June

June saw Steve finally defending his dissertation!!!! He did GREAT - his presentation was really interesting and I felt like he did a good job answering the questions at the end. I felt like people asked some odd questions that weren't really related to his dissertation. Or maybe related in a really round about way. But he handled them all well! Then there was a closed door session where his comity got to ask him anything under the sun that they wanted to which Steve said was by far the hardest part and very intimidating! Then he left and they debated and called him back. He called me about 5:30pm that day (June 12th) to tell me he had officially passed!!! Woohoo! Even though I knew he would pass, it was a huge relief for him just to be done with it all finally. He now has until July 9th to make any requested revisions to his dissertation after which it will be published. Yay! Steve joked with me that I needed to bring a water bottle to his defense and if things started going South, just pretend like my water broke to get him out of there! Hahaha!

 

The only pic I took on defense day.

We also started potty training Penny at the beginning of this month. I had tried at the beginning of April and she just wasn't quite ready. It's going pretty well so far! We went to the store and she got to pick out her own potty - a singing one that she'll sing along with now that she knows the words! It sings every time the bowl gets wet. Pretty cute!

105* outside and she insisted on wearing a jacket! At least I finally convinced her to wear shorts...

A friend was babysitting Penny and sent me this picture saying that Penny had told her friend Van "you stand here and hold my hand for picture." Haha!

We took Penny bowling for the first time! We went with our friends the Donners who have their son Porter who is Penny's age. They love each other and always ask for each other and then fight like cats and dogs when they're together! I think she had fun though. The smallest shoe they had was a toddler 9 and Penny is just barely getting into a 6, so that was a bit of a challenge. It was pretty funny to watch her shuffle around in the shoes though. She was a good sport about it!

Just running some errands.

She really wanted to paint Steve toenails and actually did a really good job! She just didn't know when to stop and kept adding all sorts of layers, so it ended up being a mess.

A fundraiser for our local aquarium they are trying to build. She LOVES riding anything that resembles a train!

Penny has been extra clingy to Steve recently now that he's done with his dissertation defense. She still struggles sending him off to school - I don't think she believes him when he says he'll be back for dinner!

Checking out the model train at our children's museum.

I'm actually surprised Steve convinced Penny to hold a bunny. He said she was really jumpy about it the whole time though!

Having fun testing out the baby equipment! I've decided to be induced on July 12th. It was just easier for my mom to make plans to come out and easier for us to have someone to watch Penny!

First movie in the theater! The Incredibles 2! She got really nervous to go into the theater - not sure why. Maybe she heard the rumbling noises from other theater doors? Once I convinced her to go in though she was all smiles and did really well! She only got up to explore for maybe the last 20 minutes and we were sitting in a row that gave her some wiggle room, so it wasn't a big deal. It was a lot of fun!

Other fun things I want to remember about Penny:
- When I put her down for bed or nap I tuck her in with her favorite blanket. She always says, "ahhhh, that's comfy cozy!" So so sweet!
- She was singing at the window one day during a rain storm and couldn't quite remember all the words to the song. She sang "Rain, rain go away (pause) it's summer time (pause) chick fil a" It made me laugh. And I was impressed she rhymed it, whether she meant to or not!
- Her new question is "what you got?" One day Steve was eating a sandwich and Penny asked "what you got Dad?" "A sandwich." "okay, you share!"
- I asked her a few questions for Father's Day and I thought her answers were kind of funny:
           - My dad is 3 years old.
           - My dad likes to eat.
           - My dad's job is to read to me.
           - My dad says good stuff.
           - I like to read books with my dad.
           - My dad's favorite thing is candy.
           - I love when my dad drinks water.