tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73062770749065031232024-03-13T07:50:23.645-07:00the-owens-familyerinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.comBlogger258125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-91656877180494447242013-10-10T08:49:00.003-07:002013-10-10T08:49:58.188-07:00Disney September 2013 - Day 1So much to catch up on, but I'm going to try to get my feeble brain to remember all the way back to 3 weeks ago, so that I can blog about our September trip to WDW with my family. <br />
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So without further ado - Day 1<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">WooHoo! We were so excited! The day dawned sunny and cool. Probably the first cool morning we'd had in over a month or two (we had a weirdly cool summer as I mentioned above</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">) It was starting to feel like fall and we were headed to WDW and MNSSHP! Yay!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We got dressed, packed up the car, and were ready to go in less than an hour. Woo!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We had to say a sad goodbye to Big Daddy who had postponed his flight until Tuesday to finish some work at home.) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We were sad to leave him, and he was sad to see us go, but we knew the days would fly by!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">With two kids and tons of stuff, I sweated my way through security - why don't they turn up the AC in the security line??? Don't they know??</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">- and once we were through, the kids made a bee line for the closest candy.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">What did I do with my money Mom??? "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe if you had left your giant blanket at home, as I suggested it wouldn't be so hard to find your wallet?"</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">(I told my kids they could bring what they wanted, but they had to carry it through the airport themselves. It was unbelievable to me how much stuff they crammed into their 'carry on and personal item' ha!)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We had time for a nice lunch. Unfortunately, we passed all the good places to eat and ended up at a not so good restaurant.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">But it did have a nice view of the planes, so the kids were happy!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">The flight was delayed by about an hour. Some sort of mechanical problem. The pilot was very apologetic and told everyone on board that was over 21 that drinks were 'on him'</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">. Once we were off the ground, the flight was smooth and uneventful and we even made up some time in the air.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">The kids and I sat next to the nicest couple from Palm Beach, who had been cruising Europe for 7 weeks! </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I have decided I will like retirement.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> :-)</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Before we knew it, we were off the plane and onto this familiar sight:</span><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X_ZykMxZ-VY/UlbJqNsZa2I/AAAAAAAAGds/owAEQy082WM/s1600/IMG_5088.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X_ZykMxZ-VY/UlbJqNsZa2I/AAAAAAAAGds/owAEQy082WM/s640/IMG_5088.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">Next Stop - Magical Express! It was interesting to see how My Magic + has already made it to Magical Express. They had the 'tap and go' Mickey all ready to go to meet arriving WDW visitors. My Magic + really is going to be an information bonanza for Disney. They'll know how many flights are on time, etc. Maybe even be able to tell how many minutes it takes each guest to walk from their gate to the ME counters! Amazing!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br style="margin-top: 0px;" /></span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We just had our plain old paper tickets, so they scanned those and I alerted them to the fact that my husband would be delayed by a few days and we were off to our line! One thing that I was sad about - no more hotel names labeling the lines. Now it's just numbers. :-(</span><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QN5ihjwdLB4/UlbJs_bvxSI/AAAAAAAAGd8/RiAnc10qKxc/s1600/IMG_5090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QN5ihjwdLB4/UlbJs_bvxSI/AAAAAAAAGd8/RiAnc10qKxc/s640/IMG_5090.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We were right up front. Which always means we'll be waiting a while for others to join us.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We were on the bus soon enough - front row baby! And the Dino sticker was procured:</span></div>
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It was a perfect, beautiful evening:</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We didn't check in online, but check in was still a breeze!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br style="margin-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">I spoke to my sister and my parents. They had arrived around lunch time and were already at the Magic Kingdom. They had 6:45 dinner reservations at the Crystal Palace. I'd hoped (before the flight delay) that we'd be able to join them for dinner, but we walked into our room to put our luggage away at 6:30, so I knew there was no way.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We were starving, and there was no Crystal Palace for us, so we stopped by the Pop Food Court on the way to the MK. </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">For the life of me, I can't remember what we ate, but I do remember Pop has added a really cool ice cream area on the gift shop end of the food court and it is fantastic! Milkshakes, sundaes, etc. And of course, knowing the dining plan, I asked if we could have one of those as dessert and the answer was -absolutely! Yay!</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">We were in a hurry to get to the MK though, so we took our ice cream to go.</span><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GgwEul16fs8/UlbJvgiFYVI/AAAAAAAAGeU/Wet_-FvPfzs/s1600/IMG_5096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GgwEul16fs8/UlbJvgiFYVI/AAAAAAAAGeU/Wet_-FvPfzs/s640/IMG_5096.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">When we arrived at the MK, it was a perfect night! It was just so exciting to be there.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">My family had finished dinner and had already seen most of New Fantasyland, so we met them in the Castle hub to find a spot for Wishes!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">After Wishes, we decided to set up a spot for the MSEP. We watched the 'castle show' (what's it called again?) while we were waiting.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">(Now this is a cell phone pic)</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">After the parade, the MK was closed, so we made our way down Main Street and toward the busses!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"> </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">ML fell asleep on the ride home:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #141414; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;">:-) More to come!</span>erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-77904288543624619532013-10-08T07:37:00.000-07:002013-10-08T07:38:54.424-07:00Awhile - Packing for DisneyIt's been a while! (Awhile?) So much has happened. <br />
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I thought I'd start back with a post idea I had when preparing for our latest trip to Walt Disney World in Florida.<br />
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Due to kid sports obligations we chose to fly to Orlando as opposed to our usual method of transportation - driving. <br />
I was flying solo with the kids down to Orlando, so this meant I wanted everyone to be able to carry their own luggage and carry ons. <br />
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To simplify things, I sent a box of 'stuff' down to Orlando with my parents in their minivan. These are things that I often pack on our WDW trips. Just things I have have found to be useful in the room.<br />
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First up - a small air purifier aka 'the white noise machine.' This trip we were staying at a Value resort - Pop Century. When staying at Pop Century, we usually request a room with a 'lake view' in the 50's section and we have almost never had an issue with noise outside our room, but at every level of WDW hotel (Deluxe, Moderate, Value) we find it easier to have a white noise machine, especially in the mornings when Mousekeeping starts making their rounds and the 'early to rise' park goers start emerging from their rooms for the day. This is not to say that WDW rooms are in any way badly constructed or noisy all the time. This is just to prevent being woken up by that *one* family with that *one* kid who is yelling outside your room when you're children are fast asleep at 7 am. (And we all know, there is no anger like the anger you feel when you miss out on sleep because someone else woke up your child. :-) Ha!<br />
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Next up, a few breakfast items. Now, this may seem crazy. WDW sometimes seems like it's nothing but tempting foods everywhere you look. And this trip we were on the 'free' Disney Dining Plan. But if your children are anything like mine, they wake up STARVING every morning. And grumpy becomes 'hangry' pretty quickly if you don't feed them right away. When you're by yourself with your children and you need to get ready before you head to the food court (read: it will be an hour before you're out the door and headed to eat) having some easy breakfast foods on hand can mean the difference between a stressful morning and an easy one.</div>
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I try to pick easy breakfast foods with *some* health benefits. :-)</div>
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Next up- Laundry. I usually need to run at least one load while I'm at WDW. If for nothing other than stain control (you know, someone dumps something on their outfit at dinner and you need to get it out before it sets in.) All the WDW resorts have great laundry rooms. They sell everything you need at the resorts, but it saves time and money to bring your own. I bring - a hanging laundry hamper (can hang in the closet area - keeps laundry off the floor and keeps it from being mixed in with the clean clothes in kids suitcases,) Shout to pretreat stains, Tide pods, a few dryer sheets and a delicates bag.<br />
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Finally - Dish/ hand soap and a dish rag/ towel. One thing about WDW resorts are the 'refillable' mugs that everyone seems to have. You buy a $18 mug and you get unlimited tea/ coffee/ soda refills for your entire stay. Most people will bring these to breakfast, fill them up, and then throw them in their stroller or back pack until the end of the day. After dragging our mugs all over the park for the day, I REALLY feel the need to give them a good washing, so I bring an old hand soap bottle (that I saved and cleaned out) filled with our favorite dish soap - Method grapefruit. <br />
This serves dual purpose though, as I find it hard to get my kids to wash their hands with a bar of soap provided by the hotel. They do much better with liquid soap. So it's a win, win.<br />
The dish rag and towel are just because of my own OCD. I don't want to dry my dishes with a towel some other person has wiped their mouth on. :-) Weird I know. <br />
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I put everything in a clear plastic bin (you can seen I brought a few other WDW essentials too - hello sunscreen! I didn't think the sunscreen would make it through security in our carry ons. I also brought a $9 coffee maker from Wal Mart and some coffee, because this momma needs her coffee right away!) and sent it with my parents. <br />
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I hope this is helpful to someone out there planning a WDW vacation! Thanks for reading!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-33584992004181969162013-09-01T10:07:00.001-07:002013-09-01T10:07:50.332-07:00I love you this much<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wTqtoyrkhuc/UiN0TyooX8I/AAAAAAAAGZo/FXSZ6nd9TbE/s640/blogger-image-1740203494.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wTqtoyrkhuc/UiN0TyooX8I/AAAAAAAAGZo/FXSZ6nd9TbE/s640/blogger-image-1740203494.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tENmaFnEXxs/UiN0Yq3SudI/AAAAAAAAGZw/DDIF8DI4UXM/s640/blogger-image--1341896060.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tENmaFnEXxs/UiN0Yq3SudI/AAAAAAAAGZw/DDIF8DI4UXM/s640/blogger-image--1341896060.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">ML said she loves me more than lemonade and lolly pops. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I told her the feeling is mutual. </div><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wTqtoyrkhuc/UiN0TyooX8I/AAAAAAAAGZo/FXSZ6nd9TbE/s640/blogger-image-1740203494.jpg"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Sweet moments I want to remember forever. <3</div>erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-72808364575389305232013-08-22T06:03:00.000-07:002013-08-22T06:03:43.905-07:00Happy Birthday Big Daddy!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It's Big Daddy's Birthday! </div>
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We have a football scrimmage tonight, so it's low key today, but Saturday night we will party hardy! :-)</div>
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It's been a great year of life! Here's to many more.</div>
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-76971640301675339432013-08-20T06:18:00.002-07:002013-08-20T06:23:38.387-07:00Chunky Bead Necklaces<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As discussed many (many, many, many) times on this blog - I'm not super crafty, so when I find a craft that's easy for me to make, I get pretty excited and may, or may not, go a little overboard in making said craft over and over and over again. Hee. :-)</div>
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That's the way it is right now with chunky bead necklaces. They seem to be everywhere on little girls these days! I decided to make one for ML in her school colors so she could wear it with her uniform on 'no PE' days. The biggest obstacle seems to be finding larger, candy colored beads at stores like Hobby Lobby and Michael's. For this particular necklace, I only had time to visit Hobby Lobby, so I decided to fill in the 'lack of' candy colored beads with sparkly, clear beads. Because, who doesn't love a nice sparkle????? :-)<br />
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Once I settled on the beads and chose my wire (more on that in a few,) my final decision was what type of clasp to purchase. I settled on a toggle clasp, but there were lots of choices! If my beads had been lighter, I might have chosen the magnetic clasp, just because it would be so easy for ML to operate on her own.<br />
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I had so much fun making that necklace, that I decided to make a bracelet for our friend who was baptized on Sunday using the same method. I used beads in school colors once again and another toggle clasp.<br />
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I've <i>*attempted* </i>to make other jewelry over the years and most of those attempts have been total failures, mostly due to the materials I used to string the beads. I finally came to the conclusion that stretchy plastic thread and fabric threads aren't for me. Wire seems to be my medium (if a not-so-crafty girl can have a medium - ha!) <br />
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I usually start by cutting (with tiny pliers) a length of wire about 1.5 times what I think I'll need (if I was better at this/ did it more often, I'd probably waste much less wire.) Then a make a small, temporary loop at one end of the wire to serve as a 'stop' for the beads I'm stringing. After all of the beads are on the wire, I simply unhook the temporary loop and attach each end of the toggle clasp to each end of the necklace/ bracelet. <br />
I attach the toggles by threading it around and around the attachment loop and then twisting at the bottom between the toggle and the closest bead, but I'm not sure that's the 'professional' way of doing things. It's just my way. :-)<br />
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Not sure about the bracelet, since it was a gift, but the necklace has held up very well and we are really enjoying it!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-65278066096330919882013-08-18T19:52:00.001-07:002013-08-18T22:17:49.685-07:00Weekend Crazy<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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(I may never post from moblie again! I can't get this space at the top to go away for anything. Gah! :-)</div>
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We started with two birthday parties on Friday afternoon. JR loved the high dive at the pool where his friend!s birthday party was hosted. He has no fear. </div>
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Sweet friends. </div>
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I dropped off JR at 4, then dropped off ML at 4:30, then went back to socialize and pick up JR, but he was invited to spend the night with his friend. ML was at her party until 8:30, so Big Daddy & I got an unexpected date night. Score!</div>
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We went to one if our favorite places and then did a little shopping. Then I went to pick up ML. She had a blast at her party. My friend Jill had planned the ultimate little girl party - American Girl doll themed- and she pulled it off seamlessly. ML said it was the best party ever!</div>
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Saturday we got up & met my parents and nieces at the Space & Rocket Center. </div>
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Then we all went to a local BBQ competition to eat lunch and support one of our favorite charities. </div>
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I had to leave soon after to pick up ML from another birthday party (one of our friends was kind enough to take her to the party.)</div>
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And then we dropped off a friend at home and were off to our neighborhood cookout. It was cold and drizzling the entire time - on August 17!!!!! I still can't believe this weather. We left once ML got out of the pool, her lips were blue from the cold!</div>
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Today, Sunday, was my & Big Daddy's turn to man the desk at the Small Groups station in the church lobby, so we did that and after church, I had a parent meet & greet for high school small group leaders. </div>
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We had lunch at home & got ready for our young adult small group to come over. I had to do some grocery shopping & Big Daddy & ML had an Elvis music dance party. :-)</div>
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We went back to church to see one of JR's classmates be baptized. Let me tell you, I was a HOT MESS during that baptism service. 19 people were baptized and every story was so amazing - from the youngest child to the 62 year old man. It was so....so....- how do you even describe what it's like to be in a room with that many people on fire for God publicly declaring their faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior???- however you describe it, that's what it was. :-). Amazing just doesn't seem like enough description! I felt so blessed to be there. </div>
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Finally it was time for small group - always a good time! Love to laugh and grow in faith with those young adults!</div>
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Saturday marked 7 days until JR's football season begins!</div>
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And it also marked 14 days until the Auburn Season begins!!!! War Eagle!!!! We're riding the Gus Bus all the way to victory! (We hope! Ha!) Here's to a new era!<br />
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erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-50942117905373497722013-08-17T20:09:00.002-07:002013-08-17T20:09:51.066-07:00Second Saturday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Every second Saturday of the month, our church Missions department sponsors (the aptly titled) 'Second Saturday' where church and community members can just stop in and help complete a mission project. </div>
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Every Second Saturday they have an indoor project and an outdoor project. I was so excited when I realized we could go with Big Daddy last Saturday to help build a wheelchair ramp.</div>
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I love any kind of mission project, but for whatever reason, I really love it when I can be hands on and get dirty and really 'work' on a mission project. And I also love projects where we can work as a family. :-)<br />
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I invited my girls from my 10th grade small group to join us and I was so proud of how hard they worked!</div>
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They were so sweet to include ML:<br />
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We had a great time. We didn't quite finish before the rain started pouring down, but we were super close! The team leader was able to go back this week and finish for us - I drove by today and it looks fantastic!<br />
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Church on Sunday and a lunch at Mellow Mushroom rounded out our weekend:<br />
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And of course, JR reading. He is totally immersed in the world of Harry Potter and loving every second of it! Love to see him reading! <br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-3554063951592354752013-08-16T07:31:00.000-07:002013-08-16T07:50:27.386-07:00SYL - Thrifted Lamp & Coffee Table<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Linking up to SYL at <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/" target="_blank">Kelly's Korner</a> again! Because I'm not very thrifty or very crafty, but I do really, really enjoy reading blog posts written by people who are thrifty and crafty!</div>
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My favorite 'genuine' thrift store find is this old brass lamp I purchased for about $3. My handy hubby (Big Daddy as he's called on this blog) had just purchased a paint sprayer and he was anxious to try it out. So I pulled out a sample of pale green paint I had purchased when I was looking for paint colors for the dining room and Big Daddy gave the lamp a few coats of paint. </div>
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We were both skeptical that the paint would stick to the brass, but I loved how it turned out and decided to put the lamp in the office. Our office is a pretty high traffic area, but the paint has stood the test of time! Not sure if we would have had the same results if we'd brushed the paint on, but that paint sprayer was worth it's weight in gold as far as paint application!<br />
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Now I have a lamp I love to illuminate all 100000000000000 papers that need to be filed. Ha! <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(Just keepin' it real people. Keepin' it real.)</span><br />
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Next up is my family room coffee table. It's not quite a 'genuine' thrift store find, but it was a find none the less and one of my favorite furniture pieces, so I'll include it. :-)</div>
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I actually found it at a shop that was going out of business. It had been a ladies dress shop that catered to the Red Hat Society members <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">(Remember those? Everyone dressed in purple and wore red hats and went to lunch? Because what we ladies need is another excuse to get together and eat, right? Ha!)</span> Any way - it had been sold to another lady who tried to add in some funky vintage clothes to the mix, but I guess it didn't go over well and she was selling everything, including the furniture. This piece was actually her desk. I had Big Daddy cut down the legs and viola! Coffee table. </div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">(Please excuse the messy couch. I probably should have at least straightened and fluffed the pillows before taking the picture, but once again - just keeping it real. Real as in, I just told my kids to get off the couch so I could take the photo real. :-)</span><br />
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Our family room is pretty big, so I knew I wanted a big coffee table to fill some of the space. Normal coffee tables are dwarfed by the size of the room. The desk worked perfectly and over the years it has been such a blessing. </div>
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It has been our coloring table, </div>
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Our playing table,<br />
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Our puppet show theater,<br />
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Our birthday party table,</div>
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Our game night table,<br />
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And so much more! <br />
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I hope you enjoyed reading about my 'finds.' Excited to read about yours!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-67916984856715611332013-08-15T07:32:00.001-07:002013-08-15T07:32:12.250-07:00Back to School! 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Last Tuesday was back to school for us! I can still hardly believe it. </div>
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I honestly feel like we <i>just</i> got out of school and into summer break last week!!</div>
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But, I guess it's like they say - time waits for no man and it's on to 1st Grade and 4th grade for these kiddos.</div>
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(See? Despite all those back seat fights, they <i>DO</i> love each other!<br />
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It was a really stormy start to the school year, so we had to take our first day of school pictures on the back porch swing instead of the front yard like usual. <br />
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Sweet ML. She has really grown this summer. She seems so much more 'big girl' now. She'll always be my baby, but there isn't one thing left about her that's toddler or baby-ish anymore. Which is equal parts joy and sadness for me. Sigh. ML struggled at the end of Kindergarten to keep up reading wise, so we tutored with one of the first grade teachers over the summer and it looks like she's back on track now. Plus! - added bonus - we got our summer tutor as our First Grade teacher!!! So perfect for my sweet ML, who is usually pretty timid around new people. It felt so good to leave her with a teacher she already knew and was familiar with and loved. <br />
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And this guy. The big guy. What can I say? Smart - sometimes too smart for his own good. Loves to read, to learn, and to talk. Love him. He's going to have 4th grade eating out of the palm of his hand. <br />
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By the time we got to school, it was raining buckets. Literally pouring. So I let the kids out under the covered carpool drop off and then ran in to take a few extra shots with my cell phone.<br />
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ML and her sweet teacher:<br />
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At her desk - so excited!<br />
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JR and his sweet homeroom teacher:<br />
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4th Grade rotates between 3 teachers, but he was so thrilled to get Mrs. B as his homeroom teacher.<br />
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Finally - a little composite I made of JR's first days of school over the years. I made it when I was laughing about how there's no real dilemma about what to wear on the first day of school for my kids! JR actually reached for a black shirt the first day of school this year until I reminded him he'd always worn purple. So one more year of purple. Who knows? Maybe next year we'll go crazy and wear a grey shirt the first day? Ha!<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-44453908483756161532013-08-04T23:00:00.000-07:002013-08-05T08:15:54.251-07:00Last Day of Summer 2013!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It's our last day of summer! Equal parts happy and sad. </div>
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No denying that this has been an awesome summer break though!</div>
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So very blessed. Hope you had a great summer too!<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-74782146066514109552013-07-29T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-29T00:00:03.438-07:00Goodbye to July<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It's been a busy few weeks since we've been home from our trip out West! </div>
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We finally got to do some 'summer' things, including just hanging out at home doing silly things like dancing around to our favorite music, costume changes mandatory of course. :-)</div>
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We were so excited to get up early one morning and see Miss Katy off to her medical mission trip to Kenya! We have prayed for her and this trip from the very first days when she thought God 'might' be calling her to go and use her gifts as an ultrasound tech. We watched in complete awe as God opened every door for Katy over the last year and then it was finally *the* day! Katy is home safely now - she had an uh-mazing trip! God is so good. <br />
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We helped Grandma tend to her blackberries way out on the edge of their property.<br />
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And there have been lots of celebrations!<br />
Birthday parties,<br />
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and weddings,<br />
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and taking the kids to their first spend the night camp(s)!<br />
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They had a fantastic time, but we missed them so much!<br />
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Luckily, for my peace of mind, my sweet friend from college was one of the directors for the week while my kids were at camp - yay!!! I posted this on FB, but who knew all those years ago that one day she would be in charge of my kids for a whole week? Certainly not this girl! Again, I say, God is good. :-)<br />
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And then we were back to birthday parties:<br />
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And baby showers:<br />
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And the triplets turned 1!!! Already!<br />
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And playdates:<br />
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And football practice:<br />
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And seeing how our BFF's hard work all summer paid off in the local production of The Music Man!<br />
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Can't believe July is almost over, but it has been such a great month! So thankful.erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-67169687197727710882013-07-26T09:49:00.000-07:002013-08-13T07:55:07.305-07:00SUYL - Favorite CharitiesLinking up with Kelly's Korner for Show Us Your Life. I love to read Kelly's blog, but rarely link up to SUYL because this blog is more of a memory book for me than anything else, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to read about people helping other people. It seems this world wants to tell everyone that everything about life on this planet is dark, and getting darker, but that is so contrary to what I see every day. I see light - and everywhere that light is spreading. Of course that might have something to do with the grace of God working in this poor sinner, but I digress...... :-)<br />
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When I met Big Daddy, I was a tither (tithe-er? tithe-ing-er? You know what I mean....Ha!) Big Daddy likes to tell the story of the first time he saw my 'budget' on my fridge and was shocked to see that I, a church employee, had my tithe written down first. Big Daddy introduced me to his ideas on tithes and alms (to him, you gave 10% at minimum to the church and anything you gave to another organization was 'alms' :-) And so we began our marriage with that mindset. We'd tithe, but we'd also support other organizations as much as we could. <br />
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Of course, if you know us, you know that always dear to our hearts is:<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.habitat.org/" target="_blank">Habitat for Humanity</a> </span><br />
Big Daddy worked for Habitat for the first year of our marriage. Big Daddy was fortunate enough to spend time with Millard Fuller in Americus, Georgia and his "Theology of the Hammer" and belief that every person deserves "a simple, decent place to live" helped shape Big Daddy's heart in many ways. We loved our time with Habitat and one day I can totally see us buying an RV and joining the ranks of the 'Blitz Builders,' traveling around the country helping with one Blitz Build after another.<br />
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(Big Daddy in the 'office' - that's what his volunteers jokingly called the port o potty when he was on the jobsite. :-)</div>
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<a href="http://www.compassion.com/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Compassion International</span></a><br />
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Compassion International is another organization that was a part of our early marriage. When Big Daddy and I met, I sponsored Akhil in India<br />
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I was lucky enough to be Akhil's sponsor for more than 11 years. (Look how much he grew!) I treasure every one of our letters and was both sad and elated when he graduated from Compassion's program just over a year ago. <br />
Big Daddy, of course, has always had a heart for Haiti, so he began sponsoring a little girl, Stephany, from Haiti a few years ago. We love everything about Compassion - how transparent they are with their finances and how they work so closely with their sponsors. After the earthquake in Haiti, they were quick -under the circumstances- to notify us that Stephany was safe and well.<br />
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Now our Compassion family tradition continues....... JR now uses his allowance to sponsor Sonavai in Togo, Africa. JR chose Sonavai because they are the same age and one of his best friend's parents spent many years in Togo as missionaries. He is so excited about the possibility of meeting Sonavai one day. He talks about it all. the. time. :-) But I've told him, I'm not quite ready for him to set out for Africa all alone yet. Ha!<br />
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<a href="http://www.foodforthepoor.org/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Food for the Poor </span></a><br />
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Finally, I can't forget to mention the organization that is so much a part of our lives right now. Food for the Poor is the non profit that Big Daddy has partnered with to build the houses in Haiti. For every home he builds here in the US, he is donating to build a house in Haiti. His trip to La Hatte, Haiti the first week of June to see the neighborhood they have built there with those donations was amazing and life changing for him. Even though it was his second trip to Haiti, he still said it left him forever changed. <br />
Just like Compassion, Big Daddy and I are so impressed with how transparent Food for the Poor is with their finances. We have complete assurance that the money we donate goes to those who need it.<br />
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Locally, we love to volunteer with<br />
<a href="http://www.thecarecenter.us/" target="_blank">The C.A.R.E. Center (click on name for link)</a> and their various community programs, including my favorite back pack program <a href="http://www.thecarecenter.us/areasofservice/care-about-schools/bags-of-blessings.html" target="_blank">Bags of Blessings or B.O.B</a>. for short. :-)<br />
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And <a href="http://newhopechildrensclinic.org/" target="_blank">The New Hope Children's Clinic</a> is just amazing. We have loved watching our friends create this amazing, much needed medical ministry.<br />
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Thanks for letting me share about my favorite non-profits! I'm loving reading about all of yours too! Love all of these organizations that are spreading the Light! <br />
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God........In Him was Life and that Life was the Light of all mankind. The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it." - John 1:1,4-5<br />
<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-8065987411960474662013-07-20T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-20T00:00:12.114-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Final Days On Day 8, we drove from DeSmet to Omaha, Nebraska. Omaha is a nice place! We stayed at the Hampton Inn & Suites directly across from the baseball stadium and we had a wonderful stay. We arrived around 8 pm, but we still hadn't eaten dinner, so we headed down to Old Town and found a wonderful restaurant that was still seating on the patio:<br />
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After another great night's sleep, we hit the road again - our only interesting stop was The Gothic Tea Room in St. Joseph, Missouri, which was well worth the stop. Fantastic lunch!<br />
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And as we passed through St. Louis, this was my final photo of the trip:<br />
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What can I say about this trip? </div>
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I would do it all again. I still can't believe I got to see this in person:</div>
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Absolutely beautiful. Breathtaking. Totally worth it.</div>
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So thankful that I got to visit South Dakota and see it in all it's beauty. </div>
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So very, super thankful. :-)</div>
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And that's a wrap on our North by Northwest trip!</div>
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-6182347975813992692013-07-19T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-19T00:00:00.523-07:00North by Northwest - June/July Trip - Day 8<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The next morning, we left the Hampton Inn in Mitchell, SD after a really nice night of sleep and headed due north for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Homestead in DeSmet, South Dakota.</div>
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When I was a little girl, my grandmother would send me one of the 'Little House' books every year for Christmas. Starting with Little House in the Big Woods and ending with These Happy Golden Years, I read each book cover to cover, totally mesmerized by the story of Laura's life on the frontier. I still cherish those books, only now I read them out loud to my own children.<br />
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I could hardly believe that I was going to visit the actual land that Pa, Ma, Mary, Laura, and Carrie had homesteaded all those years ago. <br />
I was totally geeked out! :-)<br />
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The only buildings on the land that aren't reproductions are the church and the school house. The church has nothing to do with Laura whatsoever, but was instead placed on the land for it's historical significance and the school house wasn't one Laura attended or taught at, but it was one where one of her pupils eventually taught.<br />
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The visitors center was nice and they had an informative movie playing about the land, DeSmet, and all the Laura Ingalls Wilder attractions in the area. <br />
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They have every stop on the homestead mapped out in a nice circle. First you visit the first school building, which houses a Laura Ingalls Wilder museum of sorts.<br />
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Next you visit the hay roof barn. For me, it was so cool to compare the visions in my mind of what a hay roof barn looked like to an actual hay roof barn. <br />
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They had a calf, a few chickens and even a barn cat here.<br />
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Next were the dugout and the shanty. It was neat to compare the two and consider the question, "Which would I have wanted to live in as a homesteader on the prairie?"<br />
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More chickens/ chicks:<br />
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Super cool heirloom vegetable garden:<br />
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Outside of the home rebuilt to look exactly like the home the Ingalls built on the land (even facing the same direction and in the exact location!) ML got to wash clothes the old fashioned way!<br />
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And there were cart and pony rides:<br />
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And then we hitched a ride in the covered wagon over to the school house:<br />
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Inside the schoolhouse volunteers, ours was a retired Kindergarten teacher, talked about and demonstrated what a school day was like over 100 years ago in DeSmet, South Dakota.<br />
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So fun!<br />
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After our wagon ride back, there were lots of fun things to do - button necklace making, fabric rug braiding, rope making, corn husking, corn husk doll making, etc. While everyone else was busy with those activities, I took the walk down to the church by myself.<br />
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I was still in awe that I was standing on land Laura once looked at with her own eyes!<br />
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The church was beautiful and had a really neat history typed up inside:<br />
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Sadly, it was soon time for our visit to come to an end. We needed to get on the road toward home and I had a goal........... one more thing I wanted to see before we left DeSmet........<br />
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We went by the Surveyor's House, an ACTUAL house where Laura and her family lived during the 'long winter' on which her book The Long Winter is based. So cool. But what I really wanted from the visitors center here, were directions to Silver Lake!<br />
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I went and stood on the shores of Silver Lake and texted my sister, so she could share in my joy. :-) And then we were off toward home! <br />
Up next: Final day(s) driving home!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-73548521626473627212013-07-18T19:18:00.000-07:002013-07-18T19:18:11.812-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Day 7<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
On Day 7, we slept in a good bit. All the driving over the past 2 days caught up with us and we were lucky enough to have two hotel rooms - connected by one bathroom - at the Hotel Alex Johnson in Rapid City, South Dakota. All that space meant everyone could have their own bed for the first time since leaving home and we took advantage and slept in! </div>
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Hotel Alex Johnson was nice, but ended up not being our favorite, so we decided to cancel our second night, spend some time in Mount Rushmore, and then head east toward home that afternoon. We had 21 hours of driving ahead! Yikes!</div>
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On our way to Mount Rushmore from Rapid City, we came across the highly rated Bear Country.</div>
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We decided to pay the entrance fee and drive on through:<br />
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It was a nice diversion. It had rained earlier in the morning and we wanted to be sure the rain was gone for good before we got to Mount Rushmore. We saw some neat creatures - some were up close and personal:<br />
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But more than anything, we wanted to see Mount Rushmore, so we headed that way!<br />
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Parking Lot view<br />
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Walking up:<br />
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It still felt surreal!<br />
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JR really wanted something from the gift shop. When we asked him to wait he wasn't happy, as evidenced by this 'classic' photo we took right after in front of the Alabama column. Ha!<br />
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Hello Gentlemen!<br />
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Since it was July 4, and crowds were at their peak, they had actors portraying the 4 Presidents. We met Teddy Rosevelt<br />
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We checked out the indoor exhibits and watched the movie:<br />
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And then we headed on the Presidential Trail:<br />
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Everyone was walking in here, so I went too - to see what the fuss was all about:<br />
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It ended up just being this view of George from below:<br />
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Soooooooo pretty in the Black Hills!<br />
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The compressor that was used to fuel the tools that built Mount Rushmore:<br />
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Sculptors studio:<br />
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The Hall of Records is behind Mount Rushmore and remains unfinished:<br />
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We had lunch at the cafeteria in Mount Rushmore National Park and it was delicious! Lots of options - healthy options too. <br />
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The decor was wonderful:<br />
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And you can't beat the view!:<br />
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Good bye Rushmore! <br />
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All in all, we were at Mount Rushmore for less than 4 hours and we saw and did everything there was to see and do.<br />
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With a few extra hours in the day left, we decided to re visit the Badlands:<br />
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There really is nothing like it. <br />
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It just takes your breath away. <br />
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We sadly said good bye to the Badlands and headed east. We arrived in Mitchell, South Dakota just in time for their local fireworks! And then headed straight for bed. We were headed to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Homestead in the morning!</div>
<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-28544851825554627842013-07-14T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-14T00:00:09.971-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Day 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
When we woke up the next morning, and saw the Missouri River in the distance, we were so glad we hadn't crossed at night!</div>
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It was so beautiful!<br />
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We stopped at the rest stop right at the river and took some photos and checked out the Lewis and Clark exhibit. <br />
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The tourism attendants at this rest stop were very helpful and we headed toward the Badlands armed with maps, hotel suggestions and more!<br />
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When we turned off at the Badlands National Park entrance, we stopped at (the only) gas station, since we knew it was about 30 miles to the park visitors center and then next bathrooms.<br />
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Then we stopped at the Prairie Dog facility next to the entrance of the park. This facility isn't park of the park, but is instead a for profit business where you can buy peanuts to feed to the Prairie Dogs.<br />
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Our kids really loved it, but since we arrived at lunch time, most of the Prairie Dogs had already eaten their fill of peanuts and mostly acted like they could care less about the peanuts ML and JR offered them. <br />
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We did finally figure out that they liked it if you shelled the peanut for them. I guess they get so many peanuts, they don't want to do the work of opening the peanut shell anymore. Ha!<br />
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Our next stop on the way to the park entrance was unexpected, but I just had to stop. They had a state historical landmark - an original pioneer dug out house.<br />
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When I was little, my grandmother would send me a Little House on the Prairie book every Christmas. I LOVED those books and could hardly wait all year until I got to read the next installment in the amazing pioneer life of Laura Ingalls Wilder. In On the Banks of Plum Creek, Laura and her family live in a dugout house, so I was soooooo excited to see what a dugout actually looked like!<br />
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This dugout had a boarded front:<br />
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Top of the Dugout:<br />
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We finished out dug out tour and were finally headed for the Badlands!<br />
We had glimpses of the Badlands as we approached. We kept saying "Wow. Check that out!"<br />
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But when we finally arrived, we said, "WOW!!!!!!! CHECK THAT OUT!!!!!!"<br />
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It. Is. So. Beautiful.<br />
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No picture can capture it.<br />
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And the beauty just goes on and on and on and on. Rob and I laughed because at the first 'overlook' there must have been 100 cars stopped - everyone gaping with mouths wide open just like us. But as we traveled on and on the Badlands Road (road takes about 1 hour with no stops) there were fewer and fewer cars because everyone spread out. You knew that if you skipped an overlook, it was okay because there would be another amazing, awe inspiring overlook just up ahead!<br />
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I'm not much of a hiker, so much to Big Daddy's disappointment, we only hiked this one trail:<br />
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We stopped by the visitor center and got lots of tips from the Park Rangers. We ate lunch at the only restaurant in the Park, and while our waitress was nice, the service wasn't very good and the food was okay. I did have a traditional Siox bread/ pancake type dish that was nice, but if I had it to do all over again, I would pack a lunch and bring it with us. There were tons of shaded picnic tables and lots of families enjoying the beautiful day in the park with a picnic lunch.<br />
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Big Horned Sheep in the distance:<br />
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Big horned sheep on a 'hill'<br />
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Big horned sheep up close:<br />
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Just. Amazing.<br />
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We ended up driving to the 'South portion' of the park as well. So very glad we did. We had to drive over 60 miles of dirt/ gravel road to get there, but it was so beautiful. We were all alone on the road most of the time and when we stopped and got out to look and listen it was like we'd been transported back in time. The stillness, and quiet, and wind. So awesome.<br />
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But I was glad we drove the trusty truck!<br />
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The entire time, I just kept thinking about how amazing God's creation is - This picture in particular just makes my heart want to sing His praises.<br />
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We wanted to stay in the Badlands to see the stars once the sun set, (they say it's one of the darkest places in the USA - so dark you can see the Milky Way!) but two things were working against us. #1 - we had driven waaaaay south and were far away from the Visitors Center and any source of food for dinner and #2 we needed to find a place to stay for the night.<br />
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We ended up heading toward Rapid City and Mount Rushmore. This was our first glimpse of Mount Rushmore. <br />
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I couldn't believe it! After all the years of just seeing it in pictures, it seemed so surreal to see it in person.</div>
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We also drove around the Black Hills for a bit. So beautiful, but it seems so crazy that these are less than an hour away from the Badlands!<br />
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Finally, to close out the night we went over to see the Crazy Horse Memorial. We'd heard they had a nighttime light show and as it was July 3, the kids were eager to see something since we weren't sure we'd be catching a fireworks show on the 4th. <br />
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We enjoyed Crazy Horse, it was interesting. When it's finished, it will be largest memorial in the world, but - as Big Daddy said - it might be 100 more years before it's finished! <br />
They are building it on donations and money they make on park entrance fees. They won't accept any government money which is admirable, but makes progress a little slower.<br />
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One thing about Crazy Horse - they are in love with the sculptor who designed the memorial. And they tell you aaaallll about him - even in the night time laser show. So the show ended up being a little boring, but we still enjoyed it and had a nice time. We're glad we went - not like we'll be dropping by western South Dakota again anytime soon!<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-82095657073742729502013-07-13T09:36:00.001-07:002013-07-13T09:36:47.913-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip Day 5<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Well, on Day 5, it was time to say good bye to Chicago. Sadness. </div>
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But we were actually pretty excited because today we would head slightly north and then due west toward South Dakota!</div>
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We were headed to the Badlands and Mount Rushmore! <br />
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We drove through Minnesota and Wisconsin. Our drive was uneventful, but very, very pretty!<br />
Traveling Champ:<br />
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Big Daddy spent a lot of time camping in the woods of Wisconsin growing up. Black Hawk Ridge was a family favorite. We also drove right through/ by The Wisconsin Dells. I had never been there before, but it seemed much like a northern version of Gatlinburg, Tennessee. <br />
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We stopped for lunch just beyond the Dells at a place called the Machine Shed Restaurant. It was a hometown version of Cracker Barrel and it was really good!<br />
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Mighty Mississippi River between Wisconsin and Minnesota:<br />
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We had dinner at a Pizza Ranch - also a first for us! But a great, fast place for weary travelers to stop and eat. (Because once you get to a certain point, there aren't many options!)</div>
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We decided to stop just short of the Missouri River in South Dakota in Chamberlain, South Dakota. We stayed at the Americ Inn and had a pleasant enough stay. My only complaint was arriving very late and desperately needing to do laundry - there was only one washer and one dryer in the entire hotel. I was told by the front desk clerk when I booked that there were two, but she turned out to be wrong. Oh well! Still got the laundry done and managed to be in bed before 2 am! :-)<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-55621762236972980742013-07-11T07:18:00.001-07:002013-07-11T07:26:36.839-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Day 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The next morning dawned bright and beautiful. What a treat to wake up in downtown Chicago in the fantastic Renaissance Hotel and head down to the fitness room to work out with this view:</div>
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Amazing right? I felt so very blessed.</div>
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It was also a special morning because it was this sweet girl's birthday!</div>
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I headed down the street and purchased some cupcakes from the Chicago location of the famed (NYC) bakery, Magnolia Bakery. Loved them!</div>
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We spent the morning relaxing, walking around and at one point, we stopped in front of this big glass window to watch/ listen to the radio hosts talk about sports (for our sports obsessed little man of course. :-)</div>
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Very soon, it was time to head toward Water Tower Place and the American Girl Store for ML's birthday lunch! </div>
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American Girl Bistro Chicago, like all Bistro locations, accepts reservations online. Not knowing whether my brothers and sisters in law would want to join us, I'd made reservations for 4 at the 2:30 lunch seating. My thinking was, if everyone decided they wanted to join us, 2:30 would be my best chance of getting everyone 'in' with us. I was right! At 9 am I called to change our party size from 4 to 12, and they were able to accommodate us! Yay!</div>
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I decided not to go with the birthday party package. At a fixed price of $22 per person, this lunch was already around $100 per family. Since every family was paying their own way, I didn't want to add on an extra $12ish dollars per child and $2 per adult just for a cake and a few treats in the goody bags. {We had done the birthday package with my nieces last year in Atlanta - <a href="http://the-owens-family.blogspot.com/2012/05/american-girls.html" target="_blank">click HERE</a> - for details on that trip and one year old photos of what comes with the birthday package. Hee. :-)}<br />
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ML still felt like a princess though!<br />
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And the atmosphere and the food were still great. For some reason, the food didn't seem as good as when we ate in Atlanta, but it was still really good and still a lot of food. Everything was bite sized for the most part - too adorable given the doll theme. Our waiter was fantastic! Loved him!<br />
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Marie Grace was ML's birthday present. I got her last year when American Girl offered her for 50% off!<br />
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Some of my nieces don't own dolls, so they were able to borrow dolls from the collection the Bistro offers their customers. There are shelves and shelves of dolls just waiting to dine with a little girl or guy!<br />
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Now, I mentioned that I didn't buy the birthday package, but because we told our waiter it was ML's birthday, they STILL put a candle in ML's dessert (included for everyone in the $22 fixed menu price) and let us sing Happy Birthday to ML. BONUS!!!!! - Didn't pay for the package, but she still felt like it was her party all the way down to blowing out her candle. :-)<br />
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After lunch we made a few other small purchases and hung out while everyone else shopped:<br />
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So sad that my doll, Molly, is leaving. She's the last of the original three, sniff, sniff. :-(<br />
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No doubt the American Girl Doll Store in Chicago is the most beautiful I've ever been inside!<br />
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After the AG store, we headed across the street to the John Hancock building to enjoy the view:</div>
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And then on the way home, we rode the El! My kids have ridden the subway in NYC, but they really don't remember it, so this was a special treat to them, ha!<br />
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We had some fun, bounce on the bed time before dinner:<br />
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Dinner was at the hotel on the second floor. Again, what a view!<br />
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After dinner, we decided to take the kids out to Millenium Park.<br />
Waiting in the lobby:<br />
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Magic nighttime bean:<br />
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Super bad cell phone pictures, badly edited. :-)<br />
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And we finished the night with the music and light show at Buckingham Fountain (played every hour on the hour on summer nights from dusk-ish until 11pm-ish.)<br />
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And then finally home to this great view for one last night!<br />
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The next morning we were saying good bye to Chicago<br />
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and heading Northwest and then West. Mt. Rushmore, here we come!<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-17889235022418829902013-07-10T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-10T00:00:10.072-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Day 3 - Downtown Chicago<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The next day ML was the first one up. With 18 people sleeping in one house, we had to get her out of there fast before she woke up the entire crew! So we dressed quickly and headed back to the club for breakfast.</div>
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A little golf course warm up. It was soooo cool outside! I couldn't believe it was less than a week from July 4th and I still needed a sweater. Even for Chicago, that's cold!<br />
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On to the yummy breakfast!</div>
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After a great breakfast, we headed back to my In Law's house to open everyone's presents for ML. Her actual birthday was the next day!<br />
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Then we took some photos:<br />
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And then we headed downtown! First stop: Adler Planetarium. We were able to get in free using a reciprocal membership from our local science museum. One of my favorite money saving travel tips is to know (or at least ask about) your reciprocal memberships. We have been to some amazing museums for 'free' using the memberships we already have in our home town!<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qTDEsk1eiMI/Udzb0VQAyHI/AAAAAAAAF0Q/FQcpjsFXevM/s1600/IMG_4587.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qTDEsk1eiMI/Udzb0VQAyHI/AAAAAAAAF0Q/FQcpjsFXevM/s640/IMG_4587.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I can highly recommend the Adler's food court for lunch. The food was fantastic and.....<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mZtzXaVwVMc/Udzb0fcC9II/AAAAAAAAF0M/e_h1XqWDA2A/s1600/IMG_4583.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mZtzXaVwVMc/Udzb0fcC9II/AAAAAAAAF0M/e_h1XqWDA2A/s640/IMG_4583.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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the view was exceptional!<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Imw5DH51uw/Udzb2-GWUgI/AAAAAAAAF0c/BDZY_xvLuy0/s1600/IMG_4584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Imw5DH51uw/Udzb2-GWUgI/AAAAAAAAF0c/BDZY_xvLuy0/s640/IMG_4584.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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It was nearing dinner time when we checked into the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Chicago. Our direct view out our window was another building, but look to the left or right and we saw this:</div>
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Uh Mazing.<br />
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I recommend the Renaissance highly. We had a wonderful stay. Absolutely zero complaints.<br />
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We were still waiting on some stragglers and all the kids wanted to do was go to the pool, so we headed down:<br />
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Ahhhhhhh.........<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hOv8gm2VY58/Udzb4V0TFsI/AAAAAAAAF0o/TQZ_au3-NhY/s1600/IMG_4594.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hOv8gm2VY58/Udzb4V0TFsI/AAAAAAAAF0o/TQZ_au3-NhY/s640/IMG_4594.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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But finally we were all starving and we headed up to our rooms to get dressed and then down to the lobby to gather everyone together.<br />
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Sweet cousins:<br />
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When did he turn 14?<br />
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Seriously - when?!?!<br />
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After dinner, we headed back to our hotel - The view was even better at night: <br />
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:-) - And we turned off the lights. Tomorrow was ML's 7th birthday and we were going to take Chicago by storm! erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-77896629003382389762013-07-09T20:52:00.001-07:002013-07-09T20:52:11.781-07:00North by Northwest - June/ July Trip - Day 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Saturday morning we got up and drove on to Chicago.<br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CpbntiAB-2Q/UdzZdBZeX7I/AAAAAAAAFwk/O2bb7LwYrCg/s1600/IMG_4561.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CpbntiAB-2Q/UdzZdBZeX7I/AAAAAAAAFwk/O2bb7LwYrCg/s640/IMG_4561.JPG" width="478" /></a></div>
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Today was the 'cousins party' where all of my husband's cousins gather once a year. We arrived at my in laws and greeted our cousins first, and then it was on the club for some time in the pool!</div>
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We had such a great time. I didn't even take many photos. Here's one of Big Daddy and I just before we left the party.<br />
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We all had a great time, but we needed to pack up yet again because we were going to be moving downtown the next morning!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-8575929064294104612013-07-08T00:00:00.000-07:002013-07-08T00:00:01.465-07:00North by North West - June/ July Trip Day 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
I should probably mention that my Brother in Law - BIL - and his family live in the Philippines full time. They have a house in Florida and fly to major cities in the US about once a year, but his daughters have never been on a true American Road Trip. So they drove to our house from Walt Disney World and then we drove together towards Chicago. </div>
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Our first stop together was for lunch in Nashville:</div>
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We looked around downtown Nashville for just a second. We ended up eating at Joe's Crab Shack because it fits in well with my BIL's strict diet.</div>
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We had a great lunch and stopped just inside the Kentucky state line for a rest break. I mentioned that there were so fun stops ahead, including Mammoth Cave. We called about tours at Mammoth Cave, but most were 2 hours long. We didn't want to take that much time out of our driving that day, so we ended up deciding to visit a much smaller cave called the Lost River Canyon Cave.<br />
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Lost River Canyon Cave had great reviews on Trip Advisor, so we gave it a shot. We really enjoyed our tour. First our guide explained about the Big Blue Hole:<br />
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Then they took us down to the entrance of the cave, which happened to be set up for a wedding reception later in the evening - so pretty!<br />
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Then our guided gave us some history of the cave, including the Jesse James link:<br />
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After putting on the kids life jackets (adults didn't have to wear them) we were ready for our boat trip!<br />
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My only complaint was the over hang to get into the cave was super-d- duper low, but once inside it was neat to hear the facts and history of the cave.<br />
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We journeyed on and ended up at a Hampton Inn along the way. When we got into our room, JR sat in this chair. My niece thought it looked like he was in a high chair!<br />
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And she wanted her own photo in the chair:<br />
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We settled into our rooms and the kids went swimming:<br />
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Closing out with this photo because I know usually most people just put up the best photos of themselves, but I think this photo is too funny not to share. In my defense, I had to wear a tshirt because I had to wear a 'tight, supportive' sports bra after my biopsy. But add in my glasses and my hair tied up and it is hysterical!<br />
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Next up: Family time Chicago style!erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-70500541852674896242013-07-07T20:23:00.000-07:002013-07-07T20:55:08.707-07:00Not my Favorite ThursdayNot my Favorite Thursday actually began on a Monday. My best friend called to say her baseline mammogram came back okay, after a little scare with a call back. I was relieved and since I'm nearing that 'baseline mammogram age' myself, I decided to dial up my OBGYN while 'baseline mammogram' was still on my mind and not some distant thought on a mental to do list we all know I'm never going to finish. :-)<br />
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So my OBGYN's office answered on the first ring - odd. Odder still, they actually had an appointment available on Wednesday. I pulled the phone away from my ear to be sure I'd called the same it-takes-an-act-of-congress-to-get-a-well-appointment-less-than-3-months-out office. It was, in fact, the correct doctor and I signed up for this coveted only two days away appointment. My brother in law and his family were set to arrive Wednesday evening, but I'd be in and out by then no problem.<br />
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Fast forward 'Not my Favorite Thursday' to Wednesday and we arrive at my check up. Where the doctor discovered a lump in my right breast. She kept asking me things like: Does it hurt when I press on it? Is it tender at all? When I answered that it did not, she seemed slightly distressed, and called for the nurse to make me a mammogram appointment ASAP. I left slightly shell shocked. 34 and about to have a necessary mammogram. It was then that I discovered that google is not your breast health friend. In an effort to figure out where all those "Is this tender?" questions were leading I googled and discovered that cysts are tender and then I found this gem:<br />
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Whoever wrote that should be shot {in the foot} for certain. Talk about a total panic attack. But then I decided not to panic.<br />
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I went home, greeted my brother and sister in law and nieces, enjoyed a great dinner and waited for my appointment time at 9 am the next morning to arrive. My brother and sister in law, who were supposed to get back on the road the next afternoon graciously watch my kids when my husband had to head to a meeting.<br />
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Meanwhile, I arrived at the Breast Center (no really, they call it that!) and my morning went like: Get called back, put on two hospital gowns (no gapping here!), mammogram (not that bad!), ultrasound (again, not too bad), get called back to talk to the radiologist (absolutely uncool,) go in for a biopsy of the lump the radiologist said he 'can absolutely not ignore' (totally sucks.) Then after another mammogram of my now numb, lump holding, biopsy-ed breast, I head out. Took a picture for posterity:<br />
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The best part of my day was getting to hang out with my brother and sister in law and family at the US Space and Rocket Center. <br />
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The hardest part was keeping the ice packs on my biopsy site, but I managed. My brother and sister in law decided to stay another night and head up to Chicago with us in the morning.<br />
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Not my Favorite Thursday ended Friday morning when the Breast Center (again, I'm not making this up) called to tell me that my lump was NOT cancer (Praise God!) but instead a fibroid tumor. I was driving when I got this call and my brother in law was in front of me. In my joy, I totally passed him without even knowing what I was doing. <br />
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Not my Favorite Thursday was scary and stressful, but I want others to know that google isn't always correct. And mammograms are important, as are yearly OBGYN check ups. Forget that new 'every 3 years' recommendation. Take care of yourselves ladies, we are worth it - all our Favorite Thursdays and even our Not Favorite Thursdays are worth it. Every day is a gift.<br />
<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-23921724938548481042013-06-29T01:28:00.001-07:002013-06-29T08:10:46.776-07:00A Week of JuneSo much has happened this week. A whole lifetime of things it felt like, but more on that another time. <div><br></div><div>What I can report now is that we have had play dates:<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7QHKrE9FtTE/Uc5Y88t0wEI/AAAAAAAAFr8/Ju6jrffhKF4/s640/blogger-image-2082965410.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-7QHKrE9FtTE/Uc5Y88t0wEI/AAAAAAAAFr8/Ju6jrffhKF4/s640/blogger-image-2082965410.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cKkop1bywZ8/Uc6aksLsrUI/AAAAAAAAFtM/tS5MOH0Aa4A/s640/blogger-image--140779480.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cKkop1bywZ8/Uc6aksLsrUI/AAAAAAAAFtM/tS5MOH0Aa4A/s640/blogger-image--140779480.jpg"></a></div>It was like the woman who lived in the shoe for a few hours at my house on Monday!<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ueDEs7Juqv8/Uc6anyX_QqI/AAAAAAAAFtU/ZqrouTxq0Aw/s640/blogger-image-1397511552.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ueDEs7Juqv8/Uc6anyX_QqI/AAAAAAAAFtU/ZqrouTxq0Aw/s640/blogger-image-1397511552.jpg"></a></div>Except these kids are so awesome, I totally *did* know what to do - let them have fun in the back yard. <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-sGjADV3i4bk/Uc5Y_SFlEwI/AAAAAAAAFsE/jnxLo2FzTnY/s640/blogger-image--1938355025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-sGjADV3i4bk/Uc5Y_SFlEwI/AAAAAAAAFsE/jnxLo2FzTnY/s640/blogger-image--1938355025.jpg"></a></div><div><br></div>We had lunch dates:<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-utADL5kcusc/Uc6ahK9FpiI/AAAAAAAAFtE/eEiGevb48Cw/s640/blogger-image-820850730.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-utADL5kcusc/Uc6ahK9FpiI/AAAAAAAAFtE/eEiGevb48Cw/s640/blogger-image-820850730.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ZeTtBFGLj6w/Uc5ZK02umWI/AAAAAAAAFsk/PqamdvEB2Wk/s640/blogger-image-16982747.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ZeTtBFGLj6w/Uc5ZK02umWI/AAAAAAAAFsk/PqamdvEB2Wk/s640/blogger-image-16982747.jpg"></a></div><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hNilUW47OA0/Uc5ZCUJ2SVI/AAAAAAAAFsM/l6FQiOQS0w8/s640/blogger-image-1367318413.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hNilUW47OA0/Uc5ZCUJ2SVI/AAAAAAAAFsM/l6FQiOQS0w8/s640/blogger-image-1367318413.jpg"></a></div><div><br></div>And I got new glasses. </div><div>These are great - <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Rq9DAeRGKds/Uc5ZFkdltvI/AAAAAAAAFsU/kk-RiCTU-JQ/s640/blogger-image--867969291.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Rq9DAeRGKds/Uc5ZFkdltvI/AAAAAAAAFsU/kk-RiCTU-JQ/s640/blogger-image--867969291.jpg"></a></div>These - what was I thinking????!!! Oh well. I'm $$$$ in now, no turning back! I'm going to wear them proud. Even if I do look like I should be on CHIPs. <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-LOtlt0FFMgc/Uc5ZIPDXlmI/AAAAAAAAFsc/HNlY2cajSZs/s640/blogger-image--2097532537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-LOtlt0FFMgc/Uc5ZIPDXlmI/AAAAAAAAFsc/HNlY2cajSZs/s640/blogger-image--2097532537.jpg"></a></div><div><br></div>We spent some time at my parents, in the backyard as usual. And <br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q72-3JdyQ08/Uc5ZOjDajEI/AAAAAAAAFss/47iiBcVL0Xc/s640/blogger-image-2073101205.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Q72-3JdyQ08/Uc5ZOjDajEI/AAAAAAAAFss/47iiBcVL0Xc/s640/blogger-image-2073101205.jpg"></a></div>And that was pretty much the first half of our week!<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-9Rif3woUtEk/Uc6aePnK_rI/AAAAAAAAFs8/lUEoBY5aYxk/s640/blogger-image--714246367.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-9Rif3woUtEk/Uc6aePnK_rI/AAAAAAAAFs8/lUEoBY5aYxk/s640/blogger-image--714246367.jpg"></a></div></div>erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-14244176891396702642013-06-26T00:00:00.000-07:002013-06-26T00:00:03.101-07:00Summer Fun!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It's just been the normal summer stuff around here!</div>
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Swimming time at the pool:</div>
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Lots of Chick Fil A:<br />
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Some playground time:<br />
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And writing a few thank you notes for all those birthday gifts!<br />
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<br />erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7306277074906503123.post-66187684374212995752013-06-25T00:00:00.000-07:002013-06-25T00:00:03.902-07:00ML's 7th Birthday Party!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
ML's birthday party fell on the Saturday after the Friday that was the last day of VBS. (Are y'all following me here? :-)</div>
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That translates into: I was tiiiiiiiirrrred! </div>
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But, ML had decided she wanted a 'real' birthday party this year and most of her school friends were coming, so it was time to throw this party together!</div>
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ML wanted her party at our neighborhood clubhouse. She wanted a Luau theme with pink and green and she wanted everyone to bring a doll or animal. (?????? on that last part!) Then she decided she didn't want it to be a swim party. So, despite the invitation saying "Splish, Splash, You're invited to ML's Luau Bash" we went with non swimming activities. We rented a bounce house.<br />
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I found awesome coloring pages at the Lilly Pulitzer store. They were color and punch out necklaces, bracelets, etc. with big Luau flowers on them! Score! Sadly, there are no pictures of said coloring sheets. I barely took any pictures at all!<br />
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We also had a make your own bead and Luau flower necklaces craft.<br />
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ML wanted chocolate cake with chocolate icing. We found the perfect cake at Publix. I LOVE the look in ML's eyes in this photo:<br />
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totally sums up how she felt about that cake! Ha!<br />
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It was such a fun party and we had such a great time.<br />
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So thankful for all of our friends who could be at the party!<br />
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Happy Birthday ML! erinstwohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00151426680928004968noreply@blogger.com0