Gregarious Aaron

We had two birthday parties this weekend. One for Gabe (turning 3) at the beach on Saturday and one for Grant and Oliver today (both turning 2). Aaron had a great time at both. But on Saturday, at some point, he latched onto Oliver's mom Jenny (pictured above). He wanted to sit in her lap and had fun while she buried his feet in the sand. Again and again. And later, if he couldn't see her, he wondered "Jenny go?"

He played with some of the kids, too, trying to give a toy to 1 year old Bridget who was more interested in eating at the time, which upset him. But another boy took the toy and he was happy. At one point, he was trying to get the attention of various adults (who were carrying on conversations with each other at the time) but going up to them and saying "Hi!" in his most charming (and loud) voice.

Thom and I were both shy as children, so I'm not sure where he gets this aspect of his personality. But I hope it lasts so that he makes friends easily when he is older.

Today's birthday party had a train theme and we got to take Aaron on a miniature train for the first time. (You can see pictures on Facebook, where many of you will probably recognize the location.) The picture above is from today, when Aaron wanted to sit on Jenny's lap again. Since it was her son Oliver's birthday and they were starting to open presents, we coaxed him over to our blanket in the shade so she could assist with gift opening. But later, I saw her carrying Aaron, presumably at his insistence. I think he's found a backup mama. Fortunately, Oliver was playing with his dad, Chris, and wasn't bothered by the fact Aaron was stealing his mama.

The only downside is that it was miserably hot. Well, in the low 90s, I would guess. Everyone was roasting, even in the shade. But there was a nice breeze during the train ride.