road trip

so, we went on a little road trip...

if you can call a 2 hour drive a road trip

but, hey  - when you've got three littles in the backseat, anything other than going to the grocery store qualifies as a road trip, right?

it started out as any road trip should...with a snooze

 the drive was beautiful, just skirting along the banks of the mississippi river

in no time, j and i had chatted our way through red wing and to wabasha...home of the film "grumpy old men"

we checked into our hotel and dashed over to kellogg, mn

where we visited lark toys

there were so many treasures to discover here!

they make their own wooden toys, as well as selling most any toy you can imagine - it was like being at santa's workshop!

the girls weaved around the store, finding oodles of fun stuff and in each department, there were play stations where you could try out all the goodies

some highlights were the hats, play kitchen, dolls and tea party station

but, my favorites were the puppets...

when we heard the bell ring, we knew we were only minutes away from something magical.

for just $2, you can get yourself one of these tokens:

which will get you through the gate and onto a breath-taking carousel

all the animals are hand-carved from minnesota trees

some favorites were the rooster, flamingo, goldfish and otter

we scored jelly beans and giant gumballs at the candy shop

and let's not forget about the rainbow deliciousness at the ice cream parlor

we survived a few tulip temper tantrums as we had to steer her away from the present goodness she was enjoying to show her that there were more things to enjoy just around the corner

we told the girls they could each pick out a toy

i was imagining they'd want something really fancy

but, we got by cheap

they each wanted a small doll and a hula hoop, which cost us just $23...and resulted in smiles like the one you see here:

all that exploring and playing made us hungry, so we headed to slippery's tavern, where parts of the "grumpy old men" were filmed

the restaurant wasn't fancy, but we enjoyed outdoor seating right on the river front and the food was TASTY!

with bellies full, we headed back to the hotel to satisfy Tulip with a dip in the pool

then snuggles in the cozy hotel beds

the girls were spoiled once again with cable TV and got to watch some shows that we don't get at home

the night went smoother than i'd imagined and we woke up to continental breakfast and more swimming

then it was off to see the rest of wabasha

we had yumm-o pizza at "the flour mill"

and took a walk along the river

before heading home, j was kind enough to take me here, where i totally gave in to my sweet tooth

chocolate covered pretzels for the littles and cashew/pecan turtles for the bigs were the perfect way to end a sweet, sweet trip

we don't often spoil our kids like this

typically, we keep them away from expensive toys, loads of TV and heaps of sugar

but every once in a while, we like to pour on the special...

doing something like this is an exercise in goodness

lavishing our children with more than they deserve makes my heart glad

as i delight in watching their faces light up with each new treat, i get a glimpse into the heart of Father God

 the Giddy God who sings over us, who pours over us the gifts that we could never earn

can't wait to do it again....

new adventure

this year we got real wild and crazy and decided to put some new adventures on our summer fun list

although we kept many of our favorites from summers past, the arboretum made its way onto the list this year and i'm so glad it did!

we had a blast!

seeing goldy gopher was among the highlights

as well as touching the soft lamb's ear and discovering a plant called "miss ruby" - too bad she was snoozin' or i would have snapped her in the pic, too

we were walking along quite contentedly, looking at the flowers and oooohing and aaahing over the petals....when lo and behold, we came across a waterfall with.......

tadpoles!

hundreds of these little guys and wouldn't you know that peach got right in there and caught more than just a few

tulip counted on me to catch hers for her, but she held them and snuggled them up to her cheek saying, "ooooh, sweetheart!  i yove you!"

the bugs found us at the end and we hightailed it out of there, but not without another stop at goldy and a few minutes to play in this fun house

the arboretum will definitely be on the list again in 2014....

speaking of new adventures, we're headed on another one come thursday - stay tuned!

the groove

dare i say it?

i think that after 7 weeks of being a family of five, we're starting to get into a groove.

i know enough about babies by now to say that with a bit of reserve.

because the thing about babies is, just when you think you have these little mystery people figured out...they go right on ahead change.  (how dare they!?!?!)

a growth spurt

a trip to grandma and grandpas

a night with a babysitter

and all of a sudden, this lovely little rhythm that you had going for you is upset and we're back at square one.

so, it is with great trepidation that i make the following statement:

i think we're getting the hang of three kids

we've got a few little routines that seem to help

and as with any journey, putting one foot in front of the other, pressing on and moving forward...i've learned a few things:

#1:  oldest children are invaluable helpers

#2:  middle children will stop at nothing to remind you of their presence...pulling on pant legs, intentionally spilling cups of chocolate milk or biting you square in the butt, as happened to me yesterday :)

#3:  getting a picture of three children all looking at the camera, happy and adorable at the same time is a battle that is not worth fighting

#4:  i can survive on very, very little sleep and do it quite cheerfully if i really try

#5:  my husband is my ally - they outnumber us now....we've got to be a team or this whole thing falls apart

#6:  telling my children that i'm sorry is both humbling and powerful

#7:  when number three comes along, number one and number two become much closer friends and, as a result, more intense fighters

#8:  a glass of wine once everyone is tucked into bed makes the heart glad

#9:  this cup of overflowing craziness is both a great blessing and a grand sacrifice...choosing to do it joyfully has to be done on a regular (sometimes minute by minute) basis

#10:  adding another human being to a home causes the amount of laundry to increase exponentially.  this is a fact.  complaining about it does not make it go away.

#11:  when we're running late and sparkle is screaming, i can't find a pacifier, tulip just had an accident, a headache is mounting and peach is telling me for the 76th time about the chapstick that was her favorite, you know, the one with the green stripe and yellow dot, that is now lost and do i know where she put it??....a deep breath is my very best friend

#12:  making fabulous plans is much easier than carrying them out.  sometimes you just gotta' roll with whatever the day brings...digging in the dirt for worms while wearing a dress is actually the exactly perfect thing to do on a semi-sunny saturday.  did you have something else in mind, momma?

 #13:  when you don't have time or energy for the library, park, zoo or other adventures, giving pushes while singing "chantilly lace" is always an adequate substitute.

#14:  even when the coffee pot is empty, all i really, really need is Jesus

keep the lessons coming, Lord

open hands, open hearts
at the end of the day, this is all and only for You

distracted

i haven't given my blog much attention lately...

i've been a little distracted

 

it all started when we made our annual summer fun list....

and once we started checking things off, well, let's just say we're havin' fun and there's not a whole lot of extra time or energy at the end of the day.

 

however, i have been taking pics of some monumental moments

such as the first stroller ride

and the turning of five sweet weeks...

first night at gymnastics

and fishie girl completing her first round of swimming lessons...

and then we've had some seriously picture-worthy moments that don't have anything important attached to them other than that they were just fun...like silly faces on the deck

splish-splashin' around on a hot day

and nakey baby cuteness

this family of five thing....phew!  i would never call it easy, but it sure is fun

isn't she lovely?

over the past 5 weeks, i find myself singing this song over and over...and when you look at her, it's no wonder...the song describes her perfectly

Isn't she lovely
Isn't she wonderful
Isn't she precious

Less than one minute old
I never thought through love we'd be
Making one as lovely as she
But isn't she lovely made from love

Isn't she pretty
Truly the angel's best
I'm so happy
We have been heaven blessed
I can't believe what God has done
Through us he's given life to one
But isn't she lovely made from love 

- Stevie Wonder