Aftermath

Why am I so tasty?  Is is these sweet little chubby legs?    Oh the misery of mosquito bites.....

Annual Barnes Family Campout!

We literally got off the airplane from Iowa last night, and now Sunday afternoon we are

having our Memorial Day, Barnes Family Campout.   (After church, of course...)

Here I am enjoying a frosty Capri Sun with my cousins.   

We must stay well hydrated, so there's more for the bugs to devour.

 Tent city, or "squatters," as Grandpa calls us.

Playing around on the pier.   Nothing dangerous going on here, I swear.

Throwing rocks in the pond with the boys.   It's a life skill, you know.

I may not eat a normal diet, but somewhere in my DNA I know that I'm supposed to love Pringles.

Ah yes, my latest unattractive trick.   I love to show you what's in my mouth.  

Mom rates this up there with nose-picking, but I just can't help myself. 

Highlight of the day:   My first fish!   Daddy helped my put a worm on the hook, and I was the first kid to reel one in!   A proud moment for my wildlife/outdoors enthusiast family.   I am a card carrying lifetime hunting/fishing license holder, so all fishes caught by myself during this campout are legal and legit!

See you all next campout!

Back to my roots!

Mom and Dad think it's important for me to stay in contact with my Iowa family.  They love me very much, and are very proud to see me grow and be happy!  I love them too, because without them, I wouldn't be here with my Mom and Dad.   Who wouldn't want double the love?!

Kelli had a new baby a few weeks ago, and I thought she was soooo cute!  Here I am showing off my skills with the babies....

  

Grandma Christy helping me and my cousin Noah have lunch.

Noah is 9 months older, and taught me lots of tricks!

Here we are helping decorate the cake for dinner tonight!   

Hotel living!   All I need is some room service!   We stayed in a very nice place, and I slept in my very own big boy bed.   I did a great job!  Except now Mom knows that I talk in my sleep.    :)  My internal clock was  a little off, and I insisted on getting up at 5:30 every morning.   I heard a few grumbles about that, but what was  I supposed to do?

One day, we had to take the baby back to the doctor for a checkup.   We went into the birth center where I was born, and this is me sitting in the very spot where Daddy sat waiting for me to be born.  Mom was in the back with all the action, and Dad just had to be patient like Dad's everywhere do.   Mom loved reliving that day.

Baby Emma is a cutie pie, and I couldn't resist a little kiss on the head!

Here I am with my two biological half siblings, Evan and Emma.   What a great opportunity to have us all together!  I loved playing with Evan and Kelli's stepson Tristan.   Lots of new toys that I hadn't seen before!

Playing around at the hotel.   One can snuggle in anywhere as long as he has his blankie and favorite frog.

We had a wonderful trip visiting with everyone, and it was a positive experience for all involved.  I loved seeing my family, and they loved seeing me.   We will be back!!

As good as our visit was, our travel was a nightmare.   Mom said I had her full permission to tell everyone what an absolute angel I was during our travel, and that it's the only thing that kept her sane.   We had cancelled flights, rental car drama, and were double charged at the hotel.   Getting home was also difficult.    We finally made it to Chicago, where Mom treated me to some ice cream to make the layover a little more tolerable.

Unfortunately, when we got on the plane, we were informed that the air conditioning unit was broken, and they were "trying to fix it."   Not good news for a mom that only had enough tricks left in her to get me home.      Fortunately, I was entertained for a while by my truck and a snack of apples.    

When those ran out, Mom fired up some "Timmy Time," and all was well for another 15 minutes.   We sat there at the gate for at least an hour, and when we finally pushed back from the gate, I was out like a light.  Slept the entire flight home.   Mom says that prayers really ARE answered!   Whatever that means....

Thank you Iowa family for hosting us, and showing us a good time and a lot of love!   I'm proud to call you my family, and will be back to visit again soon.

Prepping... Meet Pack-Pack!

I'm getting ready to fly on the big airplane next week and go back to Iowa to visit my birthfamily.  Mom says I need to start pulling my weight on these trips, so she and Daddy took me to REI to find just the right thing.   I call him "pack-pack", and I want to take him everywhere.  Who knew you could take all of your most precious possessions and carry them like a pack mule!  Brilliant!   All this time I just thought Mom's purse was magic, and produced anything I needed.   Now I have to carry it around myself... sheesh!

* Side note:  Mom and Dad singing in the car on the way home.  I was way past nap time, and these two were on my last nerve.   Unbelievable.

Handsome fella!

Mom can't resist a photo op.   And I have a thing for fountains!   A match made in heaven!

Mother's Day- A proper post!

So I've been off my game when it comes to blogging.   Here is a great post showing how we spend our Mother's Day.   First, I have to tell you that I got up and sang to my Mom for the first time in Sacrament meeting.  Nursery kids don't usually get up there, but my friend Ethan took me and positioned me right up front so Mommy could see me.   I didn't really sing so much as stand there, but Mom cried anyway.   She says she's waited a long time to have a little guy sing to her on Mother's Day!

A game of baseball with my cousins....

What kid doesn't dream of dunking?   Ryan and Austin make sure I have a headstart on my friends with a little dunking lesson.....

A redneck parade!  Grandpa's tractor wouldn't start out in the field, so Daddy gave him a tow in Aunt Sherri's Jeep, while cousin Alexis rode behind in the Mule for backup.

The view down to the pond from Grandpa's back porch.  Beautiful, isn't it?  I ask to come here all the time.

Grandma also maintains a sandbox for my personal use while I'm there.   I've spent many happy hours right here, just like this....

It was also Grandma and cousin Olivia's birthday, so we had a cheesecake to celebrate.

All of my NC cousins.  I love these guys!  And they love me!

A little celebratory ice cream.  

"Helping" Grandma and Olivia open their cards.  

Happy Mother's Day everyone!!!!!