Mom, what's that?

Bathtime, about 7:3o this evening....all is well. Jackson is playing with a family of ducks and Abby is, of course, trying to drink the water flowing from the tap. I am attempting to multi-task and am removing my nailpolish while I sit next to the tub. All of a sudden our peaceful bath time is interupted by Jackson, "Mom, what's that?" Abby's first poop in the tub! Jackson did this nearly every single time he took a bath when he was a baby, but tonight was Abby's first. She looked so confused when bath time came to an abrupt end and Jackson just kept asking why she pooped in the tub. Just one more thing to clean up after getting the kids to bed!

I Scream, You Scream...

Kids for Sale or Rent

When Jackson refuses to eat his waffles because they are on the wrong plate...when Abby screams every time Jackson comes near him...when brushing their teeth and hair seems harder than finishing my most recent research paper....when Jackson has a meltdown because I have to go upstairs to brush my teeth...when Abby probably needs a nap, but we have plans so she can't take one and it all happens before 9am, I consider putting my kids up for sale or rent.

Any takers?

Busy Busy Weekend!

What a great long weekend! Matt had Friday off and we have been going going going all weekend! Friday we hit the waterpark with some friends and had a blast. Jackson and Abby were both having a great time when we first got there. It opened at 11, and we were there right at 11 to make the most of the time before the kids crashed. Jackson was just about losing steam when his friend Jett showed up! That's when the real fun began. They ran around like crazy, spalshing, attacking Jett's dad, me and any water fountain that got in their way. Even the "vomit incident" in the pool didn't deter the fun. (For the record, it was not our children that puked. Someone puked in the pool and and the pool was closed for about half an hour. No worries...the boys went for a walk and played in the grass!) When it was time to go, both boys were worn out and bummed that the fun had to end so soon. Abigail had an equally fun time, trying to drink the water every 2 seconds. Seriously...did I mention that someone had just puked in the pool!?! She is truly fearless in the water, running in, splashing around and falling backwards into the pool. She is a little fish!

In case that didn't wear the kids out, we headed down to Millenium Park for some music and a picnic on Friday night with Nana and Papa. What fun! Tons of yummy snacks (especially Nana's brownies!), great company, fantastic scenery and oh, that's right some music in the background. Jackson danced with anyone he could get on their feet while we polished off a bottle of wine. Even the sprinkles that ended our picnic early didn't ruin the fun. We went for a walk over the bridge and played at the playground before heading home. During our walk over the bridge, Abigail insistied that she push Jackson in the stroller and stopped every few feet to jump on the back. Pretty darn cute little girl!

We were up and at 'em early Saturday morning as we headed down to the Dragon Boat races at Ping Tom Park in Chinatown. Jen Eggener and Wrigley saved us a great spot by the river under shade with a view of not only the races, but the trains too! Oh, what fun! We watched the boats race, jumped in the moonwalk, played on the playground, ate Chinese food and took a tour of the neighborhood firehouse all before heading back home on the el. Jackson loved to hear the CTA announcements, especially when they announced the Jackson stop! Abby passed out in her stoller on the el and slept most of the way home and I couldn't blame her one bit.

We were on such a role, that we just continued the fun through Sunday....we headed to Pump It Up! for Christopher's birthday party! Seriously, who knew that place could be so much fun? The kids went crazy running and jumping, and to be honest, Matt and I had a pretty good time too! We followed Jackson through obstacle courses, jumped with Abby on the moonwalk and went down the slides countless times with both kids. Jackson even got to go rock climbing on the wall. The fun was topped off by pizza, cupcakes and a goody bag filled with candy, toys and stickers. What a day!

I am exhausted just writing about all the fun we had this weekend....maybe we can get some rest this week before next weekend comes. Oh, what's that? We are off to the park. Oh, well, maybe we will rest tomorrow!

I need privacy!

Last night we had dinner at Chipotle. Nothing but the best for us! So Jackson announces that he has to go potty and we run down the hallway. He goes potty and we come back to the table. Not two minutes later he announces that he has to poop. I am pretty sure that everyone at Chipotle heard the announcement. Again, we rush down the hallway. This time, Jackson tells me that he needs privacy, but I am reluctant to leave him alone in the Chipotle bathroom. When we are at home, he generally announces that he wants privacy and insists on closing the door and going to the bathroom in peace. At Chipotle, I told him, I would stay with him. So, he then told me that I had to stand in the corner with my eyes closed so he could still have some privacy. Fine. So, I stood in the corner while he went poop and then he asked me to come over and wipe him. So much for privacy!

4th of July in Door County

Each summer we head off to Door County for the 4th of July, and this summer was no different! Matt and I had this great idea that if we travelled at night, the kids would sleep and we would have a nice peaceful drive. It was only a great idea in theory. Jackson started asking "Are we there yet?" after less than an hour in the car. We cut off the movies thinking the kids would go to sleep, but no....they both stayed up long into the drive. Eventually they did fall asleep and we did enjoy the last couple hours of the drive in peace. Perhaps there is no good strategy for travelling 5 hours with 2 kids under the age of 4. Oh well, better luck next time.

We spent our long weekend hanging out with Nana and Papa and with the Newcomes. Jackson and Eli shared a bedroom, meaning there was little sleep but lots of shanangans! Abby warmed up to everyone by the end of the week, even giving Auntie Katie kisses! We hit the beach, went for lots of walks in the woods and made s'mores around the new fire pit. What a great weekend. You can't beat a fun family vacation in Door County. We are already looking forward to next year!

The history of two bunnies and an elephant

Since Abby's jellybeans account expired months ago, I thought it was high time that I start a new blog to keep everyone updated on the adventures of Jackson & Abigail. So, here it is....two bunnies and an elephant. Where did that silly name come from you ask?

In case you don't know, Jackson has two very beloved bunnies. The original bunny was a gift from Anne-Marie at my baby shower when I was pregnant with Jackson. Soon after Jackson was born, he decided that the bunny was his best buddy, despite my attempts at pushing the monkey. (We did use the monkey, not the bunny, for Jackson's weekly and monthly photo shoots during his first year) When Jackson was in daycare, we decided to buy a back-up bunny so he could have one at home and one at daycare. Daycare was squashed when I quit working and Jackson soon realized that he had two bunnies. Oh, the excitement to have two beloved bunnies! So, now both bunnies take naps, go on car rides and travel with us where ever we may go.

When I was pregnant with Abigail, I searched and searched for the perfect stuffed animals, despite the growing pile of them we already had at home. No, I needed to find the perfect stuffed animals for my second child. If Jackson had the monkey and two bunnies, I couldn't let my second child be without some beloved stuffed animals. So, I searched, I consulted friends and colleagues and at last we purchased elephant (and a lion that nobody seems to care too much about). Much to my delight, Abby loved elephant from the very beginning. His long trunk is often full of cream cheese, yogurt or ketchup since he spends many a meal sitting next to Abby in her high chair, and he is very much adored! We have bought a back up in case of emergency, and are being careful to not let her know that there are two elephants. We'll see....

Anyway, welcome to our new blog!