Cousins in love

Today we are in Port Huron to celebrate Kayla's 2nd birthday! We almost didn't get to come, but Kurt's work conflict was cancelled, so here we are. It's wonderful to be together! Of course, Kayla was very excited to see Baby Cassidy (or "Beebee CaaCaa", as she says!) and got right to it, playing with her on the floor and giving her plenty of hugs and kisses. Kayla was so helpful, getting out each of Cassidy's toys from her bag, playing with them, and then putting them all back into the bag...then repeating the process, over and over. Cassidy just sat and smiled and played and took it all in. They are just SO cute together - it melts our hearts every time! It's almost impossible to pick the cutest pictures of them because they're all the cutest! Here are some highlights. We are so excited to see these friends grow up together!

Experiments in sleeping

Our little girl is becoming more mobile all the time. We find her in all array of positions in her crib each morning. Today after her nap I found her on her tummy, grabbing and chewing on the crib bumper. How we'd love to see what she does in there when she's alone! We hear lots of leg whapping and movement in general. How much does a video monitor cost?

More family to love

Today we drove down to Traverse City to visit with Aunt Marie, Amy, Granny and Uncle Larry. It was the first time any of them had met Cassidy. Amy especially fell in love with her little cousin, but I think they were all pretty entranced by our pretty pumpkin. She was a little shy at first but warmed right up to all of them. Granny gave Cassidy "Snowball", a white bear that she now loves to play with. What a wonderful day. Sure wish Granny Kay could've been there with us! Oh, and finally the mystery of Cassidy's hair was answered. Granny said that my mom had hair just like that as a baby! So now when people ask where she got all that hair, we can say: from Granny Kay!

Father's Day Weekend

It's Kurt's first Father's Day! On Saturday we walked downtown to see the carnival at East Jordan's Freedom Festival and enjoyed the awesome fireworks over Lake Charlevoix from our back deck at night. Cassidy of course was fast asleep by then, and we were so happy that she didn't wake up - they were loud! Sunday we had a special breakfast for Daddy, took a walk together in the afternoon and had grilled steaks for dinner. Happy Father's Day!

Here are some special daddy/daughter pictures taken on Saturday afternoon.

(Notice the two little bottom teeth!)

I don't know what gets grabbed for more, the sunglasses or the beard!

I'm on a boat!

Friday afternoon we headed to nearby Bay Harbor for the in-water boat show. We had so much fun walking the docks and boarding the amazing boats (daydreaming all the way). Here are Cassidy and daddy in the master bedroom of Cassidy's favorite, a 72-foot yacht. Cassidy loved petting this nice dog.

He was very friendly and even shook hands with Kurt!
We're so grateful for this awesome Baby Bjorn carrier.
We use it all the time and Cassidy is so happy in it!

Little Ladybug

Swinging with Grandpa

What better to do on a lazy early summer day? We'll be getting a lot of use out of the hammock swing this summer. Cassidy loves it, along with the windchimes nearby.

A Visit from Grandparents Faust

We enjoyed a mid-week visit from Grandpa and Grandma Faust, celebrating early Father's Day, playing, and strolling around Boyne City one afternoon. It's always great to see them! Cassidy is sure in love with Grandpa. His funny faces and big hugs make her smile and laugh.

Rollllllling Over

For some time, Cassidy has been rolling from her tummy to her back, but she hasn't been quite motivated to do the opposite. She doesn't really love being on her tummy, so we weren't surprised that she wasn't rolling onto it on purpose. Finally, though, her strength got the best of her and her desire for that just-out-of-reach toy rolled her right onto her tummy. I happened to be in the kitchen at the moment, but was able to capture the end result on camera after catching her like this: You can do it, pumpkin! We knew you could!

New "Skills"

Our independent pumpkin loves exploring the house "unsupervised" in her Tot Rider. Today she figured out how to open the drawers in the kitchen.

Time to rethink our baby-proofing!

Can this wait? I'm right in the middle of this book...

Our little literary genius.

The Eyes Have It

In just a few days, Cassidy will be seven months old. (!) They say that by about 6 months, you can determine what the child's permanent eye color will be. Still blue! Any bets?

Mommy, the herbs are ready

Kurt takes Cassidy out for a yard walk most evenings. She contentedly swings in his arms, occasionally reaching out to help daddy pull weeds. Tonight I needed some oregano and parsley picked and brought in for the lasagna I was making. The delivery person was too cute not to photograph!

Hello, Mr. Panda

Cassidy loves playing with Mr. Panda, one of my stuffed animals from when I was a kid. It's so funny to watch because he's almost as big as her!

Little Dolly

Today we're in Holland as Kurt finishes the first year seminar for his D.Min. program. Cassidy got all prettied up to go visit Kevin, Erika, Spencer and Bradyn in nearby Hudsonville. Could she be more of a little doll?