Father's Day weekend

This past weekend was quite an experience for Evan, as his four cousins and Auntie Elly from Hawaii were visiting, along with Papa and Margaret. Aunt Linda, and Grammy and Grampy Boyte.  It was a full house here and there was never a dull moment for Evan.  Someone was always willing to hold him, feed him, play with him, and/or just have their face up close and personal with him.  He thought his cousins were very funny, laughing at them and most everything they did (check out a video of Evan doing a gut laugh at his cousin Tae).  He seemed to handle all the commotion fairly well, but it did tire him out!  Every morning his nap (which usually lasts about 1-1.5 hours) would be at least 2, if not 2.5, hours long!  And most afternoon naps were iffy, leaving him pretty cranky by evening/bedtime.  However, I think he handled himself pretty well and I wonder if he's missing all the action now that everyone has gone home?

Evan with his four cousins who have been so anxious to finally meet him!

Besides all the visitors, this past weekend was special as it was Father's Day on Sunday, and John got to celebrate his first of this holiday with Evan.  Since my Dad was also in town, it was kind of a double event, that culminated with a BBQ of the Dads' favorite foods: steak for my Dad, and lamb chops for John.  Besides the meat, we all pigged out on corn on the cob, caprese salad, and a Coldstone ice cream cake for dessert (as a belated birthday cake for my Dad).  Prior to the BBQ, we all hit a local family fun center (Boondocks in north Denver), and played laser tag, bowling, go karts, bumper boats, and lots of arcade games.  It was a big outing for Evan...but he did manage to nap part way through, while we were bowling.

John and Evan share a quiet moment as we wait to go bowling.

The other special event that happened this past weekend, was that Evan has officially started cruising on his own, as well as pulling himself to standing in his crib.  The first time that he stood up in his crib (that we're aware of) was during his afternoon nap on Saturday, while he was also crying that he just wasn't in the mood for a nap!  Now he's gotten so good at pulling himself up, that he just does it all the time.  And, he seems to easily "cruise" from one location to the next as long as he has something to hold onto.  Today's example was from his baby gate (at the top of the stairs that he seems oh-so-drawn to, so I'm glad there is a sturdy gate in place!) to the railing, and also along the couch.

Step 1: let go of the gate with one hand

Step 2: cruise over to the railing

This is a prime example of just how much can happen in one week!  Just last week this time, I was starting to write a blog (but I didn't get it finished) about how Evan was building his confidence while standing, but he liked me to always be near him when he tried to pull himself to stand or as he tried to cruise somewhere, since he was still a bit uneasy doing it on his own.  He would often turn around part way to make sure I was still nearby, and then grab for my hand if he wanted to cruise around.  From then until now he has gone from needing me nearby, to not really needing me at all!   He still needs to take our hands to walk around the house, which he just loves to do, but I'm even starting to wonder how long it will be before he doesn't even need us for that!  Any wagers?