We have a minivan

Today, we bought a minivan. Alana's Passat needed to be taken in to the dealership to have some recall parts replaced. While we were there, she walked over to the VW Routan and peered inside. Naturally, within a few seconds, a salesman was telling her about the vehicle. We had talked about her trading in her car for something bigger. Both of our kids fit in her Passat, but that was it. No picking up friends. No extra passengers. 4 and she's full up. If we were to decide not to pay off her car in the two years it would have taken, something with a third row was essential. In the last two months, we dropped about three grand on repairs. We couldn't help to think about how much more we would have to spend in two years, or how much it would be worth after that time. Somewhere down the line, Alana wanted a bigger car. Now seemed as good as time as any. We discussed it for a day. Then Alana went to the dealership this afternoon and drove home a barely used Volkswagen Routan.

It's actually a pretty sweet ride. No getting around that it's a minivan. But it has tons of room and drives like it's made it Germany. Tomorrow, were going to my parents' house to discuss our roadtrip to Perdido Key, FL that we are all taking on Friday. I was born in Pensacola, which is right next to Perdido Key, and I haven't been back in years. Honestly, most of the family I used to see there has either died or moved away. But there are still a few of our clan left in the area, and the white sand beaches are always a welcomed friend.

This is what we hope to be a family tradition: Go on vacation every summer. Last year, we took Jacky to see auntie Lokken in Denver, then all drove up to Estes Park for a few days. And this year, with the new addition, we're heading to the beach. In a minivan. God love it.

We have all been home this summer, me working a day or a week here and there. It has been an absolute blast. We want to kill each other from time to time, but overall, it's been a very nice three months. Jackson, despite his often quick temperament, is an absolute joy. He still says or does something new almost daily that puts us in stitches. I was cooking dinner 0ne evening, and Jackson walked around the corner, wearing nothing but a diaper, and looked at me. He reached his hand into his diaper, pulled out Alana's ipod and put it to his ear. "Hello." He said. "Yeah. Oh. Okay. Bye." And walked off. Something new almost daily. I can usually divert his pissy three year-old moods by making him laugh. When he gets whiney and unreasonable, I have an arsenal of tricks to make him happy. Top of the list is to tickle him by massaging his shoulders. Works every time. He can be near hysterical, and if I rub his shoulders and say "What's wrong? Are you tense? Do you need a nice relaxing shoulder massage?" He burst in to laughter. The better mood doesn't always stick, but most of the time it's a sure winner. Tonight I was putting him to bed, and as often nights, he didn't want to go to sleep. He started whining and crying about wanting whatever toy he could think of that he wanted, and I pulled the shoulder massage trick. Worked like a charm. Then he turned it around on me and said, "Daddy, cry. Daddy, cry". (I speak Jackson, so I knew exactly where he was going with this) I boo-hooed dramatically, and he grabbed my shoulders and started squeezing. "What's wrong? What's wrong?" he said. I laughed and fell over on the bed. He giggled with delight. We did that four more times in a row before I got him to lay down. We read
Go Dog Go and he enthusiastically recited the parts he knows (in particular, the dog party), and went to bed. It's all about getting on their level and connecting with them. They don't always have to like what you're making them do, but overall, if they like you, things happen much easier. I admit, I am sometimes tough on him, but I always try to talk to him and reconcile our difference after he's calmed down. I want him to like me. I sure like him. He lights up my day, and I want to do the same for him.

Naomi is just over two months old. There's not much personality in a two month-old, but it's definitely there. You could really see it start to blossom after the first month. She has started smiling and laughing and talking. Two month-old talking consists of the variation of sounds she is learning to make, with a very animated expression. I think because we are not so freaked out about just having to raise baby, we enjoy this time with her a lot more than we did with Jackson. Sure, she's a pain in the ass, she's two months old. Mostly, she just cries, eats, cries, sleeps, cries, cries, sleeps, poops and cries. But there are stretches in between the crying and the eating and the pooping where she just hangs out. On the floor or in her bed. In her swing or carseat. When she looks around and waves her arms and talks your ear off. You can see the person behind those big blue eyes, and the happy, loving girl in that enormous grin. I'm crazy about her already. I am loving the thought of watching her grow over the next few years. Watching Jackson grow as her big brother. Watching the two of them develop a relationship, for better or for worse.

I can't wait.