Fun with a Mac

So we had some fun with my parent's Mac tonight using the Photo Booth program! This picture is so distorted and funny that I had to share! My mom is trying to convince me to put a real picture of the 3 of us on the blog so you'll know that we're not really so different than when you saw us last. I think you can figure that out, right? Hehe!

Culture Shock Moment

I ran a few errands this afternoon with Cole. All was going fine until I just couldn't find the Vaseline at Target. Pharmacy section? Makeup section? Grocery section? It was all just too huge and overwhelming. Aah! I need to try again tomorrow.

So, I came home and looked at the pictures my dad had taken in Michigan and I found this one of Cole and I flying a kite. We had so much fun that day! He learned to say "kite!" and hold the string while it flew. His vocabulary is just exploding these days. Just in the last couple days he began saying uh oh, okay, pocket, choo choo, and airplane. It is such a privilege to watch and listen to.

Last bit of Frank news. We close on our new house on Thursday afternoon! The little red house will be ours! See post below if you don't know what our house looks like. We are so excited, and this is the only thing that seems to be consuming our conversations and thoughts. I even dream about it at night! There is a lot of work to be done before we move in, and Chris leaves for Vienna for 3 weeks on Tuesday. So, it will still be a while until we move. We can't wait!

Baby Plate

Have you ever been to the restaurant called Claim Jumper in Southern California? We went tonight to celebrate Chris's birthday coming up in August. The restaurant is known for huge portions of food and the Mother Lode Chocolate Cake dessert. Tonight, though, Claim Jumper became famous in my book because not only did they have a very friendly kid's menu and take home durable plastic kid's cups, but they gave us a FREE BABY PLATE. Folks, this baby plate was more than Cole could eat! Composed of mandarin oranges, cinnamon applesauce, two types of cheese, and some turkey, this plate was gourmet! If we lived here, Claim Jumper would quickly rise to the top of my Kid Friendly Restaurant List. Woah, I'm in shock!

California Fun

We've been in California this week visiting Chris's family. We came to be as helpful as we can to Chris's mom, Nancy, and her family due to the recent death of Chris's grandfather, Papa Coleman. We named Cole after him! We had a small service yesterday morning with just family, and then a celebration of his life in the afternoon with friends, too. The funniest part of the day was when Cole threw Aunt Misi's book into Papa's grave along with the urn and flowers already there. He noticed that throwing things into the hole was a good idea, so he siezed the moment!
Cole has also had fun with his cousin Emilee at the playground, riding in Bubba's wagon, watering flowers, and laughing at mealtime. He's thankfully sleeping much better now, which means we are, too!

Wagon Surfing

No longer is the little red wagon just a place to relax. Now it's a place to surf!

Well, we're almost at the end of our Michigan vacation. It's been so much fun...and tiring, too. We've experienced some transition issues with Cole, mainly in the middle of the night. He's normally a great sleeper, but up here, I think he's slept through the night maybe three times out of our whole ten days here. We think it's because we've slept in four different places over the last month for a week or two at a time, and he's just a little guy feeling fed up with these changes. He doesn't have his normal toys, bed, or schedule really, so even though he's only 16 months, we think this moving thing is affecting him on a few levels. The good news is that he's been so happy during the day and he's taken great naps. He rode on a waverunner today, and he played in the water at the sand bar. We're really thankful to have such a flexible little guy during this crazy storm of transitions.

In other transitional news, we signed the agreement on our little red house, so we're close to being official homeowners. We close on August 2, and then we hope to move the last weekend of August after Chris returns from Vienna.
And last but definitely not least, I've noticed some differences in baby food in the USA. I'm used to feeding Cole pureed spinach, broccoli, and zucchini. In Vienna, these were some staples for us. I've been trying my best to sneak some veggies in Cole's food lately, and sometimes the puree is the best way. In the USA, though, my green choices have been peas and green beans. I miss Vienna for that reason already!

There is a Well

There is a flowing well on the east side of the Schindler Cottage, where we've been for the past week. Cole has recently figured out that throwing rocks into this well is a great way to pass the time! The only thing, though, is that the water is very cold!
Cole has also been skinny dipping this week, learned to play Corn Hole, taken a few boat rides, and jumped in puddles after a huge downpour. We are having a great time seeing family, too, who we haven't seen for a year. We're really thankful for this annual family vacation!

New News!

The 4th of July was a great day! Cole acquired some red, white, and blue beads, and for the past few days he's been wearing them saying "beee" and it's really cute. Cole got to play with Miles, too, his cousin who is only 3 days older. And last but definitely not least, we decided to make an offer on the cute red house you see above with the pink door. It's in a super location in Bloomington, and it needs some TLC before we move in. We love it, and are very excited to go forward in the process. We've never been down the house road before, so it's been quite an education for us in the last few weeks. We're headed up to Northern Michigan this afternoon for about 2 weeks, and then off to California for a week. Thus begins summer vacation!

busy bee

We're in Indy once again
But this time is permanent
Mostly

We're on our way
To Oden and the OC
Travel

And I guess that isn't enough
Vienna will be next
Again

Cole is cute as ever
Talking and getting opinionated
Gibberish

He does have a few words
Under his tongue - car, cracker, beads, cookie, keys, mommy, and
Dad

Looking forward to reading a little
Business books, Harry Potter, and don't forget
GMAT

We put an offer on
A red house with a pink
Door

There's a red house over yonder
That's where my baby stays
Jimi

Job interview at IU
Student financial aid services
Waiting

Hoping to educate the Luginbills
About real dark
Chocolate

Great Weekend

We had a great weekend! Cole loved the swimming pool so much, and we had a lot of fun visiting family and eating great American food. We shucked corn on the cob, ate hamburgers on the grill, and stayed up past bedtime. Cole even indulged himself in a Ritter's Ice Cream cake last night with Aunt Jane. Needless to say, we took a bath afterwards. He had fun, though, can't you tell?

We're Back!

So we're safely in the USA as of 24 hours ago. We left where we were staying in Vienna yesterday morning at 8 a.m. Vienna time, and landed in Indianapolis at 3 a.m. Saturday morning Vienna time. Whew! It was a great day, though. Our flights were great, including Cole! I was nervous about the 10 hour flight from Vienna to Chicago, but Cole proved my nervousness unnecessary. He ate the airplane food, played with all the toys and books we brought, and charmed the people sitting around us and flight attendants. They all were jealous of his eyelashes! They're really really long :). Really, he was a great little traveler. He didn't even notice take off or landing on either flight. We think it's because he was so used to being on public transportation in Vienna that the noises and movement didn't really phase him.
We are thankful to be back in the USA. We went swimming and played outside today. What a blessing to have a yard and a driveway to play in, and even a little red wagon to ride in. WOW! Cole has been playing with the same few toys for the past 3 weeks or so, so being at Omi and GrandBob's house is a breath of fresh air for all of us.
We will start looking for a house on Monday with a realtor in Bloomington, and Chris has a job interview at Indiana University on Tuesday, so we're starting off right away. Ever since we started packing our Vienna apartment months ago, I've been longing for a place with no boxes and that I can call home. I hope we find it soon!