A Laid Back Weekend

Our weekend was pretty laid back compared to the last few weekends which was a nice change of pace. On Friday morning we headed out for Harrison to get his second hair cut. When we got to the salon, I took Brooke to the restroom right away and came back to find Harrison sitting in the chair talking to Sam about Mickey Mouse and not caring at all that someone he'd only met once was trimming the hair around his ears. As soon as I came back he started whining and wanted down. We made it through the rest of the hair cut, but next time B and I are just going to hide in the bathroom the entire time.

The many faces of Harrison and his blue tongue. 

They both got a sucker and we were on our way. We stopped at Fresh market to grab a few things, and the nice lady at the deli counter informed me that they give of free cookies at the bakery if you ask. So, FYI to anyone with kids, free cookies at Fresh Market, all you have to do is ask. Suckers and cookies meant these two were in a grand mood, so we headed home for a mini photo shoot.

After naps, and an outfit change, we unloaded some boxes of hand-me-downs sent from our cousins in PA. In the box was a Bumbo they were sending back, so we had to break out the other Bumbo and now H and B have new seats. I remember at 6 months their chubby little legs wouldn't fit in there anymore, and now they're back to loving them.

The rest of our Friday was quite chill. Saturday morning we woke up and headed straight to the lake. Aunt Chrisser and Uncle JT were in town, so we went to visit with them and participate in the Hamilton Lake Poker Run. My sister's dogs came with them, and Harrison was instantly in love with Dozer. Dozer loves to play ball and is great about bring the ball back and dropping it at your feet, unlike our dogs who chase it and don't bring it back.

We got our drinks, poker cards, and supplies ready and headed out on the boat. We had a great time blowing bubbles, drinking margaritas, taking Jell-o shots, eating snacks, and just cruising on the lake. My pair of 7s was a pathetic hand, and not anywhere close to being a winner. A great time was had by all, and we finished off our morning/afternoon with a swim.

Poker stop #1 - Christmas in July

It started raining while we were swimming which was perfect because it was nap time. H and B had other plans however and refused to lay down. Even after I told them if they didn't lay down we would pack up and leave, the refused to lay down. So home we went. They both snoozed on the way home and then were in terrible moods the rest of the day. I was tired, they were tired, we were all over the day. We started baths an hour early, and were all in bed by 8pm.

Sunday is usually Daddy Day, but Daddy was headed to the Brickyard for work, so the kids and I were on our own. After breakfast we got dressed and headed out for a nice walk.

We snapped a few phone pics while we were out, and I happen to love the above picture. Brooke is cheesing it up, and it looks like Harrison is taking a poop in the roses. Toddlers are the best.

When we got back from our walk, the kids BFF and one of my BFFs stopped by for a little play time. Bubbles, snacks, and stories followed. Harrison is not in any of the pictures because he lost his cool over the bubbles and then went to play with his mower. Typical Harry.

Rob got home about an hour after the kids woke up from naps. In one of my best mom decisions ever, I decided we needed fries and ice cream for dinner. We went to BK so the kids could run around in the play place, and then we hit up the DQ drive through on our way home. Once the kids were in bed, Rob and I watched an episode of Top Gear to close out the evening. A blizzard and Top Gear are the perfect end to any evening as far as I'm concerned.

We are back to the grind, and back to the gym this week. After almost a month off thanks to Plantar Fasciitis, the kids and I are pretty excited to be back. I hope you all are having a great start to your week too.

Random, Fun Facts

Now that we aren't doing monthly updates, it's been a while since I've posted what the kids are up to developmentally. I thought it would be fun to do a post with a few fun, random things about each of them. It's also been a couple months since I've used my Nikon, bad mommy, so we did a little photo shoot today.

Harrison

• is talking in two word sentences
• if he really wants your attention he will grab your shoulders and get his face half an inch from yours to make sure you're listening. 
• loves tickles. Both getting and giving them.
• is obsessed with lawnmowers. Anytime we walk past an open garage, he points out their mower. He also loves his bubble mower.
• always wants to watch Frozen. 
• lets his sister take the lead, but is showing us more and more often that he knows his letters and numbers. 
• favorite color is yellow
• always wants his shoes off while eating.
• loves walking around with his hand in his pocket.
• loves pasta. He always wants pasta for dinner.
• chases the dogs around with toys. He's often a little too rough, so we're working on this. Thank goodness they're so tolerant. On the same note, he also loves to give them hugs.
• has started singing the alligator song we learned in swim class and throws himself into the pool.
• looses his cool over bubbles. Every. Time. He pours out the bubbles and then the tears ensue because he doesn't have anymore bubbles.

Brooke

• refers to every heart as a "frozen heart." 
• repeats 4 or 5 word phrases when you're talking to her, but only talks in 3 word sentences. 
• is a full on hoarder. She has to have a collection of toys with her at all times. 
• loves being naked and telling you she's naked. She even screamed to the barista at Starbucks, "mommy, naked," while we were in the drive through. 
• always wants to watch Mickey. 
• can count to 15. When you asks her what comes after 15 the answer is almost always 18,19, 20. 
• can tell you any letter in the alphabet, except E. E is F and doesn't exist when she says her ABCs. 
• favorite color is pink. 
• wants to hold my hand all the time. If I'm not holding her hand she'll chase after me saying "Mommy, hand," until she catches up and grabs my finger.
• had a potty training regression. After a few weeks in diapers, we are back to big girl panties again.
• is still my laid back girl, but she has started throwing tantrums for ridiculous reasons. Today she threw herself on the floor and cried for 5 minutes because her plate was blue and she wanted an orange one like Harrison.

They Both

• love cottage cheese. If you ask what they want for lunch the answer is always cottage cheese.
• have a new found obsession with playing in the dirt. It may be time to invest in a sandbox so they stop digging up the yard.
• love pine cones, clover, and mail boxes. Our walks are full of them picking clover and running from one mailbox to the next.
• love their trains. We can't leave the house without Rosie and Thomas.

Another Weekend Recap

With this post I will finally be caught up on all of the fun, busy weekends we've had going on. One of my oldest and bestest girlfriends and her daughter were in town visiting from Baltimore. We headed up to the lake Friday morning for a fun day trip. The water was perfect when we got there, so we headed out for a late morning ski.

A picture attempt with toddlers. Real life.

The lake was still pretty quiet, so we decided to take the kids tubing. It was the first time for all three of them. H and B both went with me. Brooke was over it pretty quickly, so she hopped into the boat. Harrison and I kept going and I'm pretty sure he would have tubed the whole lake. Every time I asked if he was done or if he wanted to keep going, he would say "going."  I finally had to tell him it was time to let A go. She thoroughly enjoyed it too. I see many years of tubing together in their future.

We decided the kids could skip naps and we headed out to The Cove. We docked the boat so the kids could play in the sand and we could have a few beers. We had a family of ducks that visited us while we were swimming. They convinced us to feed them half a bag of popcorn. I even got a few of them to eat out of my hand. When we got back into the boat, the kids all passed out within a matter of minutes. Once they woke up, we called it a day and headed back home.

I worked at the daycare this weekend and was battling day 2 of a 5 day headache, so our Saturday morning was pretty quiet. Saturday evening we had some of our besties come over for a hot dog bar and game night. H and B gave the chiminea a makeover and played in the dirt while we ate hot dogs and chatted. I sent the kids to bed after a long shower, and I'm pretty sure they still had dirt in their hair. Once they were snoozing we attempted to play a round of Cards Against Humanity, but mostly we wound up talking and catching up all night.

Poor Lori. This is what Rob subjects Ravens fans to when they enter our house.

Sunday was my father in law's 60th birthday. His brother hosted a lovely potluck and pool party. I was in headache survival mode pretty much all day, so keeping up with the kids is about all I was able to do. They were jumping of the diving board, swimming from the deep end to the stairs and then getting out and doing it all over again. They had a blast swimming and were not pleased when I told them it was time to get out. Until they had cake and ice cream, then they were ok with it. I wish I had pictures, because they were a sticky, chocolatey mess.

Brooke's face kills me! Celebrating the big 6-0 with PawPaw.

Having my bestie in town was amazing. Monday and Tuesday felt like the weekend too. Pool days and Mexican dinner dates are what great days are made of. I was sad to see her leave yesterday, but my headache finally left and life got back to its normal flow. Now we have just enough time to recoup before next weekend gets here.

Girls Weekend

Two weekends ago I had the pleasure of heading to Chicago for my soon to be sister in law's bachelorette party. She used to live in Fort Wayne and we became extremely close. Then she moved to Chicago and we still got to see each other often. Then she and my brother moved to Seattle and I haven't seen her since. Thank goodness for WhatsApp and Skype. 

A couple of the girls and I bolted out of town early Friday afternoon and made the three hour drive to Chi Town. I dropped the kids at my moms before I left, and judging from the text messages I got, they didn't miss me too much. Once we got to the city, we settled into our hotel room and got ready for our evening out.

On the agenda: Picnic and movie in the park. I prepped a picnic dinner along with cookies and snacks before we left The Fort. Our Hostess for the weekend, E, brought along the wine. The movie playing was "Moonrise Kingdom." I had seen it before, and I liked it more the second time around. There were lots of hugs, conversation, and catching up. It was a great evening.

The next morning we woke up to rain and fog. I headed out to find us some coffee since the Starbucks in our lobby had a line that was at least 25 people long. I LOVE Chicago! We used to live in the west suburbs when I was little, and even though I never lived in the city, it always feels like home. I could spend all day walking around downtown doing nothing more than watching people and taking in the architecture. The streets were super quiet Saturday morning at it was just lightly misting when I headed out. I was enjoying every minute of walking around, just me. In the amount of time it took me to step inside and get three coffees, it started pouring. My lovely walked turned into a second shower, and I barely made it back to the hotel without wearing the coffee.

After brunch at the hotel we met up with the rest of the group. We played Cards Against Humanity and then headed out to grab a late lunch. We were origianlly supposed to go to a street festival, but the weather changed those plans, and I'm glad they did. The restaurant we went to, Estate, was great. The drinks were great. The view was fabulous. The food was delicious. most importantly the dessert was ah-mazing. Nutella cookie wontons. Need I say more? Yum!!

Michelle and I rocking B's headbands and H's sunglasses.

An outfit change and a few hours later, the evening festivities began. A lingerie shower started to night, followed by an amazing food spread, custom cocktails, and cupcakes. The bridesmaids put together an awesome party. I'm pretty sure we all would have been content drinking and snacking there all night. Our bar reservations were calling our name though.

The bridal party at the lingerie shower

We took a cab to a fun bar called Public House. Their beer menu was pretty great and their cocktails weren't too shabby either. Beer flights are my jam, so I was please to see I could do a flight of any three beers they carried on draft. There were about 30 to choose from. The rest of the night involved lots of late 90s hip hop, some dancing, shots of whiskey (I still cringe just thinking about it), and of course a bachelorette checklist.

We called it a night close to 1am, we're party animals I know, and headed back to E's house. I think we killed almost all of the sandwiches and sushi that were left from the shower earlier. We kicked it sleepover style that evening, and amazing everyone woke up hangover free. After a great brunch involving bananas foster french toast and one of the best Bloody Mary's I've every had, we packed the van and headed back to Indiana. 

Road tripping with my girls was a ton of fun, but I was happy to see the kiddos. Harrison just showed me has vacuum when I got home, and Brooke screamed "Mommy, home." I love that I'm able to have fun girls weekends away and that I come hope to happy babies. I can't wait to see all of these ladies again in just a few short weeks when we all head to Seattle to celebrate M & M's big day!

Vacation Part 2

If you missed part 1 of our vacation, you can find it here.

Saturday, July 5th, is when the lovely little town of Hamilton held all of their Forth of July festivities this year. Both of my sisters got up bright an early to run in the town's annual 5K. The kids and I sat out back with Grandma and Grandpa to cheer them, and the rest of the runners along.

The town parade began at noon, so we packed the kids into the wagon and headed down to the boardwalk. The parade only lasts about 15 minutes. There are lots of sirens and lots of candy. Just about every car/float tossed candy their way. They also got a few ice pops, a beach ball, and a pin wheel. The local coffee shop had a float that said "We Love Muffin Tops," and they were handing out muffin tops. By far the highlight of the parade.

"More candy, please?"

While the kids napped we went out boating a drinking with a few friends who came up for the day. H and B joined for a quick 'toon ride before we went to dinner at our favorite small town restaurant in Ohio. Sam's Place in Blakeslee. If you live close and you've never been, you need to go. Their floppy potatoes and Mosehoppers are to die for.

Rob made it up for the town fireworks on Saturday night. We unfortunately missed most of them because the kids had zero interest after riding out in the boat and waiting over 30 minutes for them to start. 10:30 is way too late for fireworks to start. At least the kids enjoyed their glow in the dark gear. At one point I think Brooke had on 15 glow bracelets.

Sunday morning I woke up to good ski water and made it out for a quick run before the kids woke up. Uncle Jeremy made it in from Denver overnight, so we got to see his smiling face bright and early. We had more friends visiting that day, so it was another packed house. We made it out for a boat ride, which Harrison couldn't stay awake for. While the kids napped, we drank and floated in the water. Do you see a theme here? They nap = We drink. The rest of the day we ate and hung out. We managed a 9pm bedtime, and I was asleep shortly after they were.

Almost glass. Perfect slalom water.

Monday morning we headed into Fort Wayne to visit the zoo with Cousin Charlie. The kids all had a blast. They all rode the horses with no tears. We had to refer to Brooke and Harrison's horses as Sandy and Sandy Two in order to get them to ride. I hope Candy didn't mind being called Sandy Two. (Sandy is the penny horse at Meijer that they love riding.) We made it until 3pm with no meltdowns and then all the kids passed out on the drive back to the lake.

Cousin love!

When we got back to the lake H and B went for a Sea Doo ride with Dave and Jeremy, which turned into Dave and Mommy because Brooke didn't like getting wet and would cry. Once we got going fast enough that there was no spray, they both loved it. And of course we went through a tunnel. When we got back, the kids fished for guncles with pool noodles, which was one of the cutest things ever.

We had sausage on the grill for dinner followed by eclair cake, which the kids LOVED, for dessert. The perfect last dinner at the lake. We finished off the last of our fireworks after dinner and then called it a night.

Tuesday is when everyone had to fly back home. We had caramel rolls for breakfast and ginormous pizza for lunch. This would explain why my jeans are a little tighter than usual. We said our goodbyes and made it home in time for naps. Brooke came home with a bug bite on her eyebrow that caused her whole eyelid to swell. I think it was just a mosquito bite, but she had a crazy reaction. 

It was an amazing week, but we were ready to get home to our beds.The kids have been taking extra long naps and sleeping in almost every morning since we got home. I'm pretty sure they're caught up on sleep by now, but I'm still blaming their great sleep on vacation hangover. I can't wait until we all squeeze into the cottage again next summer! Until then, the kids and I will enjoy the lake enough for everyone.