Sunday Breakfast* at Grandpa's

* Mercer did not eat any of his breakfast.

Going to Point Pleasant Beach

"'Mon, Daddy..."

Mercer didn't want to go on the rides with Daddy today. Only Mommy.

Mercer was really starting to get the hang of things.

Lunch/game break. We came up empty-handed, but Mercer tried his best. These games are rigged anyway.



Mercer was loving the Super Truck.

At the controls of his very own helicopter.

Stew Leonard's

Stew Leonard's might be the best supermarket ever. Part county fair, part carnival, part food store, Stew Leonard's is loved by parents and kids alike. Not only do they produce fresh dairy and vegetables from their own farms, but they showcase live animals and have fun, kid-friendly animatronic displays throughout the store. You can have lunch at their restaurant or take something delicious home from their hot bar. Sure, it can feel like you're being herded around because of the amount of people, but Mercer still loves it. There's so much to see and do, including getting pictures taken with a friendly duck.

Pop quiz: Daddy

1. What is your favorite feature of Mercer?

His ability to get you to see everyday things in a new light.

2. What do you like making him the most for dinner?

Mushrooms with soy sauce.

3. Describe his personality in less than 10 words.

He knows what he wants.

4. What achievement of Mercer’s makes you most proud?

Catching and throwing.

5. Favorite phrase?

"Thank you, Daddy."

Pop quiz: Mommy

1. What is your favorite feature of Mercer?

He is a good listener, although he doesn't listen all the time.

2. What do you like making him the most for dinner?

Hot dogs

3. Describe his personality in less than 10 words.

He will help you up when you are down!

4. What achievement of Mercer’s makes you most proud?

He can stick up for himself

5. Favorite phrase?

"I did it"

USA 2:0 Spain

That is all.

Shirt over the head

Catch!

Mercer is learning how to catch, kick, and throw with ever-increasing accuracy these days. Over the weekend, Mercer and Dad played catch with a beach ball and then a baseball and glove. Mercer's method of using a baseball glove involves catching the ball underhand and then scooting the glove upwards really fast so that the ball flies out. It's not very accurate, as you could imagine. Dad is trying to teach Mercer to pick the ball out of his glove and throw it with his bare hand, but the technique seems lost on him. It's a shame, too, because Mercer has a great right arm from what we can tell. Without the glove, Mercer can throw just fine; he's accurate and fast.

Mercer prefers to throw and catch, but if the mood strikes him (or if soccer is on TV, which is 80% of the time), he'll have a kick-around, as well. We bought Mercer a small soccer ball awhile ago, but I think he prefers something closer to normal size. What's hilarious is that he'll "trap" the ball and if it's not exactly in the right spot to kick it back, he'll bend over and adjust it until it is...kind of like placekicking. We've taught Mercer how to celebrate a goal, so he's really halfway there.

To be honest, play time with Mercer (or any kid) can get dull for an adult after awhile, but catch is something Pop could do all day long if he could.

Father's Day video bonanza!

Playing hide-and-seek with Mercer.

Mercer tries on Mommy's trainers and gets them on the wrong feet (turn off HD if the video gives you problems; it is for me).

Mercer sleeps in the car while Mommy picks up her bag and shoes from the cobbler in Scarsdale. Look at those bruised legs!

Mercer destroys more block creations.

No Mercer in this one. Just testing out the camera in White Plains during the 5 minutes of clear weather we've had in the past month.

Playlist

Mercer put together some music he's dancing to these days.

Cleaning out the cell phone.

Running down a hill in Ossining.

With Dad at Starbucks in Ossining.

Toothpick legs in Starbucks.

Feet.

Eating ice cream straight out of the carton at Grandpa's.

SuperMercer at the water's edge in Scarborough Park.

Mercer has a way with the ladies.

Resting Mercer

We just got our new pocket-sized video camera in the mail yesterday. Here it is in action. Not terrible considering the poor light we have upstairs. It works much better with the HD feature and in normal light.

Anyway, this is Mercer resting after some intense play sessions.

Breaking the law

Last night, Mommy took Mercer out for a ride on his little bike. But when it came time to go home, Mercer refused to get back on the bike. Mommy called Pop, who scrambled to the car for a rescue mission. Upon locating the pair, Pop had Mercer hop into the front passenger seat for a quick getaway. Mommy walked the bike home and Mercer sat in the big seat next to Daddy all the way home (which was only about 1/2 a mile). Mercer clicked his seat belt and held the chest strap in front of him, too.

Don't tell anyone!

Wild things

Mercer is way too young to bring to a movie theater, which is a shame, because he absolutely loves the trailer for "Where the Wild Things Are." Honestly, so did I. It looks like an amazing movie with a good cast (Mark Ruffalo, James Gandolfini, Catherine Keener, Catherine O'Hara). I've read that the plot bottoms out towards the end, but hey, it's based on a really short children's book. I'll take what I can get.

Thank goodness they seemingly decided to put equal budget towards detailed costumes and richly textured set design along with special effects. Mercer has been begging to watch it over and over again by saying "More monsters? More? Monsters?" Of course, that's Pop's fault for showing it to him in the first place!

This might be a case of taking a trip down to Chinatown for a DVD bootleg. The movie is scheduled for release in October 2009.

Pizza here?

Last night, Mercer and Pop ordered some pizza for delivery. When the doorbell rang, Pop said "Pizza's here! Let's go get it!" The pizza was retrieved and eaten gleefully.

This morning, Mercer and Pop were playing near the computer when a "ding!" went off because something had just finished downloading.

Mercer: "Pizza here??"

New camera on the way.

I was going to post a cute video of Mercer tumbling and somersaulting (he's been trying to figure it out since he could stand), but the quality came out dreadful. Something happens during the conversion to Vimeo that makes it look choppy and pixelated. Dad took measures into his own hands and ordered a new mini-camcorder that will hopefully help document all of Mercer's stunts and subsequent trips to the emergency room.

For the sake of being a completest, here is the video:

Ossining.

Check out our new blog featuring simple photography of the area we've called home for the past seven or so years. Bookmark it!

Ossining: http://ossiningphotos.blogspot.com/