Full Labor Day Weekend

The weekend was jam-packed with travel and fun. Our new car has already had some miles put on it after back-to-back weekends of driving around the state. We did our fair share of driving this long weekend, but it was worth it!

Early last week, I stumbled upon a posting from a friend on Facebook about tickets for the opening Gator game. After some back and forth texts and emails, Matt and I decided to go for it and take the boys to the first game of the season. Eli's bout with the flu all week had us a bit worried that we had made a mistake, but it was a miracle....after going to bed with a fever over 102 on Friday night, he woke up fever free Saturday morning. Wahoo! And off we went. It was beyond fun...and incredibly hot! I always love being back in Gainesville, but bringing the boys with us to a game made it that much more special. It was awesome being in the crowd around the stadium, seeing all the orange and blue, and feeling the energy of the town as Gator football kicked off. 

Our seats were amazing and the boys had fun cheering and yelling. Even Jude got in on the action. Neither one cared much about what was happening in the game, but we made it through the halftime show.  According to Eli, the best parts were the fly over and when the Gators came running out onto the field. 

I have to agree with him....those parts got me too. I actually got a little teary eyed sharing the experience of The Swamp with my boys. Jude's favorites were the planes, helicopter, and the marching band. He loved the band. After wiggling in my arms for much of the second quarter, he was mesmerized by the band's halftime show. At that point though, it was time to head on...after stopping for one more photo op.

This little guy zonked out within minutes of being in the car. What a day! And what incredible memories we made. It was worth the drive, the $$ (for the tickets, parking, food, hats, etc), and the heat. So glad we decided to do it, and I am already looking forward to the opportunity to go again. 

We hit the road and headed straight for the coast. It had been too long. Thankfully, for us, Hurricane Isaac decided to head west, and we were still able to enjoy Labor Day at St. George. We pulled in late that night, but the boys were up and at 'em early the next morning. When we got down to the water, the only signs of the storm were the incredible amounts of seaweed on the shore and the murky water still bringing up more seaweed.

Luckily, it was easy to overlook....

It was a gorgeous and hot weekend. Not a lot of breeze, but we definitely can't complain. We enjoyed a relaxing couple of days with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Kristi, and Uncle Steve. 

Isn't the hose just the best? A great source of entertainment for boys of all ages.

It wouldn't be Labor Day at the beach without the Annual Labor Day Cornhole Tournament....even if it was just two teams this year. Congratulations to this year's champs: The Costas! 

Grandpa did his best to keep the boys busy during the tournament. Jude was initiated into the "Order of the Stick." Little boys with walking sticks on the beach...you can't lose....well, until that short little-boy-attention-span is exhausted. It may not have distracted the boys for long, but it as great while it lasted. 

Then it was time to settle in for the night with books, baths, and dinner.

Loving the long weekend, we still had one more day to enjoy in paradise. We spent the bulk of that day on the beach. The boys played in the sand, ran, splashed, and explored. It honestly can't get much better than that. Little boy heaven!

 

It was one heck of a weekend! So many moments and memories. Crazy ones, wild ones, whiny ones, fun ones and sweet ones. And we couldn't be more thankful. 

August in Bullets

Life happened. Life got in the way of the blog this month, and I'm OK with that. Cause life is good, and I can't complain. Our trip to Canada for the wedding was the obvious big event of the month, but I figured I would bullet out some of the non-wedding related highlights from the rest of our month.

• Eli completed another cycle of his karate class and successfully earned his blue stripe.  His skills are really coming along, and we couldn't be more proud of him. He is signed up again this fall in hopes of earning his green stripe and his camo belt.  The camo belt is all about attitude, self-control, and focus...something that is a challenge for Eli, but he is rising to the occasion and is well on his way to earning both. I love seeing his confidence and passion for karate grow.

• Jude has decided to start acting like a big boy this month. Talking up a storm, speaking in more phrases and sentences, and dropping some of his baby talk (*sniff sniff*) Early in the month, he started telling me consistently when he had to go potty. How can I argue with a kid if he says he is ready? So despite my doubts that my not-quite-21-month-old was ready to use the potty, I got out the potty for him. He showed me! The kid will use the potty with about 80-90% accuracy if he is naked.....put underwear on him and it is a whole different story. For now, I'm not pushing it, but when we are home, you can bet he is usually bare bottomed and using the potty without prompting or tangible rewards. He is happy with cheers, high 5's, and flushing the toilet. Who knows, maybe he'll be potty trained by 2. (I probably just jinxed myself, didn't I?)

• While in Canada, Matt and I celebrated our 12th anniversary! Being married for 12 and together for over 17 years sure seems like a lot, but it still feels a lot like yesterday. So happy we picked each other to share our life long adventure together. Knowing he will be by my side until "death do us part" is incredibly comforting.  Blessed doesn't even begin to describe it.

• Eli had another huge milestone in his short life. He had his first day of kindergarten. He started a new school this year and has loved it from day one. None of my attempts to bribe him with daily batches of fresh baked cookies could convince him to stay home with me. It took some adjusting, but he is learning what is expected of him and is well on his way to a successful first year of elementary school. (I can't believe I just said that about my baby!)

above pictures from the Back to School Bash held the week before school started

• **Side note**  Mommy handled the first day without too much emotion. My heart swelled with joy and love as he ran off and didn't even look back to say good bye to me, Or blow a kiss. No hug. Nothing. I did my best not to be stung by these action, and instead chose to find peace in this. My little bird was ready. Ready to fly. And fly he did. When I called to him as he ran to line up, all I got was a quick, "Mom, the bell rang!" Duh, Mommy. Where did the time go? 

• On this first day of school, we also got a new car! Our air conditioning went out on the CR-V almost a month ago, and in case you didn't know....summer is HOT! No AC and sweaty babies in the back seat was no fun, so it was a good excuse to take the plunge and get a new car.  Meet Batman. Guess who picked the name. Not sure if the name will stick, but regardless we love the new car. Soooo roomy and it has AC. The last part is the best...rear vents and rear controls to make sure my babies aren't sweating anymore. I'm over the fact that I drive a minivan....almost. Thank goodness Honda has tried hard to revamp the body style in the last couple of years so that I don't feel like a frumpy minivan mom. And I like to think the black helps make it look a little bit more (as Matt likes to say...) rock and roll. Even if it doesn't, we will pretend it does because we do really like it so far.

• We found a lot of ways to celebrate the first day and week of school. There may or may not have been a few trips to get ice cream and frozen yogurt that week.

• New school and new year = New morning routines for all of us.  Jude and I walk Eli to school as long as it is not raining. School is 0.6 miles from our house, so the walk is perfect. I love the time with the boys in the morning. 

• All of the new busy morning routine led to an inevitable event that I thought would never happen on its own. Jude weaned himself! I am both distraught and excited about this. I figured it would be a battle, and instead....it just happened. Just. Like. That. Don't get me wrong, he will still ask for it every other day, but thankfully he is easily distracted. I already miss the cuddle time (and not to mention the increase in my metabolism....) Thankfully, with nursing for almost 2 years, he still loves to sit and love on his mama. Love my little stinker!

• As if that week wasn't big and busy enough with school starting, a new car, and weaning, Mommy and Daddy left the boys with Aunt Kristi and Uncle Steve to go on a work retreat for Daddy. It was the first time we've left since Jude was born. Everything went smoothly back here with the boys. Kristi and Steve were super great and not only took great care of them, but they sent enough texts and pictures to keep Mommy happy. We stayed at a resort in Long Boat Key and it was just gorgeous. When not schmoozing with other lawyers from Matt's firm, we lounged by the pool and did a whole bunch of nothing. It was perfect!

• And finally, we are ending the month with a bout of what I am thinking is the flu for Eli. Thankfully no one else has gotten it...yet. {*fingers crossed*} He has had a fever since Monday afternoon, and it just won't seem to go away. Along with that, cough, sore throat, head and body aches, lack of appetite. His diet consists mostly of popsicles, water, and some sherbet. After being out of school this week, we are hoping he doesn't lose all of that positive momentum he was building up for an awesome year. I'm sure he won't. I think I am seeing a hint of healthy Eli today as he as actually gotten off the couch to play a bit. Here's hoping we are on our last day of fever, and he is ready to head back to school on Tuesday!

What a month! September is bound to be just as crazy. We are eagerly awaiting tomorrow afternoon when Gator football kicks off. It is hard to contain my excitement about the return of college football and fall. Eeek! Pumpkin spice lattes. Mmmm...

 I'm not making any promises to be around here more often. I shall try though.

Through Eli's Eyes

We gave Eli my old "point & shoot" camera to take on the trip to Canada.  He was like a kid in a candy store with the freedom to use a real camera.

He had it with him at most times and captured some awesome shots...some funny shots....and some, hmmm, interesting(?) shots.

Once he got his hands on the camera, it took all of his self control to not start taking pictures of everything and everybody in our house.

And then it was the planes at the airport.  "Mommy! Look at this plane? Did you see that one?" Eli took several shots from the ground and the sky.

Of course, there were several "selfies."  These gems were taken on the shuttle bus from the airport to the hotel.

Many many pictures of the trains from our hotel window, in the room, and from the walks around the hotel and stadium..

Next came lots and lots and lots of pictures from Friday night's baseball game.  The game itself...

....crazy action shots in the hallway with the cousins....

....all of the random pictures Eli decided he should take of the posters lining the hallway....

....and my personal favorites, the action shots in which Eli tries to copy whatever action is happening on the poster.  These make me laugh every time I look at them.  So great!

His ring bearer responsibilities fun time with family kept him from taking many pictures on the actual wedding day, but he managed to snap a few here and there.

Sunday's game, he had some help taking a couple of pictures from one of the Blue Jays staff that got to know Eli over the course of the three games.  I just adore this picture of him pointing back at Cito.

Eli and his new cousin, AJ, chillin' in the giant glove.  The ring bearers enjoyed getting to know each other throughout the weekend.

Though these final pictures of Canada were on Eli's camera, I think the photo credit may have to go to Dad.  These were taken as we were walking to catch our shuttle to the airport and the sun was rising over Toronto. I love this city. So beautiful.

Isn't the reflection of the CN Tower in this building amazing?

Once again, all good things must come to an end, and Eli summed it all up with the final picture on his camera....all of our Canadian change.  

That just means we have to go back again and spend it soon.