A Whole New World

Life is moving at light speed for us. We are here in San Diego, sweetly reunited with Christopher/Daddy and deep into the job of making our house a home. In the midst of all that is happening around us, the kids are more than just enduring and surviving. They are growing and changing and thriving. Millie is talking in sentences, saying her ABC's thru 'S', working on dressing herself, and entertaining us all with her toddler-ness. Example: we taught her to do 'high five' and 'nucks' (also know as a potato or fist-bump). She took this to a very random next level and insists on only doing 'elbows'. Something exciting happens around here and we all have to bump elbows with each other.

Millie REEAALLY enjoys her fish taco!

She also likes to give us a lot of direction: "SEET down" (sit down)!; "Hold you" (which actually means pick me up. I think she came up with this because I ask her "Do you want me to hold you?"); and my favorite is "Yum ON" (come on) which is said with much insistence and accompanied by frantic waving. Casey gets a lot of "Yum ON"s.

But the big news, as of last night, is her new Big Girl Bed, which she absolutely loves. So this is what I mean by a whole new world around here. We've not only got a new brother, a new house, and a new neighborhood and playground, but we've also got new sleeping arrangements.

Simon is an adorable little boy. He's seven weeks old and still a big guy. Happily, this means he's a sleeping champ...up to eight hours a night! Millie just adores him and has nicknamed him B. Simon (short for Baby Simon). We're all doing well -- settling in and starting to figure out how to make sense of this new world together.

Homeless No More

Good news! When we arrive in San Diego tomorrow with our nine checked pieces of luggage and three carry-on bags we will have someplace to unload and unpack...Christopher has found us a home! It's in a really great little neighborhood (not on the island as we had hoped for, but definitely the next best thing) with playgrounds, adorable houses with yards, a shopping/restaurant area, and lots of other families. My sister Julie will be living with us (hooray!), and we'll even have a fenced back yard for Casey and the kids. I haven't seen it yet, but judging from how excited Christopher and Julie are about it, I have much to look forward to. Here are a few photos:

My sister is standing in the foyer/living room.

This is the kitchen looking back to the dining 'nook'.

Sweet Baby Simon

Here's our big boy. He's such a great little guy...already sleeping tons at night and growing like crazy. These photos were taken last week, on his four-week birthday (is there such a thing?). Just a few more days until our reunion with Dad...I think he'll be surprised to see how much his kids have changed in just three weeks.

A Random Assortment

Dad and kiddos as he departs for CA

Oh, there's lots going on here, but I'm not sure any of it is blog-worthy. I am neck deep in the business of trying to keep two kids healthy and fed, not to mention mentally stimulated, and emotionally secure. I don't know how my friends made this all look so easy. Anyway, instead of the details on diaper changes and toddler food battles, I give you a few random photos of our last few weeks.

The final moments at our house in DC

A typical night for Mils, with her entire menagerie of beloved baby dolls/animals/blankets/Philly Phanatic

...and sometimes she piles them all on Simon thinking that they might make him feel better and stop crying.

Swimmin'!

As you know, Millie loves the water. She loves 'baps' (baths), 'wimmin' (swimming) in the baby pool, and now she loves the gigantic indoor pool complex near my parents' house. It is also well known that her momma likes a good trip out of the house! So we all had a great time the other day at the pool. Millie even took a trip down the water slide with my Mom! How cool is that? Simon snuggled close to me and slept in the pouch carrier the entire trip.

Life in the Country

Poppa and Millie on the 'tractor'

Tonight Christopher and Joshua are catching the fourth baseball game of their cross-country journey. They're in Denver/Boulder with my brothers enjoying a Rockies vs. Nats game. So far they've visited PNC Park (home of the Pittsburgh Pirates), Progressive Field (Cleveland Indians) and Wrigley Field. Next up will be Chase Field (Arizona Diamondbacks) and potentially Angel Stadium (Los Angeles). Not too rough a trip, huh? All of this with our sweet dog Casey in tow. Lots of generous hospitality has been extended to these boys...thanks, friends/brothers/cousins.

Meanwhile, back at the farm, we are having quite a summer. We've been to a church chicken dinner (an annual event that I will be so sad to miss), visited lots of produce stands, made bi-weekly trips to the local hot-spot -- an ice cream stand called Jimmy Cone, and are eating grandma-grown tomatoes and sweet corn at every meal of the day except breakfast. It's a pretty great time to be out here in the farm country of Maryland. We're missing Christopher and Casey, but definitely making the best of this sweet time with Yammy and Poppa.