Cuties

So, life is slowly getting back to normal. The kids, Nate, and I are settling in at Grandma and Papa's house and are enjoying our time together. Working seems to bring some structure back to our days and I am very thankful I was able to get a job back in Mason for this school year. I love my job...and it just makes my time with these two precious ones more special.

They are both loving the daycare center/preschool we chose and I have been very happy as well. I can check on them during the day to see if they've been happy, playing with other kids, etc. After two weeks, Tessa has definitely made some friends and talks about certain little girls now. Morgan seems to be the energetic one in his room (no surprise there). Every time I check on him, Morgan is running back and forth from one toy to the next while the other kids are, for example, sitting on the carpet together for a story. That is my little crazy man!

Today we are off to see Lucy at Nate's cousin's house and perhaps check out some open houses!

Week in Review

Well, I guess it can be media-official that we are back in Ohio again...for good. Nate will be starting at Luxottica on 8/29 and I managed to get a job teaching back in Mason for this school year. It has been a whirlwind of packing, moving, phone calls, etc. but we are very happy to be back where we should be. And on to other things...

Morgan made a quiet afternoon an exciting one when he fell on the driveway this afternoon and split his nose open. There was a lot of blood. There was a trip to Urgent Care. There were NOT any stitches. I guess it didn't flap open enough to require stitches, so we are thankful for that. Hopefully it will heal quickly.

Tessa started "school" at Kids R Kids. She LOVES it! I love that I can watch her on the computer, that she eats healthily, and that she comes home with a daily craft. So fun! We are ecstatic she has adjusted as well as she has. Morgan is going there too and also seems to be adapting. I can't believe they have him napping on a cot!
I did manage to spend one day of the last week not at school, so we headed to the Winton Woods splash park for some fun, albeit it was cut short by a "Snickers bar" let loose by another kid. Fun times!


The week wrapped up with a bridal luncheon this afternoon for my cousin Ryan's fiancee. It was a lovely afternoon lunch at the Bon Bonerie. I still feel like I might burst 6 hours later...


These cupcakes were delish! Wish me luck teaching freshmen. Monday is day one!

Outdoor Fun

Morgan LOVES balls...all sizes, shapes, colors. No discrimination there...in face he climbed into the ball container on a trop to Kroger the other day. Little stinker! He then proceeded to back up to the rear of the container, so that the only way I could get him out was climb in myself. I think we provided a wee bit of entertainment for the Finneytown Kroger clientele.

Grandma also treated the kids to a new sprinkler. Morgan is technically not allowed in their neighborhood pool because he is not potty trained, so we have to figure out another method of outdoor water fun. The sprinkler seemed to do the trick!

Although Morgan still only lasted about 5 minutes before he headed off to his favorite car.
And Tessa ended up leaving too for a bit of drawing with sidewalk chalk. Pictured here is her take on Rapunzel...

Happy Monday!

O-H-I-O

We are back in Ohio! The kids and I drove on Sunday. All. Day. Long. I was so very proud I did the drive all by myself with the little munchkins. The drive up was not very peaceful; the drive back was. Pretty much they watched movies for the entire ride, but it was worth every minute. We managed to only stop 4 times and in total were traveling for about 14 hours. Not high on my list of things I want to repeat anytime soon, but it wasn't so bad. Tessa has been dying to see Anna, so on Monday evening we headed to the Polca's for dinner and some water play time.

These two didn't miss a beat even though they didn't see each other all summer. Love it! We've been enjoying seeing family and friends for the past couple days. Feels so good to be in Ohio!

The Great Painting Debacle

I think I have felt every emotion possible this week, good and bad, getting ready for my visit to Ohio. We took down a baby gate that was leading down to the basement, as Morgan can successfully maneuver down the stairs by himself now. When we took the gate down, we were faced with drywall that was starting to come off and peeled paint. Not good. We thought we had the paint downstairs, so we patched the walls and repainted. Well, the paint was not exactly the same color. Not good. The basement is painted two different, yet very similar colors. We used the other color, not the color in the hallway. Not good. They didn't have the paint for the hallway, so we were left with a couple of options: let them deduct the cost from our deposit (which could have been expensive if the repainted the whole room) or do it ourselves. Not good. We opted to fix it ourselves. Unfortunately, this involved me staying up until almost midnight one evening and spending a few hours the next day during naptime painting not one, but two rooms. I NEVER thought I'd be painting a rental house. But I guess the $60 in paint and supplies plua sweat equity is better than the rental company hiring a professional painter. (And in case you are wondering why I had to paint two rooms, the basement downstairs leads right up to the study/playroom upstairs and they are all the same color.)

Tessa fell asleep on the way to Home Depot and I wasn't about to make another trip there, so into the cart she went. Poor thing slept right through Home Depot, slept in the car again, and resumed her nap on the couch when we returned home. Apparently the girl needed her sleep!
Her sitter in Ohio had a fireman pole leading down from their swingset and Tessa usually needs help to get to it. Not anymore! She can do it herself! And last but not least, the gymnastics room! Tessa has been taking swim lessons for the last month at a middle school in the school district where we live and Morgan and I explore the school while she is in lessons. On our last week here, we discovered the gymnastics room. What fun! If only we'd known about it earlier...

Mats, mats, and mats galore. Morgan had a blast at swim lessons this week and we even went early one day so Tessa could play there too. And swim lessons, if I can brag for just a minute, have helped so much. Tessa started as a tadpole for the first two weeks, then moved up to Guppy for the second two weeks. And now she has passed to first beginner. It is hard to believe, but she can actually swim. She puts her head in, goggles and all, and kicks for a good 8-10 feet at a time. And she keeps going farther. We will definitely have to sign her up for swim lessons this fall. Now soccer, that is another story. I am thankful today is her last game...

Hot, Hot, Hot!

Cincinnati had the heat wave last week, and it seems to be back here in Minnesota. Not quite as hot as it was two weeks ago, but still...pretty darn hot. We've actually been staying inside a lot over the past couple days, as it is too darn hot to do much outside unless it involves water or eating a popsicle. I decided to try taking the kids to the park at the end of the street after dinner, thinking it may have cooled down a bit. After about a half hour, both of their faces looked like tomatoes, so after a couple of juice boxes, we loaded up the wagon and headed home. While we were gone, our next door neighbor had turned on his sprinklers for the lawn and these two had a blast running through the water. I guess I should say I did too, as I was thoroughly soaked by the end as well. (Morgan kept trying to run into the street).

Morgan also discovered Tessie's Ariel trike in the garage and insisted it come inside. When I say insist, I mean temper tantrum body throwing. Isn't he still a little young for those?
Since we FINALLY have our computer back, Tessa has been really into playing Dora games on it. It is a bit of an obsession with her. She doesn't seem to want to do much else.
While we were at the park yesterday, Morgan actually tried a non-baby swing. Don't worry, he didn't go high and he held on. The boy loved it!
And here's Tessa when she first saw the sprinklers. Cute!
Don't know why the pictures are out of order. Clearly, they are taken in order, and downloaded in order into iPhoto. I must be making a mistake somewhere. Alas, Happy August!

12 days until my visit to O-H-I-O! Can't wait!