We went down to San Diego last weekend for Samantha's 2nd birthday party at the Madigan's place. We hadn't physically seen Sam in quite some time, but since we read about her each week it didn't really seem like it had been such a long time.
At any rate, a good time was had by all.
We left right around supper time and decided we'd have a bite to eat before heading back home. The Madigan's recommended a local place called the Bonita Store Restaurant. It was very similar to the Rockin' Baja, which we love. Who can argue with buckets - literally! - of fried seafood for dinner?
All during dinner Emma kept peering into the bar where a loud, but not too rowdy, group of women were having a girls' night out. They were singing, dancing, playing pool and generally having a good time. All things that Emma loves, of course. While I stayed at the table to take care of the bill Emma wandered into the bar to see what all the fuss was about. (Don't worry, grandparents. Marla and Henry were right behind her.)
Being the sociable ham that she is, Emma just had to join right in - and, boy, did she lay it on thick!
@ 9:44 PM by TNorthcutt | Comments (5)
Henry has a little bit of adventurer in him that we didn't see in Emma. He regularly tries to fling himself off of the couch, leap from your arms to the floor and perform other crazy stunts. I'm not sure if this is because he's a boy, the second child or just an adrenaline junkie at age 13 months.
At any rate, he surprised Marla not too long ago by climbing into the tub while Emma was taking her bath. Henry had just finished his and, as is the routine, was in the bathroom watching Emma and playing. Next thing we know the boy has his leg hiked up and is on his way over into the tub - pajamas and all!
He was as thrilled as could be (so was Emma) and spent a few more minutes playing in the tub with Emma before I took him, dripping wet, back to his room to change into PJ's again.
You'll also find a few pictures of the train table I built over my Christmas vacation. I needed an excuse to buy a new power tool (a jigsaw) and this seemed as good a reason as any. I based it on plans I found on the Internet but ended up changing it as I went along.
I spent about 3 days sawing, sanding and glueing and $50 dollars in lumber. Much more fun - and much less expensive - than buying a Thomas table from the store. Henry and Emma have enjoyed it immensely so far.
@ 12:23 PM by TNorthcutt | Comments (3)
Christmas this year was quite different than last year. If you recall we'd been home with Henry for, oh, 2 days or so. He was sound asleep in his science fiction outfit and Mommy was sound asleep in the chair next to him. This year he was a bundle of energy and enjoyed ripping into the presents as much as Emma did.
The Christmas haul for 2005 was enourmous. As you can see in this shot one pile of presents was nearly as tall as Emma. Yes, one pile. There were plenty more stacked under the tree. I must admit that I'm a little embarassed by just how much stuff there was there.
Anyway, highlights included: a bulldozer for Henry, books and t-shirts galore for Emma, nice new sweaters for Mommy and an 9' high stack of Good Eats DVDs for me.
The last few pictures show Emma proudly (and exuberently!) singing into her microphone. It was a lot of fun for a few days... until the thing broke. We returned it and I've made a few trips to Guitar Center for replacement parts. Wait 'til you see what I've cooked up!
Oh, and I know a few of you have complained about Simpleviewer not working correctly for you. If that's the case try this link to an alternate list of pictures.
@ 9:50 PM by TNorthcutt | Comments (2)
In the weeks leading up to Christmas Grandma Northcutt and Marla were snap-happy, capturing our two children playing together. It is a treat to come home and see these pictures because all to often when I get home from work play patterns are interrupted.
Who would guess that our two children could play so nicely together? (Not me!)
It was a treat to decorate the tree with Grandma Northcutt this year. We re-used a few of last year's hand-made decorations and topped things off with Emma's very first decoration made at pre-school.
I'm sure that I broke all kinds of good-parenting rules by wrapping my boy in Christmas lights but, you know what?
I don't care.
@ 9:44 PM by TNorthcutt | Comments (4)
We've entered 2006 wet and soggy so we're stuck in the house with nary to entertain us but the largest haul in Northcutt Christmas history. (Look for pictures of our excess later in the week!) While the kiddies nap I thought I'd offer these two sets of cute pictures to grandparents itching to hug their grandbabies.
First up is a set of Emma and Henry on the playground. Marla took these in early December and how she managed to snap pictures while pushing two children still puzzles me. At any rate, you can see that they were both enjoying themselves.
Henry is, indeed, face down in the sand in the last one. Marla remarked the other day that this was further proof that a second child gets to try all sorts of things you'd never allow the first to do. Add to that list: climb the stairs, eat food from the floor and play with rabid dogs.
The last few are some from early November. The Mom's Club took a tour of the local Krispy Kreme and a good time was had by all. Henry also tried his hand at ironing. (Oh, add "play with hot iron" to the list of things the second child can do.) He wasn't too bad for someone who could barely stand without support.
@ 3:48 PM by TNorthcutt | Comments (0)
