Larsen Family: July Updates

This summer has been so busy, I almost don't know where to start! Tommy is definitely a toddler, and a bundle of fun and energy. A few firsts in the last month or so:

1) Tommy's first Twins Game! He was in no hurry to leave at the end.

2) Tommy's first McDonald's french fry... and he asked for more. So, he seems to have enjoyed it which makes me both happy and sad!

3) Tommy went underwater at swimming lessons, and didn't mind it.

4) Tommy's first Bavarian Blast (i.e. Heritagefest with a new name). He enjoyed all of it except the Narren and the big stuffed Goose, Gnomes and Mushrooms, and would have preferred the music be a bit quieter. I also learned something during that weekend in New Ulm - parades during naptime just aren't as much fun as they could be.

5) Tommy's 2nd Saints Game - with all the Larsen aunts and uncles and cousins. Tommy had a great time! He kept a close eye on Madonna, the big pink pig mascot and seemed to really like her. Then she got closer, so Mike and I decided to go have Tommy's picture taken with her. Tommy was terrified, just terrified. For the rest of the game, he kept repeating, "piggy bye-bye?". I must have said, "Yes, Piggy is bye-bye" about 50 times.

6) Lots of new words! Including everybody and umbrella. Tommy, what color is a bus? Lellow. Tommy, what color is a strawberry? Lellow. No Tommy, a strawberry is red. Tommy says "Lred". All colors start with an L. Adorable. And everything in the world is lellow. He seems to know what every animal I can think of can say (thank you daycare).

We've seen the Poynters a few times since they've moved to MN, and Tommy and Garrett are pretty cute to watch together. You'll recall this picture from last summer when they first met:

And now:

In other news, Tommy still loves to pretend to mow the lawn, and watch anyone else mow the lawn. Tommy loves to play with balls, chalk, go for walks and still loves ducks and Elmo. He's growing tall enough to reach doorknobs, and knows how they work. He's recently started to want to sit in the front seat of the car and pretend to drive. He insists on saying goodbye to his toys when he's done playing or getting out of the bathtub - he's so polite.

On the sad side, we found out that our daycare center is closing on Aug 15. We're crushed! Ask Tommy what his name is? The answer will be "Sheila", his favorite daycare teacher. So, we're on a hunt for a new wonderful daycare and accepting all advice and tips any of you may have. After touring 8+ centers in the area, I feel like an expert yet still don't know what to do.

Last but not least, we had a party to welcome the Poynters to Minnesota! Dave took so many wonderful pictures, but here are a few of my favorites.

Garrett