No more monkees

By K.J. Cardinal

Anna's favorite book these days is the age old Five Little Monkees.

We have read the book to Anna so many times that she knows the words and gestures we make when we read it to her. Take a look for yourself and you'll soon wish you could read a book to Anna.



[WATCH MOVIE]

*The above link will be added at the bottom of all blog posts containing video from now on so the clips can be accessed through facebook notes as well.

**Also, full screen viewing for all youtube clips from here on out will now be available by clicking the second button from the right below each clip.

Pool with Mommy & Meme

By K.J. Cardinal

I finally had a chance to take the videos from Steele Hill off my camcorder and put together these two gems. Enjoy!

Fun at the pool

By K.J. Cardinal

I never really like to put a bunch of photos in one post, but our trip to the pool this morning yielded some award-winning stuff and I couldn't choose just one or two to post. So, I've posted the best of the best. Enjoy!

One and half and livin' life

By K.J. Cardinal

Today marks Anna's year and a half birthday... and she's never had it so good.

As you know, we're up at Steele Hill and spoiling our baby at every turn.

This morning we woke up and spent some quality time in the pool. This time we brought her inflatable duckie for her to sit in and she loved it. She was so comfortable in fact, that I thought she could fall asleep. I have some good video footage that I'll post when I get a chance.

After our morning in the pool, we came back for lunch and then Anna took her nap. When Anna awoke we decided to make a beer run, which actually turned into quite a great afternoon.

While we were out and about, we decided to be adventurous since Anna was in such a great mood and take a little hike out to Profile Falls. The falls were rather impressive and Anna was just happy to be outside.

We threw her in the MacPac and off we went. Angie got a little nervous a few times as I was hiking with Anna on my back. Let me clarify that Ang was nervous because I was carrying Anna... NOT because she was worried about MY safety :)

After a good stop at Profile Falls, we were off to get that beer. We ended up picking up the cheapest bottle of champagne we could find (Angie's such a cheap drunk) and then headed back to Steele Hill.

Anna wanted in on the bubbly. Obviously that wasn't going to happen, but I was nice enough to let her drink some water out of a wine glass... which she LOVED.

At just a year and a half, Anna had a sophisticated celebration.

Relaxin at Steele Hill

By K.J. Cardinal

Steele Hill was a sight for sore eyes today, especially for Angie, as it represents a few days of rest and relaxation.

We checked in around 3 p.m. and after making what seemed like a million trips to and from the car, we got settled in around 4:30. Naturally, we immediately cracked a few bevs and then made our way to the pool.

I was definitely excited to see how Anna would react to the pool this year and she didn't disappoint. She LOVES it. She's so smiley and doesn't mind if she gets water on her face, in her mouth, in her eyes or pretty much anywhere.

Seriously, I pushed my luck a little by dunking her under and splashing with her and she seemed rather unfazed. It was great.

We took her into the kiddie pool and she liked to walk around in the 2-foot water, but it was pretty chilly compared to the big pool, which was too warm for my liking.

Anyway, I have been going to Steele Hill for 15+ years now and it was the first time that they made any changes to the pool area. It's definitely the big attraction up here, so I didn't know what to think when Angie told me they had installed a new slide, but I was glad to see that they replaced the old slide with an even bigger, cooler slide.

For those of you have been up here before, here's a look at the new slide. It's great. Kids can really get a full head of steam going down it now because of the bar at the top of the slide that they can hold onto to propel themselves down the slide. What I'd give to be 12-years-old again.

After the pool, we just came back to the room for dinner and to hang out, just the three of us before settling in to watch the Final Four.

We splurged a little and bought some nice shrimp at the market earlier today and it was a riot to see Anna give them a spin. She didn't really care for them that much, but at least she tried them and we all learned that she LOVES cocktail sauce.

It was pretty funny because she'd just dip her shrimp into Angie's cocktail sauce and lick the sauce off it... see...


Well, that's it for today. I'm sure I'll have more tomorrow.

Mini-vacation has begun

By K.J. Cardinal

I just made myself a thing of beauty... a Black & Tan. Our mini-vacation has officially begun.

Angie, Anna and I are going to Steele Hill, our timeshare in Sanbornton, NH, tomorrow afternoon and returning on Monday night. We will be back at home for Tuesday through Thursday and then heading back up Thursday night with Sammy in tow and returning Saturday.

Last year's April Vacation yielded some great moments in Anna's young life and also some very bloggable stuff. Unfortunately I have quite a bit of work to get done while I'm up there, but hopefully I can do that at night and enjoy the days with the fam and also do some quality posts.

If you're in the area and want to stop by, shoot me an email and we can try to work something out. I can't wait to get Anna back in the pool... should be lots of fun.

Last full day at Steele Hill

By K.J. Cardinal

Today marks the last full day of our vacation at Steele Hill and we've had a blast.

The weather has been amazing all week and has really added to the fun that we were able to have. On Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday I was able to make it down to Farmington to golf with my Dad, Matt and Jeremy at Farmington Country Club.

My Christmas gift for my dad this year was a membership at the FCC and he appears to be REALLY loving it...even more than I originally expected. From Sunday to Thursday he improved by 12 strokes and we were able to spend a lot of time together, which is even better.

Likewise, my Mom and Katie were able to make it up to Steele Hill a few times and got to hang out with the girls quite a bit. This week has really been a teaser for June 21-28 when we all have a rental house together on Perkins Pond. We can't wait!

We've spent a lot of time by the pool. Anna really loves the water and seems to be on her way to a water bug, much like Sammy. Angie and Sammy bought Anna this little yellow duck that she can sit in while in the pool and she's so adorable in it. She kicks her feet underneath and splashes the water all around. She's the best.

On Wednesday night we had a really good dinner at Patrick's Pub. That place is awesome. They had a guy on an acoustic guitar singing and the food was awesome, as usual.

Last night, my Mom brought dinner up and cooked us some awesome seafood canollis. Aunt Kate was able to make it up after her class too, so it was a great night.

It's back to reality for me on Sunday as we have a PackCast of the America East Women's Lacrosse Championship at BU. Adam really hooked me up this week by taking care of the semifinals, which are being played right now, so thanks a lot buddy.

Well, the next post will probably be from back in Hudson, but April Vacation 2008 has been a lot of fun. Thanks so much Mom and Dad for letting us take over your timeshare and we're glad you were able to spend so much time with us.

I'll post some photos to accompany this post when I have more time...

Golf, Racing and Basketball

By K.J. Cardinal

Wow, I'm still tired. Day three of April Vacation 2008 really wore me out, but it was a ton of fun.

I started things off by getting up early in the morning and heading to Farmington to meet my Dad and Matt for a nine holes at Farmington Country Club. The temperature at Steele Hill was in the 40s when I got up and my dad said it was 37 when he woke up in Farmington, but I still braved the elements in shorts.

That turned out to get a great decision because it turned into an awesome day. I was rather happy with my first round of golf of the season.

I actually parred the first hole and was six over after seven holes...bogey golf is good for me. I then proceeded to self destruct on the 8th and 9th as I tripled and doubled to finish with 47....11 over par.

I had to snap that photo above because there was actually one spot on the course (back of the 4th green) that had snow still on it. I have to admit, it's my first time ever playing snow golf.

After golf, Dad and I headed to Lee for Rick's race. Again, it was a beautiful day, so we were able to enjoy a little tailgating before and between races and Rick did awesome.

In his first-ever ACT race, Rick dominated his heat...winning by at least 8-10 car lengths. He started ninth in the 100-lap feature and came home with an impressive sixth-place finish.

Dad and I were absolutely impressed with the new deal Rick has going. He arrives to the track with a two-car hauler, which holds his car and his teammate Bobby Dragon's car. It's really a first class operation all around and we're all so happy for Rick. He's worked his butt off over the past 20 years to get to this point, so he deserves it.

After the races we headed back to Steele Hill to hang out with the family. Katie and her friends (Jason, Corinna & Caitlyn) had come up for the day and Meme was up for the night too.

Katie's crew left just before dinner and then we enjoyed some steaks on the grill and settled in to watch the Celtics game. The C's are unbelievable and I'll be VERY bummed if they don't make it to the NBA Finals.

I'm definitely worried that Doc Rivers will screw it all up, but hopefully the players are good enough to overcome his shortcomings.

Anyway, Anna was so cute as Papa put her to bed. She was singing herself to sleep and all snuggly after taking a bath.

Speaking of sleep, I could use a nap.

A visit with the George's; Steele Hill at last

By K.J. Cardinal

Day two of April Vacation 2008 was light years ahead of day one.

Anna got to spend the morning with Meme, Papa and Aunt Kate before heading off to visit the George clan. When we arrived at Tiff & Pete's, Andrew greeted us at the door and I know I'm biased, but there really isn't a cuter kid in the world. I could describe how adorable he is, but instead I will interrupt this post to show you these pictures, they speak for themselves...


...and now back to your previously scheduled blog...

The newest member of the family, Natalie, was doing great. She slept nearly the entire time we were there, but it didn't matter because I got to hold her for a good chunk of time and I was able to get my fix.

Her coloring is great. Tiff and Pete are as lily white as I am, but Natalie definitely looks like she's got a little tan going on. I know babies eyes are usually blue, but Natalie's looked super blue today...sorry, I didn't get a photo of 'em.

After Tiff and Pete's, we snagged some lunch, bought a bunch of groceries and then headed to Steele Hill. We checked in and went right to our room.

It's always a crap-shoot with the rooms here. They are all pretty nice, but sometimes you get a newly renovated room or a great location.

So if the room assignments are a crap shoot, we rolled a 7. We have the closest room to the indoor pool, which makes Sammy's day (and mine too because I can just quickly run back to the room to grab a beer instead of having to buy one at the pool bar), and the room we got is awesome.

After we checked into our home-away-from-home for the next seven days, we had to immediately go and hit up the pool. Since the first time Angie and I talked about taking Anna swimming, I said that we had to get her an "itsy bitsy teenie weenie yellow polka dot bikini" (you can thank me later for getting that song stuck in your head). So, with a little help from Kris, Angie's co-worker, Angie found the prized bikini a few weeks ago and we've been anxiously awaiting getting her in the pool.

Needless to say, Anna seemed to like the pool. When Angie carried her in the water, she was unphased. When Anna was held upright, she would kick her feet as if she was trying to tread water. It was adorable...as you can see.

Tomorrow I'm hitting the links with my dad and hopefully Matt and Jeremy and then my dad and I are heading to Rick's first-ever ACT race at Lee. Should be another great day.