Cubs vs. Mets

This year I actually got Matt a Father's Day gift that was a surprise. It's really hard for me to get him a gift that the doesn't know about because I usually need his help picking them out. I would have no idea what kind of hunting or fishing equipment he needed, so it's safer (though not as much fun) for him to do the shopping.

It was SO hard for me to keep the secret when our tickets to the Cubs vs Mets game at Wrigley field came in the mail! I even made sure that we were both off of work (since the game was on a Wednesday) and that our sitter could keep the kids late.

It really worked out perfectly! We dropped the kids off that morning and drove down to Chicago. We decided to park at O'Hare and take the train into town to avoid traffic. Remind me next time to just stay in my own car. I don't think it saved us any time and we had to share cramped, warm spaces with strangers. Ick. I'm from the country and public transportation just ain't my thang, y'all. Other than that...the weather was perfect, our seats were great, the game was fun (we even ran into Matt's cousin), we had a great dinner at Goose Island, and we enjoyed each other's company. In fact, we couldn't remember the last time just the two of us had been somewhere without the kids! Helloooo adult conversation! Funny how most of our conversations were about two tiny little humans that we're pretty fond of....

At first glance you might assume that we have on our Cubbies gear....

 

Oh, no. We were brave and wore our Mets shirts! Matt has been a Mets fan since he was a kid and has never been to a game. That's what made this trip such a surprise. And guess what? Mets won 17-1!

I told Matt to make a goofy face.

Matt did not make a goofy face. Only me. So I just look crazy.

Matt,

You are the best daddy to Zane and Hollin! I couldn't ask for better. Even when you are exhausted from working 24 hours straight, you walk in the house excited to see me and the kids. Often times you even bring home breakfast and cook it for us! You go above and beyond. You are fun, silly, patient, and kind. We are so blessed to have you!

We love you Dad-O Bear.

Bear Mummins, Bear-y, and Bearice

out & about

"Zane, what do you want to do today?"

The answer is always the same. PWAY.

So here's a little recap of some of the 'pwaying' we've done this summer in Wisconsin.

Here we are playing at Play N Wisconsin. Even little sister got to play on the swings.

We've been to the pool a few times. I think it takes me just as long to get all of our 'stuff' (dry clothes, towels, sunscreen, floaties, goggles, hat for Hollin, snacks, stroller, etc) together and out of the car as we actually spend at the pool. I think it would be much easier with Matt there to help, but he's been at work the times I've taken them.

We spent Memorial Day with the Bellaks on Lake Mendota. The weather was perfect (other than the one storm that we weathered through), the lake was beautiful, and the kids loved it.

Isabelle and Hollin are bff :)

I've never seen Zane's face happier than when Mr. Jason let him 'drive the boat'. Pure joy! We were going fast and he loved it!

And a day at Olbrich Gardens with our friends Skye & Siela

Zane 'fell asleep' on the elephant.

You think this little girl got noticed any???

 

nine months: take two

Our second attempt at pictures went a little better. She still wasn't giving many smiles, but at least she was in a better mood. She is starting to look so big in her little chair! I think my assistant is what kept her attention for pictures this time. How sweet is this?

She started sleeping all night (as in 10 to 12 hours) about 11 days before her eight month birthday. That lasted for about three weeks, and then she reverted back to waking up every three hours. After about a week of that, we just let her cry it out. That took about three nights and now she's back to sleeping all night again.

She is still wearing size 3 diapers and 6 and 9 month clothes. According to our scales, she weighs about 18 pounds.

She now has four teeth, two top & two bottom. She's still not crazy about food. She'll eat a few bites of banana, puffs, and mum mums. Her fave: smiley potatoes. Of course. I try to feed her fruits and veggies...she wants carbs in the form of fried potatoes. Definitely my daughter.

"Turn your knobs, Hollin." A common phrase around our house. She's always got her arms flapping and wrists turning...looks like she's turning knobs. She also makes the 'popeye face', waves and says bye bye, and fake coughs.

We discovered that she has a small birthmark on her left arm, right above the elbow.

She usually takes a morning nap around nine, and her afternoon nap is hit or miss. Those 'miss' days can get really long, as she is only happy if I'm holding her. This picture is really dark, but I wanted one of her holding her blanket. She always holds this when she's sleepy and rubs her eyes with it. She has it rolled up in a ball sleeping with it here.

She will get up on all fours now, but still isn't crawling. She can get anywhere she wants to go, though. She rolls and 'snakes' around the room. She can sit up and play for as long as she wants now. I tried to get some pics of her on all fours, but she was not having it. Pitiful.

Hollin still thinks her brother is the coolest thing around. He kind of likes her, too. And his dang 'ha-ha'. I don't now how he snuck this one past me.

Nine month comparison pictures.

 

Bye bye

July 19th. Nine months, three days. Hollin's first official word. Telling her daddy "bye bye".

She said it in a sweet, slow voice. And I'm pretty sure I heard a little southern twang ;)

Pretty fitting that she said bye bye, considering the mood I've been in today. I feel like we're always telling him bye recently. Bye bye, daddy's going to work. Bye bye, daddy's working the night shift. Bye bye, daddy's spending a week in Chicago/Boston/New Orleans for a conference (ie, adult conversation, restaurants without kids, and uninterrupted sleep). I'm a little jealous and a lot ready to be in the vicinity of family again.

She started waving a few days....maybe a week...ago. Zane waved backwards for a long time. Not this girl! She goes all out. Full arm motion and wrist action. Reminds me of the pageant wave.

Matt was leaving this afternoon to do allergy/asthma testing on the UW football team and I was holding Hollin in my lap. He got right down in front of her face. I said, "Tell Daddy 'bye bye'." She looked up at him and, slowly and deliberately, said, "Bye.Bye." Matt and I looked at each other with big eyes and started laughing. Zane peeked up from his Superman game on the iPad long enough to say, "How her talkin'?" He is more amazed than we are at her developmental milestones.

And this guy....this child that didn't sleep for the first year of his life.....says to me this morning at NINE am, "Can I way here just a wittle bit wonger?"

Ab.so.lutely.

Then he comes downstairs and says, "I wested just a wittle."

And when he was eating lunch he said, "When it's nap time, will you hold me in my chair in my room like you always used to?"

I wouldn't trade all the corn in missconsin for these two.

 

Zoo day with dad

I just found these on the camera from May 16th. Matt took the kids to the zoo one day while I was working. He's a great daddy. Looks like they had fun.

Cool dude.

Carousel. Fake smile.

Tired kiddo.

Love.

 

nine months: take one

After a morning spent at the pool, baby girl was too tired for pictures. She woke up too soon from her nap. This is how things were going:

So I put her back in the crib. She screamed for about six seconds and passed out. We'll try again later. Or tomorrow. No, I work....so probably Thursday. Hopefully she'll spare some smiles.