Ugh...

it's root canal day. I'm not looking forward to it at all. I think the fear is not knowing what it's like. I just can't imagine that it's pleasant. I think the anxiety of it all made me clench my jaw last night, so I probably cracked more teeth which will require more root canal procedures. Always the optimist! :)

New Nate pics

As cute as ever!

Good times!

So there was actually a benefit of my funk last week. When I couldn't snap out of it, Amanda told me I needed to join a Mommies Group. She even sent me links! So I found a group for my area and I joined. Nate and I went to our first meet-up on Wednesday and we saw a magician at the library. It was pretty crowded and I wasn't sure who was with the group, but we stayed and enjoyed it anyway. Nate liked to watch all the people and things around him, then he took a nap. The magician was so much fun. I was laughing out loud - I think I enjoyed it more than Nate!

If you don't know, I'm a bit shy. Shocking, I know. I don't really "do" small talk, so I was nervous about joining a group. There was a scheduled Mom's Night Out at a local restaurant which has karoaoke on Thursday nights. When I emailed the organizer, I was relieved when she said "we'll be the ones looking desperate for a margarita!". Well, she had me at margarita. I went, I met 4 new people, I had a margarita and dinner, and I had a blast. I had so much fun and I really needed that! I look forward to the MNO next month.

Until then, I've joined the book club and Nate and I will be going to story time each week. Yea!

Happy Father's Day!

Nate did his first craft yesterday in preparation for Dad's Day. I painted his feet and made footprints for Mikey.

I found this cute frame and put a picture of Dad and Nate in it. It was Nate's first baseball game so it's special to Mike.

I also had this collage made for Mike's locker at work. He even told me when he got home this morning that he always has to look at our pictures before he can go to sleep. How sweet is that?

We made Daddy pancakes for breakfast this morning before he had to leave for work.

This is from yesterday - doesn't he look comfy?!

Ouchie!

The pain in my mouth has been diagnosed as a cracked tooth. I started having pain on Wednesday. My gum was puffy and it felt like I had food between my teeth that wouldn't come out. By Thursday I had a knot in my gum. I got an appointment with the dentist on Friday afternoon. I can now sympathize with others who have toothaches. It's a foreign feeling for me. I don't even have any fillings. Apparently I like to go big - I have to have a root canal and a crown. I'm so bummed out. This is like a bad dream to me. I literally have had "teeth dreams" for years and this is one of my biggest fears. Ugh. So I'm on antibiotics, which are supposed to make the pain go away. I'm still waiting... So the earliest I can get in is on June 30th. I'm sincerely hoping that the pain will go away soon so I don't have to feel like this for another SIXTEEN days.

I'm in a little funk the past two days. I'm really bummed that Alex is gone. It literally feels like she just got here and she's already back home in Illinois. I feel like summer is just starting and she's not here to go hang out at the pool/beach.

I spent the day in the house reading a book, lounging on the couch, watching movies on TV, and constantly thinking about the pain in my mouth. Mike's working at the station today and working 2 events tomorrow. I'm feeling lonely. Maybe Nate and I will finally venture out to the new outdoor pool at the YMCA tomorrow.

Sniff, sniff...

Mike and Alex just left for the airport. It really seems like Alex just got here, yet she's already on her way back to Illinois. We had a good time while she was here. We tried to pack in as much as we could in the short 2.5 weeks she was here. We kicked off her trip with a Memorial Day BBQ with the Molnars. We went to the beach down at Sandbridge. Alex and I shopped at almost every mall in the area - Lynnhaven, Greenbrier (twice), and MacArthur Center. Let's just say the local economy is doing just fine by us, thank you very much. Our friends the Putneys came and we went to the boardwalk, the Cape Henry lighthouses, the USS Wisconsin, and we saw the Harbor Fest fireworks on Saturday night. Alex also saw a couple of her friends, we went to the Sand Soccer tournament down at the beach on the hottest day on Earth, she and Mike toured The College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, and last by certainly not least - Alex has played Guitar Hero III almost continously since the Molnars left it here on Saturday. She is happy to say that she got 100% on 3 songs. I think she would've rather missed her flight today if she could've stayed and beat Tom Morello on "Medium"! :)
Alex has a busy summer coming up so we understand that she has to get back (we don't LIKE it, but we UNDERSTAND it). On Sunday she is heading down to New Orleans for a week with her youth group to help build or tear down stuff. Yes, "stuff" is the technical term. All we know is they will be working outside in the heat in jeans and t-shirts and sleeping on cots in a church that possibly doesn't have A/C but will have plenty of fans. I'm sure at that age, anytime you are away with friends you always find a way to have a good time, hot weather or not.
Here are some pics...
There are always some goofy pix!

Rockin' out

100%

Nate and Daddy get in on the action

Also, we had dinner with Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave last night. Dave was gracious enough to take our family pictures down at the beach last night. Let me say, it was the most gorgeous night I've seen in a LONG time. Can't wait to see the pictures!

I bought a Bumbo chair off of Craigs List the other day (I couldn't bring myself to pay $40 for a new one). Nate seems to be getting used to it. He sat in it for quite a while last night. Doesn't he look like such a big boy?

Not to be left out...

Here are some new pictures of Nate. I love, love, love his smile!

Alex brought Nate a Cardinals outfit and he seems happy to be a Cards fan!

We have visitors!

Our friends Kevin (Mike's best man in our wedding) and Dena (from Oklahoma) are on a month-long road trip. They are starting with the East Coast and we are so happy that they are taking 3 days out of their trip to visit us here. Aside from my sister we haven't had any visitors from out-of-state in the FIVE YEARS that we've lived here. And we have a big beach. And now a baby. C'mon people, what's the deal? But I digress...

So the Putney's got here on Thursday and I suspected that even after just a few days on the road they would want a home cooked meal. I was right. Dena requested that Mikey make something Italian, so he out-did himself with his baked ziti. It was delicious. After a quick visit to Station 3 (Kevin's a FF too - he and Mike worked together on Lawton Fire), we headed down to the boardwalk at VA Beach. By the time we got to the beach, it was foggy and the temp had dropped and it was mighty chilly with the wind.

Yesterday Mike, Alex, Kevin, and Dena went to Ft. Story to see the Old and New Cape Henry Lighthouses. (I understand they all basically had to have a full body cavity search before they were allowed on the Post!) They say the weather was great down by the water. They all walked up to the top of the old lighthouse (huffing and puffing) to get a view of the bay from the top.
Alex at Ft. Story

They also visited the USS Wisconsin down at Nauticus. The temp on the deck of that ship is always about 1004 degrees on a warm day. (I may not be entirely sorry that I had to work...I came home to lounge on the couch in the A/C!)
USS Wisconsin


For dinner we decided we'd show Kevin and Dena a true Virginia seafood boil. We bought all the stuff, Mike boiled it up in some Old Bay, we threw some newspapers on the table, and dumped the crab legs, shrimp, and scallops right out on the table. Dena and I were okay just eating the corn, potatoes, kilbasa, and salad! The boys enjoyed working for their food! I don't know if it's the amount of time it took them to crack and eat everything or if they ate so much that it took so much time, but there were pruny fingers all around by the time they were finished. :)
Kevin and Dena

The Feast


We were all worn out by the end of the day. I think today we'll take it a bit easier!

Nate's first trip to the beach!

On Wednesday we loaded up and made our first beach trip of 2008. Hopefully it is our first of many beach trips this summer. We met the Molnars down at Sandbridge and I have to say, Nate did really well. We clearly had him protected from the late day sun - sunscreen, t-shirt, hat, and shades. It didn't seem to faze him. He pretty much slept the entire time.

The water was freezing cold. Alex braved it (I'm not sure HOW) and got in. Crazy girl! The rest of us adults only put our feet in the water and we swore that we instantly got frostbite. Okay - I swore I got frostbite. The biting flies pretty much drove us away from the beach within an hour. They were brutal. So, we headed to Beach Bully (our fave BBQ place) for dinner.
We heart hush puppies!

Matt shares his ribs with Mikey

Skyler and Nate

RIBS!

Molson Family Dinner