Go 'Nuts!

Back in Wichita, we went to a Wingnuts game one night.  The Nuts are Wichita's professional baseball team.  The United Way had an ice cream social before the game for their donors so my parents got free tickets to the game.  Good thing we didn't pay for the tickets because the boys lasted one half of one inning.  But we had fun eating ice cream and meeting the mascot, Spinner, a giant squirrel.  Dan kept calling him a bear, but I don't think he minded.  Before the game started, I looked out on the field and there was Dan, trying to shake Spinner's hand.  Apparently my dad had lifted him over the wall so he could run on the field.  (Edited per my dad: There was an open gate near the dugout so Dan just walked right on through.  This kid has no fear.)  Gotta love minor league baseball and its relaxed security!

Notice Dan in the lower left corner, fascinated by Spinner 

Baby Ben

Since Dan is a little more interesting these days, picture-wise, I feel like we've been neglecting Ben.  So here's a post featuring the little dude!  He also had a great time at the farm, just crawling around the house and getting ferried to and fro by doting relatives.  He has no fear and will crawl over and under and through and up and down anything, so we had to be vigilant about watching the stairs and the toilets and the kitchen cabinets.  If he stays on the same schedule as Dan, he should walk in a couple of weeks, but I think  it won't be until closer to his first birthday.  Why walk when you can crawl at such a fast pace!

With his best buddy, Unc, the only person allowed to hold him for any length of time

More pool fun

After the trip to the big barn, the pool was far enough in the shade that Dan could go out and cool off.  He made the discovery that water from the hose tastes better than any other kind of water.  So he spent quite some time trying to figure out how best to get the water from the hose into his mouth.  He also liked to run through the little sprinkler and then fling his body over the edge of the pool.  And I wonder why his shins are always bruised....

Oh, Ben, nice of you to join us!

The Big Barn

At the end of Aunt and Unc's driveway is the big barn.  This barn has all the big farm equipment--tractors, combines, etc.  (The little barn closer to the house has my Granddad's old truck and the antique car that Unc restored.  And lots and lots of tools.)  Dan liked to walk down to the big barn once a day or so, to just check out the machinery.  He didn't really want to get too close to the big machines, but he liked sitting on the riding lawn mower and climbing around in the back of the flatbed pickup with the hay bale spikes.  Since not much else was going on, he usually had quite the entourage on his trips to the big barn!

Goats! (and kittens!)

Just like we did two summers ago, we took a trip over to Unc's nephew's house to see the baby goats that his kids raise.  They were so adorable!  Little and furry and noisy and cute, just like my two boys.  Ben was interested in them, but when Dan saw two kittens running around, he only had eyes for them.  I'm not sure why, but Dan is obsessed with cats.  Poor guy--that's the animal that I'm most allergic to, so there's no way that we're ever getting one.  At least he got to play with a couple on the farm!

One of my favorite pictures of Dan, ever!

"Don't mind me.  Just playing with some rusty wire!"

Having fun indoors

When we just couldn't go outside because of the heat, we had to make our own fun indoors.  It's a good thing that Aunt and Unc's house is really big and has a lot of rooms and closets and stairs to explore!  My mom and Aunt were especially good about following the little buddies around to make sure they didn't get into anything they weren't supposed to.

Dan did (inadvertently) play a great joke on Lauren.  He picked up a dead spider, carried it over to Lauren, and tried to hand it to her.  Not having any reason not to trust him, she reached out and almost grabbed it.  If you know Lauren, you know that she is deathly afraid of spiders, dead or alive.  So she screamed and ran the other direction while Dan just stood there, arm outstretched with his gift, looking really confused.  If only I had that on video....

Cooling off in the pool

After a hard day of playing in a dirt pile for Dan (or a hard afternoon nap, in Ben's case), nothing felt better than a quick dip in the pool.  And since we were in the middle of nowhere, we decided that swimsuits were overrated.  I think the water was a little chilly at first because Ben kept trying to climb up and over the side, but everything quickly warmed up in the late afternoon Oklahoma sun.