The Start

This post should really be called "take a look at the back of my children" because almost every picture I took for this post was, well, the back of my children. We had the most wonderful start to our family vaca. Instead of taking the entire day to drive to the beach we stopped in Chattanooga, TN. What a GREAT city! 

After checking in to the hotel, we immediately headed for the Chattanooga Aquarium. It. Was. Awesome. 

We had an early dinner at Lupi's (a local pizza joint) and then took a dip in the heavily chlorinated hotel pool (why do hotel pools make children so happy?). It was a great way to not only take a break from the long drive, but also check out a really fun city.

Now lets get to the beach!

So, how was your week?

Ahhh, thanks for asking. I would call my week an "up and down" kind of week.

While we are enjoying the summer days, the summer rain caused some major headaches in the kitchen.

I finished a wonderful book called The Art of Fielding by Chad Hardbach. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.

Duncan continues to crack us up with his crazy ways (at least he is being safe).

We read books and ate lollipops.

We went to the splash park with friends.

We ate lots and lots of ice cream.

Wip had his last tball game of the season. I gotta say I am really proud of him for sticking with it and being part of a team. He might have not been the best, but every time I asked him if he had fun he would answer "YES!"...and that is what it is all about right?

I also got to spend some time with my dad. While he is going through some tough stuff right now he is being so strong (and really funny). The nurses and doctors are taking great care of him and I just know that this is going to be a blip on the radar and he will be able to get out and enjoy life very, very soon.  Thanks for all of the thoughts and prayers, it means a ton.

Cousins

Lucas and Hunter came in for a visit on Saturday. It was a fun filled day/night with the cousins, and I must say that while having four under four would not be easy, it sure is fun to see these boys play together!

Buds

Pool side picnic

Wip LOVES "fixing" up his new bike

As proof that Wip loves working on his bike (and messing with his cousin) check out this video here.

Teaching Lucas the ropes

Time for s'mores (this is the before pic)

The boys loved the "special" treat

Digging in!

The s'mores won:)

Having 3 boys in the same room did not work out (they would have played ALL night!)

On the way home from dropping the boys off we told Wip to close his eyes and get some rest...this is what he was doing..at least he was trying, right?

Happy Father's Day

Maybe it is because you...

 Or maybe it is because you...

 Perhaps it is that you...

 Or it could be because...

Perhaps it comes with being an...

 Or maybe you just...

 I have a feeling it has to do with the fact that you...

 Or it could be you just...

 Part of it is that you...

 Part of it is because you are a...

 Just like a typical dad you...

 But unlike a lot of dads you...

 I happen to love that you...

 Even more I love that you...

 It melts me that you...

It is for all of these reasons and so much more that our boys are so lucky to call you daddy. Happy Father's Day!

Happy 4th Birthday Preston!

Photo Credit: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm237612288/tt0848537?ref_=tt_ov_i

Ready for the show!

Nothing like a birthday milkshake!

Preston was born 4 weeks after Wip, and the two have literally been together since that day. They love each other (and know how to push each others buttons:). When Preston turned 4 the other day, I went with the "experience" gift and we took her out for a movie and a milkshake. We went to see Epic. It is about leaf men, bugs, and father/daughter relationships. If you think that sounds strange, it was. It was also in 3D which was a new experience for Wip, Preston, and myself! The "in your face" feel of the movie was crazy, but really, really cool. Wip could not handle it and half way through, placed the glasses on his head (which means he watched a blurry version of the film:). Preston just kept looking at me and saying "this is so much fun!". After the movie we went to Sonic for milkshakes. It is hard to wrap my head around the fact that both of these monkeys are four...it has seriously flown by. Happy 4th Birthday Preston!!!!

Dancing Bears

On our way to the pool we pass three dancing bears. Not real bears but topiares. Wip has been obsessed with these bears ever since I can remember.

We were driving to the pool the other day and Wip asked if we would see the bears. I told them that they were coming up. He looked at his brother, put his hand up in the air, and said "D, be cool, the bears are coming up".

I lost it.

Lovin'

1. I found this great idea from a super cute blog called Polka Dot Prints. I put our version together and the other night we found ourselves with an hour to kill in between graduation parties. We stopped at the Village Anchor for a snack and unfortunately the restaurant did not have any crayons...Kids' Quiet Bag to the rescue!

2. I am on Team Gwyneth. I mean seriously...look at those legs (photo credit). I was laughing so hard during the entire article I Tried Gwyenth Paltrow's Diet that I highly encourage you to read it...good stuff.

3. It did not take much to convince me to watch End of Watch with Jake Gyllenhaal (photo credit). Even if the movie is terrible (like Love Drugs and Other Things) he is still a tall drink of water to look at. Thankfully, the movie was awesome and I highly recommend it...make sure you have some tissue!

4. I have been receiving the Skimm  in my email for a few weeks. It is a daily newsletter that basically takes the headlines (as in the good stuff...office chatter) and turns it into an easy to understand, relevant, able to have a conversation about break down.  I must admit I have found myself sounding much smarter than I am to folks simply because I took 10 minutes to look over my Skimm before heading into work.

The Good (no, Great) Weekend

Saturday morning started with doughnuts. I went for a run that morning and then had the best idea to completely counter the calories burned with a sugary, delicious treat (oh yeah, I got some for the boys too:).

Wip just eating the icing and not the "bread"

Duncan is having a stare off with the doughnut...

The doughnut won:)

After Wip's tball game we headed to Lexington to drop the boys off at Aunt Kelly and Uncle Mike's house for a cousin sleep over!  Patrick and I headed to Cincinnati for some adult time that included burgers, beers and baseball.

Round 2 of the doughnut (it was the after tball game snack)

Reds (4) v. Cardinals (2)

I had so much fun with this crew!

Cute couple alert!

Rivals can still be friends:)

The team that was losing during the 4th inning had to buy this for the winning team (Reds were losing)

Dig in!

Back in Lexington the boys were having a blast too!

It was not just a good weekend, it was a great weekend!  Sometimes even a little break makes me realize just how lucky I am to be able to come home to these goof balls.