¡Adios Summer!

Well, here we are...the first day of school!  It's truly bittersweet to see summer come to an end.  I have thoroughly enjoyed each moment that I got to spend with Vera this summer.  It is amazing how much she has changed from the last day of school until now.  I will miss all of my days with her, but it is so good for all of us to get back into a routine.  I really love fall..the cool crisp mornings, warm days, and sweatshirts at night.  I'm looking forward to pumpkins, football, mums, and colors on trees. 

As I drove to school yesterday for my teacher work day, I started thinking about all of the accomplishments of my summer.  I can honestly say that I worked more on school-related things this summer than I ever have.  (with the exception of the summer I got my Masters.)  I also really accomplished lots of projects and had lots of fun with Vera.  Here's the run down:
-Washed all the windows & cleaned the screens
-Scrubbed kitchen cabinets
-Swept house really well (under beds, furniture, etc.) with mom's Rainbow
-Got carpets cleaned
-Washed & waxed both vehicles
-Painted shutters & exterior doors
-Got my car recall service done (I've had the paperwork since last fall...)
-Read 3 books (This is really good for me...I'm not a big reader.)
-Made posters for bulletin boards
-Completed my license renewal goals and IPDP paperwork
-Worked on several lesson plans & online modules
-Went on 2 vacations (St. Louis for Elissa's wedding & Girls' weekend in Chicago)
-Got in lots of pool time
-Played outside with Vera
-Bought and ipad
-Installed new windows in our living room (and insulation, drywall, paint, crown molding)
- Updated photo albums
-Started this blog
-Turned 30
-Got my hip and back straightened out (finally!)
-Went to Farefest
-Did plenty of shopping (Vera learned to say "shopping" this summer...Love it!)
-Threw a baby shower for Mandy
-Went camping
-Hung out with friends and attended picnics and festivals
-Learned every song and commercial that the Disney channel plays

Wow!  I guess I could keep adding to the list.  Do laundry, grocery shopping, cleaning, and paying bills also count?  :)  It really was a great summer!

The first day of school went really well.  I think I'm going to have a good group of kids this semester.  My classes are relatively small, which is always a plus!  Vera had a great day at Patty's house, even though she wasn't really ready to wake up and get going.  She wanted mommy a lot this morning, but Adam did a great job of getting her ready to go.  He said she didn't really want to go to Patty this morning, but warmed up a little when she saw the other kids.  When I picked her up this afternoon, she was happy and jabbering with the other kids.  Patty said she ate a good lunch, took a nap (on a comforter in the middle of the floor....this has NEVER happened!) and was "perfect" all day. 

Year #8  for mom teaching
Year #2 for Vera @ Patty's
What kind of face is that Vera Lou?  :)

When we got home from school, I put Vera's swimming suit on and we went outside to play.  Needless to say, that didn't last long.  She was exhausted!  I fed her dinner and laid her down for a nap because I couldn't do anything to make her happy.  She slept for about an hour and wasn't much better after her nap.  But, tt was such a nice evening.  Adam went to an event for work all evening, so we played outside, went for a walk, and I washed my car.  Vera took a bath and went to bed by 9.  She didn't get to see her daddy much today, but that's ok.  She'll tell him all about her first day at Patty's in the morning.

Here's to a school year filled with sanity, health and success!
¡Adios Summer!  (tear)

I Scream, You Scream....

Vera Lou loves ice cream!  We've gone several times this summer to get ice cream, and Vera definately doesn't want left out.  Lately, we've been ordering her own junior milkshake.  Believe it or not, she does really well with the straw all by herself.  Of course, there are times when she tries to pull the straw all the way out, and then the mess begins...

The Great Darke County Fair

Last night we went to the fair.  Vera didn't go to the fair last year because she was really small, so this was her very first fair experience.  Her head was on a swivel the entire time, checking everything out and watching all of the people. 

We ate first, and Vera enjoyed some chicken from dad's fajita.  I had a chicken gyro and we shared some deep fried cheese curds.  They were delicious!  Before we went home, I had an apple dumpling and Vera had some icecream. 

She's saying "cheese."  Can you tell?

We checked out the farm machinery and Vera sat on some tractors. She thought it was pretty cool to play with all of the knobs and buttons on the machinery.

Dad climbed up first and then mom handed her up.  It sure was a big combine!



Vera and dad checked it all out!

We went through all of the animal barns and I got to see lots of my students' animal projects.  We saw the cows, piggies, sheep, goats and rabbits.  Catey, a very sweet student of mine, got her bunny out so Vera could pet it.  She giggled when she touched the rabbit the first time.  Thanks Catey! 



Hop Hop Continued

We realized this week why the "hop hop" has been hanging around our yard so much.  Adam mowed the lawn earlier this week and came in and said he discovered a nest of baby rabbits right in the middle of our yard!  The mother rabbit dug the grass up and the babies are buried underneath the dirt and dead grass.  Adam thinks we need to put the babies in a box and keep them as "pets" for Vera.  I disagree.  I'm not too fond of keeping a wild animal as a pet.  But, for those of you who know me, I'm not much of a pet person anyways. 

Hop! Hop!

Last week Vera and Adam were playing outside.  They were blowing bubbles and running around.  Adam hollered for me to come outside and see what was in the front yard.

Adam said the bunny hopped right in to the yard as they were playing on the porch.

Vera kept saying "hop hop" over and over.  She started to run toward the bunny, and of course it ran off.

They followed it to the backyard near the swing set, when it finally hopped into the field.  Vera was super excited to see the bunny! 

16 Months

Vera turned 16 months last week.  She's not a baby anymore; definately a little girl now.

I was telling Adam recently that I can't believe how much she's changed since the beginning of the summer.   On the last day of school, she couldn't walk, and she didn't talk as well.  Now she runs around like a maniac, and talks so much.  She really understands what we're telling her, and she does really well at talking for her age.  I've tried to make a list of words that she knows and uses regularly.  Here's what I came up with:

mom    
dad    
please (sounds like "peas" and is usually said over and over "peaspeaspeaspeas...")
thank you    
juice    
strawberry  (her ultimate favorite food right now)  
shoes    
socks    
snacks    
eat    
up    
out
outside    
Reese (her buddy that she asks for a lot!)
Patty    
papaw    
mamaw  
yes    
no    
nope  
baby    
diaper    
bye    
hi    
see ya    
ice    
eyes    
nose     
mouth    
teeth    
pretty    
hat    
hot    
mine    
Minnie    
Mickey
Go, go go! (the Olympics have been on TV, so she learned this while watching in the evenings)
books ("boosh"--her most favorite thing to do)
read  ("weed")  
keys    
shopping  
water    
pool    
bath    
bubbles  
towel    
mess
plop
peaches
rocks
brush your teeth ("bosha tee"  took a little bit to figure this out...she loves brushing her teeth!)

She still does lots of jabbering too, that we don't understand.  And, she will repeat almost anything you ask her to say.  She talks with a pretty major lisp right now and we're hoping that goes away with time. 

Vera also knows a lot of animal and object sounds.  Here's what she knows:
What does a ... say?
cow--mooo
piggy--wee wee
sheep--baa baa
chicken--ba ba
puppy--arr arr
monkey--ahh ahh
bunny--hop hop
tiger---rarr
train--choo choo
car--beep beep

Right now, Vera has lots of favorite things.  She loves to play on our bed and flop around.  Juice is also a favorite.  We call her a "juice head" sometimes because she will drink an entire cup of juice all at once. 

She really likes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, as she has for several months.  It's great for when I need to shower or keep her busy for a little bit so I can do something.  She also likes Doc McStuffins a lot too.  We always have to tell her to "back up" because she stands directly in front of the TV when she watches. 

We gave her an old cell phone to play with and she really enjoys walking around pretending like she's talking.  Whenever you ask her who she's talking to, she will always, always say "papaw."  If you ask her what papaw is doing she almost always responds with "moos" and some jabber to go with it.

Vera really likes glasses too.  She can put her sunglasses on herself, and she'll wear them for a long period of time.  I'm amazed that she will leave them on.  The other day I saw her watching Mickey with her sunglasses on.  She also has a few other pairs of silly glasses that she likes to play with.

I bought her a chunky puzzle at the second-hand store a few weeks ago.  It was brand new, and it's really nice because the pieces are wood and will hold up.  She likes to play with the puzzle too.  Her favorite piece is the airplane.  She can make it fly around in the air.  She can recognize all of the puzzle pieces when we ask her.

Flying the airplane and making noises.

Another of Vera's summertime favorites has been playing in the gravel of our driveway.  I previously blogged about her injuries related to playing in the gravel.  When we go outside, she always finds time to sit down in the gravel and play.  We've had lots of stones at the bottom of the washer this summer, and lots of messy clothes too.  It doesn't bother her little feet if she's barefoot either.  She walks right out on the stones to play. 

Yes, even in her swimming suit she plays in gravel.

I was playing with the settings on my camera.  There's nothing wrong with Vera's skin.  It's the "poster effect."

This summer, we've also enjoyed lots of pool time.  Vera loves the water.  She is not afraid at all.  Whether we're at the public pool, playing in the backyard, playing in the water table, or taking a bath; Vera does a great job of drinking the water.  Eww!

I'm going to have a hard time going back to work in a few weeks.  On one hand I'm ready to go back to a routine, but on another hand, I'm going to really miss all of the fun I've had this summer watching Vera grow and change.  I can't believe how much she can do and how much she understands.  And, I've got to watch a lot of that happen this summer.  There are days that Adam and I laugh out loud (pretty hard) at Vera's oneriness, inquisitiveness, and silliness.  She sure is a joy and a blessing!

Nature Walk

Yesterday was a beautiful day!  It was too nice to stay inside, so we decided to take a little nature walk at the Stillwater Reserve.  Adam always talks about going out there to walk around on days that we don't have anything to do.  It was perfect.  Not too hot, not too chilly, and a little breeze. 



Adam took Vera down to the river.



I took all of these pictures with my new iphone, so I'm still learning a little.  This is a good pic even though my finger got in the way a little.  haha

They took their shoes off and went for a walk.  As you can see, Vera did lots of splashing.  She kept trying to sit down, so Adam had to hold on to her. 

I love this picture!  It definately shows Vera's oneriness and determination to get wet.  Notice that Adam's feet aren't moving at all. 

We had to stop a few times so Vera could play in the rocks.  She enjoyed playing with the sticks she found along the way, although she's a little dangerous when she swings them around!

We stopped at the river bank again so Vera and dad could look for fish.

Not the best family picture.  I guess I should've turned the camera the other way, huh?

We had to hold her hand a lot while she walked so she'd stay on the path and keep walking.  She liked to stop and play with whatever was around.

All in all, it was a good trip.  I think maybe this fall we'll have some family pictures taken out there.  It really is pretty! 

The Windy City

My mom, sisters, and sister-in-law and I took off for a girls weekend in Chicago during mid July.  Mandy, Karen and Lindsey had never really been to the city to sight see, so we hit up as many major sights as we could.  Of course, Mandy is 6 months pregnant, so we needed to go at her pace.  The trip definately wasn't a bar hopping/drinking type of trip, but that's quite alright.  It was still a great time. 

Vera helped me pack my bags on Wednesday evening.

On Thursday afternoon, we checked out the Navy Pier.  It was SO hot!!  We ate at the Margaritaville restaurant.  It was good, but really hot inside.  Poor Mandy was pretty miserable.

On Friday morning, we shopped around Michigan Avenue and the Water Tower Place.  Everyone is on the escalator here, if you look closely.

We went to the 96th floor of the John Hancock Building and looked around on Friday morning.

Lego Cowboy @ the Lego Store in Water Tower Place.

Chicago skyline, all made of Legos.

Friday morning we also went to Millenium Park and saw the Cloud, aka the Bean.

A cool reflection of the buildings in the bean.

The flowers all around the city were really pretty!

On Friday afternoon, we went on the Wendella Boat Cruise on the Chicago River and through the locks out to Lake Michigan.  It was a relaxing and informative cruise with some pretty sights!

Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier.

On Saturday morning, we went on a food tour.  It was a walking tour to various restaurants around the city.  Our first stop was Pizano's.  We had some yummy pizza with goat cheese and sausage.

Second stop was Sarah's Pastries and Candies.  We had a delicious chocolate brownie at this stop.  Unfortunately, this restaurant closed 3 days after we visited.  Sarah, the owner, is only 28 years old and very successful!

At the very fancy Drake Hotel, we got to see the lavish powder room, voted runner up in 2009 as best restroom. 

We didn't eat here, just had some chocolates to go.  But, we got to see the room where their famous tea is served.  The Drake is very well-known for tea at Christmas time.

We had a Chicago style hotdog here.  It was yummy!

Had jumbalya and gumbo here.  It was pretty spicy for our liking.

Had a delcious hamburger here.  We were also entertained by the yelling and chaos of the Greek employees. 

We heard about SNL's spoof of the Billy Goat Tavern and the curse of the Goat. 

Our last stop was the Allerton Hotel.  On the very top floor is an old bar named Tip Top Tap.  It is no longer a bar, but a banquet and reception site.  It was set up for a wedding, and it was beautiful!

At the Allerton we had chocolate chip cheesecake.  It was so smooth and delcious!

Vera stayed home with her dad for the three days.  She also got to hang out with her buddies at the babysitter's house on Thursday and Friday during the day while Adam worked.  Patty said everyone was excited to see her!  She definately didn't forget Patty's house; on Friday she walked directly to the drawer where Patty keeps her pacifiers, and she quickly took one out and popped it in her mouth.  She hasn't had a pacifier since the end of June, so I guess she can consider it a treat. 

On Friday night and Saturday, Adam played in the Marion alumni tournament with my class.  So, Vera got to spend a lot of time in the dirt at the ball park.  She played with her friends Joel and JP.  By the looks of her clothes, she had a blast playing and running around!