Old friends

This weekend Devin and I were invited to our friends- the Sylvester's- for some fun in the sun. Devin and Emma have been friends since about 20 months old and you can find many posts with Emma and her awesome family here on my blog. Emma has always had a little "thing" for Devin and we love to watch them as they grow. They remain great friends with a little bit more of flirt coming through. At one point they flipped the boat upside down and were "fooling around" under it. I know it was all innocent but it reminded us that we may not have much longer for their actions to stay innocent! 

We'll Definitely keep an eye on them! :)

Summer's End

With only one week left in my summer vacation I realize that I've hardly blogged all summer. We haven't done a whole lot this summer, in terms of big vacations or hitting the "hot spots" but we've had a great summer. In summary we've spent a lot of time at the pool and just enjoyed being at home. We've done the typical park trips and visited with friends and grandparents. We went to the ocean and the lake once, as well as an amusement park.

Its been a laid back summer, and I'm okay with that. I think we have all enjoyed ourselves and each other and that's the most important part. Devin is set to start kindergarten in two weeks and I will return to teaching next week.

First, though, we have Devin's second adenoidectomy at Mass Eye and Ear tomorrow. She may put in tubes set #3 as well, but she will decide during surgery. This should alleviate the fluid in the ears that Devin had all last winter (that resulted in hearing loss, behavior issues, ear pain, and headaches). These issues haven't been as prevalent this summer, but we all fully expect they would return after summer. Here's to hoping that Devin's surgery goes smoothly and his issues are cured!!

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer!

(Trying to be) Crafty

So it was a beautiful, hot day and our development's pool was closed for maintenance, our lawn was being landscaped (convenient) and we had already hit up the park for bike riding and playing. We went to staples for their back to school (Already?!?!?) specials and headed home to find something to occupy our time.

After reading my friend Sharon's craft blog I decided that Devin and I would make some multi-colored crayons. First we picked through the crayons to find all of the broken ones, as well as the restaurant and cheaper crayons. Then we had to peel them...that was the longest part! We broke them, mixed them up and put them in a mini-muffin tin and baked them for about 10 minutes at 250*. Once I took them out of the oven I set them on top of the cooling rack for a few minutes and then put them in the freezer until they were formed. After that we were ready to color....but first Devin wanted to play! We made letters, shapes, and all kinds of designs with the multi colored little discs before we settled in to make some pictures!
Of course Lolly was watching our every move. She is always interested in what we are doing. Independent cat? Not here!

Vacation Day 15...

for Erick that is. We've been busy doing this and that. We've gone to the beach, our pool, Erick's parents' pool (each pool a few times), celebrated my birthday, been to BBQs, a baby shower, a climbing play place, redecorated our bedroom, spent lots of time with friends and families, and especially each other. Here are some random pictures of our time during the past two weeks.


My new bedding
Me and Kim on our night out for my birthday
Kim and her beautiful girls at my pool for an afternoon swim
My little fish in the pool!
Devin and Nadya at my parents' house celebrating my Mom's birthday with a BBQ
Ahhh the beach on a gorgeous day!
Blueberry picking!

We've still got 2 more days before Erick heads back. On our agenda? A play date with a friend who is visiting from out of state and helping other friends who just bought a new house. We might also hit up a (semi) local Folk Festival. Whatever we do, I'm sure we will have fun!

Fun In the Sun

On my off days from headaches I have been trying to make sure to do something fun with Devin. On Friday we went to Jenness Beach in Rye with my friend Carolyn from work and the infamous "Aiyah" aka Erin. I enjoyed myself more than I thought I would. I always dread going to the beach but usually have a good time. Carolyn was great with Devin. She brought him in the water and taught him how to jump and ride the waves. She also brought him on a nice long walk. Here she is with him.
Devin played, a little bit, on the sand but would MUCH RATHER be in the water!
Of course my favorite pic of the day was taken on my phone so the colors aren't as vibrant.
The tide was out which was perfect for floating boats in the tide pool.
On Sunday we went up to Lake Sunapee for the day. My friend Heather's parents have a condo there. Erick, Devin, and I spent the day with Heather, Pierce, Marie (Heather's mom), and briefly saw Heather's brother, sister in law, and their friend. We were on the beach for a few hours. Erick took each of the boys kayaking and they all played water football and had a blast. Then we switched it up and went over to the heated pool. After that we headed to the condo to change. Erick took the boys to the playground while us ladies chit chatted and got some food ready. Dinner on the grill and a salad when the boys got back was delicious. By 7:30pm I thought we all might pass out and it was definitely time to head home. Devin slept the whole 1 hr 20 minute trip and Erick and I recounted the day. Unfortunately I have NO pictures of the adventure because I left my camera at home :(

Here is the lone camera pic I took on the way up.
Let's see what other adventures we can have this week!

Wild Randomness

*Devin has recently been on the "Wild" side again (of Your Four Year Old: Wild and Wonderful). He has been fresh-mouthed and super-independent minded (seriously kid, you are not 18. Do you not know that?). He has also been acting like a spoiled brat lately. I do not think that is how we treat him. I think we have reasonable expectations for Devin. We have consequences for the freshness and poor choices. Devin has visited 'Time Out' a lot lately. Oye! I just keep reminding myself, "This too shall pass."

*Some things are different around here though. Devin and I are not used to being home all the time. We are not used to being together all the time. And we have been for 6 weeks now. Yes he is going to school one day a week, but otherwise we are together. All. The. Time. Erick, Bless his heart, has been working 6 long days a week to earn extra money while the overtime is there. Thank God for my Mom and Dad. They have kept Devin overnight a couple of times in the past few week-ends. That is a such a nice break.

*Also, recently I have had a headache. Like all day, EVERY day. I had a headache for 5 days, had a 1 day break and now have had it again for 3 days so far. This really puts a damper on things for me and Devin. I know its unfair for me to expect him to be quiet and calm all the time but its also unreasonable to expect me to take him out and about in the hot sun etc with a raging headache. That has been causing a lot of stress between us, unfortunately. I am hoping this headache will break soon (not sure why the meds aren't doing the trick!)

*I have 4 weeks of summer vacation left. 3 days of workshops during that time and hopefully a lot of fun to be had! Let's hope these headaches GO AWAY!

Slippin and a Slidin

Siesta

This and That

* Devin did have allergy testing last year. He did not test positive on anything (they tested all major food categories).

* I only have 9 days of school left for this school year!

*I am teaching summer school- third grade - for the month of July.

*Our babysitter is moving to Philly to go to Drexel University after 2 years at one of our state universities. :( We are very sad. She took Devin out on a "date" yesterday. They went out for a pizza dinner and ice cream. She also introduced us to a good friend of hers so that we aren't left without a sitter.

*I hope it works out with the new sitter because I need someone to watch Devin while I work summer school.

* We have a week's vacation coming up soon. I am not sure that we will be doing anything spectacular but it will be fun just to have the time off together. We will definitely hit up some of our local parks and beaches, as well as some museums/aquariums (with our library passes for cheaper prices). I hope we have nice weather!

* For Father's Day this year Erick wants to go to this "Rib Fest" that is held at a local Anheiseur Busch facility. We have talked about going for years, always hear good things about it, but this year we are determined to go!

Summer Fun

The summer has started out strong, with lots more time and activities still planned! We have already been to the beach, the farm for strawberry picking, the park several times, and of course to friends' houses for play time. Here are a couple of my favorite pictures of Devin playing at Heather B's house.

(Please notice that Devin is looking and smiling in at least one of these pictures!!!)

First Day of Summer Vacation...

and I am exhausted!!! Phew!!! Devin wore me out today! Between his constant on-the-go and his "terrible two" antics (hitting, jumping on others, not listening) I am going to need to revert to the newborn phase and "sleep when he sleeps." I hope this will get easier as the summer moves along or my poor husband may never get dinner!!! LOL