Andy and I went to a Christmas concert last night and since it was free, we had Drew and Madeline come with us. We enjoyed it but the kids were more like “this is soooo looooong!” and “is it almost over yet???” and “I’m booooooored!!!”

Culture, people, culture.

We went to pick the little girls up at my sisters’ apartment and they had all walked down to the gas station for candy. Adelaide walked out munching on a push-pop and chirped “hi guys! did you have fun?!” Andy and I had a good chuckle over that one… here Drew and Madeline were subjected to a long boring evening (to them) only to go pick up their little sister and she’s been playing, watching movies, and getting candy and then asks them if they had fun.

(She did share a little.)

Day 4.

My sisters had watched the kids last weekend so we could use a gift card we had for Outback. On our receipt was a “take a survey, get a free bloomin’ onion” code, which of course we did. So yesterday we went back for our free onion, and there was $12 left on our gift card. The other two appetizers we ordered rang up to $11.57. I just had to laugh. It was more than enough food to call ‘dinner.’ And our receipt printed another free onion survey code. Gotta love all the free.

So then we ran a few errands and stopped by Panera for a free pastry I had on my Panera rewards card. (If you don’t have one, you totally should!) The girl threw in a free crinkle cookie as a promotion sample, since they’ll start selling them next week. She had no idea my hubby was waiting in the car. Perfect!

And then we (YES, WE DID) went to Chick-Fil-A and traded in two kids meal books (unopened) for free child-size ice dreams. (And then giggled all the way out of the parking lot.)

See? WORKED IT.

When he got home we went for dinner at CFA (and what we won’t do for a little free food!):

Arianna’s birthday is in two days. Can you believe it?!

(This one’s for Lisa):

A tender moment,

And then we went for this:

Madeline lost her first tooth yesterday!

Happy birthday to one sweet lady!

“Mom, watch me do a flip!”

Anyway, we ate dinner at church yesterday and then, since it was now or never, took my mom up on her babysitting offer and went to see Inception. Liked it! It’s a little bit nuts! VERY fun to go on a throwdown date in the very middle of the week.

AND, not sure if I should be broadcasting this over the internets but, what the heck, we’ve got someone coming to see our house today and so we’ve been doing some deepish cleaning (and by ‘we’ I mostly mean my mom). We weren’t really planning on selling but ALWAYS talk about it and got a call from a friend (who happens to be a realtor) who has a buyer that may be interested. So, we’ll see… I do love my house but it’s a lot small. I’d love to be able to have houseguests.

And, along that note, I’d best be getting back to bill-paying and cleaning. And also, some (real) clothes would be nice.

It was also the longest stretch I’d left Arianna but she did fine with the babyfood and my mom rubbing her back and singing to get her to drift off to sleep. So cute.

Alright. I spent the entire day yesterday laying low, feeling like I was fighting something off. My throat is a teensy bit raw but I have GOT to get moving on this sale, especially while my kids are playing quietly and nicely with the dollhouse. Cheers!

We got home, threw suits on, and went to a friends’ for lunch and swimming.  (Their pool is heated, in case you’re wondering.)  This one is SO Adelaide:

Another of my favorites (Drew’s face!):

The baby slept in a closet, which was another first time ever. But before that, I got to try out the solarveil sling I bought for use this summer. It was great! (She was a little unsure about all the sibling splashing though.)

Meanwhile, Andy finished the flooring project in the attic. WOOT! So nice. I put the kids down for a nap, crashed on the couch for 45 minutes, and then got up and got ready for our long-awaited big anniversary/birthday date at the restaurant. I even left Arianna with our babysitter. SUCH a nice dinner, yum. And now I’m going to crash into bed because we have a similarly full day tomorrow. Ciao!

Somehow, I chose the adventure.

We just went on a simple walk, on the other side of town. The kids, like most little kids, didn’t notice we weren’t doing anything elaborate — they just knew they weren’t at home on the couch. We were outside, exploring somewhere different. Changing the scenery.

The kids took turns pushing Arianna.  (A prized honor, apparently.)

Which I’m sure was a wild ride.

But she’s no worse for wear. :)

(You like Madeline’s Christmas headband?  It’s her favorite.)

We ran around the park and Drew had a baseball with him.

We stopped for ice cream on the way home, but my camera battery died long before that.

Madeline BEGGED me to let her be the one to tell Daddy all about where we went.  I said yes and

kept my promise.

(If you’re local and know where we were, please don’t mention any specifics in the comments.)

We’ve been planning on painting the exterior of our house all summer (and by we, I mean Andy) and have been slowly stripping the one really weathered side over the past few weeks.

Yesterday we (meaning Andy) started priming that side. Thankfully he had a friend — an actual painter, no less — help for a few hours in the morning. My job was to keep the kids out of the paint.

(Our kids feel strongly they should be involved in everything.)

So we packed up and went swimming. I know summer is slowly coming to a close so we’re trying to soak it up as much as possible.

And it all finally clicked yesterday for Adelaide; she figured out how to hold her breath underwater. Which means she spent a lot of the day like this:

And I STILL have yet to capture her actually jumping off, but this is the closest I’ve gotten:

Definitely my water baby. Maybe if I start her in lessons now, she’ll be ready for the 2024 Summer Olympics?

Andy had finished painting by the time we got home, so I put everyone down for a nap, fixed my hair and makeup, and ran back out to do the grocery shopping ALONE.

Sooooo nice. That’s all I need to say about that.

He also managed to snag a babysitter THAT AFTERNOON so we were able to go out to dinner at the very last minute last night. I let him choose and surprisingly he wanted to go to his own restaurant that he sees nearly every day. (Which speaks highly of the place, yes?)

We spent about two and a half hours there, just talking, relaxing, and eating. (Ohmywordthatwassomuchfood.) A very nice treat for the end of a busy day.

(Even if my date was covered in paint splatter.)

Andy tried to get a Redbox movie for us while I put the kids to bed, but the kiosk that we usually use wasn’t working and he came home empty-handed. That was really fine by me because I promptly fell into bed and fell fast asleep.

(Even if it was only to be waken fifteen million times by various children and one pregnant bladder throughout the night.)

(Why is that?)

They had a blast. Drew was very particular about which rides he would and wouldn’t go on regardless of peer pressure (I was more daring but likewise have always known my own mind).

I don’t have any pictures because I didn’t want to bog Andy down with a camera. (Sometimes I think men really do need a purse-equivalent. Keys, wallet, phone, sunglasses…camera.)

Meanwhile, I bathed Adelaide and decided to attempt getting her two-year-old portraits taken. (You know, since she turned two in March.) Problem is, I walked out the front door without remembering to grab Andy’s keys. Locked out without car keys and holding a heavy toddler and her portrait dress. Smooth.

I stood there, contemplating what to do, and suddenly remembered I maybe had a spare key to Andy’s car down in the recesses of my purse. I dug around and found it! I felt like I had won the lottery. So we were able to leave after all, and I just decided to take my time and wander stores until Andy got home to let us all back in.

First up, the portrait studio. I didn’t actually have an appointment; every time I called I got an answering machine and they never called me back. So I was crossing my fingers they would squeeze us in, and they did. We didn’t even have to wait ten minutes!

ADELAIDE. WAS. A. PILL.

I even thought about buying the shot of her with the poutiest of faces just so I’d remember what a stinker she’d been. (That and it was a darn cute photo.) Finally I got her to smile and we got some great shots, usually by sternly saying “Adelaide! DO NOT SMILE!!!” with a fake-mean look on my face. The feather tickler did wonders, too.

After pictures I wandered stroller-less (forgotten in the back of my van, which Andy took) around the mall, stopped in Gymboree (only because they had a blinking 60% off sign outside the front of the store), and then took her to Chick-Fil-A for a quick bite to eat. It was kind of fun being on a little date with just her and she was so good other than the refusing-to-smile-for-pictures thing.

On our way home we stopped in at Walmart, a different one than the evening before. I could not believe my eyes when another, older man walked out right in front of me with a 24-pack of beer and the Walmart employees running after him asking for a receipt. What are the chances this would happen twice in a row, right under my nose?

(God? I’m really not planning on stealing any beer. From Walmart or anywhere else.)

This time, the man just kept walking, absently waving towards the check-out lanes, “that lady checked me out over there…” Never stopped, never showed a receipt. A manager ran out after him and I did see him show his receipt in the end, but the whole thing was really rather fishy.

Oooh, and the best part of the day, Andy had worked his day off so he was off yesterday — so we got a babysitter and went out on a date! This time I won’t bore you with the details of our meal, but we had a great time.

After we had finished, some friends from church came over to say hi and ended up hanging out with us for a while. The restaurant staff even brought over an extra dessert for us to taste.

I’m tellin’ ya, it pays to know the manager.

I called my friend Jenny at the very last minute and she was able to meet Adelaide and me at Andy’s restaurant for dinner.  I mean hey, why not?!  She’s easy to convince.

We had the tomato/cannellini bean bruschetta (did you know it’s actually pronounced “bru-sketta”?) because it is truly amazing.  I don’t usually like bruschetta.  But there it’s one of my favorite things on the menu.

(The pancetta-wrapped dates are to die for as well, but there were only 2 ½ of us after all.  We didn’t want to go overboard.)

I ordered the pepperoni pizza (which is actually chorizo).  I thought Adelaide might eat it and I didn’t want to get two entrees AND I wasn’t about to eat more pasta.  I’ve had pasta the last two times we’ve gone and needed something different.  She ate maybe two bites.  (Of course.)  They also just added silverqueen corn on the summer menu so I got that, too.  (She didn’t touch it.)

Somehow we, meaning Jenny and I, managed to have a real conversation even though Adelaide was determined to be the center of attention.  She did fine for the first ¾ of our meal and then she decided she wanted to be a circus clown.

We were in a booth (which are raised off the floor; too high for “high” chairs, oddly enough).  Now I know in the future she MUST be buckled down into a high chair at a regular table, preferably sitting by her father.

Otherwise the aisle-dancing gets a little crazy.

At least she’s cute.

(A blog? What’s that? I have one?)

I hadn’t intended to take a break this past week, but I know you really didn’t want to hear about the laundry. I’m sure that’s all I did (at least until Friday when my friend Sarah called for a playdate at the park).

But this weekend was busy, full, and FUN. Andy’s folks flew down for a quick visit, arriving at our house a little after noon on Saturday.

This takes a little explaining. Andy is an only child. However, his friend J lived with Andy’s family during summers and Christmas vacations and he’s sort of like the adopted son/brother. He was the best man in our wedding. (And then surprised us all and got married himself, a couple of years later.) He and his wife live in Atlanta.

So anyway, Andy’s folks drove here with them. The guys, including Drew, went golfing Saturday afternoon and Drew pretty much thought he had died and went to heaven. (As Andy so perfectly put it, he “got to drive around in a golf cart, run around in a field, hit a ball with a metal object, and hang out with dad.”)

(And yes, he’s been asking to go play golf ever since. Andy even bought him a set of real, albeit tiny, clubs.)

(They’re currently residing on the very top shelf.)

Meanwhile, both my girls, my mom-in-law, and L all went to tea (what else?) and then did a little boutique shopping. I was a little curious/nervous to see how Adelaide would do but she did great!

She only dumped one cup of tea in her lap but made up for it with the other twelve that she actually drank. (They were baby cups. But still. Let’s just say we found out she likes tea.)

(And I’m still kicking myself that I didn’t get any pictures of Adelaide’s first real tea party. I was sure I left my camera at home and later found that it had been in my purse that entire time. GAH.)

The boutique maternity store I wanted to show L (also pregnant) ended up being closed but we were able to peek around one of my favorite kids stores. Later I’ll have to show you the matching dresses my mom-in-law bought the girls. (They need to be hemmed.)

Saturday night we got a babysitter (only took me two weeks; EVERYONE is out of town) and we all went to Andy’s restaurant for a VERY nice dinner and I didn’t even have to cut up anyone’s food!

(Fortunately Andy’s pretty good about cutting his own.)

(The only mistake was my drinking waaay too much iced tea. I woke up at 3:45 WIDE AWAKE, which was rather inconvenient.)

After church we had a quick lunch of Chinese food and then the kids played a little with the grandparents before they needed to head back.

A whirlwind trip, but very fun.

I thought Adelaide would be my biggest challenge, but she was overshadowed in that designation by none other than Drew.  It must have been the fact that he was the only male.

Whenever you take little kids out, you just have to prepare yourself that you’ll be eating fast and trying to get out of there before the meltdown begins. But even so, it was fun, VERY good food, and hey! WE DIDN’T HAVE TO COOK!

So last night we went to the Ballet.

Madeline was HILARIOUS. She’s already asked me at least thirty times if she can be a ballerina when she “gets bigger.” She also put her hands above her head and twirled in the aisle the whole intermission, bumping into chairs and even a few innocent passersby.

And when I took her to the bathroom immediately before intermission (she absolutely could not wait), the first thing out of her mouth was, “IS THIS SO FUN AT THE BALLET?!!!”

Really, it exceeded my expectations. It was stunning. And the perfect length for a little girl to sit through, (which is helpful).

And yeah, I wasn’t kidding about the week-long birthday thing!

Two full bags of plastic junk. I told Dolly afterwards I felt like I was walking on air! Usually when I clean out their stuff, I dig around and pull out odds and ends. This turned out to be a much more thorough method. I even decided to comb the van because I was scared they’d bring some of the junk piled up in there back into the house. (And we just really can’t have that.)

As per my ambitious goal, I did not cook. Andy made me cheese eggs for breakfast, can’t remember what I ate for lunch, and my sisters and I took the kids (mom’s treat) to Chick-Fil-A for dinner and then to Walmart for that blasted toilet paper. Except I walked out with a very full cart (how did that happen?).

Oh! I had at least two people ask what we ate for dinner the other night, so if you’re interested in such things:

Me: [name deleted] Farms’ Organic Lettuces (with roasted pears, pistachios & balsamic-molasses vinaigrette); Rabbit & Ramp Stew (with porcini mushrooms & crème fraiche) I did not order this but Andy did and the chef sent one out for me also; Hand Made Ricotta Raviolis (with spring vegetables & white truffle oil) another chef-sent course; [ranch name deleted] Pork Tenderloin (with root vegetable purees, apples & brown butter); and Carrot Cake Souffle (with Cream Cheese Anglaise).

Andy: Warm Asparagus Salad (with peekytoe crab, spring potatoes & aioli); same two middle courses I had; Sautéed Alaskan Halibut (he ordered a different set so I’m not sure what came with his entrée); and he had the strawberry tasting for dessert.

I told you, WAY too much food.

And I finally did find my camera. It was in Madeline’s mini backpack. I should have known.

(And woe would be them. Two words: Dog House.)

(Although yes, technically in my case Andy wouldn’t be home to notice either way. My sisters watched the kids again last night; they’re the best around.)

Anyway, it was my friend Sarah’s turn this time and she changed it up a bit, both in location and attendees. Each birthday honoree is responsible for getting their own dinner together. If you wait for it to be planned, you’ll be waiting a very long time.

And, as always, we shut the place down.

I’m thinking we need to start a Bunco group next.

You can imagine how that went.

I spent the bulk of Saturday cleaning and baking a cheesecake because I hosted a surprise personal shower for my dear and soon-to-be-married college friend later that night.

My sisters took my kids out for a night o’ fun (otherwise known as The Only Sure Way To Keep A House Clean) while I went out to dinner with the bride and her girls:

The Flirtini:

And then we came here for dessert and gifts:

We had SUCH a fun time.

And that’s all I’m gonna say about that. ;)

Apparently he’s an explosively gassy baby. And about halfway through the concert he stared making rather suspicious-sounding grunts and gestures.

Honestly, I almost wish he would have relieved himself because that would have provided me with some excellent bloggy fodder. But alas, he did not deliver.

(I’m sure his mother was thankful. As well as the concert patrons around us, though they weren’t quite aware of it.)

The concert was great; really a lot of fun. All of the selections were based on Shakespearean plays (hence the title “Shakespeare and Friends”). Andy even had a solo, which I didn’t realize until afterwards when he asked me how it went.

Observant Wife of the Year.

We stopped at the restaurant for dessert on the way home. I had the carrot cake soufflé, possibly the most interesting and fabulous dessert I’ve ever had.

Oh, and I also met a long-time customer named Adelaide. I’ve never actually met anyone in person with that name – except, of course, my baby.

And speaking of my babies, Andy’s currently got all of them at the park, so I’ve got to get busy putting away the summer clothes so that we can actually walk down our hallway.

Which would really be convenient, wouldn’t it?