Catching Up

I promise Vacation pictures are coming soon!  I took over 2000 pictures and then I lost the majority of them and then I had to "find" them and recover them.  And now I have to edit them!  So, they are coming....soon!  If you're on Facebook you can see a lot of them there!

We got back from vacation last Sunday but not before a stop in Philadelphia for two days!  I competed in and finished my first triathlon on August 1st and I can now say I am completely addicted and have already put two on my calendar for next year!
My friend Natalie and I kept each other motivated through the entire training process and race.  It was an incredible experience and I am QUITE proud of both us!!

I'm pretty sure that's us in the water- which wasn't nearly as GROSS as we thought it would be!

Out of the water heading to our bikes

Part of my cheering section

Another part of my cheering section

My participation T-Shirt

I didn't get a shot with my medal because the weather turned terrible during the last few minutes of our run but I do have one and I can't wait to add more to my collection!!

Baseball Tonight

If I've said it once, I've said it more than a dozen times....one of the best parts about Pat's job in the liquor industry is all of the perks that we are given.  Last night we got to experience another perk....we watched the Sussex County Skyhawks, one of the minor league teams in NJ, from a luxury suite courtesy of one of the distributors that works with Pat.  

It was a lovely night outside and we were able to enjoy the air conditioning of our suite with our friends or head out into our private seats just behind homeplate, to watch the game.  The kids had a great time with all of the food and treats provided, as well as getting to meet and take pictures with the Sussex Skyhawk.  Nicholas was really the only one who enjoyed that- Addison was terrified of him up close.  Pat and I, and everyone we were with, enjoyed the food, company and some of us even enjoyed the multiple refrigerators full of beer (not me, now that I've given up the drink until after my triathlon).

All in all, we had a great time and the kids were able to see some pretty good baseball and have some fun on a lovely night!

Splish Splash

After a Saturday at the beach we made Sunday a pool day!

My Aunt and Uncle invited us over for a bbq and we packed up the kids and headed to Staten Island for the day.  We spent much of the afternoon in their pool, which was the perfect temperature to cool off and enjoy being out of the heat of the day!  

The kids had a great time showing off their swimming skills and jumping skills and we all kept nice and cool in the pool.  

After the pool we gorged ourselves on tons of food and then Nicholas jumped right back in the water- after the mandatory 1.5 hours of waiting time!

We had a great time and it was the perfect way to beat the heat- with family!

Just Beachy Saturday

We had a great Saturday today!

We were up bright and early with the car packed and everyone in swim suits and ready to head down the shore for the day to visit Uncle Geoff, Aunt Jen and Tommy.  We were down there and on the beach by noon and the kids were in the waves by 12:01!!

Nicholas and Tommy had a ball playing in the surf and watching Uncle Geoff dig a giant hole.  We all even got to witness what we can only assume was a Coast Guard training exercise.  

After a few hours at the beach we headed back to the house and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in the backyard by the pool.  

Everyone was quite tuckered out by the time we piled into the car to make our way home!

It was a perfect way to spend a hot and steamy Summer Saturday!

Sunday by the Pool

Things have been hectic, to say the very least.  

Life has a way of surprising you around every single turn and always in the most interesting ways and at the most interesting times.

School is finally over and I'm already into full swing at my summer job.  The kids are enjoying the summer camp part of school and Nicholas is looking forward to basketball camp in a few weeks!  And all of us are counting down the the days until we leave for vacation!!

This weekend, actually just today, was filled with relaxing.  We've been dealing with some sad goings on and today was the first day that I really had a chance to stop and sit down and not have to worry about anything at all!  The kids and I spent the majority of the day outside by the pool and it was perfect.  The weather was hot and humid but the sun was out and the pool was cool!  The kids were in and out of the water for hours on end and I was able to lounge while getting some sun and reading a book ( a book that had nothing to do with education or teaching or anything I needed to think about!).  It was just GREAT!

Tomorrow it's back to work and the daily grind of Summer and I'm perfectly ok with that because today was just so nice!  Hope your Summer days are just as lovely!

The Graduate

Nicholas graduated Pre-K tonight!

I really can't believe it!  It seems like just a few months ago I was pregnant with him and eagerly waiting for him to arrive and now he's going to be in Kindergarten in September!!

The theme for graduation was Tarzan.  The kids sang jungle themed songs, after the Pledge of Allegiance and singing You're a Grand Old Flag.  Nicholas was part of the Tiger brigade- hence the mask and orange polo!!  The entire ceremony was very cute and each student received a diploma, their skills portfolio and a yearbook.  Nicholas was voted Class Helper and put down his career goal to be a Paleontologist!

Congratulations to our Graduate!  Before we know it, we'll be sitting at a high school graduation for him!

Alanna Graduates

I've been slacking a tad.  Things are hectic, to say the very least.

These are just a few pictures from my cousin Alanna's graduation party a few weeks ago.

It was super hot but the kids had a good time seeing their aunts and uncles and cousins, as did I!

Congratulations Alanna!  Welcome to the REAL WORLD!

Memorial Day 2010

We had quite a busy Memorial Day Weekend!

Busy and Enjoyable!!

For a number of years, we've been having a Memorial Day BBQ and this year I decided pretty early on that we weren't going to do it.  We have a lot going on around here, what with getting the house ready to go on the market and school winding down and Summer starting up.  Needless to say, my plan to NOT have a BBQ didn't work out- and I am SO GLAD!  We had a lovely time on Monday with family and friends celebrating the holiday!  It was so nice to take a break from packing and painting and throwing away and just enjoy the day- and lots of food!

I didn't really get a chance to take a lot of pictures, but there are a few of the kids!

Playing with Rocket Balloons

(AWESOME Toy!!)