Soon after our return from Seattle, we had a really fun visit with some of our out-of-town friends. The Haru Family (Jamie, Eric & little Kainoa) along with Meg Vlach and her little girl, Madeline (Rob was away on a trip) all came up for a fun weekend together! It's always a little chaotic, and hilarious, with 3 babies in one place (trying to find enough pack-n-plays and rooms with a door that aren't within earshot of all the activity!) but we all love it that way. We always talk about all the great things we could do when everyone visits - go to the zoo, the lakeshore, etc. - but once we start trying to nail down an open time slot between all the babies' naps and feedings, it usually ends up that we have just as much fun hanging out at the house, catch
ing up
while we tend to all the necessities of baby life! And once the babies were asleep for the night, the three girls headed out to Scooters and picked up pints of frozen custard to share over a movie with the guys back at home. It was perfect - kind of reminded me of laid-back weeknights in college when we would relax and chat all night about whatever came up (although late night pokey sticks from Gumby's were usually involved then, gosh how I miss those!). We were so happy to see everyone - and with the Vlachs moving down to Nashville in just a few short weeks, it worked out perfectly to catch up together before their big move. We really missed seeing Tara, Steve and little Ella - no mini-reunion would be complete without them! But luckily we have another get-together planned for October - we're all heading to Champaign for an Illini football game!
The following week, the Burkholder family came in from El Paso for a whirlwind trip back to the midwest! We miss seeing them and were so glad to spend a good amount of time together - we stayed at our house in Chicago for a night, then all went to Rockford for a few days of fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house along with Kelsey and Ethan. We had a birthday celebration for Emily and Ellie, which included a pinata, leis, homemade cake and goody bags - very fun! The next weekend, we all piled in cars and headed down to Cincinnati for our cousin Jessie's wedding. It was so nice to see our extended family again and catch up with everyone.
On our final day in Cincinnati, we took a day trip to King's Island - it was Erik's first time there, and he claims "The Beast" is even better than the American Eagle, for those who've been to Great America just north of Chicago. I myself took a pass on the Beast - the stomach flu that I caught that week was a pretty good deterrent from amusement rides. But we also spent time in Nickelodeon Land, where Cassidy got to ride a train with her cousins Michael & Ethan, and she went on the carousel with Emily and Ellie. She was in awe and loved every minute!
The past week has had continued excitement - our 5 year anniversary and first overnight away from Cassidy, Cassidy's first bike ride with daddy, and the fun of trying to figure out if Cassidy swallowed a bolt. More to come on all of that soon!
Soon after our return from Seattle, we had a really fun visit with some of our out-of-town friends. The Haru Family (Jamie, Eric & little Kainoa) along with Meg Vlach and her little girl, Madeline (Rob was away on a trip) all came up for a fun weekend together! It's always a little chaotic, and hilarious, with 3 babies in one place (trying to find enough pack-n-plays and rooms with a door that aren't within earshot of all the activity!) but we all love it that way. We always talk about all the great things we could do when everyone visits - go to the zoo, the lakeshore, etc. - but once we start trying to nail down an open time slot between all the babies' naps and feedings, it usually ends up that we have just as much fun hanging out at the house, catch
ing up
while we tend to all the necessities of baby life! And once the babies were asleep for the night, the three girls headed out to Scooters and picked up pints of frozen custard to share over a movie with the guys back at home. It was perfect - kind of reminded me of laid-back weeknights in college when we would relax and chat all night about whatever came up (although late night pokey sticks from Gumby's were usually involved then, gosh how I miss those!). We were so happy to see everyone - and with the Vlachs moving down to Nashville in just a few short weeks, it worked out perfectly to catch up together before their big move. We really missed seeing Tara, Steve and little Ella - no mini-reunion would be complete without them! But luckily we have another get-together planned for October - we're all heading to Champaign for an Illini football game!
The following week, the Burkholder family came in from El Paso for a whirlwind trip back to the midwest! We miss seeing them and were so glad to spend a good amount of time together - we stayed at our house in Chicago for a night, then all went to Rockford for a few days of fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house along with Kelsey and Ethan. We had a birthday celebration for Emily and Ellie, which included a pinata, leis, homemade cake and goody bags - very fun! The next weekend, we all piled in cars and headed down to Cincinnati for our cousin Jessie's wedding. It was so nice to see our extended family again and catch up with everyone. 
On our final day in Cincinnati, we took a day trip to King's Island - it was Erik's first time there, and he claims "The Beast" is even better than the American Eagle, for those who've been to Great America just north of Chicago. I myself took a pass on the Beast - the stomach flu that I caught that week was a pretty good deterrent from amusement rides. But we also spent time in Nickelodeon Land, where Cassidy got to ride a train with her cousins Michael & Ethan, and she went on the carousel with Emily and Ellie. She was in awe and loved every minute!
The past week has had continued excitement - our 5 year anniversary and first overnight away from Cassidy, Cassidy's first bike ride with daddy, and the fun of trying to figure out if Cassidy swallowed a bolt. More to come on all of that soon!
