Our Family- August 2012





STACEYALECK.COM	Amanda Rachel & Robin Beatrice Amanda was born on Wednesday, June 28, 2006 at 3:16 pm Robin was born on Thursday, August 6, 2009 at 9:24 pm August 2012 HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROBIN! As you'll see by scrolling down this LONG page of photos, we had a very busy and packed August. We kicked things off with a spectacular birthday celebration for Robin, who was incredibly excited to finally turn 3, as many of her friends' birthdays are earlier in the year. The biggest news of the month is that Robin started wearing underwear and did a fantastic job transitioning out of diapers and pull-ups. She had surprisingly few accidents in the first few days of wearing underwear. We also took our first real family road trip to Pennsylvania to visit Dutch Wonderland, a theme park sized for little kids. We had so much fun, we are already talking about going back next year! We also caught a little bit of Olympic Fever and watched some of the prime-time events like gymnastics, swimming, and rowing.






	Overheard this month: Robin. WAY Past Tense
	"Giveded," "Takeded," "Throwded," "Misseded," "Chooseded"




	Whee! Robin is three!
	We celebrated with friends at Build-A-Bear Workshop.



	First, everyone picked out a bear to stuff, and then, after picking out a heart, made a wish on it.



	Next, it was time to push the pedal and stuff the bear!



	Amanda			Hannah




	Molly	Maddy				Nat




	Danny			Benji (Can you tell they're related?)




	Emma		Samantha		Riley



	Robin waited patiently while all her friends took their turns.


	We're done!

	Hannah, Samantha, Emma, Robin, Amanda, Molly, Benji, Scott, Danny (we're missing a few, as well)






	Next, we headed outside for cupcakes




	...And some cousins

	Amanda, Emma, Robin, Samantha, Kate
	(Scott was there, but wasn't interested in taking a picture)








	Hanging by the fountain at National Harbor before Robin's party



	Overheard this month: Amanda's Olympic Recap
	“The USA boat won, and then in swimming, there were 2 USA-ers who won!”



	PRESENTS!
	After the party (and a nap) Robin enthusiastically opened up her birthday presents.









	Amanda got some Big Sister Presents, too!




	After all of the birthday party madness came Robin's actual birthday.
	She got some special presents from her parents and sister, and Amanda got yet another Big Sister gift.
	Click Here to see Robin open her most prized possession, her Bad Guy (38 seconds).




	In between all of Robin's birthday celebrations, we went to a birthday party for Maddy, where Amanda and Robin got to ride the Zip Line (19 seconds).







	Hoopin' and Waterin' in Fancy Shoes


	Amanda's hula hoop skills improved dramatically over the summer.
	Click Here to see her in action (27 seconds).







	Overheard this month: Amanda
	What's it called when you're given choices for something? Of course, it's "choiceable."









	It's Summer. That Means We Must Eat Ice Cream Outside.











	Camp Dress Up Days for Robin
	Hat Day and Sports Day (Amanda loaned out her T-Ball accouterment).







	And then on the last day of camp, there was a carnival with face painting! (Robin got a spider.)




	Overheard this month: Amanda
	"Like a cock-a-doodle-doo chicken falling apart"



	County Fair Time!
	We made our annual trip to the Arlington County Fair with Molly and Maddy. Such fun!


	Molly, Amanda, Maddy, Robin, and Hannah





	The little girls rode the jet skis while the big girls rode the dragon coaster.
	Click Here to see Robin and Maddy fly by (5 sec).



	Dina braved the ferris wheel (of which Stacey is deathly afraid) and took the girls. Stacey could not watch them go and felt really proud for letting Robin go on the ride.


















	Gymnastics!
	Amanda completed her gymnastics class with a final class to show what she'd learned






	Ice Cream with Gabby!





	Tot Shabbat
	Robin got to hold the kiddush cup since it is her birthday month, and Amanda snagged the Torah Helper card.





	How Does Your Garden Grow?
	Amanda accompanied Stacey to work one day and spent some time hanging out on the rooftop garden.









	Visit To The National Building Museum With Sean




	Robin had fun building a tower... and knocking it down.



	Amanda set to work on a castle that she and/or Robin could live in.






	The longer we were in the building room, the more amenities her castle acquired.




	All of that hard work calls for a snack and then a little rest on a bench.


	Overheard This Month: Amanda
	"Can someone not in your family love you? So someone in China who doesn’t even know me can love me?"





	Dutch Wonderland!
	We took a trip up to Pennsylvania to the kids' theme park and had a great time.






	We took a train ride throughout the park to get the lay of the land, and then Amanda and Stacey got started on rides right away!



	The Wonder Whip: Best Ride Ever
	Click Here to see them in action (12 sec).










	Overheard this month: Robin
	"Merry-Go-Around"



	Turtle Whirl















	The Frog Hopper
	Amanda is quite the daredevil and rode most rides "hands up," including this free-fall one.




	Before the ride started, Amanda and her friend next to her are all smiles. During the ride, however, Amanda is ecstatic while her friend is... less so.





	Robin was too small to ride many of the rides, so she got to meet some of the local statue folks,
	including "that man" and the "angry bird."



	The Turkey Hill Experience
	Right near Dutch Wonderland is the Turkey Hill Factory, which offers tours, ice cream, and other fun stuff.






	Summer's Last Hurrah
	At the end of summer, with no camp or childcare to be found, what else is there to do but go to Kids N Motion with your friends?
	Click Here for a video of our friends in motion (55 sec).




	We played with:

	Gabby and Charlie and...




	...Riley and Casey










	Overheard this month: Amanda
	"It’s Sick Awesome. It means you’re sick but you’re having an awesome day."












	See all of these pictures and more at our photo gallery

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