Sad Morning

We had to take Nina to get a couple vials of blood taken this morning for some allergy testing. It was a very sad morning. Even after lots of extra TLC, a mid-day bottle (which she's never allowed to have), and some Elmo, she still wasn't too happy about the events of the morning and was particularly unhappy with the little arm bandage they gave her. I'm sure she'll be back to her old self soon, but in the meantime, she's milking this experience for all its worth!

Mark is in trouble...

...because this girl loves shoes!!! Thankfully, through work he gets plenty of Adidas shoes like these latest ones here. Mark brought them home yesterday, and once she saw them in the box, she had to get them on her feet right away (obviously before shorts and socks were allowed to be put on).

Stroller Girl

Since borrowing a little stroller from Emme, Nina has really enjoyed taking all of her favorite friends for stoller rides. It just got a bit complicated when she tried to stack the soccer ball and the big pink ball in the stroller. However, the empty basement has been the perfect place to practice the stroller pushing and turning technique!

Labor Day Fun

Mark got home from his trip in time to enjoy Labor Day evening at my mom and dad's house. We enjoyed some good food on the new deck, learned how to play corn hole, and Nina got to do some solo driving in the Jeep!

Hamming It Up in the New House

Nina has really enjoyed the new house. She's been sleeping great and is back to her silly self. I think even she was relieved to get away from boxes, packing, house hunting, etc.

We Made It

Well, we're officially moved into our new house and sorting through all the boxes to unpack. Our computer still isn't hooked up, so there might be a little lull before I get to post some more pictures, however, once we're online and hooked up to our cameras again, I'll be sure to post some pictures of the new place. We're all enjoying it very much so far. Nina is loving all the extra room to run around, and Mark and I are really liking our new home and neighborhood and are just glad to not be house selling/hunting, packing, moving, etc. anymore for awhile. We hope everyone got our new information, but if not, you can email me at amandabeth2@gmail.com and I can give you our new info! We'll be back with updates soon!

Boo Boo

To get Nina out of the house and take a break from packing, I thought it would be a fun idea to walk over to the playground. Well, on the way there, Nina caught the toe of her shoe on something on the sidewalk and took a hard fall. Unfortunately, she fell to her hands and knees, but then the head hit too. I think everyone in our entire zip code heard the cry that resulted, but she toughened up after I carried her back home, and soon after she was running around as if nothing happened.

Chuck E. Cheese

Shenley and I took the girls to Chuck E. Cheese this evening, and they really had a great time. Since it wasn't very crowded, they got to ride as many of the little kid rides as they wanted, and we think they had a great time. Even Ryleigh seemed to enjoy the sights and sounds of everything!

A Fun Game

My favorite sign of the evening!

The best shot I could get with my little digital camera
Bo and my Dad. Bo is wearing a commemorative jersey DC United wore this past spring in support of the victims of the VT shooting. It's Fred's #7 jersey.
One hot and sweaty baby...

Last night was David Beckham's MLS debut, and we were on hand to enjoy the game. It ended up being perfect because we got to see Beckham play, but DC United still won, so it all came out great! It was a long evening for Nina. We were there early to tailgate, it was an infamous August day in DC (miserably hot and humid), but she had fun with my mom, dad, and Bo, and crashed hard on the way home from the game.
Here is Nina's recap of the evening:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5OXR6Pd6Dc

It's been a busy life

The past few weeks have been pretty crazy around here. Mark has a packed travel schedule, our current house is under contract, so we're house hunting around the clock to find somewhere to move to, we're packing, selling a car, bought a car, and trying to keep up with our busy little girl in the process. On occasion, the busy schedule gets to her, and she just crashes.

Favorite Things

At 14 months, Nina has definitely changed her favorite things. Some things remain the same - she still loves her blankie, her lion, and shoes. However, climbing on everything is the new obsession. She has always liked climbing stairs, but lately it's been climbing on our couches, climbing on the coffee table (even though that's a big no-no), and any sort of playground apparatus of which she has no fear of falling off of. Another favorite is sneaking off with our cell phones. She was caught in the act this morning when I was cleaning up from breakfast and noticed things were alarmingly quiet in the next room. She had evidentally reached to the top of the dining room table, gotten the phone, and climbed on her favorite chair to try to make some calls!

Not a Good Hair Day

Party Like You're...90!

Nina and I joined the rest of my family and 70 other members of my Dad's side of the family to celebrate my Grandmother's 90th birthday. While she turned 90 in January, the festivities have continued though July, culminating with an all day family reunion this past Saturday in the Pittsburg area. While the trip was quite exhausting for the kids (and I'm sure I would have aged an extra 5 years without the travel help of my faithful sidekick, Mouse), they really enjoyed themselves at the party on Saturday.

Our 13 Month Old

At the Farm Again

The farm has become a big hit since Nina is recognizing all the animals now. She does a pretty good "moo" imitation for the cow and a single "baa" when she sees the sheep. The ducks are still a big hit, and the playground onsite is also a bonus. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0obquQwq68

Off to a Cookout

Nina and I headed out yesterday evening for a cookout with some friends from JMU. Nina was very excited to wear her cool red shoes (a gift a friend brought back from overseas), and she loved swinging on Judd and Chrissy's hammock, climbing their stairs, and checking out their dog.

Ravioli

One of Nina's favorite meals is ravioli. You can see how much she enjoys it but how much cleaning up there is to do afterwards! To get the full effect, click on the picture, and the enlarged photo shows the mess a little better.