Dancing!

1. Colin is going to be Nemo for Halloween! Thanks Bachan and Jichan for sending him his Nemo costume early. He absolutely loves wearing it, dancing in it, and using it as a pillow! Here's a video of him trying it on for the first time. As soon as he had it on, he begged to start dancing. One of his favorite songs is "num-nine." (Dr. Knickerbocker's Number Nine, the Wiggles).



2. He loves music and dancing. He dragged Natalie to the stage of a grass concert...and started dancing on stage!

3. Natalie remembers when Rylee used to open the fridge and sit inside. Colin hasn't exactly done that yet--but he loves looking in the fridge, and he often pulls a chair up for a more relaxed viewing of the fridge contents.4. Cousins galore! We spent the day at Grandma's house playing with all of the cousins. Thank you Grandma for dinner (& dessert), and thank you cousins for keeping Colin running around for 6 hours. Unfortunately no pictures, but great memories of Colin & Sam in the dog cage, and Colin using one end of the jump rope to sing while Sam tried to jump rope with the other end!

Outta daycare!

Well, not forever. But since Wednesday, we are D-O-N-E with Colin's daycare. A series of issues, and Wednesday's incident finally broke me. He's home with us until mid-September, when he starts his new school. Jack is home with him until 2pm, and I'm working from home from 2-5pm so I can be with him from 2pm til night. If anyone wants to share daycare stories, I'm more than willing to share--leave a comment or email!

Since Wednesday, Colin has enjoyed trips to the museum, naked runs in the backyard, bike rides, playground dates, and library fun. He'll have a hard time going back to school--and so will we! We're absolutely loving the extra time with him.
at the Greek festival w/Aunt Natalie...turns out Colin is a huge fan of Greek dancing!
Saturday: enjoyed the day at Grandma's and then off to Hunter's 3rd birthday party. Colin's favorite part was catching grasshoppers while on a wagon ride!mmm, cake.Sunday: enjoyed the day at the CJAF (Cleveland Japanese American Foundation) summer picnic with Lisa & her brother. I made inari, chicken teriyaki, flank steak, wakame salad and edamame. Lisa made nigiri and spinach/miso/tofu salad. Mmmm, good!
an Aunt Natalie inspired photo... =)

Zoo, food, beach, good company!

Week: Colin invited Natalie over for a movie night (Finding Nemo is THE movie right now.) He loves to copy Aunt Natalie--but I don't think he fully understands why her hand is touching her head! =)

Friday: My parents came back from Italy! YAHOO!

Saturday: One of Jack's best friends, Denny, was in town for a visit...just in time for the hot and humid weather!
Checking out the dinosaurs at the zoo with Denny and Casie...Neal, Renee, Drew and Cade met us at the zoo too! The boys enjoying icees.At the Feast of the Assumption in Little Italy...
Sunday: It was opening day in the residence halls, so I was working. But Colin was off to the beach w/the cousins again...
Natalie took this picture at the beach...

Weekend festivities...

It takes a village to raise a child....

1. I was absolutely exhausted from work this week, and was not looking forward to the weekend b/c Jack had to work on Sat and Sun. Nick and Tami graciously offered to take Colin to Bay Point beach for me so I could have a day to rest. In the end, I decided to tag along, but all beach go-ers pitched in and I did very little parenting. Thank you for the break, and treating me like a princess! =)2. Natalie was craving Thai food, and hosted a dinner party later Sunday night. So after the beach, I didn't even have to worry about dinner! Thanks Natalie for having us over--food was delicious, as usual. =) The dinner party kids had fun playing and looking for Natalie's kitty!3. I cannot wait until work slows down so I can regain some work-personal life balance again. In the meantime, I am so thankful to have family here. I would not have survived the weekend without them. LOVE TO YOU ALL! I'm here to return the favor--just call. =)In other news--

• Congrats to Brooke and Reagan for winning 1st and 2nd place for Cleveland in the America's Most Photogenic Baby Contest!
  
• Lately, Colin has been asking for his cousin, "Ry", when we see a girl who is about 8 years old!
• "ready, go!" is one of his favorite phrases. Usually followed by throwing a ball or running around.
• "Walk, shoes, outside, open" is another phrase--and it begins as soon as he wakes up.
• "Natalie's house, kitty" is also a daily ritual.
  
• In our house, he's the best hugger, biggest charmer, and most confident dancer!
  

Week updates

Work: Jack and I have been very busy with work. I'm in the midst of student staff training, and worked Saturday. And Jack worked a couple 12 hour days, and worked this Sunday. We're lucky enough to have Natalie to help with Colin--so we are still standing!

I worked this Saturday, but Jack and Natalie took Colin to the beach to play with his cousins, Reagan and Brooke. No pictures of all of the kids though...Also, we purchased a Magic Bullet this week (thanks, Mel!). I've owned it for 4 days, and have had at least 6 smoothies already! (i've been craving Jamba Juice for the last two months--but have none near us.) Homemade smoothies are a bit healthier anyways--frozen fruit, non-fat yogurt, bananas, and a touch of honey. Colin is also a big fan. Best purchase in a long time. =) Guacamole is next...And lastly, Colin has his first job chart...he loves his stickers, and knows what most of the "jobs" are.