My Magnificant Men

Braden has the most wonderful Daddy! Braden adores his Daddy so much and he even said "Love you Daddy." They have so much fun together no matter what they are doing. The two of them have sure been active lately.....

Braden was just pointing out the house on Newport Bay that he wants his Daddy to buy him.

Daddy was showing Braden how to hold his hands up and scream while riding the ferris wheel.
Just taking a cruise around the bay on a kayak.

Braden and Matt even make hanging out in a tree fun!
Braden only wants to go down the big slides. There was an area with activities geared towards toddlers, but Braden avoided it altogether.
Braden and Matt were cracking each other up so much in this huge jumper! Sometimes Matt forgets Braden is only 21-months-old.....Braden was being bounced all over, but totally loved it!
Hanging out in the arcade spending lots of money to win lots of tickets in order to pick out a prize worth $.05.....oh well, the boys had a good time!
Matt was hoping Braden would find a big friend to help balance the teeter totter out so he wouldn't get such a quad workout!

Matt and Braden cruised around the beach "people watching."
Braden liked the airplane Daddy got for him....
until he broke it five minutes later.
Dad sure gets pooped from all this playtime! It takes a lot to wear Braden out though!

Balboa Island Babe

Since we are staying just minutes from Balboa Island, we figured we'd be a bit touristy and take a stroll there to check out the scenery and shops.

Braden was either checking out some girls, or maybe just some cute dogs walking by.

We didn't bother photgraphing what Braden looked like after demolishing this gigantic waffle cone....good thing we had a change of clothes!
Braden was intrigued by all the beautiful boats and learned to say "boooat." Kind of sounds like he's from Minnesota.
Just window shopping in all the ridiculously overpriced stores can sure be exhausting!
Braden couldn't agree more!

Fun on the Fourth

It's hard to imagine a better way to celebrate Independence Day and enjoy our freedom than a relaxing day at Newport Beach.

Braden proudly displayed the red, white, and blue in the bandanna he won. He participated in any game and activity he could at the festivities that Newport Dunes offered in celebration of the 4th of July.

As soon as Braden heard the music blasting over the speakers, he just couldn't help himself.
Is this a picture of sheer relaxation or what?!
Matt used to enjoy carrying Braden on his shoulders.....

but Braden just can't control his goofiness!
Braden bragged to our friend, Anntionette, about all the waves he caught.....
and showed Shanon a few soccer moves he's picked up from his daddy.

Beach Boy

We have been enjoying lots of fun in the sun while camping at Newport Dunes. Braden has really enjoyed the beach, but obviously would be happy hanging out in a big sand box.

Once in a while, I like to post a picture of Braden with his mommy just so he can look back and know that I was actually on vacation too!

All the kids look a bit perturbed that we interrupted their playtime for about 1 minute for a quick picture.
Apparently Braden thought that being on vacation meant vacationing from napping too. He pretended to fall asleep, but we caught him peeking out on his cousins playing nearby.
This was about as close to a nap as Braden got.....
The farmer's tan might give off the indication that Braden is from a small town in Oklahoma.....he tried to look like a cool Californian with the sunglasses and boardshorts though!
Since we actually took two family pictures, I figured I may as well post them both.....

Are all little boys obsessed with eating sand.....
and throwing it all over themselves??!
Braden just ran into the water to clean up after covering himself in sand.....
put a shell in his mouth just to see if it tasted like the sand he put in his mouth....
and then washed up again. He loves getting dirty, but hates staying that way for long!!

Goofin' Off with the Girls at Great Grandpa's

Braden has really loved having the Dethiers here for a visit. We spent some time at Braden's great grandfather's house. Fortunately, the backyard can accommodate a bunch of energetic children & all the cousins took full advantage of that!

Difficult to tell if Braden is running with them or running from them! He's probably just excited to be leading the pack!

Sydney doesn't like to hear this, but she and Braden look so much alike! We think they are both just so cute!
Just goofing around with Uncle Christian while the girls clobbered each other!
Braden used a lot of will power to refrain from tossing the ball around Great Grandpa's dining room.
Yes, Braden did attempt to do a cartwheel like Lauren. No, I didn't catch his hilarious, yet unsuccessful, attempt on camera unfortunately.

Great Uncle Jay played Coach Bela Karolyi and tried to show Braden some tumbling techniques.
Braden was so excited to see his cousins, Sydney and Kendall.....
until Kendall placed a pink, sparkly headband on his head.
"Ahhhhh, get me away from all these girls for a minute!!!"
Braden was trying to talk Aunt Sandy into finding out if she is having a boy or a girl. After all, having another boy around would be great. However, he's learned how to handle all the girl cousins, so he would be content with a little girl too! No pressure Sandy.....

When Braden isn't roughing it up on the football field, it looks like he may enjoy playing a little baseball ?? 7-year-old Lauren was a great sport and played for hours with Braden in Grandpa's backyard.
Taking a much needed break from the girls, Braden got acquainted with his great grandpa, lovingly known as "Grand Poobah."
Braden realized that his cousin, Nicole, would protect him from the tickle torture going on between Sydney and Lauren. He also loved the fact that even his 24-year-old cousin ran around with him non-stop like she was one of the kids too!
The breaks didn't last long. There was a group of energetic older girls to keep up with and Braden was sure not going to let much stop him!

Who Knew the Mall Could Be So Fun?!

Braden determined that Fashion Island in Newport Beach is way better than the Temecula Promenade Mall.

Braden had the whole carousel to himself.....

He obviously had a blast!
Gramma and Braden were checking out one of the several cool fountains. Actually, Gramma was probably just making sure Braden didn't dive in.
Braden figured out how to pet the dog and get his fingers licked by squeezing his fingers through the small opening in the glass door. If the whole pro athlete thing doesn't work out, Braden may want to be a veterinarian. He adores animals! We didn't purchase this $3000 puppy, much to Braden's dismay.
Braden became a human jack-in-a-box, thanks to Papa kneeling down and popping Braden up to startle us and other shoppers.
Standing in the area where the water sporadically shoots into the air was a perfect way to cool off in the 85 degree weather.....
Uh oh, uh oh, uh oh.....
Braden got to meet his cousins, Nicole and Lauren, for the first time.