Memorial Day In Bakersfield.

Memorial Day brought our family, once again, to good ole Bakersfield to visit with the Neff-Coopers, Aunt Jane Levine, Bubie and Grandpa. Bubie was a bit distraught as she couldn't pick up the babies due to her recent eye surgery However, with Aunt Jane as reinforcement, we had plenty of adults to entertain 3 children and completely exhaust themselves by the end of each day. I think the grown ups put in more hours of naps than the kids actually did.

The kids spent a lot of time playing in the back yard. Jake turned 7 months old and cut another tooth while on our visit. He loves to scream like a little monkey these days and experiment with his vocals. He has started to pull himself up in his crib to a standing position.
We celebrated Phoebe's 1st birthday over the visit. Happy Birthday Phoebe! Wilken, the expert present opener, kept a close watch as Phoebe opened her gifts to be available to provide assistance as necessary. I couldn't resist posting this adorable shot of our niece as she has more fun with the bows than the actual contents of her gift.
This is a common expression from our little Wilken as he provides some off beat explanation for something. I am sure he is trying to persuade the adults why he should receive some more presents (he had a few belated b-day gifts sprinkled on him throughout the weekend).

We had a blast at our buddy Ty's first birthday party which was Jungle themed. We got to connect with lots of our Bakersfield friends.

Wilken was transfixed by his tiger themed cupcake.

The children have learned their place in the hierarchy. Wilken is the pack leader. Jake and Phoebe look on him with adoration and tolerate his domination over the toys. They find him hilarious, and Phoebe in particular delights in watching him play. He is very gentle with Phoebe and gives her very tender hugs and kisses. Phoebe has realized that as a big 1 year-old, she has authority over young Jake. She established her place in the hierarchy by grabbing away items from the clueless Jake with a cave-woman like grunt while shaking the item in his face. Go Phoebster!