Catch the Moment:wk 25

Summer is in full swing and I’m loving it! I love the heat, the long nights, being outside, and grilling everything. At the same time though, knowing how quick we got here from last Christmas makes me gag. I don’t want it to be winter again in the same tiny blink of an eye. We had so many goals for this year and here we are, with only 26 weekends to catch up on those home renovations and de-cluttering/organization projects. Aaah! It’s just so hard to say “no” to fun when you just don’t get that many days off work to relax and enjoy. But let me NOT moan and groan summer away, because it’s here now and it’s happening all around me and we are making the most of it by staying busy with tons of fun.

I’m linking up with Mindi,Stephanie, and Carrie for week 24 of Catch the Moment.

169/365: Thursday, June 18th. I hadn’t seen this little lady in over a week and I couldn’t take it anymore so the boys and I stopped by to see Kennedy on our way home from camp Thursday night. Still as precious as ever! Gah, I just LOVE her.06-18-2015

170/365: Friday, June 19th. I tried a new Pinterest recipe: Stuffed French Bread. Theo came down with a fever at camp around 11am Friday so I knew we’d be staying in for the night. I wanted something comforting and quick and this hit on all points. Before we’d finished eating, my wheels were spinning with ideas for similar sandwiches…taco theme, pizza theme, chicken cordon bleu…on and on and on. So yummy and versatile, yet simple. It was awesome with ground beef, cream of mushroom soup, celery, cheddar cheese, and a few spices for max flavor. 06-19-2015

171/365: Saturday, June 20th. YAY, Theo woke up feeling fantastic so we were able to proceed with our fun summer plan for the day. I dedicated an entire post to this awesome inflatable water slide, which we broke out for the first time this weekend. The boys had a wonderful time climbing and sliding down countless times for about 3 hours nonstop. 06-20-2015

172/365: Sunday, June 21st: Father’s Day. I didn’t take any pictures until evening, but Ryan had a great day. We saw Inside Out and went to lunch. Did some yardwork and played around the house. I had plans for a big dinner but we were too full from the restaurant so we had grilled cheese and soup. Ryan cut down some overgrown bushes that completely blocked the view of our porch from the street. I ran outside before it got dark to get a better view of the new look. Now to work on our weeds and landscaping…baby steps. 06-21-2015

173/365: Monday, June 22nd. They DO love each other. They don’t always show it but it’s true. They are the very best of friends.06-22-2015

174/365: Tuesday, June 23rd. Ryan is doing a Tough Mudder on Saturday so he’s been growing out his beard for about a week. All the guys on the team will have a fu manchu. I can’t wait for him to go back to his normal 5 o’clock shadow stubble-face!06-23-2015

175/365: Wednesday, June 24th. It was a perfect night for a picnic and playing at the park, so that’s just what we did. PB&Js and smiles all the way around!06-24-2015I hope you’re enjoying your summer – we sure are!

xo,

~C~

 

slip, slide, splash – father’s day weekend fun!

After much sale-watching, review-reading, and over-analyzing, I broke down and said “yes” to an inflatable water slide for the boys. Ryan and I had been talking about it for more than a month. I anxiously watched the price yo-yo on Kohls.com while waiting for a big discount code. Last week, a huge, heavy box finally arrived on our front porch and the weekend couldn’t get here fast enough. But then Theo developed a fever and was vomiting on Friday. The forecast said 40% chance of rain for the next million years.

But THEN, by some miracle, Theo woke up feeling fine on Saturday and the radar was perfectly clear. Ryan had a million other things to do, gave me the “REALLY?” face, and seemed annoyed with me for inviting a friend over to play with the boys and their new toy.  I assured Ryan he could continue doing his yard work while I watched the boys and chatted with our company. No problem. This was right around the time our neighbor walked by with his push mower, pointed and laughed, and said “suckers!”

The dang thing took an hour to set up and longer (much, much) to fully take down. But he did it, and he rolled his eyes a lot but he didn’t complain (much) and I knew it would be that way and THAT’S just one reason why I love him so much. Because he puts up with me, even when I create a bunch of extra work for him. That’s one of the many reasons we celebrate him on Father’s Day.

The boys had so much fun (after we explained to them that this was a special thing, and not an every day or even every weekend thing). Theo woke up today saying “today’s a special day because it’s Father’s Day, and yesterday was a special day because we got our slide out!” I can’t wait to set it up and let them play again. Or to let Ryan set it up again. IMG_3810 IMG_3830 IMG_3840 IMG_3844 IMG_3847 IMG_3857 IMG_3858 IMG_3868 IMG_3875 IMG_3876 IMG_3891 IMG_3897 IMG_3903Their little faces are so worth it. I’m almost sure of it.

xo,

~C~

 

catch the moment: Wk.24

What a week! It’s been a blur of nonstop activity; a balanced mix of fun and obligation. But another week has flown by, nonetheless, and we’re almost to the halfway point of 2015 already. This week I finished up my series of recaps from our Walt Disney World vacation last month, including how we celebrated Dexter’s birthday and our last couple of days. I’m glad to be caught up on the posts but it’s just made me want to plan our next trip!! I love distracting myself with thoughts of my family making even more fun memories and having new adventures. Oh, daydreams. Back to reality – this summer (which technically has not even started as I write this post) is zipping by. We have plans almost every weekend in the foreseeable future, despite my attempts to keep some of our time free. That’s okay – it will just take us a little longer to get those pesky household projects done.

162/365: Thursday, June 11th. It was a hot, humid afternoon so I was surprised that the boys wanted to go out into the backyard and “hunt bugs,” but we did. We were only out there 5 minutes before Theo asked if we could explore the trails at a nearby park. So we walked to the park and took our time, tossing rocks in the creek and looking for bugs. It was a really fun nature walk and they didn’t complain at all about walking so far. P.S. I made sure to let Ryan know he’d be picking us up at the park before we made the long-for-little-legs journey. My Fitbit loved it and so did I.06-11-2015

163/365: Friday, June 12th. We had a quick and ferocious storm blow through our town Friday night and at about 7pm, we went outside to check out the damage. We had a few large tree limbs snap in the wind and zillions of sticks on the driveway and in the yard. We felt extremely lucky that none of it damaged our home. 06-12-2015

164/365: Saturday, June 13th. We met up with friends at Children’s Museum Indianapolis. I think I posted a picture of one or both of them playing in this sand the last time we went, but the light in this room is so nice that I couldn’t resist. And look at these bros, they are so cute – when they’re getting along. 06-13-2015

165/365: Sunday, June 14th. I was too busy having fun floating around on a raft with a drink in my hand to worry about taking pictures at the lake but this was the aftermath around 6pm. I felt very much the same! Being in the sun all day zapped the whole family.06-14-2015

166/365: Monday, June 15th. Cue the “it’s late, I forgot to take a picture, and I don’t care” photo. But seriously. This deserves to be documented. That get well soon balloon is from Dexter’s hospital stay April 29th – 30th. 7 weeks later and still going strong! The rest are from our little birthday celebration for Dexter on 5/30. Good thing I paid extra for “high float” so they’d last up to 48 hours. 06-15-2015

167/365: Tuesday, June 16th. Random, yes, but I just love the door to the building where we drop off the boys for summer camp. It’s a charming and stunning old house. I especially love the character of the chipped, layered red paint.06-16-2015

168/365: Wednesday, June 17th. The McDan Fam just upped the ante on our home fitness! These Bowflex weights are adjustable from 5 to 52.5 pounds apiece. They arrived today and they are awesome! 06-17-2015

This week, my favorite photos are the ones of Theo and Dexter playing in the sand and the doorknob. What’s your favorite?

I’m linking up with Mindi,Stephanie, and Carrie for week 24 of Catch the Moment.

xo,

~C~