It's Official!

It's official - Dad was sworn into the New York State Bar yesterday morning. He had to go to Albany for the process, which included an interview and then being sworn in. Mom, Natalie, and Owen tagged along for the event. We are all very proud!
We had a productive weekend, getting things done around the house. We started off the weekend with a play date with one of Natalie's friends. Owen was able to join in, and can hold his own when battling for toys. He actually "walked" across the floor pushing a toy grocery cart! We spent the rest of the weekend working on projects both inside and out (a lot of things build up when you go out of town!). The kids enjoyed some outside time - the weather has been nice, cooler with low humidity. Natalie spent a good part of the weekend running around in the grass skirt she got from Grandma Laura (it came with a bathing suit). Owen has perfected crawling, and he learned how to effectively clap this week. He's so delighted with himself. He's now added clapping to his dance moves. He had his first haircut yesterday - Mom snipped the hair that was growing over his ears. Any additional cutting will be done by a professional!

Vacation

We went on a little vacation last week - although it wasn't very restful, so now we need a vacation to rest and relax! We had a lot to do, and it didn't help that traveling was stressful with the raised terror level and all. We were busy getting ready for our trip, so we didn't have to time to post an update last week. The previous weekend, Owen decided he wanted to try out crawling, and he has since perfected his technique and now prefers crawling to dragging. He's trying to figure out walking - he'd like to just stand up in the middle of the floor and go! We had a BBQ that weekend, and Natalie thoroughly enjoyed having more adults to play with and being chased in the back yard. On Sunday night, Natalie and Owen took a bath together, and they had a blast! Then we left last Thursday to fly to Chicago. Aunt Karen went on the trip too. We spent the weekend going to visit Mom's grandmas in Indiana and Michigan, and friends in South Bend. We also spent some time in Chicago, and visited with one of Mom's cousins. With all of the excitement and being somewhere different, nobody got much sleep! Natalie had an especially good time playing with Mom's friend's little girl, Abigail. Natalie didn't want to leave. Owen developed a new game - drop or throw all toys, pacifiers, sippy cups, and say, "Uh-oh!" It's great fun for him. And he likes to push his cars around on the floor and make vroom noises. Mom forgot to bring bathing suits on the trip, but Natalie went swimming in the lake in her diaper. She would've stayed in all day if allowed! Now we're home, and it's time to start getting ready for Owen's big birthday!

Worn Out!

We are worn out from a busy weekend and hot weather. It's going to get hotter, with 100+ degrees forecast over the next couple of days. Grandma Phyllis and Grandpa Tom came to visit this weekend. We did a lot of fun stuff: went to the beach, our favorite beach restaurant, and the aquarium at the beach, and enjoyed the pool in the backyard. With all of the activities and limited napping (and when you throw in the heat), everybody is dragging a bit. We're catching up on sleep this week - Owen and Natalie took long naps yesterday, and everybody slept in a bit today.

We celebrated Natalie turning two and a half over the weekend (although the actual day is tomorrow), with cupcakes, candles, and singing (all at Natalie's request). We are now getting ready for Owen's first birthday. We can't believe it's almost here! He's getting around better everyday. He's discovered how fun it is to pull up on things other than Mommy or Daddy - he's now using the gates and various toys. He gets so excited! He's a cat lover just like Natalie - and Yoda is an amazingly patient cat (he's getting grabbed, poked, and jabbed by four hands and twenty fingers these days)!