The Last Day of Summer

Summer has come and gone...way too quickly for my liking.  We celebrated the last day with one last trip to the Ohio River on our boat.  We first cruised down to the Red's game, which you can actually watch from the river on the jumbo-tron at the stadium. 

We didn't stay there too long because the main reason we were on the river was to listen to Riverbend's last concert of the season-Journey.  We are not huge fans, but wanted to see how the sound was for next year's concert season.  Pleasantly surprised!!  There were about 20 boats anchored when we pulled up.  Pat Benetar was playing at that time.  Addison thought it was the coolest thing to listen to the concert from the boat. We stayed until about 9:30 because it started getting really windy and the 30' boat next to us could not stay anchored and almost ran into us.  We are so excited for next summer's concert line up!

Fall is now in full swing.  I think I have Jack talked into multiple house projects for the winter.  I just finished painting the outside of the garage door...looks brand new.  Yesterday, I hit up Sherwin Williams' 40% off sale and loaded up on more paint, including outdoor paint for our shutters and trim around garage door.  That will probably be my next project before it gets too cold to paint outside.

Addi and I recently became involved in Girl Scouts.  I am going to be a co-leader with Addi's friend's mom.  I am so excited to be a part of this program again.  Some of my greatest childhood memories were made in girl scouts, including camping, crafting and creating new friendships. 

First Day of Kindergarten

What fun weekend we had!! 

Kindergarten started on Friday (actually started Thursday, but half of the class went Thursday and the other half went Friday).  Thursday evening we packed up the backpack and made lunch.  Jack had 5th grade orientation at his school, so he didn't get home until 8. 

Friday morning Addison woke up on her own because she was so excited.  Ate breakfast and went out to the bus stop (which happens to be at the corner of our front yard since we have a corner lot).  I tried by best not to cry (or at least in front of her) but the second she started walking towards the bus, I lost it at that point.  Thankfully, I had my camera in front of my face so she couldn't see me!  The bus came back through the neighborhood and she was waving at us. 




Addi was so excited when she got home at 3:45.  She jumped off of the bus talking a mile a minute.  She talked about all of the friends she met and that she ate lunch in the big cafeteria. 

Friday evening we all drove over to the west side to Elder High School since my cousin was playing football for Centerville.  It was a great game, unfortunately they lost.  He played almost the entire time, so it made the game even better.  Addison had a great time ringing the cow bell.

Saturday we picked up our boat from the mechanic (new starter) and took it down to the river.  Gorgeous day, couldn't have been any better.  Here is a pick of downtown Cincinnati (and Great American Ball Park)...

Here is Addison in the driver's seat

Saturday night we went over to Rob and Audrey's for dinner.  Rob made THE BEST pulled pork BBQ on his grill (which was slow cooked for 14 hours!)  It is always a great time over there, kid chaos and all!

On Sunday were were going to Centerville to swim, but Addison woke up with a stuffy nose/cold...didn't know the back to school germs could manifest so quickly...

Instead, we went to the grocery, washed the dirty river water off of the boat and rested.  Poor Addison woke up this morning with a horrible cough in addition to the stuffy nose.  Loaded her backpack up with Kleenex! 

My sweet next door neighbors, Jessica and Matt, had their baby last night.  Boy!  They didn't know the gender until his birth.  We are so happy for them and can't wait to see him!

Kindergarten Orientation

Yesterday was Kindergarten orientation, which means the first day of school is (sniff, sniff) tomorrow! The orientation started in the cafeteria with the PTO welcoming parents and children.  Everyone got a little pre-printed notepad for "Notes to School" (very great idea) and a fabric grocery bag (love those!).  The principal spoke for about 20 minutes then the 3 kindergarten teachers gathered their children (and parents) and we met in the respective classrooms.  Addison's teacher is Miss Wethington.  All of the students had assigned seats and were instructed to color a little person cut-out of themselves and then Miss W hung them all up on the wall.  Once those were finished, the kids got to ride around the parking lot on the bus and learn the bus rules.  Addison was of course nervous at first, but she said it was a great experience.  

While the kids were on the bus, Miss W talked to all of the parents for about 20 minutes.  After orientation, I took Addison to Target for new shoes and some shorts for under her jumper (since the teacher stressed the importance of the girls wearing shorts under their skirts!) 

Last night was the first night of the adult hip hop class I registered for.  It was difficult!  Not only was it a good physical workout, but I really had to think about what I was doing.  There were only 5 people in the class, so the teacher was able to focus on what were were doing wrong (which was a lot, lol).  We actually learned a combination to Usher's "Scream".  I wish I would have had my phone with me to take a video to practice at home, but I did not.  

Today will be busy...Jack has a 5th grade orientation at his school tonight and I will attempt to get Addison to bed at a decent time tonight.  Bus comes at 7:55 am tomorrow!!

This weekend will be a busy one again...Friday night is my cousin Cameron's first varsity football game and will be held at Elder so we're going to go.  So excited for him!  We hope to pick up our boat on Saturday and test it out at East Fork or the River.  Make sure it is ready to go to Lake Erie next Friday.  I also have plans to finish the casing on my backdoor and perhaps start painting my stair railing (balusers and railing).  I just keep looking at it and putting it off! 

The weekend roundup

Today we are playing catch up from such a fun family weekend! Well I guess you could say Jack and Addison were playing catch up at home while I worked today...

Friday night we went to the St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Festival (the Catholic school Addi will be attending).  I am not a fan of Catholic festivals, but since it was a fundraiser for the school, we decided to go. We went with our friend Audrey and her boys (her hubby was working).  The best part was actually the used book fair.  I got 10 children's books for $2. 

Here is Addison and Carson

Saturday Addison and I went to Goodwill for a couple pairs of pants for her (Gap and Children's Place for $2!!) We also got word that our boat was ready to be picked up from the mechanic.  Already in the shop and we haven't had it for a month yet!  We really did know what we were getting into when we bought it though!  It needed a new alternator.  We decided to make sure it ran, so we put it in East Fork Lake which was about 5 minutes from the mechanic.  It ran great.  Made plans for Sunday with our friends to boat on the river. 

Saturday night my sister came down with Red's tickets from my dad's work.  Angie, Jack, Addison and I all went down to Great American Ball Park for Addison's first Red's game.  She said it was boring, haha. 

Addison and Aunt Angie

Sunday morning we met our friends Brett and Kerry and their boys on the Ohio river.  We drove about 40 minutes east to New Richmond because they were having the River Days festival.  It wasn't in the river, so we anchored and let the kids swim.  Once we started back towards the city, I noticed our swim ladder was still down, so Jack stopped the boat and once he tried to restart it, it wouldn't start. Since we had seen the new Clermont County Sheriff boat in New Richmond, I decided to call the Comm Center to see if they'd tow us back to the city.  About 10 minutes later, New Richmond Fire and Rescue, Pierce Township Fire Dept and the Clermont County Sheriff's Dept. boats all pulled up to assist us.  They were all very helpful, even getting on our boat to try to start it.  They found that the starter looked like it had gone out.  We called the mechanic and he advised to drop it off again.

Here is the Sheriff boat towing us back to the City where our truck was (how pretty is the sky?!)

Today we found out that the solenoid starter needs to be replaced.  Should be done by tomorrow.  We are just happy to get these things fixed so that we have an operable (and safe) boat for Labor Day if we take it to Lake Erie. 

Today is also Addison's first day of gymnastics.  Jack went and bought her a new leotard today :)  I think she was happy to clothes shop with dad.

Almost Kindergarten!

This week has been fun with Addison gearing up for Kindergarten. A little “play date” was organized by the PTO and we got to meet the 3 kindergarten teachers and the kids who will be in Addison’s class. She knows one little girl, Sarah, who also belongs to our pool and dances at Dance, etc.


(Addison is the farthest to the right in the front row)

Going to the dentist and getting my hair done today!

Tomorrow is the first day of the Seton Fest (the Catholic Festival associated with Addison’s school), so we will go if it doesn’t rain.

With the upcoming Color Run, I thought it may be a good idea to start jogging versus using the elliptical. I downloaded an app called Couch to 5K and created a rockin’ playlist in iTunes. I had planned on jogging next to Addison while she rode her bike, but she insisted on bringing a bag of almonds to eat while she was riding…yeah, don’t ask. Needless to say, we went 10 minutes, turned around and then I went out by myself for another 20 minutes. I surprised myself with actually jogging a mile without stopping (or being in pain), then walked the remainder of my workout. I plan to do the elliptical tonight and then go to power pump on Friday morning for weights.

Half a year in review

I need catch myself up on life! It has been going by too fast! With Addison starting Kindergarten in a week, I want to make sure I am documenting these amazing milestones and family memories (disclaimer: some of these are pics from the iphone so they are a tad blurry).

So to catch up, this is what we’ve been up to:

February: Jack and I made-over Addison’s room.  She chose the color-Olympic One’s “Lavender Haze.” I couldn’t have been happier than a pig in slop when I ripped out the hideous 2 ¼” wood trim from 1987 and replaced it with 3 ½” white trim. I would have gone with wider trim, but our ceilings are standard height and the price difference between 3 ½” and 4 ½” was a lot. So here are our before and afters (I need to add a couple more of the final product with bedding, etc.):



Addison helping during the process

March: We had an unusually warm spring, which was awesome!  We did a lot outside including buying a new bike for me and a “1/2 wheeler” for Addison (which is a bike that connects to an adult bike).  She graduated from the bike trailer! We spent a lot of time on the Loveland Bike trail.

The week before Easter (since we were going to Florida) we colored Easter eggs. 

April:  For Easter (which was also Jack’s spring break) we went to Panama City Beach with Aunt Angie and Uncle Tony.  We had amazing weather and we’re already looking forward to spring break 2013

Econfina Springs Canoe Trip

Angie and I

Pontoon Rental to Shell Island

I made-over our dining room after spring break but it is not completely done since I still need to paint the table and buffet. I used Sherwin Williams paint (bought during their 40% off sale) color matched to Benjamin Moore’s Revere Pewter.  It is grayer than I thought it would be but it turned out really pretty and the best thing is, Jack likes it.  Here are the before and afters (I threw some after pics of the living room...stairs/balusters are next):

May: I worked around the house a lot on painting the downstairs window trim white.  This was a tedious process, but I am glad I finally found the right paint and I’m in love with it!  I use Glidden Gripper primer and Sherwin Williams’ ProClassic trim paint in a semi-gloss (color matched to Benjamin Moore’s Simply White). I continued the Revere Pewter in the living room, family room and breakfast nook.  The trim is still a work in progress…

Addison’s preschool graduation was at the end of May.  The “ceremony” was adorable—the kids sang a couple of songs and said the Pledge of Allegiance.  We will miss her preschool/daycare center very much since it is been part of our lives for 4 years. 

Since the weather was so warm in May, aunt Julie opened her pool earlier than usual.  This is my cousin Jack.  Planning on taking his senior pictures this fall so I thought I'd practice.

June:  Addison turned 5 on June 5!  What a special day that was. She couldn’t have been happier.  We had a backyard party complete with pizza and a princess cake.  This was my first attempt at using Wilton’s Wonder Mold, but in the end it turned out well.   I think the cake was Addison’s favorite part of her birthday. We ended up celebrating 3 times-once with friends, again with my side of the family at a pool party and again with Jack’s side of the family.

I hosted the monthly Shagbark Ladies’ Night at my house to have a little baby shower for my sweet neighbor, Jessica (who is due at the end of August). Here is the diaper cake I made and I regret not taking any pictures of the actually party!

Right after school was out, Jack was underway on my parents’ deck project.  He did an amazing job!  He completely tore out the old 20x20 deck, replaced that in addition to building an 8x10 addition on the side for their grill and a 20’ bench seat.  I need some more after pics...

In Progress....

We swam a lot…

Aunt Amy and fiance Aaron

"Oh No You Didn't!!"

Addison took this picture of me.  I was surprised it wasn't blurry!

Addison started swim lessons in June and passed level one with flying colors. Our swim club offers 2 week long lessons which were held everyday.   She really enjoyed her swim teacher and made some amazing progress.  She has been jumping off of the diving board and swimming to the side without assistance. 

Addison also started an 8 week session at Dance, Etc. and is taking Hip-Hop and Tumbling.  She can almost do a cartwheel and loves dancing to Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus in Hip Hop.

Addison had her 5 year old check up and 4 shots this month.  She is in the 50^th percentile for height and weight, so right on track. She also answered all of the doctor’s safety questions correctly without any prompting from me. The doctor said that she is definitely ready for kindergarten.

On the DIY side, I finally made over Jack’s grandmother’s dresser into an entertainment center for the basement.  I wish I would have used darker paint, so I’m glad I did this dresser before I move on to the buffet in the dining room.  The color I used was Black Bean from Sherwin Williams.  I used a semi-gloss poly on top (which I had never used before).  It was frustrating to use since it left brush marks but I finally got it down pat after 5 coats. I also switched out the old knobs (I patched 2 holes on each drawer since each drawer had 4 holes for the pulls).  I will probably take the top two drawers out for electronics (DVD player and Wii).

On June 24^th we celebrated one year of living in our house.  Moving has really been a blessing.  We love our house, the neighborhood and our wonderful neighbors.

July: We traveled to Lake Erie for the 4^th of July and spent time with Grandma Jackie, Grandpa Jim, Uncle Steve, Aunt Amy and Aaron.  We borrowed my friend’s pop up camper since there wasn’t room in the cottage for us and it was perfect.  The weather was in the 100’s so it was very uncomfortable if we weren’t in the water and we ended up leaving a day earlier than planned.  Jim took us out in his boat and we decided then that we’d seriously look for a boat (we had talked about it for years but never took the plunge).  For the next two weeks straight our best friend was Craig, from Craig’s List.  We knew we wanted and older boat (80’s model) with a cuddy to sleep in for trips to Put-in-Bay and Kelley’s Island.  We had plans to go back to the cottage 2 weeks following the 4^th of July trip and take my mom, aunt, my two cousins, Angie and Tony.  We actually found a boat on the way to the cottage that fit all of our needs and the people we bought it from were the best. So we ended up with a 1986 Sea Ray Seville II with an aft cabin for Addison.  The only thing on Addison’ list was that it had to have a potty (it does).  It is in great shape with no ripped upholstery and very clean.  Next spring I do want to recover all of the interior upholstery with waterproof Sunbrella material, but it is at least usable this season. 

On Grandpa Jim's Boat

Fun with sparklers and a slow shutter speed!

Our new boat

Aft cabin portion straight ahead with potty to left and sink to right

The weekend of the 20^th was spent at the cottage with the above-mentioned family.  It was awesome!  We had amazing weather for boating, jet skiing and riding around Put-in-Bay on golf carts. Everyone is looking forward to going back next year.

Cousins Jack and Cameron with Addi in middle

My aunt Julie and I

Jack spent some time installing brakes on the boat trailer for towing it long distances.  All of the parts needed to be ordered online so it took some time, but it has been completed. We plan to go back to Lake Erie for Labor Day and do an overnight on Kelley’s or Put-in-Bay.

Addison completed a second session of swim lessons in Level 2 and improved on skills learned in Level 1.  She is working on perfecting her jump from the diving board.

August (so far): We continued to work on the downstairs trim.  I learned to use the miter saw and nail gun.  We completely finished the “living room” which houses our elliptical machine (see after pics above). 

Addison and I are working on creating a craft room in the unfinished part of the basement.  Jack hung up a big shop light and I am utilizing the big pegboard that was already there. 

Last weekend we attended a family reunion of my mom’s cousins/aunt and their children.  My aunt Julie hosted it at her pool but only the kids swam because the temperature dropped from almost 90 to 75 overnight.  I love 75 degree weather, but just not for swimming.

Cousin Cameron with his BFF Savanna

Addison starts school next Friday the 24^th.  We bought a new Land’s End backpack and all of her school supplies in addition to a new uniform jumper.  She’s going to look adorable!

Looking ahead: Dance starts up again next week.  Addison decided to forgo hip hop and take an hour of tumbling instead on Monday evenings.  I liked hip hop so much that I signed up for a Wednesday night adult class.  I am so excited for this to start! It will break up my boring elliptical routine.  I’ll change my hours at work so I can put Addison on the bus which means I can go to the early morning power pump class at the gym twice a week.  I had been going on Monday nights this summer, but I really need 2 days a week.

I signed up to run walk The Color Run on October 6 downtown.  I am really looking forward to this!  Check out the website if you’ve never heard of it.  The 5K event is being held all over the United States and I know a couple of people who have already completed it in different cities. I am going to jog/walk with my team of family and friends.

Jack is not coaching Batavia Football this year which has been awesome!!  He has been able to stay home with Addison this summer.  Speaking of Jack, today is our 8 year anniversary.  Love him.  We don’t have plans to celebrate until we go up to Put-in-Bay for Labor Day.  Grandma and Grandpa will watch Addison so we can do an overnight trip to the island on our boat.

Upcoming DIY projects: I have been itching to do the kitchen for some time now but it is such a big undertaking…as you can see…

 We want to knock a wall down so I hesitate painting any cabinets until that is done but I really just can’t wait.  We recently installed a new sink because our disposal bit the dust and the cream acrylic sink wanted to go back to 1987.  It is a stainless steel single bowl which is A-MA-ZING.  I always thought they were silly, but they are the best ever for washing dishes. 

Before

After

For the time being, I am going to paint the countertops until we figure out what we are doing with the wall (then we’ll do a solid surface of some sort). We will work on replacing at least 4 interior doors downstairs and then I’ll hit up the laundry room.  Probably stack the washer and dryer to create more space.  I hope to have the kitchen in progress by the end of the year....too much to list.  I'm tired.