Kumquats and such

In mid-June, Lynsey & Colleen drove up from NC, arriving just in time to hop back in the Subaru with me and pick Jessica up from her cross-country trip!! The next morning, Jessica surprised Reagan (who had no idea she was here!) and we took her to school for the day. Child-free on a Friday, we took full advantage, relaxing at home for a couple hours and then going to get our nails done. After our mani/pedis, we drove into Old Town and grabbed lunch at the Columbia Firehouse...one of our favorite spots. Then we hopped back in the car and went to pick up Reagan who was REALLY SURPRISED to see that Colleen & Lynsey had joined the gang!  That afternoon, we just lounged around and waited for Jason to get home from work. While we waited, the girls gave Reagan a bath... That night, we headed back into Old Town, stopped for pictures near the waterfront and then walked to Landini Brothers for a drink...we ended up staying for dinner. Everything was delicious, especia...

While making dinner one evening, I noticed something strange...it was quiet in the house. Too quiet. Upon making a round of the house, I saw Pinky in this state: Yup, that's the entire contents of her food jar. Reagan was a little overzealous in her efforts to "help!" No worries, I cleaned the tank immediately and Pinky is still happy and healthy! And the food is now hidden:)

This happened in early April, but somehow life got in the way and I forgot to post about it... One weekend, Jason went golfing with some of the boys, so I promised Reagan we could do "little golf." We headed over to Top Golf in (Kingstown) Alexandria. She napped on the way there, and after a groggy walk through the parking lot, she perked up at the idea of picking her own ball to play. Reagan selected green for herself and Carolina blue for me. We wandered out to the putt-putt course and she did her best to hit the ball each time... And this is her "I'm concentrating face!" I absolutely LOVE HER!!! We ended up making it through 8 holes, which was four more than I ever thought we would! She kept saying, "I do golf like Daddy & Papa!" Definitely something we'll do again, but this time we're taking Daddy too!

I've mentioned it before, but I will say it again: I love Play At Home Mom !!! This site is the best for ideas to interact with, engage, and teach your children. Reagan takes a bath almost every night. She has the typical assortment of toys (rubber boats, cups, a turtle, etc) to entertain her, but lately, she just leaves them in the bag. I decided to introduce some new things during bath time and they were a huge hit! Here are some pictures from our "adventures in bath fun." First up: BUBBLES ! It's a bit too cold to just hang out in the yard blowing bubbles, so I decided that bath time would be the perfect opportunity for a mess free bubble party! I LOVE this shot.  Secondly, (and straight from PAHM), I added: WATER BALLOONS !!! She absolutely loved when I poked a small hole in them and they became "water fountains!"

About a week before Halloween, I started asking Reagan what she wanted to be for the holiday. She consistently replied, "Witch. Nice witch." I figured it would be an easy costume since we already have a stockpile of dress-up clothes handed down from her friend, Emma, that includes a witch hat and lots of dresses. THEN, Reagan spent the night with Grandma & Papa. She came back to us with a new response, "I be punkin." Yes, within 24 hours, she had changed her mind to something we would now have to buy. We headed out on Tuesday morning in search of a pumpkin costume. It was just after the heavy rain and wind from Sandy, so some stores were still closed, but we managed to check Walmart and Family Dollar, neither of which was of any use to us. I squatted down next to Reagan in the middle of the nearly-bare-costume aisle and said, "Weasel, I'm sorry, but they don't have a costume for you. We're just going to have to wear something you already have,...