Mini Vacation

We needed it... a family vacation, and this one was Adam's gift from us for his birthday. A trip to Kalahari, the biggest indoor water park in America... Hell, maybe even the world. It was pretty neat, something you definitely have to actually experience to truly appreciate. Larger than 3 football fields. and plenty of slides to go down and other things to do to keep you busy for several days worth of fun. We were only there for 2 days, but we probably could have a stayed a little longer and still done something different every day.

Cal wasn't so big on the actual "pools" even though this is what kept him excited in the days leading up to actually going to kalahari. he kept talking about the big "pools" we were going to play in... He liked the waterworks a little more.

They also have a pretty big arcade that we spent several hours playing in.

and of course the kiddy pool and section

Baby Chase

We welcomed a new nephew into our brood today...


here are a few pics of us enjoying him!

Spring flowers

Since the weather is turning upwards finally, it is time for cal to begin his daily unrelenting questions... outside? shoes? play? swing? outside?

that's okay, I want to go outside too!

The nice part about this spring, is that it is our first spring in our new house and we are experiencing the wonderful surprise that spring can be, no flooding in our basement at this house (YAY!!) and the beautiful bulbs that are peeking their heads up in places I didn't even know we had bulbs! thanks to the previous owners. we have been exploring our yard like it is new territory with this new season...

Cal likes all the interesting bugs in our back yard, even though he refuses to touch them and wants me to pick them up so he can get a closer look at them without actually touching them... Oh, and he LOVES the "pretty yellow" flowers scattered throughout our lawn... if adam has anything to say about that, those yellow flowers will all be dead soon!

Our Dog...

This post is dedicated to a much forgotten creature in our family. Sometimes, I will go days without thinking twice about our poor dog, Ralphie. He always gets what he needs, don't get me wrong, but sometimes he doesn't get the love and the attention that I know he deserves. So here is a post to honor our much loved and often times forgotten pooch...

Ralphie is the one of the reasons it is so nice to come home, someone who always loves and appreciates you, regardless of how worthless you were that particular day. Someone who will always return to you, even after listening to your constant tirades and endless grouchy episodes

We love you ralphie, even though we don't show it as much as we should AND you often times get blamed for things you either didn't actually do or that you couldn't actually help but do...

Spring Haircut!!

Finally, it is nice enough outside to head out and play... but that also means it is time for cal to finally get a haircut. It has been quite a while! as you can probably see by the pics

Before

After

Ah, I love the sweet feel of cal's freshly trimmed hairs! He really is growing up too fast! I wish I could keep him this little forever.

mommy got a new pair of shoes!

cal has to try on all my new shoes... especially BRIGHT RED ones!



(he also refused to take them off and we had to confiscate them when he wasn't looking!)

CHI-cago!!!

YAY! Finally some time away from it all.

I had a very nice visit with some college friends in chicago, where we ate out, went out and got tattoo'd!

a grand old time!

A little goofiness

Here is what cal thinks is funny recently...


we haven't used so many q-tips in one day as since cal has taken a liking to them...


p.s. happy birthday aunt karen!

Cleveland trip

This weekend, we took a trip to Cleveland, courtesy of Adam's work. They footed the bill for our pretty classy hotel room and for a trip to the Museum of Natural History, as well as a very nice dinner and evening of dancing with an awards ceremony.

Of course, Adam took advantage of the situation and got hammered, as usual... Prompting the bartender to ask him not to bother coming back up to get any more drinks...

It is fun to get dressed up and go out every now and then, and just get away from the everyday.