My Laundry Assistant

I have a new laundry assistant helping me out with the piles and piles of laundry that are done every week. Experiences like the one captured below remind me when the hamper is getting too full and I'm getting behind on my housework! Caleb recently discovered he can open our dirty clothes hamper in the master bathroom. This is what he likes to do to stay busy while I get ready in the morning. He's a real helper. :)

Just getting started on his sorting

Making progress...

And finally - the ultimate goal has been reached! An empty hamper for a little boy to sit in!

Trip to Houston

Last weekend we went to Houston to visit Bryan's family - GranJan, Grandpa, Aunt Michelle, Uncle Craig, Aunt Carolyn & Uncle Billy - for our Thanksgiving celebration. Bryan just finished up a month in the ER and they gave him the last four days of the rotation off. We are so thankful for those days since his next rotation will give him very little time off! We are expecting him to average over 110 hours per week of work over the next four weeks. YUCK!

We traveled on Saturday morning and came back on Monday afternoon. Caleb was great in the car both times! He napped for about 1/2 of the trip and then read books, played with toys from his car basket or listened to his kid music in the car. We didn't have to make any stops on the way to Houston or on the way home!

We had a great visit in Houston. We stayed with GranJan and Grandpa and made two quick visits to see Granny & Daddy Bob too. At GranJan and Grandpa's Caleb loved playing on the stairs (with supervision of course!), announcing the presence of Princess the cat every time he saw her (caaaaaaaaaat!) and opening and closing many doors, especially the doors to the kitchen. He also played with his lion push toy, went to the park, slept in the new crib at GranJan and Grandpa's, enjoyed his first true Thanksgiving food that wasn't baby food from a jar, and had more piano lessons from Grandpa. Thank you GranJan and Grandpa for a fun visit to Houston!

I wish I had taken more pictures! Here are some of the better ones that I took.

Playing on the slides with Daddy

Playing peek a boo around the corner with GranJan

Piano lessons with Grandpa- just warming up here

Working his way to the other end of the piano...

Clapping for himself after his lovely piano recital

A Trip to Salt Lick BBQ

Today we made a trip to Round Rock to go eat at Salt Lick BBQ. The original location is in Driftwood, TX but Round Rock is only 45 minutes from us so it was a much quicker trip. Bryan wanted to go eat at Salt Lick on his birthday but we couldn't go because he and Caleb were both sick. Now that we are back to being a healthy household we hit the road for some brisket, sausage and ribs!

The weather was gorgeous and we had such a nice little mini road trip as a family! Caleb loved the bread, turkey and sausage but wasn't that big a fan of the potato salad or beans. Bryan ordered an all-you-can-eat platter and enjoyed multiple servings of BBQ! From our picnic-style table we could see a railroad track across the road and two trains went by during our meal. Caleb loved seeing the trains! We had a great lunch and were glad we could finally do something fun to celebrate Bryan's birthday!

Bryan & Caleb by the Salt Lick chuckwagon

Caleb loved the bread at Salt Lick and refused to eat any small bites we handed him. He wanted to eat it like a big boy!

The birthday boy waits for his all-you-can-eat bbq

Caleb & Mommy outside Salt Lick BBQ

Splish Splash

Bryan invented a new game tonight during Caleb's bath and it was a huge hit.

First, you put a froggie on your head. This may take a couple of attempts and lots of parental encouragement. (notice Caleb's tongue sticks out when he's super focused)

Then you try your very hardest to balance the froggie on top of your head...

You might need to stick your tongue out or do other funny facial expressions to maintain your concentration.

When you just can't stand it anymore, let the froggie fall into the water and SQUEAL like crazy!!! Be sure to clap your hands with delight, too.