Some big shoes to fill

If Grant is half the man his daddy is someday, I will be just thrilled.  He has some really big shoes to fill!  Hopefully he'll be big enough to fill them!

Uncle Steve and the fam visit Massachusetts

Unfortunately last year at Christmas, a big snowstorm cancelled Uncle Steve, Aunt Jeanne, Megan, Hannah, and Ryan's visit from Maryland.  So we haven't seen them in a WHOLE year!  So we were all really excited to see them in August...

First, since there are just TOO many Bailey cousins now, and they're mostly all ... well, like GoGo and Ryan, massively tall....  we had to move to a more spacious location for the group photo.  I took about 10 pictures and this was the best one, ha ha.  Yes, Natalie is in her pajamas.  I know 20 years from now I'm going to be mad about that. 

Then we went in the backyard and snapped a few pics of Bean with his beautiful granddaughters.  Natalie and Madison are giving some sass. 

Next up was Grammi and her baby boys.  Ryan is a sophomore in high school, if you can believe that.  He's almost Todd's height (6'4").  GoGo is starting at Mass Maritime Academy and playing football there this fall.  Seth is my big goofball Godson, and one of Natalie's favorite people in the world.  Please note:  This is the first time EVER that Ryan has held a baby. 

We like to get outdoors when we're down at Grammi and Bean's house.  Neither kid wanted to ride the trike, and I didn't want to carry it, so I just hopped on here.

We also like to go to the pond.  Or rather, Daddy and Natalie like to go to the pond.  It's too cold for Mommy and Grant doesn't like sand or cold water.  He gets that from me.  I just have to say here... look at my nearly-40-year-old husband's hot bod!  CrossFit rocks.

Big Boy was having a blast with Daddy and Uncle Steve.  His face cracks me up in this picture.  I think Uncle Steve thought he might be getting some cake here...

Natalie also is VERY into makeup and nails these days.  She is such a girlie girl, or at least more so than I was at that age.  I love it!  Here, cousin Megan did her nails and I did some of her makeup, which you can see in the picture below.

I'm pretty sure I can never let her out of the house when she is a teenager.  I absolutely love this picture of us. 

Random Summer Photos

This has been a busy summer!  Here is a summary in 8 pictures of some of the highlights...

We've done a little swimming in the kiddie pool (yes, Mommy too).  It hasn't been too awful hot this summer, but we've been able to get out a few times.  Grant, NOT a big fan of the pool, or water in general. I think he likes it when the water is warm, because he doesn't have any issues in the tub.  But a cold pool, not such a fan!

We've been to the gazebo a few times, and this year, Grant runs around more than Natalie!

We ate pasta at TGI Friday's and smashed it all over our face.

This is what happened after Daddy told her to stop smashing pasta on her face.

We've had MORE fun with the Wilmington crew!  Second generation friends Caroline, Natalie, and Annabel, being SO silly, as usual!

We've attended some Red Sox games (Orioles, Cleveland).  I think I'm 2-1 this season.  They just lost to Cleveland last night (August 1) when we saw them.  This is Todd at the Sox-O's game on July 10th.

We went to Org Day at Todd's work again!  We went last year but last year it was in June.  This year, it was on a nice warm day in July.  Natalie got her face painted- ready for battle in a pink tutu skirt! 

The big guy (ahem, Grant) didn't make it out of the parking lot.  He was out COLD.  Must have been a good time!  I think he liked the playground at Daddy's work the best!

It's been a good summer and we've had a lot of fun! 

Seng and Sopheap's wedding

I went to my first ever Cambodian wedding reception in July.  It was WAAAY fun.  Seng has been a co-worker of mine (albeit now in a different office since I'm in Boston and she's in Fairfax, where I used to work) for almost 8 years.  Girl knows her stuff too, wicked smaht lady!  AND... she knows how to throw a fun reception!

All of my favorite Dewb peeps were there.  In fact, over 300 people were at this reception!  I went down by myself, because we have too many things planned this year to try to get another one of our family members to watch our kids for a whole weekend.  I got to stay with one of my favorite couples- Katie and Jeff.  We had hit up a local winery in the afternoon prior to the wedding reception.  PLUS... it's Cambodian tradition to have a bottle of Hennessy for each table (in addition to the unlimited Heineken!).  Well, the following pictures are what you get when one table challenges another to see who will finish the bottle of Hennessy first...

Above:  Me and Brett Hurm, my birthday twin.  I seriously have no idea what is going on here.  But my arms look good, don't they?

 I have no words.

This is the bride...  Seng flanked by Robyn and Greg.

Seng is naturally pretty anyway, but she looked like a porcelain doll... and her hubby wasn't too shabby either!

This was flat out troublesome.

Brett helped lead our table to victory in the Hennessy Challenge.  We're actually considering a rematch sometime later this year or next.

Cambodian tradition is to present each of the tables with gifts from the bride and groom.  We got cool scarves, which Katie and Jeff showed off on the metro ride back to Vienna.  Jeff snazzed his up with a little head gear. 

Congrats to Seng and Sopheap!!!

4th of July

Hmm... a little behind here. 

We had another fun filled day in Natick enjoying the annual Kiwanis pancake breakfast and the Natick 4th of July parade!  Just like Natalie in 2009, Grant ate his weight in pancakes.  We had to steal a plate full of them because he wasn't finished when the parade was starting, so you can see in the picture below, he has his mouth full of pancake!  We scored some good seats along East Central too, right on the street.

I'm beginning to wonder if there will ever be a photo of Grant without his sippy cup of milk. 

Natalie waving to Sparky, the Wayland Fire Department Fire Dog.  And look, he's waving back at her!

Oh wait!  THERE'S a picture of Grant without his cup!  He clearly has no interest in being photographed of course, so Natalie is yanking him back in the picture.  Get back here little brother!

Oh well, if Grant won't participate, then we'll just get a cute one of Natalie, Pink Bear, and Daddy. 

Natalie once again, was very into the parade this year.  I was actually a little surprised that Grant sat still for a good portion of the beginning of the parade (perhaps it was the milk and the pancakes), but Natalie really enjoyed the whole thing.  She danced to the bands, hugged Tigger, and was wowed by the dancers, gymnasts, and jugglers!

Unfortunately, this might be the last year of the Natick 4th of July parade (yes, ever).  They are having trouble finding someone to organize/run the parade.  We hope that they find someone soon because we really have a great time every year! 

Trip to the Beach

Don't get excited... we just went to the local beach in Natick on Dug Pond.  It's actually a really nice little beach, with a concession stand, lifeguards and plenty of space. 

Grant didn't care for the sand. He kept asking for his shoes! "Shoes! Shoes!" He didn't like walking in the sand. He wasn't so sure about the water either but he eventually got used to it.  He also had his trucks and he found a big stick!  Look at those dimples!!!!

Natalie was like a little fish!  She can't swim yet but the water was shallow enough that she could just splash and play without mommy or daddy being super close by.  She just had a blast.  She had a great time with daddy building sand castles and a big giant puddle/lake!  (See above!)

Right before we left, we had to get the kids cleaned of all of the sand they had accumulated.  Daddy wanted Grant to get in the water, despite his objections.  Once he was in he was fine, and Daddy was bouncing him around.  Then of course, Natalie wanted to be a part of it.  The kids did really great and we had such a fun time!  We can't wait to go back, but the rest of our summer has been so busy and it got cooler (yes, I'm not taking my kids to the beach when it's only 80 degrees!  I'm such a Floridian!)

Trip into Boston

We took the kids on the train into Boston for the day a few weeks ago.  We like to do this about once a summer, and we make a big deal out of it, and the kids were crazy for it!  First we went across the street to Station 5 Grill for some breakfast.  We were there when they opened at 7 am, ha ha.  Little buddy ate some pancakes with his daddy.

Next up, we went to West Natick station to pick up an 8:20 train to Boston.  They thought this was SO cool.  Grant loves anything with wheels, and probably the fact that it was going fast.  Natalie is crazy about trains, so it was probably the highlight of the day!

Next we walked around the Garden for a little bit, and then took the Blue Line over to Aquarium so we could get on the commuter boat that takes you from Long Wharf over to Charlestown.  It's only about 10 minutes long, it comes every half hour, and it only costs $1.70!  You really can't beat it.  We rode up front so Natalie could see out. 

Once we got over to Charlestown, we didn't have enough time to go over and see Old Ironsides, so we just walked around the wharf area.  We found this giant anchor and attempted to take a family photo on it.  Three out of four Bailey family members participated!

After we caught the boat back to Long Wharf, we grabbed a quick pizza before heading back to Back Bay so we could catch our train back home.  We were home before 1:30, and Todd said, "It's only 1:30 and I feel like we've done a full day of activities already!"  It was a  good, fun family outing!

Natalie's 4 year stats

More on her 4th birthday in a minute...  first we need the stats!  Natalie had her 4 year appointment and is 40" tall (60th percentile) and weighs 38 pounds (75th percentile).  I don't know where the weight comes from (probably milk!) because she eats like a bird.  She tells us she eats well at school and at Maureen's but we aren't really sure she's telling the truth.

Natalie had a fantastic year at FACE Children's Center.  In her final "progress report," her teachers said, "Natalie is a kindhearted little girl.  She quietly joined our Teddy Bear class last year and has emerged into an outgoing and playful friend.  She has made friends not only in our class, but with children in the other classes as well, very popular!"

"Natalie is always respectful in group or circle time.  She will listen quietly while a story is read and waits patiently when directions are being given.  She can proudly recite her colors, shapes, and counting.  She is also a very good singer!"  (This is mommy's favorite part, ha ha ha!)

"Natalie runs around the playground or the back field with quick agility.  She just always looks happy.  Her smile has brightened our days.  It has been a pleasure working with Natalie and it will be fun to watch her grow in the next year!"

Natalie is still a great sleeper and can still nap for 3 or more hours in an afternoon.  She goes to bed every night around 8 pm and gets up around 6 am.  It's difficult to wake her sometimes (kinda like her mama!), but generally if you just open her door while you're getting Grant ready, she will come around.  She loves going to gymnastics and is really looking forward to starting CrossFit Kids at some point.  She is still an incredibly smart little girl with an amazing vocabulary.  I did a little interview with her the other day and this is how it went:

What is your favorite color:  Green

What is your favorite food: Macaroni and Cheese

Where is your favorite vacation place?  Florida at Nana and Pop Pop's

Who is your best friend: Gaby and Sarah (although this changes daily but these two are definitely besties)

We just found out that Natalie is actually going to skip over the Chipmunks class at FACE and will be a Butterfly next year with her friends Gaby and Addison, along with about 6-7 other kids from her Teddy Bears class.  She was excited because the Butterfly's are the "Big kids."  We are so proud of her!

Gym Show 2011

Natalie has been going to Planet Gymnastics for about a year now and really loves it.  She was recently promoted (starting this fall) to GymStars II.  But to wrap up the 2010-2011 year, they have a big final show called Gym Show and all of the kids get to participate.  Naturally, the GymStars I, being the smallest of the independent (ie: without a parent) students, were the cutest of all!  They practiced really hard on their routine for weeks!

The theme this year was a "Planet Gymnastics Hoedown!"

Natalie scanned the crowd before she found us and gave us a big wave.  Her friend Lili is on her left (your right).  First, they did a dance/gymnastics routine to the song "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash.  Then some of the older kids did their routines (along with some of the girls from the cheerleading squad they have there).  Then the GymStars I group came back out and did an obstacle course showing off some of the moves they had learned during the year.  I didn't get any pictures of that since I videoed the whole thing!

Natalie and all of the other kids got to come out and watch the teachers do a really cool routine full of flips and handsprings and all kinds of crazy cool stuff!  They were really impressive!

At the end, everyone receives a medal for their participation during the year and during the Gym Show.  Normally I'm not such a huge fan of giving all the kids medals, but gymnastics isn't exactly a "team" sport, so I was okay with it.  There aren't winners and losers in gymnastics, it's just exercise and skill!

Uh oh!  That's a pretty big reward, I think I'm going to have to turn them in!  I know where these ganstas live!

Wilmington Crew Party in Ipswich

The Catanzanos were in in town from California, so of course, that is reason to have a big party at the Morris house in Ipswich.  Naturally, I didn't get any pictures of Greg and Jan, but Cameron and Kiera made it into the first picture below! 

Grant has decided he likes to climb stairs.  So he climbed all the way to the top, but you can see that Mommy was waaaay too nervous about that, so I followed him up there.  Then later, we went down the slide together, but he didn't really care for that.  No laughter, no smiles.

But these girls were ALL smiles.  Natalie and Annabel are like BFF every time they get together.  It is SO funny. I swear they were separated at birth.  They are both total goofballs and just laugh all the time.

Grant decided he wanted to go talk guy talk with the guys- Rybo, Joe, Cooch, and Daddy.  Here he was saying, "Is this the cooler with all the beer in it?"  Sorry big guy... another 19.5 years.

Later in the night, things got a little crazy.  Apparently Karen was sitting on Cooch's lap and she got up to go get something, and he tipped backwards.  Everyone was laughing and the girls must have heard this because Natalie asked me no fewer than 15 times why everyone was laughing and "what was so funny outside Mommy?"

We decided, when the kids finally went to bed that Natalie could sleep in Annabel's room on the air mattress on the floor.  Of course, Annabel wanted to sleep down there too, and it's plenty big, so Natalie got to have her first sleep over with a friend.  How long did this last?  Well, til about 1:30 am!  The girls didn't get settled in bed until after 9 because Ipswich (or somewhere?) was having fireworks and they were really loud and the girls were questioning us about them.  (Us: Me and Andrea)  Then of course, they were giggling, and throwing their bears in the air, and talking... UNTIL 10:30 PM!!!! 

They were so funny though.  One time, I heard Annabel say something about a fart.  Natalie isn't really familiar with that terminology (we call them toots!) so Natalie said, "What's a fart?"  And Annabel said, "It's when gas comes out of your butt!"  And of course, this was really funny to them.  Then later, Natalie felt the need to explain what a word meant also, so she chose the word, "Infection."  She said, "Do you know what an infection is?"  And Annabel says, "No."  Then Natalie says, "It's where a boo boo gets red and germs get inside!"  Infection??? Really?  What the heck led up to these conversations???

Finally at 10:30, I had to go in and ask the girls to play the silent game.  Whoever could be quiet the longest wins.  At one point, I did hear Annabel say something, to which Natalie responded, "No, let's just go to sleep!"  Natalie certainly loves her sleep.

But of course, I heard some whimpering at around 1 am, just as all of the adults left the party.  So I went in and Natalie said she had to go to the bathroom.  So I took her potty, and then as I was opening the door to let her back in, Andrea said something in the kitchen and Annabel immediately woke up!  So then, the giggling commences, and after about another 30 minutes, we had to move Natalie into our room.  SO FUNNY.  It was a good attempt at a first sleepover, but we know how little girls can be.  Maybe next summer we can try it again!

Natalie's 4th birthday party

Whaaaat a day!

In the morning, we had a little Father's Day/Bean's birthday party celebration.  We were so excited to have BOTH sets of grandparents here!  PLUS... CocoBrie came up from Florida too!  They picked a nice weekend- it rained on Friday but we had really nice weather both Saturday and Sunday, something they aren't used to this time of year. 

Bean's birthday is on June 15, so we always have a little celebration for him.  Seth helped him blow out his candles and open up his cards and gifts!

Then after nap time, Natalie woke up around 2 for her friend/kid birthday party.  We invited Addison from FACE/Gymnastics, Gaby (BFF from Maureen's), Sarah (BFF from Teddy Bears class at FACE), Logan and Grace, Jackson and Sami and of course, our resident big kid Seth who was a big help when it came to the breaking of the pinata.

Natalie was trying to swing with only one arm, and had a few good whacks.

All the kids got some good hits in, especially Logan and of course, Seth.  You should have seen them scramble once it finally broke open.  Natalie immediately found a lollipop and asked Daddy if she could tear into it. 

Here's Addison, Sarah, Gaby, Natalie, Sami, and crazy little Jackson, the ham!

We also played a game of pin the tail on the My Little Pony.  Grace had my favorite "stick" (they were stickers) of the day... way out in left field.  This is typically where I put mine, and it's funny every time.

Next up was cake and ice cream.  Natalie wanted a Funfetti cake this year, with Funfetti icing.  The girls had a good time lined up eating their cake and ice cream (with Sarah's mom Karen!)

Little Buddy got up from his nap toward the end of the party.  He didn't even realize what was going on- he just wanted to push his favorite firetruck around.  Coco Brie sat outside and watched him while Natalie opened a few presents after all of the kids had left. 

Happy 4th birthday Natalie!  We hope you had a great day and we love you very much!