Halloween

Ok. It's been awhile since i've had the chance to sit and write on here. I've been back to work for 3 weeks and can only now start to breathe. Things are going well, although the kids are quite noisy, but we have fallen into a routine. Colby began going to day care after morning preschool this past week. It makes for a full week for him and he is VERY tired by Friday. But he seems to enjoy it. And thankfully I can't seem to keep a book out of his hands, although he loves his Leapster that his cousins Max and Alex handed down to him.

So, we are over the Halloween chaos. Colby loved it this year. I'm not so sure he quite understood it last year, but this year he started in July with trick-or-treating and what he wanted to be. Last year I got to choose, a monkey it was. This year, his choice, but I was able to make the costume and I think that was the best part. I found the pattern, cut it, and sewed it. Mike's mom helped with sewing the fringe on. Then Mike, Colby and I put on the studs. What do you think?

First, we visited with Mike's parents, and his brother's family. Little Lizzie was an adorable little gnome. Then my brother brought Keith over for some trick-or-treating before we headed to our parents' house. We tried to make it an early night but we were home after bedtime, which resulted in a not quite so happy Colby this morning. Boy was he tired! But we all had a great time and perhaps, just perhaps, this Halloween thing isn't so bad after all.

Paradise Found and a New Cousin

We have certainly had a whirlwind of a few weeks here. I can't believe that September has already found us. I'm not quite sure where July went. Colby and I spent much of our time outside and visiting with friends. I also became the proud aunt of a beautiful little girl named Elizabeth, or Lizzie. I have 4 nephews already but now I finally have a niece. She was born in late July. Colby seems to really like here, although he keeps telling her, "No, no Lizzie. No cry." Way too cute. Mike, Colby, and I went to visit Mike's brother David and his wife Jocelyn shortly after Lizzie was born. Colby spent much of the time playing Baseball on Wii with David. David succeeded in hitting Colby on the head and Colby hit the dog, Benny, on the head. All in good fun! We can't wait until Lizzie gets a little older and then she and Colby can enjoy playing together. We have a picnic scheduled at Mike's parents' house on Sunday to celebrate both Lizzie and Colby and jsut to have fun with family.

Last week Colby and I enjoyed a visit with our friends Jill, Nicholas, and Sharon. We went down to Hamden to visit with them and there we found "Paradise". It is a country club that Sharon belongs too and Colby had a blast playing with Nicholas and going swimming. He is still talking about it. I enjoyed the time with friends, the warm sunshine, and swimming too. There is a pool but they also have a swimming area more like a small lake. You walk right in and it slowly gets deeper, like at the beach, except no sand. We had a nice swim and enjoyed lunch together before both Colby and Nicholas showed signs of needing a nap. We can't wait to go again. Colby loves playing with "Nichotin" and I really enjoy our friendship with Jill and Sharon. Nicholas is Jill's little boy, he's about 11 months younger than Colby. Sharon's little one, Sean, is about 6 months younger than Colby but he is still waiting in Russia to come home. We hope he comes home soon.

So, we found Paradise, welcomed a new little one to our family, and are enjoying the nice weather. Summer flew by way too fast and now fall is here. Mike and I are looking forward to bringing Colby to some of the local fall fairs, Goshen, Bethlehem, and also to the Big E. So many new things to do. And everything seems more exciting when you have a 2 year old to experience it with you.

On another note, I want to thank everyone for the kind comments on my last post. I can't say that the change from being "Melissa" to being "Mommy" has been tough but there were a few bumps in the road. I am enjoying my time with Colby and I know that having this time together is priceless. I do miss work, but only in the sense that I miss the adult interaction and the sense of pride that teaching brought. Now my pride comes from watching Colby grow, learn, and thrive. What better accomplishment is there? As for adult interaction, that is why I am thrilled to have Sharon and Jill and their relationship. I lost many of my "friends" when I left my last job so their friendship means all the more. I hope that we can even grow our little play group even more!