FIRST DAY!, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

It’s hard to believe our little guy has already headed off to school. He started at a Montessori school near our house. He didn’t cry on the first day(but we did). He seems to be adjusting well, but he does miss Maddie(Holly). He is learning a lot and we can already see some changes in his language development and behavior. He’s just started telling us to “Be patient”. He usually plays that card when it’s bedtime. Stalling is a specialty of the two-year-old crowd.

SILLY SOAP, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

We’re trying to break Parker of the ugly habit of pouring water out of the tub and onto the bathroom floor. He thinks it’s great fun. Here is one of our methods of distraction – Elmo soap! On this particular night, Holly squirted the soap all over his head. Parker yelled “Mirror. Miirror” so he could see what he looked like.

SOUTH BEACH, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

We spent a few days at the beach in Miami. We thought we were taking the less expensive route by not paying for the ocean front room. Turns out we scored big. Parker was glued to the windows watching the city skyline, the cars/trucks/buses, and the boats in the waterway. We even got a glimpse of the Obama motorcade when he came to the hotel to campaign for one of the candidates in the Florida governor’s race. But a presidential visit, pales in comparison to the great waterslide at the hotel. He’s too small to go down by himself, so Holly and I made quite a few runs on that slide. I lost count at trip number 17.

BIKER BOY, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

Here’s the little man surprising us during our visit to Wrightsville Beach, NC in June. That’s the Intracoastal Waterway behind him in the photo. We had no idea he could ride a “big boy bike” with training wheels, but he jumped right on and took off. Back home, we did get him a bicycle, which he loves. He still rides the tricycle a bit too…just to mix things up.

CHOO-CHOO!, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

Parker’s current passion is trains – specifically Thomas the Tank Engine. In the morning, he rushes down the stairs to start playing with his trains. We took him to Strasburg, Pennsylvania to see Thomas in person. Grammy and Pappy Parker were there too. It was his first time riding a train and we chugged along through Amish country. Lots of fun!

HIDE AND SEEK, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

This cabinet in our kitchen was supposed to be a coat closet. You can see how that worked out! It is full of snacks and also one delicious little boy!

EASTER BEST, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

This is Parker on Easter Sunday in my parents’ backyard. He had a great time. Lots of kids came for my Mom’s elaborate egg hunt. And of course, he loves “hock-oh-lat”(translation – chocolate).

BUBBLE BATH, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

Here’s Parker in the tub. He likes taking a bath and he loves bubbles. Now that it is warm outside we are learning the importance of our nightly baths. He is quite filthy by the end of the day. He loves playing in his sandbox in the backyard. He recently learned how to pedal his tricycle, so we tool around the neighborhood. We have to call the playground “the p.g.” because once you mention the actual word, we MUST go there immediately!

HOOK ‘EM, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

You can see that Parker is still working to recover from the University of Texas losing the national championship game. Of course, Texas is Holly’s alma mater, so she is training him well. He has learned how to say “hook ‘em horns”. He is saying all sorts of fun things – some of his other favorite phrases are “all good”, “where you goin’”, and “cheese please”. He also loves to chase the dog and giggle and say “Cay-Cay”(short for Cayman).

ROSY CHEEKS, originally uploaded by littleshortymonkey.

Here’s Parker after spending a little time out playing in the snow. We got about two feet during the big December storm. He had lots of fun playing in it – though he made it clear that he is adamantly opposed to mittens. The snow was so deep that every now and then he would topple over and yell “I stuck! I stuck!”