Back To Work...

Yep, it's that time of year already. The Parents As Teachers program is back in full swing here, so I went back to work this week. It's been bittersweet - I'm really glad to be using my brain once again, but all of this 'work' is getting in the way of my fun time with Maria! :) Ann has been a great help this week, too. She has watched Maria a few evenings while Charles has put in some extra hours, while I was out doing my home visits. We don't know what we'd do without Nonna! And Maria just loves her Nonna time.

We did get in one more outing this week. My mom and I took Maria to Grant's Farm today (Thursday). More to come on this outing soon...

Amanda's Visit!

We had a great time this week visiting with Charles's cousin, Amanda, who came to visit from Edmond, Oklahoma. Maria took to her right away - grabbed for her hand and wanted to play immediately! This is a big deal, because Maria usually takes about 15 minutes to warm up to anyone new. But Amanda was her new best buddy immediately. We met her at the airport on Tuesday - Maria had a great time looking at the planes, metro-link trains, buses, and of course the kids! Then on Wednesday we headed off to the zoo! Maria (and Amanda) loved the penguins, chimps, and snakes the best. Maria waved to every animal we saw and blew them each a kiss too. She's at such a fun age! Although it was the hottest day of the year so far, we had a good time exploring the zoo together. And Maria took a marathon nap that afternoon! (Mommy too)

On Friday, we explored the City Museum. If you've never been there, it's a great place to visit! They have a great aquarium, and TONS of tunnels, slides, climbing walls, and so much more. (Check out the website: http://www.citymuseum.org/home.asp ) Again, Maria loved waving to every new thing she saw, along with loud squeals and deep "OOOOH!s". She's such a blast to watch right now.

Tonight, Nonna took us all out to our favorite local Mexican joint to wish Amanda farewell. We've had such a fun week with her. Maria had her first taste of salsa, and she LOVED it! The kid just couldn't get enough of it! She wanted to dip everything in sight into the salsa bowl - so much for double-dipping! She waved to every waiter that walked by, and charmed them all. What a ham!

The big 3-0!

Charles turned 30 on July 1o! Can't believe he's finally joined the club. He took the day off of work and we took Maria to get her pictures taken. We also placed his Father's Day present, a hand-print stepping stone from "Daddy's Girl," on our newly-renovated patio (see below). Then we went to Sam's club and had a quiet, peaceful day together - those days are few and far between lately!






Charles's brother, Nick, flew in from Omaha for the weekend too. We had fun hanging out together, eating Nonna's great food, and playing with Maria - she took right to him, and even mistook him for Daddy a time or two! It was so great to have him here. We miss him and wish the drive to Omaha was about 6 hours shorter!






Then on Saturday, we threw a big birthday bash at Charles's favorite pub, Growlers. The weather cooled off for us, and we had a wonderful time with a great group of friends. The Millers, O'Briens, Lackeys, Struchtemeyers (all the way from Norman, OK!), Fontaines, Karrs, Storms, Nick & Ann, Danielle, Shawn, and Chappy all helped us celebrate the big day!!!

Fun on the Fourth

With our new patio ready to be tested out, we decided to have a last-minute barbecue. Our neighbors, the O'Briens, joined us, as well as Charles's mom. Unfortunately, the steamy weather did not cooperate with our backyard plans, so we improvised and brought the fun indoors. Jack and Maria had their usual fun - Jack played happily and Maria clung to my leg! By the end of the evening she finally let go and was playing alongside (not WITH!) Jack. Charles did a great job on the grill! The kiddos were in bed by 8:00, and we listened to the fireworks from the cool, cozy couch. Guess that's what happens when you have kids!?!

"Is that my hot dog, Daddy?"

Jack and Maria - at least Jack is having fun!

Maria gives her "cheese-face" for the camera.

Charles and Terry hit the hot-wings. Can I have some, dad?

The following weekend, we helped the O'Briens move to their new, beautiful home in O'Fallon. We are so sad to see them go, but we're also very happy for them. Maria still goes to the window, points, and says "Jack Jack!" everyday. :( But we know we will keep in touch. (After all, Charles and I have already arranged Maria's wedding to Jack !)

The summer is flying by...

Wow! It's been a long time since I've updated! June was a crazy month around here - some home improvements and trying to have some summer fun kept us very busy.

Here are a few pictures that show some of our June fun:

Playing in the Maria-size fountain at Des Peres swimming pool with the playgroup:





More playgroup fun at Vlasis Park - even mommy got wet this time!




Too hot to go outside for our daily walk? That's OK - Nonna will push me around inside her house!




We also FINALLY completed the landscaping around our patio in the backyard. Jackie's boyfriend, Josh, led the way with his landscaping expertise - we just followed his lead!! Thanks to the unseasonably cool weather (high of 80!) we were able to complete the job in one day. No more rotting railroad ties for us! We had some extra rock, so we also added rock to our front landscaping to replace the disappearing mulch. Maria loooooves to play the "take-rocks-from-one-place-to-another game". They are everywhere!

We are also the proud owners of a new master bathroom shower! After 6 weeks of sharing a bathtub with Maria, ours is completely replaced, along with a portion of our kitchen ceiling where the old one leaked. No vacation for the Sasos this year, but we have a new shower! yippee...

Throw in a few birthdays, some very hot weather, and a hard-working daddy, and that was the rest of June for the Sasos!

On to July...

Maria's current favorites are bath time and books, so here she is reading a book in the bath (don't worry, it's waterproof!) and saying a few of her current words.