Moved Again

 The company Chris worked for, Guilford, was sold a few months ago.  Fortunately, he didn't lose his job so short term we didn't have any worries.  Long term, however, we don't know what the new companies plans are and there is probably no chance of promotion, so it was time to move on.  Chris got a job with Honeywell and is extremely excited about it.  Things moved pretty fast and before we knew what was happening we were packing up and moving to Dayton, Ohio. It was 17 days from the time Chris got the job offer to the day we moved.  And some how we magically fit in a house hunting trip in those 17 days and found a fantastic home to rent in Ohio.  Once we got to Ohio, Chris had 2 weeks off so we did a lot of exploring in the area. We did so much that the kids started asking to stay home, and we only saw just a few of the things this area offers.  I am in LOVE with how much there is to do here for little kids, and the best part is, most of it is FREE!!!

 It took us about 9 hours to drive to Ohio.  We each took a child in a car and they each had a box of new toys and activities to entertain them.  We also got these little trays that connect to the car seat.  They were fantastic.

 We went to an Aquarium and saw Mighty Mike.  A 15 ft Crocodile.  It was a bit un-nerving to be right next to him.

 We went to a historical, working farm.  I love this shot of Cordon and the windmill.

 The farm has a historical kitchen and class room where kids can dress up and pretend to live in the 1800's

 The children's discovery museum here is amazing.  We have been there a few times already and I am still shocked at how big it is.  It even has a small zoo inside. 

 A state of the art planetarium show for only $2?  You betcha

 Graeters ice cream is probably the best ice cream I have ever had.  Having one a few miles from us is going to be a challenge.  Lets hope I don't gain 50lbs while I live her

 There is a splash pad around the corner from us. The first time we went it took the kids a while to warm up to the idea, but now of course they love it. I love Eliza's pot belly in the photo below.

 Once we got to Ohio, our home wasn't ready to move in yet so we spent three weeks in an extended stay hotel.  It had two rooms so it was livable.  Bud spent his time staring longingly out the window.  If we were in the hotel the kids were always doing some sort of craft or activity, because 700 sq ft was not enough for them to run around and play in.

A moving truck in front of our new home.  That was a fantastic sight to see.

Crayola

 For Memorial Weekend we went to the Crayola Factory.  That place was so much fun.  There were several different stations where you got to use different Crayola products.  We came home with a huge bag full of crayons, markers, crafts and other stuff.

 Eliza coloring

Sidewalk chalk area

 Magic mold.  We spent the most time here.  This stuff was so much fun to play with.

 Cordon decorated a space vest

 a car you can color on then wipe off.

Painting

 Chris had a good time with the glow in the dark area

 A quick demonstration on how crayons and markers are made

Coloring on the wall

Mother's Day

For the last four years, Chris has asked me what I want for Mother's Day and every year I say the same thing; the afternoon off.  So far it has yet to happen.  Something crazy always happens that requires my attention. Here are the highlights of this year.

• I was forced given the privilege of speaking in church that day
• Cordon threw a world class temper tantrum, that involved screaming, throwing things and hitting. 
• Cordon decided to see what would happen when you throw a raw egg on the floor. 
• and the best was when I finally fell asleep for a quick nap, Chris came flying into the room and yelled "you have to call poison control." Eliza had broken the child lock off the cupboard under the sink and took a bite out of one of those dishwasher soap pouch's. She is fine

Chris' parents were able to be here for Mother's Day and of course that is always a plus to have them around.  It was rainy and muggy the whole time so we didn't get to do much exploring but the kids did get to enjoy spending lots of time with grandpa and grandma. 

Nana and New York

 Last week my mom came to town.  We did a lot of site seeing and playing.

 we went to the State Museum and harvested apples and checked out fake pigs.  

 We went to Monkey Joe's and enjoyed the bouncing and sliding.

We went to Chocolate World

 We did some pouting because we didn't want to go inside

 We decided the best toy was Nanas glasses

After a few days of running around like crazy, Chris and I left the kids with my mom and went to New York City for 3 days.  We took the train and spent the whole time running around as fast as we could to see as much as we could.

 We had dinner, and the most fantastic cheesecake at Rockefeller Center

 We saw Wicked.  I was a bit nervous that I wouldn't like it but it held up to the hype. Even Chris enjoyed it.

 Captain Jack Sparrow made out of legos. I want to meet the guy that has that job.

 FAO Schwarz was not as exciting as Tom Hanks made it look.

 We stopped for a little snack

 We saw this guy in Times Square

 We went to the new 9/11 memorial.  It was really beautifully done.  I think they did an amazing job on it.

 We went to the Empire State Building at midnight.  You're allowed to stay up that late when children aren't around to wake you up at 5 am.

 We posed in Central Park

These fake butterfly's were at FAO Schwarz. I thought they were the coolest thing, but not for$35

18 months

 Eliza has hit the all to important 18 months.  This of course means NURSERY!!!! She went for the first time last week.  She screamed her guts out for about 5 min then was fine. Now Chris and I have to re-learn how to sit through 2 hours of church. So here are a few fun facts about our little gal

She FINALLY learned how to walk 3 days shy of the 18 month mark.  That Myers watermelon head of hers kept throwing her balance off. 

She is a girly girl, she loves necklaces, she loves to admire herself after I do her hair, she loves purses and she is obsessed with shoes.

We call her La Lou or Lou's.  

Eliza loves to cuddle.  She gives the best hugs and loves to snuggle in someones lap to hear stories.

She and Cordon are starting to play more and become friends.  It's so fun to watch them together.  Plus it's a nice break for me.  I love that little gal but she can be really demanding of my time.  She is very social and always wants to interact with someone.

 Ignore my horrible baby voice in this video.

 

 

 

Can't Catch A Break

Why is the saying "when it rains it pours," so true?  Poor Eliza has had an eventful week. It started last Sunday with an quick trip down the stairs.  The good thing is Chris caught her.  The bad thing is she was at the top and he was on the bottom so she fell all the way down before Chris could get her.  Poor guy said that that was the worse thing he had ever seen. She was fine, just a little scared of course.

 The next day she woke up looking like this.  You know it's a bad eye infection when the Dr. is grossed out.  We got her on eye drops and she has been very cooperative with them.  She holds very still when I put them in. 

 On Wednesday we went to a friends house and she was playing with the wooden child's kitchen.  I looked over in time to see her pull it on top of herself.  As it came down the microwave door opened and got her right in the face.  She had a bloody nose, swollen lip and a good bruise on her cheek and forehead.  Fortunately, my friend is a RN so she sprang into action and checked Eliza all over. 

About 24 hours later the baby sitter was here and I was getting my hair done.  When I came back the baby sitter informed me that as Eliza was coming down the slide her foot caught and she was launched forward landing on her face.  Not only did it take a chunk of skin out on her nose but she landed on the goose egg she still had from the day before. 

Through all this she has still been smiling and very happy. 

FunShine

Last October, a few moms from church and I started a Co-op pre-school.  It's called FunShine and it is fantastic. For nine months worth of pre-school I paid what most people pay in one month to send their kids to pre-school.  It follows a typical pre-school curriculum so each month the kids learn a new number, letter, color and shape. Each month we get a new box full of activities and crafts.  The part that still blows my mind are the crafts.  Each craft comes with everything you need except crayons and glue.  They even send things like paper plates.  We have been rotating weeks and it's fun to teach and it's also fun to drop Cordon off for a couple hours. 

 One day we talked about real and imaginary.  We read little Red Riding Hood then made little baskets filled with goodies.  It's so simple but the kids love it and it gets the point across. 

Cordon came home from school today with a plate of green eggs and ham and a wocket in a pocket.  I think it's safe to say he talked about Dr. Seuss today.