Play group

Since I finished at work (about 6 weeks now) we have been going to play group every Tuesday morning. There are about 8-10 mom's and toddlers that are part of the group and the hosting rotates every week. I haven't had it at our house yet but I am anxious to host to see how Henry reacts to having other toddlers in his house playing with his toys. For the most part, the toddlers just play with the toys and occasionally grab toys from the others. Today though, I noticed more interaction between the kids. Henry was in a little card board box that had been turned into a play house and kept peaking out of the window where another little toddler was standing and smiling at him. I also noticed Henry walking up to other toddlers and observing what they were doing (as opposed to just ripping toys out of hands). Up until today he really didn't even look at the others unless someone started crying.
I have added a couple photo albums to the website. I have finally figured out our new camera and hope to be posting pictures more frequently. Henry is growing like a weed. Just since we have returned from Florida I think he has grown an inch.

Visit to the Queen City

This past weekend we drove down to Charlotte and stayed with the Meek Family. It was a long drive from Arlington to Charlotte (around 7 hours) but we took Corbin's suggestion and took the Mountain route (I-81 to I-77). It was a beautiful drive and Henry did great. We stopped a few times at rest stops which he loved because he got to gawk at big trucks. After arriving at Corbin and Natalie's we got settled and then headed to the art gallery where our friend Miranda was having her opening. Henry stayed with Gwennie and Brandy, Gwennie's nanny. After being in the car all day I know he appreciated staying behind and playing with all Gwennie's cool toys. Many old friends came to Charlotte for the show (click here to see some of Miranda's work) and it was great seeing everyone. David stayed for the after party and I headed back to the Meek home. When I got back to Corbin and Natalie's house Henry didn't show any signs that he missed me. He just started handing me the dog toys he had found and had been throwing around this house. On Saturday we got up early (like we do everyday!) and went to a couple local Farmer's Markets. I really loved the Matthew's Farmers Markets. Corbin had warned us we needed to arrive early because local chefs get there early and buy up certain things. Although there was plenty of vegetables and baked goods, twice I noticed people with big bags of beautiful summer squash. When I went looking for the particular squash I had been eyeing I learned they were sold out. Corbin and Natalie hosted a BBQ at there house on Saturday evening and Henry got to meet the whole gang of friends who had flown in for Miranda's show. Henry really enjoyed the attention during the whole weekend and behaved quite well considering his molars are starting to come in. I joked to Natalie and Corbin that I was going to move in with them because Henry slept so well during his nap and at night. The ride home was pretty smooth too. We started it by inhaling a Bojangles egg biscuit (our 2nd of the weekend). I think that got the trip to a good start. Nothing like a lead brick to start off a long drive. We stopped at rest stops and let Henry enjoy the truck action and read books and played videos in the car (we bought a portable DVD player before the trip). Overall, I am really glad we drove. We were really close to flying because we were worried about Henry being in the car that long but I think as long as we stop every 2 1/2 hours he seems to do just fine. We will be packing up the car in a couple weeks and heading to New Bern, NC so hopefully we will have a similar driving experience. We won't be seeing the Mountain views but the drive is a little shorter --and lots of chances to stop at Bojangles.

Click Here for pictures from the weekend

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Henry is quite the little boy. He is really into trucks and planes. Today we came out of the grocery store and i was starting to put him in the car when he did a 180 and about jumped out of my arms. He started pointing and yelling "gook" (translation: look). It was an 18-wheeler parked next to the building and it really wasn't far away so instead of wrestling him into the car seat, I decided getting a closer look at the truck would be fun. He was crazy over the wheels. He was pointing and yelling "gook" over and over again. When Henry gets really excited he yells "gook" and shakes (all while sort-of holding his breath and turning red, it is quite a sight). He is also really into airplanes. In preparation for our flight to Florida I bought him Richard Scarry's All About Airports book. We talked about airplanes and he saw a few take off when we were at National Airport in DC. Now when I ask him "Where's the Airplane Henry" he points up in the air and at a window. It is really cute. Yesterday after reading his airport book for the 5th time I asked that question and he pointed outside and up and then stopped and was thinking for a minute and then ran to his toy box and pointed to an airplane on his toy box.

I'm back!

I can't believe it has been nearly a month since I posted a blog. Our camera died right around a month ago and I always feel bad posting without pictures to share. We now have a new camera but it has taken a week to get the software downloaded and to get through all the glitches (like the computer freezing everytime I tried to upload to the website---ugg!).

I promise to have pic's posted soon. This weekend we went down (or over?) to Annapolis for a late lunch/early dinner. After eating and strolling around town, we headed to the Sandy Point State Park which is on the Cheaspeake right before the Cheaspeake Bay Bridge. They have a nice little beach and Henry enjoyed playing in the sand. It was a really hot day but being near the water was very nice b/c of the breeze.

Florida kicked our butt!

we all made it back from Florida but Henry and I came down with a little bug. It stinks being sick but it really stinks b/c it was July 2nd yesterday and it was a beautiful 80 degree day in the DC area. Henry and i slept most of the day (boo hoo).

Florida was great. David, Henry and I flew into Orlando on the 29th and spent the night at my mom (Henry's nanny) and my Auntie Jo's (great Auntie Jo to Henry) house. Henry loved Auntie Jo and her dog Joey. He also loved seeing the ducks in the backyard by the lake. Henry thinks it is really funny when someone throws bread to the ducks. On Saturday morning we hopped in the car and headed south to Northport, FL to attend my sister's Graduation party (Congrats Mernie, it was a long road but you did it!!!). Henry met lots of relatives including his Great Grandma McMurray and his Great Uncle Bill who flew down from Grand Rapids, Michigan. The party was a blast. It was held at the local Senior Center which not only included a large room with a disco ball but a small living room and a thrift shop. There was a kitchen table with 4 chairs in the thrift shop and that became a second party for the guests that needed to get away from the karaoke. It was hysterical and typical of a party with my family members. The next morning David, Nanny, Henry and I got up early to go to the beach (see pic's below). It was Henry's first time at the beach. When I took him down to the water he stayed close to me and acted a bit nervous. He really enjoyed playing in the sand and picking up shells and seaweed. We met up with the whole gang for lunch at Sharky's at the Pier. I have been coming to Sharky's since the 80's when I came to Venice to visit my grandparents. It was really awesome to have lunch on the deck with a whole bunch of family. This trip was actually my Grandmother's first time to Florida which was very special. After lunch my brother Matt drove David and my sister in-law, Jessica, to the Tampa airport so they could return to work on Monday (someones' gotta pay for the vacation! hee hee). Henry and I stayed another night in Venice and on Monday headed back to Orlando with my mom. We spent the rest of the week in Orlando at a resort near all the attractions. My Uncle, sister, nephew and Grandma also stayed at the resort. We did a lot but I think our favorite activity was going to Gatorland. I thought Henry would enjoy the train ride at Gatorland but he was not impressed. He prefers the speed of the Metro. He also didn't like the "Splash Park" which I LOVED. It was very hot and I came prepared with my bathing suite under my clothes. Of course, I would have walked through with my clothes which mom and uncle bill did. Henry did like watching me run through the sprinklers but he didn't like going through them. He did like being in the pool at the hotel though. Most of all, Henry enjoyed all the attention.

Here are some pic's from the beach

Go Henry, Go Henry!

Every weekend I plan on chilling out and not running around but that never seems to happen. On Saturday we spent 2 1/2 hours at the DMV b/c I needed to get my VA driver's license. I still had my MA license with my maiden name and with us all flying to FL in a couple weeks I thought it best to get one with my new name (Missy Jo Dixon-yee haw!). The DMV was wild! Henry and David spent the first part of the DMV trip in the car (Henry sleeping and David talking to his mom). When they came in to wait with me Henry got a kick out of this little boy who kept running up to him. It was the first time I have ever seen Henry react positively to someone his same age. It was really cute. Another little kid really liked Henry but a little too much. I didn't witness the first meeting between the two but David told me the 3 year old grabbed Henry in a bear hug and wouldn't let him go. Henry and the boy, still in the bear hug, fell to the floor. I met the overly friendly kid about 20 minutes later when he was kissing Henry's hands and trying to pull Henry off his Dad's lap. After the DMV trip we had planned to do some shopping in Georgetown but we drove home first to change Henry's diaper and wipe him down after he had been attacked by crazy DMV kid. In Georgetown we went to the Patagonia store and walked around a little bit (had to stop into Haazan Daaz for a strawberry milkshake, Henry's favorite drink). We walked along the water and Henry enjoyed seeing boats and some ducks and a guy playing drums on buckets. It was about 4pm and Henry still seemed raring to go so never the type to take a hint that it would probably be a good time to take the boy home, David and I decide to go to the National Mall and go to a museum. After getting in the car, Henry was asleep in 5 minutes so we just drove through DC and went and checked out our old hood. The Eastern Market was recently destroyed by a fire but it was good to see that rebuilding has already started. Henry woke up right before we got home and got his revenge the rest of the night. Around 9pm David and I were lying on the family room floor watching Henry run around the family room not looking a bit tired. Seeing that we still may have an hour or two before bed, we decided to flip through the channels to find a movie to watch (we were too tired to decide on an On Demand movie). The first movie I got to was Breaking 2: Electric Boogaloo. We laughed and started watching it and not 2 minutes later Henry is in front of the TV dancing. Probably not the best choice to calm Henry down but he was digging it and it was hysterical seeing him dancing. I totally forgot that 5 minutes before I had been praying that Henry would calm down and go to sleep.

SAHM I AM

Yesterday was my last day of work and it feels really good. I still need a week or two to decompress though. I still feel pretty wound up from trying to keep up and then trying to get things wrapped up. I worked about 8 hours on Sunday with 5 of those at the office. Since it was raining, David drove me to the office and on the way he was telling me about a guy who has been attacking women in the area by putting plastic bags over their heads. After that bit of info I asked David if he wouldn't mind hanging out with me at the office since I am always kind of on edge working on the weekend but I was now totally freaked out about the bag man story. So, Henry and David stayed with me the whole time. They played a game where David held out his cell phone headphones and Henry held on as they walked around the office. They also took naps-Henry in his stroller and David on the floor. It is a great memory of my last days of work. Today Henry and I went to a playgroup. I was asked to join a couple weeks ago but with work I really couldn't attend. It is every week and I think Henry really enjoyed it. It will be a good way to teach him to share and how to interact with other toddlers. I also really enjoyed the other moms. It was a great first day as a stay at home mom (SAHM)