energy

We hit another Eric En ergy show at the library and this time it wasn't in a meeting room at this tiny branch. They puffed smoke and dry ice right next to the shelves. Aiden said they made more noise than you will ever hear again in a library.

mo bu

Monkey Business is the full name of this fun indoor playspace, where I got a big batch of summer passes to beat this heat.  Aiden likes to pretend to be the mail man to deliver tree house mail which he reads to whoever will listen.  So far, this place hasn't been that crowded and they have a good blend of stuff for the little dude and the big guy.

lititz

We found ourselves driving the scenic route through the area around Lancaster saying, "Are there any universities around here, I want to live here!?"  After all, this is the land of rainbow grilled cheese!

workhouse

We were out exploring south of us, and I remembered hearing about the Lorton Workhouse from Aiden's teacher.  It's a bunch of art galleries and studios in a former prison/pig farm.  The ceramics studio was hosting an ice cream social.  You buy the bowl and they fill it with ice cream.  Aiden found a dog bowl he couldn't pass up.  The live band was braving the heat.  We bounced in and out of the air conditioning enjoying the galleries (no photos allowed inside).

pool

The tickle shark and motor boat action at its best!

national building

The kiddos and I topped off the week with a Friday trip into DC to use our National Building Museum membership deal for the first time.  What a cool place!  I had no idea it would be so neat.  The impressive giant columns and the fountain caused KC to swirl around and point for the first few minutes we were there.  We only saw one section, so we will be going back again soon. Bonus this trip was a parking spot right in front of the main entrance!  They just opened an indoor mini golf where each hole was designed by a different architect - I bet Gran and Pop will be in for some of that action!

fireworks

My boom color babble guy of yesterday was replaced by a curious loud talker that remembered the fighting tigers his uncle described at some Ohio fireworks. He said his favorite was the red and green "jumping jingle bells!" He held his ears during "the duds," which are the loud ones that just flash. Our neighborhood display was really impressive and about 30 minutes long. KC was already konked out with J, but Aiden and I enjoyed walking up the block and plopping down on the curb with our friends. Best part is that we didn't have to fight any crowds at this low key gig.

beaching

It's Flashback Friiiday! Flashbacks to the perfect weather in sunny Florida.  We went through our cruise withdrawal with a few extra days to lounge by the pool and at the beach!   We were lucky to have the perfect windy kite day.  

more choo

We met up with my folks at the Strasburg Railroad just down the way from Lancaster, PA. The nice choo choo ride on perfect day was a treat! Here is some video from our visit in that area:

buggy

We took a buggy ride with an Amish man showing us around his neighborhood including a pull into his extended families' farm for homemade cookies, whoopie pies, lemonade, and root beer.  Aiden got to sit up front right in front of the horse, who he kept lecturing not to poo on him.  The horseys created lots of excited squeals from our tired guy, who after getting whoopie pie in his eyelash let the buggy ride lull him to sleep in my arms.

happy 4th!

This neighborhood was ready for some fun after four days without power in heat advisory temperatures!  We spent some of the hot days decorating our wagon, including Aiden's very careful letter cutting of the USA I traced out for him.  The annual Fourth of July parade brought out all the hardy folks in the ninety degree weather for a march down Waterway Drive.  We had a nice preview of the kazoo band and the real band led the charge.  The adorable Lucas Schmidt buggy had some special blue dust. We ended up at Beach 5 with ice cream, cookies, and lemonade and some neighborhood bands rocking it.  Then we came home for some cool down and to get some watermelon cut for our BBQ later on today.  Ten points to anyone that can identify the shape of the highest piece of watermelon in the photo below ;)

brothers

These little troublemakers are full of giggles and gumption...

ab interview

Aiden told the cruise ship talent show emcee that he wanted to be a cheetah when he grows up!  I think he meant it.  He had a fever this month (it's been a loooong time since he was sick) and the day after he broke out in these strange dime sized red spots - He thought that he looked like a red cheetah! Dreams really do come true!
One word to describe you would be: Little!
Why do you like being a kid? Because I can build cool things without any help.
If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why? I would be a horse, no, actually a cheetah! Because I could run faster than anyone in the whole world!
Tell about a funny time in your life. When I got smore chocolate all over my fingers!
What is your favorite thing to do? Why? I don't know what my favorite is because I like to do everything!
What do you love most about your sibling? He's cute and so chubby cheeker monkey!
What was the nicest thing you did for someone? Help my mom build the wagon
What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now? Homework
What is the grossest thing you can think of? That stuff in my nose boooogers!
What is your happiest memory? When I didn't lose my watch on the cruise

15 months

Hey Go Guy,

This month we were really on the go!  You were off with a running toddle on those chubby legs of yours (especially in crowded areas where you thought you could make a quick getaway).  You would start beebop dancing unprompted when you heard a tune you liked.  The most memorable was as we boarded the cruise ship onto the promenade full of music. You were mostly a fairly easy going guy even though we threw off your sleep schedule and essentially fed you watermelon for a week.  Sometimes you would get so excited that you would give hug attacks to whoever snatched you up, other times you'd get so overstimulated excited you'd try to arch back into whatever was behind you (even if it was a fancy wooden pillar in the ship dining room).

Your favorite activity lately is stuffing your little cruising bag with whatever you can find, slinging it over your shoulder, and stomping around saying/screaming "go, go, go!"  You will sometimes point outside, but usually you want to stay inside and run around in circles.  We now call that little bag your "go bag" and you think it's so fun to stuff it with your favorite goods, like your brother's stuff.  You think it is even more fun than trying to carry four toys at a time in one hand or trying to hold up the heavy jug of iced tea.

Before we left for our big adventure, putting things inside your play kitchen oven became a common playtime activity.  You'd even scurry from the other room with something, babbling all the way, until you get it safely inside the oven shouting TaDa! I love to see what you've found to stow away in there at the end of the day.  It's fun to see you try to shove big stuff in there too.  I think you think that if you grunt while shoving it that will make it work better. You like trying to put things in, while saying nnnnn. I watched you diligently trying to put the tv remote inside your dad's glasses case. You would push and smash against that case to try to get it to fit... No dice, even when you handed it to me babbling for help.

You prefer to feed yourself.  You had your first messy spaghetti and that is just pretty darn cute.  Your fingers were sticky from what your brother calls your watermelon steak slices.  Watermelon became your new vacation treat and we made sure to pick some up for you when we got home to continue the vacation.  You love to blow on your food to copy me.  You will pinch something and carefully blow on it, even a slice of cool watermelon.  Your little lips are so cute when they are all pursed like that and you are so cute when you are tired and you want me to outline your lips with my finger.  It will tickle you and you will blurt out a tired little giggle.

We had some really nice days before this crazy weather cropped up around here (a Derecho is added to the list of bizarro weather phenomenon you've lived through).  We hung out way past nap time playing on the hammock in the back yard.  You would giggle as you bounced on my tummy and shout out wow as the wind blew through your hair.  You enjoyed using our new little toy net to catch your favorite critter, your brother!  You would swoop the net over his head and then try to sit on him.  The laughs you two share when you are wacking or slamming each other in the face with something (thankfully usually a pillow) are the most hearty giggles, but geesh, it makes me realize how unprepared I am for being the mom of some rough and tumble boys.

You love to try to push and pull things around the house.  If you're on the go, you'd love to have everything on the go with you, I suppose.  Anything with a string attached is immediately dragged around the house like an untrained dog.  You b-line to the neighbor girl's baby carriage which you want to try to charge up the hill with, even though it tries to zoom back on top of you.  Watching your brother on the big boy bike is kinda fascinating to you, and I can tell you can't wait to try that sorta thing.

As for your troublemaking antics, you are very interested in the bathroom lately.  You like to pull your little stool right up next to the dirty potty. You aren't even afraid to shut the door and stand in a pitch black dark room.  You will give me the stink face when I snatch you out and close the door so you can't get back inside.  The bathroom in the cruise ship was the hot attraction, but luckily the little step up slowed you down.

You love riding in the space shuttle cart at the grocery. One time you were seated next to your brother and even got a cookie sample and you were still being excited about it 20 minutes later.  The ultimate grocery cart ride didn't end well and you were flailing, the whole works.  You can perfectly mimic a gingerbread boy and keep your body from bending when we try to get you seated in your car seat.

Every once in a while you will blurt out a word clearly.  For instance, you toddled into your grandparent's adjoining room on the ship and went right over to your resting Gran and said "Get up!" Most of your babbles start with what sounds like a blurred version of Hey Guys!  You understand more words than you try to say.  You say O over and over again for Cheerios.  Every animal says woof lately.  You are an expert at getting your straw sippy cup to fling water everywhere and then saying uh oh!

You finally mastered the little step up and in to the neighbors playhouse.  You can get on and off the couch and tall bed.  You love to giggle while playing ball perched the couch. I think your favorite is watching me crawl to chase the ball.  You love kicking the ball outside, and you are getting better at walking fast on the uneven yard.  You loved the slide on the sunny beach in Florida, almost as much as you like climbing up the slippery slide we have set up in the basement now.

This month you continued loving water.  You started your very own swim lesson with a big group of babies and you are definitely one of the most comfortable.  You even swam with the instructor and he used you as the example. You will let water raindown over your face on purpose. Occasionally, you give a stern talk to water that splashes you.  You like to wear your brother's new goggles and giggle while you run around in them.  When we were in Labadee, you were investigating the water table in the splash pad area like a little engineer.  The splashy pool at Aunt Lulu's house in Fort Lauderdale was a treat.   If you are acting like a fussy wussy goofball, I can calm you by letting you wash your hands and play in the sink a little bit.

You seem like you are in tune with the crowd around you.  We went to the Creature Teacher program at the library and you were really alarmed when the crowd balked at the tarantula.  Then when the crowd got excited by the little hedgehog you couldn't stop squawking with excitement.  On the cruise you got to sit in the front with me during the acrobatics show.  You shuttered when the acrobats swung over us.  The fever and icky virus that we spread around this month turned you into a calm cuddly guy.  That was a surprise, but thanks for not being a fuss widget.

We were lucky that the cruise ship had a bag of toys we could check out and take to our room.  The zoomy wheel was your little control station and a good distraction from your trying to escape the room. If you ever made it out the door, you knew which way to run to get to the elevator as quickly as possible.  Your favorite thing was to just independently wander around and standing independently in the elevator as it rose quickly.  The Adventure Ocean has a play room with tons of toys and your favorites seemed to be the mailbox and the big wheel bike.

MaaMaa finally became just as common in your language as Dada.  It isn't always used to mean I need or want something, and sometimes you will squeal Mama and give me a big pat hug.  You give the best huggies and when you reach out that patty arm to another kiddo, it'd hard to tell if you are trying to wack or hug.  I'm not sure everyone appreciates a tackle hug, but you are welcome to run into my arms anytime.

When we visited Amish country this month, you were right up next to the horse with your patty hands and big smile face.  The buggy ride could've been a squawk fest, but instead the shaky ride lulled you to sleep.  You cooperated with our plan to wack out your sleep schedule yet again... what schedule, really?  You are a go guy!  There isn't time to rest.  Here's to more fun this summer!  

Love, Maamaa -tssshblaaaab