Where has the time gone?

Time has gotten away from me this summer.  The weather is starting to get cooler here, and I feel like it should still be mid-summer.  So, here are some of the things that we did this summer:

Deb's Triathlon (Rock Hall, MD), June

 Ben got confused and started to follow me to the transition area after the swim.

4th of July, Party at friend's house:

 Lighting the sparklers

 Ben really liked the sparklers, Nikki didn't really care

Weekend trip to Harper's Ferry, Virginia & West Virginia, late July:

 We were able to do lots of hiking.  We also toured a couple of wineries.

We hiked up the highest mountain around.  The Potomac River is in the background.  Downtown Harpers Ferry is to the left.

Trip to Williamsburg, Virginia, mid-September:

 The kids went with us on this trip.  This was our first family vacation since they were 4 months old.  The main attraction in Williamsburg was Busch Gardens.  It was not nearly as big or nice as the one in Tampa, but we still had a great time!

 There were lots of rides for the kids to go on.  Ben was especially interested in the train that went around the park.

 There was a merry-go-round, of course.

 I was amazed at how much fun the kids had on the small rides.  They had a blast on this boat ride that went around in circles.  They went on this ride at least 4 times.

 The ladybug car ride was a big hit, too.

 The teacup ride.  A classic.

 By the end of the day (around 4 pm), Ben was so worn out and tired that he fell asleep on the train!

Late September: Disaster struck.

 Maggie bit Ben on his face.  Joe took him to the doctor's clinic.  Ben ended up with about 17 stitches in his face.  There were two area: around his right eye and next to his mouth.  Ben handled it really well.

 We have found a new home for Maggie.  Her new owner picked her up last weekend.  We are sure that Ben provoked Maggie.  We think it's best for everyone that Maggie go to a home that does not have children.  Her new home is 5 acres with a fenced backyard, two other dogs, and a couple of cats.  We found the new owner, Tracy, through a family contact.  It was hard to say goodbye (Joe got her when she was 6 weeks old, she is now 10 1/2 years old).

I took Ben to a facial plastic surgeon's office (I work with him) to have his stitches removed.  He did great!  I was so proud of him!  He sat perfectly still with his eyes closed.  He only flinched once, when the doctor took out the stitch on his eyelid.  After the swelling went away, the cut didn't look as bad.  We went to Toys R Us afterwards, and the kids each got to pick out a new toy.  It made their day.

Back to normal: present day

Like Dexter, we also built our first fort.  I took a picture of it. 

And so did Nikki. :-)