The Birthday Month Cometh

I can't believe it's already July! Where did the first half of the year go? Well, August will be here before you know it and with that comes all the birthdays. Natalie on the 1st, David on the 14th, Krista on the 18th, and Erin on the 24th, and that is just the immediate family! I need to decide what we will do for Natty's 2nd birthday. I guess a little party would be in order, but I really haven't had time to plan anything. (Maybe I'll decide tomorrow...) The family is going to camp out at Clinton Lake for Erin's birthday. I think she's been planning that since her 4th birthday! So, Erin and I were having a little conversation about her birthday and it went something like this...

Aunt Michelle: "Erin, I am planning a real neat surprise for you birthday!"
Erin: "For my birthday present?"
Aunt Michelle: "No, something different."
Erin: "Well... Are you still going to get me a present?"
Aunt Michelle: "Of course!"
Erin (with relief in her voice): "Oh, good! And will Natalie get me a present too?"
Aunt Michelle: "How about if you get one gift from Me, Uncle John, and Natalie."
(Erin pauses with great thought.)
Erin: "Well... I think it would be okay if Natalie gave me her own gift."

I have a feeling birthdays are going to start getting more and more expensive!

Natalie is starting to talk a lot more lately! We don't have any "Nattyisms" yet, but we are working on some 2-3 word sentences! Some of my favorites are... "I hear Daddy!", "Papa is fun!", and of course, "I poo poo!"

I've included a picture of the little girls just for fun! (Erin has a drink mustache!)

Sam's Club

We had a fun girls day out on Saturday. Mom, Sarah, and I, along with the three little girls, all piled in the Crown Vic for a shopping adventure. Sarah needed to get some items from Sam's, so we all went to stock up on things in bulk. The carts (or buggies as John calls them) were extra wide with seats for two children, so I pushed Erin and Natalie around. Normally Natalie won't sit still and tries to climb out of the cart, but this time she was very well behaved since she was sitting next to Erin. Natalie loves to emulate her elder cousin! As we were walking through the grocery section I stopped and picked up a pack of cans of cream of mushroom and cream of chicken soup. Another family was next to us and the man pointed out the mushroom soup to his wife. Erin suddenly spun around, gave him a very stern look and exclaimed, "I AM NOT A MUSHROOM!" I about died laughing and told Erin I didn't think he was calling her a mushroom, but she reinforced it shouting, "Yes, He DID call me a mushroom!" Needless to say, he was laughing pretty hard by this point too! Luckily we were able to regain our composure and finish the shopping. We did run into the same gentleman once more before we left, but he reassured Erin that he no longer thought of her as a mushroom.

I can't wait until we have some great Natty-isms on a regular basis!

Good Old Days

Well, the Good Old Days are over! For those of you who suspect we do nothing at work, you may have been right. It seems that our IT department has been tracking internet usage lately (likely by command of our Acting Executive Director.) Apparently the first report was not a good one! The whole office received a "warning" email yesterday that inappropriate internet usage will not be tolerated and starting very soon, supervisors will be given monthly reports of our internet usage. Some of the inappropriate activities included, dating sites, eBay, downloading music, and playing games. I don't know that I have been all that bad, but I do have a habit of checking my personal email, reading blogs, and playing the occasional game (see blog about Sudoku). Needless to say, I am writing this blog from home...