Mark is standing a bit more and we finally were able to get a photo of him standing. He is also getting into everything. Here he is exploring the contents of a tissue box.

He also really likes pushing around his train toy. Look at that toothy grin!

A First Step!

Mark began by taking one step today when moving from the chair to the baby gate while Granny and Grandpa were here. This afternoon Mark stood and took one step toward me and then dropped down and crawled. I'm hoping that he will show off when Mike gets home tonight.

We had a wonderful weekend. On Saturday we drove to Bartlesville and celebrated Father's Day. Mark enjoyed playing the piano and playing with the blocks at Granny and Grandpa's house. Mark also had his first experience crawling upstairs.

On Sunday afternoon we filled up Mark's splash pool and he had a good time splashing around and getting Mommy and Daddy wet.

Mark had a play day today with Jacob and Owen. The play day was at Jacob's house, on the way to the play day Mark decided to take his sippy cup and turn it over and shake juice all over his outfit. By the time I looked back and realized what he was doing, Mark was soaked. At least I planned ahead and brought another outfit!

It was fun time for the mommies and the babies. The kids played with toys and then played at a park. It was fun to see Mark playing with other kids. Mark cried when it was time to go. I think he was having fun playing with some new toys and he was getting tired too.

Mark is better. He started getting better on Tues. Now Mark is eating well and has a bunch of energy. I took Mark to the grocery store this afternoon and he was smiling and waving from the cart. He is a real crowd pleaser. It is wonderful to see Mark laugh and smile again.

She's back!

Oreo showed up at the back door this morning. A bit hungrier than normal, but otherwise none the worse for wear.

That was especially surprising since we had a huge downpour yesterday, and I figured she was freaked out and wet. But she seems to have been in a good hiding place.

Now we have to decide how to keep her from escaping like this in the future...

Lost cat and sick kid. That about sums up our lives right now. Mark broke out in a rash this afternoon and by the time I got him to the pediatrician Mark had a fever. The doctor diagnosed a virus and said Mark should be better in about 3 days. Overall Mark is doing well. He ate well this evening and he will play, but he is a bit cranky and not as flexible as normal.

Our Oreo cat is missing. :-(

Oreo was outside in the back yard when a storm came through. She's disappeared and we don't know where she's gone. She's been gone over 24 hours now. We're pretty sad that we can't find her, but she does have a microchip ID, so hopefully she will turn up at the shelter or vet, and they can call us. Until then, we're handing out flyers and hoping for the best. :-(

Mark was introduced to spaghetti and meatballs while we were in Austin. I prepared some for him this evening. He really likes them.

The end of the Austin trip
Park pictures!

On our last day in Austin Auntie Nicole, Kylie, Grandma, Mark, and Mommy went to the park near Grandma's house and then we drove to historic Gruene (pronounced green). We ate at the Gristmill restaurant in Gruene (picture below) and then walked around and did a little shopping. There was a massage therapist in town so Grandma, Auntie Nicole, and Mommy each made an appointment and enjoyed a 10 minute massage. Nicole was really sweet and paid for Mommy's massage, she is a wonderful sister!

Mark's Auntie Lisa came over for dinner. She brought Mark's birthday present with her. A beautiful handmade Tigger. It looks great in Mark's Winnie the Pooh themed room. Kylie decided to give Mark her tunnel. Mark crawled back and forth in the tunnel and Kylie and Lisa looked at him through the sides of the tunnel. You can see that he really enjoyed it.