June 26, 2007
Weekend Camping - the Final Straw for Those of You Who Don't Already Think Mine is the Cutest Dog in the World
For the record, none of these shots were staged. Again: Yes, my dog is just that cute.
Arlo wasn't allowed on the beach so he watched forlornly as we played.
Andy and I let Arlo in the tent, went away for a few minutes and came back to find him snuggled up on the pillow a-like this:
It was very windy and once Ike got wet he was pretty chilly.
Gid was a big fan of the s'mores, though he had me roast the mallows 'cause that was just a little too stressful for my little Type A guy. (Thanks for the apropos T, Katie!)
I love this one of Gideon.
Phin fully enjoyed the three days in the dirt outdoors. He shoveled dirt onto his face, over his head, into cups, and into trucks. He crawled, rolled in the dirt, then rolled some more. I think it may have disconcerted the couple we were camping with but my philosophy is to parent the important (attitude, obedience, safety) and allow little boys to be little boys where it's appropriate (playing in the dirt, searching for bugs, skinning knees and bumping heads). I've constantly got to remind myself it doesn't matter what others think about allowing kids to get dirty and such, that I need to make sure I'm being faithful and instilling what's truly important into my boys.
Oh - and Gid's t-shirt says: "In case of fire break glass." Get it!? It's a marshmallow on a stick. I love it! Katie truly knows my heart.
These are awesome. I definitely appreciate this philosphy. Afterall when you have three this little, if it keeps them happy for more than five minutes, I'm not gonna mess with it, unless maybe they started eating bugs. The weird twist on that is that sometimes Juden gets all weird about stuff on his hands. The first time I let them go crazy with finger paints, I stripped em down and thought, man this will be awesome, they were so traumatized you'd have thought they were both oozing rainbow blood. They have since discovered the bliss of mess making though. So glad you guys are enjoying you surroundings.
Posted by: linda at June 26, 2007 01:07 PMok you win. arlo is officially the cutest. our little bitty had her day, but she clearly needs to step down.
and hooray for playing with fire and dirt. we miss yall!
Posted by: bobw at June 26, 2007 01:27 PMAs you know I don't need to be convinced of Arlo's adorableness. No need to mention how adorable I think your dear boys are clean or dirty. The tradition goes on. Your favorite thing to do as a preschooler was to take off your clothes and play in a big mud puddle in our back yard. You were pretty adorable too. An older lady that lived next door to us in Gadsden loved watching you. You were so cute! (you still are!)
Posted by: Mom at June 26, 2007 04:19 PMCheck out http://andyp.atlblogs.com for more pics.
Posted by: andyp at June 27, 2007 03:21 AMYEAH! I love the shirt on Gid! Great photo capture! I knew that y'all would get many a relevant picture with that shirt on. Your dog is precious, I'm glad you have her to snuggle. I love dogs, just not owning them. :)
I do love your philosophy with your boys, it makes so much more sense. And I love that you are confident about it, and really, you always have been. I hope and pray that you encourage and mentor moms in Boise the way you have down here. I miss your back up on stuff, esp since I'm in a neighborhood with many folks from many walks of life. Amber is A GREAT fellow mom to have around. I'm very thankful for her. Keep up the good work with those rough n tumble boys!! I miss them so much!
Posted by: katiek at June 27, 2007 09:05 AMok those pictures of Arlo are adorable. He's really really cute. I think when katie kicks the bucket I'd really like a quiet dog, and bigger one. So I think we'll just have to visit you guys and see if I'm allergic to labradoodles, that's what Arlo is right? We'd love to make it out west someday. Maybe when the kids are a little older.
Plane tickets from Atlanta to Boise are $164 dollars right now if you can travel in September. We've got room!
Posted by: andyp at June 27, 2007 07:58 PMyep... that is definately the cutest darn doggie I have ever seen (and this is coming from a life long dog owner.. )
i wanna go camping with the boys... looks like sooo much fun!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: jen k at June 27, 2007 11:53 PMHey, Andy said it - tickets are cheap right now - Laugher's free!
Posted by: lynnp at June 28, 2007 12:09 AMman after the month and a half we've had I'd totally love to get on a plane and come see you guys. Though we're going to VT for 2 weeks and who knows what's to come after that. Man some year we all have to meet in VT, wouldn't it be great?
Posted by: michellew at June 28, 2007 10:18 PM