Eric's cousins Sarah and Melissa gave us this towel.  It makes me laugh out loud each time that I use it.  It's more like a costume than just a towel. 
Jenn came to visit us.  It was great to have a visitor who was completely happy to just hang out on our couch and hold the baby.

On our way back from South Carolina for Tyler's surgery, we stopped to see my good friend, Angela.  This picture is from the beach on the 4th of July.  In South Carolina, fireworks are legal--BIG fireworks.  So, all along the beach, people were setting off big fireworks like this one below.  Thank you South Carolina! 

In exactly one month, each of us had surgery. Eric had another surgery earlier in the year.  My sister asked if we had worked out some deal where every third surgery is free or something.  This is Tyler in the littlest hospital gown they have.  It had not even crossed our minds that we would have to change him into a hospital gown.  Heidi described it perfectly when she asked--"Was is a little bit cute and a little bit sad all at once?"   We are so glad that Tyler is finished with his surgery.

Eric's parents came to visit us in Virginia.  The day before they left, we took Tyler on his first hike to see Great Falls.  Eric's dad is great at getting babies to fall asleep.

This is Tyler's first bath--it was a two man job in the beginning. One to wash and one to hold the pacifier.  You can see from the second picture how much he enjoyed it.  The last picture is my Mom's last night.  We were so sad to have her leave.

On the way home from the hospital, my parents stopped to get us some groceries.  As they came out, there was a beautiful sunset.  My Mom told my Dad to stand still while she got a picture of him and the sunset.  So, here is a group of pictures of him holding still for her.

My Mom had come to stay for a few weeks to help out, and my Dad came for a few days to see the baby.  "See" being the key word.  He held the baby just about long enough for us to take this picture, and that was enough.  He prefers to leave the holding tiny babies to their mothers.  He starts holding them when they are a little more sturdy.

In June, Tyler joined us.  It was a surprise c-section.  We had taken a 12 week natural childbirth course, so it wasn't what we had planned.  However, I have decided that it is a very efficient way to have a baby.  He was so small in the car seat when we first brought him home.