Charlie Wants to Be Like Daddy

I know that I just posted that Charlie is such a boy, BUT HE IS!  I do normal female things a lot of the day and that is what Charlie often sees, but has he ever tried to copy me?  Nope.  He likes to do what Daddy does.  He shovels in the dirt, tries to use the hoe, and has even gone so far as trying to hitch the bolder to the back of the Benz to haul it across the yard like he has seen Daddy do.  Today while I was getting dressed he brought me one of Charles shirts wanting me to put it on him.  He was so proud to be wearing one of Daddy's shirts!  He eventually got a little fed up with how big it was and was done wearing it, but did want it again later.  I like how he grabbed a high heel to hold.  He must like them just like Daddy.

We went through Butterfield Canyon (it is through the mountain range between Salt Lake and Grantsville) last Sunday.  The Fall colors were amazing!  Here is a picture, but it by far doesn't even come close to doing the grandure and majesty of it all justice.

Camping!

Our family went camping ... in Tom and Jan's backyard.  Charlie was roughing it the most since he got to sleep inside :)

 We had a fun campfire to make s'mores.  Charlie found this yellow plastic thing and enjoyed putting it on his head.

 Yummy breakfast the next morning.

 Playing wack-o ball at the park.  Charlie did so well helping me hit the ball.

 Tom gave me a haircut.

Charlie loves putting everything on his head.  This is my hair tie, often a favorite of his. 

We had lots of fun camping and being with family!  Thanks Tom and Jan!

Cooking Dinner

Charlie likes to help me cook in the kitchen.  I left the pantry door open to get a few things out and before I knew it he had emptied an entire shelf, thankfully it was just cereal, I was able to stop him before he got to the baking supplies.

 After I kicked him out of the pantry and threw everything back into it, Charlie immediately went to the tupperware drawer and threw everything out.  Now when I cook not only do I have to clean up my messes, but I have to clean up Charlie's too :)

Funniest Meal Time Game

Charlie started playing the "let's see who won't smile the longest" game at breakfast today and then again at dinner tonight.  He gives us a CUTE little scowl which we do back and then he busts up laughing or screaming.  He makes the cutest little face!  We busted up laughing so much at him.  I am glad that I was able to get a video and pictures of the silly meal game.

Charlie Being a Grown Up

My first memory of my childhood was sweeping our kitchen.  You know your parents were good when your first memory is of doing chores.  Charlie saw me sweeping the floor and wanted to help, too.  He had so much fun pushing the broom around the kitchen.  (You can disregard the HUGE project I was doing in the kitchen that day.)

 Charles needed to pull my car out of the garage to get a few things out for yard work this last Saturday.  To make it exciting he let Charlie sit on his lap while pulling out.  Charlie LOVED being in the driver's seat.  Once the car was off we let him "drive."  It was SOOOOOOOOOO CUTE to watch how much he loved the experience!  I like how Charlie is practicing "good" driving skills by looking backward while driving.

Charlie is Such a Boy

All growing up, seeing little girls do little girl things was always cute.  I never knew that little boys doing little boy things would be so cute too, if not more cute.  I love watching Charlie do all the things little boys love to do.
- play with cars
- flipping through the pages of a book as fast as possible
- digging in the dirt
- drinking as much as a camel
- grunt and make all sorts of boy noises
- getting his clothes dirty everyday
- bounce and throw balls
- be as loud as possible
- starving even though he just ate a huge meal an hour ago

- laugh as much as possible
- wiping his hands down the walls when going by
- bang the cupboard doors as loud and as fast as possible
- experiment with things just to see how they work
- copy what other people do, even if he is too little
- runaway from us when we try to catch him
- splash as much as possible in the bath
- not understand what a doll is
- walking backwards
- pushing chairs around the kitchen
- slipping in the tub or pouring water on his face and thinking it is great fun
- pull the cat's tail
- runaway naked from us
- play in spilt water
- drop toys anywhere when done with it
- running as fast as he can or running in circles for no reason
I know that these aren't all specific to boys and some can be tiring to deal with as a parent, but these are the great joys of raising a boy.  I am so excited to have another.  These boys will be great men!

California!

My cousin Amanda got married in California so Charlie and I hopped on a plane and flew down for the festivities.

Charlie had a grand time in the airport running around wanting me to catch him.  We sure amused our soon-to-be fellow passengers for an hour.  On the plane we sat next to a BYU engineering professor and his wife.  There were a lot of other little kids around us in the back of the airplane which was great for Charlie to watch and play with.  He was probably one of the best behaved children on the plane since he didn't fuss once.

He did quite well on the way home as well.  He didn't get fussy until the end since he was ready for his nap and they took forever attaching the walkway to the plane and then had to stop us to redo it.  My Grandma took this photo of me with Charlie and all of my stuff.  I got a few compliments from strangers about how impressed they were that I found a way to transport everything without help.

 Charlie had a lot of fun exploring and running around!

 Eating some yummy new foods that my Grandma makes.

Charlie had a great time playing with his car at the dinner the night before the wedding.

 When we drove to the temple for the wedding Evan, David, and I had to squish into the back of my Grandma's car.  Even though I was pregnant I was still the smallest and had to sit in the middle.  Good thing my pregnant belly only goes forward and not sideways.

 I didn't get many photos of the cute couple, Amanda & Karl, because I was either taking care of Charlie in the blistering heat or too tired to even think about taking photos.  But by the end our trip we were both tired and ready to go home.