Farmer's market deep dish pizza at Uno's. Happy mama.
Checking out our view from Houghton Lake from our 1st hotel room.
Budding photographer.
Dinner al fresco by the lake. It's a gorgeous evening.
Donuts at Goodale's Bakery in Grayling.
Bright Lake
Sleeping Bear Dune climb. Let's do this!
Dinner at North Peak Brewing Company - our favorite restaurant in TC.
Cherries jubilee ice cream, homemade at Moomers Dairy Farm.
Walking out on the sand bar with my adventurous boy.
Old Mission Light
Gorgeous light, sky, clouds, horizon and boy. :)
Playing at our beach at Bayshore Resort.
Hitching a ride on the way to dinner.
Peace out, Traverse City.
Lunch at Birch Run outlets. We were majorly burnt out from eating away from home. The kids were refusing french fries all together, and that's saying something! Love that vacation makes us miss home. :)
This girl...
First A&W float experience.
A nice little welcome home present. Good thing, 'cause our fridge was nearly empty and we were craving a restaurant food detox.
The kids and I had a pretend weapon fight this night. I had a squirt gun, Will picked a light saber (plastic bat) and Sophie picked a... umm... scrub brush from daddy's car wash bucket. We chased each other around the house and garage with lots of sound effects and dramatic falls and revivals. I wish I enjoyed pretend play more but their smiles were enormous from my lame efforts.
Karate testing for Will!
Congratulations to our new black stripe belt!!!
A little lemon cheer for my kitchen window. Almost looks fake, doesn't it? Picture doesn't do justice!
Cousins.
Uncle Dub.
Nice night for a stroll.
Craig's current project: gently lift and reinforce the front porch supports with new floor joists, repair my beloved brick half-wall (on left in picture) and rebuild the steps.
We almost forgot to celebrate our 1st baby's birthday!! Bru turned 9 on Monday! He wouldn't get anywhere near the candle in his ice cream while we sang to him so I had to snap a pic after he started eating.
At the doctor's office getting her arm checked out. She tried to stand on an inflated ball (the kind kids can sit on and bounce around with a handle) and fell hard on her arm. She'd been cradling it mostly in front of her and using it mildly but wincing any time it was turned/bumped funny. Better to be safe than sorry. We don't want anything affecting her growth plate in her wrist.
Nurse practitioner believes it is a buckle fracture. We are to get an x-ray immediately and call an orthopedic doctor if results are confirmed.
Waiting for her x-ray.
Well, it was true. Buckle fracture on both bones. Unbelievable that we got in to see the ortho doc just 1.5 hours after I called their office. Dr. Buerk was outstanding. Sophie picked a red cast despite the PA trying to nudge her to pink or yellow. Oh, and she normally sucks her right thumb... and she couldn't initially reach it with the cast on. We are anticipating a loooong four weeks...
It had been a long crazy day after the doctors and ortho visits. I was just ready to sit down and relax with a yummy summer dinner.
Miraculously, we made it through a night with no thumb sucking and no wakings. I think she was exhausted though without a nap the day before.
Lunch with my mama. Tried a new place called Fusion Bistro and it was yummy!
What a week! So grateful for the capable men in my life (hubby and father in law) who towed me home from work and can repair the starter!
Christening the new library reading club cups with the kids favorite avocado smoothie.
Kickin' my feet up and watching Love and Honor with the hubs. P.S. - Liam Hemsworth, your eyes are beautiful and I can't wait for the 2nd Hunger Games movie.
Tried these for breakfast. English muffin egg pizzas from Real Simple. Toast muffins, drizzle with olive oil, sliced tomatoes and hard boiled egg, sprinkle of mozzarella (I didn't have mozz), sprinkle of oregano and sea salt. Broil. Delish! And very filling. Prob only need 1/2 but I ate breakfast late.
A lesson in car mechanics: how change a starter (and save a ton of mullah with a DIY). Oh, and p.s. I even rolled under there and helped today because he needed some skinnier arms to reach up and attach something in a tight place. Just sayin'.
Legs crossed in the bike trailer. Haha :)
Enjoying our "farewell to summer" weekend. Lots of house work and back-to-school preparations done yesterday. Mostly chilling out and having fun today.
Our homework/important papers station is out and ready. Looking forward to doing the kids beginning of the year interviews soon.
Got some whole wheat banana waffles and some carrot apple coconut muffins stocked in the freezer for easy school morning breakfasts and lunch packing.
Clothes are laid out for the week.
School supplies are all labeled and ready for open house tomorrow night. Will is so excited to meet his teacher!
Meals are made or at least prepped for the week. I had my conference on Thursday and then Bri's bachelorette party on Saturday so getting organized early was a must!
Everyone has freshly washed and sun-dried sheets (my fave!) Oh and p.s. - I'm thinking of a shelf makeover in Will's room. I love all the pictures of his little self, but it might be time for a change for our 6yr old. Thinking of large, framed black and whites of some of daddy's favorite vintage cars, layered with some of papa and daddy's vintage license plates and maybe one or two small model cars. What do you think? We kind of have a map theme elsewhere in the room, but I thought this would compliment and change it up a bit.
Will's first grade file (as well as Sophie's preschool file) has the current year info on it and so far only a letter from his teacher inside. The Kindergarten file is pretty thick! Hoping we keep gradually less mementos as the years pass. ;)
Beginning the Sophie chapter book series from Aunt Casey. Two chapters tonight and very cute so far! Thanks, Aunt Casey!
Showing his younger cousin around the elementary school at open house.
Skillet dinner tonight using our garden cherry tomatoes: chicken breasts with tomato herb pan sauce. Soooo delish!
'Twas the night before 1st grade... and all through the house, mommy was organizing all the last minute school morning details. The backpack and lunch were packed, the pancake batter made for breakfast, the Comet folder papers sorted, all important dates and notes entered into mommy's phone and the camera battery checked for full charge. :) Oh, and Craig made me a root beer float because I earned it.
First day moments.
My cuties.
School lunch.
It's not too often I stay in a hotel room by myself. The quiet was nice but I missed my hubs and getting to kiss my babies goodnight. :(
Learning and getting re-inspired to help women during one of their most vulnerable (yet most fulfilling & rewarding times: becoming a mother and learning to breastfeed their baby. I love this part of my job!
Wishing for slippers or at least socks! They keep it darn cold in these conference rooms!
School lunch.
School lunch.
Farmers market goodies.
Garden goodies from today.
Borrowed from my cousin Bethany's instagram page. She babysat for Sophie this week and Sophie had a BLAST with her.
Here's what I learned from the bachelorette party weekend: I am getting OLD!! Can't hang with the young chickies! I was exhausted by about 10. LOL But it was a super fun night, thanks to the organizational efforts of my awesome cousin, Brittany.
Spent some time getting prepped for school morning breakfasts and packed lunches. Oatmeal raisin cookies, granola, roasted & pureed beets (for one of the kids favorite pancake recipes) and cottage cheese pancake batter for the next morning. Setting up for a good week!
School lunch.
School lunch.
Picking up peaches, cantaloupe, zucchini and an orange flesh watermelon this night.
School lunch.
On Monday, he got 100% on a practice test. On Tuesday, he got to practice the week's spelling words by "writing" them with his finger in shaving cream. :) This day (Wednesday) was gym & music day and he was super stoked about the lunch I packed. The second week of school is looking pretty good so far!
Well, she's figured it out. I don't know what changed because that cast sure as heck didn't bend! But where there's a will, there's a way! In the first 48-ish hours, she couldn't reach her thumb and wouldn't suck her left thumb "because it's yucky" and her right thumb is "delicious". But she figured out that if she tucks her arm against her side and uses her left hand to bring her cast arm straight up... she can now reach her thumb again. Determined little thing, ain't she? ;)
School lunch.
Two weeks down, two to go. She's been such a trooper.
School lunch.
Ready for a blow dry.
Zoya Flynn. Wedding day nails, thanks to the loan from my friend Jill!
And that was August in a nutshell. A really big nutshell.
