New Place

Only one box left to unpack! Really!

The move went as smooth as it could have, thanks to a lot of help. Things are not decorated or put away in all the correct places, but we are pretty much settled. We love our new home, neighbors, and neighborhood. Can't beat walking outside and hearing lawn mowers and birds chirping!

Up next: getting ready for little sister to come in less than 3 weeks! We have much to do.

Looks Like

Our apartment looks like this:

{ saturday is moving day! }

Joseph looks like this:

{ into his second week of the summer semester of his
second year of dental school. yeah! }

I look like this:

{ at 36 weeks. one month to go! }

and Matthew looks like this:

{ yankees fan all the way! }

Happy 4th!

We went on a ferry ride past the Statue of Liberty early this morning.

Happy 4th of July!

I never wanted to live on an island...

...because I'm kind of scared of bridges.

But, here we are, moving to Staten Island in a few weeks!

In a kind of whirlwind weekend we talked about moving, looked at an apartment, and decided to move. Our current apartment lease is almost up, and we thought that if we found something better - shorter commute, bigger, closer to a park, cheaper, etc. - we would think about moving. Well, this place had everything we wanted, plus more. We couldn't pass it up!

We feel like it was meant to be, since it kind of just fell into our laps. It is a beautiful, newly renovated home with a yard and a driveway! Staten Island is a lot more residential and suburban than the other boroughs, which (I have come to discover in the last year) is a lot more in my comfort zone. Boy do I miss driveways and parking lots.

We are very sad to leave our ward. We are kind of sad to leave our apartment. We are maybe a teensy bit sad to leave Brooklyn. It has been an interesting year, and we have really enjoyed our time here. But I think Staten Island might suit us better, and I'm excited to start fresh with a new home, new baby, and new school year.

P.S. The Verrazano Bridge is obviously not a rickety-old bridge that will fall into the water anytime soon. That makes me feel better. :) And, I know Brooklyn is technically on an island, too, but somehow it seems different.

No Place Like Home

• We loved celebrating Megan & Kyle's wedding. Meg was a beautiful and gracious bride, and they are so happy together! All the planning and preparation came together and it was a wonderful day.
• My cousin's wife, Bethany, took the wedding pictures and they turned out very good. She did a great job, and I'll try to post more of them once they are ready.
  
• I was sick with a cold and flu for the first 5 days we were there! That was definitely not fun, but it was nice to be around family so that Matthew was well taken care of.
• Then, Matthew got a bad fever the last 3 days we were there. It is even less fun to have your child get sick!
  

• We got to go to the zoo, play outside A LOT, and enjoy lots of quality time with our families. It is hard to have a limited amount of time to spend with the people you love so much. Matthew enjoyed all the new sights, toys, and attention.
  
• Matthew did pretty well on the plane rides. He slept for a couple hours, and was happy to have his own seat instead of having to sit on our laps.
• All too soon we had to leave and come back to our own home... which will soon be our old home since we are moving next month! We will still be in NYC, but it just might feel like a whole new world. I'll share more details later!

25

We are back in Brooklyn. Robin came back to New York with us and is living with us for the next two months while she does an internship at the Whitney Museum Library. Joseph has two more weeks off before school starts up again. We are having lots of fun!

I turned 25 this week! We went to lunch at the famous Grimaldi's Pizza at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge. It was the best pizza we have had here so far! Then we went back home for homemade apple pie and vanilla ice cream. Joseph gave me Broadway tickets for Mother's Day/my birthday, so we left Matthew with Robin and headed into the city. We saw "Jersey Boys" and had a wonderful time. The music was incredible! We strolled through the crowds in Times Square and enjoyed the evening out. It was a great birthday!

p.s. Only 8 more weeks until little sister comes!

Travel

M at the airport --- the cute couple

We are heading out this week to spend some time in Utah. Joseph is done with school for a little while (yeah!) and we are looking forward to lots of fun and family. We have a long list of things to do and people to visit and wedding preparations to complete and memories to make.

I'm sure Brooklyn will continue on it's crazy pace without us here for a bit.

Beach & Zoo

We've really been enjoying the nice weather (when it's not raining...) and the winding down of Joseph's semester. We've been to the BBG a few more times, Prospect Park Zoo, and yesterday we took our first trip of the summer to Coney Island beach. I love being able to get out of our normal daily routine and do something different.

Some of my sewing projects are featured here as well. I made Matthew's shorts (both pictures) and my skirt.

And, I'm just over 27 weeks along with the girl. I feel great and can't believe she will be here in 3 months!

2

Matthew is 2! We had some friends over on Sunday night for cake and ice cream. On Monday we opened presents and played with his new toys.

He is a great little boy and we love being his parents.
Happy Birthday Matthew! We love you!

one, two, three, go!

Matthew can count to two. Well, he skips one and goes right to two. He counts things by pointing at them and saying "two, two, two". And he can say go. Here he is riding his truck and helping Joseph count.

Lately

• Joseph is busy: finishing up his first year of dental school - only 4 weeks left!
• Catlin is busy: sewing, sewing, and sewing! and planning matthew's birthday celebration.
• Matthew is busy: playing, throwing tantrums, learning the alphabet, imitating everything we do, and preparing to turn 2 in less than a week!

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

We live within walking distance of the beautiful Brooklyn Botanic Garden. We have been there a handful of times, and it is always incredible, no matter what season it is. Right now the cherry blossoms are just starting to come out, and the magnolia trees are in full bloom. Here are some pictures from last fall and this spring:

cherry blossoms & magnolia trees

celebrity path with names of famous people from brooklyn

japanese garden

Easter

Have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Happy April

• Robin was here for a couple of days last week. We walked around Park Slope, the Upper East Side, and Union Square, and ate at the Shake Shack. We are glad she likes to come and visit us!
• Matthew will be 2 in less than a month. He has so much energy and loves to be able to run around. He is hilarious.
  
• I am about 22 weeks along with little sister. I feel great and everything is going really well.
• We are so excited that spring is here! We have had some great weather and love to be able to go on walks and play at the park. Joseph is really busy with school, but he still finds some time to teach Matthew how to play ball.