a big milestone

Violet has been going nuts this week.  My dad has been gone and she has had no one to play with.  Today I broke down and improvised with the sprinkler because the pool was closed, and a miracle happened: she actually played in it.  I know I've posted pictures before where it looks like she's playing in the sprinkers, but she wasn't.  Until today she has danced around it, stared at it, and watched her cousins play in it.  Today she consented to getting wet.  And watching her try to drink the sprinker was magical.  She inspired me so much that I joined her in my swimsuit.

 

She also liked playing in the bucket, which she eloquently calls the "buttchuck."  We had a blast until it started raining on us.

My good news week

Last week was a bit of a roller coaster for me.  You can only get rejected from so many places to live before thinking that you will never, ever find a place to live.  But this morning I put down a desposit and signed a contract for a place we really like.  The realtor made a point of telling me several times what a good deal I was getting.  He kept saying that they should have listed it at a higher price, that a lot of people wanted it, that it had a lot of upgrades, and that it was worth more than what we are paying for it.  Well, too bad for him. We got it.  Here's a list of why it is nicer than our old place:
-Washer and dryer-- in the unit and NOT coin-operated
-ground level (no taking away my stairs and trapping me in the house with toddlers)
-200 sq.ft. bigger
-wood floors (no scrubbing Violet's messes out of the carpet)
-new appliances
-2 concrete patios instead of one rotting wood balcony that I thought I would fall through every time I walked on it
-covered parking so that I don't burn myself when I get into the car
In other good news, I got my ticket to see the Poodster in DC. I know, everyone thought I would be too cheap to fly out and visit.  Turns out I'm full of surprises.
We found a free bed for Violet.
And finally, I'm almost done with Violet's elephant.  I could have finished it last week but on most days I was too frustrated to paint.  Not this week.

Will we be homeless?

This is a real question for me right now. We have been looking for a new place to live for the past couple of weeks with no luck. We have found two places we really liked. After we applied for the first place they raised the price and asked that we pay 3 weeks extra rent. Sorry, not going to happen. Then we found another place. After we applied for that one, we were informed that it was already leased (apparently it was already leased when we looked at it, the listing realtor just didn't bother telling us) and that it actually went for more than asking price. Seriously? Is this some sort of auction that we haven't been invited to? Finally I broke down and gave my realtor a list of places and told him to just start applying until some place accepts us. If you want to know what that's like, try writing down a bunch of addresses, sticking them in a hat, and picking one out. Surprise! That's where we'll be living for the next couple of years. And I am beyond caring.

from the other camera...

All of this stuff happened over the 4th of July weekend, so nothing is really new here.  I've just been too lazy to get the pictures off our underwater camera.  Anyways, Violet is still stinkin' cute, even under water.

 And since Mom and Dad came to the poo with us, she now wants them to come every time.  Fat chance.

 But how could you not want to play with this little face?

 On one night I kept Violet up way past her bedtime to teach her how to hunt toads.  We found 3 or 4 just within a few yards of our house.  She LOVED them.  When I would put them down and they hopped away, she would point at them and whine until I picked them up again for her to pet.  I got peed on many times.  The things I do for this girl.

 But she did FREAK out when we put one on her.  That was really funny.  I've never seen her kick something so fast before in her life.

 Daddy was good at catching them, too.  She got really attatched to him after his long weekend and now goes around the house saying "daddy, daddy" all day.

And if you're wondering what exactly we're doing out here (I know some of you are), we are living with my parents for the summer while Brandon does his internship.  Go ahead, make fun of me-- you're just jealous that you can't live with my parents. The internship is great. Brandon gets fed a couple times a week for free, has half days on Fridays, had two days off for the 4th, and has already been offered a full-time job because he's just that smart and awesome.  But we are set on doing a Ph.D, so instead of going to work he will be going back to school in the fall.

the 4th

This 4th of July was all about the essentials.  Like bomb pops.  I'm pretty sure I could have eaten those and hot dogs the entire day and been happy.  Oh wait, I did.

 Also, what says summer more than playing in the sprinklers?  Even better, playing naked in the sprinklers? 

 Of course no 4th of July would be complete without a parade involving a fire engine.