Just a few more pictures...

Could life get any better? Mick's business end snuggled up close, a glass of Duck Pond, baby drool in hair, watching the Olympics. Solid!


My baby no longer throws gang signs. Now he just flips you off...


Just another day full of JHL smiles!

Oh, back to school...back to school

It's official. I head back to work tomorrow--full time. I've suffered from just the slightest case of separation anxiety, and I know that September will be a time of adjustment. After listening to Michelle Obama talk tonight in Denver (holla at cha hometown) about the men and women who leave their families to head over to Iraq and serve our country without ever knowing when or if they'll come back...I think I can I handle eight hours a day.

We are back--Jack the Champ--traveling baby!

Robin, Lynn, Keaghan, Ila Mae and Jack


My dear F.F. Friends!
Back--Jackie and Tara
Front--Lexi, Kristine, Levi, Robin, Jack and Kimi



Keaghan and Jack




Kendall's 30th Birthday Brunch





Bob!






Kendall, Darci, Annie and me

Little Chunker with Grandpa Rick


Jack was the most amazing traveler! He slept through all flights and did especially well when we had to land in Amarillo, Texas to gas up because we couldn't land in Denver. Unfortunately, when he's old enough we'll have to tell him that the first city/town he ever traveled to was Amarillo. He also did especially well adjusting to two different time zones. We had a great time visiting in Denver. I got together with some friends from high school. We ended up sitting out on the D's deck until almost 1 in the morning. I bet the neighbors loved that. Bob's wedding was a major party...as I knew it would be. I knew the night would get a little rough when, for old time's sake, I had to take a shot of whiskey with my ol' drinkin' buddy. But, the funniest part (and I know this sounds mean) was when Mahlon McDuff accidentally punched a fellow wedding guest in the face while trying to get out to the dance floor. Glad it wasn't me! Oh, oh...and for those of you who watch as much T.V. as I do--you'll appreciate this. Holly from MTV's Road Rules Mexico (I think) the one with MAJOR eating disorder and running addiction was sitting at our table at the wedding. She was a major piece of work! I had a field day just watching her stew in her ego. But, of course, I couldn't admit that I recognized her because then I would be the lame-o! We also got to celebrate Kendall's 30th birthday! LoAnn put on a superb Sunday brunch in her beautiful back yard and recreated the meal from my bridal lunch that she had hosted almost four years ago. It was delish!

Minneapolis was great, but jeez is it humid out there! Jack got to meet his only living Great Grandparent, Ila Mae. She enjoyed showing him off at her retirement community.My cousin Amy graciously hosted all of us for dinner on Monday night. As per usual, I ate too much! She's a great chef! We got to spend time with Lynn and Mark and Keaghan. Keaghan had a magical affect on Jack...he could make him smile and calm down. It was so cute to see the cousins together. I got to see some of my dearest buddies from Fergus Falls...I hadn't seen them since I surprised them at their high school graduation in 1996. We're working on getting them out here next summer.

All in all, it was great to take a trip this summer but I certainly am happy to be back home again! Before you know it, school will be starting...

Seven Weeks and Smiling!

Look at that face! I've called several people over the past few weeks "the baby whisperer", but Kate and Rich Moehl take the cake! We had dinner with them last Saturday night and they were able to encourage the biggest smile I have ever seen on Jack's face.

*We're headed to Denver tomorrow to visit with the D's, attend Bob Thumel's wedding on Saturday (yes, for those of you who know Bob, he is ACTUALLY settling down and getting married) and help Kendall Ross celebrate her 30th birthday. We then part ways: Juice flies home and Nancy and I head on to Minneapolis to visit Great Grandma Dornfeld, see Jack's cousin Keaghan, Aunt Lynn and Uncle Mark for the very first time and spend time with our cousins Amy, Cameron, Allison and Lindsay. Jack and I will be back on August 1st. It's gonna be a big trip!

I've never had a hero like this

Cousin Mike (with the yellow belt)

Capt. Michael Zenk unfurls an American flag on board the C-17 Globemaster that will serve as a transport for combat wounded before taking off from Landstuhl, Germany. Photo by Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/13/BAPG11F2DD.DTL

That's my cousin, Mike Zenk. He and his family are stationed over at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany. Mike is an Air Force nurse. He and the crew that he works with fly in to Afghanistan and Iraq and pick up wounded soldiers and bring them back to the hospital on the base in Germany. Check out the article up above that explains more of what he does on a typical day. I am so incredibly proud to call him my family!

This new chapter in life that they call "parenthood"/I'm just a few steps away from becoming a soccer mom

Ok. One, I watch T.V. Quite a bit more than I should. I'm familiar with the daily run ads for Sunny Delight drinks and Neosporin MAINLY because they air right around the time I am feeding Jack. Two: I watch two channels...TLC and HGTV and I've got to think that I am part of their MAJOR demographic. So, with that being said...I have recently joined my friends in participating in Stroller Strides--a mom group that meets at local parks and works out with their kids (in strollers). It's been great, but each time I sit on the park bench after the workout to watch the kids play, I feel like I'm in that Sunny D or Neosporin ad. And then my mind starts to wonder...am I going to start wearing jeans that feature " pleats with mom butt roominess"? Am I going to left myself go and be o.k with wearing the latest perfume, Eau de Baby Barf mixed with Similac? And, then I snap out of it and say to myself, "Oh, hell to the no" (ala, Whitney Houston) and I pop up off of that bench and drive my gas guzzling SUV to the closest strip mall to purchase my $3.00 coffee...and then I head to COSTCO...hmmmm

Grandpa and I have the same hair!

It's true! Jack's grandpas both, shall we say, have shiny domes. The best line, though, was one that another fellow bald friend shared with Rick Dornfeld. He told Rick that anytime someone gave him crap for his bald head, he was to tell that person that his bald spot/bald head was, "a solar panel for his sex machine". I want to laugh and say "GOO" (this translates to "gross" for those that you don't speak Robin yet) at the same time...it's about as bad/funny as Nancy talking about posting the kid's "junk" on the Internet. I freakin' love my family!