July

Trip to the Poconos - July 11-15. Our friends from Ohio set up this family vacation in the Poconos. It was a great time. There were 8 adults and 8 kids. We stayed at a nice place with a playground and an indoor heated pool. Tanner loved the warm water and was "swimming" like a fish and jumping off the side of the pool from day one...Rob golfed with the guys one day and I went on a 2 hour horseback ride another day. We also went hiking at Bushkill Falls and visited a waterpark at Camelback one of the days. It was a great time and we miss our Ohio gang!!!

Tanner and AJ - dining with the gang at the Tannersville Inn (coincidence)

Jack, Brady, Ashton, & Skylar...and Tanner, front and center

My little Nudie:

Life is a Highway!

In case anyone is wondering why we haven't posted in a bit, let me tell...in the last month I've made 2 trips to California (one for work, one for my cousin's wedding), took a 5-day vacation to the Poconos, hosted a summer party for 50 people, had 2 groups of out of town guests, and bought a house. That's right, we bought a new house! Still in Ware, the same town we live in now. We weren't really actively looking, but when we saw it come up on the daily email alert we get, we couldn't believe the price. Its a 2500 square foot colonial built in 2002 on 1.38 acre with lake rights (less than half mile from a small lake). It was a foreclosure property so it needs a little work, including some pipes that burst over the winter while the property was vacant...However, for 2/3 of the market value, we bought it! We close on September 5th so it looks like August isn't going to be much more relaxing than July was...But that's ok! We are soooo excited. This is a house that we wouldn't be able to afford if it were full price. We feel like we've been given an amazing opportunity.
Tanner moved to a "big boy" bed 3 nights ago and is doing VERY well. He seems to have transitioned without missing a beat, sleeping all night no problem. A stroke of luck for us! He loves the freedom his new, blue "race car bed" affords (thanks Uncle Pete!) and he hops in and out of it all day long, just for fun.
His latest obsession is being outside in the nude. The minute we get out the door, he strips down and rips his diaper off, galavanting around the yard like a rooster in a barnyard. We're lucky our neighbors dont seem to mind. The hard part is getting him to understand why he has to wear a diaper when he comes back in the house. He fights it tooth and nail and has recently resorted to hiding behind the couch, pulling the velcro off slowly and silently, then streaking through the house, squealing with glee at his momentary victory. This usually ensues with mommy chasing toddler from room to room with diaper trying to talk reason, using words like "pee pee and poo poo, couch, hard to clean, etc etc" Toddler is having way too much fun running and twisting out of parent's grip to listen to reason...eventually there is a minor takedown with a few moments of crying or screeching while diaper is wrestled back onto toddler. Try this a few times a day and it gets old. No need for aerobics that day!
He has continued to gain speed with his vocabulary, using two word sentences regularly. His latest word is "awesome". He says it perfectly. Very cute. He LOVES playdough and asks for it 3-4 times a day. "tay-dough, tay-dough" - we get it out, play 15 minutes then mommy packs it up while he's already on to something else. An hour later, we do it again. He just loves it.
He's been calling me "mommy and mom-mom" for a while...and recently he's into "mom" and "benna" - are you kidding?!@% He's calling us Benna and Wobert! Its kind of funny but I prefer mommy or mom...
I'll post pictures tonight...I promise! Right after I paint the backsplash in our kitchen...oh yeah, we have to sell our house right away now...
:)
Life is a highway!