Great weekend!

Instead of doing the necessary things like packing and cleaning, we hopped in the car and headed up to Delaware to visit Aunt Terry and crew. We had a fabulous weekend and it definitely went by too fast.

Austin had a great time exploring Aunt Terry's backyard, especially the pond. There was a big ole frog in there that he enjoyed poking. He also had fun feeding the fish, especially with his new bff cousin Scott!

Scott taught him a few lacrosse moves, and we all had to duck when Austin was holding the lacrosse ball!

On Sunday we drove further north to visit Kristin at college. I saw Moms and Dads saying goodbye to their kids and decided that I can never let Austin go to college.
I mean...HOW SAD IS THAT??!!!!!
Austin got his first (and only!) taste of dorm life and enjoyed hanging out on Kristin's bed.

It was really a great weekend and we hope to go again very soon. As you can see from this picture, Austin was very sad to say goodbye to Scott. :(

*****
anyone out there to help me pack and move??!!! AGHGHGH!!!

the amish boy is gone

We took Austin to get his first real haircut this weekend and his floppy hairdo is gone! It wasn't a fun event for anyone, but the finished product looks pretty good--don't you think?

Mommy is very sad though because her chubby little guy now looks like a full fledged little boy. Maybe that hair will grow back quickly?

long week

so it's been a long week here on the compound. Mommy is stressed to the max with trying to work, pack, and play with Austin.....none of which can be done at the same time. Moving just plain stinks and I'll be happy when it's over. Meanwhile, here are a few photos to brighten my day

Bath time!

It's been awhile since I've posted some bath photos, so here ya go! Austin absolutely loves his bathtime now, especially since he can throw and pound things with reckless abandon. If he happens to splash you, he loves to check out the damage done to your clothes by non-stop pointing at the splash marks on your shirt. (As if to say "haha! look what I did to YOU!")

He squirms and swims about and sometimes pauses to let me wash his hair. The only non-fun part of bathtub is the end....especially when it is time for mommy to hoist him out of the tub. Seriously, it breaks my back!!

Anyway, as promised...here are the adorable pics!

and after bath time, I put his winter hat on him and let him run around naked.
Honestly, does life get any better than this??

big fun with bob and ted

No, we're not hanging out with people named Bob and Ted, they are just our favorite "men" to carry around these days. We stuff them into the firetrucks, we put them in the bathtub, we "feed" them cheerios------y'know, just everyday stuff!

Here Austin is showing you how Bob and Ted enjoy jumping up in the air.

He is also showing off his new Sesame Street shirt that he got from Grandma. He squealed with delight when he saw the characters but once he put it on, he couldn't figure out where Elmo went!

Like mother, like son

Just like his mommy, Austin enjoys reading his morning paper!

(don't you love the messy house???!!)

party boy

We hit the road again---this time to party it up in New Jersey. The ride went very well because Austin had Grandma to entertain him for the entire trip!!! (thank you Grandma!)

Austin was quite the ham at the party and enjoyed dancing with everyone....especially Grandma and Grandpa. He did not appreciate their attempt to dance alone, so he insisted they include him! Good thing Grandpa has a strong arm!

For a kid that didn't sleep a wink, he sure had a lot of energy on the dance floor!

He got to spend time with his second mommy (Aunt Terry) and enjoyed eating lots of snacks with Uncle Jimmy, Uncle Steven and Mikey. (no worries, the soda was not opened!)

Once again we had the joy of sharing a hotel room with Austin, whose screeching could be heard all around. We didn't get much sleep, but we had a great time anyway. It was great to see so many family members and we hope to see everyone again soon.

we're moving on up!

Hopefully this won't jinx us...but we are moving again! Being the unrational pregnant person that I am, I need more space prior to Baby X's arrival.
Therefore, we signed on the dotted line and will be relocating very soon.
Don't worry though, we're sticking with life on the compound and will still be able to report about life behind the gates. :)

We're very excited about the new digs though and can't wait to invite people over for a big party. (hahahahaha!!!)

Here is a picture of what my new PANTRY will look like!!!!!!! Did you say "Oooohhh...ahhhhhh" out loud? Because I did when I saw it! It is bigger than my current bathroom!! Just look at all that room and organization! Do you think it will look that good after I move in there?
Nah...neither do I but a girl can dream, right?

Happy belated Easter

Austin, Mommy and Mike had a great Easter----how about you?

Austin enjoyed visits from several Easter bunnies but his favorite was probably the basket he got from Delaware. Not only did it include candy but it also had MATCHBOX cars!!! He screamed with delight when he saw those suckers!!! And since mommy only buys him the cheapo Target brand, these ones are like gold to him! The basket also included an adorable chirping duck, which Mike played with for hours. (please, no more chirping!)

For dinner we went over to Grandma's house for some yummy food. Austin played cars with Grandpa and then seemed to get lost in the plant jungle!

It was a fun weekend , despite the fact that we had SNOW once again.

save the highchair campaign!

Much to my dismay, Austin has decided he prefers to sit at the table instead of in his highchair. He looks absolutely adorable at the table but how can I survive without the highchair? This was the last form of "containment" that I had for him.

How did I love the highchair? Let me count the ways!

1. It allowed me to go upstairs without worrying about him flinging himself up/down the stairs.

2. It made it so I could use the bathroom without hearing him wail and tug on the gate---wondering when it would give way and he would come tumbling down the stairs in a heap of broken bones.

3. It kept him occupied for a good 15-20 minutes with crayons and/or cars.

4. It allowed me to prepare dinner (why are you laughing?) without having to carry Austin all around to show him what I was doing. (press toast and voila--your meal is done!)

and finally....

5. It was one last connection to his babyhood. It was this time last year that I got the highchair and he had his first solid food. Where did that year go? What is next? He'll be eating dinner at O-Hill and ignoring his cell phone because his mother has called him twenty times already???? Oh god...stop the madness now and tell me how to keep the highchair ALIVE!!
(sob!sob! sob!)

whaddya think....candy and cookies in the highchair everyday?

****

Here is a cute picture of Austin enjoying a snack at the regular table. Note the array of cars around him. He definitely has some OCD issues to work on!

How many ads have you clicked on today?

Thoughts from Cisco

"Yes, he is crawling on my back but since you never give me any attention anymore I have to take what I can get!"




"Is that food for me?!!"

"Honestly, why did you bring this kid into this house?!"

don't try this at home!

Someone just refuses to use the door in his car! I wonder if he has been watching Dukes of Hazzard re-runs? The best part about this was his hysterical laughter---even though he was stuck! He wasn't strong enough to pull himself out of the car but couldn't figure out how to get back into it. Therefore he hung out here ---laughing out loud---until mommy was able to take the perfect picture!

weekend wrap-up

We took a break from house hunting this weekend and hung around the house to play.

Austin had a play date with Tashae and enjoyed the royal treatment of being carted around the house. They played on the playground very nicely, even though Mommy is way too paranoid when it comes to Austin and the playground. (why must he climb everything and insist on going down the slide??! Why can't he just enjoy the safety of this swing--where he can't escape or touch anything?!! )

He enjoyed lots of time with Mikey who showed him how to surf the web.

and then after a long weekend of playing, it was time to run around half naked. He was a little shy at first (yea, right!) but then decided to let it all hang out and do a little dance.
Fortunately for everyone, Austin was the only one doing the naked dance!