May & June

So much has been happening! Everyone says that it all happens so quickly when you have kids and I am finding it to be totally true...

In the beginning of May Sophia learned how to use the potty—hooray! I was actually a little scared about taking this step, but she had been giving me signs that she was ready. Together Sage and I decided to use a 3 day potty training method (it's intensive so I had to make sure Sage was on board with the idea and implementation) and it worked wonderfully! She mastered the concept of using the potty in just 1 day and has been doing just amazing since!

The weekend after our potty intensive course our nephew Dylan turned 3—WOW!  We took the MetroNorth train to join him and family for the celebration.  He and Sophia are just 3.5 months apart, which means my little girl is getting so big, so fast! The following day was Mother's Day and my first with Rylan. It was nice and peaceful day.

Young/Williams girls at Dylan's b-day party

The following weekend we attended my little sister Jenna's graduation from U Albany. We are so proud of you Jen! Afterward we headed to Syracuse to celebrate more. After the celebration Sage headed home while the girls and I stayed for an extended visit.

A few weeks later and back at home, Sage, the girls, and I went on a few fun local trips. We checked out the Central Park Zoo (which by the way is totally charming). We then took a day trip to the beach at Jacob Riis Park. It was the first time either of the girls had encountered the ocean, and both of them really had a great time!!!  On Father's Day we took a ride on the very new East River Ferry to DUMBO (a neighborhood in Brooklyn). The ferry ride it self was easy, and aside from the 4 hour wait in the 100 degree heat to get back home, we had a fabulous time—but seriously, I couldn't have had to be stuck in such a situation with anyone else in the world!

Rylan at Central Park Zoo

The girls on Father's Day 

At the end of June my Oma (my Dad's mother) died.  I attended the services, but decided to leave the girls at home with Sage for many reasons. So, for the first time in six years I travelled without my husband. It was also the first time in three years traveling without kid(s). This event also marked the end of nursing Rylan, I'm still a little sad it's over.

This life event made me think about how I'm spending my time. It reminded me how people are not infinitely in this life or in this form.—that being present during time together is so important! That the little time we have is so precious and will be gone in a blink. I am sad to have lost my quirky Oma! I will always think of fond memories and I will be sure to I tell my girls stories.

Myself, Oma, and Sophia (while Rylan was just a twinkle in my gleaming eye)