Patrick pics

Must be a fascinating story from big brother!

That's Patrick under the blanket, at the start of Stage 4 of the Tour of California bicycle race in San Jose last week.

Hiking at Mill Trail in Lakeview

A couple of weeks ago (Patrick was 2wks old) we went hiking at a local trail in Lakeview. We forgot that it's spring and that the snowmelt likes to run down the trail, though... It was a little rough and a little wet, but fun way to enjoy the springtime weather.

Guess we need to teach Dommy how to knock better when he's gotta go...!

Sleeping in the big boy bed

While Grandma and Grandpa Cassingham were here just after Patrick's birth, Dommy decided he didn't want to sleep in the pack'n'play anymore and crawled out when we weren't expecting. Days later, he decided the same for his actual crib, and we just heard the palms beating on the door and discovered he was loose! A little panic swept us upon seeing the little feet dancing under the door, and we decided to take the gate off and just let him sleep that way. Well, sometimes he made it to the bed, sometimes not, but we took a few fotos over the next days. In the past two weeks he's got it down perfectly, and it's been a great step for all of us!

The Lorax is Done!

Hooray--the Lorax is done! It took a few weeks from start to finish, but I think it turned out pretty well. Below is a sequence of fotos from start to finish:

Here are the finished mural and the cover of the original book for comparison. Not bad, eh? I decided to not outline the letters "Lorax" and "Dr. Seuss," but endeavored to paint the remainder.

Now Dominic and Patrick's room has murals of The Lorax and The Giving Tree on opposite walls. I like to think that this places them between conservation and forest science, a pleasant place to lay their heads every night!

Today in Lakeview

Not sure what date will show up on these pictures, but these are from Tuesday, May 11th. Yes, it's mid-May and we've got snow! We got a few inches overnight, just enough to play in for the morning, but then mostly melted off by evening. We did some playing inside, and Dommy came out with Daddy's shirt on as a surprise. This was the first time he ever put a shirt on by himself, and just stood there proud as punch like little Merlin. Too funny!

Here's a pic of baby Patrick in his new duds from a gal in Kirsten's office. Life is good when you're 3 weeks old!

Older pics from the birth ~3 weeks ago

Here are some pictures I neglected to put up from the time of Patrick's birth. First, here are Dommy, Patrick, and Mommy with the Cassinghams.

Next, a picture of Patrick getting a shot and checking his jaundice score in the hospital.

Patrick scored a little high on the BR count, so had to go in the tanning bed and soak up some rays. He seemed to love the heat and just laying around, although he cries when we do it at home!

Dommy went down to the hospital with the Cassinghams to visit Patrick and Mommy when Paddycake was on the tanning bed.

Mom's Day

Mother's Day started off with a little rough night, but turned out great. We had a nice breakfast at home, then dressed the boys up and went to Mass. After some nice time outside we eventually had steaks on the grill and went to see the Harlem Wizards at the high school gym. They're a small traveling show similar to the Harlem Globetrotters that play the local teams and do their schtick with trick shots and crowd pleasers. Dommy loved it, and was on fire the whole time. Here are some pictures of Mommy and family on her day, showing off the tulips and her corsage.