9 Day Trip

Jane and Meredith took a 9 day trip to see many members of Jane's family.  First stop - Mechanicsburg, PA to visit with Jonny, Bria, Lila and baby Ellie!

Meredith and Lila played all day together

Later that evening we met up at a park with a beautiful lake to have a BBQ with Bria's family.

On Sunday we all headed down to Frederick, MD to visit with Aunt Tricia, Uncle Tom Keesecker who recently moved back to the east coast.

Meredith and Lila kept cool with the snake sprinkler Granna sent.

Uncle Zach (Jane's cousin) came for the afternoon.

He hadn't seen Meredith and Lila since they were 4 months old!  What a change. :)

Aunt Tricia getting her little girl and baby fix!

More photos to come from Granna's house!

Penguin and Panda

Meredith is really into her stuffed animals these days.  

Two of her favorites currently are "penguin" and "panda"

The last time Granna visited she gave Mer her beloved penguin. :)

Panda was sent for Meredith's birthday from Erik's Aunt Julie.  Panda came along with a book about animal babies and their mamas.

Meredith's "home"

Meredith loves to find little "homes" for herself around our house.  Her latest favorite is underneath the computer table, but only when I'm sitting there so my leg can be the door. :)

Father's Day weekend

We had a wonderful weekend together as a family.  Saturday we set off in the morning to Nockamixon State Park, just about 1 hour north of us.  

We rented a row boat for 1/2 hour and rowed out onto the beautiful and huge lake.  This was Meredith's first time on a boat... and she was really not a fan.  There were tears and many, "all done!" , "go home" , "night night" - poor child, she really didn't like being out in that big body of water.  By the end of the 1/2 hour she settled down and we enjoyed the adventure.  We saw a beautiful heron catch a fish really near us (unfortunately I had just turned off the camera and by the time I had it up and running again, he had gobbled down his lunch).

 We're thinking of trying to ease Meredith into a boat experience next time with a small pond or river....

  We live and learn around here. :)

 Then, a picnic lunch by the lake and some fun ball playing time.

 Meredith was a huge fan of her new sunhat - yes!

Following lunch, we took a lovely hike in the woods and Meredith walked about 1/2 mile or so off and on.  Woot!  This little one may be ready for the big trails in a few years! 

We stopped by Adam and Jenny Dieffenbach's for a delicious meal and a much needed catching up with these dear friends.

Father's day was low-key - church, a picnic in our back yard, and long naps for everyone. :)

Erik used his new "grill basket" to grill up these veggies - yum! 

(soon to come - a post about our exploding garden you see in the back ground!)

Just like Daddy.  Oh my.

Ready to be a BIG SISTER!

This week Meredith received a special package just for her.  Her Auntie Jane Hutchinson found a "big sister" shirt just her size.  :)  First one!  She was thrilled with all the letters (she's really into letters at the moment) and wanted to wear it immediately.

And...a video I just found (from about 6 weeks ago) in honor of Father's Day.  As many of you know, Erik can be quite silly, especially with his daughter....Meredith knows when he's being silly and she loves it. :) 

Trains at the Morris Arboretum!

The Morris Arboretum near us has their summer train display up and running.  Yes...just the thing to take Meredith too. :)  So, this past Saturday morning we popped over there to check it out.

"Hi, Choo-choo!"

Meredith brought her baby to enjoy the sights as well. 

Between "Hi, Choo-choo" Meredith would often say, "Oh...wow....choo-chooo!"  when she caught sight of another one rounding the bend.  This may be a favorite destination this summer...

Trains!

Meredith is really into "choo-choo" trains at the moment.  So much so that a new FAVORITE activity of hers is going to one of the train stations in the suburbs and watching trains.  Trains pass through every 10 minutes, and usually about every 20 minutes one makes a stop.  

Meredith is a bit shy at first with people, but when it comes to trains, she boldly calls out, "Hi, Choo-chooo!!" while waving her hand and repeating her enthusiastic salutation many times.  

A few weeks ago I found a "thomas the train" set at the thrift store for $2.  It has become her most played with toy over the past two weeks!

So...I thought it would be fun to take Meredith on a subway ride down into center city to meet Daddy for lunch.  What could get better - a train ride, seeing Daddy mid-day, treats for lunch, time outside...etc.

Meredith was super excited to ride on the train, however once we were under ground her excitement lessened and she scrambled up on my lap.  Hmmm...I guess the subway isn't quite as exciting as a real train. ;)

We had a great time in the city though, and a wonderful picnic in the park with Daddy!

 On the subway ride home, Meredith kept asking if we were "all done"...thankfully we caught an express, so there were fewer stops, still...it was a long time in the dark for a 2 year old.  I thought when we got off she would high tail it up the stairs and out of there, but she surprised me with her enthusiastic, "Bye bye Choo-choo" called out dozens of times as we slowly made our way out.  :)

Happy Birthday, Erik!

Erik turned 28 today!  We celebrated with homemade pizza, fun drinks, carrot cake and games with friends this evening. :)  Good, simple fun!

Erik with his cheerlite candles!

15.5 weeks!

I'm cooking up a bit of a round little belly these days. :)  It's a blessing to be slowly feeling better and looking forward to our 20 week ultrasound in less than a month!  Good to be just about to the half way point.  I know some women love being pregnant, but for me... I'd much rather have the baby outside of me as soon as possible!

Elynor Belle

Congratulations to Jonny and Bria McKinzie on their newest addition - Elynor Belle, born 5/26/2012

We were able to see visit her this past weekend....and what a little beauty she is!  I just about ate her up! 

Lila and Meredith were thrilled to have lots of play time together and romped hard the whole time we were there.  I made them matching skirts for their 2 yr birthdays last month, so it was fun to get some photos of them together again.

Hugs and kisses!

Meredith was so excited about her new cousin!  She talked about her all week, and the whole car ride there - "Bebe Ellie!"  nonstop. :)

Guess this girlie is ready to be a big sister!