So, um, hi...

It's been a while. [Insert excuses here] But we're still around, having a great (albeit very busy) summer and Wes is growing way too fast. We've done tons of stuff and have tons of Wesley updates, but the sheer amount of stuff is so overwhelming that I'm going to try to be short and sweet instead of long-winded and brilliant.

So, to start, the Wesley's Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Raegan came to visit us in July. They got to spoil Wes with attention and presents and hugs and kisses, which he loved. They also got to see fun places like Maastricht, Aachen, the Margraten Cemetary, Amsterdam, Cologne, and... wait for it... Paris! Of course! Lou Ann took buckets of photos from their trip, and I tool quite a few too, but with all that's been going on lately, my photos are a bit disorganized and the only proof I have on my computer that they actually visited us is here:

Raegan at the Eiffel Tower! Très belle!
Wes also enjoyed the trip to Paris




As did Ben and I



But sadly, shortly after we returned to the Netherlands, the Illinois Morrisons returned to Illinois. But to Wesley's delight, they did leave tons of John Deere toys for him so he can dream of farms and think of them.

After Ben's family left, we went back to our normal routine for, oh, about two days. And then it was back to Paris. I know. That's a little ridiculous even for us. But we had to go. It was the Tour de France! For Father's Day, I had booked an apartment within walking distance of the Champs-Elysées for the final stage of the Tour, and Ben was beyond excited. And I have to say, it was pretty cool.








And then, we took a break, right? Errr, ummm, no. Actually, the next weekend, we left Wes with his fabulous babysitter overnight and went to Antwerp for Ben's Half Ironman. What???? Are we crazy or dumb? Ben is maybe both, I think. Why else would someone participate in a race that consists of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, and 13.1 mile run? Oh, and it was really cold and pouring rain for the first half of the day.

Brrrrrr. After this picture was taken, Ben stood around shivering in the rain for about an hour and a half and then jumped in a cold lake and swam a mile. Who does that???

Luckily, it eventually stopped raining and warmed up a bit, and Ben made it through the race like a champ.


Wow, right?

Yay for Ben!

After that, we did settle down and chill out a little. As much as we could, anyways, with a little boy who has learned to walk, loves to climb, and never ever gets tired...





And now what's next for the Morrison family? Well, we have a couple trips planned, a visit from Papà in the near future, moving preparations... but most importantly, Wesley's birthday! Tomorrow! He'll be 1 year old! And you know what that means... Cupcakes for breakfast! Stay tuned for messy baby cake pictures.