Jack's 1st Birthday Party!

Little John Henry (Jack's cousin) enjoying the party too! Ok - maybe Mommy is enjoying it more!

Uncle Jeff and John Henry.

Jack's checking out his cake!

Nana and Jack

Trying to open some presents!

Honey Pots!! Looks like Pooh Bear's got a lot of honey to eat!

Jack's sooo excited about his gifts!

The kids enjoying hot dogs!

Pooh and Tiger...

Aunt Sunnie's cake she made from cratch! WOW..........

And Jack loves it!!!

Jack had a big first birthday party at his Aunt Sunnie's!! It was a Tigger and Pooh party. And boy oh boy was it a party. He had his Aunts and Uncles, cousins, Grandparents (including Great) and friends there!! Mommy was so happy to have her little angel back home for his 1st birthday!!!!

Jack got loads of toys and some very nice clothes (which were very needed!)

He had a ball having cake and Meg (his 1st cousin) had just as much fun opening presents for Jack! You would have thought it was her birthday : )

Been a long time....

Hello Friends and Family!

I am WAY behind on updating my blog. Since I've been back to work (Aug 11) I just can't find the time in the evenings to do much. It's home at 6:00, some playtime with Jack, dinner, bathtime with the little man, then he's off to bed. Then I am pooped! It's been an adjustment being back at work, but it's been good being back into the routine.

Jack's really enjoying daycare these days. It has really helped him to interact with other people. They really are great with him. He made his own pumpkin last week. It's precious. I think he's an artist : ) ..... ...hehe

For those that don't know, we will be back in Columbus Nov 6!!! Yippeee
We are very excited. I can't wait to see all our friends and family. And I can't wait for everyone to meet Jack.

I will really miss our friends we've made in England. Hoping some will visit us in America.

We had our going away party yesterday afternoon. Had a terrific time. Jack was so well behaved! He was entertained by our friend's children.

And today is my birthday. 35 years younger! Phew wee.........
Not much planned for the big day. Spending it at home with my hubby and child. Couldn't think of anything else I'd rather be doing.

Two more days of work here in the UK. Then we are off for a week. We travel to Manchester Nov 5. We are staying in the airport hotel for the night then flying out that next morning. Too much hustle and bussle to do it all the same day. It is going to be a LONG day. 10 hours on the plane with Jack could be touch...

We will see everyone real soon. I can't wait!!
Love Teri

The picture of Jack was taken just before we set off for our going away party - he has on his I'm a Little Monster Shirt!

Should have some pictures to post later of the party. My camera's battery was not charged, so our friends took the pictures for us.

Our last trip in Europe...

Daddy and Jack outside Sully Sur Loire Chateaux

The little man outside our cottage

Mommy and sweet Jack

Stopping off for a drink in Orleans

Orleans

Chateaux Sully Sur Loire

Daddy and Jack on the grounds of Chambord Chateaux

Chambord

Jack outside the cottage

Well our last trip in Europe - for a few years anyway!

Just back from Loire Valley France. This trip was to celebrate our 2nd anniversary, which was October 12.

What amazing countryside. Chateaux after chateaux. We visited 3 while we were there.

We stayed in a cottage that dates back to 1700's. Unbelievable! The owners, Remi and Frederique were great. Remi is a local practitioner. He treated Jack while we were there. He had an ear infection that did not seem to want to go away. But the good doc straightened him out.

We went to Chambord. WOW! That is all i can say....

We visited some small villages. Beaugency being my favorite. It's an old medieval village. No english spoken........anywhere in the region! Well, in Orleans, they some of the people can speak a little bit of english. The people were so nice. I was very surprised b/c i found them to be very rude in Paris.

Our last day was spent in Orleans. You can certainly see that New Orleans' French Quarter is modeled after Orleans. It's a great little city. Lots of shopping, dining and sheer pleasure in just walking around the town looking at the architecture.

Oh, and the white wine, fantasitc. Loire Valley is well known for their whites.

I was a bit surprised that we didn't see many vineyards. I think the majority of them are west of where we stayed.

We enjoyed the week. We stayed at the cottage some days and just relaxed. Built a nice fire...it was a bit chilly there.

What a way to spend our last trip in Europe while on work assignment.......

And to top it off, we got lost on our way to the airport in Paris. Pretty rough when you can't stop and ask for directions. Well, you can, but unless you speak French, you are shit out of luck!!!

Needless to say we finally found our way and made it to the airport - on time! But cutting it very close.

2 weeks in Italy

Mennagio - Lake Como

Jack having lunch in Varenna

Mommy and Jack in Bellagio

Visiting Villa Meltzi - Bellagio

Coming into Bellagio by boat

View of the Amalfi Coast from Ravello.

On Capri - overlooking the Faraglioni Rocks.

Mommy and Jack- Capri

Daddy and Jack - Positano

Overlooking Positano

Well, we have returned from our favorite country....Italy! We spent a week in Positano, which is a beautiful village on the Amalfi Coast. What a spectacular place. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. The terrain is so rugged and sets an incredible backdrop against the blue waters of the sea. We took a boat to Capri and spent the day there. Shopping on Capri is like shopping on Rodeo Drive, except Capri houses stores for every famous Italian designer. It was like a shopping paradise, but one I could not afford! I did a lot of window shopping. The island is immaculate. We took pictures of the Faraglioni Rocks. 3 famous rocks...

We also to the ferry boat to Amalfi. Amalfi too was beautiful, but a bit touristy. The town above it, Ravello, was really nice. The gardens there were a sight to see. We took loads of pictures!

Positano, where we stayed, was among the prettiest places on the Amalfi Coast. Not really ideal with a baby though! We must have climbed hundreds and hundreds of steps every day. Our villa was at the top of the village. To get anywhere, you had to go down to the bottom of the village to the beach to get on the water taxis/ferries. The beach was nice, but rocky! Jack didn't know quite what to think about the sea....he did fine though!

The food - excellent! But I wouldn't expect anything less......great pizza, pasta, fish, wine and cold beer.

After a week on the Amalfi Coast we headed north to Lake Como. We flew from Naples to Milan. Quick flight. Jack did ok on the flight.

Our villa overlooked Lake Como. What a pristine place. All the villages on the northern part of the lake are just beautiful. We stayed in Mennagio. We took the ferry boat to Vareena and Bellagio. What a relaxing environment. The Italians certainly know how to enjoy life. Their pace is slow, relaxed and they really do just sit back and enjoy their day. And they love children! Again, the food was superb and the wine fabulous...

Jack really enjoyed the boat rides. He did so great on this trip. Two weeks away from home is a long time for a little one.....

We took over 700 pictures, so tried to pick out some favorites.

Jack's 1st week at daycare

Jack's 1st day at daycare. He was checking out the place. Poor little fella didn't know what was in store for him!
Daddy in front of the daycare....
Jack knows where he's at this morning. Yikes, Mommy are you dropping me off again!
Ha! The geese were out and about on our stroll to daycare. Jack was laughing at them. So cute!
It's Friday - Yeah! Mommy couldn't be happier........

Jack made it through his first week at daycare, although, not without getting sick. He picked up a cold and stomach flu. Boy don't I feel bad! Jack was already a little bent out of shape with his new routine, then he became ill on Friday and spent the weekend sick. Really broke my heart to see him sick, much less leave him every morning at daycare. Hardest thing I've ever had to do. Still not happy with it! But I know eventually he and I will adapt to our new routine.

It's Sunday morning and Jack is a bit better. He still has a slight fever and upset tummy, but hasn't vomited since last night. My poor little angel. Wish I could make it all go away. I don't like seeing my little baby sick....

I am off to work tomorrow. Blah...

Jack will have to stay home Monday and Tuesday since he is still not well. The daycare has a 48 hour clear policy before a child can return once they have been sick with 'stomach flu'. So Josh will stay at home with him on Monday and I will stay with him on Tuesday.

Well, maybe this means Jack won't be sick for our trip to Italy at the end of the month....

A Few Updates

Found out today that I am only allowed to take up to 6 months for personal leave, so it looks like I'll be back at work sooner than I wanted to be! I'll be going back in August, date still to be confirmed. My calculations given to me by HR would put my 6 month leave to Aug 15, but they have calculated Aug 11. New person in HR...figures! At any rate, I should know for sure my start date some time next week.

So, I won't be putting Jack in daycare on Monday. YEAH!!!!!!!

But, not happy about having to go back in Aug. Oh well, I have stayed out for 10 months with him, so I can't complain too much. Just pains me to know I won't be able to spend any time with him until I get home from work. But I know he'll make new friends in daycare and will probably love it after he has adjusted to his new schedule.

Our next trip is right around the corner. We leave for Italy Aug 30 for two weeks. We are flying into Naples, then staying at a villa in Positano. After a week there, we will then fly from Naples to Milan; driving up to Lake Como. Our villa is in Menaggio. We are really looking forward to this trip. Our villa on Lake Como has a pool, so little Jack will get to some splashing around with us!

In October, for our anniversary and my birthday, we are going to France. We found this fantastic cottage in the Loire Valley. It certainly depicts the French countryside. We'll be staying there for a week. The Loire Valley is home to french white wines and chateaux.

Then our next big trip is the Alps; probably in late January. Still working on that trip. Not sure where we are going yet....

Jack's doing great. Over his cold. No new teeth yet, but he is definitely teething. The little one is drooling and sucking on everything he gets his hands on. We had to cancel his appointment with his health visitor this past Tuesday. The lady he sees was out sick, so we are going next Tuesday. We'll get him weighed and measured then.

Well, have a great weekend. The weather looks promising here. Been sunny and 70 today. Getting Jack out in town later. Probably have dinner out. We usually have pizza on Friday....yummy.

Love
Teri

Trip to Bruges, Belgium

Daddy enjoying a Leffe at an outdoor cafe around the corner from our hotel.....
Enjoying the sights along the canal - and stopped for a bite of chocolate!!
Nice set..........

A selection of waffles......the chocolate one looks tasty!

Jack was amazed by the horses. We sat at this cafe and they came by every few mins..

The Market Square in Bruges
Canal boats - didn't get to ride one.....
Browsing the chocolate shop!!
Daddy and Jack taking a little break
Yummy! Waffle with strawberries and cream : )>

We got back from our 4 night trip to Bruges. What a fantastic little city. It was a bit of a trip getting there. 3 trains in total! But we managed.....

Boy, the Belgians really are known for their chocolates, waffles and beer! There are chocolate shops on every corner of the city. Of course I tried quite a few and brought back some with me. How can one resist! Had a strawberry and cream waffle for lunch on Sunday. Yummy! Josh sampled the local brews. He tried out the Bruges Zot, Grimbergen, Leffe, Duvel, and Hoegaarden. Since they brew their beers stronger than most countries, they typically serve them in a half pint glass. The weakest beer you will find in Belgium is 5%. You can order a large beer, but you'd have to go swimming in it! And you might drown before you finish it.

We had great weather. Lucked out! The forecast was rain....

Belgians living in the North are Flemish, however, they are fluent in English, French and Dutch. How great is it to be able to speak several different languages, fluently. The people are extremely nice and were very accommodating with Jack. Although, we struggled with highchairs and baby changing facilities! Other than that, all was good.

Jack picked up a cold, but is feeling much better. He was glad to be back home with his toys! I think he was getting a little stir crazy without them......only so much you can pack for the little

one!

Too tired to eat my cookie......

ooops - fell asleep while eating my cookie!
ah - still got my cookie........
fell right back asleep with a good grip on it!
wow jack - standing up on your own. so big!
where's the boat? a little smile for mommy : )

The poor little guy fell asleep last night eating his cookie. He woke up, checked to see if he still had his cookie, then fell back asleep! How silly....

I captured Jack standing up this morning by the door that leads to our patio. Boy, this little one is just growing too fast for Mommy! No leaving him in the room by himself. No telling what he'd get into!