More Pictures...

Sprinkler Fun

Nick finally finished laying the sod in the front yard... It's been a very slow process, between the digging, the tilling, the broken digging/tilling tools, the chatting to neighbors, the 2 week rain delay... and of course the lack of available sod ANYWHERE in the state!

All obstacles aside, the lawn is finished and it is looking good (apart from a few bad patches).

With a new lawn comes lots of watering, and as the temp. outside was sweltering hot we let the monkeys enjoy a little "splish splash" (as Annabelle would say)...

Which was fun for the moment but, the problem we have now is that whenever any of our neighbor's water their lawns Annabelle wants to run through the sprinklers... which is extremely annoying when you live at the tip of a cult de sac and have a clear view of EVERY lawn!!

Adventures At Small Park

Yesterday we took a walk over to "small park", as Annabelle likes to call it. Small park = close park, so I was happy when she asked to go there as opposed to "big park", which is a bit further away = longer walk for me. Normally I don't mind the extra mile stroll, but it was getting close to supper time for the small people... and I was tired... but did manage to muster up enough energy to take a few pics!

On a completely different note... The battle is over and Annabelle has finally conformed to drinking milk from a sippy cup (without tears)!! All bottles have been removed from the premises.

Flashback-May 21, 2005

Annabelle attempts to give Jack a "hug".

Bye, Bye, Bubba: The Battle Continues

Well, it's day 3 of the sans bottle mission and we have had our good days and our bad. Guess what kind of day this was? Right about now I am kicking myself for letting it get this far, and wishing I had rid her of the bottle a year ago. For some reason I convinced myself that it would be impossible for her to give it up while Jack still had one, maybe it would have, we'll never know. Somewhere along the line her bed time bottle of milk became a comfort item for her and I'm trying to take that away... evil Mommy!

Poor little Annabelle. You would have thought I offered her a poison apple rather than a sippy cup. A sippy cup, with milk? Get it straight Mommy, sippy cups are for water and juice, milk goes in a BUBBA!!! ... Sorry Annabelle, not anymore.

Meanwhile... in a quiet room not so far away, "Baby" happily drinks his milk from a sippy cup.

Happy Mother's Day!

Or, as Annabelle would say... Happy Mommy Day!

What kind of Mommy would I be if I didn't pose for a picture with the Monkeys on Mother's Day? (Probably a smart one). Nevertheless, here we are (rain soaked), after having braved the storm to go out to lunch with Nana and Papa.

A Conversation Between Two Grapes

Just one of the conversations I overheard this evening at dinner time...

Grape #1: "Hello."
Grape #2: "Hello, pleased to meet you."
Grape #1: "Want to go to a tea party?"
Grape #2: "Yeah, I want to go to a tea party."
Grape #1: "Oh, ok, want to go with Scoop and Benny*?"
Grape #2: "Yes, Scoop and Benny."
Grape #2: "and Baby too."
***insert Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrooom noise***
Grape #2: Oh! What happened?"
Grape #1: "I running around too hard!"
***insert crashing sounds***
At this point in the conversation I believe Annabelle (aka the puppeteer) has taken over, as the next thing I hear is: "I'm sorry, bye" and then see Annabelle lift the grapes, give them a little nod, as if to say "it's ok, it'll be quick and painless", and then proceed to eat Grape#1 and Grape #2!

*Scoop and Benny are toy trucks from Bob the Builder.

Cheers, Daddy!

We went to a waaaay too crowded street fair today... the kind where you wish you had packed a sharp object in the diaper bag to use on the people who pretend that you are invisible kind of crowded. Naturally, afterwards, we needed a few drinks to unwind so we stopped on the way home for a bite to eat and, well, a few drinks...
Annabelle and Nick had too much to drink and got a little too rowdy.
(that apple juice, does it every time).
The waiter came over and had to plug them up with bread.
Meanwhile... Mr. Jack had a good snooze.
But woke just in time to have a quick snack and a few laughs.

Future Artist?

What I like about this photo is the look of concentration on Annabelle's face. That, and the fact that she has absolutely no idea what the small hand on the left is about to do.

About a Boy

Jack is getting cuter by the minute, not only in looks but in personality as well (obviously I'm biased). He is becoming quite the "little boy"... although he has been known to partake in the occasional tea party. Recently, he has been really into playing with cars, climbing, and swinging like a monkey from the oven door (that's a safe one). Some of his hobbies include: wrestling with his Teddy, making spit bubbles, flirting with old ladies and waitresses, knocking over block towers, and swiftly stealing and drinking any and all sippy cups or bottles within reach.

Whose kid is this?

It still amazes me that Annabelle actually under-stands me when I ask/tell her to do some-thing... She even occasionally gives an appropriate and logical response! A little while ago Annabelle and Jack were playing on the three season porch (which has been doubling as a play room since season 4 ended) and I noticed that it was getting close to dinner time. I asked Annabelle if she wanted to have dinner soon and she said "oh yes please Mommy"... Whose kid is this??? She had come into the kitchen at this point, so I told her that we have to go get Jack so that we can eat. She then ran over to the door and said "hey baby, you wanna have num nums?" "Come on, you have to get in your chair"... When did she become so grown up?

Happy Easter!

A few pictures from today:
Annabelle and Jack strike a pose before heading over to Nana and Papa's house...

The super bunny cake made an appearance this year. Annabelle was so excited about the bunny cake and had planned to eat the whole left ear all by herself, but when it actually came down to it she opted for ice cream instead... on the ride home of course she kept asking where the cake was.
A few weeks ago my mother gave Jack a blue Polo shirt, apparently my nephews Danny and Michael each got one too! By some very weird coincidence they all wore the shirts and tan trousers today...

What Are They Up To?

I imagine the conversation went something like this: "Listen sister, I'm taking charge of the driving today". "Well then Baby, I'm going to bite your arm".

Viva Las Vegas

I was going to post a few pictures from our Anniversary weekend in Las Vegas but then I remembered the old saying: "what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas". Ok, we weren't really THAT bad... the photos definitely were though. After sifting through them I decided that it best no one ever see them... then I changed my mind, sorry guys! So here are some very scary pictures:

Mr. & Mrs. Drunky celebrating their 5th wedding Anniversary... are we both wearing lipstick?

Jenny and Mark give a little cheer of excitement after having sent their dinners back...

Tracy and Kristen patiently await more booze

Nick and Mark enjoy a few Margaritas at Margaritaville...

and later on that evening Mark showed up with his new bird...

Luckily she was called back to the mother ship before he had a chance to drink her pretty!

Looking very tired the morning of departure

Strollin'

Since we've had some nice weather lately, our new favorite after dinner activity has been strolling around the neighborhood in the little red wagon. Annabelle and Jack have a grand ole time kicking each other, and having competitions to see who can laugh and scream the loudest! The day this picture was taken (Friday) we made the mistake of letting them take the balls along for the ride... that day we had the "who can make Mommy and Daddy run the farthest" competition!!

Locks of Love

Today I had almost all of my hair chopped off and donated it to Locks of Love , a non-profit organization that provides wigs for bald children. Nick really wanted to do it, but since he is follicle-ly challenged I volunteered. The last time I remember my hair being this short was after I had the "Dorothy Hamill" cut when I was 7! At least it's not as bad as that. It's actually sort of stylish now, if ever I get a chance to style it I'll post a picture.

Sleepy Monkeys

A rare and beautiful thing.

Why So Pouty Jack?

Looks like Jack was still a little upset after having made a visit with Dr. Pam for his 1 year check up. Once again, the second he caught a glimpse of the scary german nurse he broke down in tears... this from the boy who rarely cries!

Tears aside, all is looking good with Jack. He was lucky enough not to have to have any shots this time and is right on track with his growth. His new stats are:
Weight: 24lbs 10oz
Height: 30-1/4 inches
Head Circ: 46cm

Angel in Disguise

How appropriate that she be wearing a shirt that says "Angel in Disguise" whilst she went on a Sharpie spree throughout the house. I was away from her for maybe 3 minutes while I cleaned Jack up after lunch. That was long enough for her to climb on top of the computer desk, grab a red sharpie, and a black one, and then put a few nice red and black markings on the back of the loveseat, the banister, the wall, the floor, the dining room table, her new turtle ball that we got at the Aquarium yesterday, her clothes, hands, AND color her new white shoes (that we just bought this morning) RED. Oh, and just this very minute she handed me 2 of Jack's new cars and said "uh oh mommy, look"... they are covered in black marker.

Happy Birthday Jack!!!

The past year has gone by so quickly it's almost hard to believe... one year old today!! Welcome to a world of whole milk and forward facing car seats! Jack has had a very busy 1st year: moving across the country, traveling abroad, growing, learning, and becoming very mischievous... wonder where he got that from?

Here are a few pictures of Jack from his party on Sunday... he sure did like his cake!