Fair

Since we'll be Portage County residents in a short time, we decided to go hang with the locals at the Portage County Fair. On Thursday night we went with Carter and his family. Carter rode a few rides, and Micah got to eat fair fries and pieces of elephant ear.


We also got to see our awesome babysitter Sarah and her prize-winning pigs (first in class, second in division). She won sewing at the Ohio State Fair for the jacket she sewed, too, but I didn't get a picture of it.


We went back Saturday with our friend Leah. Micah was in a crazy "I only want Daddy to hold me" mood. We still managed to have fun, though. Micah does NOT want to touch any animals, but he likes looking at them.

He's Back!

Today was Carter's first day back with us for the school year. Micah is a little rusty on sharing, but for most of the day they had a lot of fun together. Carter loves "Mucmah," and Micah sure loves his "Tartar"!

Pictures

Poor man's pool

Ooh! Cold!

Classic

Story Time for One

I'm pretty sure Micah believes that he knows how to speak in full sentences. Often it's just babble, like in this video. Sometimes there's one distinguishable word among the babble. And every once in a while he actually makes sense! Like Sunday morning when I asked him if he wanted a waffle for breakfast, his response sounded like, "I want a waffle." Or the past two days when I've told him it's nap time, he responds with, "I want to plaaay!" And every time we pull in the driveway of our apartment, he announces, "We're home!"

New Home

We bought a house today! It's in the town of Brimfield, which is just east of where we are now. Our apartment has been a real blessing, but I'm looking forward to having more space and not sharing walls with anyone. As long as everything goes well, we will move in the middle of October. If you want to see more pictures, follow this link.

Getting Dressed

Micah's attempts to dress himself:

Poolside

Micah and I went to a local wading pool this afternoon. As usual, Micah was hesitant to get in the water. His good friend Ally was there, though, which increased his bravery. Pretty soon he was splashing and having a great time. The pool pretty much emptied around 4:30 with people heading home for dinner. Since we practically had the pool to ourselves, Micah was more relaxed in the water than I've seen him all summer.

watching Ally leave


sneaking a goldfish snack

18 Months

Wow! Our little guy is a year and a half old today! I don't have any new pictures to share, but I didn't want to let this landmark pass without a mention.

Bye-Bye Pacifier

Now that our summer air travels are done, it is time to say good-bye to the pacifier. Last night was Micah's first paci-free night. He cried for well over an hour before I finally rocked him for a little while to calm him down. He wanted to be rocked to sleep, but we weren't about to trade one crutch for another! Hopefully tonight will be easier.
I'll admit, I took the easy way out for nap time today. I strategically planned an errand just before nap time so he would fall asleep in the car. It wasn't just for my sake! He's going over a friend's house this afternoon, so he needed to get some sleep!

The reason Micah is going over a friend's house is the other news in our lives. We're house-shopping! Yesterday we looked at houses in Tallmadge; today we're looking in Brimfield/Kent. It's funny to think that with our last house we decided to buy a house, shopped, and made an offer all in about a week's time. It worked out great, but we're taking it a bit more slowly this time. :)

Apparently, real men need a comb and a screwdriver to do their hair.

Summer Trip #3

Get comfy - this post is a long one!

Wednesday morning Micah and I had an uneventful flight to Boston. There was an empty row on our flight that I quickly claimed, making the journey much more pleasant. Gramme and Poppa picked us up at the airport to take us to NH. Micah was much more outgoing than he was last trip. Any time someone entered the room, he would say "Hi! Hi! Hi!" He also likes to say "Poppa."
That afternoon, Meegan came over for a visit. While Micah slept, we played in the lake. Dinner that night was a delicious feast at Weathervane Restaurant. I ordered my usual shrimp and scallops for myself and a grilled cheese for Micah. The grilled cheese went untouched!! I had to demonstrate sacrificial love by sharing almost half my shrimp with Micah!

Thursday was a beautiful day for the beach. Poppa had some work to do, but our friends Sue and Becky met us at the shore. Micah LOVED the sand, the people, and the big open space. He splashed and ran in the water, but it made him a little nervous. Towards the end of the day I held him and took him out deeper. He was laughing and having fun as the waves hit us.

Friday was mostly spent cleaning and shopping in preparation for the party. Eric, Meredith, and Lucy picked Scott up from the airport and arrived in NH after Micah had gone to bed. Lucy's first question Saturday morning was, "Is Micah up yet?" quickly followed by "Can I play with Gramme's toys?" Micah still adores Lucy and even tries to say her name. At one point Micah was crying (shocking, right?). Lucy said, "I'll help Micah." She walked over and gave him a hug. He hugged her back and stopped crying!

The rest of the extended family arrived Saturday afternoon. We looked at old pictures,


ate cake and ice cream,


opened presents,


and ate a delicious grilled dinner.

Sunday we went to church in the morning, then had a lazy afternoon. We drove down to Boston that night to spend the night at Eric and Meredith's, then Meredith took us to the airport on her way to work in the morning. Despite a security shut-down and a full flight, we still had a relatively easy trip home.

Home Again

We're home! I'll have lots of pictures for you after I rest a little bit. :)

What's Up?

Saturday we went to Daddy's softball game in the morning, then home for a nap in the afternoon. That night we went out to dinner with Ally and her parents, then the grown-ups played games with our new friends Ryan and Becca (that's Becca in the red shirt).

Sunday we went to church in the morning. After nap time, Daddy biked with Micah in the trailer to keep Mommy company on a jog.

Today we went to the Medina County Fair with Carter and Meghan. We got to see lots of animals and tractors.
Then tonight after dinner we had ice cream with our friends the McKims. Kayla had some awesome green ice cream, but Micah stuck with vanilla.

Tomorrow's agenda is grocery shopping and packing for NH. Gramme turns 60 this weekend! Mommy and Micah are flying out Wednesday morning, then Daddy will join us Friday evening. This summer is just flying by!