Every day or so, you'll find updates and pictures of what's happening with our family! Be sure to bookmark our site so you can stay on top of what we're doing!
On Saturday, my oldest brother Dave and his family arrived at our house for a wonderful visit. They're moving from AZ to Washington DC for a few months and were able to pass through our area on their way to DC.
It had been two years since I last saw them and the last time they saw Gus, he was just two months old! We had a great time with them and I loved seeing Gus with his cousins. He enjoyed being around them too!
We're hoping to see them again in August/September as they head back to AZ from DC. There's an album full of the pictures that I took while they were here... a great time was had by all!!
:-)
Cathy
Yesterday we celebrated Gus turning 23 months old. We still cannot believe that he will be out of the baby phase of his life and into the toddler stage in less than a month. Where has the time gone???
We went to Ocee Park in Johns Creek yesterday for a MOMS Club costume playdate. Gus wore his duck costume and I learned that he's grown quite a bit... it's about too small for him. I'm on the search for some costumes, but I might have to wait until we get closer to October to get some for him... which is a shame because he loves to dress up.
The park was fun and Gus had a great time with his friends that came. All were boys, and there were two others that dressed up too, so Gus had fun playing with them. It was interesting to see how vastly different they were from Gus though. One is three and a half and the other is two and a half and compared to Gus, they seemed ages older. They were playing make-believe and running around in their own imaginary world and Gus was just as happy as could be to just go down the slide over and over again.
We're gearing up for a WONDERFUL visit from my brother Dave and his family. They live in AZ and are moving to Washington D.C. for a few months for a great job opportunity for Dave. They'll be returning to AZ when his time is up, but they'll be coming to the east coast for a few months and I'm super excited. They'll be coming through our area on their way to DC and will be here Saturday night through Wednesday morning. I am so excited to spend some quality time with them and for Gus to really get to have fun with his cousins!! The last time they all saw us, Gus was two months old. CRAZY!!!
I'll be sure to post lots of pictures of the fun we have together!!!
:-)
Cathy
Where has the time gone??? I'm so sorry for not uploading and journaling sooner!!
I was sick last week and then my computer was no cooperating and I ended up having to have Steve wipe everything off and start from scratch. It's working MUCH faster now, but for a few days it was out of commision. Prior to it being fixed, I was having some MAJOR problems with getting pictures uploaded.
We have had a great week... Gus and I went to the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve and then after that we headed to Babyland General Hospital (home of the Cabbage Patch Kids). He was able to pick out a baby and we adpoted it for him for Easter. :-)
On Friday, my MOMS Club had an Easter Egg Hunt and potluck and it was wonderful! It was our first EEH and I wasn't sure how Gus would do, but he LOVED it! He had a really fun time and really enjoyed eating the candy inside the eggs that he found.
On Sunday, we celebrated Easter and had an Easter Egg Hunt in the front year. How things change from a year ago!! Last year Gus was not sure about looking for eggs and this year he was a pro!! He enjoyed his Easter basket. The Easter Bunny brought him chocolate, candy, some cars, some bubbles, a crazy noise maker, and some trains. :-)
We have a fun week ahead of us with a park playdate, and then a birthday party on Sunday. On Wednesday Gus will be 23 months (HOLY COW!!!) and then Sunday we celebrate his Adoption Day!!
My brother Dave and his family will be moving to Washington DC (temporary) from AZ and will be stopping by on their way east! I'm so excited to have them visit-- we haven't seen them since Gus was two months old!!! It'll be so fun to see Gus with his cousins and his Aunt Heather and Uncle Dave!!
:-)
We had such a wonderful week!!
On Tuesday, it was the first day of Spring, and my dad's birthday, and we celebrated by going to Rita's and enjoying a free regular ice because it's Spring!!
On Wednesday, Gus and I headed to the Zoo Atlanta with Kathryn and her daughter Aubree, and we met another friend, Christy, and her two boys, Roman and Ryan. The kiddos had a wonderful time and the weather was PERFECT!! Not too cold or too hot... a nice breeze and not a drop of rain to be seen. It was wonderful.
I took Gus on the zoo train for his very first train ride and he HATED it. Seriously. He cried and cried. So... maybe in a few months he'll want to ride it again. We'll see.
This weekend we're going to head to Stone Mountain to see the area and get some lunch at the Metro Detroit Coney Island that's here in GA. I can't wait to get my coney dogs, Faygo, and Better Made chips!!!
Today is Thursday, so when Steve got home, we headed to El Porton for Taco Thursday. Our entire bill was $12... now that's what I'm talking about!!!
:-)
We had a really fun week last week!! On Tuesday, our friend Kathryn came over with her daughter Aubree for a playdate. Aubree and Gus are in the same play group in my MOMS Club. They had a great time together, and Kathryn and I took pictures of the kids with our cameras... then we swapped pictures. It was great!!
On Thursday, we headed to the Georgia Aquarium with Kathryn and Aubree and we had a wonderful time. The aquarium was super packed and it was hard to see a lot of the fish, but it was still enjoyable. Thursday night we headed to El Porton for Taco Thursday!
On Friday, Gus and I went to lunch with some MOMS Club friends and then stopped at the park on the way home to play. Gus had a great time and then it was most defintely time for lunch and a nap.
We enjoyed Family Movie Night on Saturday, and we watched the documentary Being Elmo. It was quite interesting and even Gus liked it.
Sunday is our family shopping day, so we headed to Wal-Mart to do our shopping and then we came home and while Gus napped, Steve and I tackled the storage space in the basement. We have boxes to go through, but for the most part, we had a successful afternoon of locating the potatoes from the pantry (of course it was on the very back wall and at the bottom...). Thankfully the potatoes had not started to rot yet, but a few more months of being stored away... we would have been smelling them for sure. GROSS!!
I found my netbook (YAY) but no cords yet... and we found the Wii, as well as Gus's Baptism info (good to have) as well as some other key items. We're still missing my laminator...
Today we had our morning playdate and it was a great time. This week we are going to the zoo (on Wednesday) and then heading to my friend Kelli's house for a playdate with her daughter Scarlett.
Gus's birthday party is set. I have party favors ordered, the location is booked (Gymboree), and the invites have been delivered or mailed. I think it'll be a great 2nd birthday for him!!
See you next week!!
:-)
Cathy
This Saturday we spent the day shopping and relaxing and finsihed our night with our first Family Movie Night... complete with pizza and some Netflix. It was wonderful.
While we were having dinner, we got a call from Sharon (Gus's Great Aunt) letting us know that she and Olivia would be driving through the Atlanta area and they wanted to know if we wanted to get together for breakfast in the morning. We were so excited! We offered our house for them to stay at (instead of a hotel) and they were eager to come and sleep here rather than in a hotel room.
They arrived at 1:45 or so and were exhausted from the drive. We got them settled, and then we all went to bed.
When we got up on Sunday, we had such a great visit with them. We were able to hang out here at the the house for a bit before heading to IHOP for breakfast. It was so good to see them and hear about how they're all doing, and for them to get to spend some fun time with Gus.
We can't wait to see the rest of his side of our family and our MI and IN family and friends in May!!
Last night we had to take cover due to a tornado warning in our area. Usually, when there's a warning, we SHOULD take cover, but depending on what's happening on the news, we don't always actually take cover. Last night we did.
Around 8:45 or so, there was a tornado that hit Marietta. It touched down and caused damage (though, thankfully no deaths). When we saw it on the news, we were a bit nervous. They showed the projected path of the tornado and it showed Roswell, and then it looked like it'd go north of us. Well... it didn't.
We had about 20 minutes to figure things out, and they showed Johns Creek as right in the path of the tornado. At any given minute, it could touch down, and we had to be safe. I grabbed my purse (it has my wallet, ID, and diapers and wipes for Gus), Steve grabbed a blanket, some water, and his wallet. I also grabbed some food from the fridge and pantry for us, as well as a blanket for Gus. We took our stuff downstairs and then came back up and got Gus.
He was sound asleep... he was a little confused, but was happy to be with us. We headed to the basement, turned on the weather radio down there and watched the news. It was scary and I felt like I could throw up. Steve was nervous too, but thankfully, while it showed Johns Creek, we were north of where the heaviest rotation was appearing on the doppler. We lost sattelite reception and I got scared, but it came back on.
We were able to head back upstairs and everything was fine. After we put Gus back to bed, we stayed up watching the news and they said that the risk of serious danger or death was extremely high with this storm. Steve had goosebumps from that statement.
While all this craziness was happening, Steve was texting his friend Phillip (from work). He was in DC and freaking out that his wife and three young kids were here in the strom by themselves. I told Steve to call him and try to reassure Phillip that everything was okay. I'm glad he called... Phillip was seriously upset and felt helpless. Steve asked if he had a weather radio at their house and they didn't.
I told Steve to offer one of ours (we have two), and thankfully, he accepted the offer. He was so thankful and touched that Steve would offer to lend him one of ours, and drive it over to his wife. I hope that someone would do the same for me if Steve was out of town and we had something like that happen to us.
Steve told him that it was not a problem, and headed over and dropped off the extra radio. I think Phillip slept better knowing that his family would at least be alerted to the dangers of a tornado through the radio. His wife was also extremely grateful.
We had storms all night and again at 2am we had the radio going off due to more tornados, but these were north of us and we didn't have to take cover again.
It was a long night, and scary, but thankfully we have a house with a basement. I felt safe down there, and it was nice to know that we have a place to go to take shelter if needed. Next, we need to create an emergency box that we keep in the basement with imporant documents and items that we would need in the event of an emergency.
:-)
Steve's dad came down yesterday for the weekend-- it's been a great visit so far. Gus was caught off guard yesterday, and as a result has had some hesitation around Grandpa. Today was much better, and I'm sure tomorrow will be even better.
We'll be spending this weekend with Grandpa and then next weekend, Grandma and Grandpa will be together for our visit with them. We're excited to see Grandma!!
We'll be going to dinner on Sunday (next week) to a place that's known for its southern cooking. I'm excited to try the fried chicken, creamed corn, and whipped potatoes. :-)
See you soon!
Yesterday, Gus and I went to Catch Air and met two of our friends for the morning. We had a great time and I was amazed at what I saw when I just sat back and watched Gus.
He has a keen interest in stacking things and putting things in order. He was playing with the large squares and stacking them. After stacking, he decided to put them all in a row. He went back and forth from the hippo where they were being held, to continue his row of giant squares. It was fascinating.
Then he went to play with the giant Duplo/Legos. He started with the square pieces and stacked and stacked and then moved onto the rectangles. It was very interesting to watch.
I'm constantly amazed at what I see him doing. He's always talking about something, but we still can't figure out what he's saying. It's so cute to hear him say things that we DO understand though. His little voice is the sweetest sound that I've ever heard!
Today was a busy day for us!!!
Gus is now 21 months!! I can't believe it!! We spent the morning taking pictures and laughing. :-)
After Gus's three hour nap (YAY) we headed out to Gymboree for a birthday party. Gus's new friend Ryan turned two yesterday, and he invited Gus to his party. Steve and I went with him and it was so fun. Gus really had a good time and really enjoyed himself.
You'll have to check Gus's blog and my blog to read more about today. I posted pictures from both events... be sure to check them out!!!
:-)
This morning Gus and I drove to South Carolina to meet Grace and Kristen at Kristen's mom and dad's house. It was a little over two hours to get there and we didn't have any traffic once we got on I-85, but between our house and I-85 was another story.
We got there around 10:30 and stayed until 3:00. Gus and Grace had so much fun together and Kristen and I managed to get quite a few precious pics!
Gus had his first kiss today... right on the lips too!! <3 I kinda knew it'd be with Grace... there's just something so sweet about the two of them. Anyway, we had a great day and Gus slept on the way home (YAY)! We arrived home around 5:30 and managed to miss most of the traffic.
It was a great day! We can't wait to see Grace and Kristen again. Maybe next time they'll come here and we can show them around our new town!!
:-)
We're so happy that it's the weekend!! Steve had a GREAT day at work today-- they had a Super Bowl party and he got to wear his Walker Bengals jersey. His company provided pizza, beer, snacks, Wii fun, and Corn Hole for everyone's enjoyment. I'm telling you... he works for such an awesome company!! :-)
Gus and I had a good week. I'm finally feeling better, but Gus still has a bit of a cold. We went to an AAM (Atlanta Area Mommies) playdate yesterday and had a really good time. The kids were all close to Gus's age, and I had such a great time with the moms that were there.
We have a MOMS Club playdate on Monday and we're looking forward to going and getting to know the MOMS Club moms a little more. MOMS Club has 18 moms and they're the ones that always go to events. AAM is different because there are moms all over the Atlanta area on there (over 400 moms) and then our specific area group has about 40 moms. Both are different and I can't say that I prefer one over another (yet). We'll see... so far, the moms in MOMS Club have been so welcoming and warm. Let's hope it continues!
Our niece Aine is seven years old today... where has the time gone??? I shake my head with disbelief that she's already seven. Hopefully she has a nice birthday weekend!!!
I'll try and write again this weekend. :-)
Gus and I got up this morning and decided to head out for the Georgia Aquarium. After seeing that it's 70+ degrees today and SUNNY... we should have gone to the zoo instead!!
We had a GREAT time at the aquarium and Gus enjoyed checking out the sea creatures. He wanted to touch everything and didn't quite understand that there was glass in the way.
He was able to run around and for the most part, he listened when I told him to come with me. I chased him a few times (so fun), but we had a great time. We will definitely be going back (many times) and we're so thankful to my parents for the family membership. I was able to park across the street for $5 (versus the $20 that the Aquarium charges) so I felt good about that. The food... quite pricey and you can't bring your own food inside. Oh well...
It's definitely a place to take out of town guests... it's HUGE and has so much to offer. There's a dolphin show that's free with our membership, but we skipped it for today. Maybe next time.
Tomorrow is Steve's 37th birthday and we went out to dinner tonight to celebrate. We went to Longhorn and they came to the table and sang to him. Totally made me smile, but I got the "I'm going to kill you" look from him. :-)
We will be giving Steve his presents tomorrow and I just know he's going to love all of them. I'm such a good wife. :-) (Yes, I'm tooting my own horn.)
Today we did our grocery shopping and other errands and then got back in time for Gus to take a nap. He slept in this morning... he didn't get up until 9:15!!! What a sleepy-head!!!
Yesterday was a bit scary for us-- Gus had a temperature of 102.5 and we weren't sure if we needed to take him to the doctor or not. Fortunately, we were able to bring it down and keep it down. He got a new tooth yesterday while he napped, and had all the signs of teething... runny (nasty smelling) poo, a runny nose, and a spiked fever.
Today he was like a new kid... no fever and was delightful all day. He was even delightful during dinner, which is amazing, since he's been known to throw a fit (or two) while dining out. His tantrums have saved us some money... we're not eating out as much as we used to!!
Anyway-- if you're friends with Steve on Facebook, be sure to send him a Happy Birthday greeting. Better yet, give him a call-- I am sure he'd love to hear how much his friends and family love him!!
<3
I'm going to update Gus's blog (Blogger is back up and working)... be sure to check out the post for this week!!
Steve is in California for work and tonight is day one of three without him. It was a pretty mellow day... our cleaning crew came and were in and out in less than two hours! Gus slept until 8:45 this morning (from 7:30 last night) and then took a nice long three hour nap this afternoon!!
:-)
This weekend has been relaxing and was spent with a good friend (Michelle) and getting errands done yesterday and now today, we're relaxing and watching football.
This week will be a bit different for us because Steve is flying to California on Tuesday and not returning home until late on Thursday. We'll miss him tremendously... and it's the first trip he's taking since we've moved to Georgia.
Tomorrow, Gus and I are going to a MOMS Club playdate and hopefully we'll like it. The one mom told me that most of the kids are two years old and I'm hoping that they're a young two, and not going on three.
On Tuesday we have our cleaning crew coming to clean and then on Wednesday we have a playdate with AAM. That's it for the week, but it'll keep us busy. It's always nice to have options and things that we can do to keep ourselves busy.
I talked to Kristen and Gus and I are going to drive up to SC to see her and Grace while she visits her mom and dad. We'll be going during the first full week in February, so like two weeks. We're going to leave here around 8am and get there by 10 and then stay all day and head back around 3pm. It should be an easy enough drive with having the DVD player and I am so excited to go see her and Grace!!!
Definitely check the site for pictures... I try to update daily.
>^..^<
We went to a new place today called Catch Air! I was hesitant to go, since Gus had a horrible experience at Kid "Bust" (Blast). I thought I'd give it a try, and so I added something on the Atlanta Area Mommies area group message board asking if anyone was interested in meeting up for a playdate. Dina said she was interested, so she and Becca came, and then there were two other moms there that I met (Heather and someone else that I forgot her name). It was so fun!
When we arrived, it was going to be $5.75 for Gus and I asked about their frequent visitor pass. You get 11 visits for $30. The girl said you basically pay for five and get five free. I was sold. So for $30, we now have ten visits to Catch Air. I like that you can stay as long as you like, and we were there at 10, when they opened, and they were pretty empty.
Dina goes every week and she said Thursdays are SUPER busy (they do a storytime) and then the weekends are PACKED. We'll probably avoid Thursday-Sunday, but I'll try to take Gus once a week.
He really had a great time!! The place is HUGE and looks like it's made for kids four and under. Nothing was in there that Gus couldn't go on if he wanted and it was clean and safe. I was very glad that we went. The best part is that it's just down the street from us!!!
Check out the pictures (and video) from our visit today!!
I don't know how the time slipped away from me, but sorry for the delay in updating our journal!!
Let's see... we had a very relaxing weekend and I went to a baby shower for my friend Michelle... it was great! Then on Sunday we went out to dinner and had a wonderful dinner at Outback (our favorite). We watched football all day too.
This last week Gus has discovered that when he has food in his mouth, he can talk and laugh and usually, he can't contain the food inside his mouth and it ends up being spit all over. This makes him laugh even more... and causes mama to try and redirect his behavior. Mama redirecting is funny to Gus, so he laughs more and more food spits out of his mouth. It's been *so* enjoyable to have a meal with him lately.
Other than being gross at the table, we've had a great couple of days. Gus has been taking four hour naps each day, and we attribute it to a growth spurt.
My computer became infected with a virus yesterday and I was able to call my dad and he walked me through how to fix it. It was a DOOZY!! Now my computer is running well and is spic-n-span!! I'm so grateful for him!!!
Tomorrow we're going to a place called Catch Air for a morning play date. Should be interesting... not sure if Gus will enjoy the inflatables (he didn't like them the last time we went to a place like this). I'm hoping it goes well.
Lastly, I found out about a free adoption profile hosting site and created a profile for our family. I'm not sure if anyone even looks at them, but it can't hurt to have it out there. Here's the link if you'd like to check it out! http://www.hopingtoadopt.org/index.php/family/letters/448
:-)
Cathy
This morning we had our second playdate at our house and this time it was with one of my AGD sisters and her 17 month old daughter Scarlett. It was such a great morning with them!!
Kelli is from Kentucky and just as nice as can be! I found it so easy to talk to her and really hit it off with her!! Sometimes I feel like meeting new moms is like dating... lol.
Gus absolutely LOVED Scarlett and they played really well together. He shared his snack with her, got her sippy cup when she dropped it, and shared his roller coaster with her. He really is such a sweet, kind little boy. We are so lucky and so blessed to call him our son!!
Kelli and Scarlett stayed for about two and a half hours and then they left. We had lunch and then I put Gus down for his nap at 1:00. He didn't wake up until 5:15!!! WHOO HOO!!!
He woke up and had a dry diaper (such a great sign!) and was in the BEST mood! So lovey, happy, and smiley. While he was napping, the mail came and his Melissa & Doug dough and tools came and then so did his string-a-bead set. He and I played with the beads (AWESOME for fine-motor skills) and then he and Steve played with the dough while I ordered pizza for us.
We had Jets Pizza tonight! It's a Michigan pizza and I was so excited to see that there was one here!! It was delicious... but quite expensive. It'll be a treat to have it again... not something we can do every week.
Next week Gus and I are going to a place called "Catch Air" for a playdate with some moms in the area. Then next Friday I have my first Moms Night Out and I am so excited! I'm eager to meet some friends and I feel like I'm well on my way!!
:-)
Cathy
Today was a pretty good day. Gus woke up at 6:30 and I changed him and put him back to bed... he was able to sleep until 8am.
Our cleaning crew came for the first time today and they did a wonderful job. The house looks (and smells) fantastic! They'll be coming every other week.
While the cleaners were here, Gus and I went downstairs and I watched The Bachelor from last night while he played. Then when the cleaners were gone, we headed up and it was nap time.
Gus slept for three hours! He came down in a great mood, had lunch, and then we played. Steve came home early today-- such a treat!! We had a great afternoon together and then we had a great night.
Tomorrow Gus will be 20 months old... unbelievable. I'm not sure where the time is going!! I'm going to take pictures and then I'll try to post them tomorrow!! I'll be posting on his blog tomorrow too... be sure to go there to see the post for turning 20 months!
:-)
Cathy
We had a great day today! We did a lot of running around, but it was good! We went to the Delta Community Credit Union and opened savings and checking accounts for us, and a savings account for Gus. While we were there, Gus was being his usual cute self, and made a lot of new friends. Everyone was very eager to talk to him, and he was more than eager to talk back with them.
We were disappointed to watch the Bengals lose to the Texans... they're now out of the playoffs. Detroit is on right now (they were up going into the half) against the Saints. Let's hope they are able to pull off a win!!!
Goooooooooooooo Lions!!!!
We had our first in-home playdate today! Dina and Becca came over to play this morning and Gus had a blast with Becca! They're only three days apart (Gus is older) and while Becca was shy and a bit reserved, they were able to play together toward the end.
I had a great time talking to Dina and think she's great. I'm looking forward to another playdate with them soon!!
:-)
Well, this morning started off on the wrong foot. Gus decided to remove his diaper AGAIN and yes, this one was poopy and he had started to play with it (SO GROSS)! I had to completely strip his bed and scrub everything. Not enjoyable at 7:30am.
Then we came down for breakfast and the morning had started to turn for the better, when I let the dogs out. Well... apparently with it being so windy last night, the gate was wide open and Elphie decided to take a stroll through the neighborhood. When I went to let them in, only Ned came (which is usually the case). I called and called for Elphie (she usually comes after being called twice) but she never came. I went out to see where she was, and she was gone. :-(
I went to the front and called but she was long gone. Both of their tags still have our NC address on them, so the only thing to contact us is Steve's cell that's on their tags. I came inside and found the info for her microchip and started to call the number. I took a peek out the front door and there she was across the street. I hung up, went outside and called her and she came running to me (thankfully she didn't run the other direction)!!
WHEW!! After that fiasco, we headed out for our first playdate in WEEKS!!! It's been almost a month since we had our last playdate and not only was Gus ready to go play, but so was I. There were three of us moms and then three girls and Gus. The oldest girl was 5, then her sister was 3 and then the other mom that came had a 28 month old and then there was Gus. :-)
Anyway, here's hoping that the rest of today calms down and there's no more poop to deal with, and my baby gets a nice long nap. :-)
This last week has been wonderful!! My mom and dad came down for a nice visit from December 27th through January 1st (they left early on the 2nd). We were able to ring in the new year with them and it was just wonderful.
They were worried that Gus would be shy and hesitant with them (the last time they saw him, he was a bit on the leery side and wasn't overly interested in anyone but us). He was so happy to see them and had no problem crawling up into their laps. Usually, it involved food, as Gus is a known mooch. :-)
I call him "Moochie Sarduchi" and it's now a nickname that Pap and Gram have taken to as well. Gus loves to eat anything that someone else has. :-)
While they were here, Steve and my dad built us the Tot Tower that we had wanted. It's great for putting Gus in it while I'm cooking or working in the kitchen. He's able to stand in there and he's safe and can't get hurt. As he gets older and starts becoming more able to help with dinner, he can stand in the tower and help me cook. It's pretty incredible and only took them a little over a day to complete.
We rang in 2012 with some Asti and Gus slept through all the fireworks going off at midnight. We had hoped to drive to Buckhead to show them where Steve works, but Steve came down with a stomach bug from Friday through Saturday (complete with vomiting) and ended up going to urgent care to get some anti-nausea meds. Thankfully, no one else got sick!!
This next week we don't have any plans. I've got some stuff in the works for next week, but this week it's just us hanging out here at the house. It's cold today and supposed to keep in the 40s until this weekend and then it's supposed to warm up again. I'm hoping to take Gus to the aquarium soon... I am really eager to see the World's Largest aquarium!!!
See you next week!! Be sure to come on and join the site so that you get updates when pictures are added. I'm hoping to add pictures each day.
:-)
Cathy