Tuscany?

Last weekend we went to Galena with the O'Neills.  We rented a beautiful house in the Eagle Ridge Territory. The view was absolutely beautiful.  Matt commented several times that he felt like we were in Tuscany.  I'm not sure I would go that far, but it was beautiful!

Luck wasn't exactly on our side during our stay.....

- Katie and Chris were late getting to Galena because they had a flat tire after a night in the city at the Trump Hotel.

-It rained every day.  Aren't we in a drought? This makes it difficult to entertain 3 little ones under 3.  No park, boat, or pool when it rains!!

-Our planned "boating day" turned sour when we learned we a.)couldn't swim in Lake Galena b.) had to be a homeowner to rent a boat in Apple Canyon Lake where you can actually get into the water- we learned this after driving 20 minutes each way c.) boats didn't go over 10 mph at Lake Galena but they'd have to do d.) captain chris steered us straight into a bed of evergreens causing us to literally be completely stuck! (all we could do was laugh hysterically).  After "rocking the boat" we finally got loose.  e.) it started to rain just as we were walking down to the dock.

-Matt had to return to Chicago Sunday night, go to an all day meeting Monday, and return back to Galena Monday evening. (total of 2 round trips to Galena which is 3 hours each way.)

-Luke decided to get up at 5 am every morning, which meant Mya was up at 5:00 since they were sharing a room.  UGH!

But... we had a great time anyway!!! Luckily, the house had a nice hot tub so us adults could unwind and relax each evening! ;-)

view from our deck

At dawn and dusk there were hot air balloons.  Mya was mesmerized by this! It really was beautiful!

The girls in the awesome kiddie pool.

Our water baby! He had NO fear! He LOVED it!!

WHOA... Hold on kiddos! Just kidding.... this may be the only time they sat down on the boat! It was SO slow that they  ran around the whole time! Chris said a firefly was flying faster than we were driving! :-(

pj time

The O Family ~ Notice the hot air balloon in the back! :-)

Miss Kylie... love this girl!

Kuehls Come to Town!

My sister and the kiddos came to visit this week! It was SO good to see them! We made sure to hit all of their favorite spots. The kids spent hours playing, playing, playing! It's fun to see them at an age where they can just go off and play together! Lukey even was able to get in on the playtime! My sister and I were able to have some much needed sister time!

We had an impromptu photoshoot with the cousins.  They weren't all that excited about it. In fact, we had to do LOTS of bribing, threatening, and positive reinforcement.  I didn't like the majority of the shots, but I was able to pick out a few that I really do love!

Mission Organization

 There are few things I hate more in my house than clutter.  I am a relatively tidy person. I like things to have a "home" and encourage my kids to clean up after themselves.  With that being said, as life gets hectic, often times things get thrown or shoved into their "home." My closet seems to take the most abuse.  I had finally had it and at about 5:00 yesterday evening, I scooped my kids up and lugged them to Target and the dollar store. I didn't really have a plan. I knew I had very little $$$ to spend on the project but needed some containers to contain all my stuff! I also knew dinner was at 6:00 and bedtime was at 7:00. I had to HURRY!

First stop, Target....

I quickly realized their containers were way overpriced (remember, I was on a very tight budget) and didn't even have that great of a selection. I scanned the shoe organization section thoroughly.  These shoes were my BIGGEST nemesis! Geesh... lots of choices. I quickly grabbed the cheapest (approximately $11) and easiest to build. I also grabbed 2 packs of sticky hooks for my hats (2 packs at $2.00 each).

TOTAL at Target: $15 (That may be a record!)

Second Stop, Dollar Store...

Here, I found a variety of containers and they were cheap!  Like I said before, I actually had NO plan going into this superspeedy organization mission!  So, I grabbed 2 of several kinds of containers, hoped they'd work, and headed for the checkout!

Total at Dollar Store: $6

BEFORE: (Sooooooo embarassing!)

Left side BEFORE

Close-up of my shoe CHAOS

Right side BEFORE

AFTER: (Not too bad for $21 and an hour of planning/shopping)

Left side AFTER

Right side AFTER

Hats After

So, there you have it! It's not going to win any awards on HGTV or be featured on Mission Organization, but I feel so cleansed! It truly makes me a happier person when my belongings are in order! Ahhhh...

Happy Birthday, Mimi!

Happy Birthday to one of the most beautiful people I know... inside and out. Your strength amazes me everyday. You are not only my mom but my best friend. 

I can only hope to raise my children to be as wonderful as yours. ;-)

WE LOVE YOU MIMI!

The vintage bike my mom fell in love with at a local consignment store... perfect prop... perfect gift!

Work Hard... Play Hard

 I'll admit I'm having major remorse about not signing Mya up for SOMETHING! She needs to be involved in an activity and have some social interaction... besides ME!

I woke up this morning feeling guilty about the fact that I have done basically NO teaching this summer.  We've practiced writing her name quite a bit, but that's about all we've done as far as "learning." I decided to make some number cards and get her practicing.  To be honest, I wasn't quite sure what she actually knew.  I was pleasantly surprised!

WORK~

NUMBER CARD MATCHING: We first went over how many objects were on each card. Then, we looked at the numbers on each clip. She traced the number with her finger.  I removed the clips, she counted the objects, and placed the correct clip onto the correct card.  She did AWESOME!!! This

Mya even asked to do the cards again tonight!

Tonight, we practiced her numbers some more.  This was HER idea! She found this workbook with her coloring books and BEGGED to do it! I had to cut her off at the the #2 so she could get ready for bed!

Not sure why it won't show up the right way!

PLAY~

 After Luke's morning nap, we headed to The Treehouse.  This place was FANTASTIC for Luke!!! He was in a completely enclosed area with nothing but soft mats to land on! I told Matt I want a padded room like this in our house..... for me when I go insane.... I mean for Luke to play in! ;0)

Mya had fun, too, playing with her friends...ALL boys! So, there were some tears, but overall fun for her too!

After our second round of naps today, I decided to take the kids to the Spray Park! Luke LOVED it!!! Mya not so much! She got pretty bored there.  Luke ran around squealing and laughing! Not an ounce of fear in the kid!

"What did you say to me? Maybe if I puff out my chest I'll look scarier!"

Needless to say, it's been a LONG day! But, the kids had so much fun!!! Tomorrow, Mya and I are headed to the pool with her preschool friend, Kylie.  Looking forward to some girl time! Daddy will spend the morning with Lukey.  Then, Saturday, I'm off for a GIRLS' WEEKEND!!! WOOHOO!!!! Pray for Daddy, he'll be alone with the animals!

Fore!

Anyone up for 18 holes?

CRAP, hit it into the shrubs!

Let's keep it movin'!

Guess it's time for some lessons, Dad.

Trying to Beat the HEAT!

Today it is 100 degrees. It's HOT and it's HUMID! We haven't seen a significant amount of rain in what seems like months. The grass is brown, the plants are wilting, and we are just downright melting! Good thing I have a bunch of water babies!