Hiroki has fun with Grandpa's scalp

Papa Joe really enjoys his first grandson, and Uncle Mark loves his first nephew.

Summer fun

This summer, we spent an afternoon at Route 66 State Park in Eureka, MO. Growing up, we drove past this ghost town called Times Beach on the way to Six Flags. All I knew was that people had to leave because chemicals put on the roads made them sick. Now, the place is cleaned up, gorgeous, and re-christened as Route 66 State Park. The history of this park makes for a good read on wikipedia. Great shots of Hiro in his sun hat and lion bib.

Having such a small human around every day makes the proportions of the body intriguing. How many people can remember barely being able to touch their hands above their head?

Michiyo brought Hiroki to several gigs I had this summer. The Abra-Kid-Abra show I performed at Libraries was called, "Dr. Bugster and the Magic Fly Swatter."

One of my favorite camps I taught this summer was a pre-school age circus camp at COCA (Center of Creative Arts) near the loop in St. Louis. On the last day, we did a show for their parents, and then had Hiro pose on top of the rolling globe.

Fun pics

Hiroki came out with a full head of dark hair. Then it thinned out a little bit, and it is growing all the time. Michiyo made it stand up as best she could after a bath.

I love running into woman who have grand kids when Hiro is wearing this bib. They always have the same response, "IT sure does!" with a big smile.

Last year, we met Garrett, the son of our friends Dave and Joslyn Unger. At the time, I thought he was the happiest, most smiley baby I had ever seen, and I hoped Hiroki would be that jolly. We are very fortunate: Hiro smiles easily often, responding well to family, friends, and strangers. Oh yeah, and taking baths really makes him happy.

Every day, Hiro makes progress doing something tiny. For a while now, he's constantly testing which big toe is the tastiest, right or left. Check back for updates.

This onesie is one of Michiyo's favorites, featuring a big bear face on Hiroki's bottom. Speaking of bears and butts, Michiyo's hometown and the city where I lived for three years, is the home of the bear: Kumamoto, Japan. "Kuma" means bear, and "moto" means home. So check out Hiroki's backside in this outfit--it's Kumamoto.