew and I went to lunch with great-grandma and great-grandpa and we will have dinner with them tomorrow evening as well. We are trying to get as much time with them as we can because we don't get to see them often.

It has been very hot and sticky here this week which makes playing outdoors a slim option for Matthew, so the visit was great timing. This weekend we look forward to some "Daddy time" on Sunday. Ryan will have his first day off (keeping our fingers crossed) in two weeks. If he gets Sunday off, we plan on taking Matthew to the zoo for some family time.

In other news, Matthew continues to work on is walking skills. Just last night he traveled from his crib to the guest bathroom before realizing what he was doing and fell. He is taking more and more steps each try. We are also practicing walking with his shoes outside so he can get used to that. That is all for now, we hope this finds everyone happy and healthy!

Tony the Tiger

Matthew got to stay up a little late last night to go to the end of Daddy's fishing tournament for the weigh-in. Instead of catching bass, which is what they should be catching, Daddy caught this monster Tiger Muskie! He named it "Tony the Tiger". See how Matthew measures up to a 47 inch, 21.5 pound Tiger Muskie! Wow, what a catch! To see more photos of Tony, click here.

WALKING!!!

I will keep this short and sweet, just like Matthew...anyway after a week of only two independent steps Matthew walked across my bedroom from my dresser to my bed and then stood there and clapped his hands. The trip was about ten to fifteen steps for him. He had this huge smile on his face as if just realizing what he was doing. It can only take off from here!

A ride in the boat

We were very lucky to get the opportunity to take Matthew in his first boat ride in our boat today. The weather was beautiful and we hit the lake around 10:00, before it go too busy. When we arrived the water was like glass and there was only a handful of boats out. We strolled around for a while and Daddy did a little fishing. Matthew tried his hand at captain and enjoyed playing with the wheel. I can't get over how much he likes the water and just watching the wake or the little waves ripple. We stayed out for about an hour and a half until the lake traffic started to pick up. Of course Matthew fell fast asleep on the drive home and took the rest of his afternoon nap when we got home.

It was really nice to spend some time with Daddy these past two days. Ryan has to work tomorrow and will be working seven days a week for at least a month. Weekdays of work will be twelve hour days and the weekends will be anywhere from eight to ten hours. We tried to do many things this weekend a s a family for the sake of both Ryan and Matthew. We added more photos to our photo site of today's outing, Enjoy!

Happy 4th of July!

We hope that everyone had a great and safe holiday today! The weather was absolutely beautiful and we enjoyed ourselves with family today. We spent the afternoon at Great-Uncle Mark and Great-Aunt Julie's house on Indian Lake. Aunt Sarah and Uncle Cory were there along with Grandpa and Grandma Chenery, Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Chenery, and Great-Uncle Bruce and Great-Aunt Joene. We had lunch and played. Then we took a boat ride around the lake in the pontoon. Matthew enjoyed this so much. He stood holding onto the railing just watching the water and the boats. We are going to try to get our boat out tomorrow and spend some time just the three of us.


After our afternoon on the lake and in the fresh air, Matthew took and nice and long early evening nap which worked out nicely because we wanted to see fireworks tonight. He woke up around 8:00 and had a small snack before we left for downtown Schoolcraft. Grandma and Grandpa Genisio and Gary and Blair joined us for fireworks. We weren't sure how Matthew would do with the loud noises and being up way past his bedtime, but once the fireworks started he was just memorized! He didn't take his eyes off the sky the entire show. Once we got home he fell right asleep. It was a very nice fireworks display and a great day spent with much of our family. Enjoy the new photos of Matthew!