8 Year Anniversary Date & Pizza Barn Fun!

Clint was in Denver through Wednesday afternoon of this week.  Thank goodness both kids were pretty good for me and stayed healthy through the week.  On Thursday I got to go to a work happy hour while Clint took care of the kiddos.  Before we knew it, the weekend was here!!

Art Fun

 Mr Smiles

 Crazy Girl - Umm I mean Frog

 Painting with Colored Icing

Friday - I worked from home on Friday since we finally got our ducts swept for our ongoing "get rid of cat remnants" for Connor.  I had a fairly productive day and when the family got home we ordered pizza before M and I did manicure pedicures on the front porch.  M is totally becoming a girly girl with her love of makeup, nail polish, dresses etc.  It is pretty funny because she is NOT a dainty lady by any means :)

Saturday - CraZy fun day ahead!!  Clint planned a wonderful day long 8th wedding anniversary date!  We started the day with a noon Mississippi River Cruise and Clint's highlight was seeing a few bald eagles in the trees.  Afterward, we did a little walking around Lake Calhoun, got some fish tacos/fries and enjoyed the sunshine.  From there we were off to putt putt on the roof of the Walker Art museum.  Lastly, we ended with dinner/drinks at Butcher & Boar followed by more drinks on Crave's rooftop bar.  We ended up being away from the house for 11 hours total and thankfully the kiddos did great for Miss Kaitlin!

Morning Snuggles with Brother

 River Cruisin

 Anniversary "Cruise" Trips Have Changed a Bit ;-)

 Putt Putt Up High

 Putt Putt View

 Putt Putt Sculpture Course

 Drinks Time

Sunday - So I woke up regretting the last cocktail or two but thankfully I got moving pretty quickly.  We hurried to get everyone ready and do a quick Costco run and then off to Pizza Barn fun with many of my co-workers and their families!  This place was really cool!  It is a family farm about an hour out into the country and one Sunday a month spring through fall, they do a pizza cookout where you bring all your own drinks, plate/napkins, apps etc and then you buy your pizzas that they make in their family pizza ovens.  The pizza is so fresh as they use most of their own veggies etc from the working farm.  It was a gorgeous day and a super fun idea!

A portion of the Group

 Connor taking a snooze

 What are the odds?!

We ran into the Cassem's so Maci ran around with Natalie for a while

BFFs

We got home around 330p and now we have been doing quick grocery trip run, errands, grass cutting, laundry etc.  I need to get myself prepared for the week ahead in a few hours and bath time for everyone too!  We hope you all had gorgeous weekends like ours and a great week ahead!
Lots of Love,
C, K, M & C

Connor Sits & Family Hikes

Lots of good things this week : short work week, good news from the respiratory specialist and a fun family weekend.

The kids adjusted well to being back at school after a nice long trip to see family and friends in Ohio. Clint was off to Dayton Virginia Wednesday morning through Friday afternoon.  Maci had slumber parties with me in our room and she also got to play with Stephen next door for an hour Wed and Thurs night while mom had previously arranged Asia calls. 

Baby Floor Time

 Maci took her own morning nap :)

This is what going to bed with mom at 11p two nights back to back will do to a kid UGH!

 Tumble Bus Fun on Friday

Maci is wearing a tie dye shirt she made herself at school on Thursday!

Friday - Clint got home around 3p from Virginia but he did miss Connor's respiratory appointment.  The Dr was awesome and told us right away that the chest x-ray looked fine. WHEW!  Then he explained you don't know if someone has asthma until about age 5 because they need to be old enough to perform this certain breath test.  In the meantime, what we do know is Connor has some constricting of his airway which could be driven by a few things : repetitive viral infections at a young age (thank you daycare!) or asthma.  He also said you often hear people say, "my son outgrew asthma."  This really isn't the case as they probably never had it to begin with and as they grew, aged etc they stopped being as receptive to respiratory issues and moved on.  In the meantime, we are going to give Connor an insurance policy with the steroid through his neb.  The Dr would typically recommend we start 1x per day around school year, with it already being mid July, we will start now. So Connor has a red/yellow/green plan.  As long as he is cold free etc, we stay in Green and 1x per day steroid.  If he shows signs of a cough/cold etc, we move to yellow which means Steroid + Albuterol anywhere from 2-4 x per day depending on his condition.  Red would be like RSV for flu and in that case we visit the Dr and get an oral steroid.  This is all to help ensure his airway wouldn't be constricted and help him to move through cough/cold season.  We will check in with the Dr around December right in the midst of cough/cold season to see how things are going.  Then we will check in again around memorial day to see how the year went and determine if we ween him off or continue with the plan.  I also learned Connor had tested positive for RSV once!!  UGH - When we went to the hospital that one night in late April, they sent away a test but NEVER called us with the results or sent to our pediatrician.  Little did we realize Connor had a sever viral infection which would have made sense as to why he was so sick.  In addition the Dr said we are doing all the right things with the cat issue but it can take anywhere from 12-18months for cat dander to fully leave a home. . . icky!  So all in all we are doing what we need for our little man, we have a great support system of experts and we have to get better at "wait and see."

We will do anything for this lil face!

After the Dr, we came home and saw daddy!  I had to do a few more calls since it was only about 4p and Clint ran to get Miss M from school.  We then had a very lazy night around the house which was just what the Dr ordered for our crazy on the go family.

Yum - Eating Green Beans and Stealing the Spoon :)

Saturday - Maci started the day off as a witty little thing :)  Clint and her were talking about something and next thing I hear is "learn your princesses, man!" HAHA Clint and I were both rolling.  Where does this girl get some of these things?!  

Once we got up and at 'em we headed to the bagel shop for some breakfast and then we were off to enjoy the gorgeous day at Minnehaha Falls.  Maci enjoyed hiking and Connor liked it so much he fell asleep ;)  Maci even recorded a special Happy Birthday message for Nanny & Grandpa!  These are the moments that I live for and appreciate so much in the midst of all the other craziness and rat race throughout the week.  Love our family of 4 XOXO

So Pretty

Selfies w. Momma

This Gorgeous Diva of Ours 

FAMILY 

 These Two XOXO

 Made it to the River

 Tired Boy

 Wading Fun

After all the fun on the hike : we ate some snow cones, dropped/broke my sunglasses and played on the playground.  We headed out of the park and decided to have an early dinner at Rojo on the patio.  Maci and I hit the toy store afterward and got some teething beads for Connor and some aqua bead activity for Maci.  Whew what a busy but wonderful day!  We ended the night with baths and some TV time.

Sunday - Everyone slept in until about 8a WAHOO!  We had a lazy slow start to the day while Maci/Dad played with aqua beads (mommy & Maci did Dory Sat night), I was off to the grocery for a quiet trip alone.  Afterward, we did some errands around the house, finished laundry, all those fun Sunday chores.  I eventually snuck away to the new J Crew outlet store by our house alone, ahh so nice and needed!  While I was hanging up my new threads, I sat Connor on the floor and he maintained this position for about 5-10 mins.  BIG BOY!!  Clint then ran a few errands and now we are having a lazy afternoon.

Dory & Friends Aqua Bead Fun

 So Big - Sitting up

Clint heads for some training late tonight through Wed afternoon so I am single parenting again for a few days.  Let's hope the kids behave as well this week as they had for me last week.  We hope all of you have a wonderful summer week ahead!

Lots of Love,
C, K, M, C

OHIO - Connor's Baptism, Family Fun & Eric's Wedding!!

Sorry for missing the blog update last Sunday - we were in the start of our crazy busy but amazingly fun trip home to Ohio.  Let's see what did we do the past 10 days?!

Well before we left on Friday the 24th of June, we had a crazy busy week in and of itself.
Tuesday - Connor turned 6 months!  Big boy and to mark the milestone, we are finally giving the poor guy some baby food - I just don't want him growing up!  We also got the Pilot serviced for the big drive to OH and I had a 930p Soccer Game where we finally won!
Wednesday - Connor had his 6 month apt.  Still really tall (70%) but evened out a bit on weight (38%).  We also talked with Dr Pat about the amount of meds this poor kid was taking and she doesn't seem to think it is definitely an asthma/allergy thing.  URGH!  We just want answers.  At least she offered for us to see a respioratory specialist since they are the experts and then we stop all this guessing.  She seems to think it is more a fluke or maybe his air passage is a little smaller which causes the snotty sound?  Who knows.  We will say some prayers and head to the expert on Friday, Jul 8th.  In the meantime, I am so happy to see Connor off all the meds and doing well :)
Thursday - We had new carpet installed on the main floor and our master bedroom/Connor's nursery. Did I mention we put way too much on the to do list before heading out of town?!  GEEZ but so nice to have it done now.  The new carpet looks great and I feel so much better putting Mr C on the ground to play around.

In addition to all the business, the kids had some fun at daycare in the week leading up to our departure Friday night.

Chewing on Baby Crackers

 Costume Kim - Super Hero Day

 Art Flags w. Miss Gabby

 Oh I like this

 Very Intent

 Buddies in Baby Class :)

Friday 24th - It was a busy calendar day for me at work and Clint took the day off to finish packing/sleep since we had the grand idea to drive through the night with the kiddos.  I got out around 4ish and grabbed the kiddos.  We finished loading the car and were off by about 630p.

Around 8p Maci says "Grandma lives too far away!"

The kids did pretty well in the car through the night, especially once we could get Maci to settle down and sleep in the car (11p).  She was so uncomfortable and kept asking me to snuggle with her :( but once she was out, she was out until we pulled into the driveway at my parents around 7a. YAY!

Saturday 25th - This trip had lots of firsts for our kids.  Maci and I headed to an afternoon showing of Finding Dory with Aunt Molly, Aunt Meghan, Uncle Nicholas and Cousin Preston.  This was Maci's first time in a theatre and she did pretty good.  She got a little bored towards the end and made us do races in the hallway but then went back in to see the very end.  Such a cute movie!

At night, I headed to my soon to be Aunt's bridal shower that my mom and Aunt Marilyn were throwing.  To help Clint out, I brought Connor along with me for the shower and he took Maci to his parent's friend's house for a dinner/hang out.  I got the way better deal since Maci kept throwing fits and wanting to go back to "Molly's house"  Connor on the other hand was a doll :)

Miss Hailey & Mr Connor Hanging Out

Sunday 26th - Happy Baptism Day Connor Michael!!  This sweet little boy was baptized in a super sweet service followed by a lovely brunch with family and friends.  Enjoy all the pictures from the big event :)

Fun with Grandma in Mass

 Good Boy Sleeping Through Mass

 God Parents & Parents

 Our Family!

My Girl

She May Drive Me CraZy but She is All Mine!

 The Mondells

 Keeping Someone Busy!

It Takes An Army to Keep Someone Busy!

 Baptism Fun

 The Gilroy's

 The Reception

So Sweet with Grandpa

 Maci the Present Helper

 Busken Bakery

 Yep - They are 4.5 & 3.5 Year Olds :)

 Connor w. Nanny

 Snapchat w. Aunt Molly

 Forcing the Baptism Hat Afterward HAHA

That night we headed to my Grandma Jackie's Memorial Service.  It was a nice memorial to her and lovely to see so many extended family members on this trip.

 It's Hot Here Momma

Monday 27th - It was another HOT day but we decided to venture out to the Zoo as we thought there may be rain in the forecast.  No rain but a lot of heat.  We dealt with it well and had a great time at the Cincy Zoo!

Bubbles to Start the Day

 ZOO FUN

 Zoo Train

 Zoo Train Selfies

 Sweetest Part About Being Home is Watching How Much Maci ADORES Aunt Molly

Every Night they Would Hang Out in Molly's "Big Girl Room"

Tuesday 28th - Happy Birthday Momma!  We headed to my sister's family work picnic for the day which was fun and HOT!  Maci had a ball and afterward Clint and I got to have dinner with my Aunt Sue/Mike before they headed to NC.

 Ariel Balloon Animal

 Connor with Cat in Hat

 This Girl HAHA

Princess Face Painting 

"I Beat You Daddy!"

Wednesday 29th - A day at Old Coney!  Clint had never been and so he also enjoyed experiencing the park for the first time :)

Froggy Ride!

Thursday 30th - Off to Indian Lake and Visiting Grandma & Grandpa Gilroy in Wapak!

Love Taking Walks @ The Lake

Friday 1st - Christie and Chester visited Indian Lake!  Christie and I haven't seen each other in far too long and this is the first time I got to meet my BFF husband in person!  He is a great guy and we had a blast catching up over a LONG lunch and boating fun!

 Maci Made a Friend at the Moose :)

Saturday 2nd - Heading back to Cincy and then to my mom's side family reunion at Delhi Park!  Did I mention we had a jam packed week?! :)  Maci had a blast playing at the park and Connor was doted on the entire afternoon.  That evening was my buddy from high school, Eric, wedding reception.  It was a great venue and a nice night out as adults, no kiddos :)

Zonking on the Ride Home

 It's Like 2 College Girls ;-)

Wedding Fun

Sunday 3rd - And vacation is coming to an end!  Holy cow, how is it already time to make the drive home?!  The kids did ok for being up most of the trip and we still got into our driveway by 1030p (MSP time) after having left around 1030a (Cincy time).  What a great trip home!  Thanks to everyone for making it special and carving out time to see us.

Monday 4th - Today is all about getting caught up!  Caught up on Laundry, Bills, Mail, Thank Yous, Blog etc.  I also may get caught up a bit on work later just to ease into the work week but that is TBD as I am also loving this one last day of R&R!  We hope all of you are having a blessed and family filled 4th of July weekend!

Someone Missed Her Bed - 9a Picture :)

 Seriously Connor's 2nd Momma

 First of Many Playdates over "Lipsticks" HA

Have a great short week ahead!!
Lots of Love,
C, K, M & C