Playgroup at the Gaspard's House

Our good friends, Clay and Katie Gaspard, are plotting their move to Texas in the coming months, possibly even weeks. While the only good that could possibly come from this would be the possibility that our condo will sell in time for us to take over the lease of their apartment, which is down the street from our church and close to many of our friends, we will miss them terribly when they move away. One thing we will certainly miss is coming over to their house for playdates with their son, James, and other All Saints' kids. Last week, Miles and I enjoyed one such playdate.

(Not pictured here are Christine and Isaac (who had to leave early) and Laura (mother of Jonah and Manny. As is apparent in the pictures, Laura uses these "playdates" to leave the care-taking of her two boys to other mothers in the group. We're on to you, Laura . . . )

Baby Manny's working the room . . .
James spends a moment alone with this book.

Lynn and Katie entertain the toddlers with a game of
roll-Thomas-the-Tank-Engine across the floor.

Jonah smiles for the camera. Katie smiles adoringly at Josie as she catches Thomas. James waits impatiently for Josie to send Thomas back his way already.
Josie thinks it's fun to torture the boys!

Miles thought this hat was a fun toy . . .
. . . but then he realized that is says "Texas" on it, so he quickly threw it across the room. All Miles knows is that Texas is taking the Gaspards away from him, which means Texas equal BAD. Smart boy, Miles. Smart boy.

Miles' 9 Month Stats

Miles had his 9 month doctor's appointment this morning. He is now 29 inches long and weighs 20 lbs. 2 oz. He is also getting his 5th and 6th tooth right now, and he has started sliding himself backwards across the floor. All in all, he is a very happy fella.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Hunter!

In honor of his birthday today, here are some photos of Grandpa Hunter with Miles.
We love you Grandpa/Dad!

Swisher Memories

Our dear friends, the Swishers, moved from Chicago to central Pennsylvania last year, leaving town on April 16, 2007. Brian helped them move their belongings into the moving truck for the umpteenth time (you owe us Brandon!), and he had the sad opportunity to watch them pull away. Corene (Mama Swisher) recently posted pictures of their final day on their blog, so I thought I would add some of our coverage of their final days in Chi-town. Here is a video of Jude on moving day:

(After downloading this video, I discovered that it is sideways. Instead of me trying to figure out how to fix this, I ask that you viewers simply tilt your head to the left.
Go on . . . you can do it.)

For those of you who don't know, Brian holds Jude's little sister, Abigail, very dear to his heart. I think it may be her rosy cheeks and the way she used to sit herself on his lap during church. Here's a video of Abigail at the Swisher's going away party with her Godmother, Miriam. (You can hear Brandon dominating the conversation in the background, as usual).

Here are some photos from the final Swishers-in-Chicago days . . .


Brandon and Corene with their Godson, Jonah.

It takes a special lady to get Brian to smile that big!

Don't ask about the suspenders. It was a brief phase started, I believe, by Bleys.
This is a prime example of what one might call "group think."

Corene and Kendra with Ezra and Miles
(Believe it or not, Corene is several weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy. Doesn't she look great?!)
You'll note, however, that Miles was born before Ezra.
That's one point for Miles, Swishers.
(Ezra's been racking up points ever since with his early developments in crawling, standing, etc. He's such a show off.)



Moving day . . .
I repeat: You owe us Brandon!



We miss you Swishers, and we love you all VERY MUCH!

Maximus Miles Mozart

Miles and I have visited GodMama Debbie's house several times in the past few weeks. It has given me a chance to prepare choir music for church while Miles plays with GodMama and his GodSisters. Since Debbie and "Uncle Steve" have five daughters ranging in ages from 4 to 22, Miles never hurts for attention at their house!

In this video, Miles makes a good argument that we should have named him Maximus Miles Mozart Hunter. Those hands can almost reach an octave!
Here is his first original composition:

Kids without Television

Many people respond with surprise when we tell them that we don't own a television. Ultimately, we just feel it is best for our kids and, quite frankly, us, that we don't have one. This leaves all of us to find other forms of entertainment in the house. So far, Miles has had no problem doing this. In this video, you will see his outrageous excitement over one of our floor lamps. You have to see it to believe it, so here you go:

In order to prove that this kind of motion is not unusual at our house, here is another video. Miles is excited about something on the desk in front of him. Can you tell?

When this kid starts walking, it is going to be trouble . . .

Happy 1st Birthday, Cousin Jake!

Jacob Orion Meyer turned one this week, so we traveled to Indianapolis yesterday for his "Elmo Birthday Pary!" Miles loved playing with all his cousins. Here are some pictures from the party:

The Cousins Five
(from left to right: Miles (8.5 months), Lydia (3 years), Jake (1 year), Cole (4.5 years), Norah (16.5 months))

The Birthday Boy with Uncle Brian

Miles tries out Jake's walker.
(Really, he just wanted that thing off the front of it, but it really looks like he could walk behind it, doesn't it?)

Hi Norah!

Jake and Miles
(Jake's shirt says "It's fun being One!")

We took the kids to the park to blow off some steam.
We were so glad to have a sunny day to go outside and play!

Miles liked his first experience on the swing set!



If you look closely, you can see Miles' big grin!

It's exhausting being the birthday boy . . .

Check out this Elmo cake! Way to go, Kate and Granner!

I don't want no stinkin' crown . . .
just give me my cake!

Time to open presents!
(Jake had plenty of help with this part . . . )

Miles squeezed in some alone time with Dee and Aunt Kate.
Check out the new duds.
Thanks for the hand-me-downs, Cousin Jake!

Jake was all partied out by the end of the day.
He and Grandpa George share a birthday!


Miles had a great time, can't you tell?

Thanks for a great day, Uncle Nate and Aunt Kate!