No More Helmet!

Tanner graduated from wearing his helmet on July 16! His craniologist is really pleased with the growth that his head made. His head isn't totally round, but much better if we hadn't done the helmet. One thing I am very grateful for is that Tanner had a huge growth spurt while wearing his helmet. This is something that I specifically prayed for, and I know that God answered my prayers.   I kind of feel like He helped delay Tanner's growth until he got his helmet. That would explain Tanner's consistently low numbers in heighth and head width for so many months, but then a huge spurt during his helmet time, and now he is at normal numbers. 

We are going to miss this little helmet face. Tanner looks like a totally different kid without it. 

 And here's a few pictures of Tanner practicing walking with his walker toy. These pics are from a few weeks ago. Tanner officially became a real walker yesterday, making 10-15 steps in a row throughout the entire house!

Trip for Gramma

My wonderful grandmother, Ruth Higgins, passed away last month. She asked that we go on a fun trip in her honor. (What an awesome grandma, right?) So we all met up in Oceanside, Ca July 12-15 to enjoy a special time with the family. We went to the Wild Animal Park in San Diego, cave kayaking in La Holla, played in the hot tub and condo, and had a nice devotional in remembrance of Grandma. 

This trip was the perfect thing to do because Grandma was always taking us on outings to the beach, parks, and tourist sites. She was constantly entertaining us with art projects, songs, stories, and games. I miss her very much! She has influenced my life in many, many ways. Grandma was an elementary school teacher and a music minor. In fact, her mother was a teacher, too, so I guess teaching runs in my family!

I've always admired Grandma Higgins and tried taking advantage of every chance to be with her, to sing with her and to enjoy her company. When I was 20, I recorded her and Grandpa singing some of their favorite childhood songs. I remember thinking that someday my children would be able to hear their great-grandparents sing. It's a little weird that now that day has come. I am so glad that I took the time to do that! Hearing Grandma on those recordings is priceless. Now more then ever, I have realized how much she has influenced my interests, personality, and ultimately my choice in my career. I've tried in many ways to be like her, and I hope that someday I will be! 

Here's some pics from our trip.

Tanner's Papa

Tanner's Aunties

Tanner and me on the Wild Animal Tram

Tanner with his Great Auntie Lorna.

Hanging out.

All of the cousins ready to eat at the fancy restaurant. Shauna is holding Tanner.

Me and my cousin Alexa. We were kayaking buddies!

Tanner loved the wall of water bubbles.

Auntie Lorna took care of Tanner on the veranda for a while during dinner.

We threw rose pedals in honor of grandma.

 We had breakfast altogether as one last hurrah before saying goodbye. 

Tanner with our cousin Amanda.

A visit from Kateve

Our name for Jeremy's sister, Katie, and her husband, Steve, is Kateve. They came to visit right after Independence Day for July 5-8. We had a blast with them! We felt so special that they wanted to spend part of their vacation with us. And Tanner loved being with his Aunt and Uncle!!

 Can you tell that Katie is 20 weeks pregnant with twins? We are really excited for Tanner to have 2 baby girl cousins. We made a hole in the sand so that Katie could sleep on her belly. Tanner chilled out with a bottle next to her. 

 Tanner loved climbing on the boogie boards.

 It was a beautiful day at the beach! You could see Catalina really well, the wind was the calmest it's been in months, and the water was warmer, too.

Steve's nieces and nephews were with us at the beach. They proved to me that you can find crabs on this beach. I was really surprised because I didn't think these critters lived on our beaches. Can you spot the big one in the left side of the bucket?

On Saturday, we went to Hollywood and Venice Beach. Jeremy was able to join us!

 We got a great view of the streets. I couldn't believe how many people were there dressed as movie characters. It was the most I've seen. Very interesting to be there after watching the documentary Confessions of a Super Hero that shows how these people make a living.

Below- That yellow toy-looking transformer in the center of the sidewalk is a person in a full-on, homemade transformer costume. 

 We found the drum circle again! It was Tanner's first time witnessing a live drum circle. I was so excited to watch!! It was a great way to end the weekend.