39 Has Never Looked So FINE

From the NY sunshine to the CA sunshine, going from the lake to the ocean, since getting back from our Bemus trip the rest of our July has been non-stop. We have resorted to being beach bums, have been catching up with our CDM friends, and believe it or not, I even pulled off a surprise birthday happy hour for Brad!! On the 29th, Brad celebrated his 39th (last year of his 30's!) At the last minute I invited all of Brad's and mine close friends to our local mediterrean restaurant/ lounge Port. After a family day at the beach, what Brad thought was going to be a quaint family dinner turned into a surprise dinner party and a wild Boys Night Out! Taji turned into a party animal himself, he danced on the patio to the guitarist and got everyone clapping with him, he nibbled on all of our dinners, ate yummy chocolate ganache birthday cake, took a few sips of beer, and stayed up till 9pm!!! Even David Spade (comedian) was there to witness it!Meanwhile, dada continued on with the boys, who got him bottle service at another local hip spot Landmark! This is his last year of his 30's after all so you gotta get it all out because come 40 you really have to grow up! Ha Ha!! As if having a baby and another one on the way doesn't make you totally slow down! It was great for Brad to get out, and I was so proud to have caught him off gaurd because it really is hard to surprise him!

Taji loved playing in the water and jumping over the waves!

Right after the surprise birthday welcome:

Taj's (and Mama & Dada's) first Overnighter

Last weekend was my birthday and because Brad's bday and mine are so close together we have been doing joint celebrations. This birthday year was no exception. We headed out to LA to go on our first adult overnight trip sans baby!! It was terrifying at first to be away from Taji 24 hours, but because he was in the care of my sister, his teta, it was a piece of mind and we enjoyed ourselves. Our LA shopping, fancy dinner, swanky hotel with breakfast in bed made us realize we still know how to "party" and have a good time! We are actually going back to the city of Angels for a Part 2 of our bday celebration next weekend (but no overnighter this time). As a surprise I booked a TMZ hollywood tour for Brad and I (Brad is obsessed with the show, we think its pretty entertaining)! We scheduled it for when we were out there but because we got caught up in horrid traffic getting to LA, they moved us to a different weekend :) Gotta say, it is nice to spend solo time with my husband!! And while we were playing in LA, Taji was having slumber party with his cousin Chloe!!!

(my sister sent me this picture Sunday morning at breakfast)

Petra reported he spent the weekend in his diaper (he did not want to wear his clothes, and would say "Ow!" and tug at his clothes when he had them on!) LOL He also spent both days in the pool, like a little fishie.... taking after his cousin Chloe who is such a pro swimmer!

My sister is an expert swim teacher (she has years of lifegaurd experience and was on the swim team,) she taught Chloe how to swim at a young age and now she is teaching Tajinek! We are so lucky to have her!

She taught him how to kick his legs while on his back, blow bubbles, and how to hold on to the edge of the pool, all in one weekend! She said he picked it up so fast!

Upon returning from our LA overnighter, we couldn't wait to join up with the Fetters Trio and play in the pool with Taji.

My sister even surprised us with our own cupcakes and birthday presents! Thanks Peti, Bryan, and Chloe for taking such good care of our precious cargo! Taji had a blast and is excited to do it again!

The Before & After's

Almost forgot the remodeling Brad did on our cottage in Bemus. He is always working on a project, no matter how complex or how far away it is. First things first, the roof and railings were replaced, and the front porch roof cut back so a 6 foot + person could walk under without lowering their head:

BEFORE

AFTER

The bathroom remodel was the big surprise he had waiting for us, and wow! it is a big difference!
BEFORE: traditional 70's (check out the black tub and tiolet!)




AFTER: modern chic cottage




Great job dada Brad! Wait till you see what he has up his sleeve for next summer! :)

Come Away With Us to Bemus Point, NY

After 3 weeks, visit to 3 different states, and almost a 2-day travel back home (we had to do an overnighter in Chicago because our 2nd flight got cancelled), we are back in our concrete paradise as I like to refer to Southern California, and already missing the beeeeeeautiful nature and slow-pace of Bemus, New York. Every time we go back to Brad's hometown village on Chautauqua Lake we marvel at the peace, beauty, and relaxation we find. With Taji in tow, we were so happy to have 3 weeks of TV-less, minimal internet/phone-less, outdoor fun!!! Taj was in boy heaven as he explored the outdoors, played in the water (and in his super cool inflatable pool and intertubes), chased after the squirrels, chipmunks, cats, dogs, and balls, and made so many new friends! He grew before our eyes, saying so many new words (boat, fishies, bird, outside, ceiling, sky, apple, saying "more" during feeding time), and he also says "hi mama" and "hi dada"!!! He danced (he does his version of the "beyonce" booty shake!) and ran around like crazy. Taj's little sibling also had a kick-ass time (literally.... but not in the ***, just in my belly!! yup, little butterfly tickles and movements!! Can't believe how quickly the time flew by, we always wish we could stay longer..... We were also surprised that Taj was such an amazing traveler, we received many compliments on what a good happy boy he was on the plane, and on the trip back home he took all his naps on the flights! If this is any sign of what is to come, we have some exciting vacations ahead of us!

Getting back to our Bemus "escape", we had lots of wonderful family time, including fun on the lake, a trip to the zoo, bikerides, a trip to the Amish country where we bought Taj some cool wooden toys, a trip to the vineyards (next summer you will find me sipping away at the wine tastings!), Midway Park amusement park with the cousins, etc. We had sunset dinners lakeside while listening to the live music playing on the floating stage in the village, attended friend dinner parties. But the highlight of our beautiful trip was nevertheless, our emotional family reunion .... Taj's first time meeting his cousins, aunts, uncle, and grandmas :) Couldn't have asked for a more perfect and serene summer vacation.

I took sooooo many photos, and really captured some amazing scenery (that's the fun little slideshow way below), but before you come away with us on Taji's 1st summer vacation photo journey, here was some of Taji's favorites!:


drinking his baba on the hammock every day:
sunset dining on the water almost every evening:
skipping rocks on the lake:
playing in the lake:
picking up chicks while boat hopping :) :
relaxing with mama and dada and admiring the nature:
and fishing with dada!:

NY 2011 from jana grover on Vimeo.

12 month STUD photo shoot

Here's a sneak peek of our 12 month milestone Sears Portrait session,(even though it was more like 13 month portrait, but hey, better late than never right?!) Fast forward 20 years from now, can't you just imagine this studmuffin gracing the cover of a GQ magazine?!! ha ha! Here's our favorites!

Our June in Pictures

Even though June is not quite yet over, we are off to NY for our annual summer getaway so here is our June photo slideshow! I decided that with the exception of Baby Grover #2 updates and special occasion postings, each month I will summarize our funfilled Grover life in one jam-packed slideshow and summary!

So here we go.......June brought us lots of gloom, but also lots of fun times with friends and family. There was our duffy boat Sunday Funday, Balboa Island patriotic parade, saying goodbye to my work and Taj's Montessori, many girl nites for mama (and many boy nites for dada and Taji), Belmont Shores Lebanese date nite, Chloe's last soccer game, many family R&R beach days, a visit to the farm, and this week alone... 4 playdates with our local buddies! June was a great introduction to summer, but summer 'aint like a good 'ole fashioned NY summer! We can't wait to play in the lake (& blow-up pool for Taji), go boating, biking, fishing, campfires, catching up with friends, and just hang out at our summer cottage in Bemus Point, NY. Most of all it's the slow-pace, clean fresh air, nature, the Amish farms, nature, and did I mention the beautiful nature (!), I look forward to the most!! It will be Taj's first time seeing where dada grew up and we have a lot in store for the little guy (and Brad is surprising us with all the work he's had done on the cottage, can't wait to see it! :)

In Taj news, June was the month for increasing his vocabulary, playing chase (he runs now!), stacking cups, building towers (and knocking them down), turning on the TV with the remote, saying the beginnings of "open" and "help", animal sounds, the "uh ohs" , the Ready, Set, "GO"'s, singing "Row, Row, Row your boat", dancing, giving us (open-mouth) kisses, being a big helper, and an even bigger mess maker! Phew! As I said before, every month gets more exciting!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's to our 3 awesome fathers: Dada Brad, Deda (my dad), and Grandpa Grover (Brad's dad)! Taj is lucky to be surrounded by so many positive male role models :) On Brad's 2nd Father's Day, Taji and I took him to a fabulous brunch at Summer House, right down the street from our house! Here is Dada pushing Taji in his cool mobile:

Taji giving dada his father's day cards.....

Family Pic at Brunch, check out the "Like father like son" duo with their matching hats to my left !

On our walk back home...... thanks Babi and Deda once again for this cool blue cruisin mobile, we take Taji everywhere in it :)
Balboa Bay Club Classic Car Show:

The boys' favorite was the red hot Spyder (the same type of car James Dean crashed and died in)

We had fun playing at the resort! Here's our little rocker dressed in his "My Dad Rocks" T-shirt.

Last but not least, I just want to stay how impressed I am the type of father Brad is to Taj. He melts my heart the way he plays and interacts with him. He always rushes home from work to meet up with us wherever we are, at the beach or playground... and dedicates his weekends to family time. I love love that he takes over weekend mornings and takes Taji outside to play while I get to sleep in. I also love the adorable Boy nights Brad does with Taji. Taj is a social magnet so he always loves going with Brad out to eat, interacting with others, and listening to chill acoustic music (like when he accompanied Brad and his buddy Justin at Port for an early dinner, and he loved the guitar player.) Brad the Dada has taught Taji how to dance, how to wrestle, how to strum the guitar, how to shoot a ball in a hoop and bowl (toddler version of course :)) Watching Brad be a father to his son has made me fall even more in love with him, and the ways he helps me and supports me has made our marriage that much stronger. I wouldn't be the kind of mother I am if it wasn't for Brad's dedication and the amount of effort he makes on his part. We are one hell of a team and have accomplished a lot. I know we will continue to persevere and flourish as our family of 3 grows to Family of Four!