Month full of adventure

And it's only June 15th!

After a long dry spell, I'm returning to the blog. I had to find a place to post the videos we took of Paige's end-of-the-year school performance. This is precious footage you won't want to miss!

The class sang "We Are the Dinosaurs" (video1), "Twinkle Twinkle Traffic Light" and "Skinamarinkeedink" (video2). After the performance, we all got to eat ice cream!

Paige loved pre-school this year. She will be going back to the same school three mornings a week in the Fall.

Summer adventures have already begun! We traveled to Florida for our nephew's high school graduation & had a good visit with Steve's extended family. Paige and Adam were highly entertained by Chow Chow the cat at Grandma Joy's & Jaja's house (where we stayed). We visited the beach, the pool, and the Mote Marine Aquarium.



Paige and Adam at Mote



Steve holding Paige and Adam, with nephews CC and JJ

Living in Chicago, we are blessed with so many rich cultural institutions. The kids went with their nanny to the Museum of Science and Industry during the museum's annual free week. They enjoyed the hands-on kids activities & the model trains. I took Paige to a children's concert in Evanston, where we warmed up with the choir and won recognition for our audience participation as ducks on "I bought me a cat."

The kids and I visited the Chicago Botanic Garden while the roses were in full bloom! The smell was heavenly. The kids enjoyed watching the ducks, chipmunks, and birds. I enjoyed letting them run without worry. We all liked the intricate outdoor model railroad exhibit - complete with Thomas the Tank Engine!



Kids at the Botanic Garden

Summer day with mom

Now that I'm working four days a week, I really treasure my weekday off with the kids. Sometimes we end up grocery shopping and getting other errands done, but usually we have some fun! Yesterday was a good example: 9:30 am - Walk to the farmer's market in our neighborhood. Purchase sweet corn, blueberries, sausage, and a blueberry muffin. 10:00 - Stop in "the square" to eat the muffin and run around. 10:30- arrive home. Pack our lunches, load the stroller into the car, and head out for the zoo! Noon - 2:00 - Fun at the zoo. We visited the Farm at the Zoo first: cows, ponies, piglets, chickens, newly-hatched chicks. Paige got to pet the goats. We ate our picnic lunch here. Next stop: the carousel. Paige rode a giraffe all by herself, and Adam and I waved to her each time she came around. We spent some time visiting the monkeys and gorillas before calling it a day. Both kids fell sound asleep in the car on the ride home. Paige slept till almost 5:00! I took Adam with me to Target (still had to fit in one errand), while Paige slept at home (Steve was working from home, so she wasn't left alone). 5:15 pm - All 4 of us went to the park to watch Steve's softball team play in their semi-final game. Our friends were there with kids the same age as Paige and Adam. Paige and her pal dug around in the dirt and managed to get handfuls of it into her hair. Adam and Sabrina tried crawling off the blanket and eating leaves. 7:30 pm - Kids and I arrived home and started the bath and bedtime routine. It was a full, fun day -- the kind you'd like to have a whole summer full of, if only work and mundane tasks didn't get in the way!

Earlier this month, we visited our Ohio relatives:

Blake, Cole, Payton, Adam, and Paige

Adam and Paige with Pop-pop and Grandma Karen

Paige and Adam in the golf cart with Grandma Sara and Grandpa D

BBQs, brithdays, and more

July has been a busy, fun month for us! We hosted my college friends for a BBQ on July 4th. Between the four of us, we now have six kids ages 4 mos to 4 yrs, with another on the way in August (not mine!!).

Adam had his 9-month check up. He's 29.5 inches long and weighs 18 lbs 10 oz. He talks a lot, rolls, sits, scoots, and puts everything in his mouth. He's eating a wide variety of baby and table food, and he loves feeding himself. We know when he's done because he starts throwing anything left on his tray! He likes pulling himself up to stand, but he's neither crawling nor walking yet, much to his own frustration! Soon, my son, soon... He has also started clapping and waving, and he thinks this is so funny when he is watching himself in the mirror!

I spent four days in NYC for work earlier this month. Between Steve and our great nanny, the kids were well-cared for. I missed them terribly, although sleeping alone in a hotel room does have its advantages. Namely, the sleeping part! Before I left, we took a family trip to the zoo. Paige still loves the carousel. She got to feed the cows while we were there as well.

For my birthday last weekend, Steve took me to the Cubs game in the afternoon. That evening, we hosted a BBQ here with tons of friends and their kids. The best surprise (which I still can't believe Steve pulled off) was getting my mom to drive up for the party! I was shocked when she walked in! I gave her a big hug & immediately started crying! What a special birthday gift! The BBQ went smoothly until some rain sprinkles began to fall, of course just as the food was coming off the grill. The rain lasted only a few minutes, then the sun came back out. We were treated to a rainbow! So many blessings on this birthday & so much to be thankful for!

A blog post wouldn't be complete without a funny anecdote, so here goes. Last weekend, Paige and I were playing in her kitchen. She pulled out a placemat that has a map of the US on one side and a map of the world on the other. She handed it to me, and we had this conversation:
me: Thanks for the map. Want to see where your grandparents live?
Paige: sure
me: Grandma Sara, Grandpa D, and Grandma Karen and Pop-pop live in Ohio. [I point]
Paige: I want to go to B-ohio! [She always puts a "b" in front of Ohio]
me: well we are going in a couple of weeks, and we will see Grandma Sara's new condo. It's a long drive from here. Do you remember where we live?
Paige: Chicago!
me: Yes! [I point] Do you remember where Grandma Joy and Jaja live?
Paige: Grandma Joy lives on the other side of the map [turns the map over] with Chow Chow [their cat].

May update

Paige has gotten very creative with her imaginative play. Today, we came home from the park and I pulled out my keys to open the garage & stow the stroller. She took the keys (on a long lanyard-type thing to go around my neck) and put them on her neck. Then she asked "What's your name?" - which meant she wanted me to ask her this question. So I asked, "What's your name?" and she replied "Paige the police officer! And I have a whistle!" Then she put one of the keys in her mouth and pretended to blow on it! She helped me open the garage, then she had to go in the house and tell daddy that she was a police officer. This persona lasted about 30 minutes!

This time last week, we were cleaning up after Adam's baptismal party. He was dunked at Holy Trinity last Sunday morning and feted here with a lunch and about 30 guests. He's six months old already, laughing, smiling, flirting, "talking," and expressing his displeasure when Paige takes away the toy he was playing with. He's still only rolling in one direction, but his core is getting stronger & he can sit up for several seconds before toppling sideways.

Both kids had check-ups last week, and they are both growing steadily. Paige is about 36.5 inches tall and weighs 28 pounds. Adam is 28.5 inches long and weighs 17 lbs 4 oz. This means he's only 1/2 inch away from outgrowing the length limit on his carseat, so guess what we shopped for yesterday?! Actually, we decided to get a bigger seat for Paige, then switch Adam into Paige's old seat.

Steve and I marked four years of married life last Thursday. It's gone by so quickly, and we can hardly believe how different our lives are now versus four years ago! We went out to dinner on Friday night and really enjoyed our child-free evening together. It brought back lots of memories from our dating life and early married days. Someday, we'll travel again... but for now, trips to the park, the zoo, and grandma's house(s) fill our time.

When I grow up, I want to be...

Paige had her first "when I grow up, I want to be..." moment yesterday! I'm sure she'll have many more career changes, but her first declared profession is: dentist!

We went to visit our friend Susanna and her new baby, Brock, yesterday. On the way home, we had this conversation:
Me: Next time, we'll visit when Val [dad] and Chaz [3 y.o. big brother] are there, so we can see the whole family.
Paige: And Chaz will be there and Val will be there.
Me: Right, today Chaz is at school and Val is at work.
Paige: And Val is working.
Me: Right, today he is working. Val is a dentist. He fixes people's teeth.
Paige: Paige wants to fix the people's teeth! When I will grow up, then I will fix the people's teeth!
Me: Do you want to be a dentist like Val?
Paige: Paige will be a dentist! Then Paige will grow up and Paige and Val will be dentistes!