Dogs, Cats, Alpacas, oh my!

Today we decided to have another adventure to a working Alpaca Farm. This is just our second time to the farm but it is by far the highlight of Addy's week each time we visit.

We also really dig the drive through the seemingly endless corn fields with all the windows rolled down along the way...



Addy really likes being welcomed by Patches the Dalmatian! He's a really sweet, gentle boy and he reminds Addy of our Monty. (Monty is spending some time with my Mom in Virginia while we look for a home here in PA with a backyard for him to run in)



Alpacas are very sweet too. Addy really likes hanging out at the farm and playing with all of them. They seem to like having her around and will actually follow her from pen to pen now.



I think this guy is called Ozzie and he has a penchant for Addy's hair.



Today we were able to stay inside the barn pens during lunch.

The youngest of the Alpacas on the farm is just three weeks old. Hopefully we will get a picture with him in it next week. Addysen has decided that we need to return once a week to visit the baby Alpaca and his mommy. Too funny.



(I took these two pictures on my phone outside the Alpaca path and barn during our visit last week, sorry they are a bit blurry)





Next week we are planning trips to a Butterfly House, the Alpaca Farm, Children's Lake to feed the Swans and Ducks, and two new playgrounds. Keep your arms and legs inside the car at all times and hold on to your hats...

Much love,
d.
a.
and
a.

Gelder Park

Today we headed east to Hummelstown, PA which happens to be the home of a fantastic playground at Gelder Park. In Addy's words "yes, so cool". Addy loved going down all the big slides while Ave enjoyed a snooze before getting on the swings...
Later on we took Addy's scooter for a spin around the park and got caught in some rain. After about five minutes under some trees we decided to run back to the car and we got soaked!

Everyone had a great time and Addy wanted to stay and play in the rain puddles, so we did.

We drove back to the Marriott and jumped into the pool to finish off any dry spots.

Good times!

Just a taste...more to come...

Here's a taste of what we have been up to:

Avery at Possibility Place "a playground for all kids" in Harrisburg that we love going to already (we've been three times in a seven days)...



Addy loves to take pictures with our camera...(Possibility Place is in the background)



Addy apple picking at Curiosity Connection inside The State Museum of Pennsylvania.



Tammy and Evan met us at the Museum for a day of fun.



Ave likes crawling through the tunnels at Curiosity Connection...



The slides at the Cocoa Castle Playground in Hershey are super fast!



But Addy likes the tire bridge most of all...



So far so good from PA! No worries.

Under New Managment

Hello,
If you are reading this then you're probably wondering where we have been and whats going on with us. Well...we have recently moved away from the Washington area. Lyndsey has taken a position in Chambersburg, PA and we will be looking for a new house in South Central PA just as soon as we can sell our home in Virginia.
Addy, Ave, and I have been checking out all the local parks and playgrounds and such and we've decided that this blog will be a great way to document all of our fun times together and also let Mommy know what we are up to during the long summer days ahead...and you as well.
So, look for more posts every couple of days while the girls and I adventure through the summer in PA!
d.
a.
and
a.

The 19 Hour Drive to Florida

We were actually in Florida when I took this picture. I believe we were past Jacksonville and not quite to Orlando. We were still about 3-4 hours from our destination. But, it was just another of our many stops on our way to our family reunion/Christmas celebration in Fort Lauderdale. It took us 19 hours to drive from Northern VA to Fort Lauderdale. It should have taken us 15 hours. But, hey, we made it!

Doug and I both worked on Tuesday the 23rd and I made it home at 4:15pm. Doug having just arrived home before me, was waiting and saying we should leave because he had heard from the traffic reports that I-95 South had no traffic. If any of you are knowledgeable about the DC metro area...it's a nightmare attempting to get anywhere during rush-hour traffic. So, after this report, we were thinking: Awesome! We were actually on the road at 5pm and headed quickly down HOV-3 on I-95. Problem. HOV merges with I-95! Our 30 min of pure joy at the speediness of our travels soon turned into 1 1/2 hours of traffic! The girls made it until 7pm in which we had to stop for an hour and get dinner, bottles and pj's on. And, we were now only about 45 miles outside of the city. Ugh!!! Things brightened up after that as we got on the road. The roads seemed more clear, we popped in a DVD, and I hung out with the girls in the back until they fell asleep. Avery did amazing. She slept the entire night. Addy did better than I expected but did wake up every couple of hours distressed as she just couldn't get comfortable. It's just not very comfortable to sleep 8 hours sitting up!

The following morning Doug was still driving, the girls were waking up and it was getting warmer and warmer...yea, we're in Florida!! We stopped at a Rest Area and changed, got breakfast, and looked forward to arriving at our destination. That's when I snapped this picture. Everyone was in high spirits!

It all went quickly downhill at this point. The girls were tired of sitting strapped in carseats. Doug and I were tired of crying and tired in general. And, we still had a couple of hours to go, which for us, was about 3-4 more hours on the road. As you know, Fort Lauderdale is near the southern tip of Florida and it was at this point I was verbally wishing Audrey and Steven lived in Orlando!!

Oh, we finally made it though...around 12 noon on Christmas Eve. And we were soooo happy to arrive!! We were greeted with open arms, freshly made beds, warm showers, and the best family company I could ever ask for! :)

Happy 5 Months, Avery!

Wow. I can't believe Avery is 5 months old today! Time has sure flown by since the day she was born. She is getting so big now and can barely squeeze into her 6 month clothes. Addy, Avery and I were at Kohl's this morning and we bought Ave a 9 month outfit; thought we'd give her a little breathing room you know?! She started eatting cereal a couple of weeks ago and is getting more and more used to a spoon. We've discovered she really prefers oatmeal over rice cereal :)
Here she is at her first feeding. And, the first spoonful is coming....

And, it's gone....Yumm.

Avery LOVES sleeping in her crib. We finally got the bassinet out of our room and she is now in Addy's room for good. She loves her crib and continues to sleep really well at night. I'm still waiting for her bedtime to be a little earlier then 9:30pm and look forward to that day :) I snuck this picture of her today on her birthday snoozing in her crib.

Avery continues to be a very happy baby. She loves playing with her toys; she loves to stand and sit (with help of course); she often giggles outloud while watching Addy play. Addy is enjoying her company more and likes to include her in dancing and clapping. We absolutely love Avery being a part of our family. Happy 5 months, Ave!!

Christmas Shananigans

We just got back from visiting Santa in DC. He was visiting all the way from the North Pole and was hanging out near the National Christmas Tree on the Mall. It was chilly today...brrrr...but we still went.

Making our way there...

Bundled up and waiting for Santa.

Addy was super excited!

There he is in his workshop.

Our picture with Santa.

Santa asked Addy what she wanted for Christmas. She really wanted to say something but couldn't get out the words. We practiced all the way there saying "tic tacs, horse, and princess". I jumped in and let Santa know what she wanted so Addy wouldn't be worried about not getting her request in. Now, tic tacs I'm OK with. A horse and princess? We'll have to think about that one...

Addy and Avery joined me at my work Christmas party this past week. When I came home to pick them up, Addy's hair was all done up for a party. Here's her party hair and her checking out our really cool Christmas tree at work.

OK, so I would have gone with a few less barrettes but she can get away with it cuz she's two!

Here are her and her friend Brooke posing with all the presents in front of the tree.

Addy took this picture of me and Avery.

I think Addy had a great time. She did a present exchange with Brooke, plus my boss gave her some playdough. They also had a blast coloring in my office.




My Mom had us over for a little Christmas party a couple of weeks ago...or maybe it was last weekend. This month goes by so fast I can't seem to remember! We had fun with Lani and her family and my Mom. The kids decorated gingerbread houses and opened presents from Grandma. And, Avery got a lot of quality time with her relatives!








And now we're almost headed out to Florida to my sisters and to Disney World. We'll be spending the holidays with 20 of our relatives...My Mom, my 3 sisters and 1 brother and their spouses and children. I am thrilled! On our way back to VA, we'll be stopping over at Doug's parents to celebrate Christmas with them and pick up our Monty. It'll be busy but very fun! We hope you and your family have a Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year!