Monthly Archives: June 2016

More on our crazy busy weekend!

This past week was full of spontaneous decisions and last minute changes. We knew it was going to be hot and come Saturday morning the kids were already getting antsy. So, I figured we could stay at home all day or we could find something free to do indoors. We had all day, so on a whim we decided to drive 2 hours to see the new Spam Museum. Its Minnesota… how can you not love Spam?  It’s interactive with a fun kids play area, so we really couldn’t lose.  Until we went to buy Spam in the gift shop and Enzo wouldn’t stop touching and grabbing things and when I asked him to hand over what he had he did the dreaded wide open scream that all parents dread when shopping. So it was just me and Phoebe maneuvering the stroller while I tried to keep her from grabbing things and an oh-so friendly employee followed us around, probably worried that we were going to cause more trouble.  Anyhoo, it was fun, but I think they’re still working on filling in some blanks.  Also, because Josh was wearing his Spam shirt, we got freebies, which Phoebe pretty much ate all of.

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While we were on our way to Austin, MN, we drove by the RAD Zoo and decided since we already out this way we might as well stop there too, so we made our way there next. They have a large variety of reptiles and amphibians, though the main draw is their massive alligator Big Al who is 12 feet long. It felt a tad over-priced, but it can’t be cheap feeding all of those animals. We didn’t stay very long mostly because there was no AC in this giant warehouse-like building and it was around 90 degrees outside. The kids seemed to like the turtles best… personally I liked the lizards.

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Both kids were tuckered on the way home and watched a movie while we headed home.  Amazingly we were scheduled to arrive home right at dinner time, which rarely happens when we’re being so impromptu.

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On that note, this post has far too many pictures to even consider adding to it, so I’ll post about our beach time next. 😉

Week In Review – The one with alligators and Spam

Happy Monday!

Linking up with Meghan from Clean Eats, Fast Feets for another Week in Review!

WEEK IN REVIEW (in no particular order)

Random occurrences and accomplishments.

  • Bought tickets for the Cat Video Festival in August. I’m going with a fellow cat lover from work.
  • Put out one fire at work, only to start another one.  I’m making mistakes, which is typical when I’m feeling burned out, and I definitely feel burned out lately.
  • Had a busy weekend more than anything where we introduced the kids to Spam at the Spam Museum.

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The new museum has a bigger play area for kids, and we had a hard time convincing them to leave so we could hit up another destination.

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On a whim, we decided to also visit the Reptile and Amphibian Discovery Zoo (RAD).  It was HOT, and we weren’t there long, but did see lots of snakes, caiman, alligators – including a massive alligator – biggest I’ve ever seen.

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On Sunday we decided to get in some swimming early, and it was nice with so few crowds and just the right temperature.  I’m thinking we might get a membership next year after we get the kids swimming lessons… if we can ever talk Enzo into it.

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Perhaps this upcoming week will be more interesting… we’ll see. 😉

Potty Training: The update you didn’t ask for, and other random stuff

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Oh the joys of potty training. Our bathroom seems to constantly smell like pee – just a warning if you come over and I haven’t had time to clean. It’s apparently not just a little boy problem because little girls also can make a mess when they’re rushing and/or too squirmy.  Probably more than you wanted to know, but that’s my life right now.  Potty training this time around has gone really well, though.  Phoebe is still using pull-ups while sleeping, but has had hardly any accidents during the day time. We all cheer her on and even Enzo gets excited for her when she successfully goes on the potty.

I’m not ashamed to say that we did use some bribing as an incentive to go on the potty. It worked with Enzo, and they reward kids with an M&M at day care, so we figured we’d roll with that. I remember being irritated when we found out they were using candy as an incentive when Enzo was potty training… but now?  It’s a battle I’m not going to fight, so yes, here’s your M&M for making it to the potty!  Just like with Enzo, we’ll start to phase out the rewards once she’s really doing good and especially once she doesn’t need pull-ups.

These pictures are obviously from before potty training as Phoebe is wearing a swim diaper under her bathing suit, which kept falling off.  Thankfully she had her big brother to help her keep them up, though.

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While he can certainly be bossy at times, Enzo is also very good at looking after his little sister. He means well, he just forgets at times that he isn’t the parent. It’s moments like this when my heart swells, though. He’ll take her hand to guide her somewhere, or help her get something she can’t reach, or help her keep her swimsuit on when mom buys the wrong size.

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I think we’re making up for last year when we didn’t get as much water time, and also because last year we didn’t realize there was a… thingymabobber (technical term) on the outside water spout that messed with the water pressure making it impossible to use a sprinkler.  Thankfully Josh managed to get it off this year and now we have normal water pressure for sprinklers and pool filling!

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We also discovered a divot in the yard that made the perfect mud puddle. Good thing we had extra grass seed because that patch of grass was destroyed when they were done with it.  Next on the list?  Water balloons!  I got some of those little water balloons that you hook up to the faucet and it fills up a ton at once. Seriously, why can’t I think of the words for anything? Friday brain I suppose.

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With the temperatures rising tomorrow, it looks like we’ll be heading to the bigger pool in the morning and hunkering down in the afternoon watching out for hail and wind and all of that fun that comes with summer storms in Minnesota. Happy Weekend!

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Currently

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Reading

Drums of Autumn (Book 4 in the Outlander series) and American Gods by Neil Gaiman.  Both are fairly long, so I don’t think I’ll be getting through them quickly.  I’ve actually never read anything by Neil Gaiman before (I know, I know!) but so far American Gods is making me think of Robert McCammon a bit and is making me want to revisit some of my old favorites of his.

Watching

We’re still working our way through Supernatural, but also just started watching Catastrophe too. I’m loving the new season of Outlander (those dresses!!) though admittedly, and not surprisingly it is a bit slower due to the nature of the second book. That only means the last episodes are going to be fantastic, though!  As for movies, we’ve watched a few, but most notable was Sisters, which was a blast, and I watched Room, which was really well acted. It’s been a while since I read the book, but it was just as sad as I remember. We also bought Zootopia and it is the kids’ new favorite. It’s a good one if you haven’t watched it yet and especially good with what’s happening in the news as it addresses prejudice and discrimination really well.

Loving

My latest haircut, doing girly things like making my nails pretty, fixing up the yard.  It’s not complete, but our yard is looking so much better with each little thing we accomplish. The kids are also having fun watching how much our flowers and plants are growing.

Planning

So much, but also trying to live in the moment and not plan too far ahead. Summer is brief, though, so we have to make the most of it and that does mean looking ahead and cramming what we can into each weekend. Okay, maybe not too much since Phoebe and I seem to be the only ones who really want to get out each weekend whereas the boys would rather stay home.

Enjoying

Summer!  The weather has been great and even though it’s getting hot and humid (humidity is not my favorite) we have been having a lot of fun outside. Granted, the mosquitoes are making their appearance, but not even they can ruin this weather.

Eating

Trying to cut back on sugar a bit and dairy and carbs and I’ve noticed that I’m not craving them as much, but when I do eat them I’m less likely to go overboard and overindulge because I feel crappy afterwards. I think I have a bit more energy now that I’ve been trying to get more movement into each day and pay a little more attention to what I’m eating and not just mindlessly eat.  Well… mostly. I still have days where I suddenly realize I’ve overdone it and immediately regret it. Haha.

Organizing

We finally tackled the garage and it is mostly organized, but we could some different shelving and we have a box spring we don’t know what to do with at present.  Now to really finish organizing my office and the guest room.

Dreaming

Big dreams… can’t jinx myself, though, so I’m going to do that annoying vague thing and say big things are coming!

Happy Wednesday!

Week In Review – Rain, Bees and Humidity

Happy Monday!

Linking up with Meghan from Clean Eats, Fast Feets for another Week in Review!

Random occurrences and accomplishments.

  • Got my hair cut. It was really overdue, and as always makes me feel like a new woman.
  • Finished reading Voyager and now once I finish another book I think I’m going to jump right into the next book of the Outlander series because I can’t get enough.
  • Took the kids on our usual walk, only to have to turn around because the river was high and part of the trail was under water. Enzo said it was spooky, and I kind of agreed with how overgrown and shady everything was with only the odd splashing and random noises to be heard. Plus, I started to get really uncomfortable and claustrophobic once we realized there was water on both sides of the trail and the river was as high as it was.  I’d say the kids get their overactive imaginations from me… we hightailed it out of there pretty quick.

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  • Made time for extra sleep – hey, that’s important.
  • Threw on a swimsuit and had a water “fight” with the kids because it was hot and humid. The neighbors probably thought we were nuts with all of the screaming because the water was COLD. Phoebe wanted to stay outside all day and is turning into a total water baby. I’m going to have to get the ball rolling on swimming lessons.

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  • Had a very slow and quiet work week with lots of people out of the office, including most of my department. Just me holding down the fort, hoping no emergencies come up.

Happy Friday everyone!