Some More Summer Highlights

Checking out the gorillas at the Louisville Zoo

A huge toilet at the Columbus Children's Muesum (you can actually climb through it, but Davey wasn't quite into it)

The best part of the fair is that Josh and I got to ride for free!

Getting wet at Symphony on the Prairie

Davey and I are enjoying the mild July that we are having. Our days are pretty laid back and include Davey's favorite activity...MOWING! He loves to sit on the mower while I get a portion of the yard finished. I am not sure who attention span only allows us to get about 45 minutes in, but we end up needing to do a small bit each day. It works out well, I think.

Some of his favorite words and phrases are...mow, water, I did it!, Oh man!, I am a mess!, and many more...He also loves to talk on the phone and can actually hold a fairly good conversation.

He can identify his colors and loves to say yellow by throwing his tongue out on the Ls. It cracks us up!

Potty training has had its ups and downs. Yesterday he put me at my wits ends with accidents, yet today he has had a perfect run (so far)...Each day he is dry, he gets to go golfing with Josh.

I had a direct shot with Off to his face and had to pour water over his head for 20 minutes, call the poison control center, and take him to the eye doctor...that was an eventful night. But everything is fine now.

We have been to the zoo, the children's muesum, had a fun time at the county fair, and Symphony on the Prairie. We went to SotP for the 4th of July and you can tell by the pictures that we got a little wet, but it was worth it. Davey LOVED watching/hearing the huge cannons go off during the 1812 Overture and we won a raffle for Indy Zoo tickets! And since the weather was bad, we got tickets to go again!

I am really busy getting prepared for Vacation Bible School at church next week. This is my crazy week and then I get to relax a little bit once the week actually begins. I am grateful for all the helpers and teachers that I have at church. We wouldn't be able to do much without everyone's help.

Getting Used to the Summer Schedule

Family picture at Donnelson Cave

Somewhere in Clark State Forest

Having fun at Thomas

This is my first offical week of summer and I am loving it! Two weeks ago didn't count because I had to go to school Monday through Wednesday. Last week didn't count because I was in Indianapolis for a work session Tuesday through Thursday. So finally I can settle in to my routine of sleeping as long as Davey will let me (this morning 6:30!), going for a walk, going to the park, fixing lunch, cleaning house, and playing outside. It is a tough life, I know!

It has been a while since my last post...I have decided that April and May are the worst months for stress in my house. School is drawing to a close and Josh is at his busiest. We went camping with my parents in April to Spring Mill State Park. I hadn't been there in years! We also managed to pawn Davey off to my parents over Memorial Day weekend. Josh and I completed 12 more miles of the Knobstone trail. Just 10 more to go! We are hoping to wait for a cool weekend in September or October, though...no need to sweat THAT much! It was good to get back on the trail. We hadn't been there since I was 3 months pregnant with Davey. So it was due time!

Then the next big event was just this past Saturday. We went to Connersville to ride on Thomas the Tank! Davey (and Josh) are wild about trains and so everyone had a great time. They had the whole area around the depot built up with fun things for the kids to do. Davey amazed us both with how adventurous he was. He even rode a pony!

We are starting the potty training process. And I think he is doing well. We have a long way to go, but as long as it is finished by August, I don't care!

Davey's language is getting better and clearer each day. Yesterday, we were at the in-laws and my MIL commented on a horrible shot in the US Open by saying, "Oh, man!" Davey picked up on that instantly and it has replaced his "Ah-oh" every since! It kind of sounds like one of the Simpsons characters...but I can't remember which. It is hilarious.

Davey's TWO Years Old!

Wanna hear how bad of a mom I am?? Davey loves to blow out any candle, so I let him do this one a couple of times on the morning of his birthday...later I noticed his massively long eyelashes got a little singed...

Notice the Little Mermaid balloon I found at Wal-Mart!

Getting ready for the Easter egg hunt at church. The first of FOUR that weekend!!

He was very good at finding Easter "balls" as he called them.

This is one of my favorite pictures of all the 2 years! Those are my hiking poles collapse down and fit him perfectly. He was excited to be out of the pack and hiking like Dada. That didn't last long since we weren't on a trail and he tripped a few times! But seriously...HOW CUTE??? ( I am talking about both of them, of course!)

Yeah yeah yeah...I guess I will say it again...can Davey really be this old?? I wonder how many more times I will be quoted as saying how fast these 2 years have gone? Probably lots! We had a great birthday weekend. He turned 2 on Friday, April 3 and Josh and I took the day off to get his new room together. We put together the bunk beds (full on bottom and twin on top) only to realize that we had no mattress for it! LOL We bought the bed off of my sister, Shannon, months ago and I forgot that she didn't sell us the mattresses! So we made a mad dash to Columbus to pick a cheap one up. We put Thomas the Tank sheets on and a great looking quilt my Mom had in a closet. Orange and navy blue! Just the colors we were looking for! I bought blackout curtains in the same blue, as well. Soon we will paint one of the walls orange (his favorite color), but the wall will need some patching first...the plaster is cracking!

Then Saturday we headed to Scottsburg for a birthday trifecta! Shannon, Davey, and I celebrated birthdays with the parents. We ate a lasagna bigger than Indiana! Then Sunday after church we had the family get together again (along with the Shaw side) for a party at our place. Davey was in a great mood and the weather was wonderful. The cousins and Davey played outside with the new sports equipment he got. I need to get it on video, but I am serious when I say my son has got a killer golf swing! He is a lefty and has great follow through! :)

And then this past weekend was Easter and I am not sure if we ever stopped eating! We woke up, went to Sunrise Service in Vernon Cemetery, went back to the church and had a good ole fashioned Baptist pitch-in breakfast (where my breakfast casserole went first, thank you very much!). Then we went on a little hike to finally get a spring picture for the blog (bonus points for those who noticed the winter scene after 2 years has finally changed to spring!). Then went home for a little rest, just to wake up and go to the in-laws for a huge lunch, then go down to Scottsburg for another huge meal. We felt horrible at the end of it!

So I think that is the update right now. Josh is close to tiling the bathroom. I will have to post pictures of that project and Davey's new room once it is painted. I am also to soon have pictures of Davey's new friend coming soon from Kazakhstan! (Yeah...we need to deepen the gene pool around here!) Happy thoughts and prayers go up to Jill and her court appearances this week!

More Pictures of Disney

Isaak, Eliza, Kaleb, Rachael, Sarah, Davey, Dad (Jan)

Mount kids at Dixie Crossroads...best rock shrimp restaurant ever!

Playing in the sand.

Rachael with her balloon.

Davey's favorite part, I think...I am not telling how much it cost!

All of us waiting to go on the Jungle Cruise.

Isaak and Davey with Pooh

Uncanny resemblance, huh?

Me, Davey, Rachael, and Ariel

Davey getting ready to ride the Pooh ride.

Disney World!

Jason carrying Davey and Rachael in Epcot. We were waiting on the fireworks to start.

Davey with his favorite buddy...GRANDPA!! This is before the animal safari in Animal Kingdom.

He never took off the hat!

Typical morning...snuggling with the cousins and watching Mermaid!

Davey at Cocoa Beach, FL. He didn't like the water and didn't want me to get in either. Luckily there was a playground near by, so he and Rachael had fun there.

Cheesing it up on the carosel.

Very excited about the choo-choo ride around the Magic Kindgom. Eliza and Rachael helped point out all the fun things. Sarah is in the background!

This is the grin that is found in most pictures.

Davey and I survived our first Disney World adventure over Sping Break! There were 11 of us at maximum...Davey, me, (not Josh...he had to work :( ) Shannon, Jason, Kaleb, Isaak, Eliza, Rachael, Sarah, Mom, and Dad! We had a fabulous time. These are just a few of the pictures from my camera. But my BIL will have a lot more since he has the awesome camera and has it out all the time. We went to all the parks and the beach and never went hungry. I wish Josh would have been able to come, but there will be a next time. With all the people, we rode rides in shifts and it worked well. The new Everest ride is awesome...by far better than the other roller coasters there.



Davey is obsessed with the Little Mermaid right now. Thank the Lord that we found a DVD player to bring down with us. I think we watched the movie at least 30 times this week. He finally agreed to watch Jungle Book and really liked it. He went into overload when he actually got to sit next to Ariel in the Magic Kingdom. I will post that picture when Jason gets them all loaded. (He is much better and faster than I am about that!) Davey even got a tatoo of her on him arm. He can't keep his eyes off of it! LOL

It was a great time to be with my family and really get to spend quality time with Davey. At home, I get so wrapped up with other things that he doesn't get 100% mommy time often. On this trip we had a great time learning new words and discovering all sorts of things. He was very well-behaved on the LONG car trip and in the parks. He is speaking so much now and will put together sentences. Crazy to think he is turning 2 next week!

Chistmas, News Years, and Winter Break...

So much happening at the Shaw house! I need a vacation from Winter Break! So let me start at the beginning...

Christmas was wonderful. Davey came down the stairs to find that Santa had set up his very first train set! He kept saying "Woah!" Just like Joey Lawerence from Blossom! He loved it. He is getting really good at saying "Choo choo!" Then of course that started the day with one Christmas...only to have 2 more that day (not to mention the one we had on Christmas Eve night!) Josh and I got a lot of great stuff from the parents. My in-laws have great taste in clothes! Davey also got lots of noisy muscial toys, puzzles, games, and books. He also liked playing the boxes...the pic above shows how he wanted me to ride in the "train" with him!

Then on December 28th, Josh and I left Davey with the Grandparents and we headed to Jekyll Island, GA. It was also wonderful! Josh played golf each morning (while I watched and gave advice on his swing), we would chill in the afternoon, and go out to eat in the evening. The island was so lovely. We walked around the historic district with the old houses and gift stores. The ocean was right outside our hotel room. It was about 70 each day. But the food each night was my favorite. Fresh seafood and nice restaurants with no toddler!! We went to Savannah on New Years Eve and walked around all the squares. Beautiful! We also went to a round house rail road muesum (so you know that Davey gets his train addition honest!). It was cool. No, we didn't go to Paula Dean's restaurant...instead we eat in the oldest house in Savannah still standing. Very cool. Sadly enough...we were so pooped from walking around all day that we didn't even make it to midnight...I know...we are pathetic! But we still had fun. I was impressed how well I did without Davey and vice versa. Thanks Mom and Dad! When we came in the door Davey screamed and ran to me. It was the best.

Last picture, I promise! Here is Davey playing in a light snow we had last week. What a precious little boy! He loves to boss the cats and dog around by telling them "NO!" The terrible twos should be interesting, huh? He loves to take off his shoes and put on others...especually patent leather little girl shoes! LOL! Each night he sleeps with his tried-and-true blankie, a stuffed dog that looks like Chloe, and a fleece blanket to snuggle under. I am sure that once he gets into a big boy bed, there will be tons of things all round him to help him sleep. Before bed he always reminds me to say a prayer...he covers his mouth and nose with both hand and closes his eyes. I cherish each tender moment.

Some December Highlights

We are off to find our Christmas tree!

There it is!

Flashing a grin at the Laurie Berkner concert. Dressed like Jack.

Showing his own style in front of the tree. Two hats and 3D glasses.

This is a ceramic tree my Grandma had up each year that I can remember. Now it serves as a night light in Davey's room. I actually don't know if we will be able to take it down in a few weeks...he loves it that much!

Screaming on Santa's lap during the Watterson family Christmas.

I have neglected to keep you in the loop with the happenings at the Shaw house. Well, here you go! I am happy to be on a LONG Christmas break from school. That last week of schol was nuts! Tuesday we had an early release because of snow and then no school on Wednesday because of ice! Then we went back for 2 days...and we don't even have finals...so there was no need for students to concentrate on anything! But I survived!

Since then I have been enjoying helping with the winter guard. The girls who were freshmen my first year of helping are now seniors! I feel old! Davey comes to practice with me sometimes and everyone loves it. I have to get a picture soon of what he did last night...He watched a run through of the show so far and then picked up a sabre...and spun around with it. It was adorable!

Josh and I have been dealing with a few health problems recently. He got some blood work done as a baseline. He has a family history of diabetes so the doctor was hoping to have a set of numbers to compare to. Well, they also found that his triglyceride number was through the roof! This was probably a reaction to some medicine that he was on and possible because of the early stage of diabetes. So we have him on fish oil and flax seed to try to get everything back on track. He goes to the diabetes specialist in January along with more blood work. I also had blood work done and found out that I am just a little under the normal amount of htyroid hormone. So now I take a little pill to take care of that. I go back in March to see if everything is back in order.

Josh and I are gearing up to fly out of here Sunday and heading to Jekyll Island, GA for some R&R. Davey gets to stay with Grandma and Grandpa in Scottsburg. We will be back on New Year's Day. I will try to pist some pictures of Christmas day before we leave. I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!