Floaties

Wednesday wasn't a really terribly hot day, so we went to the park in the morning with the Franzonello's. I assumed the afternoon would be a little warmer, so we met Pete at the pool. MJ tried out his new floaties and I think really did a great job with them in the big pool. He didn't need them in the kiddie pool, but still has one on his arm anyway. It was a very windy day and I thought it was cold, but the boys didn't seem to mind. The boys are actually happy in the picture of them together. MJ is saying "cheese"

And this is a picture of Joey from hanging out this morning. He got so excited when I sat him up in front of his gym rather than laying him down. So, he played like this for a long time this morning. He got up a few times last night (I think the travel set him off a bit). I knew there would be times in Joey's life that he'd wake up again. So, I'm going to take my own advice and remember that in a year, he'll be walking and such a big boy, and I'll wish I could have him little again. I'm going to appreciate the extra cuddles we get at night while they last. I'll also appreciate how he falls asleep by himself at night. At least he's got that going for him. The past two nights I've put him on our bed and left (the pack n play isn't as comfortable) and then I move him to that later in the night. Maybe that's why he keeps waking up in the pack n play... I'll experiment and see. Maybe I'll just have to get rid of the desk in our room so I can put his real crib in there. Oh, and MJ said something really cute today and I can't really remember what it was. Man, my memory is going. These are the things I need to write down so when I'm old and my kids are grown I can look back and think of how cute they were.

Baby Fish

I may have mentioned finding a baby fish in our tank before. His mommy died and then he died after I realized he was alive and tried to care for him more. Maybe a month ago I noticed I had two more baby fish. They were hiding under things and it was hard to see them. I was worried when I left for my trip b/c the big fish like to eat the little fry. But sure enough, I returned and they are still there...even bigger and not hiding as much. I was reading online and I think they are big enough now that they can swim away from the other fish. I also heard that once the mommy starts having babies, she'll keep doing it for the rest of her life (even if the daddy is no longer in the picture). She is a sunset wag platy and they are livebearing fish who have maybe 10-50 fry each time. I totally don't remember this one getting big... so maybe it was my other fish (the mickey mouse platy who died awhile ago) who is the mommy. It's hard to see the baby fish, but I think this is the mommy. Sad that she probably ate some of her babies. I am SO glad that I'm hard wired to love my babies and not eat them.

Lots of Boys!

Tuesday morning, Tony and Xavier came over to play while their Mommy went to work for a bit. These boys are already great play mates for MJ and Joey... I can't wait to see how much fun they will have in the future. MJ was fascinated with Xavier who is 2 months younger than Joey. MJ loves to play with Tony, and sometimes gets too excited. He also is very territorial and likes to push kids away if they get within 3 feet of the cars he's playing with. Other times, they played very nicely together. We tried to play follow the leader, which I know is a bit advanced for MJ but we have been reading this book from the library that he likes. He was getting into it. And here is a picture of Tony and MJ doing the Alphabet puzzle together.

Picnic!

It was hot for our drive home on Monday. So nursing Joey while MJ eats and plays in the back of the minivan was not going to work. Instead, we had two picnics on our stops. The first we threw a blanket under a tree at this rest area. The second stop we ate outside on the patio at a McDonalds.

Monday night, we ate over at Kristin's house. MJ enjoyed playing with Little Pete (he was a bit cranky after his car ride, but it was nice to play with friends). Kristin made this delicious chicken... much better than road trip food. This is supposed to be MJ and Pete hugging, but the picture didn't come out well.

Father's Day

Since MJ went to bed at 12:30am the night before, we tried to let him sleep in on Father's day. We ended up waking him up at 9:45 so we could rush to church. He was a bit cranky, but after church we went out to eat at Ruby Tuesday's (which was very good). Then we checked into a hotel b/c we wanted to be able to hang out with Daddy a little longer. After MJ took a late and long nap, we opened presents. Then we had a late dinner (some local sub sandwich place which was also very good). I hope Mario enjoyed his Father's Day x2.

The next morning, Mario woke up early to drive to Detroit. I tried to let MJ sleep in as much as possible since he's been needing it. He woke up and still looked sleepy, but he was being cute by Joey. Oh, this hotel room was great. I know many hotels are nice, but this one had a nice separate sitting area with couch, fridge, microwave, and two beds... we were set. Anyway, MJ adnd Joey were being cute in the morning, so I had to take some pictures.

The Wedding

We don't have many pictures of the wedding b/c the camera batteries ran out. This is our hostess for the weekend holding Joey. We found a babysitter through the Staron's church who was just absolutely wonderful. They took MJ into their home for the ceremony and then had both MJ and Joey for the reception. I guess they were good, but MJ was too tired to sleep. So we found him awake on their couch watching a movie at midnight. Things turned out just fine and Mario and I enjoyed our night out!

Rehearsal Dinner

MJ was a bit excited at the rehearsal dinner...he wanted to roam into the neighbor's yards. We brought many toys to keep him entertained which also happened to entertain many of the other kids too. Mario really liked the flower girl, who was 3. But we didn't get a picture of her.

Trip to Cleveland

We are back from our trip to Cleveland for Grant and Gretchen's wedding. Mario rented a car and drove from Detroit, and I drove the boys from here. We met in Chagrin Falls, Ohio on Thursday night and stayed with Andy's parents. Andrea and Andy also happened to be going to the wedding and since Andy's parents (who also went to the wedding) lived close by, they graciously let us stay with them. The drive was great (only about 7 hours 15 minutes). We had a gorgeous room to stay in and were very cozy. MJ had an air mattress and Joey slept on his pack n play mattress.

Friday we relaxed and hung out with the Starons. MJ really enjoyed throwing rocks in the pond. Friday night we went to the rehearsal dinner at Grant's parents house, not too far from the Starons. Here are Andrea and Andy with Joey.