Must be Summer

Because it is time for swim lessons! Woohoo! After a bit of a rough start on Monday, Julie was able to jump right in tonight and start learning today. She did so well. At first, she clung on to the teacher, but then, they started playing “Ring Around the Rosie” and such and she was all about it. She blew bubbles under the water and kicked her little heart out. She was so excited to be in the pool with big kids Dawson and Anabelle. And she is really excited to go back tomorrow.

Andy was a good sport, he ate his dinner, then posed for a few shots of his own.

Happy Birthday Memere!

Mom's Birthday is today, but we had her party on Sunday. It was a super fun Sushi Party! I made a cake that looked like a sushi roll. I dropped a teaspoon of icing on the ground, and guess who got it!

Mom and Auntie Arlene.Julie got to help Memere blow out her candles.

The spread! Yummo!

We got ahi, albacore, snapper and salmon. The fish was so fresh, a lot of it didn't even make it into rolls. This was the best part, sorry I can't figure out how to make it not sideways.

It was our first sushi party and definitely not our last. Happy Birthday Mom, hope you enjoyed your special day!!

Happy Daddy Day!

This is a day late, but Happy Father's Day!!

Also, we went to Andy's dr apt today, and he is great. 21 lbs (58th percentile), 30 inches long (97th Percentile)! The dr was very happy with him and can't believe that we had a second baby as happy and smiley as Julie!

9 Months and 5 Years

Andy is 9 months today! I simply can't believe it! He is a crawling, eating, drooling machine. He is still happy and very tolerant. He is pulling himself up on everything and is standing up in his crib pretty much every time we walk into his room.

Also, it is John and my 5th wedding anniversary. Seems like just yesterday. Love you John.

We have about 400 pictures from our wedding day. This is one of my top 3 favorites. Me dancing with my Pepere.

What happens in Vegas....goes on my blog!

On Sunday morning, we packed up the car, kissed the kids and left for Vegas. We knew the kids were in great hands, but it was still a very quiet car ride for about an hour. This was the first time we had left Andy overnight, and the longest we left Julie, besides when I was in the hospital having Andy.

We got to our hotel, the Tropicana, at about 3 pm. We checked in and then started walking. We went to one hotel after another. Got a margarita and continued walking. We got tickets for the "Tournament of Kings!" which was basically a Medieval Times type show and dinner. It was so much fun! Go Ireland!!!

Then we went down to the old strip and played some games and saw the lights. Finally, at about 3 am, we went back to our hotel. Yes, you saw that correctly, 3 AM!

The next morning, after a delicious crab omelet (yes, it was crab with a "c" and soooo good) we walked some more. I had forgotten my bathing suit so we did some shopping. John got some jeans and I got a bathing suit so we could hit up the pool.

For lunch we were going to go to a certain place, so we hopped in a cab and proceeded to get in an accident!! We are totally fine, our cabby pulled right in front of a motorcycle and the cyclist was almost able to stop...but not totally. He bumped into John's door. Then proceeded to get off his bike and swear like I have never heard! It was so funny! We filled out our accident reports, got out of the cab, and walked to get lunch instead. It worked out for the better, however, since we went somewhere closer and it was SOOO good! It was a noodle house and John got some awesome Pad Tai and I had Hong Kong Noodles. Our waitress called them hchot (that is how she said hot) and we could stop saying it like that. They were amazing!

After a rest in the room, we walked around some more, and then found the best restaurant in Vegas...at least for us. It was a sushi and Japanese buffet that was amazing. They had everything! We were very happy campers. This is John with his first plate, and below is my first plate. YUMMO!

Look how beautiful the weather was. It was perfect. Warm during the day and cool and breezy at night. We spent the last night gambling and actually came home with almost as much as we left with! So, we were very content with that.

We had a great time, but we were very ready to come home. We missed the kids like crazy. Mom did an amazing job while we were gone. The kids were happy to see us, but sad to see Memere (and Copper) go.

Christina and Brian Sitting in a Tree....

This must be a great time of year for the awesome women in my life!

Last weekend, my friend Christina came down and met me for a picnic in the park with the HUGE news that Brian, her boyfriend of 9 years, proposed!! I am so excited for them and they have already picked a date and a venue (for more information, you can go to their blog) and I can tell that Christina can not be more happy, which is all a friend can hope for!

So, congratulations Christina and Brian!!

New (Non-Dingy) Bathroom

Ok, here is the dingy bathroom that, until last weekend, was the only room in the house that we had not done something too. The walls were the color of putty and floor...well, the floor was just gross!

And here is the after! Beautiful paint on the walls and the cabinets. The counter tops and tile are the same (we were going budget friendly) and the floors are new as well. I can not believe what a difference it makes with just a coat of paint! And for good measure, John built a workbench too. We found a solid core door on Craigslist for FREE and he made this great work area!

Look how productive we can be!!

Mobility

Guess who crawled for Cheerios!!! We put Cheerios a few feet away from Andy and he did about 4 crawls to get to them. Give the boy the right motivation and away he goes! I think we are in trouble now!

Eventful Events

Last weekend was a big weekend for two very important women in my life.

First was one of my best friends in the whole world, Kayla. She graduated from nursing school. I went to her graduation and after party at her parents house. I can not believe how fast the last two years have gone (probably not as fast for her) and next week she will be starting work at French Hospital. I could not be more proud of her.

Oh, and Julie had a blast at her party. She got to feed the horses, see chickens, roosters and kittens. And swing on the tire swing with Kayla's nephew Justin.

Next was my sister-in-laws wedding shower. Bess is an amazing person and has had so many life changing experiences, and she is in for a whole new adventure...marriage! We will be going to Philadelphia in July for her wedding, but while she was home for a few days last weekend, Anne and I (with help from my mom, Kayla, Chris, John and Aunt Heli) put together a nice little shower for her. She is going to be the most beautiful bride!

Explaining the proposal.

These are John's cousins.....no wonder our kids are so beautiful!

The bride to be and her flower girl.

The party.

This was a fun game where everyone had to guess how old Bess was in the pictures. It was only a little embarrassing for her. :)

I feel so lucky that I have these women in my life. I look up to both of them, for different reasons they inspire me to be a better person. I also feel so blessed that Julie has them to look up to for support, love and advice.