Jersey Shore, big girl undies & more...

Down the Jersey Shore we went in mid-September. Yes, I said "down the shore" not "went to the beach"...I am a living and breathing Jersey Girl at heart still and I'm already training Maddie to use the proper phrase as well! We love the fall down the shore, September and October are our favorite times of the year as all of the crowds are gone, the water is still warm and the weather is usually wonderful! That was the case again this year. Early on though it was a tad chilly during the day (read too cold to put on bathing suits to sit on the beach) but there is PLENTY to still do down the shore than sit on the beach! We went to playgrounds, the Cape May Zoo, Insectropolis, Barnegat Lighthouse, etc..

The week before we left was quite an interesting one... a pleasant surprise was that Maddie started going all day at school in big girl undies! We continued while we were down the shore and ever since! There has been a couple of accidents, but that is to be expected...but all in all she's doing really really well!

Maddie enjoying the Jersey shore! She looks sooo grown up!

That's more like it! Here is Maddie being a kid, playing in the sand with her buckets and shovels.

Poppop, Maddie and Mommom enjoying the last day of vacation (which was the most perfect beach day that you could ever imagine )

One of the places we visited was Insectropolis - a place all about bugs! They had live bugs, pinned bugs, bugs you can touch, as well as a movie for kids about bugs! Maddie really enjoyed it...what kid doesn't like bugs?

Maddie also got to touch several different types of bugs including a millipede, tarantula, and a scorpion that glows in the dark!

I just really liked this picture and thought I'd share it. The entire place has murals painted on all of their walls...all bug related. This was the mural for the bathrooms. Ladybugs to the left, Spidermen to the right! *grin* Maddie enjoyed visiting both sides once with Mommy and once with Daddy as she wanted to go potty a couple of times while we were there.

Maddie enjoying the playground at the shore on one of the more chilly days. Her hair is obviously getting pretty long, and I've still not gotten her hair cut. It is time though to get a trim!
Maddie trying to check out the sights and waving to all of the boats passing by at Barnegat Light Inlet.

Daddy and Maddie enjoying a lollipop break after spending some time climbing on the rocks with "Ole Barney" in the background.

Roller Party & more!!!

Susan, Maddie, Mommy

It was Susan's Birthday last week, not just any birthday, but a super sweet 16x2 birthday!!! To celebrate, she rented out the Roller Rink for a super special Roller Party! Yes, we all attended and had a great time. Mommy put on roller skates for the first time in decades (yes, plural) and Maddie skated away like a pro! After skating a bunch of people went to Boondocks for dinner in Smyrna. (Yum!)

Birthday Conga Line!!!

Proof positive, Mommy and Maddie on roller skates!!! (Daddy was too chicken *grin*)

Maddie enjoying skeeball...she couldn't roll the balls hard enough to reach the point bins.

Part of "the group" photo...Jen, Katy, Pat, Susan, Elena, Marj, Dave, Maddie, Kaylee

Now for the & more part of the post...

Ron picked up Maddie from school the other day, all of the kids came running up to him, talking to him at once telling him that they are lions and roaring at him. Maddie came up and said that she was a zebra...until someone said that lions eat zebras...so what does our darling daughter say? "I'm not a zebra, I'm a dragon - ROAR!" =)

Stephe from Georgia Dannette nominated our blog for a Nice Matters Award.

"This award is for bloggers who are nice people, good blog friends, and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also, for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world."

We met Stephe up in Philly at the Asianfest, although I had "met" her a long time before through her blog. She's very sweet, has a wonderful blog, is local to us and is currently waiting for the referral for her little one from China as well! She's going to be a great Mommy! *hugs*

I'm supposed to pass this award on to others...

Amy at Lily Blooming

Kimberlee at The Adventures of Hannah Mei & Crew

Kelly at Mom to three E's

Sean & Rebekah at Come see ME! J.W.C.

Beth at Home of the MN Menagerie

Pictures...I know, finally

Maddie playing on the beach - trying to keep warm in her full body swimsuit. She gets cold SOOO fast! Of course, she denies it, even when she is standing shivering...

Playing in the waves is a new joy of hers...she likes splashing about and trying to stand on her head when waves come in!


Maddie playing at the playground. Daddy was "chasing" her through the holes in the tunnel which made her squeal and giggle!


Maddie enjoying Barnegat Bay over Labor Day weekend.


There was a call for more pictures of Mommy on the blog. So, here we are! Back in July, we went to a carnival and Maddie enjoyed riding the carosel. They were Maddie's "horses" and for several days after the carnival ended, when we would drive past the site, Maddie would ask where the horses were.

And here is a picture just of Mommy in Portland, Oregon at the Chinese Garden. Went there with my friend Marcia, enjoyed the garden and some lovely tea at their tea house.

The memories you want to remember...

Here we are, September...we have officially entered into our favorite time of the year! Tons of festivals and outdoor things to do without the too much heat and humidity. Autumn is our Summer for most people! My computer is STILL down, and this is longer than I've been without my home computer since I first got a computer! It does get frustrating, but at the same time, I'm not missing it as much as I first was...

We've done our fair share of traveling yet again... We visited with Nana, and spent time down the shore, most recently this past Labor Day weekend. The weather was WONDERFUL, we were there with my family, we celebrated several birthdays and now we count down until our vacation down the shore! When all of the people leave, the island gets quiet, the water is still warm and we can relax in peace.

I do have tons of pictures, but can't do anything with them just yet. I'll see if I can sneak some time to add to the cute kid quota for the blog, but in the meantime there has been a couple of things that I don't want to forget about...

1. She said the "b" word! Apparently Maddie has a new friend at school, his name is Chandler, she was discussing playing with him in our daily conversation on our drive back home at the end of the day. She said that Chandler was her friend. I replied, Chandler is your friend? Then, she did it...she said... "Chandler is my boyfriend" *gasp!* No, no, no...she's 2.5 for gosh sakes! Now, she has repeated this to others as well... Ron wishes to know Chandler's "intentions"...

2. We have an adventurer. We were down the shore and went to the playground. Maddie loves to swing...really LOVES to swing. She usually prefers (read: Mommy prefers that she uses) the "baby" swings with the entire seat, but she also likes to swing in the big girl swings where she must remember to hold on. Well, she was happily swinging away when she spotted, across the playground, some other child had dared to sit upon the ducky bouncy thingy. Having none of that, she used the momentum from the swing to "jump" off and land to take off running towards said duck. You know what I mean, she jumped off from the swing...that thing that all of our mothers told us not to do growing up!

I'll fill you in on the other interesting tidbits about life with a 2.5 yr old, including the joys of the word "No" in a later post, hopefully with pictures.