This weekend we took a weekend trip to Virginia to see family and friends. With more travel planned in August we weren’t sure when we’d be down again, so we left Friday afternoon. Once again we regretted leaving on a summer work day, because it took us almost six and a half hours to get there. (Yuck! No fun for any of us.)
But we arrived just in time for a nice dinner with Grandad (Dave) and nana. We also got to tour his summer backyard garden and pretend-ride on the lawn mower, which Ada was *totally* into.
On Saturday we drove to Maryland and had a day with Jess Vought and the Dispenzas. We had fried chicken by the pool and the boys Tino and Lucas played with Ada in the baby pool. (Ada still doesn’t quite understand what all the fuss over swimming is about. She’s quite content to stand outside and throw toys INTO the pool.)
On Sunday Grandma Barb took us to a new indoor playground called Kid Junction that had climbing toys and slides, rides and games. Ada loved the play equipment, basketball and the air hockey table (Team Daddy took the gold in the photo below) but was not much a fan of any of the rides. Can you tell? 😉
We had to leave for Jersey today, but not before helping Grandma Barb to feed the local, tame squirrels. (A strange thing, right? But Ada was totally game.)
We are currently in the car on the ride home. Ada has been sleeping in the car for most of the ride… Fingers crossed for a smooth last hour home!

We’re making our way through a heat wave these last couple weeks. It’s been hot enough that we try not to go out for long periods of time; a trip to the homemade ice cream shop and back will just about do it for us. With stops to sniff the flowers on the way home, of course.

We’re just about re-acclimated to East coast time again, so it’s time for an update about our wonderful trip to California! Daddy couldn’t get time off of work for this trip, so it was all about the gals and Grandpa T. For a week full of so many fun adventures, it was reaaallly relaxing. (Well, relaxing for Mama, ahem. Grandma Nikki and Grandpa T might have a different version of events.) We went biking on the beach, played at the parks, visited with the Usual Suspects and took a dip in Les & Diane’s pool. We even got to meet up with some old friends from London, Jolene and her baby Elijah who is just 2 months older than Ada.

When we returned Daddy was surprised to see how much Ada had grown in the week that we were away. Every now and then she’ll mature in some unspecific way and we’ll notice that something is different, without being able to put a finger on exactly what. But when we returned this time Ada seemed stronger, more chatty and more agile. It was all that healthy ocean air, combined with Grandma’s good food and regular playtime with Grandpa T! She might have even come home with a suggestion of a baby tan and sunkissed blonde highlights. (A TAN? Whose child is this?)

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for so much good food, toys, outings, naps (for both of us), new baby clothes and deluxe accommodations – we’re both completely spoiled! =)

“Come admire my view,” she says.

At Hesse Park with Grandma Ni-Ni! They have crows the size of chickens there. Ada was impressed.

Ada found the best seat in the house: a corner window seat!

Riding behind Grandpa T along the beach! She didn’t love the seat belts, no surprise.

They have *swings* on the *beach*! This was way cooler than boring old Hamilton Park. A baby could swing and watch the tide come in.

Jukis on the beach! The expression on Ada’s face perfectly mirrors her attitude (her daddy’s too) about the sand and the ocean. Bleh!

“Yes, yes, very pretty. More swings, please?”

The big-eyed surprise face we see so much now.

We had a play date with our friends Jolene and Elijah. And later the mamas got to go on a mommy date without babies where we ate dinner, had a glass of wine… and talked about our babies. =)

Ada lurrrves Elijah.

Ada copyedits for Grandma Ni-ni. “No Ni-ni, you need a SEMI-colon.”

Back at the park, giving the big cement turtle some love.

At Les and Diane’s house, borrowing the kids’ tricycle. Ada went swimming and got to wear her bathing suit for the first time this summer. (Sad but true.)

Gramps T taking Ada out for a walk in our new top-of-the-line hiking sherpa. We’re all set for Budapest and Italy!

Sniff, sniff! You have to scrunch your nose up if you really mean it.

A fuzzy photo, but this is a baby with her iPad, sitting first class on the plane ride home. Uh huh, yep.

In Virginia to celebrate Nana’s 90th birthday! These are our cousins Heidi and Hannah.

“It wasn’t me,” she said.

Last Friday we met up with Carly and Benjamin for a long walk through their old neighborhood and along the water front. The daddies met up with us on their way home from work. Ada loooooves her Seth (“Suh! Suh!”) and walked with him on the pier for 45 minutes, identifying every boat and helicopter. We even saw a fire boat spouting water in every direction. Truly, there’s nothing prettier than the Manhattan skyline on a summer evening by the water.

From Baby Benjamin’s welcoming party at Carly’s parents’ house in Princeton. It was a beautiful Sunday to lounge and play in their backyard. =)

She’s quite an independent little thing, Ada Grace. (Yes, we know she comes by that particular trait honestly.)

Lately when we are occupied with something that she’d prefer we not be, she’ll shoo our hands away and say, “no no!”

And when we are doing something that she’d prefer to do by herself, she often takes matters into her own hands. Even if it’s chores (for a little while, anyway).

And by diet, we mean milkshakes every day, doctor’s orders. She’s not too broken up about it.

Wowza, we’ve been on a post drought of late, huh? OOPS! Since we left off, Mama had a couple client births, Ada got a touch of stomach bug, and the Cali-Jukis came to visit the Jersey Jukes! (You like that?)

First we had a week with Grandma Nikki, and then Grandpa T came to join us for 5 more days. They weren’t expecting a vacation per se, but surely they didn’t expect to work as hard as they did. While they were here, we moved Eric’s home office into his new studio work space in Manhattan. And then we got a huge new bed, moved our old bed into the now-guest/kid room and then had to shuffle everything else around to make it work. Purging, organizing, shlepping, carrying, driving U-Hauls to Ikea, buying (and returning) a million pillows and other pieces of home decor. Holy moly. We could not have done it without the help. But it’s coming together nicely, and (**fingers crossed**) will be more or less in place by the time Lisa of the JuKiwis joins us on Monday. (I could do this all day, really.)

So here is a slew of catch-up photos dating all the way back from the last post. Ada is growing and changing so much right now that some of these already feel dated. But we’re having so much fun. Among her most recent accomplishments are the word “NO,” which she figured out just today, climbing onto and off of the bed unassisted (made much easier by the new, low family bed – OMG, love it sooo much) and pushing her own damn stroller, thankyouverymuch. Other words include “mae” (for Mable), buh-buh (which is one of my many nicknames for her), “nana” for banana, and “go!”

OH. AND…. AND. Sleeping through the night. (See note above about the great big new bed.) Angels singing, bells ringing, harps playing. The noisy Puerto Rican bar on the corner is playing a celebratory song just for us. The first night with our new family bed, she slept from 10-6, by far a record. And the nights since have been either straight through or nearly. We can’t overstate how much this means for a mama who hasn’t slept through a night since January 30, 2012. But who’s counting? 😉

Running through Newport Park just as our new friend Benjamin Siditsky was born today. =D

We have a hard time living up to the 2-to-3-walk-per-day precedent the grandparents set.

The hard knock life: being hand-fed chocolate croissant in a cushy chair at a little french cafe in Hoboken.

Gramps’ kiwi hat!

Grandpa T bought Ada this big blue ball from Target. It may have begun as a diversionary tactic to keep Ada in sight at Target, but it’s become her new love.

Lunching at the Cali-Jukis’ rented apartment.

Could not get to the ice cream shop fast enough. Must. Keep. Going.

Ensuring Daddy is bedazzled enough for Griffin’s 2nd birthday party at a playground near the seaport in Manhattan.

Giving our new Siditsky friend some love before his big arrival. Ada loved to rub Carly’s belly!

“Come here, pigeons. No, come HERE! Bird! BIRD! Why are you running away? I looooove you! Plaaaaay with meeee! PIGEON! PIGEON!”
(Yes, she has a way with birds.)

Her growing-so-fast friends Landon, Miles, Miller, and Owen. I texted Eric, “This is what quintuplets would have looked like.” Oh boy. And boy and boy and boy.

Climbing a tree with our big friend Noni!

“These damn paparazzi follow me everywhere.”

Seriously too cool for (pre)school.

And speaking off too cool. She’s getting a slice of pizza with mama and daddy… Ray Charles style.

… and celebrating Grandma Barb’s birthday from afar. Happiness is eating cupcakes on other peoples’ birthdays. We think this works out well for everyone involved.

The start of the front-curl. She’s been getting more and more tiny curls on the back of her head too. So sweet!

Nerdy bird! This poor kid is doomed to a life of bad eyesight. But maybe for her generation laser correction will be no big deal.

What’chu talkin’ ’bout? I’m eating bolognese, fool!

Yes, the baby hips don’t lie.

“This $h!t is bananas. B-A-N-A-N-A-S!”
No, that’s not how we taught her the word.
But tell me it wouldn’t be funny to hear her rocking some Gwen Stefani. Tell me.

While we were walking through the mall, Ada decided that her cow needed some fly kicks from Kids Foot Locker too.

Wherein Mama kinda-sorta encourages throwing food on the floor. Oops.

The two videos aren’t particularly related. But they do make us think, what a big kid she’s becoming!