Huskies on Parade

Today was a beautiful warm and sunny today, so what better way to spend it than outside? Josh, Abby and I decided to explore DeKalb and Sycamore in search of the Huskies on Parade. 8 of them are supposed to be out now but we couldn't find them all today. I love this project and think that it's a great way not only to show support for NIU but to raise money for the Feb. 14th scholarship fund. I am all for anything positive and uplifting that the college or the community is doing to help the students and community heal and move forward.

Here are our photos of the Huskies that we found today:

Friday photos

I don't have much to say today because I am pretty worn out from the busy week. So I thought I'd post some pictures of Abby from this morning.

In her jammies:



In her school outfit. She had to wear orange today because they are doing a different color each day. She learns how to spell it and they make a little book about each color which she reads to us when she gets home.



On my to-do list today:
*French class
*Buying some flour
*Housework
*Some "me time"
*Trip to the post office
*Get my parking permit (haven't done it yet)
*Return some textbooks that I found for waaay cheaper on Amazon
*Hopefully get my new NIU Onecard
*Bake banana bread

Back-to-school update

So here we are 1/2 way through the first week of school. Thought I'd post a little update to how we are all doing.

Evan: likes his classes and teachers. He has friends in most of classes and of course that makes it easier. So far, he's staying on top of homework and following the rules. We have sat down with him and agreed on goals for the year and offered rewards for reaching them.

Abby: loves school. She told me that she likes staying the whole day because then they "have time for great big fun". She seems to want to be more independent. She announced today that she would no longer be watching "baby cartoons" because she's a 1st grader. I told her that it is more important to do what she likes and is interested in than worrying about if it's a "baby" thing to do.

Me: I like my classes and professors. I am excited to be learning about 2 different sections of anthropology: linguistics and archaeology. It's easy to get focused on just taking cultural classes since that's my interest. I love my French class and while it is more of a review for me, it's nice. The past two days I have felt pretty weepy about the fact that my babies are back in school. It's hardest to see Abby be there for the full day because it's such a big change. It's definitely a challenge for me to transition through. I am very thankful for the quiet time I have to study during the day. I've never really had that before and I'm sure it will help my grades!

On this afternoon's agenda:
*get parking permit
*archaeology homework
*laundry
*running to Target to fill Abby's eczema/allergy/asthma prescriptions
*baking bread

1st Day of School

Today was back-to-school for Evan, Abby and myself. Evan and Abby had a half day today which is always nice to ease the kids back into the school year. They both had a great first day and like their teachers. Abby has her kindergarten teacher again because she is now teaching 1st grade. We are so thrilled with that because we loved this teacher last year.

I attended my 1st class this morning which was French 101. I was afraid I'd be the only senior in a classroom full of freshman. Well I did feel somewhat old when I learned that our instructor is only 21! Yikes, but he's a Frenchman so he definitely knows that language. It seems like it will be a fun class. I am looking forward to Linguistics tonight because it's a discipline of Anthropology that I know very little about.

Josh took the day off to make everything go more smoothly and to share in the excitement of the 1st day of 1st grade for Abby. We ordered pizza for lunch and the kids each got to pick their favorite toppings.

Here are some photos of the 1st day:




Abby and her buddy Maddie:

New glasses & Cornfest

I got new glasses yesterday! I don't know if I will wear them everyday because they are kind of funky, but I love 'em.



Saturday while I was at the 12 hour crop scrapbooking, Josh took the kids to Cornfest in DeKalb. This time it was held at the airport which is super close to our house. They had fun eating free corn and looking around. They also went on a ferris wheel ride which Abby loved but apparently scared Evan. Pictures below.






This is what we could see of Cornfest from our house:


Tomorrow is back to school for Evan, Abby and I. Should be interesting coordinating everyone's schedules and getting back into things.

Table update

Awhile ago, I posted about our new kitchen table and benches here. Being lazy, I posted a stock photo. So here's the real deal in action. It's been a month and I still love it.

Today is brought to you by the letter H.

Today was all about haircuts, hurrying and hamburgers. You see it's the last day before the weekend before school starts. So many last minute things to do! Clothes shopping, haircuts, school supplies, etc. all have to be bought. Can't send the kids back shaggy with pants that are too short. To keep the kids in line for all these errands, I bribed them with happy meals from McD's.

Neither kid has had a haircut in quite some time, so I took before and after photos.

Before:


After:

Our weekend

I don't have any photos to share because our camera is too annoying to use right now.  The latch on the battery door is broken and we have to tape it shut.  Ugh, I know it sounds lazy but I haven't felt like dealing with it.

Friday night and most of Saturday was spent dealing with our garage sale.  I have never had a garage sale so the amount of work surprised me.  Or rather I should say the amount of work that the guys and Evan did surprised me.  Ha ha.  Abby had a lemonade stand at the sale and made a $1. It was pretty cute except she was kind of an aggressive salesperson. I think it confused her that not everyone wanted lemonade.

Saturday night we had our first fire pit fire in a month or so. We made s'mores and drank some wine that we brought back from Michigan. 

Sunday was devoted to sloth. We spent the day relaxing, reading and enjoying the sunshine.  I love sitting out on our deck in the shade and enjoying the fresh air.

This is the last week me and the kids have off before school starts.  Hopefully it's a good one!

Yes you are reading that weight loss ticker correctly!

I have lost 25 pounds!  I am feeling so proud because it's been so hard for me physically and emotionally. 

I'm in the mood to decorate and re-decorate our house. I would love...

From Urban Outfitters...
For our bedroom, we so need some seating for when we are hanging out.  Plus I think it would be neat to own a "fainting sofa". 




And for our dining area:

Weekends away mean returning home with more patience

Josh and I just returned from a much-needed weekend away. We have not been away from home for 2 nights alone in so long that I cannot remember when it was. Suffice it to say that it's been years. It was so nice to have uninterrupted conversations, quiet time and do things that the kids would consider boring.

We went to southwest Michigan and had a lovely time. Our weekend was:
*eating out...some fabulous food.


White chocolate/strawberry truffles and truffle iced coffee...


*getting lost

*walking on the beach

*getting a very relaxing pedicure (me that is) at Harbor Country Day Spa in New Buffalo, MI.

*reading, relaxing and sitting in the hot tub.

*wine tasting...we went to 4 wineries where we tasted, enjoyed the beautiful scenery and of course, purchased some wine to take home.










We got lost and wound up visiting both a beautiful nature park and a slightly hidden beach. Those of you who know me well, know how much I love the beach. For me the water and feeling my toes in the warm sound is sort of a spiritual experience. I was really sad at the beginning of the summer when we had to cancel our trip to Myrtle Beach this summer (thank you high gas prices...ugh) because I so wanted to see the ocean. Lake Michigan is so vast that it was easy to imagine that it was the sea. Of course the temperature is much cooler in Michigan than it is in South Carolina. But it's also only 2 hours away as opposed to 15.



We also wound up driving through Chicago on our way to my parents' house to pick up the kids which was pretty cool, although the traffic as always was maddening.

Around our town

People say that Illinois is boring. I think it's beautiful. Especially this time of summer when the corn is high and the wildflowers are everywhere. I love living out in the country in a small town.





See how high the corn is in comparison to the stop sign:


Our little airport which I love living by. Even we get "buzzed" by a plane early in the morning. We have seen some pretty interesting things since we live so close..military planes, jets that carried the governor, Barack Obama, & Cindy Crawford.

The sprinkler park

Today we had a play date at the cool sprinkler park in Geneva with Amy and her cutie pie kids: Brayden and Layna. The three of them had a lot of fun playing in the sprinklers.

Here are some photos:










We also saw a blimp!

The first lost tooth

Abby lost her 1st tooth yesterday. She was really nervous about it once she knew that one was loose, so it was a pleasant surprise for her when it came out easily.



Here she is with her tooth pillow all excited about the tooth fairy coming:







Here she is telling how it happened. You can tell she'd already told the story about 10 times and was a little annoyed that Mommy was making her do it yet again and on camera. But if you watch the video you can see her missing tooth better.

Happy Birthday Papa!

Yesterday was my Dad's birthday and we all got together at their house to celebrate with him. Josh cooked up a Mexican feast for all of us which was super tasty. The weather was beautiful and we also got to enjoy some time outside.







Saturday Abby got some hairbows from Lili Cakes Bowtique and I couldn't wait for her to wear one. Papa's party was the perfect occasion. I can't wait to order more.


The weather has been super humid and hot lately. Saturday we got a break from the heat and were able to turn off the A/C for a day but that was it. Today it's been storming most of the day which sucks for the kids because it means the satellite reception is not great. We've actually lost power on 3 different occasions.

All the humidity makes my hair look this: Aaack!