William Bradley at 16 months

Just a cute picture I took after putting William's shoes on his feet. He was outside babbling and pointing to his feet saying "shoes!"

Party at the Park with my Posse

Team Barron's been laying low the past few weeks. We haven't had any new adventures in awhile, but we've made a few trips to the park. Our favorite park happens to have tons of neighborhood toys on the grounds for the children to use. So, today we hit the park with Ava.


If you are not a regular reader of my blog, Ava is William's big sister by next door neighbor, Carrie. They don't know life without the each other and it's pretty cute to watch them interact as they have gotten older. Ava is extremely protective of William, gives him hugs, brings him his cup, shares her snacks and pats him on the back when he is crying. William appreciates the big sister in Ava and although he's younger, he has learned so much by her example. He loves to run after her, watch her play, and recently began to want any attention that I give her....hmm.



The day at the park was mostly spent inside the Cozy Coupes. As I watched the kiddos play, I couldn't help but recite the words to my favorite tv commercial, Freecreditreport.com. I am not endorsing the company. In fact, I really have no clue what they do other than come up with some seriously catchy jingles. For those of you who need the words, please read below. You'll need to stand up and bop around with a rapper's beat.

While I was shoppin' for a new car, which one's me?

A cool Convertible or an SUV?

Too bad I didn't know my credit was whack,

Cuz' now I'm drivin' off a lot in a used Subcompact.

F-R-E-E that spells free,

Credit report dot com bay-be(baby).

Saw their ads on my T.V.

Thought about going, but was too lazy.

Now instead of lookin' fly n rollin' phat,

My legs are sticking to the vinyl and my posse's gettin' laughed at.

F-R-E-E that spells free,

Credit report dot com bay-be(baby).

Ride, Ride, Ride, Hitchin' a Ride...

We took William for his first bike ride on Sunday. He was a real trooper and wore the helmet too! Dan and I were surprised that he actually kept it on the whole time. We stopped at the park to climb the jungle gym and then headed home before it got too hot.

Happy Father's Day Dadda!

To Our Dada Dan-

We love you for being our best friend, for keeping us safe, for the smiles you bring when you walk in the door, for bedtime stories, for wrestling on the floor, for building forts, for going on hikes, for making us laugh, for Curious George, for keeping us calm in the storm, for holding our hands, for all your dreams, for long nights when the crib is scary, for never complaining when dinner isn't ready, for adventure, for finding Signing Time, for racing cars, for up downs, for teaching us, for your patience....You are our strength and happiness.

Love,

Mom and William

I’m Happy You’re My DadI feel safe when you are with me;
You show me fun things to do;
You make my life much better;
The best father I know is you.I’m happy you’re my Dad
And so I want to say
I love you, Dad, and wish you
A Happy Father’s Day!By Joanna Fuchs

Friday night on the town

Tonight we decided to explore the new Gaylord Resort and National Harbour along the Potomac River. The website describes it as: "a 300-acre, mixed-used development that includes tree-lined promenades with retail space and class-A office space, a Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, the largest such facility on the East Coast."

It's not far from us and since it was our first trip there, we decided to drive. However, there is a cute water taxi that will take you from Old Town Alexandria across the Potomac to the National Harbour - we'll do that next time!


We had fun watching the free concert series on the boardwalk, dipping our feet in the sandy beach, watching the water fountain music show (the water shoots out to the tune of different songs), and "ooh -ing and awing" over the resort interior - it's really amazing! It was packed with lush greenery, waterfalls and several places to eat. There were also stores inside that were built as individual houses and meant to look like a main street of an old town (my best description).

Another milestone for the baby book...

Today was William's very first haircut - what a milestone! Although I thought it took a very LONG 16 months for William to grow the small amount of hair he had, Dan really wanted me to take him for a trim. I put it off for a few weeks because I had every mommy's fear of loosing their child's "babyness" after cutting off those precious locks for the first time. I also had the "woe is me, he won't be a baby anymore" feeling that comes with the "first milestone" territory.


But, you know what they say - there is power in numbers. So, we set out for the momentous occasion with our side kicks, Carrie and Ava. We went to Cartoon Cuts where they have movies such as Cars and Barney for the kids to watch during the haircut. Ava sat up in the seat like a princess and didn't move - WAY TO GO BABE! Then again, she is almost 2 and an old pro at the beauty parlor.


Next up was William. He JUST woke up from a nap and gave me the look of, "what in the world are we doing now?" At first, he sat up in the seat like a king on a throne. I was all excited and relieved that he had his game face on. The first 2 minutes were cake, and then.......the buzzing electric clippers. William lost it. Poor baby, he was scared to death of the buzzing noise. I held him for the final snips and then it was over. The stylist gave him a certificate for his first haircut plus a small baggie of his locks - for mom.


Yes, he doesn't look like the same messy haired baby that I knew yesterday. He looks like the cutest little boy in my life now. I know he's still a bit of a baby, after all he is only 16 months. However, it is just a reminder to me of how quickly the time goes and to embrace every intoxicating moment of babyhood. You'll wake up one morning and your baby will need a haircut.

Baby it's hot outside!

Today was almost 100 degrees outside. After swimming and playing with the water table, we were looking for one more activity to complete our Saturday. Dan suggested we head to Reagan Airport to watch the airplanes from indoors. Great idea!

We ended up spending 3 hours playing in the airport. William was glued to the window for an hour just staring out into the sea of activity on the runway. We always knew he LOVED airplanes, but it was a real kick to watch him squeal with glee at the sight of all that action. We had dinner at TGI Fridays and sat at a table next to the window. Again, William was mesmerized by the airplanes coming and going.

Lastly, we headed outside to Abingdon Plantation, a historic home site once owned by George Washington's family. It seems a bit random that there'd be an archeological site on airport property, but the entire Reagan Airport is built on the Abingdon Plantation land, so it was only fitting that the airport authority preserve the ruins of the 1780's home. It sits up on a hill overlooking the airport and the Metro train.

Needless to say, William was living like a King up there as he had a bird's eye view of planes, trains and automobiles! I did forget the camera, but we'll be going back soon enough! I now see the airport through the eyes of a 16 month old child, and it never looked so fun!

Splish, Splash, I wasn't taking a bath...

We've had our share of rain the last couple of weeks, and by today we were all dying to exit our caves and get together with the kiddos. So we hit the spray park with our buddies, Carrie, Ava, Meredith, Madeline, and Ella. It's a very popular event at VA area playgrounds. Besides the standard swings and slide, there's a section of the park that has several fountains that spray up from the ground, a bucket that fills up and dumps a huge load of water overhead, and a pinwheel that sprays water. It's fun for kids of all ages. William had a BIG time. The boy absolutely LOVES being outside and in water (including mud), so combine the two and William was in hog heaven. He ran around exploring the water as it launched out of the ground and shot across the park. He played for 2 hours and then fell asleep on the way home.