Max's 3rd birthday

Max had great fun at his birthday party with 10 of his friends from pre-school, daycare and other assorted ways. We ate mini-cupcakes, bowled for prizes, whacked on a pinata (that eventually broke with a little adult assistance) and played some in the backyard. Max's favorite present came from his freind Jonas ... a Batman helicopter! Super cool!

Hello, Cleveland!

After taking a break to work on other "side projects", Max returned to the stage to perform two of his latest favorites: Miss Mary Mack (with handclaps) and Twinkle, Twinkle, Traffic Light.

Stay sharp!

We recently went to the Mariners-Yankees game for Safeco Employee Night. Max made it through about 3 innings before he'd had enough; baseball is kind of slow for lots of people, especially 2 year olds. But he liked looking at the flashing scoreboard, clapping/cheering when everyone else did and some ballpark popcorn. Plus he got to ride bus and he got a free cap! A fun night all around.

Max doesn't miss an opportunity to correct Mom or Dad. Last night, Joi went to a class, which she told Max before she left. About an hour later, as he was helping me make dinner, he asked me "Where's Mommy?" I said, "She's at a meeting." Without missing a beat, he says, "Actually, Daddy, she's at a class." It's as if he knows the answer and is just testing you to see what you'll say.

You gotta be on your toes around Max. He's ready to pounce!

A seat by the man in the water

Last Saturday, while mommy was working, Max and I went on a little bus ride down to the U-District to get a yummy sub at Which Wich, and then to Cowen Park to ride the zip line and run around. Max loves to ride the bus, but its been 5-6 months since he's had a chance, the last time Paw-Paw and GJ were here. As Max and I were hoofing it up the hill to the bus stop, he said to me, "We need to get a seat by the man in the water." I was confused what he meant, but said "OK, that sounds good." When we got up to the bus stop, he exclaimed "There he is!" and I realized what he meant: There's a mural painted on the inside of the bus shelter, behind the bench, of a waterfall and a man sitting in a tube in the lake. Max remembered sitting on the bench, waiting for the bus, "by the man in the water."

It's just amazing to see what imprints on his big two-year-old brain. He vividly remembers an image from 6 months before, yet I go to that bus stop everyday and was still confused by what he meant. It's a not-so-subtle reminder that he hears and sees everything you do and say around him.

Max has such a colorful imagination. With his new favorite toy - Mr. Potato Head - he's been doing little impromptu puppet shows for us behind the big chair in the living room, complete with "Once upon a time ..." and "The end". He often picks up a handful of rocks or wood chips and offers them to us as "chocolate" or "hotdogs" or some other food (always on his mind.) Yesterday, we were at Dahl Playfield and they have a little playhouse for toddlers; he went in and poked his head out the window and hollered: "Dinner's ready! Who wants hamburgers?"

Pariseaults come to Seattle

We had an awesome week with Dick and April and the kids when they came to visit Seattle last week. It was great to have some RI family out here and to show them some of our favorite spots in the city. They stayed pretty busy, visiting the Woodland Park Zoo, Pacific Science Center, Museum of Flight, Children's Museum, assorted parks, beaches, festivals and other places. Uncle Charles played lots of basketball with Andrew and Hannah, while Max and Angela ran around playing games. The highlight of the week for the boys was when Uncle Charles got free tickets to Safeco's suite at the Seahawks pre-season game, along with field passes. We ate like kings (especially Andrew), got to stand right next to the huge football players and had a great time in prime seats. The girls had fun too, painting Max's toes. We're looking forward to them coming again ... or anybody else that wants to come out to the Great Northwest!

Old men and roller coasters

A couple more notable Max quotes from lately:

• Sometimes when he sees an older man, he says "That's another Paw-Paw." (That's what he calls his grandpa.) Well, the other day he was in the store with mommy and he saw a short old man and he said "That's a little Paw-Paw!"

• He was at the park the other day and a man who had a long beard rode up on a bike. He said a very friendly "hi" to Max, who said "hi" back. As he was walking away, Max looked up and said "That's a Santa, mommy!"

• Max put this little pose together. He grabbed the scarecrow and put on his helmet and said "Go get the camera and take a picture, Daddy! It sure will be cute." He was right.
  

And here's some from a recent trip to the Fun Forest at Seattle Center. Max rode the little roller coaster with mommy and loved it!

Mr. Manners

Max said something the other day that made mom and dad's head spin. I asked him if he wanted a bite of my sandwhich, and he replied "Ummmm, no thank you daddy ... but thanks for asking." First, what great manners for a two-year-old, and second, Max turning down food? No way!

Last weekend, we randomly ran across a yard sale benefit for an animal shelter, and they had pony rides. So Max got a short ride on Toby (he called him Togy); he loved it!