Hockey Time

Cole, Craig, Scott, Allison and I all went to Cole's first hockey game on Sunday. We had lots of fun while Scott and Allison stayed for the weekend and we finally had a place for visitors to sleep...in Cole's big boy bed. Sadly for most of our crew, the Pens lost, but I was happy that the Caps won!

Happy Times....Sad Times

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Cole and I have been making the best of my layoff by scheduling lots of playdates and other activities at home. Play-doh and painting are our favorite pastimes. Beautiful weather has set in the last few days so we've headed outside to enjoy the 60 degree days. On the other end of the spectrum, we were very sad to say our goodbyes to our beloved family dog, Toni, last Friday night. Toni lived a long and happy life and I've loved her like no other dog. While it was a difficult decision for my dad to make, I am sure sure that Toni is in heaven with Nancy and they're having a grand ole' time.

A New Day

Cole, Craig and I made it down to Market Square today to view the swearing in of our 44th President. This is the first Presidential Inauguration that Cole will see in his lifetime. I love the way he says our now President's name...in his cute toddler way and almost as if he enjoys saying it. As I put him down to bed last night, I explained that tomorrow was a special day that we would have a new president. He looked up at me and questioned "Bawwack Obama?". Good boy was all I could say.

Disney Days

Merry Christmas

A very abnormal Christmas this year...in Florida. We enjoyed a balmy, 80 degree Christmas Eve on Fort Myers Beach. Cole enjoyed playing in the sand and playing with his "friends" Kristen and Brittany. We loved staying with Grandad at his house and having dinner with the entire family each night. Cole also got to pick oranges off of Grandad's tree...they were delicious. Next stop...Disney!

The happiest place on Earth

I can only imagine what Cole might have been thinking as we entered the most magical place on earth. I myself was brimming with excitement at the sounds, sights and smells of Disney. Although timid at first, Cole warmed up to the rides and characters and began each morning with a groggy voice requesting to go see Micky Mouse.

The days of Christmas

Cole's favorite day of Christmas is the Fifth Day. That's because that is when Daddy's bursts into our nightly storytime routine to announce that Cole's true love gave to him...."FIIIIIVVVVEEE GOOOOOLLLDDEENNN RINNNNNNNGGGGS"! Cole bursts out laughing EVERYTIME to this sillyness and Daddy has to stay close so that he can throw the door open at every verse of the song. I'm wondering if we are going to have to read that book every night from now until the big day...cause Mommy's singin voice isn't so good.

Let it Snow...Let it Snow...Let it Snow

Cole's first real snow was during Thanksgiving Weekend in Johnstown. I say real because he was way too small to appreciate it any other time in his life. He had a ball sledding down Grammie's hill and making a snowman in her front yard complete with a carrot nose. The nose seemed to be Cole's favorite part. Now that we're home he continues to ask when we can go out and play in the snow!

Giving Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving!

Cole, Blake and Connor made their own tablecloth for their big meal. I think we spent more time cleaning off the markers/crayons from this exercise than the food from their meals!

More about our PA weekend in the next post.

Playdates and Cookies

One of the many things that Cole and I have filled our time with lately are playdates. Last weekend our friends Erin and Ella made the trip down from Bethesda (you'd think this was hours away since we've seen each other 2 times since Erin, Carl and Ella moved up this way in July!)...but such is so in DC. A mere 20 or so miles and you see folks every few months! In fact, it is just the same for friends of ours that live minutes away. Being at home with Cole all day has left me craving adult conversation and I have realized just how bad Craig and I are about keeping in touch with our friends. The sad thing is that I can't promise that this experience will make me any better about it. Sometimes it takes too much effort to coordinate children's schedules, then there is the space issue. I love to entertain but the house can seem so small when even 4 people are in it :)

Anyway other than playdates we have been taking part in plenty of free library story times and also spending time at the park, when weather allows. I am also trying to get motivated about job hunting! When every call I make ends with "No, I'm sorry we don't have anything right now," it gets a little distressing and each time it's easier not to pick up the phone. Hopefully things will look up after the Holidays...and after the Inauguration.

Full-time mom ....or not?

Cole and I have been spending lots of time together lately...and neither of us is very good at it. My mind is elsewhere pondering what the next job will be, having to update my resume, put together a portfolio, thinking about the cleaning that I am not doing, feeling sad for Craig now that he is the only breadwinner in the family....the list goes on and generally not a single one of the things is about the little guy. I do feel guilty that I am not taking advantage of my newly found time with him to do something educational. I tried to take him to story time at the library on Tuesday but forgot that it was closed because it was election day. By the way, Cole says "barack obama" in the cutest way. I have got to get it on video. Cole misses his normal routine..seeing his Maw-maw and spending time with his favorite playmates, Emmy and Checkers. I know with time, we'll find a routine that works for both of us. For now, we're stuck in a don't know what to do with each other phase.

Toddling Tiger

Happy Halloween!!!

Thanks so much to Grammie for making this wonderful...and adorable...costume :)

Cannons go "Boom"

Cole, Craig and I spent a wonderful weekend down in Hampton, VA with Jussie and Emily this past weekend. Best of all Jus took us on base to see his most recent boat, the Tampa. Wow is this boat big! Another very proud moment for me the big sis, knowing that my bro spends 2-3 months at a time living on one of those things in the middle of the ocean or touring our borders.

Cole loved the boat's cannon best. Ever since Alexandria's 4th of July celebration where they ignited cannons in celebration, Cole has had a fascination with cannons. The minute we mentioned we were going on Jus' boat he asked, "cannons?" and didn't stop asking till we saw the big one. All in all, it was a very neat experience. You can never possibly imagine what the inside of one of the vessels looks like and I feel honored to have had the opportunity to go on one.

Fall Festivals

We are having a fabulous time attending various fall festivals. On Saturday, Cole, Grammie, Aunt Tiffy, Chloe, Emmy and I went to Fairfax's Fall Arts & Craft Festival. Cole had his first pony ride on a miniature horse named Lucky and he also sat for a face-painted pumpkin on his cheek. There were also lots of inflatable slides and jumping rooms. Most of them were a little too advanced for Cole so I had to jump right in and participate along with him. It all made me realize that I am not nearly as nimble as I used to be!

Meanwhile Cole is the biggest jabber jaw lately. From the moment he barks his first words in the morning..."Mommy,I'm up!" to the minute I lay him down at night,"I see maw-maw and checkers tomorrow?"...Cole always has something to say. Craig and I were trying to pay attention to a newscast this week and we couldn't hear over our jibber-jabbering toddler!

Almost Famous

Nope we're not talking about our Daddy! This time Cole gets the media attention. A little story to go along with this week's blog...

One of the first times Craig, Cole and I visited the Pentagon Memorial together, Cole was being his usual 2 year-old self playing in the gravel walkways and putting his hands in the fountains among other disrespectful things. Daddy doesn't like it when Cole does these things so in our usual Mommy and Daddy fashion we had to distract. I bribed him with a snack while sitting on the perimeter seat walls and observing how people interact with the Memorial. About this time, Cole peered up from his fruit snacks and commented on the "dolphins". At this stage of his speech I often have to nod my head and acknowledge that I understand (when many times I do not!). I figured he had read a book during the day about underwater creatures...and then it hit me...he was talking about the benches!

This is what appeared in an issue of the Boston Globe from October 5th...

"Falsani, who writes a religion column for the Sun-Times and who is the author of the new book about grace, "Sin Boldly," compared the benches to dolphins - a comparison, I later learned, that was first noted by the 2 1/2-year-old son of one of the memorial's builders.

"From a distance, and even as I walked among them, the underlit 'benches' looked like the dorsal fin of a diving dolphin - a pod of dolphins moving together," she wrote me. "Dolphins historically symbolize safe travel and were also used on ancient tombs - the Roman catacombs, for instance - to signify a love that remains even into the depths (of death, despair, etc.)."

So funny...maybe our Little Man has a future as an architectural critic. Here's the link to the full article:

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2008/10/05/everything_is_illuminated/

Crazy Busy

Wow...where do I even begin about our last few weeks? First came all the events surrounding the Memorial Dedication. Craig and I were fortunate enough to attend the Donor Dinner, the Dedication, many happy hours and celebration dinners and finally the Design/Construction Team Celebration at the Hard Rock Downtown. We had tons of fun and are sad to see this time in our lives pass. Hopefully Craig will move on to even better projects with not-so-tragic beginnings.

Next came a very fun extended weekend with our family from Michigan. Dad's house became family and party central as we celebrated Emory's 2nd Birthday and Beth's 49th with a delicious brunch and yummy crabs (if ya like that sorta thing). We were also able to become tourists for a few days while we bounced around town to the various Memorials and touristy sites.

Unfortunately our fun weekend came to a screeching halt when Nanny was rushed to the hospital. She had suffered a stroke some time during the day and lost her speech. Her recovery is going well and we are very hopeful that she will regain everything in the coming weeks.

Cole has managed to be a trooper through all of this. During the Memorial events he spent lots of time with his Maw-Maw and returned easily to his normal routine. On the weekend of our family visit, he stayed up late without a fuss and somehow managed to be pretty good natured during the day. During Nanny's hospital stay and recovery he has been a constant source of smiles and laughter that has been much needed by all.

Thank goodness for children. They give us all a reason to wake up in the morning and smile.

In Remembrance

As you may all know, Craig has been involved in the design and construction of the memorial for the 9/11 terrorist attack at the Pentagon. After 5 years of planning, design, and construction the Memorial is finally opening this week. While it has been lots of hard work, it has truly been a labor of love for Craig. He has formed bonds and relationships with the designers, the family members, and other consultants that I believe he will carry with him for the rest of his life.

The Memorial itself is a beautiful place. One cannot help but feel (and show) emotion as you step across the zero age line and run into the first bench, that of 3 year-old Dana Falkenberg. As Cole and I visited the site last night with Craig, a sneak peek offered to family members prior to the Memorial's "real" opening on the 11th, they were testing the audio system. A Norah Jones song played across the "park", slow and mournful. I crossed the zero age line and stopped. A swell of emotion hit me. I couldn't look at Craig, he would surely make fun of the tears in my eyes. It is the most awesome, and the most awful place all at the same time.

I encourage you all to visit it, particularly at night, when you just can't help but feel the site's intensity and the love that is present there.

Labor Day

We didn't spend Labor Day, or the weekend associated with it, working at all. Instead we headed up to Pittsburgh, PA where we spent a fantastic weekend of friends, fun and kicking back. Cole was thrilled about the wide, open space to run and roll down the hills, the dogs, the cats, the horses, the boat and so much more. On the way there he couldn't' tell us enough about the "Big Hills"...aka Mountains...that were all around us. He was also sure to point out all the castles on the way (usually churches).

Cole also bonded with our close friends Scott, Allison, Jenn and Shawn...which gave me a little time to relax. Relaxation was a key this weekend. We spent our Saturday out on the river boating and attempting a little tubing, water skiing and knee boarding. I was quite surprised at the hubby's athletic ability when he got up on the water skis his first try and awed us with his abilities on the knee board. In the evenings, Shawn lit a wonderful fire for us to roast marshmallows and to make mountain pies (I recommend peanut butter, banana and chocolate...just don't do it on a full stomach!). All in all....it was a fantastic weekend. I can't wait till next year!

Terrible Two's make for a Terrible Mom

They have finally hit and all I can say is "wow". My little angel is an angel no more. I was really looking forward to spending the weekend with Cole after a long, hard week at work and now that it's Monday morning I am sad to report that I am GLAD that I am here...and not there. I am a bad mother. I know this was bound to happen but just like motherhood, no one can prepare you for toddlerhood!
The thing is that I still don't think he's THAT bad...I just can't hack any of it...not even one iota. We were on one of our many errands yesterday and he demanded gum (for the 3rd time that day). Now don't think bad of me yet, I am doing the responsible thing and at least giving him sugarless gum but come on...not 3 times a day...the answer was "no". This is sure to elicit a screaming, fit-throwing tantrum out of any toddler and lucky me it was in the middle of the fabric store. Not Target...not Walmart...where any number of children are screaming for one thing or another... but at least in one of those stores you are able to duck down an aisle to reprimand your misbehaving child...but right there in the middle aisle of the fabric store for all to see. I simply had to smile, while thinking, "Yes this is my toddler screaming, "GUM...MOMMY I WANT GUM" at the top of his lungs. While also thinking to myself, "Oh great...now they not only think I am a bad mother because I don't know how to control my child but I also give a 2 year-old gum!"

More beach pix

Wow we had fun..even if it wasn't too far from home. While Cole was afraid of the waves, he was into the sand...big time! Here are some shots of our fun.