03.07.10: Spring or Bust

If there's one thing I've learned about the weather while living in Wisconsin it's that everything is relative.

40 degrees in September? That's COLD! Whip out the sweaters and bake something pumpkinish!
40 degrees in March? It's SPRING! Fire up the grill!

And in the spirit of our first 40 something weekend, we did some very important things.

What's missing from this house? Christmas decorations! That's right! It was finally warm enough to melt the snow in front of the house, allowing Karl to get up on the ladder and remove the wreaths from the front windows.

Also on the agenda this weekend: our first walk of the neighborhood.

This is the face of a little dude who is wondering why he is wearing a hat and coat when we just passed a guy wearing shorts.
Can you see him? They were a couple of blocks ahead, and I didn't have the creepy stalker zoom on my camera, so this is all I've got. Shorts!

Post walk self portrait.
We are both looking forward to many many more of these walks in the coming weeks.
Tomorrow's forecasted high is 48. That's close to 50 people!
Bring it on, Spring. Bring it on!

03.02.10: Ten on Tuesday: Snapshots from Vacation

Since we returned late last night/early this morning from 10 days in the sunshine state, I thought I'd dedicate this week's ten on Tuesday to some of my favorite vacation snapshots.

1. Team Grandpa: Mark my words, Grandpa Mark will forever be known as "The cool grandpa who lives with Mickey Mouse and drives a motorcyle." A.J. is clearly a big fan of his Grandpa and loved spending time with him.


2. When Peek a Boo goes horribly wrong: Contrary to what you see here, A.J. loved Grandpa Mark's friend Curtis. He was enthralled with his deep voice and was constantly watching him. Then, Curtis whipped out the peek a boo. And A.J. lost his mind. Poor sensitive little dude.

3. Not a creature was stirring: There were very few things I *really* wanted to do on A.J.'s first trip to Disney World. I set my expectations low since we didn't know how he would handle the crowds. The truth is he was amazing and his incredibly happy self, napping whenever he decided it was necessary no matter where we were. And in this case he decided to go to sleep while we were waiting in line to see Mickey. Love him.

4. Snack time at Magic Kingdom: My brother snapped this shot of the little dude and I right after I finished nursing on the porch of The Hall of Presidents. I'm pretty sure the imagineers who designed the front porch, didn't put the rocking chair there for a breastfeeding mom, but it was a nice touch. This picture makes me thankful that almost nine months in breastfeeding is so natural for us and I'm happy to have family who supports it.


5. Celebrate a Dream Come True: This is the picture I wanted. Me and my little dude, wearing his personalized ears. My brother took it while we were watching the parade. True story: I cried. How could I not? Those Disney people pull at my heart strings. The song, "Celebrate the dream inside of you, the dream that just came true." Um, ya think? :)


6. Biker Baby: We are in trouble. A.J. was in "hog heaven" on Grandpa Mark's Harley. We spent some time taking pictures one morning and let A.J. sit on the bike for a minute. He didn't want to get off. And then when it was time to leave and the guys had to fire the bikes up, A.J. giggled at the loud noise. I'm pretty sure he wants to trade in his jumperoo for a motorcyle.

7. Super Baby with Uncle Stevie: I think one of the most surprising things about being a mom is how it changed relationships within my family. I am so much closer to my brother now, and I love watching him with A.J. They have such a great bond and I know it will only get closer over time.

8. Training the Class of 2031: A.J. made his first trip to his future school. We walked across campus with him in the stroller and every. single. person. who saw him smiled. Clearly, his enthusiasm for the Gators is infectious. :)

9. Swing Kid: I think A.J. might be a tad depressed now that we're back in Wisconsin and we can't spend every day outside. He loved the fresh air and long walks. And he REALLY loved the swing set at the park. Now how do I explain that it will be a few weeks before we can swing at home?

10. Four Generations: A.J. has three great grandmas who are still living. This week he met my Grammy, his GiGi. I have so many memories of going on very special dates with my Grammy when I was little and I am so glad that she was able to spend time with A.J.

And a bonus just because I think he's the cutest baby ever:

Vacations are never long enough, are they?