Weekend Adventures



A few posts ago I mentioned that we got a new dog from my mom.  Well, the reason Kenzie needed to come live with us (beside the fact that we were supposed to take her as a puppy but instead had a new baby) was because my mom had a new litter of puppies.

 

Awwww!  I just love little puppy faces!  Natalie was so sweet with the puppies and loved that she could hold them and snuggle! 



 

Chase really loved spending time with the puppies too.  He was so cute when he would get 'down to their level' and talk to them.  :)  I thought it was sweet but it did cause one of the puppies to take refuge under the coffee table!  #oops

 

So much fun loving on the new puppies!

 

We spent Saturday night celebrating a little one's 1st birthday and then got up bright and early Sunday for a family fun day.

Not far from our house you can cross over into Illinois via a river ferry.  I thought the kids would love it and it was a great way to be outside enjoying the cooler temps.

It is generally pretty flat around here but I always love the beauty of the bluffs around the river.



We got the kids out on the ferry ride so they could really soak in the experience.  The wind was blowing in their hair!  Ha!

 

Family pic while we cross the muddy Mississippi!  The kids absolutely loved the river ferry and Natalie declared it the best part of the day!  Over ice cream!!!!  :)  Love how these little things can make such a big impact on our memories and bring us such joy!

 

After the ferry ride, we did a scenic drive thru a park just over the river.  We found a beautiful overlook and decided to stop and have a picnic lunch in the back of our SUV.  Again, such a small thing that the kiddos thought was "SO COOL!!"  :)  

This face!!!  He just melts my heart :)

With my sweet girl. 

I just love this picture so much!  Natalie's sweet smile, Chase's 'cheese' face and my half-laughing, way too big smile is a great showcase of our day and how these kiddos are most of the time. 

3 out of 4 ain't bad!

On top of the world!  My little beauty showing off the beauty of our world!

 Plus, we stumbled on another cake!  In case you missed and want to learn all about the cake aspect of St Louis' 250th birthday celebration you can check it out here.

We finished up the day exploring a few little shops in the downtown area of the small town and having ice cream.   Yum!

 

It was a great weekend before our busy week...  Preschool, swim lessons for Chase, a Parents as Teachers visit and my very first meeting with a new MOPs group! 

 

Next weekend is supposed to be beautiful as well so I am already planning another fun adventure!  Bring on Fall!

 





Hello again!

Well, hello there.  Hello to you too, September.  You sure snuck up on me while we were busy enjoying our last month of summer!

 

In August we got a dog....

Meet Kenzie a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. 

 

She likes to snuggle with Natalie ;) 

 

In August, we drove 3 hours to catch up with one of my closest friends and an old college roommate and her family....

 

We introduced our girls for the first time and they just loved hanging out.  It had been 2 long years since we had seen each other but it was like no time had passed.  Love her so much!

In August, we played in the sprinkler in our clothes... 

#yesmom

#toolazytomakethemgoinsideandputswimsuitson 

#keepingitreal

In August, we played dress up in fancy princess shoes...

 

In August, this sweet girl let me curl her hair for the first time...

In August, I was lucky enough to babysit my sweet niece one day...

In August, we wore a lot of our food...

#bananahairgel

 

In August, we started dance and tumbling class...

In August, we posed for random pictures...

 

In August, we celebrated my sweet girl's 4th birthday...

 At a local children's museum on her birthday.

 

Patiently waiting for her birthday brownies

 Celebrating with surprise balloons just outside her room!

 

Showing off her birthday presents! 

(I have had this dollhouse in my basement for MONTHS - I got it for 70% off(!!!) at Target's after Christmas clearance sale!)

#iloveagooddeal

 Celebrating with family with a My Little Pony party

Playing her new My Little Pony game with Grandpa and Bella.

Please excuse the fact that it looks like a tornado went thru my living room....because one did, in the form of a 4 year old opening birthday presents!  Lol!

 

And last but not least, in August we visited Natalie's new preschool and met her teacher...

More to come on Natalie's first day of preschool!!!  Such an exciting time for my sweet girl  :)

 

In August, we also saw a couple of movies in the theater, we went swimming, we had donuts with friends, we celebrated more family birthdays, we celebrated a baptism and we played, a lot!  So much fun!

 

 





Friday Favorites - Zoo fun, Sale Shopping and Face Painting! WooHoo!

Today I am linking up with a couple of my favorite bloggers Andrea and Erika to share our Friday favorites!

One of my absolute favorite things is spending time with my bestie and enjoying 70 degree temps in July.  Yesterday, I convinced her to play hooky from work (yes, I am a bad influence.  ha!) and hang at the zoo with us.  We had the best day with our kiddos and catching up!

 

It was near impossible to get a picture of these two together!  They are just too quick and prefer not to stand still for long!

Another favorite thing, is making memories with my sweet girl.  She saw a little girl with her face painted at the zoo but I wasn't interested in paying $10 for it so I promised we could do some special face painting at home.  She was so excited that I could paint a butterfly for her!  Love her so much!

 

Natalie had to paint my face as well  :)

My last favorite thing...sale shopping!!!  :)

Up until I started reading Shaeffer's amazing blog I rarely shopped at Nordstrom.  Not because I didn't like their stuff - cause I did - but because we only have 1 store in town and it isn't exactly close to our house.  Lucky for me (less lucky for my hubby), Shaeffer introduced me to their fabulous return policy so online shopping became doable. 

Per her recommendation, I have purchase 2 pairs of Vigoss jeans.  One pair of these and a distressed pair that they no longer sell.  Seriously, best recommendation ever as I have to force myself to include other jeans in the rotation.  She convinced me to buy my first pair of leggings and I'm so glad I did.  They are currently on sale for $23.50!  I also splurged a little and bought the best pair of contouring panties ever.  Again, on sale for $12.90 a pair!  This adorable jacket that is no longer available.  Boo!  I have also bought quite a few scarves she recommended as well.

So today I was up at 4:30am to shop the Anniversary sale.  I purchased the blardigan, a striped sweater with elbow patches and a tunic that Shaeffer named a must have.  I have been STRESSED about purchasing the blardigan since the sale has been live to cardholders (not me, sniff) for over a week and I had heard rumors that it had sold out.  Luckily, I was able to get the one below in my size this morning.  It has an estimated ship date of next week so let's all cross our fingers that it will be mine soon!

 Happy Friday!