Day 3: Reedsburg ... on a Sunday Afternoon

Sam was not fully prepared for the experience of playtime with Madelyn. She begged him to play in the sandbox. Then she begged him to play on the swings. Then she begged him to play in the basement of the Caseys' house in Reedsburg, Wis.

I think Sam had a tough time keeping up, if you can believe it. She's 3 years old, after all.

Daddy Dave and Daddy Nick helped out, ensuring that Madelyn didn't knock Sam over too much and that Sam didn't accidentally bury himself in the sand. Mommy Liz and Mommy Sarah had a few precious hours to catch up before we had to drive back to Platteville.

I haven't seen Sam much in situations when he could interact with other kids. From the looks of it, it seemed to do him some good having to keep up with someone else rather than just himself. Next time, maybe Sam will be old enough to go bicycling with his new girl-friend.

Day 2: Hello, Wisconsin!

The road trip was even better than we thought. Both days, we got in before dinner. In this case, dinner was at the Putnam household in Platteville, Wis.

Sam - who had had just about enough of that stupid car - was excited to see Grandma and Grandpa and play with their new vacuum cleaner. And by vacuum cleaner, I mean a Fisher-Price deal that makes realistic whirring sounds.

We also ran around the yard a few times, and Sam met his first cricket. When you wish upon a star …

Day 1: Somewhere on the Ohio Turnpike

It's day one of the Great Paulsen Midwest Road Trip 2010. Not a lot to say, other than New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio. We set up camp in a Super 8 just south of Sandusky, about halfway to Platteville. Just under 500 miles left to go. Sam has been handling it well, but he clearly suffers from vertical activity deprivation. The kid has grown fond of running around, and you can't do that well in a car.

As for the car, it's a Toyota Prius, a two-week rental that cost us less than the price of two plane tickets, not to mention all the baggage we're taking. And with two weeks to burn, it's nice having our own four wheels.

And I still can't believe I have a full two weeks off. This is my longest stretch without working since college. Not sure how I'm gonna feel by the end. Hopefully, I'll keep the thoughts of work to a minimum.

Coming up: we're looking forward to seeing Grandma and Grandpa Putnam, Great-Grandma Putnam, Great-Aunt Sue, Great-Aunt Suzie, the Wangs of Wausau, the Uhligs of Wausau, the Caseys of Reedsburg and some of the Twin Cities crew, including Joy, Jason and Rodney. Good times ahead.

Weekend Trip

We drove up to the Berkshires over the weekend to visit Great-Grandpa Monico. Sam enjoyed his first hike on a trail near grandpa's home.On our way home Sunday, we stopped briefly in Connecticut to visit the Welch family. Sammy's buddy, Reid, turns 1 today. They spent some time in Reid's pool. Here are some photos: Reid & Sam.

South Street Seaport

On Saturday, we ventured into lower Manhattan to check out the South Street Seaport. It's full of shops, restaurants and historic ships. It also has killer views of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Photos: South Street Seaport
Grandpa John's photos and videos from Sam's birthday: Sam's First Birthday

Sam's First Birthday & Sam's First Stroll

Sam turned 1 on Tuesday. Grandma Deb and Grandpa John, Mom and Dad, and Grandpa Mike, Maryann, Karryn and Anna were all on hand to celebrate with the birthday boy. Here are some videos of the big day. They are a little blurry - taken with Dave's Blackberry. (In the first video, he has his hand in his mouth the whole time. This is a common occurrence these days when he is not chewing on an object as he is getting FOUR molars in at the same time.)

Here is a link to a few photos: Sam's First Birthday
I will post a link to Grandpa John's photos once he and Grandma Deb post them upon returning to Wisconsin next week. I think Dave has some photos on his Blackberry to add, too.



Sam dined on a carrot cupcake with cream cheese frosting.



On a related yet separate note, Sam is walking. He started officially walking around July 20. He had taken a few solo steps prior to that, but he started to take multiple steps around the 20th. He is now rather quick, and he also can stand up from a sitting position without using another object to pull himself up.

We bought him a pair of sandals. Here is a video of his first walk down a street holding Dad's hand: