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I know that the silly percentile charts at the doctor's office mean nothing...and even less for a breastfed baby...but, I like numbers. I like to know where my child is at...even if it means nothing. So, you can understand why it has been difficult (for me) that Levi hasn't been to the doctor since the beginning of May.

Well, we went yesterday. Levi is 19 pounds 10 ounces and just shy of 27 inches long. That places him in the.....drumroll, please....50th percentile....see, he's not some monster baby after all. The doctor was, of course, impressed with my child....he has been crawling for some time now and is quite strong. Solid and strong. My Levi. Ahead of the pack ;-) Did you have any doubts??

The other fabulous news is now that we are paying almost $450 (cough, cough) each month (choke, choke) for our own health insurance....I am able to take the boys to my favorite doctor of all time who is right.down.the.street! No more packing them up and driving the 25 minutes out to the ghetto that is Metro, parking on the 4th floor of the parking garage, schlepping babies, stroller, diaper bag, purse, jackets, blankies, etc. down 4 flights of stairs, across the street and into the building, waiting forever in a smokey, crowded waiting room before continuing to wait forever in the exam room. This is monumental! Round trip, my doctor's appointment took less than 1 hour and that included a stop at the bank and a drop off at the library. HALLELUJAH!

The boys are doing great. Levi decided yesterday that crawling is not enough...he now can pull himself up to standing! Did you hear me?? Pulling himself up to standing shy of 7 months!! Give me a break! He did this for the first time as Tim and I watched him playing with Mason's car garage. I didn't get the full stand with my camera because of a weak battery, but Tim got it on the video camera.....

It is so crazy to look at these pictures and see Levi PLAYING...I love it! You should have seen his face when he hit the gas button and it made the gassin' up sound. He beamed....and so did Tim and I! It was like he really got it...and he was having fun!

And, Mason is our resident potty pro. I feel like this has been my one 'easy button' with him. He really has had an easy time with the potty training....and he is staying dry all.night.long and during his nap! No more diapers for him...and, since we are using cloth with Levi, we are in the money!! He has learned how to use his new 'going on the potty' status to his advantage. When my mom was putting him down for a nap the other day, he told her he had to go pee-pee...which he didn't, but it bought him some time and attention....the manipulation continues ;-) Mason also continues to label his poo....His most popular is "a big U"...but, recently, he has had a worm, the letter "S", and (perhaps the most beautiful) a butterfly. This trend is hilarious....and I never thought I would be so excited to see what he thinks his next poo looks like. I truly have to hold myself back from photographing these masterpieces...because they really look like what he says....And here he is on the pot.

Tooth #2 & U-Shaped Poo

Levi's second bottom tooth made its debut this evening! He was gnawing on anything he could get his hands onto--his fave was Mason's matchbox cars--much to Mason's dismay. Last night, Levi was pretty miserable trying to get this tooth to poke through so I called the neighbor and borrowed some whiskey (a. because I am too cheap to buy a whole bottle just for this occasion and b. I wanted her reassurance that I should try this old-school remedy) The neighbor lady was happy to oblige and offered me my choice of whiskey, brandy, or wine....I'll have to keep her number on hand...

I'm not sure if the whiskey worked or not....it was a little shocking that Levi seemed to enjoy licking it off of my finger. Especially considering he HATES the nice, sweet, fruity flavored infant's tylenol and motrin. I hope that isn't a sign ;-) He smacked his lips together for the next 20 minutes or so and then passed out while nursing. I had myself convinced that I had gotten my sweet baby drunk even though I seriously just dunked my finger in it for a second and shook my finger off to further reduce quantity. My neighbor lady told me she used to take the knuckle off of a chicken bone and soak it in whiskey in the fridge before giving it to her kids....seriously! That made me feel like it was ok for a quick rub on the gums.

Tooth #2 is HERE!!

In other news, Mason is doing very well using the potty. #2 has been a small (and messy) issue...but today he pooped on the potty and he was very proud of himself. He even pointed at it and said, "Mommy, it's a U"...it's true, my boy has U-shaped poo....and even though it was the cutest U-shaped poo I have ever seen, I'll spare you a photo... ;-)

Potty Time

Tonight was beautiful...here are some snapshots of our time in the backyard. Levi was so content exploring the grass, eating leaves, and watching his big bro and I run around. Mason took the birdseed out of the shed and insisted that I stock the bird feeder....such a little animal activist.

Good Night!

One for the history books...

Last week was a monumental week for The Best Fam. Here's a glimpse:

:: Monday, August 4th -- Mason starts potty training--he does great with his BIG BOY UNDERWEAR and only has one accident ALL DAY LONG!! Such a smart boy....
-- Levi can now get himself pretty much anywhere he wants to go! He can inch worm with the best of them and pushes himself up into a sitting position!! Such a big boy!

:: Tuesday, August 5th -- The fire levy PASSED & Mason POOPED ON THE POTTY!! Tim's mom watched the kiddos so Tim and I could get out and go to an 'election results' party....When the news came in that the levy had passed, we flipped out with excitement!! I schmoozed the Chief with a cute little line like, "Now, Chief, we have to have a little talk...I have these 2 beautiful babies that need their daddy home a lot more....and paying for health insurance is KILLING us." ;-)

:: Wednesday, August 6th -- Difficult to accomplish anything today....just had this nervous excitement about the levy passing....Wednesday night while Tim & I were at our small group, the Chief called Tim to say that he had spoken with the Mayor, Finance Director, Law Director, and had a call into the Civil Service....The Chief is fighting for Tim to be fast-tracked which means he won't have to retest....and could be hired as soon as December 1st.

:: Thursday, August 7th -- Levi gets his FIRST TOOTH and is definitely CRAWLING now--on all fours! Such a big boy at 6 months!!!
-- Tim works at the station and finds out that Civil Service has green lighted hiring a firefighter right away!! Next step--get Council on board....which is more like a rubber stamp.

We are so excited...and while it isn't 100% OFFICIAL, we are almost there. Last 30 seconds of the Super Bowl and WE ARE UP by a TOUCHDOWN!! We are so grateful and humbled that God is making this all happen right before our eyes!!! Thank you to all for your prayers and support and love and encouragement....this crazy dream of Tim's is coming true....and we couldn't be happier!!

Vacation, Part II

Vacation 2008 was a new adventure. Instead of our normal trip to Ocean City, we decided to hit up beautiful Hocking Hills in southern Ohio....so we stayed in a spacious lake house on Lake Logan. We definitely missed the ocean air and Dan & Tim missed riding the waves...but it was nice to try something new...and we got to hike and swim and fish and hot tub...all just 3 hours away from T-burg.

Emily was the menu mastermind and we overpacked foodwise, but did better than last year. Tim and I suffered from minor sleep deprivation as Mason and Levi tagteamed us each night...but we tried to keep our chins up and were able to stay motivated to hike despite the muggy heat and tired eyes.

Mason had normal 2 1/2 year old sharing issues with his cousin Luke and disciplining became tiresome towards the end of the week....but I just kept reminding myself that Luke would be beating up on Levi next year, hopefully, evening the playing field.

The highlight was a 2 1/2 mile hike around the rim of Conkle's Hollow. We were 200 feet up for much of the trek--it was breathtaking and gave quite a sense of accomplishment that we were all able to go with such well-behaved children on our backs.

The adults were even able to muster staying up late, playing cards and Trouble and Hillbilly Golf (borrowed from Tim's Aunt & Uncle) and going for dips in the hot tub. And I was able to start and finish a book, Operating Instructions by Anne Lamott, which was quite a fun read.

Mason loved fishing with Daddy and Uncle Dan. He caught several sun fish and even touched them. Levi had his first taste of real food--bananas.

Here are some pictures....and you can check out Emily's blog for more pics and details. All in all, another year of memories with our favorite people = a trip well worth it!! Some day, we'll be able to vacation without the kiddos....and then what will we do???

packing light...in my parents' minivan

Mason's first fishing trip with Daddy...

4 men in a tub...

The Ashby fam

Swimmin' in Lake Logan

Hiking sisters...

Soaking in God's beauty

Vacation, Part I

On the way down to Lake Logan for the Best-Ashby Annual Vacation, we stopped for an overnight in Columbus to visit Tim's Aunt Janie & Uncle Jay and their family. We really enjoyed seeing them and their children and grandchildren.

Mason insisted on cleaning their outdoor house (don't know why he decided to turn into a neat freak??) and then begged to 'paint' it (where he got this idea, I have NO idea) so Uncle Jay obliged with a bucket of water and a paintbrush...Mason then insisted on having a ladder so cousin Emmerson hunted one down for him.

Levi was a little angel in his exersaucer and got lots of lovin' from the relatives. We enjoyed a delicious dinner outside and stayed up late talking and laughing. The big highlight, though, was that Mason finally got to watch CARS. He will now forever associate Aunt Janie with CARS on the 'big TV"....he would not even blink when it was on....