As happens most years, this summer is flying by at an alarming rate. Nora's walking is improving daily. She can now walk across the room and already she is speeding up. I have no doubt that she'll be running too soon. We went to the bridal shower of Meghan (Shane's cousin) on Saturday at Barrett's house, and Sunday we returned to go to Eliza's second birthday party (Barrett's daughter). Despite the intense heat and humidity (what is this, Ohio?? Just kidding!) we had a great time and really enjoyed getting to catch up with the family. There was a pool for the kids in the backyard and Nora was very excited to jump in with Lucy, another cousin who is just a bit older than Nora.
Later we sat on the front porch where it was cooler and visited. Nora loved watching all the action happening around her.
I wasn't sure what we should get for Eliza, but Shane had his own ideas. In only two days he whipped up a great riding toy for Eliza. Nora was our tester for a few days before the party.
The morning of the birthday party I went for a run- I'm training for a triathlon this Saturday. It was probably the best run I've ever had. For those of you who don't know, I hate running. For some reason this morning was different. I had energy, I got in a rhythm and everything worked. I ran about three miles straight that morning- the distance I have to run in the triathlon, and when I was done I felt like I could keep going. We even had planned a bike ride, but decided we would drive so that we could bring the riding toy for Eliza. That night, I woke up with an aching knee. In the morning it was swollen to twice the size of the other one and I had a fever. I went to the doctor's, had x-rays and blood work done and now I'm on antibiotics for infected bursitis. Lovely. And of course, no triathlon. Definitely disappointing.
I can't get too down, though, when I have Nora and Shane to buoy my spirits. Plus, how could I feel depressed with this adorable little frog baby?
P.S. HUGE congratulations to our great friends Megan and Chris! Meg delivered a baby boy Monday morning! We are so happy for them and I can't wait to get to Vermont to meet him and snap some sweet pictures. Amazing job, Meg! A drug-free natural birth! And kudos to Chris for being an amazing birth partner. We're so happy for you both!

Walking Girl

As I mentioned before, Nora is really walking now. This morning I was able to snap a few pictures of her in motion.Have a great weekend!

P.S.

Isn't this a cool moth Shane found in the shop this afternoon? I had to take a picture of it before we let it go. And of course, I had to post the picture once I figured out how to edit images in Photoshop and then upload them to the blog. I feel so smart! (It doesn't take much.)

Redeeming Myself

I promised I would be back to post pictures when I had access to the laptop and here I am! Shane has thoughtfully taken Nora with him for a ride, thereby giving me a few long moments work on this.Nora is growing more and more every day. This evening when we got home, I plopped her down in front of Shane and asked her to walk to her dad- and she did just that! Within a few short days she has come so far, really exploring beyond her normal limits and impressing us. We are so proud of her, as I'm sure every parent is as their child hits a milestone. Just this afternoon, Britta, a good friend from childhood (and high school, and college, and beyond...) stopped by and commented on how she was looking less and less like a baby. I have to agree. My sweet little peanut is turning into a toddler. How strange for Shane and I, who were childless not long ago, to find ourselves raising a kid, who will eventually be a teenager and grown-up!In any case, I've been trying to document as much as I can for everyone, without missing out on things myself. We've been going on tons of bike rides, but often it's difficult to bring the camera along to snap shots as we go, and why would I want the hassle? I love being on the road with Nora in tow and Shane by my side. I'm content to enjoy it for what it is, just as I'm content to enjoy this summer for what it is- chaotic, hot, crazy, and fun. Happy summer, everyone.

Hi, my name is Caitlyn...

And I'm a bad blogger. Once again, I'm going to have to write a quick post, and sadly I don't even have any pictures to show you! We've taken plenty, but I don't have the cord to upload them to the laptop. In fact, I don't even have the laptop. Nora and I are visiting my family and leaving today to go back to our 'summer' home this afternoon. We've been busy as usual playing, working and traveling around. There has been one new development- Nora is walking! (Kind of.) She took a few steps last week and each day since has taken more and more at a time. I think her record as of today is six steps. Everyone says that she's going to get into even more trouble when she starts really walking, but she's such a fast crawler right now that I think this walking thing might slow her down for a while. Well, at least for a couple minutes.
In other news my good friend Megan is due any minute with her first baby. She's not due until around the 28th of July, but I'm guessing with the full moon this Friday she'll be going into labor very soon. We'll keep our fingers crossed for her!
I promise to post a lot of pictures as soon as we're reunited with the laptop; meanwhile I hope everyone is enjoying this heat- you'll be dreaming about it in January!

Hi everyone! Just a quick note to let you know we're still here. We've been apartment and house hunting these last few days. We found a wonderful house in a rural area, and almost decided to go for it until we realized that would kind of defeat the purpose of moving out of the last house. Instead, we decided to go with an apartment right in the city where Shane works. ('City' might be a little bit of an exaggeration in this case.) We're sending in a security deposit today and should be able to move in within a week or two. (And we love moving.) The apartment is tiny, but you really can't beat the location. It's near the natural foods store, the ocean, the park, the library, the movie theater and the grocery store, besides all the cool local shops. I think we're really going to enjoy it. Hope everyone is well and enjoying themselves! Talk to you soon!

Well, things have gotten a little crazy here, and the blog is a reflection of that. Poor thing hasn't been updated for a long time. In fact, I only have a few minutes to post now before I leave for work. (Which, by the way, is working out wonderfully. I get to feel like a real grown-up again and Shane gets to spend lots of one-on-one time with Nora.) So for now, I really only have (barely) enough time to post some pictures. I'll give you a brief synopsis of what follows: Strawberry season, the mower we got Dad for his birthday, Fourth of July, visiting our friends at their camp in western Maine, and the beach yesterday. Here goes, and good luck seeing another post soon- I try, I really do. I mean, I think about it late at night when I'm just about to drift off, but somehow never find the chunk of time I need. I'm enjoying summer, though, and hope everyone else is, too!