Avon calling...

Well, I bit the bullet today and became an Avon saleslady.
My main motivation was to bring in some extra money to the household, but this is something I've thought about on and off for several years.
I know people who are independent sellers... I have a friend who sales MaryKay and one that sells Amway. My Mama used to sell Avon from time to time and she always had success.
I think the key is to believe in the product, but not love it so much you buy up all of your profit.
My goal is to reach out to family and friends and to get out and expand my customer base at neighborhoods and businesses here in Ruckersville.
The great thing about Avon these days (besides having an affordable array of products) is that you can buy from me from anywhere in the country and it will be shipped to your house! Therefore I won't have to call on you, but you can be my customer.
If you're interested in buying some Avon, you can check out my new Web site:
http://www.youravon.com/sfitzgerald

Excited to see The Wiggles...

Julius jamming with the Wiggles...

Rockin' to the Wiggles...

Here are a couple of pictures of Savannah and Julius "playing" the Wiggles guitar that Savannah got for Christmas last year. One of the elements of the show is for Murray, the red Wiggle, to play his guitar.
His guitars weren't working very well last night so we didn't get to hear the special number he usually plays for parents... it can anything from Led Zeppelin to the Beatles. But we did get these photos of our kids enjoying the guitar.

Wiggles Go Bananas Tour 2009

We took the children to see the Wiggles last night and I think they had a great time despite Savannah not getting a nap and being a little cranky.
Julius fell asleep before the concert started, but I think the music and lights quickly woke him. He got a little bug-eyed in the beginning, but soon he was "playing the guitar" and dancing on his Daddy's lap.
The Wiggles, which you can consider a pre-school Beatles group from Australia, put on an hour-long show. These 40-something (and in one case 50-something) guys still have a lot of moves and the show was impressive to me (it's my second Wiggles concert as Savannah and I went last year). Pat seemed to enjoy watching our children enjoy themselves, but I'm not sure he would want us "tailgating" Wiggles concerts like some families do.
Here are a few pictures of our family night out. I'll be posting a few videos later in the morning.

Channeling Cousin Samantha...

I see a resemblance to Samantha's baby pictures...

Julius "wearing" his Daddy's belt...

I took these pictures this morning after Julius got caught up in his Daddy's belt while he was playing on the floor. I'm not sure how the belt got onto the floor, but Julius certainly enjoyed playing with it... and would have continued, but I was afraid he would hurt himself.

Our Little Guy...

We took Julius to the doctor yesterday for his six-month check-up and confirmed our beliefs that he's not really a "little guy."
Pat and I had a bet that he was going to weigh at least 22 lbs. and sure enough he tipped the scales at 22 lbs., 11 ounces and is 27 1/2 inches in length. He's already wearing 18 M clothes.
The doctor told me not to worry about his weight even though it's off the charts... because he's proportionate and not overweight.
I went through all of his summer clothes on Friday and have two Pampers boxes to pass along to my niece, Erin, for her little boy, Eli. There are outfits in that box that Julius never got to wear as he's growing so fast.
Guess that is just the way it is sometimes.
Here is one of my favorite pictures of Julius... because I can see an expression on his face that his Grandpa Gene sometimes had.

Interesting sights...

Here are some interesting shots I took along the trail... the first is the most interesting two beings in the world to me. They make life enjoyable (and sometimes crazy) every day.

In the Woods...

We took the kids up to Skyline Drive this afternoon for a little family time. It was absolutely beautiful in the mountains and the cool breeze made the two-mile walk we took go by much smoother.
We live about 15 minutes from Skyline Drive and we need to start using the annual pass we bought earlier this year as there is always something new and interesting to see.
As you can see in these pictures, Savannah was letting me take her picture today so the only thing I could get were candid shots. We saw several deer during our visit and even saw one using the bathroom... I spared you that shot although Savannah is still talking about "the deer going poopy."

The Fitzgerald's new Big Red Car... Take 2!

Here are a few pictures of our new car, a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan, that we bought last week while on vacation in Virginia Beach. We've been searching for a new car for six months after we realized that trying to take two children (and their belongings) anywhere in our two cars was almost impossible.
We've been happy with the new car thus far... it drives and rides really well.
The last picture in this group is what happened to one of our driveway lights this morning when Pat tried to back the new van down our driveway... learning to steer this car down our blindspot on the hill is going to be interesting.

Making our way home...

We finished up a wonderful few days in Virginia Beach on Friday and made our way home in the new "Big Red Car."
First, I have to say that our new car is a wonderful driving/riding machine. I loved the Scion, but taking a long trip in the small silver box was hard on the back (especially after having two babies). I can't say that I had any pain in the back (or anywhere else) after driving home in the new car.
We took the long scenic route instead of our normal trip through Richmond. The back roads Pat took my on went through several towns that reminded me of back roads Georgia or Arkansas... just small towns where people were going about their day to day lives.
We stopped at the infamous Virginia Diner in Wakefield for lunch... this is one of the few Virginia restaurants featured on one of my favorite Food Network shows "Drive-Ins, Diners and Dives".
Pat and I both had fried chicken (although I took the skin off mine and gave it to Pat). I had a carrot souffle and baked apples and Pat had macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes.
Savannah, who is a toss-up when it comes to eating out, helped us eat our food and shunned the $3 grilled cheese sandwich we bought her.
We ordered one slice of homemade key lime pie and it came to the table while I was standing in line in the ladies' restroom. By the time I got back, Pat and Savannah had devoured the sliver of pie... and they said it was wonderful!
Julius, who slept through most of our lunch, then left me a gigantic present in the diaper (yes Mom, you were right about those prunes at breakfast) and I'll always have a special memory about the diner in the years to come.
But I won't say anything else about that....
We also took a side trip to Hopewell, the small town where Pat worked for a year before he made his big move west to become editor of a small newspaper. That fateful decision would one day lead us to each other... so it was a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.

The Fitzgeralds' new Big Red Car...

Well folks, our six-month debate and search for a bigger car is officially over.
Today, we bought a 2009 Dodge Grand Caravan... a truly "Big Red Car."
We were meeting Mom and Dad at the mall and decided to drive by the Dodge dealership just to see if they had any vans there they were willing to part with for a decent price. We've done this so many times that Savannah knew there were toys inside the dealership to play with while we waited.
Pat got out and looked at the shiny red Caravan while the children and I stayed inside the car. Then the salesman, Reginald, came out and they talked for about five minutes... and the salesman told Pat they were offering $4,500 in rebates on the Caravan (I'm not sure if this coincides with the Cash for Clunkers - which we don't have).
So after leaving to meet Mom and Dad and doing a little shopping at the mall, we came back for an official test drive.
An hour or so later, they offered Pat the best deal on a new van that I believe we would ever have been able to find. Between the rebate and the trade-in on our car we were able to get almost half of the price knocked off.
This is a picture of a car just like ours... who knows it could actually be our car, but we didn't take the picture. I promise to take some pictures of the Big Red Car very soon and post them.

Pool time in Virginia Beach...

We've spent the last two evenings at the pool next door to Mom and Dad's house. Jackie and Michael have lived in the neighborhood as long as Pat's parents have and they have been gracious enough to let us use their pool while we've been visiting.
I took my camera to the pool on Dad's birthday (although I didn't take any pictures of him on his big day - shame on me) and here are some of the shots.
I didn't take the camera tonight as we've had a long day car shopping and thought we needed a break from the camera... and then the children were being so sweet and I missed capturing it!

Vacation - Day 1

We arrived in Virginia Beach on Tuesday evening after a nice lunch with Dave, one of Pat's longtime friends. Traffic from Hampton into Virginia Beach was pretty hectic, but we arrived safe and sound at Mom and Dad's and had a nice dinner and some relaxing time outside.
Here are some pictures from our first night... it's so wonderful to see Mom and Dad and watch the children enjoy themselves in the back yard.
I need to get Julius outside more and on the ground as he's fascinated by looking at the trees and the sky. The last picture was the sky Julius and I were looking at as we were laying on the ground.

Washing the car...

These are some pictures I took of Savannah helping her Daddy wash the car of Monday. They had a great time despite the warm temperatures outside. I really think she liked dunking the rag in the water rather than washing the car... but it made for some cute photos.
We were getting it cleaned out just in case we found a great deal on a car while we were on vacation, but Pat and Dad went out today and no one was really interested in making deals. I guess the "Cash for Clunkers" program is keeping them above water so they don't aren't looking for someone who wants to trade in our car for something newer (and bigger).

Celebrating Dad's big day...

We celebrated Dad Fitzgerald's upcoming 75th birthday today with a pool party/cookout at my-sister-in-law, Sharon's house in Stafford. Everyone had a nice time frolicking in the pool and enjoyed a spread of great food.
Pat and I are taking the kiddies to Virginia Beach on Tuesday so we'll be there to celebrate Dad's actual big day (on Wednesday) with him.
Here are my favorite pictures from the day.

Julius, my boy.

I took these pictures of Julius this morning after he woke up from a long sleep... he slept for nine hours and it gave me some alone time this morning that I so desperately needed.
My son is such a sweetheart... and for the most part he's such a happy child and much like his sister when she was his age.