Oh, REALLY!?!

Just a quick funny to share with you all...

We were outside with Bear Cub today while he played in his sand table.  Daddy said something to the effect of, "Do you think Mommy is an angel??"  to him.  

LOVE this response from Bear Cub...

"MOMMY IS THE BOMB!"

He's two...going on sixteen, apparently!  Too funny!  :)  

Sunshine on my shoulders...makes me happy!

Enjoying a popsicle on our very HOT Memorial Day!  YUM!

There's his "CHEESE!" face again!

I do believe that Zoe spent more time in the kiddie pool yesterday than Bear Cub!  Have you ever seen a dog put her face UNDER water to get a toy??  Not sure if I've mentioned this before, but Zoe LOVES water -- she is crazy about swimming in pools and loves to just sit on the top step and relax after a long walk.  If we had a real pool, she'd get the most use out of it!  Yesterday, she hopped right into BC's pool and starting after his little cars and toys.  Eventually, she was able to get them (after dunking her head in...and I SWEAR, I heard her blow bubbles while she was under!) and then she took them over to the sand table.  She is the cutest and funniest dog EVER!!  

Our swimming pooch...

Bear Cub had fun getting in and out of the pool, but got busy playing in the sand table after a while.

Scooping up his cars with the shovel...cars are NEVER far from sight with this lil guy!

BC, playing "fetch" like Zoe.   What a crazy influence she has on him!

Hello everyone!  I'm sorry for the lack of posts, again!  We are all doing just fine, just staying really busy.  We had our first house hunting trip in the new area last week.  Warren and I spend 2 LONG days with a realtor and discovered that we are fantastic house ELIMINATORS.  Ah well, I guess that's the first step to finding the right house.  Our new area seems to be very nice and I know we will like living there.  Some good news...we did find what seems to be a great preschool for Bear Cub, with plenty of openings still!  It is a brand new school, with beautiful, big (for preschools, anyway) rooms and very clean.  Everyone we met seemed very nice and the students' "work" was displayed.  It all did this teacher's heart some good to see what the kids were up to in the classes.  We have pretty much narrowed our house search to one particular community, and the school will not be far at all.  I'm also very excited that the school will allow BC to still wear Pull-Ups, if needed.  This takes a lot of pressure off the potty training issue, even though we continue to work diligently at it daily.  He'll get there!  So, we have some more houses to look at, and of course, we wait with high hopes that our current home will sell quickly.  

I'll continue to keep you all updated!  Have a wonderful week ahead!  :)

Animal Kingdom F-U-N

BC looks nervous here, but I think he was just wanting to GET DOWN.  The story of his life!

Woo-ee!  He had fun playing in the splash area.  Glad he had a Pull-Up on, or else he might have had a rude awakening from that stream of water!

Whoa!  It was SO hot that day that all the kids were getting soaked!  The crazy thing was...he dried within 15 minutes after the soaking.  Hello, summer!

BIG smile!

Checking out the skull of a Kimono dragon (I believe...)  He was VERY interested!

Anyone looking to hire a rickshaw driver?

Ahhhhh...the beloved goats.  I do believe they all said, "Oh geez, it's THAT kid again!" when we walked through the gates.  Bear Cub LOVES the goats!

Just chillin' with a new friend...

Konked out (as usual) after our fun day!

Hello everyone!  Hope your week is off to a good start!  We have been getting TONS of rain here and it seems like we're in for it all week long.  It's good and bad -- great for the grass (everything looks so green now!) but bad because we have to find things to do inside to keep busy!

Today we took an outing to Pet Co - we even brought Zoe along with us!  Our realtor was set to bring other realtors from her office through our house, so I wanted to make ourselves scarce for a while.  Of course, with the rain and all, a park was out of the question, so we loaded up and went to Pet Co.  That in itself is like a trip to a mini-zoo!  Bear Cub had lots of fun checking out the fish (he loves to point out all the ones like Nemo), hamsters, turtles and the adoptable cats.  Poor Zoe thought we were headed to the vet (I think...she never really said that) so she was a bit nervous the whole time.  She was doing lots of frantic sniffing and acting all spooked by the strange critter smells in there.  But it worked out well, as it kept us out of the house and by the time we got home, the realtors had come and gone.  HOPEFULLY these other realtors will now push our house to their clients.  We left it in tip-top form, smelling AND looking good!  Please keep your fingers crossed for us about the sale of the house.  The sooner...the better!

Enjoy the rest of the week!  And if you've got some sunshine where you are, soak it up for me!  Pretty soon we'll be able to just float down our streets here with all this rain!  :)

Bear Cub talk...

BC is quite the talker now!  He voices his opinion, replies in conversation, and always has PLENTY to add!  :)  Here are just a few things that I can think of from the last several weeks:

BC, watching a show (that suddenly had no speaking or music):  Make it noisy!  

In the car:  

BC to me: I smell something!

Me:  What is it?

BC:  A stoe (or something like that, that I couldn't understand)

Me:  Your toes?

BC:  No, a stoe.

Me:  What is it?

BC:  (getting exasperated now) A smelly animal!! 

Me:  Oh!!!  A SKUNK!  

(yeah...SHEESH, MOM!)

He also asks questions - not the WHY?? yet, but lots of, "What is that?"  "Where is....?"  "How is...?"

At gymnastics this week:

BC stands in line for his hand stamp and Skittle.  He then runs back to his teacher, Miss Casey, and says, "I want a Skittle for Warren....my Daddy!"  

Enjoy the weekend!  I'll try to post more of his cuteness as I think of it.  We went to Animal Kingdom today and had a really great day!  Pictures to come soon!  :)

Wow, the week is over...already!

A little hang time at his gymnastics class.  We got to go twice this week in order to make up a missed class.  Bear Cub is starting to get more into it and even seems to be more coordinated these days!  He loves to hang from these bars and act like "Curious George!"  He is really strong and can even hang with only one hand, swinging his body back and forth!

Our little monkey...Curious George style here!  

All smiles after his gymnastics class! It's a workout for him...and ME too!  ;)

Happy Friday, everyone!  I can't believe the week is over!  It's been a busy one for us!  It's been great because Daddy has been working locally this week, so we've actually been able to eat dinner as a family ALL week and will even get to do so next week, too!  Yay!  He probably will get back to traveling after that, so we'll just enjoy this time that we do have.  He even was able to leave work early enough yesterday to come to Bear Cub's make-up gymnastics class.  BC LOVED having Daddy there!  We thought Daddy would just WATCH, but BC would have none of that.  Daddy had to take off his shoes and get involved on the floor with us.  It was nice for him to see BC in action, as I am the one who normally does the weekly activities with him.  

No real news on the selling of our house yet.  It was shown on Monday, which was the first time I had to get the house picked up and get us all (including Zoe) OUT in time for the showing.  It was so much easier when we were out of town and the house was empty and permanently CLEAN!  I suppose I'll get better at getting it all organized, but it was a difficult task!  As I put things away, BC was right behind, undoing it all.  Oh my!  Next time I may just have to pop in a show for him and just collect him as we're about to walk out the door.   The house has shown (besides this week) 3 times each week, so the realtor feels very good about this.  We just hope that someone comes along and makes an offer sooner than later!  We are in contact now with a realtor in the new area, so next weekend we'll be doing some house hunting over there.  There seems to be some great homes in the area, so I know we won't have a problem finding something we really like.  

Enjoy the upcoming weekend!  We're looking forward to being HOME and together as a family!  We have a few things that need to be done around the house and we may head to Disney one afternoon.  It's been a while since we've been!  

I'll post more again soon!  Take care! :)

A new look...

EEEK!! The HIDEOUS "BEFORE" picture...unwashed, been in a ponytail all night - desperate for professional help!

AND the NEW look!  I think 4-5 inches was cut off and I feel as light as a feather!  Yay!  It was time for a change...and look how happy Bear Cub looks about it!  ;)

The travelers!

Before Bear Cub, this long-legged fella was the baby in our family!  Sheesh...these kids are growing up way too fast! :)

Enjoying some Dippin' Dots outside of the Alamo...  the weather was H-O-T in Texas...much more so than Florida even!  We went swimming a couple of times and tried to be inside as much as possible.  Summertime has arrived!

The lovely ladies in our family!  

Happy Graduation to Hannah!  I can't believe her college days are done!  It was so fun to tour around San Antonio and spend time with the family.  I am so proud of ALL four of my nieces and nephews!  So happy to have been there to help her celebrate...

Proud Mama with her "baby"  ;)

Bear Cub...all buckled up and ready to fly!  He did GREAT on the flights!  He was happy and content to play with the "surprises" I brought along for him.  He even got offered the chance to sit up in the cockpit (once we had landed) but he politely refused with a "No, thank you!"  I was bummed about that!  I had my camera all ready for that photo op!  Oh well...maybe some other time!  The only time he seemed a bit nervous was during take-off, saying, "Want to hold Mommy's hand!"  And of course, I happily obliged.  :)  He is a trooper...what an awesome traveler he is!

Checking out our plane before we took off...he even spotted my duffel bag getting loaded!  Good eyes, I'm tellin' ya!

Back home...AGAIN!!

Just a quick note to say that Bear Cub, Mimi, and I had a great trip to Texas and have safely made it home again!  I'll post more this week, with photos too, but right now I am too pooped to get the camera out of my bag. 

 Happy Mother's Day to all the Mama Bears out there...I hope your day was special, relaxing, and all about YOU!!  :)  

Photos galore! (and a trip review in captions)

On our way to Columbus, GA, we stopped at the Civil War historic site in Andersonville.  It was a great place to get out, stretch our legs some, and tour the grounds that used to be a prisoner camp.  Very interesting!  As you can see, Bear Cub found the rocks right away and just had to check them out!

Posing with Daddy...  BC did SO great on our car trip!  We did bring the laptop for him to watch his "shows" some, but even the non-watching times were pleasant and easy.  He took a nap each day in the car (only one a day) and was content to just ride.  When Mimi was still with us in the car, we got 4 different truck drivers to honk their horns along the Interstate.  BC LOVED it!  So now he knows the official "honk, honk!" sign to give to truckers!  

Just a cool photo (or so I think)

Dipping his feet in the base of a stream at Andersonville -- we met a couple there and the woman told BC to take his shoes off to test the waters.  I was a little miffed at the whole thing, but in the end, it was fine and BC had fun splashing around.  You're only a kid once, right!??!  :)

Army Basic Training graduation at Ft. Benning!  My handsome nephew is somewhere in the line-up here.  It was amazing to watch the platoons march in sync around the field.  The "boys" looked SO young, freshly-scrubbed, and so TOGETHER.  We are so very proud of our soldier and wish him ALL the best as he starts mountain training at Ft. Drum in New York this week.  He is 17 years old and has grown up so much during this training.  He's strong, dedicated, motivated and self-disciplined.  I am so proud!!!

The back of his head somewhere...it was really tough to spot him, as they all looked alike as they marched past!

Here he is!  All smiles with his mom and dad.  

The family celebrating at lunch afterwards...

Here he is with his proud Mama.  We had such fun with them and got to spend the entire afternoon and that night with them.  Elias was able to spend the night with us in the hotel, so we got a lot of good visiting time in with him before we all headed out the next day.  He had a week off, flying back home to New Mexico, before leaving today for New York.  

BC managed to find a gooey area of dirt to drive his truck through during the graduation ceremony.  Notice the Army guard standing over him.  

My mom, sis Jessica, and niece Hannah (we leave for TX this Wednesday for her college graduation!)

I can still see the little boy that loved to play "Small Soldiers" in this face.  Oh, how time does march on...

Aunt ME and the happy graduate.  I think we kinda look alike...what do you think??

The day after graduation, we hit the road again, headed for Nashville to drop Mimi off at the airport to fly home.  I missed her when she was gone!  I kept turning around, about to say something to her, and she was gone!  I had to remind myself several times that we had NOT left her in a McDonald's somewhere along the Interstate.  :)  We then drove up to Indiana, making it there after 8 p.m.  A long day in the car, for sure!

Here he is, helping Great-Grandma C get corn off the cob to leave for the ducks.  We had beautiful weather our first 2 days there, spending most of each day outside.  Great Grandma & Grandpa C live on a beautiful piece of property, with lots of squirrels and birds to watch.  BC loved being outside and exploring!

Grandpa C. got the tractor out...BC did NOT want a ride, which I was a bit surprised about, but at least I got this photo of the boys together!

Lots and lots of dandelions...and me TRYING to be creative with the camera.

Hmmmmm...these bikes were found in the barn.  Wonder when they were ridden last?

For me??  Thanks!  

Croquet anyone??   

BC with his cutie-pie cousins at the other great-grandparents' house.  The kids got along well, although the difference in styles of play between our boy and the girls was VERY apparent!  These lil ladies have a brother on the way, so that will add something different to the mix the next time we visit!  :)  (Here the kids are zoned into a Max & Ruby show...we ALL needed some quiet time at this point in the day!)

BC acting out how a caterpillar makes a cocoon and then "flies all around!" as a butterfly.

BC was very interested in Great Grandpa S's special box with fancy cufflinks.  

After 5 nights in Indiana, we headed to Kentucky for the night. Along the way, we stopped at Mammoth Cave, so here we are in the mouth of it.  We saw some bats!  It was a fun stop and we also hiked around on a trail.   That night at the hotel, we swam in the indoor pool and ate at Cracker Barrel, which is one of BC's faves because of the cars and toys they have out front.  It was nice to stop along the way home!  The next night, we stopped in Atlanta to stay with my fave cousins, Amy & Mike.  We also had seen them the weekend before at the graduation, but it was great to see their new home and spend the night with them.  They are expecting their first baby (a boy!) in early Fall, so it was fun to see her belly at this stage.  We always love hanging out with them...and just wished we lived closer!!  

We finally made it home Saturday early evening...and wow, were we all glad to be home again!  The last hour of our trip was the toughest of the entire journey, so we can safely say that Bear Cub is a GREAT little traveler.  One hour out of MANY is not so bad at all!  Good news -- the house was shown 4 times while we were gone!   No bites yet, but I'm happy to know that there is interest out there!  

So...on to our next travel adventure!  This Wednesday we head to San Antonio for another happy graduation!  I only hope I can pry Bear Cub away from home and all of his toys to get him on that airplane.  More updates & photos following the next trip!!  Take care!  :)