Our New House

Technically, it's not going to be "our" house since we'll only be renting it, and it's definitely not a "new" house. We found a cute little 3-bedroom, 1.5 bathroom house for rent in upper Cresson. Really nice neighborhood, and it's a charming little house. The bedrooms are tiny as all heck, so we're going to have to use two of them as a "suite" of sorts...one for the bed (which will barely fit), and one for our dressers and a computer desk. Paige gets the third bedroom. Unfortunately, that means no guest room, but there's a bed and breakfast a mile down the hill that looks pretty nice.

The house is in great shape, which we couldn't say for a lot of the places we looked at--some were real dumps. This place was completely remodeled about 9 years ago, and they're repainting it and replacing the carpets for us. Windows and such look good, and there's blown-in insulation plus a "new" (ca. 2000 or so) furnace, so it should be fairly energy efficient. And it's in a neighborhood where we'd seriously consider buying a (bigger) house, so this will be a good chance to try out the area. We really like that it's ~12 minutes from campus, and only ~15 minutes from Altoona's shopping district. And the fact that it's a stand-alone house is a big deal, as we're pretty sensitive to (i.e. easily annoyed by) noise from neighbors.

We didn't get any pictures of the interior, but here are some of the exterior. Click on them for a larger view. And check out Picasa for more pictures from our PA trip.

What are we eating?

I think her tastes are changing right now a bit and her reliable foods are becoming less and less reliable. But in general, here are her favorites:

Breakfast:
Cheerios and Banana - she eats this just about every morning
Cereal - whatever we're eating. She loves begging for bites as we eat our food
Muffins/bread - on special occasions
Cereal/fruit bars

Lunch/Dinner:
Strawberry yogurt
AppleSauce!!!
Turkey lunchmeat - sometimes a fan
Cheese - always a hit
Chicken nuggets
Pizza! - Sausage is her fav.
Pasta - used to be a lot more reliable
Mac n cheese
Rice dishes
Peas & corn are really the only 2 veggies she is into right now
Any kind of fruit - mango, strawberries, apple, orange, you name it.

Things she doesn't really care for:
Eggs
Potatoes
Veggies other than peas or corn
Red meat

More School Pictures

For some odd reason, daycare had two different photographers come out for school pictures only a few weeks apart. We just picked up these ones yesterday. They turned out great. I've never seen such a big smile on her in pictures before! Let us know if you want a particular size because we'll be ordering a package:

Happy Birthday, Paige!

The blowing practice paid off. Paige knew just what to do when we put her in front of her birthday cake. She leaned in and blew out both of her candles on the first try!



2-year stats:
Height: 33 1/2" (50%)
Weight: 24.8 lbs (25%) yay - she's gained some ground since 18 months
Head: 48cm (50%)

On this day:
Record breaking temperatures of 109F
Paige's 2-year doctor appointment
Daycare party for Paige - they made her a paper/ribbon princess hat and a card
We sold Justin's car! - Pontiac Vibe

Blowing Practice

Paige is getting in shape and practicing her blowing skills for the candles that will be on her 2nd birthday cake! We keep bubbles for bathtime. Here's a picture and a video of her blowing bubbles!

Happy Mama Day!

The day started with breakfast in bed. Justin brought me an omelet and toast while Paige carried in a flower and a card! Paige learned how to say "Happy Mama Day"! It was so cute.

For lunch we went to Peter Piper Pizza. This has become one of Paige's favorite restaurants. And the pizza beats that of Chuck E Cheeses by a long run.
After lunch, Daddy and Paige took me to the jewelry store for my present:

School Picture

Paige had school pictures done at daycare two weeks ago. The quality isn't the best on this because I scanned it in. I had her teachers put the barette in her hair just before she went to get the picture taken. Usually they only stay in for about 10 minutes when I try.