smitty.

We had a wonderful weekend with the Kriegers at Smith Mountain Lake for Memorial Day. It was a perfect way to welcome summer and I have to say that Caleb looked the cutest yet in his lake attire. Here's some pics that showcase some of the few lake festivities that went on:

lots of hanging out on the dock

lots of drooling over Caleb's adorableness

lots of cleaning

lots of playing in the water...nude

lots of boat rides

lots of refreshing beverages (just had to put this one in there bc it was too funny not to)

and of course lots of taking pictures of the cutest baby in the world

7 months

Caleb,

Another month has flown by and I never thought this was possible, but you've somehow gotten even more cute than before. Your personality is coming out more and more, which I have to say is to your advantage. It's impossible for your dad and I to be even slightly annoyed/frustrated with you when you give us that huge toothless grin of yours. It doesn't take much to make you smile though. All we have to do is pretty much get your attention and you'll smile from ear to ear.

You've been able to sit up on your own for weeks now and grab anything and everything that is in your reach. You still do not like to roll over, but you've gotten better at tummy time. You love the walker that Austin let us borrow and you are fascinated by TV whenever it's on at Gramma's or Mimi's.

You've tasted all sorts of different foods this month and your favorites so far are squash and peaches. You know what a bottle means now and get so excited when you see one. You're getting better at drinking water from a sippy cup, but still do not know how to tip it up.

Besides your blue dog, sleep is your best friend. You sleep 11-12 straight hours at night and then take 2 long naps during the day. You sleep so much that I'm beginning to worry whether the amount you do sleep is normal or not...

You've been a social butterfly this month. We traveled to SC for Katie and Christian's wedding and got to see all the Berry family again. You spent a weekend at your Pop and Mimi's and also went to Gwynn's Island for a long weekend. We also finally got to meet Jonah, who I have to tell you WILL be one of your BFFs when you get older.

You are growing up so fast already Caleb. Your dad and I would be totally content if you stayed this age for the rest of your life. You are such a laid back, mild-mannered baby who is just FUN to be around...and obviously, ridiculously cute. We love you!

new friends.

Recently Caleb has had a couple of play dates. Last week we met up with a friend of mine from high school and her baby at Maymont. We had a great time looking at all the animals and then had a picnic lunch. The babes didn't really pay much attention to each other, but Caleb loved Isla's toys. As you can see in the picture below, Caleb was trying to figure out who or what Isla was.

Sunday Caleb met his best friend Jonah (he doesn't know that yet, but us moms are determined for them to be) briefly at my home church this past Sunday. As Jen and I walked into the nursery, I mentioned how crazy it was that we were picking up OUR babies. It doesn't seem that long ago that we were playing in that same room while our parents were in meetings.

Here's a pic from hanging out with them yesterday. I'm sure it's the first of many photos of them together...because once again, they're BFFs in the making.

rivah time.

While Steve was away camping all weekend, Caleb and I joined my parents at the river. We spent the long weekend going for walks, hanging out on the pier, crabbing, reading, making puzzles, sun bathing, and having our first fish fry of the summer. Needless to say, we had a great time!

The ride down there

Hanging out with Gramma

First time testing out the sand and water

What Koby does all day

The two river rats

Hanging out on the pier

Me and my smiley boy

garden update.

The garden seems like it exploded overnight. The squash and zucchini are beginning to take over the front box; the green beans are HUGE; and the tomatoes are loving the newly added trellis. The lettuce is ready to be picked - hopefully we'll have our first homegrown salad tonight - and we've already tasted a couple of our strawberries.

My butter beans and cucumbers are making a come back after the earwigs got to them at first. I had to buy some new cucumbers though since 2 out of the 4 of my original ones died. I picked out a different type this time - a pickling cucumber instead of the usual burpless one. The basil and various peppers are growing steadily, but for some reason my cilantro is struggling. Anyone have any suggestions for the cilantro?

Here is a picture of the garden since yesterday. You'll see that we used bamboo to support the trellises and instead of stringing our own trellis, I just bought an already-made one here. It's cheap and saved us a ton of time!

we love the outdoors...

...well maybe just some of us.

oh hello may.

Us Kriegers have been a bit busy lately. And looking at my calendar I've realized the busyness has just begun. Our weekends are booked from here through July! How does that happen??!!

There's been a few monumental events since my last post. One of them was me turning 27 - I'm for sure in my late twenties now, there's no getting out of that one anymore. *sigh* But the birthday festivities were fun nonetheless with a surprise dinner out with the hubs, a cookout/bday bash with friends, and probably the best bday gift in my 27 years - a KITCHEN AID STAND MIXER, which my sister-in-law and I have been envying for a long time and coincidentally we both got one this week (hers was a house-warming gift)!

Besides the bday festivities, we've gone down to SC for my cousin's wedding, celebrated our friends' engagement, made improvements to our front porch with a porch swing and a few more flowers, and continue to tend the garden - which by the way has BLOWN up. It's ridiculous how fast things are growing now. I need to post pictures to show you just how much our veggies are growing. Perhaps that will be my next post - a garden update - when I have more time. But for now I'm off to church!