A twist on the normal

I have been a longtime fan of a website/company called Despair Inc (http://www.despair.com/). It is a truly twisted and funny look on life. Most recently, they have developed a new t-shirt that is the "One Glass. Ten Points of View." It is truly amazing! (see above) I highly encourage everyone to go visit Despair, Inc. Though, I do warn you that if you take way too seriously, you may not find the irony in what is said and sold by the company.

On another note, Isabelle and her friend Hannah went apple picking today. They had a blast playing with the farm animals, drumming on old cans, picking apples and posing (as well as two toddlers can) for pictures. Isabelle picked about 12 pounds of apples, and she did not want to leave! I think both of the girls would've stayed until all the apples at the orchard were picked.

Tomorrow, we head off to Baby Ballet at a dance studio in Amherst. That should prove to be interesting. It will be Isabelle's first exposure to anything resembling structure. Being home all day with me, she does not get it in any way!!

Au revoir!

The Isabelle Line

Being an avid shopper and always looking for quality items, I was told about a website about two years ago called Etsy.com. Since then, I have purchased many wonderful and beautiful items. One such "shop" is one of my favorites, Lassie Girl. Ashley (owner and designer) makes a beautiful line of children's clothing - mainly for girls up to age 6. Isabelle owns many a Lassie Girl pinnie!

Lassie Girl is proud and excited to launch the *NEW* Isabelle line! How exciting is that one?! She developed the line for Isabelle, and it carries her name. Click on the link below to check it out as well as all of Lassie Girl's beautiful line. You know what I will be getting Isabelle soon ;-) Thank you Ashley. It is beautiful!

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15259288

(The Isabelle Pinnie and coordinating Isabelle cord skirt)

Another action packed weekend

(Corn Toss - Playing with another toddler.

The boy is four years old...Isabelle is tall for her age!)

Yesterday was a blast! There was the threat of rain, and yet it never did. This was great on so many levels, but the highest being able to attend Hollis Old Home Day. OHD is the town's carnival/fair. It was fun and perfect for a toddler. There were booths from various local merchants and non-profits, clowns walking around providing free balloon art (Isabelle has a pink kitty cat), face painting, food galore and a traditional carnival - rides and games. Though 90% of the rides were way too much for Isabelle, at the end of the day, she tried the train and Loved it. Of course, by the time she had the courage to try it, it was late and she could only go around twice. Oh, she was bummed as a result. She played a lot of games, we ran into friends and had a really good BBQ chicken dinner. It was rumored to be a lot of food, and it was! I wanted to enter the apple pie contest, but never had the time to cook one. There is always next year.

(Isabelle won a Dalmatian dog toy!)

(Having oodles of fun on the train....it was hard to say no after she decided it was really fun!)

We could even see some of the fireworks from our house. It was truly a wonderful day. Friends, family and fun are a perfect mixture! (Yes, we did run into some of my friends....and one that I have not seen in a while too!)

If the rain stops early enough today, I plan on going apple picking. The hope was the rain would hold off long enough so that the apples would be dry. Alas, this may not be the case. But, I need by 30lbs of apples to start cooking, and as the season is getting late, I want to be able to get some good ones!!

Ta ta for now.

Life Update

(Playing one of many "old" games at OSV)

Hi everyone - As is usual, the past couple of weeks have flown by and been very busy. Where to begin?! After my Mom and Walter left, we had a couple of days of hanging out at home and my trying to catch up on work. Labor day weekend was a busy one. On Sunday, we went to Old Struburdge Village (MA). WGBH was having a member day - members plus up to five people could gain free-entrance to OSV. It was awesome. Isabelle *loved* and ran the whole village. We spent from 11am to 4pm there. She never faltered, and feel fast asleep before we even left the parking lot. (Mental picture: snack bag in one hand, water in another and fast asleep....just too darn cute!)

(Pumping water...we'd be a thirsty group if left to Isabelle!)

Then, Monday, we attended our neighbors' Labor Day Party. Another long day filled with fun and being outside. We arrived about 1pm and left around 5pm. Meet some of our other neighbors too - one on Cameron Road and another on Baxter Road. Roberta and Stacey are wonderful. Isabelle tried the pool, though she decided she did not want to go in after getting ready.

(Some random shots at Pete and Mary Ann's pool.)

So, did the fun end there....no.....today we went to our other neighbor's home for their son's first birthday. It was awesome! And, not in a little kid sort of way. This was like no child's birthday I have ever experienced. Jayne and John hired a band to play music (latin-music (mexican) band), the food was catered by Dutch Epicure (awesome food!!!), there was a multitude of drinks (alcoholic and non), games for both children and adults, access to the indoor pool (very nice indoor pool) and so much more. We stayed only a couple of hours as Isabelle was getting a little too wired and tired. But, it was a great two hours! Unfortunately, no pictures....didn't bring my camera :-(

So, where do we go from here? I am in the final stages of stressing about the golf tournament. It is this Wednesday. Then Saturday, we are off to Hollis Old Home Day for some local flair and fun...living in a small New England town, Old Home Day is a fair with a BBQ, music, games, contests (apple pie contest, pet contest, etc) with fireworks in the evening. Should be fun.

Hope everyone else is having as much fun!

Whirlwind Day

The past few days have been so much fun. My mom and a good friend of the family's, Walter, visited Isabelle, Al and I in New Hampshire. They arrived yesterday and left late this afternoon. We had a blast! Some of the highlights included a mini-walk at Beaver Brook, tour of the stables and brewery at Budweiser, visiting the animals at the local farm and a great dinner at my house to just name some of the items. Conversation was great as was the whole experience. It was Isabelle's first encounter with a Clydesdale, and she was not afraid....most likely due to the fact that she has been up-close and in person with other horses, though not as big! (Having been to the barn a few times since her birth certainly helped!!) I need to download the pictures and get them here. Also, I'm totally exhausted - in a good way. So, off to relax and watch either a few episodes of Futurama or Red Dwarf.

Summer is almost over

This week has brought to my attention how summer is very close to being over. Okay, so technically, summer is not over until the fall solstice - Sept. 22nd, but for most everyone, we believe summer ends after Labor Day. Everyone is back in school or more focused at work. The good thing is that after a long summer of skipping out of work early, taking vacations etc, we are given a bunch of holidays to take us through the new year before needing to settle down and truly concentrate. So enjoy the summer while it lasts!

With that said, Isabelle and I are heading off to CT this weekend, and returning with my mom and Walter on Monday. They are staying through Tuesday. Then a SEC meeting for the car club (Social Events Committee) on Wednesday evening. Being the chair of the SEC has its challenges as well as being a ton of fun too! Right now we are in the organizing stage of the our biggest annual event - The 2009 Winter Reunion Party (f/k/a/ Holiday Party). We're holding it this year at The Highlander Inn in Manchester. If all goes well, we will be having a ten-piece jazz band as the entertainment. Should be a ton of fun!

Speaking of busy, Al will be both flying and participating in the club's second ADSS this weekend. As a private pilot, he needs to go up every two years with someone who tests his knowledge and skills. This keeps him certified. Then on Sunday, off with the car club to race around and have fun in his car. He is taking his Honda S-2000. My car, the actual BMW, has yet to see the track or a skid pad. The chair of DEC (Driving Events Committee) has an S-200o as well and loves it when Al shows up with his. They have a blast!

Aside from Isabelle dealing with a nasty head cold this week and stressing over the golf tournament I am organizing for CAI-NH, my life has been pretty tame.....if it can be called as much!!

Enjoy the weekend, and hopefully much more to post next week.

Isabelle and the Beach

Yesterday was Isabelle's first encounter with the beach. We drove along the NH coastline and viewed the vastness of the ocean from inside the car. A very good way for a toddler to see the ocean for the first time! A friend recommended a quiet little beach on New Castle Island, so we headed off to find it. It was as she noted, not the best beach for sand, but perfect for toddlers. No one was there - it is located at the end of a residential road, and it is in an alcove. So, thought the ocean was there, it was not as intimidating. Isabelle was a little unsure, but soon discovered the fun of throwing rocks into the ocean, and there were plenty to throw!

Here are some other scenes from the beach.