A Mini-Vacation

I know, I neglected this blog for over a week. Shame on me! But it has been a busy week. Brian and I took a long weekend to Austin/Houston last weekend. And no, we didn't catch the swine flu. Although thinking about the lady who was hacking on the plane two rows ahead of me, and the couple who I think I overheard say they were coming back from Mexico, did make me wonder.

Anyways, we left last Thursday to fly into Houston. Due to a dying battery on our travel alarm clock, we didn't get up on time (which is pretty darn ironic since we never really fell asleep, at least in a good sleep) and missed our flight. We didn't get to the airport until 5:15 am for a 5:40 am flight. I still say to this day that we could have made it through security in time. However, we were re-booked and made it to Houston only 2.5 hours later than originally scheduled.

We drove to Austin, or I should say Round Rock, which is just north of Austin, to do some shopping at the Outlet Mall. Later that evening we met up with our friends Rick and Tina and their two adorable sons, Collin and Zach. Zach quickly became Brian's buddy.

On Friday we went to Zilker Park in Austin where they have a botanical garden. It was the perfect size garden, enough to see lots of pretty things, but small enough so we also weren't walking around forever.

After Zilker Park, we headed to Mount Bonnell. It is one of the best lookout points in Austin. At 785 feet, Mount Bonnell is also the highest point in the Austin City limits.

On Saturday, we headed back to Houston where we went to a Houston Astros game at Minute Maid Park. As most of you know, I am trying to go to every Major League Baseball Stadium. This was stadium number 19 out of 30. Minute Maid Park was really nice. They are celebrating their 10th Anniversary. Due to overcast skies and a few sprinkles, they had the roof closed which was kind of a bummer. It would have been the perfect temperature for a ball game.

A requirement for my stadium tour is that I get a picture in front of the sign. I just realized tonight that I probably didn't pick the best entrance. On the other side of the stadium is Union Station, an old train station they used as part of their design. I wish I had known about it as it sounds really cool. Normally I walk around the entire stadium (if the stadium is in a walkable location). Mental note - walk around more next time, even if it is sprinking.

The home run pump keeps track of how many home runs the Astros have hit since they opened the stadium 10 years ago. The pump went up several times during our game. The game started off slow offensively and then things heated up in the 4th inning. The game ended up going 11 innings. By then, Brian and I were so hungry, we didn't care who won - we just wanted the game to be over. We didn't expect the game to go that long, so we decided just to snack during the game and eat dinner afterwards. By the time we left the stadium it was close to 11 pm and most places near the stadium were already closed. We ended up walking to the Hard Rock Cafe just so we could get something to eat.

One of two pictures of Brian and I on our trip and the only one we didn't take. It was great to get away for a bit. A HUGE thank you to my Mom and Dad who watched the girls while we were gone. We appreciated it very much. It was nice for Brian and I to be able to spend some time together and eat a meal in peace.

Urban Experiment vs. Parental Experiment

On Saturday, we participated in our first ever "urban experiment." A Grand Rapids resident sets up events throughout the year and promotes them on Facebook. Some past events have included a Zombie Walk and a Downtown Pillow Fight. This time the event was a Chalk Flood. People were invited to come out and show off their artistic talent all over downtown Grand Rapids. Over 3,000 pieces of chalk were available for use.

A few weeks ago when taking a walk, Allison was fascinated by some chalk drawings she saw on the sidewalk. I thought if one or two small drawings caught her attention, then surely sidewalk after sidewalk of drawings would really capture her attention. So after I got out of work, we headed downtown to Rosa Parks Circle. This is where the parental experiment came in - letting a toddler, who can move rather quickly, out of her stroller and walk around a big group of people. Allison actually did pretty well. The only issue was they didn't close off the street and she kept wandering close to the road. She wasn't happy with me when I had to redirect her to a different area. Normally she knows better than to go near the road, however with the crowds of people and since the road is a one-way single lane road, she couldn't tell there was a street there.

We gave Allison a bag of chalk and she left her mark - well maybe four or five marks. That was all. She was having more fun people watching (takes after her mom).

I hope they do this event next year, when Allison will be more into the drawing aspect(hopefully). Since Brian is a better artist than I am, he can draw with Allison and I can chase Mia around and keep her out of the street. Not only was it fun for us (or maybe just me), it was a great event for the city. It drew a ton of people on a Saturday afternoon when downtown GR is normally pretty quiet. Who would have thought that chalk would bring so many people out?

Allison scoping out all the drawings.

But mom, where do you expect me to draw. There is chalk everywhere.

Allison leaves her mark.

Excuse me mister. Thanks for lending me this piece of chalk, but you can have it back now.

Break Time.

What happens when you sit on chalk? You get a dirty backside. At least she sat on yellow chalk and it matched her shirt.

A pretty drawing about Spring.

Mia taking in all the action.

Dad takes a moment to write out Allison and Amelia's name.

Happy Half Birthday

Amelia celebrated her six month birthday by going to the beauty shop (a/k/a daycare) for a fancy hair style. They played beauty shop that day, and I can only image with all of Mia's hair, she was the most sought after client.

I tried refraining from saying this in her other monthly posts, but I can't help myself this time. I can't believe she is six months old already. How did that happen? She is getting so big, so quickly.

Mia is becoming a little more mobile. She hates laying on her back and will flip over immediately. She will roll over a couple of times but usually gets frustrated and screams, so we place her on her back again and the whole process starts over.

She likes playing with toys that she can grasp onto such as teethers and rattles. This keeps her busy in her highchair, however she doesn't have full control over the items yet and they often end up on the floor. I usually burn off the calories I'm consuming at dinner by bending over every two minutes.

We are introducing new solids into her daily diet. Mia takes cereal in the morning and a fruit and veggie in the evening. So far she has tried avocado, sweet potatoes, apples, and bananas. Tomorrow we will try something new... maybe peas.

Mia had her first cold a few weeks ago. We weathered through it with a Vick's Waterless Vapor machine and plenty of tissues. She still has a little bit of a cough, which Allison is quick to imitate. It is funny to hear them "coughing" in the back seat of the car.

Overall Mia is a very happy baby. It doesn't take much to make her smile. She loves her sister and gets a big grin on her face when Allison pays attention to her. The only time she gets cranky is when she is hungry or tired. She is a true blessing to our family.

It Started With a Kiss

This blog was officialy started on August 21, 2007, when Allison was just about a month old. However, in some ways, you could say it got its start six years ago on this very date.

First there was dinner at Z's, then a Griffin's hockey game, and after the game there was an invitation to watch the Red Wings playoff game at Brian's house. At some point during the game, Brian and I finally kissed, ending months of us both being too chicken to make the first move.

From that kiss that was so elusive for so long, came dating, marriage, and the two little joys of our life.

Happy 6th Anniversary Honey! Thanks for the invite to watch the Wings.

Happy Easter From Our Little Bunnies

Our two little bunnies wish everyone a Happy Easter. Despite the "Christmas" pjs Allison is wearing, it really was Easter this morning. We had a special visit from the Easter Bunny who left goodies for the girls and hid some eggs. Allison had fun discovering both the basket and the eggs. Mia actually got into the action too and spotted an Easter egg.

Ozzie the guard dog protects Mia & her egg so big sis can't get to it.

Luckily Allison was too busy checking out her basket, so Mia could play with the egg she discovered.

Mia checks out her basket...

...and Allison checks out Mia's basket.

On the prowl for some eggs.

Where ever could those last two eggs be hidden? I just can't find them.

I still don't see them. (hint - Allison, where is kitty?)

After the egg hunt, I got ready for work. We have an Easter Brunch and I had to work it this year. Brian and the girls joined me for lunch, along with Brian's parents and sister. Allison and Mia looked so cute in their Easter dresses.

Happy Sibling Day - April 10, 2009

Cousin Easter Party

Every year, we have a party for the cousins. There is always plenty of activities for the kids including an egg hunt, pinata, egg coloring, and time to play outdoors. This year, there were 18 kids in attendance.

This was Allison's first year that she was old enough to participate. Mia had fun getting attention from everyone. From the moment we walked through the door, she was always in someone's arms getting tons of kisses.