Sticky Sunday

unday was Hot and humid up here so we decided to go out to lunch. We ended up in Leland at this place called "The Cove". They are known for their seafood chowder but since I'm not a fan that was not what impressed me. The view on the other hand was awesome. We sat outside right next to a waterfall and with a great view of all the fishing boats coming in out and out. The kids thought it was wonderful and had a blast. Then after that it was time to buy some FUDGE!!! You can't come up here and NOT buy fudge.

We had our first swim in the lake Sunday night which was F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G. Why do kids not notice this? They thought it was great. Burrrrrrrrrr........

Parker Checking out the boats at lunch.

Pretty girl!

Parker deep into conversation maybe??

My Mom And Dad

Me and Sam

Parks and Kylie.

The REAL Parks and Ky!!!

Waiting for Grandpa to pay the bill. They got these

cute fish necklaces from The Cove

Sam Hearts a Rock!

We have arrived on Vacation!!!

Yesterday me and the boys picked up Kylie and my Mom and we all jumped in the van on our way to Traverse City. My parents rented a cottage on Lake Leelanau for the week so my Dad can fish and the rest of us can hang out in the sun on the lake.

We were the first to arrive along with my Dad who drove separately because he brought his boat. The cottage was actually a lot nicer than what we anticipated. Its got a huge living room, dining room and kitchen all with windows along the back so you can look at the lake. There are 3 bedrooms. Two small ones and then one large one that has 2 queen size beds. That is my new sanctuary. Well me and ALL the kids:) I slept with Parks in one bed and Sam and Kylie slept in another bed.

We didn't get here until 3 o'clock yesterday so by the time we unpacked and got settled in it was getting late so we went out to dinner at a local diner in Leelanau. The kids were AWESOME at dinner and even though it was kind of a little place it was Deeelicious. I had the fried shrimp basket. Yum Yum!!!

Then we came home and chilled out outside and the kids played bubbles. The weather was perfect and there were almost no bugs. Then at like 9 o'clock they all TOLD US they wanted to go to bed because they were tired. Love That! I think we are going to have an awesome week up here. The kids have been so good and funny!!!

Today the weather is rainy but its the only day its supposed to rain so we are going to go into town and get groceries, go out to lunch, shop and of course GET SOME FUDGE!!! Yay!!!

Could I possibly have more stuff packed in my van?!?!?

I think Sam and Parker were singing to eachother!

Me and my Mamma on the deck outside watching the kids!

Kylie and her Grandma

The kids outside the restaurant. I bought the boys "fishing" shirts

just for the occasion!

Hanging out in this little "Hick town" They said they wanted McDonalds

for dinner and I told them they don't have that in these hick towns and

they all yelled at me and told me I was saying a bad word! Ha!

Where else but a "Hick Town" can you have dinner with this

kind of creature!

Blowing bubbles by the lake!

Sam and Kylie are best bud's

Pretty Girl!

Park's

Sam

Happy Father's Day To My Husband!

Nate and the boys last year on Father's Day!

I am dedicating this post to my husband. I don't normally brag about what an amazing guy he is because I don't really feel the need too. Everyone that REALLY knows Nate and I knows that we are Best Friends, that although we are pretty independent we could not survive without each other and they also know how easy going and laid back he is. I think that is a KEY factor in why we get along so well! Ha! So I'll try to sum it up quickly but its hard to write something about the greatest person you know and keep it brief!

I think the first thing that comes to mind about Nate is that he is Fiercely Loyal to his family. There is no doubt in my mind that Me and the boys come before ANYTHING.

He is not a confrontational person BUT if anyone messes with his family he will NOT back down and it makes me feel very safe and secure.

He Loves his boys and is NOT afraid to show it. He is so affectionate with them and he doesn't care who is around or where they are he will snuggle and kiss on them and tell them he loves them. And he loves them unconditionally and without any expectations in return.

No matter what they want to do, he will make it happen. He is not a "sit on the sidelines and watch" kind of Dad. It's almost like he is suddenly transported back to his childhood and he seems to have just as much fun as they do. He will play on the monkey bars, slide down the slides, go on the roller coasters, splash in the kiddie pool and he thoroughly enjoys doing it. He builds them forts and lets them use him as a human jungle gym and spends hours playing Lego's with them. I remember when they were babies and he told me he could not wait to play Lego's again! And he is always reading to them. He makes up funny voices and silly sound effects. Sometimes I sit in awe of the imagination he has. The funny thing about it is that he feels like the lucky one because he gets to do all this stuff again that he loved when he was younger.

He is such a hardworker and he loves his career but he always puts us first and although his job requires him to travel, quite a bit at times, I know he is always thinking about home and is so excited to see us upon his return. He makes it very clear that Family comes before work and money. I know he has a lot of career potential, if we were to move out of state he could have a more prestigious title and probably make 3X as much money but that is not what motivates him. I know that every career decision he makes is based on what is best for all of us, not just him.

One of my favorite things about my husband is that he is seriously the smartest person I know, but the catch is, he would never in a million years tell you that. He is so modest and humble and never wants to make anyone feel inferrer to him. I love having my own walking, talking Encyclopedia with me at all times. If ever I don't know anything I just ask him and he will explain it to me without making me feel dumb. I know he will always encourage the boys to use their full potential but will never push them into doing things they don't want to do. I know he will never make fun of them if they struggle but will be their biggest cheerleader.

Sick of reading this yet? Am I about to make you barf with my sappiness?

Too Bad I have one more thing! Ha!

He makes us laugh!! He tells the boys bad fart jokes, he makes up songs about pooping, hell he even dances around the living room to bad hip-hop songs just because it makes the boys smile. He doesn't care if he is making a fool out of himself he just wants to see them happy and smiling. He is always telling me these jokes. Not sure where he comes up with them and sometimes I just laugh at the fact that he finds this stuff funny but he never stops telling them. He has such a dry,sarcastic sense of humor that I have already started to see come out in BOTH the boys. I can tell there will be LOTS of dirty jokes told between the 3 of them!!!

So to wrap this up, I've added some pictures of Nate and the boys over this past year. I wish I could have added more but it would have taken me all night to go through them. I have a little bit of a picture taking problem. Ha!

The pictures tell it all.....He loves them with everything he has.

I feel so blessed that Sam and Parker have such an amazing Father. He is such a great role model for them and I cannot wait to see them become Great Men.....just like their Dad!

This Weekend

My Favorite little girl is turning 6!!!

We have a busy weekend coming up. It's Friday, I have to work from 12-6 today. Then tomorrow we are heading to Kylie's birthday party. Every year my brother and Sister in law plan a HUGE party for her up at there house. They always have lots of fun stuff for the kids and tons of yummy food. Sam and Parks are SUPER excited about it. We have spent the week shopping and preparing. S&P really wanted to pick out something special for Ky so we spent quite some time at ToysRus finding the perfect gift. They ended up getting her a remote control BMW and a charm bracelet jewelry making kit. They even picked out special nail polishes for her form Ulta and we got her a new outfit. I think she is going to love it!

Sunday is Father's Day so we have a few special things planned for Nate! But I can't spill the beans yet because I know Nate peaks on here:)

Next week is going to be A LOT Of packing and organizing for our vacation the following week. SO much to do.....so little time. Well Actually it's more like "So much to do.....so little motivation to get off the couch and actually do it" HA!

My Best Friends Wedding....

Thursday I got flowers delivered to me!!!!

And this is what the card said!!

How cute is that? I am so excited to be Kelly's "Matron Of Honor". I have wished for this day for her for a long time. She is going to make a beautiful bride and I'm am so lucky to be able to be a part of it!!!

Guys Weekend

While I was in Chicago Nate's brother Kris came over to visit. He is on leave for two weeks. Nate got to spend some time hanging out and catching up with his brother Friday night. Then Saturday they took the boys to the zoo and to Toys R Us. Uncle Kris bought the boys a giant box of Lego's which they loved. Saturday night he spent the night at Kim's and then he came back to our house Sunday night. I got to catch up with him on Sunday and look thru a bunch of his pictures. It's just amazing to hear what he has been through. We are so proud of him and happy to see him doing something that he loves.

Girls Weekend!

I had a BLAST in Chicago last weekend. BUT I did not take even 1 picture. I just never got the urge to get my camera out. That is strange for me!!! I rode down with Kelly on Friday afternoon which was fun because we got to talk all about her wedding plans. We got to Kari's house and unpacked all our junk and then went to dinner. We ate at a yummy Mexican restaurant. Then it was off to the movie theater to see Sex And The City 2. We got there kind of late and ended up sitting WAY to close, it was packed!! It was OK, there were some funny moments but it was a little long and all 3 of us decided that the fashion was WAY to outrageous. But I'm glad I got to see it with them.

Afterwards we were all exhausted and went back to Kari's, we ended up going to bed pretty early. Saturday morning I was up bright and early at 5:30. Darn Central Time! Ha! We had appointments at 9:30 to get Mani/Pedi's. We went to a place called "Pinky's" it was so cute!! They did such a great job and we were able to all sit together and laugh. I'm not sure Kelly's girl really enjoyed us but hey we can't help that when we get together we revert back to our high school days:) We hit M2 boutique next which might be one of my most favorite little shops there. I got a new bracelet but I wish I would have grabbed a few other things I had my eye on. Oh well I guess I'll have to go back soon!!! After that it was off to Mich Ave to shop at Nordstrom. I got a couple REALLY cute shirts. We had lunch at the Nordstrom Cafe which was DEEEELICIOUS!! Of course we hit Sephora and a few other stores. We were pretty tired so we headed back to Kari's to hang out and relax. We had dinner at Butterfly (sushi) that evening and then we stopped and got a bunch of magazines, went back to Kari's, put our comfy clothes on and just hung out on the couch laughing and reading our "literature" It was FABULOUS!

Sunday morning we met Kellys Fiance Mike for breakfast and then headed to MAC. They have a MAC freestanding store there which means you can bring back your old containers and get eyeshadows for free!! WOO HOO! We ended up being there almost 2 hours. We all got fabulous new make-up. Some of us bought a little more than others....he he he....I'm just sayin. Ha! After that we went and got all my stuff from Kari's and then they brought me to the train station.

I had soooooo much fun with the girls. We were really chill this time. I think we were all just happy to be able to spend time together and have some time to just hang out. We had some really good laughs and made some fun memories. I can't wait to do it again!!

Chicago with great friends

I'm heading back to Chicago. This time it's just me and the girls. My two best friends, Kari and Kelly live in Chicago. They have fabulous condo's in adorable neighborhoods like you would see on TV. They know all the fun places to go. Not the touristy stuff but like the little boutique shops and restaurants that you can bring your own Champagne too! Ha!

I usually try to visit them twice a year for a girls weekend. All three of us have been friends since we were in pre-school together. So we are taking a 30 year friendship here, they are seriously the most amazing friends. We have always been in different "places" both geographically and metaphorically. They both are extremely hard working career women, they have hugely successful jobs, and have lived all over the country. I can remember flying to Jacksonville, FL a few times to visit Kelly when she lived there and also flying to Minneapolis to visit Kari when she lived there a few years ago. I'm so proud of them, they are so hardworking and dedicated.

And of course we all know I didn't go the "Career" route and they have ALWAYS been supportive of my choices. I know they are proud of me, they tell me that I'm a great Mom which means so much to me. They are great with my children and my husband. They are on my top 5 list of people I call when something major or life altering happens. And when we spend the weekend together it's like we are all back in high-school having a slumber party. I know I will never have any other friendships like these. We have so many memories and experiences together. We have spent countless hours on the phone crying over sad, happy and scary moments in our lives. There is nothing that we could do or say that would end the friendships. No matter where they live or what is going on in each of our lives we are always there for each other. They are permanent staples in my life, just like family. I will always love them no matter what.