There is nothing better than having an amazing friend (AKA lovely sister) whose kid is my kid's best friend (AKA cute cousin). They have had so much fun getting to know each other the last week and I can't wait for them to grow up together (now if we could just live in the same part of the world!)
Dear Kai,
Wanna come an' play?
Love, T
James had one and only one request at the beginning of our California summer: make and fly a model airplane. Naive me thought this was a 30 minute project, so I encouraged him to go for the gold with this baby! A trip to the hobby shop and about a billion hours later, Jim had finally constructed his plane. Phew.
With only one day left on Cali turf he decided to try it out. Jim and Chase were so cute working together for take-off!
And boy, oh boy, did that baby fly. It flew high--way higher than I thought it would! But unfortunately what comes up, must come down. We only got one flight out of her...but it was a good one!
Mr. T is excited to make a model plane with his Daddy-o someday. But until then, he's rad like dad! And cute like dad. And smart like dad. And kind like dad. And stubborn like mom. Woops!
After the flight, we took Talmage to the park next door and let him run around while we enjoyed some rest on the bench. Well...we attempted to rest...really we ended up running after the kid.
Funny story. This little boy in the orange shirt (probably 4ish) says to Talmage, "How big are you? How many fingers?" He obviously didn't respond and ended up running away, so the little kid said, "Hey, little boyyy!" In Talmage's mind, I think he's at least as old as these other little muchachos!
Mr. T and Uncle Chase. He is such a good uncle and LOVES to play with his little nephew!
The California State Fair is one of my all-time favorite events of the year, and this year was extra special because almost all of the McKee Clan was there to party (although this post might make you think that Mr. T was the only one in attendance! So maybe I'm obsessed with my kid!)
Mommy and T smiling in the petting zoo.
Mr. T pointing at the animals. 
The super-cute/super-sad sad face after being mauled by a baby goat.
I love these people! Talmage is sharing some popcorn with cousin Kai.
Making amends with animals--Daddy and T riding the merry-go-round.
Grandma treated Talmage to a snow cone, and needless to say he was red from head to toe!
While Ash fed the baby, Talmage played in the cornbox. Kind of corny, huh?
The kid eating his HUGE corndog...and LOVING it.
So charitable. Unfortunately, T's attempt to feed his Uncle Chase drew blood. Who knew a corndog stick could be so sharp!
After a long day of walking, Grampa and Talmage enjoyed a nice foot massage.
I'm not sure where Uncle Logo was when we took this picture, but it's cute anyway! Look at those two little boys!
At the end of the night we met up with Care and Bryce who where enjoying their last day of Cali amazingness before returning to Portland.
One of our outings was to Virginia City, an old mining town which had incredible personality and charm. The weather was perfect (mostly sunshine with a two-minute rainstorm, just enough to create that delicious just-rained smell in the air) and the city was full of things to do.
Mom and Dad treated us like Southern royalty during our entire Tahoe trip, and don't they look way too cute on that camel-back?
We totally enjoyed spending time together with the fam. I love this picture because it looks like Talmage is getting sick from all the PDA!
A picture of a picture.
We finished the day in Virginia City with a ride on an old Wells Fargo stagecoach. Supposedly this is the only original replica that is still running and it was so much fun to ride around in it. It was super bumpy and rocky and I can only imagine a full day would leave you pretty sore in the tail.
In other Tahoe news, Talmage beyond enjoyed swimming in the icy, clean lake water...or whatever water he could find...
...Jim and Bryce ate mac and cheese on top of hot dogs (an idea they pinched from the food network)...
...and we all took turns row, row, rowing the boat. What a blast! More pics to come...I hope!
.TOY STORY 3.
.A BLUE TONGUE.
.PINKBERRY FROYO.
.A SWEET FACE.
.A SWEET, MISCHIEVOUS FACE.
Lunch with Dad at the infamous Squeeze Inn.
Two words: Cheese Skirt. 
He enjoyed it.
And so did they.
And obviously I enjoyed mine. My only leftover= 9 million napkins.
