Happy Father's Day to Ryan

These girls sure are blessed to have Ryan as their dad.  He's a great one.  He loves them deeply and has so much fun spending time with them; he's involved in their lives.  He shows them what a man seeking God looks like.  He leads our home well and often demonstrates selfless love.  He shows them how a husband should treat his wife.  He's funny and good-looking too.  I pray that our girls one day find men as good as him to marry; that's a mighty tall order though.

 We let Ryan plan his Father's Day, so it could be a day that he loves.  He could have chosen going to a Braves' game, but he loves us all too much to subject us to the heat this time of year.  😀  Since we had just returned from NC with the girls from camp, we slept in on Sunday morning and watched the JFBC service from home.  After a lunch at Crafty Hog, we went to Sparkles so the girls could try out their new roller blades.  They had a blast and did so many time trials to see how fast they could get going.  While we didn't skate this time, nothing makes us happier than seeing our girls having fun, especially together.

 We saw that Main Event was having a Father's Day special, so we headed over there in the late afternoon to take advantage of it.  Lily's the only one who has been before, so we were all glad to try it out.  There's so much fun stuff to do!  We bowled a good round (with Ryan winning I might add), played lots of fun and cool arcade games, and then had some pizza in their cafe for dinner.

  The most fun part though was the ropes course!  The girls and I did this a couple of times.  There are several different ones to try, but they all are suspended above the arcade.  It was so cool!

 Such a fun day celebrating Ryan!

Summer in Full Swing

This first month of summer has been filled with all sorts of fun!

We started out in Chicago which was a blast.  On the day we left, we learned that our newest niece, Linley, made her debut.  So we got home, did some laundry, and the next morning drove over to Birmingham to meet her and congratulate Josh and Amy on their healthy and beautiful little girl.  We love little girls in this family!

 While in Chicago, Mia spent her hard earned souvenir money on a neat science experiment set at the Museum of Science and Industry.  She couldn't wait to get home and try some of them out!  She made slime, an erupting volcano, and rock candy.  She's having lots of fun with this.

A few days after we returned from Chicago and Birmingham, we drove the girls up to Asheville for camp.  After dropping them off, Ryan and I stayed for another night.  We always enjoy this town.  We ate a delicious dinner at Tupelo Honey and then hit up Chocolate Fetish which has lots of things we love.  Then we visited Malaprop's Bookstore and stumbled upon this fun little adventure.  They offer a "blind date with a bookseller."  They have wrapped up lots of books and put a few descriptor phrases on the cover.  You buy the book based off those descriptions having no idea what book you're buying; how fun is that?!  Of course, if you happen to have already read what you select or you simply don't like it, they allow a full return.  I love this idea.

 I couldn't decide between these two, so I ended up with both.

 Can't wait to read my new buys!

 While the girls were at camp, I actually drove up to Charlotte, NC for a work conference on the new tax laws.  It was an all-day conference, so I drove up the evening before (where I found a fabulous Middle Eastern restaurant thanks to Yelp), spent all day in class, and then spent the night to drive back the next day.  I realized I was only about 3 miles from the Billy Graham Library, so I visited that for a few hours.  It was a beautiful day to walk the grounds and learn more about Mr. Graham's life and ministry.  They have a large bookstore to visit before leaving too where I bought "Nearing Home," a book Meme loved before her passing.

 I don't typically take pictures of the food I eat, but Ryan and I thoroughly enjoyed this French Pig Pizza that we made.  It's a Guy Fieri recipe, and it's delicious...pancetta, green apples, Brie cheese, and a balsamic reduction.  Num num num.

  We were finally able to hang out with the Smiths again after several weeks!  We are sad that they are moving to Kennesaw, but we're excited for the new opportunities for their family.  We'll miss having them just down the road though.  We went out to see their new home which they're currently fixing up.  It's so beautiful!  They will make lots of great memories there.  After our visit we all had dinner together at Freddy's which was a fun treat.

 We also spent an evening with them at the Mable House watching The Greatest Showman.  What a fun evening!

 We had Mom and Dad over for a double birthday celebration.  Ryan grilled pork tenderloins and peaches for us.  Mia made salad with a homemade goat cheese buttermilk dressing.  I had the easy job of roasting green beans with Parmesan cheese.  Lily made a three tier strawberry cake with cream cheese icing.  She put a 72 cutout on top and then covered the top of each layer with sprinkles.  It was super cute (and delicious!).

 I took a day off from work last week and took the girls to White Water to spend the day together.  We had a blast!  It was a beautiful day; it wasn't overly hot or overly crowded.  The girls were finally big enough to ride all the rides.  We rode all of them together except this little one, so it was the only one I could snap a picture of.

  Love being with these two!

It's summertime!

Camp Crestridge - 2018

The beginning of June means one thing...it's time to head up to Camp Crestridge!

 Mia was in the Chippewa again this year while Lily and her friend Emory moved up to Creek.  Mia knows the Chip hill well since this her third year as one.  Lily and Emory got to enjoy the 82 steps up to the top of Creek hill for their cabin!

 Both girls enjoyed their cabin mates and counselors.

 It was so fun to see pictures each day that the camp was posting.  I love seeing the girls having fun in their skills, campwide activities and village fun.  The girls enjoyed their skills this year.  Mia took gymnastics, ceramics, horsemanship, archery, soccer, and outdoor games.  Lily had fun with crafts, Bible Study, hand lettering, gardening, health and fitness, and archery.

 Lily having fun with friends at carnival.

 Mia trying her luck at carnival, and then having fun with other Chippewas as they raided the boys camp store!

 Lily adored her counselor, Katie.

 Always having fun with Emory.

 Mia loved her Cherokee big sister, Peyton.

 Mia and friends cooling off with popcycles.

 Everyone loves campfire night!

 Nibble Nook ice cream is always a fun treat on the first evening!

 Twelve days passed quickly, and we were so glad to pick them back up.  Our family was complete again!

 Love my Creek and Chip!

 It was another wonderful couple of weeks at camp.  They are already looking forward to next summer!

Summer Kick Off Trip

A trip to Chicago was a great way to kick off our 2018 summer!  Adding the Smith family in only made it better!  Tuesday morning we all got up and headed to the airport.

Lily and Mia sat together and enjoyed a nice flight.

After dropping our bags off at the hotel we walked over to Cupital to enjoy a little pick-me-up.

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From there we headed over to Navy Pier to relax and enjoy the day.  It was in the mid-40's which was a welcome change from the upper 80's we had at home.  As the week went on, the temperature climbed up, but this was perfect!

 After some fun on Navy Pier, we spent the evening at David and Jan's home, where we enjoyed this beautiful view and a fabulous Giordano's deep dish pizza.  Welcome to Chicago!

 The girls say they can't sleep in the same bed with one another...I disagree.

Wednesday was a gorgeous day.  After enjoying some delicious Stan's donuts for breakfast, we walked over to the river to take a 90 minute architectural tour.  The adults loved it, but the kids were over it after about an hour.

 There are so many beautiful places to explore here.

 When the tour ended, we met David and Jan at Pinstripes.  The adults enjoyed a nice quiet meal while the kids enjoyed a good meal while bowling.  What a great place!

 After lunch we headed to the top of Willis Tower...103 floors up!  Lily wasn't having anything to do with this, but the rest of us made it out on The Sky Deck, a glass box over the side of the building.  I'll admit, I didn't look down while standing in it.

  It was an amazingly clear day, so the views were perfect from up top.

 After a little rest at the hotel, we headed to Wrigley to catch the Indians versus Cubs game.  Fun times all around!

 

On Thursday morning, Ryan and David had breakfast together, so I took the girls to Cupital again, a favorite spot.

 After breakfast, we met the Smiths over at The Shedd.  They had the coolest exhibits going.  They looked like animal sculptures, but they were made entirely out of items found in the lake.  Trash into beauty for sure.

 We were all fascinated by this humongous crab.

 We had fun watching the belugas, playing games, and taking in the dolphin show.  This is a great aquarium.  Mia was quite excited to spend her money buying a pink penguin here she eventually named CC which is the nickname for "cotton candy."

When we finished at The Shedd, we headed over to the Adler Planetarium where Jan met up with us. 

We started out by having some lunch and hanging out for a few minutes.  We needed energy!

Then we had felt up to having some fun and exploring!  We learned a ton about space and enjoyed a couple of planetarium shows.  It's very possible that a couple of adults fell asleep in them.

 A couple of fun space cadets here!

 The back patio of the Adler is the perfect place for pictures with the gorgeous Chicago skyline.

 After this, most of us walked back to the hotel, stopping to see the beautiful Buckingham Fountain and cutting through Millennium Park to see The Bean.

Friday was another beautiful day, though it was warming up into the 80's.  We spent the vast majority of the day at The Museum of Science and Industry.  It was so cool!

 They had the actual U-505 here.  This is the only German U-boat captured from WW2.  We paid the extra little bit to take a tour of the inside and learn more about how the capture happened.  Once again, it was overwhelming to think of our brave soldiers risking their lives for our country.  There is so much to be thankful for.

 After the U-boat and WW2 area, there were lots of other fun areas to explore.

 The historical circus area was fun!

 The weather hands-on exhibit was probably the most exciting part for the kids.  They had a great time learning about weather patterns, forming tsunamis and wind tunnels, watching a lightening storm, and all sorts of other cool things.

 The girls had a good time on the mini-climbing wall.

We finished up the evening with a cookout on David and Jan's patio.  It was the perfect night to be outside grilling burgers.

Saturday arrived, and we had to leave.  We had the morning available though before our flights, so we decided to take advantage and hang out at Maggie Daly Park.  This is always a hit.

Mia headed straight to the rock climbing walls.

 She did this for nearly an hour...it's exhausting!

 Lily branched out and tried roller blading.  She loved it and now wants a pair for her birthday!

 Grandma Jan joined in the roller blading fun for awhile with Lily, and then we let Mia take one lap around to give it a try; no surprise, she loved it too!

 Eventually, we had to say our goodbyes and head to the airport.  This was another fun trip, and we can't wait to get back.  Why?  Because "My kind of town, Chicago is!" as Frank Sinatra would say!