4-year-check-up!

In the last blog post I mentioned that I got a bike for my 4th birthday. Here are some pictures from the very beginning of learning to ride it. At first Dad had to hold onto the handlebars while I got used to using the pedals. He also had to remind me to look in front, rather than down at my feet. By the end of practising he just had to lightly hold onto the back of the seat, and I could go pretty fast!

Pedaling is very different from pushing myself on my Laufrad ('walking bike')... it's hard work, and harder to get started!

...taking a short break.

Getting ready...

...taking a short break to make sure the area is safe! (This is my soldier-prone-position). Then back to practising! My Momma got cold and annoyed at the mosquitos, so she headed home... more pictures of me riding my bike FASTER and with less support to follow soon!

On Monday I had my 4-year-old check-up at the doctor's office.

I am growing to be a big, big boy: I'm 43 inches (109cm) tall and I weigh 45lbs (20.5kg)... which is in the 95%ile for a 4-year-old... this means that I am the same size as 50% of 6-year-olds!

The doc said that everything else looks great, and that my Momma and Dad can be very proud of how well my mind and my motor skills are developing.

After the check-up I had to get my 4-year-old immunizations. Those were NOT fun: 5 different shots with a combination of a total of 9 different vaccines. I was VERY brave though: I didn't cry at all, I just said "Ow! OW! Hey! That really hurt!" The nurse said she had never seen such a brave 4-year-old. My arm was pretty sore for a few days afterwards, especially where I got the tetanus shot.

I have discovered a new fun pass-time: writing stuff! I've been able to recognize letters for a long time now, and can sound out words up to 5 letters long, and know how to spell a few words. For Fathers' Day I decided that I wanted to WRITE Dad a card... so I did! I wrote these words without anyone guiding my hand - all by myself.

Happy 4th Birthday to Mark!

This weekend was my birthday-weekend! On June 25th I turned 4 years old! We celebrated as a family (including Grandpa Bradley and Great-Grandma-Nana) on Friday evening with a (home-made) hamburger and fries dinner. On Saturday I got to invite a few of my friends, and we had a Knight-themed party.

How old am I?

Since my Momma baked a big castle cake for my knight-party the next day, we had pound cake cupcakes with fresh strawberries and whipped cream after my Birthday dinner on Friday.

It was fun to open my presents! I was especially excited about all the tank-related toys I got... I have a whole basket full of tanks and Army-guys now that fought a fierce war against the toy dinosaurs later in the evening.

Hmmm. Momma and Dad told me to wait outside of the garage for my final birthday present.

...a big-boy-bike! I'm outgrowing my 'walking-bike' (Laufrad), and thanks to all the balancing-practise I've had on it, should be able to learn to ride my big bike super-quickly. One of my big friends outgrew this bike, and my Dad put new handle grips on it and fixed it up so it is nice for me. I also got a new helmet to help keep my noggin safe when (not if, WHEN) I fall. :o)

As mentioned above, my birthday party on Saturday had a 'knights in shining armor'-theme. My Momma made me this costume out of 2 aluminum serving platters for the breast plate and a silver windshield-sun-shade she sewed into the helmet, arm guards and leg guards.

The cake was tricky - I wanted a castle-cake! My Momma doesn't bake very often, and wasn't super impressed by the end-result... but I loved it, of course. :o) Complete with sharks swimming in the mote, and gummybear soldiers. Oh, and cannons, of course.

Sir Mark and Sir Dad awaiting their guests in Castle Bradley. (...note the bare feet...)

Sir Ezra and Lady Tori...

Sir Holden...

Sir William with his noble steed...

Lady Keatt (and little Sir Wesley came too, but didn't want his picture taken)...

We had lots of fun playing games, eating a finger-food lunch, followed by cake, opening presents, dancing to some music, and popping a bunch of bubble wrap by jumping on it!

I would say this birthday was a success!

Playing catch-up

We have been busy with house guests, my Momma's book illustration project, play dates and various other things, so making blog posts didn't make the to-do-list.
Here are a few pictures from the past weeks:

It looks like I might have gotten my Momma's drawing-gene... I love drawing tanks, cars, volcanos, and potato-people.
...guess which gene I got from Dad!

Last week our kitty proved (for the first time in 10 years!) that he is indeed a cat. We are not sure how this mouse got into our house (from the garden while people were going in and out? through the garage?), but Merlin caught this mouse a few days ago and left it as a gift for Mark in his room. Yuck!

My Momma had to get creative to keep Holden and me busy the past 3 weeks - it was raining so hard non-stop that going to the park or even on rain walks was out of the question most days. We did go on walks outside if it wasn't raining TOO hard, but it was POURING most of the time.

I'm glad Holden was here, it's easier not to get bored when you have a friend around.

One of our rainy-day activities was to make butter. My Momma gave each of us a small bottle filled with heavy cream, then turned on some music and told us to jump around and shake the bottles with all our might. After a long time it turned into butter. We drank the buttermilk, and very proudly ate our home-made butter on toast with some yummy jam.

Today the sun finally came out, and we went to the playground together. Pushing the swing hurts my Momma's back, so whenever Dad comes with us the first thing I ask to do is be pushed. I am learning to pump my legs to swing myself, but it still much more fun to have the help of a big person....

Sliding is fun, although this one is kind of small.

To mix it up a little...

I walk up and down.

I'm getting pretty good at climbing and balancing on the sea monster jungle gym. It used to scare me because the top is higher than Dad's head, and the bar you have to balance on is at my Momma's shoulder height.

I can do it all by myself now, and can even get from one part to another, which is tricky because you have to reach and let go for a moment.

At the end I sit on the bar of my pet sea monster.

Ok, Momma, enough with the camera!

My Momma's Belly!

My Momma's belly is growing, and my little brother is doing well! In +/- 11 weeks we get to finally meet the little guy.
A couple of weeks ago my Momma's friend Kim took some pictures of my Momma. Here are a few for you to look at:

PUDDLES!

This evening my Aunt Hanna, my Momma and I went on a walk - and there were LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of puddles for me to jump in! Please excuse the blurriness of the photos... I was having too much fun to hold still for the camera.

I got completely and utterly soaked in the very first puddle I jumped in!

Walking around the block provided PLENTY of other puddles to hop, jump, stomp, run and swish in.

Little boys (and girls) are probably the only ones who REJOICE in the street and sidewalk drainage problems in Cascade Park.

Because this puddle was safely on the sidewalk my Momma let me run back and forth in it for a while, which gave Aunt Hanna the chance to take some pictures.




When I was all done my pants were completely soaked, and I had so much water in my boots we had to dump them out and wring out my socks. BOY was it worth it!

Dozer Day!

Today was SUCH a fun day!
Dad and I got to do something special: we went to a fundraising event called 'Dozer Day' - where kids (and adults) get to operate REAL heavy machinery (with the help of trained professionals) in the Camas quarry.
I got to ride in the back of a dump truck with Dad, I got to ride in the shovel of a bulldozer, I got to operate the shovel of a ditch digger, and I got to scramble all over a variety of diggers, cranes, haulers, bulldozers and other BIG machines.

Dozer Day - the proceeds went towards local children's charities.

...try making a tire swing out of THIS one, Dad!

Pretending to operate a mini-bulldozer...

...oh wait, need to buckle up first to be safe!

In the cab of a crane - nobody got to operate this one, but kids were allowed to climb into the cab to pretend and to honk the horn.

Time for a little rest.

This is me digging a ditch! A guy sat inside the cab with me and told me how to operate the shovel.

It was lots of fun (and I bet Dad was jealous, but he wouldn't have fit into the cab with the other guy)

...another large machine I got to climb on - check out the profile on those wheels!

And finally, Dad and I showing off our cool haircuts that Momma gave us yesteray.

What a good day!