Vac-HAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

As evidenced by the VACAY ticker on the blog, you will notice we are gearing up for the Wisconsin Dells/Minneapolis road trip. The suitcase is packed, the bribery snacks and toys are ready to go and the house is clean.

We will be bringing the laptop with us, so I will try my best to share our fun. If I can't, well then you'll just have to be patient until next Friday 7/2.

Peace out.

Happy 5th Birthday Ian!

So hard to believe, but Ian is now 5! I clearly remember holding him in the hospital when he was 2 days old, and now look at him.

Ian's party was at a gymnastics place where the kids got to play in a big foam pit, trampolines, big bounce house and obstacle course.

Ava, of course, was a big chicken and was very timid when it came to jumping off of things. Aidan, on the other hand, was the little daredevil you'd expect - no fear does this boy have.

Kiddos waiting for the cake (Ava sitting right next to Ian, of course):
Logan and Aidan - these boys spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E:

Birthday boy:

Pit 'o kids:

Aidan speeding down the slide into the foam pool:

Obstacle course:

Cute kids:

Sleepover Friends

This past weekend, Ava got to experience a big girl moment: her first sleepover. One of Ava's good friends Emma begged her mommy to let her cousin and Ava spend the night. At first, I was a tad nervous - mainly because I was in denial that we are ready for this type of thing!

She handled it like a champ (we were worried she would get scared and want to come home). It sounds like they had lots of fun...in fact, I am a bit jealous I didn't get to be there! Here are some of the things they got to do:

• play dress up
• watch a movie complete with popcorn
• go on a treasure hunt with their personalized totes Sarah made for the girls
• eat "friendship toast" (french toast) for breakfast

The bags are all packed:
Before we left, Aidan got in on some play time with the girls:

Eating popcorn in their princess dress-ups and watching "Mary Poppins":

Meeting Mr. Owen

Last week, I got to spend some time with my good friend Erin and the new little man in her life, Owen. Talk about a good baby! He was so sweet and calm, and he slept nearly the entire time I was there. Not only that, but Erin is THE calmest, most laid-back new momma you'll ever find - my hero!

Congrats Erin and Mike on your new little bundle :)

Memorial Day Weekend, Part 2

The other big and busy day we had this past weekend was on Sunday when we went to the park in the morning, and to David and Jenny's that afternoon for a cookout (one of many that will take place this summer).

It was screamin' hot that day, so to get relief from the heat, David rigged the slide to be a water slide to cool of the kids. He put a hose up at the top of the slide, and a Slip-n-Slide at the bottom. The kids played on it for literally hours:

Kids patiently waiting their turn and looking cute as always:

Little (big) man meticulously playing in the sand, getting some shade:

You might be wondering what the adults did to keep cool...we had frozen "smoothies":

We had a yummy dinner of shish-ka-bobs, brats, corn on the cob, pasta salad, fruit salad, and s'mores for dessert. Everyone - including the kids - ate very well. Here is the happy couple enjoying their meal:

At the end of the evening, we made s'mores and the kids played some more while the adults played cornhole.

It was a VERY exciting and fun-filled day. Again, only one of the very many times we are lucky to get our families together to play :)