Curb Appeal

Kind of randomly, we decided to do some work on the front yard this summer. Here's what the house looked like when we bought it:

So we had the two freestanding laurel hedges removed, added some new rhododendron, hydrangea, a small Japanese maple and a ton of mulch and...voila!

One note: the three green plants on the left side are rhododendron--the middle is a red and the two bigger ones are white. Can't wait for them to bloom next year!

23 Months

It's been a fun month--we went to Lake Chelan, spent more time outside, Aunt Karyn came to visit...

Simon has new words everyday--he can ask for his friends and teachers at school by name...well, kind of. There's GaeGae (Galen), NaeNae (Nathan)...you get the picture.

He is also gearing up for his birthday by rehearsing for the terrible twos. We have started with some serious tantrums and I had to do our first time out for hitting me.

But in better news, Simon has started showing some interest in the potty, and has actually gone "pee pee" and "poo poo" at least once each! We aren't yet training in earnest, but since he is moving up to the Kangaroo room (2-3 year olds) this coming Monday, we are thinking that more opportunity and examples around him will get this going.

Finally, it was Dada's birthday, Simon decorated his own card and helped me make a birthday poster!

Here are some pictures from this month:

Karyn got to experience the joys of a haircut with Simon. We have improved our approach (hint: it involves lollies), so there weren't as many tears as the last few times.

We went to the Wooden Boat Festival, and Simon really liked watching the bluegrass band from the comfort of his wagon.

And in general, we had fun!

Fun in the sun (Finally!)

We have had a pretty terrible summer so far, in terms of weather. So when this weekend offered us about 80 degrees and sunny both days, we took advantage and spent a lot of time outside!

Here is Simon playing in (and around) the kiddie pool in the backyard:

And then at the local wading pool:

Jumping

Simon and one of his PEPS friends, Harper, were having a great time at our last meeting jumping in Harper's crib. We also get a cute cameo from Lili!

Bouncy Bouncy

We went to a BBQ at Simon's daycare yesterday and they had a bouncy castle! They let the toddlers in without the big kids for a little while, and surprise surprise, Simon loved it!

Lake Chelan

We took a family trip to a place called Lake Chelan this past weekend, for three nights. It was Simon's first time to a beach with sand and he loved it! Here are some highlights, also check out the video below and the link (here) to the rest of our pictures on Shutterfly.

Campbell's Resort on Lake Chelan

The view from our balcony

Simon has learned to say "cheese!" for the camera...so we got lots of cheesy smiles on this trip! Here he is in our room.

Simon LOVED the pool and the beach...

We went out to a really nice dinner on Sunday night, and Simon accessorized for the occasion with his sunglasses.

Finally, here he is playing in the lake!