Introduction to James, Elias, and Cora

The last several weeks have been a logistical nightmare. But we are now settled in our new home in Maryland. I'll use this blog to catch everyone up on the past several weeks and all the excitement. Before we left San Diego, we went to the USS Midway, which is a decommissioned US Navy aircraft carrier that is now a museum in the San Diego harbor. It also happens to be my step-dad's ship from when he was in the Navy. James was fearless on the flight deck and ran right out to the very front. He was definitely more comfortable on the deck than inside the ship - turns out the kid is pretty claustrophobic. Tobias' mom came out to San Diego to help us with the move so she was able to join us on the tour. The day after the Midway tour, Tobias' mom, James, and I started our journey East. Tobias stayed in San Diego to finish up his training. The drive went very smoothly and it took us 2 days to make it to Denver and then a half day to make it to KS where I left Tobias' ...

Saturday morning attire! Superman shirts all around and Superman cartoons on the TV! What could make for a better, more relaxing, morning? We've really enjoyed the Wild Animal Kingdom. Here is James showing how his hand is bigger than a lion's paw! We've been attending a wonderful church this summer and it has a wonderful children's program. Here is James showing off his crown that he made in Sunday School. They learned about Samuel and King Saul. Another exciting thing about this week has been buying James a new pair of shoes. I only do Velcro shoes with James and his feet are getting to the point that we're finding it hard to find Velcro shoes! Check out his new kicks! James in front of the Coronado Bay Bridge. James at the San Diego sky line. Beautiful! Yummy ice cream! James loves to share his ice cream with Daddy! Of course, James enjoys his own ice cream too! An update of the shoe picture! My feet won't be much bigger for long.

Life simply does not get much better than attending the Fertile Fair in Fertile, MN. James and I really enjoyed our trip to Northern MN where we had a lot of fun with my dad's side of the family. We were in MN for a week around the 4th of July. I spent almost every summer of my life in MN so it was wonderful to bring James. James and Grandpa Mel enjoyed the merry-go-round. Even though James is only 2 1/2, he's tall enough to ride most of the children's rides. The motorcycles were his favorite! The bumblebees were also lots of fun. The fair also had a lot of great 4-H animal exhibits. James enjoyed seeing all the animals, but was most amazed at the many different variety of chickens. There was also a petting farm where Grandpa Mel and James fed goats and cows and deer. The best part of the Fertile Fair for anyone older than 15 is the Ladies Aid Stand - where you'll always see someone you know and just about every type of delicious homemade pie is available. Her...