A Very Busy Saturday....

Yesterday (Saturday, the 23rd of August) was a very busy day for us. Here it is in words and of course, photos :)

Marc got up extremely early to run. He ran 30 miles, yep, 30 miles, because he is training for a 100 mile race in October -- yep, 100 miles. For part of his run, he ran with our friend, Seth. Seth is training for a 1/2 marathon in September and ultimately, his first marathon in October (we're rooting for you, Seth).

Because I chose to NOT get up so early and we have a 13 month-old that was still asleep, I did not get any photos of this training run.

Once Luke and I got up and around, however, we were busy. First, it was Luke's breakfast. He's recently taken to scrambled eggs and toast in the morning, and Luke likes butter and grape jelly on his toast. Here is a photo of the mess.



Then, because it was a S.P.E.C.T.A.C.U.L.A.R. Kansas August morning (we had a record low of 52 degrees), Luke and I took a walk. I even had to put pants and socks on Luke -- something I don't think I'd done since May.

Again, I didn't get any photos of this.

After the walk, Luke and I ran some errands.

Later in the afternoon, after Luke's poor nap (he's on a kick of taking really poor naps lately; therefore, the evenings aren't the greatest in our home right now), we went and did the ultimate....We traded in our Jaguar for a bigger, more family friendly vehicle.

So, here's the last time you locals will see this....



We'd been looking online for quite some time now for a Trail Blazer -- preferably the extended size. We finally found one for a very decent price in a town about 40 minutes from here. We had tried very briefly to sell the car on "Craig's List." Finally, we ended up just trading it in.

Luke did VERY WELL at the car dealership while we were signing papers. He sat on Marc's lap and played with his visor.



Here's the very last photo of the car we had. The tag's already off in this photo.



While it was a very good "Pre-Child" car to have, we really needed something that was easier to get Luke in and out of. Also, the trunk in that car was S.M.A.L.L. If we had any stroller in the trunk, nothing else could get in there. Also, since Marc does do some triathlons, we needed something that we could transport his bike PLUS Luke in at the same time.

So, here's the car dealer taking the stickers off of the window of our new (at least new to us) Trail Blazer. (It's a 2004, in case you're wondering).



It definitely is a different drive. It drives more like a mini-van or possibly even a truck. For me, backing up will take some getting used to. While it does drive nice for a larger vehicle, I will miss my smooth-riding, all-wheel drive Sedan. Also, it's a VERY tight fit into our garage. If it was any bigger, we'd have an issue. Here's a photo of it in our garage, without our other vehicle.



And yes, Luke does seem to enjoy sitting up quite a bit higher.

So, after that major purchase, we headed over to my parents' house for my dad's (Luke's Grandpa K) 60th birthday party. Yep -- 60th. It was a small party with just our family, but it was a NICE, small party. The only issue to Marc and me is that Luke was a bit grouchy -- you know, from that lack of a good nap in the afternoon.

For his birthday supper, my dad chose ribs -- that he grilled himself.



We also had corn on the cob, baked beans, our family's obligatory Oriental Cabbage Salad, our family's obligatory Strawberry Whip, and of course, Pepsi. My mom did quite a bit of research on fixing ribs. So, she baked them slowly first. Then, my dad grilled them. They turned out WONDERFUL!

Here they are -- pork and beef ribs being cut right before we ate.



Here's a photo of Marc really enjoying the ribs.



After eating, but before dessert, some very typical things went on for our family gatherings. First, my brother, Joel, and Marc layed on the floor awhile because they ate too much. Here's a photo of Marc first.



And, my brother....



Luke's cousins, Grace and Natalie, requested to bake pies (with play-dough) with their Grandma (my mom).



I asked Grace what kind of pie she was making. I never really got a response, but here's what one looked like. It was pretty cute.



Luke's generally fairly content playing by himself. He's not really at the age where he wants to play a bunch with other children. PLUS, he was, again, in a grouchy mood throughout the evening. Plus, he had the "Mama's Boy" syndrome going on. He really didn't want to be around too many other people besides me. Yes, I was a bit exhausted by the end of the evening from that behavior exhibited.

So, here he is after he had been crawling around my parents' living room for quite awhile.



He eventually found some antique jars that my mom had displayed. Nope, my parents' house isn't entirely child-proofed.



He did manage to get one to play with. As you can see from this photo, he had it on the edge of the carpet and wood floor. "Luke, let's maybe keep that on the carpet to avoid breaking." (And no, we don't typically let him play with jars. But, in this case, it kept him happy).



Finally, he did let his Grandpa play "Peek a Boo" with him for a bit. Grandpa had two grandchildren around him at that point -- one, Luke and two, Grace -- who is rolling around right beside him. I don't think Grandpa minded too much.



Lastly, we needed my dad's birthday cake. He chose my mom's homemade German Chocolate Cake...Oh YUM! Here are the candles being lit. Nope, we didn't put 60 on them. Instead, he blew out "PAPA" candles -- in addition to two other small candles.





I had taken along Luke's pajamas. He was changed before we left because I was pretty sure he'd fall asleep on the way home. After getting him changed, Luke's Uncle Joel held him for a bit with his daughter (Luke's cousin, Natalie).



We did leave after that. Yep, Luke did fall asleep on the way home -- about a 45 minute drive. He did wake up when I took him out of his carseat, but he was re-asleep in a matter of seconds. He was SO TIRED!



There's our very busy Saturday!

HAPPY 60th BIRTHDAY DAD!!!!!!