Happy 4th ! ! !

we got up early to see the parade and then enjoyed the festival. People on the floats were throwing candy to the kids , which Mia loved and then the occasional squirt from a water gun kept us cool. After the parade there was music and a festival. Mia enjoyed the slide as you can see below, and of course "the ponies". Tonight we head out the have a picnic with friends and see the fireworks.

Potty Training Side Effect

I wandered in to my bathroom and realized that Ms. Mia evidently went potty in my room. What gave it away?? So far, so good, we did our first long outing shopping yesterday with our panties on!! We went out and bought some Little Mermaid and Dora panties to help with the process.

Movie Date !!Mia and I went to see Kung Fu Panda with my friend Maria and her 2 boys. Nicholas and Lucas love Mia and were fighting over who gets to sit by her. Most of the time, Mia looked just like this the entire movie while having her hand in the popcorn bag. She also pointed out when the characters were eating their noodles with chopsticks.

Happy Fathers Day!!! we hope you enjoyed your Father's Day! This picture cracks me up. .

The end of a wonderful week. . .

I can't believe our week

has flown by so fast.

We had a wonderful time and it is so much sweeter sharing it with Mia.

We bought Mia her very own "Dora & Boots" boogy board. It is amazing how quick she took to it and was able to balance herself and kick. Hopefully she didn't swallow to much water.

Molly bought her a pooka shell necklace.

I think she looks like a little beach bum, doesn't she???? She is getting so tan too!

This year our group decided to forego our annual cocktail party and have a seafood boil. Everyone brought whatever seafood they wanted steamed and had a feast. We had corn, potatoes, and lots of Old Bay on hand as well. Mia was feeling a little under the weather today, we think she may have swallowed to much salt water playing on the island, so we stayed back and did a little shopping and relaxed by the pool. I finally was able to catch up on my book.

We had a visitor today! He came right up to the boat and let me get in

close for a picture. Afterwards, I stole a live shrimp from the bait bucket

which he enjoyed very much.

Mia and I hit the shell jackpot!! What a great day today walking the island, picking up gorgeous shells. I have 2 candle holders and a basket that Mia and I have been putting shells in since we started taking her to the beach. These by far are the best ones yet. At one point Mike looked over and couldn't believe how far we walked. We didn't even notice how far we were.

It's that time of year again!!

Our annual trip to Marco Island has begun and it started off great. It was so great to see everyone again and my friend Molly joined us with her father this year. Our friends, Danny and Jamie also put in an offer on a unit to possibly join us every year. The weather has been wonderful most of the day and the every afternoon thunderstorm, Florida style strolls thru in the late afternoon. Mia has been a total fish and started the day in the pool while Mike and I got things ready to take the boat out. Then at the island, she swam and collected shells ALL day. As I type this now she is passed out on her back taking an extended nap. I must say, she really just goes with the flow and eats whatever and whenever, which makes it great to have some flexibility. I just can't believe we are in year 2 of a tradition that Mike and I have enjoyed for many years now. We just figured it out.....12 years!!!!!

Lets Go Catch Some Waves. . . . . Today we spent the day with some friends and their children. Mia of course wanted to get right in the middle of things and play with all the big kid stuff. They are always so great and don't mind sharing every once in a while. Here Mia is practicing her poses for her future as a surfergirl. She had everyone laughing.

Potty PatrolWe have been trying to get Ms. Mia out of diapers for several weeks now. She can go poopoo and peepee and the potty, but only when SHE wants to. Somedays it goes well and somedays it is a disaster. She keeps saying she wants to wear "Big Girl" panties. She also said she wants ones with Little Mermaid on them.

We went to the doctor yesterday because Mia has had a runny nose and a cough for several days, so I brought her in to have the doctor look at her. She ended up having the start of a sinus infection, luckily for her it was at the beginning so the antibiotics should clear it up no problem. Mia now weighs 31 lbs (75 percentile) and is 38 inches tall (90 percentile). I just can't get over how fast they grow.