Booboo's Evening Training!

So Rosemary is starting to walk like it's her mandate for life! She's still a little wobbly and makes monster noises but as you can see there is no stopping this girl! 

Walking outside and knocking things down!

This little girl has discovered she loves pushing her walker outside in the street. Now that sounds bad doesn't it. Mama is literally letting her daughter play in the street. To be fair, we have a quiet street and no sidewalks. So we improvise.

Oh and Booboo loves knocking down things, like this tower her daddy built. Sometimes she needs incentives when distracted!

Loving the nice weather!

We have had so much fun enjoying this early spring! Booboo went outside and sat down on the grass (with blanket) for the first time over the weekend. She already is an outdoor baby. 

She also is crawling and walking (with assistance) UP A STORM! It's hard to keep up with her sometimes. 

Even if she is still having trouble sleeping through the night, Rosemary is a joy to us each day. 

Daddy is putting up fences!

In the spirit of the new administration, Justin has been fortifying the house and putting up fences to keep out (in this case) a few baby hombres. 

He assures me that Baby Girl will pay for these fences. I remain skeptical but at least we don't have to worry about her going in forbidden areas--like the fireplace. 

Happy Friday!

Rosemary loves the morning. I mean early morning. After a 4:30 a.m. wake up call, this little one was back at it at 6:30 a.m. It's hard to be anything but joyous though. She is getting very close to saying hi and she loves to run her walker into everything! 

Starting to walk!

Just when we are getting used to the crawling, Rosemary is pulling a fast one and starting to walk! Sure, she can only get around on the walking toy Grandpa and Grandma Bowling got her. But watch out world because she's getting pretty darn good at it!

Booboo's latest trick!

Rosemary is just a force to be reckoned with! This little punkin decided crawling wasn't good enough. She is full on standing!!

See her two attempts at showing mama how she climbs up on our ottoman:

She gets serious and climbs the second time!

And she's off!!

Booboo is a cruising little lady these days! The time when we would leave her for even a second has been shattered by that innate curiosity to get into STUFF!

Check out her skills (don't you just love the monkey butt!).

Post-Election Booboo!

Rosemary's reaction the morning after the U.S. election, when she woke up and Justin showed her the electoral map on our laptop! 

"Onward and Upward!"

Booboo's First Halloween

Okay, this year's celebration of Halloween was really more for mommy than Booboo, but I argue she had a fantastic time.

She was our little kitty cat and even walked (well held onto mommy as we walked) in the Crofton Kiwanis Club's annual Halloween parade.

Can't wait to think what we'll dress her up as next year!

 

New Baby Means New Adventures!!!

Oh Adventure Blog! Once you were a fun way to showcase the places Justin and I would travel to and the fun we had. Then we got married (actually that was awesome). And now, we have a Booboo Haste (yes, our nickname to our beautiful daughter).

And she's a blast! So I thought I would dust off the old blog and start sharing adventures in parenthood, home owner-hood, and any other kind of hood I can think of.

Booboo also has a few thoughts she wants to share!

Justin Tears Apart His Tub

Sometimes, the best adventures are the ones at home, as shown by Justin tearing apart his tub. While this happened this past winter, we're already excited about the great kitchen fight coming in the next few months. Enjoy!!

Lions, Okapis, Giraffes, Oh My! Adventure Outing--Girlfriends' Edition

When you're in a relationship, you learn what's feasible and what's fantasy. For instance, I've found I can't cajole Justin to go see a chick flick, enjoy a high tea or apparently visit the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore (especially on a cold December day). But a girl's gotta use her Groupon before it expires on Dec. 31!

So I'm thankful when my fabulous gal pal Tamika (also a creative event planner) was game for venturing forth to the zoo.

It's actually the third-oldest zoo in the nation and in some instances that shows. Don't expect the variety of exhibits and animals that you might find at the National Zoo. We had fun just the same, even though many of the animals were more content to take naps than acknowledge our presence.

Two-Ounce Shots & Ticking Off Virginians

Have you noticed a trend that this adventurous couple has been spending more time across the border in Virginia? There was good reason to go across the river and then some this past weekend, when Justin and I set out for Ridgeway. We were on our way to see my great Aunt Betty, who is spry and articulate at 93.

We headed out in a suped-up Grand Jeep Cherokee (nice ride but doesn't corner well) down the Beltway, I-66 toward I-81. Ugh, avoid the usual Capital traffic if you can. We would have been better to go up to I-70 in Maryland and cut over West, even if we had more miles heading South. Construction and sheer Washington driving idiocy tacked on an extra hour of stop-and-go driving.

Team Maryland Vs. Hurricane Irene

There's a Hurricane a'coming!!

We might have lost the battle, but I believe Justin and I won the war with Hurricane Irene by completing most of our Virginia Beach vacation this past week. Technically, this wasn't a Maryland excursion, but we won't let details get in our way here!

So despite weather reports that Armageddon was descending on the Eastern Coast, Justin and I headed out Thursday morning for Virginia Beach. Take note if you're heading out of Eastern Maryland, it makes much more sense to take Route 301 South and connect to I-95 or US-17 rather than fight through the Capitol Beltway and I-95. Still we survived the road trip with no major spats (yay us!).

'SUP yo!

That's not street slang, but the acronymn for Stand-Up Paddleboarding, which is what Justin and I tried for the first time this past Saturday. It was a bit of a muddled affair but we thoroughly enjoyed the water-based activity. Here's how it played out:

We headed out bright and early Saturday morning to Hammerman Beach over at the Gunpowder Falls State Park, about 20 minutes north of Baltimore. The park itself seemed pretty nice but we found the beach area (it's situated right on the Bay) to be lacking compared with Betterton Beach. Yeah, we're biased.

The company we did the SUP lesson and rental was Ultimate Watersports. They offered a good price for an hour-long lesson and hour rental ($40). But we had Mother Nature to contend with, who decided after weeks of dry, hot weather she would rain down hard with impressive thunderstorms. Luckily, there was a a two-hour lull that allowed us to venture forth on the water!

I know, I know, these are low-quality photos! Major fail on my part for not checking that my camera had batteries in it! But as you can see, this marvelous sport involves one paddleboard (like a sufboard but longer and wider) and a long paddle (see how to get started here). You start out kneeling on the board and then push yourself up to a standing position. Yes, it takes balance and we both wiped out (curses that I couldn't get footage of that!). But once you get your "paddle legs," you can enjoy the board moving over the water. I think of it as kayaking on steroids!

Betterton Beach, MD

Describe it however you want--we all can agree it's been ridiculously hot in the DC area. So when I sweated through my clothes (gross, I know) for the third straight day in my 10-minute walk to air-conditioned work, I knew it was time for an outdoor water getaway. But with gas prices high and only one day off, Justin and I ruled out Ocean City or Rehoboth Beach. We wanted somewhere closer with fewer crowds. The answer: Betterton Beach.

Tucked away in Kent County at the top of the Bay, this hamlet has an easily accessible public beach. Justin and I left Crofton on a Friday morning and made it to Betterton before noon, passing little traffic once we were over the bridge. You'll drive through quaint towns like Chestertown and Centreville on your way. A word of caution that GPS systems may blip out in Chestertown but don't panic. They'll find a signal.