Moving into New House and First Day of School

Right after Labor Day, we were ready to move into our new house just north of Charlotte and close to Lake Norman. The kiddos stayed with Grandma and Grandpa (in their words, "mah-ma" and "pa-pa") while we got the initial round of boxes unpacked. After a few days, they joined us to get settled into their new home. They especially liked the completely empty living room and dining room -- we had no need for furniture for these rooms in Boston in our small condo -- giving them a lot of room to run around. Their new house also has space to create a "playroom" in the downstairs office area. Complete with two built-in bookshelves to store all of their books, this is a room they can go to get away from mom and dad and enjoy their toys.

The week after we got moved into the new house, they started preschool at an area church where they go two mornings per week. Isabel especially likes wearing her backpack to school (I think maybe she is wondering if it is magical like Dora's backpack), and they have enjoyed meeting new friends and learning from the great teachers at this school.

Some photos of our first weeks in NC are below.

Isabel enjoys sitting at her new table in the playroom...


...she really enjoys her new table.


Cameron is the book worm of the family, and enjoys putting his feet up and choosing a book from the shelves in their playroom.


A game they have enjoyed is an early version of "hide and seek", where one of them hides and we all say "Isabel, where are you?"....


...and when Isabel show you her hiding place, we all say "There you are!!!" Not much seeking in this game!!! Another aspect of the house the kids like are the extra kitchen cabinets that they can use for their version of hide and seek.


Isabel wearing her backpack on the first day of school. The backpack is as big as she is and we need to hold it up or else she falls over backward!!


Going out the front door with Mommy and Grandma to their first day of school...


..."Bye-bye Daddy!"

Farewell to Boston...

Even though we "love that dirty water" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a65H8PR17fY) and Boston will always be the city where we started our family, we packed up in August and moved south to North Carolina. On the weekend of Aug 6, we made the long drive to North Carolina with two dogs, two kids, and two cars full of two thousand pounds of stuff (or at least it seemed like 2000 lbs!). The following week, Meghan and I returned to meet the movers and say our final farewell to Boston with a dinner in the North End and a walk over the Charlestown bridge. See some photos below.

The moving truck barely fit on our little street, scraping by the power lines and trees above.


Self portrait from our driveway, with a final look at the entrance to our first house together.


Dinner in the North End with Jess and Darrin, with the best table in town, looking out the balcony at Hanover Street below.





Final parting shot, taken from the Charlestown Bridge with the Zakim Bridge in the background.

July Photos and Video

The saddest part of our month of July was Erika's last day with us :-(. Erika cared for Cameron and Isabel for over a year and (as you can see in the photo below), they loved her and she loved them and she became part of our family. I know we will all miss her bright and cheery attitude, and hopefully we can keep in touch so that they grow up knowing "tika"!



Some other photos and videos from July are below.

Playing in the back yard and cooling off on a hot summer day.


Having some fun in the Boston Public Garden.

Getting a picture where both of the kids are smiling is impossible, so this one has Cameron smiling...

...and this one has Isabel smiling.

A brief video of Isabel pushing a truck and wearing mommie's high heels. That's our girl :-)

2nd Birthday Party - Farewell to Boston!

Well, we are finally getting settled in to our new house in North Carolina and have a little bit of free time to attend to this blog. For the next several weeks, we will be putting a post on the blog every week until we are caught up. Today's blog post goes all the way back to the kids' 2nd birthday party...this was our last big party before we left Boston. It was a beautiful day, almost all of our friends were able to make it to the party, and many of our family members also made the trip, including the kids GiGi (great grandmother) Mary from New York!

The party was held in our back yard and was a water themed event...we had an inflatable swimming pool, water balloons, a water table, bubbles, wagon rides, and of course, a cake with lots of fish on it!

Below are several pictures from the party.

Cameron and Isabel enjoying a ride in their new red wagon!


Isabel, the party girl, playing in the swimming pool.


Another picture of the kiddos in the wagon. This wagon has been a favorite toy for the kids since we arrived in North Carolina. They like to ride in it and go for walks with Dad and the dogs.


Cameron enjoying his new race car!

Cameron and his cousin Ethan playing at the water table.

No water themed party would be complete without splashing around in some puddles...Isabel wearing her new princess shoes and doing a puddle dance!

Cameron and Nono Darling stomping in the puddles.

Isabel and her friend Georgia playing in the pool.

Isabel planning her water balloon attack with her friend William.

Cameron REALLLLY enjoyed riding in his new wagon. I think everybody had a turn pulling him around the driveway!

The Darlings have moved....and hence the lack of blog posts!

That's right. Jason started a new job in Charlotte, NC in July and we moved in August. We closed on a new house at the end of August and have spent the last several weeks digging out of boxes and performing home improvements/repairs....so we have been busy and have not had a chance to update the blog. Stay tuned for some blog posts soon!

Father's Day 2010 at Fenway

For Father's Day, Fenway Park opened its doors and allowed fans to walk around the warning track, go in the dugout, and get photos taken with the 2004 and 2007 World Series trophies. This was a Father's Day that Jason won't soon forget!

With the world series trophies


Jason in the Red Sox dugout.


Jason, Meghan, Cam & Izzie on the outfield warning track.

Outer Banks Beach Trip

For the 4th consecutive year, the Darling clan -- Jason, Meghan, Cameron, Isabel, Duchess and Dixie -- all piled into the car and drove to the Outer Banks in North Carolina for a week at the beach with Meghan's family. Cameron & Isabel enjoyed the addition of the dual-DVD players for the long ride, and Mom and Dad equally enjoyed the noticable reduction in fussiness that the DVD players provided!

Once at the beach, we enjoyed lots of time on the beach or by the pool. Isabel really enjoyed the ocean, and would have run right out into the waves if left by herself! Cameron was a little less taken by the ocean...that might have something to do with the big wave that knocked him off of his feet and soaked him. But he did enjoy playing in the sand, especially dumping the sand all over himself.

Below are several photos from the trip.


The Darlings on the beach...Cameron is holding onto a remote control...that was his new favorite toy for the week.


The Bahler-Darling-Tabaretti families with the beach house in the background.


Isabel enjoying some time at the beach. Sunglasses were her favorite new "toy" for the week. She wore them to the beach, in the pool, at breakfast, at dinner, in the tub....basically everywhere!


"Hey Dad...what are you doing down here on the sand??"

"Cameron, you are so immature."

"All right...I'm ready for the beach. Let's go!"

Meghan, Cousin Jordan, and Cameron going down to check out the waves.

Cameron enjoying a barefoot stroll on the beach.

Isabel Goes to Hollywood...Superstar!

Isabel has recently decided that she wants to be a movie star, so she has gotten herself some cool new shades.......



...thrown herself a crazy going away party...

...and landed in Hollywood, often chatting on the phone while at dinner with her agent....

...and spending a lot of time trying to fend off the Papa Razzi. We wish he luck in her new career!

Finally, some blog updates!

Well, after a couple of busy months, we have finally gotten around to updating the blog! Below are several new posts from March and April.

Easter and an Early Spring in Boston!

For the past few years, April has brought an extended winter and lots of dreary weather to the Boston area. Finally, this year was different. Spring seemed to come early this year, and the snow was gone very early and the warm weather made it possible to get outside and play. This spring/summer should be a lot of fun with Cameron and Isabel since they can walk and explore everything now. Below are some photos of April in Boston!

Easter morning, Cameron and Isabel checked out their Easter baskets, which included some new gear for the beach this summer!


Then it was off to church. Isabel left the white bow in her hair just long enough to take this picture :-) Church was an interesting experience. The kids don't seem to want to sit quietly for an hour straight...I wonder why???


After church, it was very nice outside and the kids climbed into the chairs on our back porch. Cameron was reluctant to give up his new fire engine, so that makes an appearance in this year's Easter photo.


Another Easter photo...


Isabel has finally started to get some hair! She is 20 months old in this picture and still has not had a haircut! She is sporting a couple of "antennas" that make her look like little Cindy-lou hoo.


Another picture of Cindy-lou hoo...and Cameron. The kids have become expert stair climbers.


On a nice April morning, we met Rob, Steph and little Georgia Howard at the Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary just north of Boston. We all went for a little hike. After a long winter inside, it was great to get outside and explore!


A picture of the Darling family at one of the ponds during the hike. Cameron and Isabel like riding in their backpacks :-)


On most mornings, the kids have some playtime before breakfast where they can sit and enjoy a good book.


Cameron sporting his "tough guy" face in the back yard.

Cameron is not too sure he likes the bubbles...

...but Isabel likes chasing them around the yard.

Cameron does enjoy "mowing" the lawn.