Ready, Set, No

3 Airline tickets to the Bahamas, check

2 hotel rooms reserved, check

Sand and water toys purchased, check

3 Suitcases packed, check

2 excited parents and 1 excited toddler, check, check and check

1 expired passport, CHECK

3 cancelled airline tickets, check

2 cancelled hotel rooms, check

3 disappointed people, check (actually 2 disappointed parents and 1 blissfully unaware toddler)

The moral of this story . . . make sure your passport has not expired before you book a trip to another country. Yes, it was my passport that had expired and thankfully we realized the night before our trip, which was bad enough. It would have been so much worse had we actually made it to the airport. Mark is very good under pressure and in less than 12 hours we had rebooked another trip and were soon on our way to . . . . . . . . . . .

And Another Thing . . .

Finn's recent swim in the fountain brought back memories of another similar episode. This time, it happened to my four-legged child. . . and in the reflecting pool on the national mall. Clearly, I should not be surprised when these things happen.

Whoopsie!

The heat has been unbearable recently. I know, I'm preaching to the choir, but still. It seems worse when you are walking around in it all day every day. So, when a big rain storm blew in some cooler air, we decided to take advantage and enjoy a day outside. Our "plan" was to walk down to the national mall, see the monuments, take a carousel ride, eat lunch and then home for naps. You know where this is going . . . right? Problem #1 was that I had a plan to begin with.

En route to our destination, we passed a really nice courtyard and fountain that Finn just HAD to see.

You know this face equals trouble

Yep, he jumped right in

before anyone could stop him

He didn't want to swim alone . . .

trying to talk me into joining him

Makes a break for the fountain

Freedom!

Can you tell that this is NOT a swimming pool?

Because he can't.

Where's Waldo?

Of course, I didn't have dry clothes or a towel

so home we went, naked baby and all

A short delay and here we are

Boys are on a mission

Waiting in a LONG line for the carousel

Proud of his ticket

Here we go

Future Firefighters of America

On Monday, we headed up to Baltimore to spend the day with the Slye girls (+ baby Barrett). Finn loves Samantha and it is hilarious watching them play together . . . but even funnier to hear them carry on a conversation. Both are GREAT at giving directions. When Finn is with Samantha, he wants to do whatever she is doing, whether it is pushing a baby in a carriage, feeding a baby doll a bottle, wearing pink shoes or carrying a purse. He is secure enough in his manhood to pull it off.

Alisha had arranged a special treat for the kids: a trip to the fire department! Emergency vehicles, cool helmets, flashing lights and lots of noise . . . what more can a kid ask for? Fireman Paul pulled out all the stops for the kids (must have been a slow day). Finn and Sam got to sit in and on a firetruck, try on gear, test the lights and siren, tour the inside of an ambulance, meet the fire chief and so much more. Fireman Paul even decked himself out in full firefighter apparel, complete with oxygen tank and mask for these two. The best part of all was that a call came in right when we were leaving and we got to see the trucks roar out of the station, lights flashing and sirens blaring.

I'm not sure how it can get much better than that, but we tried, with stops at the playground and the popsicles and sprinklers in the backyard. A good (but exhausting) time was had by all!

Here are photos from our fire station extravaganza.

Click here to view these pictures larger

Fun with Family

Finn and I spent a week in South Carolina to visit friends, family and get some much-needed R & R. The drive to Sumter is about 8 hours . . . when riding with a talkative two year old, it felt like about 16. I have decided that Finn needs his own "activities director" to accompany him on long trips. "I need this, I want that, can you do this?, where is that?" and on and on, for 8 hours. However, we did make it in one piece so I am thankful for that, but I think that trip is a two-person job.

Finn was so happy to see his Mimi and Bop and especially his cousins, Luke and Mary Daniel. He spent a majority of time in water of some kind: swimming pool, sprinkler, bathtub, water hose and mostly without clothes. Which is one of the great things about living in the south: no one cares if you take your showers with a garden hose and a bar of soap on the back deck. Well, no one cares if you do that and you are two. There would be a problem if I tried to do that.

Finn stayed on the go. He got to take a ride in the convertible, but was a little disappointed when he wasn't allowed to drive. Mimi founds Mark's Lego collection from when he was a kid. Which means those Legos are about 40 years old. He called them his treasures and loved playing with them. He jumped on the trampoline, ate popsicles, played with cars, learned to ride a scooter, but mostly he played with his cousins and when he wasn't with them, he was talking about them.

I was also very lucky. Mimi and Bop kept Finn a few days which allowed me to sneak down to Atlanta to see my mom and my friend, Kriya and meet her new baby girl, Bree. On the return trip I was able to swing through Greenville, SC to see Valerie and Bryan. It was such a treat to visit with friends and not have to worry about Finn.

Before we left, we went to the swimming pool one last time and then and there, Finn conquered the diving board. With floaties on, but he jumped off all by himself and then paddled over to the ladder. He will be swimming before I know it.

We had a wonderful visit and can't wait until we see everyone again. When we were leaving, Finn asked me "Ma (which is what he calls me now), where are we going?" And I told him we were going home to Washington, D.C. And he thought about it for a minute and said, "Can we just go back the other way . . . back to Mimi's house?" Here are a few pictures from our visit.

Mimi always has such good food in the fridge

Best way to spend a hot day: eating popsicles in the sprinkler

He double-dog dares you to walk in front of him

Getting ready for his "bath"

Taking his new Toy Story underwear for a test

run on Mimi's joggling board

Swimming with his cousins

Luke dives in

Cannon ball!!

Fun in the pool

Mary Daniel always makes him laugh

Hmmm, the next Michael Phelps in training??

Ready . . .

Set . . .

Here

He

Goes!

So proud of himself

His new favorite toy: a coffee can full of matchbox cars

Playing Legos with Mimi

He doesn't want to leave . . .