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Lily is a year and a half old today, and she continues to surprise, amuse, and enchant us. It’s been a really fun July and August for her with Stephanie on her usual summer break, which is great since I’ve been busier with work than usual lately. But Lily is as wonderful as ever – she expands her vocabulary daily, and astounds us with what she hears and understands. I’ll be the proud daddy and brag for a moment: she knows many of her shapes, colors, animals, and objects around the house, and never misses an opportunity to point everything out to us! That little smarty-pants is clearly going to William & Mary.

After just three months in our new house, Lily is completely comfortable in her surroundings and tears around the neighborhood with glee! It didn’t take long for most of our neighbors to meet her, as she’s apparently more interested in running down the sidewalk and into people’s yards than she is listening to mommy and daddy call out to her. What a monkey.

It’s also a load off our mind to finally find a child-care provider for Lily during the coming school year! Her babysitter from last year, Lyndsay, was blessed with the recent arrival of her own second child – so isn’t able to continue watching Lily. Fortunately, we found some availability with another local provider who came highly recommended, and we look forward to getting back into the routine come September. We’ll certainly miss the incredible care Miss Lyndsay provided, though, and wish her tremendous happiness with the new addition to their family!

We’ve taken a ton of photos and videos lately which I still need to get online – stay tuned!

I am very happy to report that as of this morning Stephanie is the proud owner of a 2007 Toyota RAV4! It’s in really great shape, we’re pleased with the price, and we’re both just eager to put the past few weeks of car issues behind us. Congrats, Steph!

You officially do not want me at parties now. I really have no excuse for the spate of car issues I’m having lately, but (and the insurance companies will agree) they haven’t been my fault – so I guess it’s just bad luck.

Last week, just days before leaving for the beach, I was slowly driving down the parking lot of a small retail area looking for a spot. I noticed one to my left and prepared to park. Of course, this was as a pickup backed suddenly out of his spot to my right. Argh. Incredibly, he hit some kind of perfect spot on my front fender, because there’s only a small visible dent remaining. No other damage. I still need to go through the claims process, though, and lose my car for a while for repairs. In the meantime, my car is drivable, so we continued with our beach plans.

With this (and the need to yet replace Stephanie’s wheels) still swirling through my head, we left for vacation. The trip was uneventful – for a holiday weekend – and we arrived without incident. As we left to grab some lunch in the middle of the week, though, the “check engine” light came on. I don’t remember much about the next minute or so, because I’m pretty sure I blacked out into a blinding fury. I then went through all the usual diagnostics (gas cap on, stop and restart, etc.), but to no avail. So I found the nearest beach mechanic (only 45 minutes away!) and he replaced some jointed filter bearing framis overnight. I had my car the next day, my wallet only slightly lighter.

I’m done whining and complaining for now. Sorry. Just don’t let me near your own car.

Chasing down seagulls on the beach in Corolla, NC. (July)

As in years past, we’ve just returned from family beach week in Corolla, North Carolina. It was another great time, and although Lily only really enjoyed the water on the first day, she was completely content playing in the sand for hours at a time. Luckily, she was also okay with being hosed down afterwards. Check out Lily’s latest album for other beach shots.

Besides beach time, we didn’t do a whole lot. We’ve done most of the touristy things already, so this trip was all about relaxation, family time, and a bit of beach shopping for mom and Lily. We did get a chance to sneak out for an incredible date night, though, at a great place called the Fin and Claw. The menu was way more pricey than we would typically go for, but the opportunity was there and the food was delicious. Not to mention, we don’t really get a lot of occasions to fill Stephanie with over-priced cocktails these days.

A mere week and a half after closing on our new house, Stephanie was sitting at an intersection when two other vehicles crashed into each other in front of her. After the initial impact, one of the cars then careened into Steph’s car, taking a good chunk of her front end with it.

Incredibly, she wasn’t hurt at all, and thankfully she was alone since Lily was still at the babysitter.

Unfortunately, we just got word that her beloved Mazda 3 (a car I have hilariously wrecked twice before) has finally been declared as a total loss. Sigh. So once we hear back from insurance it will be time to do some car shopping – our bank is a really big fan of us right now.

Back in April of 2003, Stephanie and I were one month away from getting married. We found a great little townhouse in Alexandria and were able to buy it amid the chaos of wedding plans. That settlement was fun and exciting: first-time home-buyers, about to get married, the quintessential “first day of the rest of our lives.” “Ha ha – look at all the papers we’re signing! Derp be doo be doo!”

Just over seven years later we were back at it, and everything was a tad more “real.” It’s not to say it wasn’t exciting – we are truly and absolutely ecstatic about our new house! We’re just older, wiser, and not as quick to giggle about signatures and dollar signs. Regardless, settlement(s) day went off better than we could have hoped. Sure there were little hiccups here and there, but our agent smiled about how nice it is when things go so smoothly. It was a big day, though, and one we’ll certainly never forget.

And we must give a very heart-felt thanks to both sets of parents! While Lily is a load of fun every minute of the day, her antics weren’t going to pack boxes. Having her out of the house and well-cared-for for those three days was essential to us getting through closing and completing the move. We are truly grateful.

So now the slow and steady process of unpacking and settling in begins. Lost and broken items, putting everything away, hooking up televisions, computers, and stereos. It’s fun and annoying, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.