Relaxing in VA

The Sloan Family, including some Burnetts and a Schuessler, ventured to Lake Anna Virginia for a week away from the world. The trip was very fun and included some awesome meals, good wine, great company, sun, sand, a ride on a boat and some sleepless nights/early mornings for Iain and I. There appeared to be a rooster outside of the window next to Callum's Pack N' Play which tapped on the window at 5:55 a.m. every morning so he'd pop his head up and get one of us up. His naps were also pretty short due to a new environment and slightly more sounds than usual- although his cousins/aunts/uncles/grandparents were great at keeping the noise to a minimum. On the way home on Sunday, he slept for 2 hours and 40 minutes so I knew he was exhausted. He also slept until 7 a.m. the past two mornings but I am guessing that by posting this, he will be conscious tomorrow at 5:55 a.m. Callum especially loved the sand and lake water at the local state park which we visited three times during the week. At first, he was a bit afraid but then he played, played, played in the sand and also in the water. We managed to keep him sans sunburn even though both Iain and I had charred backs by Sunday. Lake Anna was a unique place and our rental property was equally different. Don't get me wrong, Lake Anna was gorgeous but there was absolutely nothing to do for like 45 minutes of a drive. Relaxing but kind of boring for those of us who are reasonably active and desiring a trip out of the house. Our rental house was amazingly huge with tons of space, furniture and things to do (hot tub, jacuzzi bath, PlayStation 2, TV's, 4 grills, screened in porch, etc. etc. etc.). However, it was strange in the sense that it was filled with stuff in all of the wrong places- excessive blankets and boxes in the bedroom closets, random dishes and junk in the pantry, random stuffed animals in the bedrooms. Very odd compared to every other rental property I've ever stayed in. Regardless of the strangeness of the house, we had a great time and probably could have stayed a few more days easily. Unfortunately there was nothing but houses, fishing boats and lake for 50 some miles so we opted to head home. We would definitely take Callum on a similar trip again though because other than the early mornings, he did extremely well traveling. Our next major adventure will be a trip to Hershey Park sometime next month. Until next time, enjoy the pics!

Mommy's Little Helper

Callum's new favorite thing is helping me clean around the house. It started with Gran Burnett's visit when the child almost had a conniption over an old Kleenex that fell on the floor. She let him have it and he proceeded to clean the floor with it. Cleaning continued at Grandma Sloan's house when he helped her clean the glass doors in the living room. He's moved onto the vacuum at daycare, which he goes straight to every morning and plays with, according to the daycare staff, until they go to breakfast which is likely between 20-40 minutes. At home, he likes both the Swiffer, broom and using rags to wipe things. Obviously, its not just the cleaning itself but mimicking his parents (mom=clean). I laughed watching him, Iain rolled his eyes. Callum also loves the telephone and jabbers away to himself or whoever is actually on the other line of his play phone. He also likes pretending to surf the Internet and put the bathwash into the tub when his bath is being drawn. So much for toys! Who needs toys when you can clean!

Week of the 4th

Well we've had a busy ten days or so. The week of the 4th of July brings a closure to Callum's daycare so I was off on vacation. Simultaneously, we had some visitors- Edna, my MIL, and her sister, Aunt Sheila, came to visit us from across the pond. After they spent a week trekking through NYC and Boston, they flew in HIA and Iain drove them to Ship. Edna's been here many times but this was Aunt Sheila's first time in the States and also visiting us. We had a great time considering the cool weather- although sort of hot to them compared to Scotland- and with Callum's antics. He proved to be the ever loving mamma's boy that he always is but he did let his Gran Burnett bathe him several nights and even spend Tuesday and Wednesday morning and most of the day with them. The trio had a lot of fun on walks, in the car and out in the backyard. We even traveled to Lancaster for a visit with the Amish and Callum only caused a (major) fuss for about 45 minutes on the way back (yelled the whole way). Somehow a trip through the Carlisle Wendy's drive thru for a Frostie, which he didn't eat, calmed him down. He seemed to appreciate my efforts even though I wasted $1.39 on the darn thing. We appreciate the long journey Aunt Sheila and Edna made to see us and hope that their trip home went smoothly and that the 10 mile walk on Saturday was relatively painless (Ouch!). I'm sore just thinking about it!

The Burnetts just returned from a weekend at Pappy Al and Grandma's house. They were kind enough to host us and babysit Callum Friday afternoon and evening so that Iain and I could attend a wedding of a good friend of mine from high school. Fortunately Callum had a 2.5 hour nap so he was good as gold with the exception of the run in with Big Neighbor Joe. Anyone who knows the Sloans often knows the Alexanders, our long time next door neighbors. Joe & Linda Alexander have been friends with my dad since high school. Being so close in proximity allows for frequent visits and impromptu chats across the yard. There really isn't a boundary where the properties end because for years, we've so frequently been back and forth across them. Anyway, Joe is a big guy and he came over to visit the night Callum was with Pappy and Grandma. Apparently, Callum wasn't informed of the long standing friendship as he became so upset over Joe's presence that Pappy and Grandma couldn't calm him down and had to ask Joe to leave! The other hilarious thing is that Joe is a child psychologist and is as close to a teddy bear as anyone could ever come. Callum wouldn't have any of it. Too funny. The weekend was very relaxing and we appreciate the time away. Hope you had a great 4th of July!