Summer, in summary

After hibernating in the friendly confines of our basement apartment for much of the summer we jammed a season's worth of good times into a hectic couple of weeks.

And to start it all off, we really branched out by inviting other people into our home and hosting them for a meal. What would make us do such a crazy thing? Caleb's baby blessing.

Yep. He's that white. I told you we haven't left the house much this summer.

We dressed Caleb in the same outfit I wore when I was blessed, as seen in the next two pictures. Aside from the 30 year old photo, can you tell who is who? (For clarification and credit's sake, Caleb's white baby blanket was made by his great grandma Jorgensen. Thank you Evelyn!)

In an attempt to pawn off a stolen idea from a wedding dinner as an original idea for a family breakfast, we made Belgium waffles. Lots of Belgium waffles, with a wide assortment of fruit toppings. 

A quick lesson in photography: Family photos turn out better in the shade, and Rob squints in all lighting situations.

The following day we traveled to Lava Hot Springs, Idaho for a few days of fun with the whole Weiler gang.

Caleb does not enjoy the car. At all. And yet on the longest road trip we've ever taken, he slept for a good portion of the ride and was playful and grinning the rest of the way. Go figure.

No Weiler trip is complete without a night (or two) of wacky, oddball, backyard competitions featuring prizes only available at All-a-Dollar. This is what we do, and we love it.

Go ahead. Insert your best "air head" joke here. 

 Katie won the "Cutest New Weiler Girl". Guess who was second and appealed the ruling to the judges. Tough beans, Molly.

In order to compete in the Weiler Olympics, You have to pass Uncle Mark's conformity test. He measures levels of drug use a bit differently than the IOC.

The first time we tried this initiation ceremony for the spouses of our cousins, we also made them sing "My Heart Will Go On." But Harley's rendition of the song turned the torture treatment back on us, so we put a stop to it.

That's my Grandpa Queed,  a man who never found an activity he couldn't master, smashing water balloons with his head. Nothing out of the ordinary here. 

That's my Grandma Jean, the epitome of grace and good judgment, spitting goldfish crackers for distance. I've officially seen it all.

And it wouldn't be a reunion without a chance to shed some blood while experiencing nature.

That's not my foot, but I spent a couple moments on my first trip down the river in a similar state.

Have you heard the joke about the retiree, the accountant, the elementary school teacher and the great grandchild in the inflatable raft? Just one of the many reasons I love my family vacations.

Sadly, this will be the last family reunion picture with this cast of characters. Over the past 25 years we've traveled to California, Nevada, Wyoming, Idaho and Utah to enjoy the great outdoors by day and sharpen our gaming skills at night. Thanks for the memories, Queed and Jean. 

Katie and I had to cut our reunion short a day so we could come home and finally cash in on Katie's Christmas gift: a night out on the town to see Wicked.

I always try to learn something about life when I go to the theatre, and I've been inspired to try and help other become more popular like me. Also, I want to be more green, which leads me to the other family activity of the week ....

The second annual Weiler 9-hole golf scramble! Katie withdrew (New Mom) but Leslie was ready to get back in the action.  I wish I could say she cheated by going to the driving range the night before, but I'm pretty certain Katie did the same thing last year.

Here's all you need to know about the good heart of my brother in-law. The guy puts up with three guys who have 30 years of golfing experience and can't play more than one hole under par in a scramble format but still have the gall to spout out swing tips after every shot, all while carrying a golf bag that once belonged to his grandmother in-law. And after all that, he still hooks us up with a boating day at Willard Bay the following week (and does all the boat driving).

First time up on a wake board. One small step for this man (possibly backward), but definitely no bonus points for good form.  It becomes even less significant when the parents can still strut their stuff on the water.

The judges reconvened after seeing this photo and stripped Katie of her medal.

All the family activities didn't phase Caleb from growing his bag of tricks, which makes it no wonder why we've been content to stay at home and be mesmerized by our talented boy.

Rolling over.

Picking up his head.

Sitting up (couch-aided)

Feet grabbing

Lastly, this picture marked Caleb's first meeting with Aunt Heidi. It also marked the first time Aunt Heidi got camera shy. Something about "Wyoming Hair" and being in the car all day. I don't think there's a correlation, just an interesting historical side note.  

Just one more Aunt and Uncle and nephew to meet. Our door is always open, Tracy and Arne :)

Hey Caleb, what'd you think of my post?

The pursuit of normalcy

At some point in Caleb's life, I intend to set some high expectations for my son. Straight A's, clean room, Eagle Scout, grills a juicy steak, 90 mph fastball. That kind of stuff.

At two months old - and for the next few years - there's only one hope: Normalcy.

It's difficult to be an extraordinary burper or have exceptional binky-sucking skills. Waiting for a commercial to use the bathroom doesn't really matter until one can actually use the bathroom.

The two exceptions may be eating and sleeping, and Caleb seems to fit in the normal category. We couldn't be prouder. 

So far we're off to a great start with this low and incredibly satisfying bar. He still has all of the fingers and toes he brought into the world. Eyes open and close. Same for the mouth. Caleb is a little on the light side (10 pounds) and a little on the long side (22 1/2 inches). Weiler genetics are clearly at work here.

We've retired just about all of his "newborn" clothes and upgraded to 0-3 month gear. Same goes for diapers. Newborn size still fits, but won't hold his big-league poops, so rather than play roulette with each diaper we're giving him plenty of room in the seat.

Our man has found a sweet spot on his changing table. Who wouldn't be soothed by spending time exploring the ins and outs of a window well with their eyes? On second thought, he probably just enjoys a good look at all the light coming through the blinds.

Yeah, it's probably a light thing.

Up until a couple weeks ago we saw a lot of straight faces, blank stares and uneasy looks in between the fits of rage.

But recently there's been a lot more personality creeping through this toothless face. 

Moments of calm have become minutes of calm.

Sleep sessions are lasting longer, particularly the ones in the evening (hallelujah). There are cries of laughter and joy to go with the cries for help. And every now and then we get this...

Katie misses cuddly Caleb but is smitten by this stage of life. Me? No doubt it's adorable, but I just want to keep him alive and kicking until he's big enough to move on his own and acknowledge the concept of toys, I'll have done my job. 

Speaking of the mother of the family, Katie has become infatuated with more than just Caleb during her maternity leave ...

The idea was to give Katie something worthwhile to watch during the day, so rather than coming home to hear about a dozen episodes of "Say Yes to the Dress" and "Project Runway" I'd be thrown a few questions about smoke monsters and the Dharma Initiative from the latest Lost episode. And it worked, so well that she knocks out an entire disc in a day and is ready for the next one before I can get it reserved at the library.  

Katie hates you, Ben Linus. I rather enjoy your mysterious nature.