Last Day with Scooter Man

Ben likes popsicles.  Purple is a favorite.

This morning Ben and I checked on Casper.

We also went around the lake.

Big first:  Ben stopped to wait for me.

Some mornings are more gorgeous than others.

We saw a heron.

Tumbles don't matter at all.

Ben is easily distracted, which gives me a chance to catch up.

A small pile of sand caught his attention.

And he was off.

He found a hole.

But then he was quickly back on the scooter.

He found a special stick which made it all the way home.

Corinne and I have worked on many projects this week.  Ben helps.

While Mom worked with a hot glue gun, Ben and I took a break upstairs.  Ben loves the door bell on the doll house, which was a gift from Aunt Carolyn.

He rammed the tower with a train.  About 10 times.

Confucius made a rare appearance and investigated my camera.

Cousin Luke recently taught Ben a clever way to go down the stairs.

A treat was in order.  Yes, it's Blue Bell.

Then a game of hide and seek.

Unfortunately, Ben got stuck in the mountain again.

Busy Day

Ben has several favorite trucks.  This is one of them. It's usually outside, but somehow it made its way into the house.

Percy keeps an eye on us, but he never intervenes.

After several stops for necessary supplies, including wood for a project, Corinne and I enjoyed a sushi lunch.

While Ben napped, Corinne and I worked on a wall hanging.  As Mommy finished putting it in place, Ben stayed out of the way by taking selfies with my camera.

Corinne bought this batik fabric 5 years ago on a trip to Ghana with Papa.  We built the frame and hung it.  Once Ben woke up, he kept track of the hammer.

A quiet dinner at home is rounding out our day.  Ben loves to help Mommy make smoothies.

More of Scooter Man

Corinne and I decided a walk around the lake this morning was in order.

The sun cast fun shadows.

It's a challenge to get Ben to hold still so I can take a picture in something besides sport mode.

I do my best to keep up.

You are likely very worried about this face, but he's stuck in the mountains again.

You could be worried here.  He took a tumble when his scooter hit the grass.  Over he went.

As he stood up, he said, "It's ok.  Try again."  And off he went.

After returning home, he played in the zen garden.

Our days are filled with errands and projects.  Corinne planted a pot with flowers.

Bahn Mi was on the agenda for a late lunch.

And pho.  This was wonderful.

Ben thoroughly enjoyed a side dish of crab.

He has begun practicing with chopsticks.

He's getting pretty good.

During an outing yesterday, Ben pulled this toy off the shelf and put it in the cart.  He loves playing with it.

Scooter Man

I walked around the block with Ben this morning.  He's a hoot to be with when he's on his scooter.

You might be guessing that he's waiting for me to catch up.  No.  He doesn't do that.  He's spying on the lawn mower guy.

He is such a natural on his scooter. I love watching him sail along.

Ben has a knack for getting stuck in the mountain.

Ben and his mom had a smoothie snack.  Oops.

Our day was filled with errands.  We visited a hardware store and guess what Ben found.

This is a clever mister, and Ben loved playing with it.

He spied an unattended fork lift.  Corinne and I looked both ways...

And popped him in the seat for a few minutes.

Early in the evening we checked on Jeff's cat Casper.  Corinne cleaned the pool and I took Ben around the lake.  Ha.  See the kid on the right?  

He was having the best time.  I caught him as he passed and asked him to please stay near me.

He said he would.

Then he took off again.  It's actually hilarious.  I watched walkers and runners pass him and smile and wave at him.  I only caught up because he stopped at this roundabout.

Then he was off again.  He practices weaves and tricks and watches other kids for ideas.

At this new roundabout, he told me what he was seeing.  Sharks, eels and snakes, he said.

He sailed around and around this roundabout, giggling.

I wish you could hear his giggle.

All of a sudden, the party was over.  Fortunately, he held on for a piggyback ride home.