Celebrating!

On Thursday night we headed out to celebrate Kelli's birthday! We had a great time catching up and enjoying delicious food and drinks. We ate dinner at one of my fave's- Centro. It never disappoints. Here's to a great girls night out!

Group shot with my favorite girls!

Me and the birthday girl:

Dinner:

Mama's Meatball- it was HUGE but oh so good!

Happy birthday sissy!

Ode to bunny

Oh how I knew this day would come. I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner.  But with impeccable timing, on a 95 degree day after running multiple errands, it happened.

We lost bunny.

*insert hysterical screams here* And that's exactly what we did.

Well I frantically searched the car, the parking lot, my purse- from a bystander's view, I'm surprised they didn't call DHS...while Rea wailed, yes wailed from inside the car...

I know, I know... there are worse things happening in the world right now. I know my 3 year old is codependent on a stuffed animal.  I know we should be working on having stuffies only for bedtime. But it's so hard. Her bunny calms her after a hectic day, keeps her occupied while I run errands in stores that have no interest for toddlers.  She has the BEST imagination when it comes to her and her bunny, affectionately named ChiChi.

So I did what every mature parent would do. I called my own mom. See how that whole 'you're never really done parenting' comes into play? I called my mom and wailed on the phone as Rea was wailing in the backseat.

And it was by the grace of God, and backtracking through two stores and sweating so much I lost 10 pounds, that we found bunny. Next to our parking spot at Menard's. Sitting on the tailgate of a huge pickup truck.

I wanted to hug the stranger that had found that sweet stuffed bunny that always looks dirty but I swear is clean because I really do try to wash it every other day... I wanted to give them a blank check and say THANK YOU.  But no one was around.

So if Menard's is watching on their security cameras they would have seen a tired, hot mess of a mom slumped over in relief while her toddler was squeezing a bunny and jumping for joy.

And yes moral of the story is get a replacement bunny but we tried and couldn't find another one so I'm guessing we'll be telling this story again. I just hope Reagan is 20 years old the next time it happens and we'll both be okay to handle it.

Just a girl and her bunny:

Sunday Funday

Today we celebrated Alyce's birthday! 

Happy birthday Alyce- to the best mom, mother-in-law and Gramma anyone could ever hope for- we love you so!

Summer Vacation

Andy had to go to Omaha for a work trip this past week so Reagan and I tagged along... Besides our annual trips to Okoboji, it was our first official family vacation experience with a toddler. And we all lived to tell about it!

I will say, it is very different traveling with a toddler than a couples trip or girls weekend. You just assume everywhere you go will be toddler proof like your home...wrong.  The hotel that we stayed at was very nice but the fountains, streams and pools of fish seemed like a toddler hazard waiting to happen.  The two room hotel suite was perfect, except for when Rea discovered the 2nd door had a lock and we didn't have a key (crisis averted as I caught the door just before it closed). 

Don't get me wrong- we had a great time but my worrisome nature was in high gear.

We managed to find time to be together as a family in between Andy's work commitments and it turned out to be a really great trip.  I managed to take just a feeeew pics... enjoy!

Hitting the road!

Scenery at the hotel:

Swimming!

Sightseeing at Old Market:

Upstream Brewery- always on the quest for a good root beer!
Watching how root beer is made:

Omaha Stormchasers game:

We maybe saw two innings of the game...while Andy was fulfilling work obligations, Rea and I checked out the kiddie area- she loved it!

Never met a carousel she didn't like:

Skeptical of the bounce house:

Snuggle time with daddy and the baseball he gave her...

Highlight of the trip- visiting the zoo!
(Flat turtle in the upper right hand corner of the pic)

The sharks were a little too close for comfort:

Taking a break in the shade...

Four hours at the zoo wears a toddler out...

Best part about vacation? Skittles and popcorn while watching a movie in bed...

Oh look we found an Orange Leaf. I think she was excited.

Ending vacation with movie night- Despicable Me 2. Very cute!

I'm so thankful for the time we had as a family to have fun, be silly, explore a new city and just be together.  It's going to be so hard to go back to work on Monday. As with every vacation, all good things must come to an end. Until next time!

Fun in the Sun

We have been taking advantage of the beautiful weather lately... I can deal with high temps as long as I'm near water, in the shade, feel the breeze, and am not partaking in strenuous activity.

We spent Independence day lounging by our blow-up pools.  Best money we ever spent. Davy and Annette stopped by for some swim time and it was so nice not leaving the house.

We have the best neighbors! Hand delivered a Popsicle for Rea and pina colada's for me and Andy. Blessed we are!

It takes a lot out of a toddler being in the pool all day...

She was very concerned with the firework activity going on in the neighborhood-

Who doesn't love a good excuse to throw a party? On Saturday night our friends, the Crawford's, threw a backyard soiree to celebrate their new patio and steps. Rea loved hanging with the big kids and I may have ate my weight in grilled food. Fun times!

The three Amiga's...

Sunday funday! The sun was shining when we woke up so a great reason to head to Adventure Bay!

Relaxing on the train after a fun morning of rides and swimming...

Hope everyone had a great weekend!