What do we do when we don't have a kitchen and our house is ripped apart and completely dysfunctional?!?!

I know I sound way dramatic right now, but really, life is tricky with a 16 month old, no kitchen whatsoever... I wash cereal bowls in the bathroom sink, and that is life for the time being. Oh, but one day very soon I will have a beautiful kitchen that is all mine. I did promise months ago that I would post pictures of the process, but I have somewhat recently decided I'd wait until the very end for a Big Reveal (can you tell I love HGTV) and show before and after shots.

So... back to my reason for this post, this is what we do when our life is a bit dysfunctional. We play in the car. Schedule as many play-dates as possible....

And get as dirty as we possibly can in Grandma's backyard... then finished the day off with a bath in the sink! Bryce loves it when I let him get dirty... though as the mother of a boy, I suppose I don't always have a choice.

Yesterday, I came out into the backyard to find Bryce like this:

And like a crazy mom, my first thought is not about how I'm gonna get the kid out, but rather, where the heck is my camera?! I have to say, these are perhaps my new favorite pictures.

This one in particular makes me think I should be a professional photographer.

His head dropped down in discouragement when he realized he was stuck.

Then I helped him out like a good mommy would.

Check out that dirty face! Only to get that dirty everywhere!

You simply can't NOT get dirty when grandma puts you in a filthy wheel barrel.

Thanks Grandma.

And then it was bath time!

I love this kid. And I love having a mom so close with a home we can crash at when we don't have a normal home of our own!

It was such a beautiful day...

...We thought it'd be a great day to meet daddy for lunch. Benicia has a cute little park with plenty of squirrels to entertain Bryce. Bryce loves being outside. He always seems so content and relaxed in the beautiful outdoors.

There were several cute picture moments during lunch and the beginning of our afternoon, but I failed to get my camera sooner. Luckily this happy boy on the swing persuaded me to make the trek to the car, and I'm so glad he did. I love this little face!

I am so thankful I can be home with Bryce. I'd rather me be home playing with him all day than needing to pay someone else to. And then again, it's really nice when we can make the short drive to visit daddy, so he can take a break from work and play with us too.

More fun at the ball park.

We went to another A's game last Wednesday, you can't beat two-dollar Wednesdays! My parents joined us, and we also met up with our good friends Linda and Kaylee. Weather was a little cold, but not too bad, and the game was the perfect length for Bryce. He managed, again, to get a cat-nap in for the first couple innings, then was ready to go for the rest of the game.His first red vines experience. Lucky kid. Don't get use to that Bryce.

Flirtin' with the ladies! He's way too good at that.

My mom was really excited about the game. She hadn't been to a game since '91, when a fowl ball landed right on Jared's chair, but we were all too busy wrestling over the wheat thins that it bounced in the lap of a little girl seated below.

CHP was handing out stickers, and since Linda and Kaylee work for

the CHP call center, they had to make sure someone sported the badge.

That responsibility was gladly accepted by Bryce.

Bryce and Bobert.

In our attempts to get Bryce off the bottle, one afternoon I tried swapping Bobert the Bear, in exchange for his bottle. It worked and now Bryce is hooked. He loves going to sleep with a stuffed animal, and Bobert is his favorite. It's so cute to watch him hug his bear and hold him tight around his neck. I love even more, that since he's now a bear hugger, his hugs for me are outstanding! I look forward to getting him up from bed, or his nap, and when I pick him up, he just hugs me for a while and rests his head on my shoulder. These are rare moments with this active little boy, so these moments mean the world to me.

Here's Bryce with Bobert, sitting in his favorite spot.

I should add: Bryce is still attached to the bottle, but he's come a long way and Bobert is definitely making the transition an easier one. Thanks Bobert.

My spooning wall is complete!

Cooking with Grandpa.

He bakes with Grandma, and cooks with Grandpa. Just wait until he gets with Grandpa Carlson... This kid is gonna love to cook!

And did I make mention of this enormous wok yet?!?

I love these men!

The Car-seat clown!

Here he his, helping us all enjoy the ride!

Not the most graceful shot, but I had to put this one in. He sits like this a lot!

waving bye.