Giraffe On The Loose!!

What a perfect Halloween day! Mike and I are enjoying some tv time and are listening to Dylan snore away on the monitor after a long and great day of fun.

This morning started out like most Sunday mornings do.....with some Mommy-Dylan time. Mike was off coaching his soccer team and Dylan and I spent the morning playing, going for a walk, going to the park and packing up for a day of fun.

At noon, we met Mike at his parents' house to meet their adorable new kittens - Phineus and Abigail. They are super fluffy, energetic balls of cuteness. Dylan had a great time throwing toys at them and chasing them around the house. Proving that they're smart cats, they've already learned to run away from him. Sometimes, Dylan loves animals just a little too much! Then we went to watch Mike's nephew, Patrick's, hockey game. Dylan had a great time watching the action on the ice and running around the bleachers. After that, we headed home to start our Halloween evening fun.

Dylan and Phin

Abby

We got Dylan dressed up in his costume - a giraffe! We bought the costume over a month ago and thought it would be perfect. At that time we had no idea that a couple of weeks prior to Halloween, he would start making animal noises.....and, well, giraffes don't really make noise. Early in the week, we tried to find a lion costume (because Dylan does a great roar) but the costumes were pretty picked over at that point so we stayed the course with the giraffe. Of course, he was so cute that he didn't need anything else to perfect the look!

As soon as it got dark around 6, we set out for the neighbors surrounding us that we know well. We presumed that Dylan wouldn't last more than a few houses. First stop was our next door neighbor whom we are very close to. While Dylan's vocabulary isn't advanced enough for "trick or treat," he understood off the bat to grab some candy from the tray\bowl being offered. Next we headed to our neighbors on the other side and a couple directly across the street. When we saw other kids approaching our house, we ran home to give them treats. That was actually Dylan's favorite part! He really enjoyed picking candy out of our bowl and dropping into other kids' bags.

After handing out a good amount of candy and hitting all the houses on the street of folks we know, we hopped in the car to hit a couple houses of good friends that live in quick driving distance.

It was really a great day. We all had fun, Dylan got really pooped out (which means bed time was without tears) and Mike and I had a great time with family, neighbors and our awesome little boy. Good times! And without further ado, pictures of my cute giraffe.....

Okay, I've made it down the stairs. Now what?

Okay, I've got this! Let's go trick or treating!

Dylan got a little more mileage out of his costume on Friday when he wore it to his Music Together class. He had a great time running down the side walk in it and Mike tried to keep up while taking some quick videos. We found them pretty humorous to watch so we're sharing the clips. Enjoy!

Giraffe From the Back

Giraffe From the Front

Fall Fun

We went from the summer weather of Bermuda to full on fall weather in Boston. Even though we were pooped and in need of a relaxing weekend at home, we had to go out and celebrate our anniversary (dinner and a movie) on Friday and we just couldn't pass up going to the Topsfield Fair on Saturday. Mike and I had been there together a couple of times together and this year we would take Dylan.

We made plans to meet up with some friends at the fair and excitedly headed out for the day's adventure. The last times we had gone to the fair were on weeknights so we were not prepared for the mass amounts of people and chaos we experienced going to the fair on a Saturday. It was extreme nuttiness! We were ok with parking way off the fair grounds and taking a shuttle in. We were ok with waiting in lines to see some of the things. What we were not ok with was the pushing and shoving we had to do to navigate the stroller through the crowds! I kept Dylan close to me in the backpack and we just dealt with the pain of dragging that stroller around with us. That is something I will not repeat. Backpack in crowds=good, strollers in crowds=very bad!

I tried to be relaxed and enjoy the sights and sounds the fair had to offer. After a while, though, I was ready to get the heck away from all those people, hit the spots we felt like we needed to hit before leaving and then took off.

One big fun development that Dylan had at the fair - making animal noises! We walked into the livestock barn and he immediately started pointing at all the cows saying "MOOO!" It was too cute. We've been working on building his animal sounds repertoire ever since and I hope to get a video of some that he's learned and post it soon.

Sand Sculpture

Wow! That's a BIG pumpkin!

The Party Boy is Tuckered Out

After the mayhem of the fair, we did have a mellow long weekend. Mike coached a soccer game, I had a nice lunch, sans children, with two of my good girl friends, took some walks, hung out at some parks and did a little work in the yard.

What says fall more than raking leaves? Mike was working on a small pile when Dylan took the big rake away from him. It was a bit unwieldy for his little self so Mike went and grabbed our mini garden rake. Just the right size!

The Boys Hard at Work

Raking is Fun!

Sand Baby

Somehow, I didn't get these pictures uploaded in my Bermuda beach post. Dylan was so cute playing in the sand and loved it so much, I just have to post them!

Little Footprints

Sandy Face

Bermuda Baby - Part III

After yet another night with no one getting great sleep, Dylan and I went out for a walk so Mike could get in a morning nap (we alternated days on which parent go to grab some zzz's). We went to a park in Hamilton that had a big gazebo with a gate you could close. So Dylan and I hung out there and he had a fun time running around.....I had fun watching him and got a super cute self portrait of the two of us:

This being our last full day in Bermuda, it was time to hit the beach! Although our hotel in Hamilton didn't have beach access, it's sister property further south on the island, which we had full access to, did. The resorts had a ferry running between them but they were pretty infrequent and by the time we were ready to go we would have wasted an hour or so waiting for it. So, we opted to take the bus there.

We arrived at the hotel, had some lunch, explored their shops and kid playroom then changed into our swim suits and took the shuttle down to the beach (the hotel was on top of a very steep hill). This was Dylan's first time at the beach. I know, I know....it's horrible that we live close to so many beaches and never took him to one this summer. In spite of not getting to the beach, we managed to stay pretty busy in the hot months. But, hey, being able to have your first beach experience in Bermuda is pretty cool!

All the umbrella's were taken. For a pasty family such as ourselves, this was nothing less than a tragedy! Luckily, in talking with the beach worker guy about what to do (because he was trying to help us since we had a baby that needed to be shaded), a nice couple offered to let us share their space and take it over when they left. Crisis averted...we had shade!

Dylan dove right into sand play exploration. We had even remembered to bring the pail and shovel he had gotten for his birthday. While some kids aren't sure of the sand, Dylan loved it! He had a great time digging, putting it in his pail, picking it up and watching it drop back down...loads of fun. Walking in it didn't come quite as naturally. His first few minutes of walking along the beach were pretty comical. Lots of staggering, falling, falling and rolling, "uh-oh's" and other general drunken baby looking cuteness. I did take a little video of it...too much of a pain to try and edit and post but let me know if you ever want to watch it when you're in the neighborhood.

Beach Boys

Next, Dylan had to go into the water for his first ocean experience. I am not a water person. I am especially not an ocean person. Waves are not my thing and this beach had some strong ones. So my time in the water was brief. Mike, however, loves the water and was more than happy to take Dylan out into the waves for some fun. It appeared, at times, that Dylan is about as apprehensive about the water as I am. But, he did really enjoy his Dad tossing him up into the air over the water.

Water Boys

Mike brought Dylan back to the beach and we spent some time playing on the wet sand portion. At one point, Dylan was sitting safely out of the water when a wave rolled in and, though no more than an inch or two high, had enough strength to topple Dylan over on his back and get a mouth full of salt water. We waited for the cry but none came. He just sputtered, sat up and looked a bit confused. What a good sport that kid is!

Although we were all completely lathered, head to toe, with the strongest waterproof sunscreen known to man, we didn't want to push our luck (since we'd all avoided sunburn for the vacation thus far) and called our beach time to an end. Then the clean up started. Man, that sand is seriously pesky! It was everywhere and took a LONG time to get off of all of us. After much time and many showers at the beach cabana, we got dressed, enjoyed dinner back at the resort and had a nice cab ride back to our hotel (missed the last ferry back).

Our last morning there, I had hopes of getting in a little more sightseeing. It was not in the cards. Dylan was DONE with vacation! My sweet, laid back little boy was a whining mess all morning. Given that Mike or I were constantly holding and entertaining him, it took a ridiculous amount of time to get packed up. So much so that we only had about an hour to spare before we needed to head to the airport. Our concierge suggested we check out the post office and neighboring Bermuda Historical Society Museum which were about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. Mr. Whiny Pants fell asleep on the way there, so Mike and I quietly read some historical facts and viewed the cool old post office building before heading back.

Luckily, our flights there and back were fairly uneventful. Though Dylan didn't sleep on either, his ears didn't seem to bother him and he wasn't cranky or too disturbing to our neighbors. We landed safely back at home (obviously) and were all very happy to be there. One of the great things about vacations are getting back home!

A few more pics of our trip can be seen here.

Bermuda Baby - Part II

Day 3 was Sunday when apparently most of the island shuts down. Lucky for us one of the tops on our to see list was open - the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo. We hopped the bus up there after having a small breakfast in our rooms, courtesy of a stop at the grocery store the previous day.

The whole of it was not that big but Dylan had a great time looking at the fish, running around the natural history museum, eating lunch by the Tamarinds and exotic bird, and looking at some of the animals before passing out for a nap while Mike and I watched the seal feeding.

Harrington Sound (Beautiful Views From a Path at the Zoo)

Massive Galapagos Turtles

Mmmm....Fish!

Since Dylan was still sleeping and we couldn't get on the bus without waking him (they require strollers to be folding up), we decided to go for a walk to the Devil's Hole Aquarium. A woman we talked to on the street to confirm directions there looked at us like we were nuts wanting to walk all the way there (according to her, it was about 4 bus stops) but by our estimate, it was only about 1.5-2 miles. However, after getting there, seeing that it was closed for renovations and walking another couple of blocks to a bus stop, I suppose that is a really long way in Bermuda island terms - we had traversed the entire width of the island!

The bus stop we waited at was right by a public beach so Dylan had a great time playing in the sand while we waited for the bus (he woke up en route to aquarium #2).

We went back to the hotel, had some downtime and then decided to spend the rest of the afternoon at the pool. Dylan got in for just a little while with Mike but decided that walking around the pool was more fun. So, while Mike enjoyed some water time, I had fun following Dylan around the pool.

And that was quite enough adventure for the day....perhaps we were settling into island time a bit. Either that or we all were lacking in enough adequate sleep at that point that energy levels were a little depleted. In any case, we opted for dinner at the hotel again and then went back to our room for a low key evening of movies.

Bermuda Baby - Part 1

In mid September, we had a visit to Bermuda planned for our family. Unfortunately, hurricane Igor had a trip planned to Bermuda for the same weekend. We let him have the island that weekend and postponed for a couple of weeks. It's a pretty big bummer to think you're leaving on vacation the next day only to have to reschedule for 2 weeks later. C'est la vie in the Atlantic during hurricane season though. On October 1st, we finally got to embark on our trip!

Even though we strategically scheduled our flight during nap time, Dylan spent the entire trip jumping from my lap to Mikes lap, eating lunch and playing on the floor by our feet. Once that excitement was over, he fell right to sleep about a minute after we exited the plane so he missed all the non-excitement of going through customs. His nice nap ended just a couple of minutes before arriving at our hotel in the town of Hamilton.

After a long day of packing and travel, it was great to get to our wonderfully large hotel room with a spectacular view from our balcony:


Dylan's favorite part of the hotel, other than all the long hallways he had fun walking down, were the fish in the courtyard (which we could seeing when looking down from our balcony). They were really big!

Big Fish

And Dylan had a great time feeding them.....

I had thought that since we were getting there mid afternoon we would have time for some out of the hotel fun that day, but we were all pretty done and were content with unpacking, walking around the hotel grounds, walking around the town of Hamilton a bit and grabbing some dinner in one of the hotel restaurants.

Day two is was time to explore the island. Over our ridiculously expensive buffet breakfast at the hotel (that was the last day for that), we decided that the caves were top on our priority list and would therefore be the first stop on our travels. After breakfast, it was back up to our room to pack for the day, then a stop to the concierge for bus info\directions and we headed out. Unfortunately, we missed our bus by about 20 seconds. So, with some time to kill, we looked at the map and decided to see what Fort Hamilton was all about.

One of the first things I noticed about the island was the beautiful limestone. The entire island is made of it and you see it everywhere - on the cliffs down to the water, as foundation, as roofs, as retaining walls....it's a very striking rock (I know that's a weird way to describe a rock but I think rocks are pretty cool) and I just loved looking at it. Fort Hamilton is no different. All the walls in the fort are built with limestone. In the fort, there are great views of the town and of the water as well as lovely gardens to enjoy. It was a nice little place to wander around.

Looking Down the Cannon (And Our Kitty Friend at the Fort)

Dylan and I Hanging at Fort Hamilton

As to not miss another bus, we wrapped up our visit there pretty quickly and walked back to the bus station. This time, we actually got on the bus and made to make our way to the caves. Dylan had no interest in sitting in our laps...he wanted his own seat! We sat on the very back row of the bus where the seats were elevated higher than the rest. After that, it was the only place he wanted to sit when traveling.

Big Boy Traveling By Bus

Thanks to our ill advised concierge, we apparently took the longest route available so it was a long ride but we had spectacular views of the water the entire way. Finally, we made it to the caves.

One of Bermuda's most popular tourist attractions is the Crystal Caves. The location now also boasts a second cave you can also enter nearby, Fantasy Caves. We got the combo package and waited for our tours. First up was Crystal Caves. We walked down a long ramp to a stairway and headed down. Other than a landing at the base of the stairs, the tour through the caves takes place on a floating walkway. It was pretty cool.

Ever since I was taken to Natural Bridge Caverns in San Antonio as a child, I have thought that caves are about the coolest natural formations to see. I really dig them. Each time I've had the pleasure of seeing one since, I'm still absolutely in awe of the beauty and coolness of them....pretty much a child like excitement. Now, I doubt Dylan's old enough to know what a treat that experience was, but he did seem to enjoy it....if nothing else then for the relief of the cooler air.

The Family in Crystal Cave

The Gorgeous Crystal Cave!

After that tour, we went back up to wait for tour #2 and Dylan took a nap break. One thing about these island vacations I'm not good at is getting on island time. I found it a little frustrating that after getting a late start and taking the longest bus route there, we had to wait about 20 minutes for the first tour and then 45 minutes for the second tour. You'd think that it being a business it would have been a little more finely tuned machine. But no, it's island time and they're in no rush. So what should have been an hour and a half experience turned into 3. So much for getting any other sight seeing in that day! Sigh.

But I digress. Next up was Fantasy Cave. We walked to the other side of the property and, along the way, got to see a pretty amazing Banyan tree:

The entrance to Fantasy Cave was pretty cool....88 narrow, winding steps down! Some of the unique features of this cave are the petrified tree roots that can be seen hanging from the ceiling and the soda straw chandeliers:

It was a hot day and we were getting hungry after our time in the caves (and waiting for the caves). Around the corner, by the bus stop that would get us home quicker, was an ice cream place! What luck! We all enjoyed great treats and Dylan got to run around for a while before we hopped the bus back to the hotel.

After a long day traveling in the heat, we weren't feeling super adventurous for dinner. However, we weren't up for dinner at the hotel for a 2nd night in a row. Without any good naps during the day, we didn't think Dylan would do well sitting in a restaurant for any stretch of time so, we opted to go to the sushi place, just over a block from the hotel, get something to go and enjoy a meal in our rooms. It was the perfect plan since Dylan couldn't even sit still while we were waiting for our order (he and I went for a little walk while Mike waited). And man was that some excellent sushi! Yum, yum!

With full bellies, it was time to put Dylan down for the night. Sleeping in the hotel room was tricky for all of us throughout the vacation. We tried to angle the crib and our bed away from each other enough so that Dylan couldn't see us...otherwise he'd never go to sleep. The 2nd night he went to sleep pretty quickly (it was about a 2 hour process the first night) but he was up in the middle of the night for several hours. The next morning, we found that the first of his molar's had popped through!

4 Great Years

Four years ago today, on a gorgeous Fall day, I married my best friend and had a great celebration with our family and friends. Since then, Mike and I have been enjoying life with each other and have added another little person to our family to enjoy.

Cheers to many more happy years!

Happy Anniversary, Honey!