Happy Birthday!

On Friday, July 23, we headed down to Chicago to see my aunt Chris and her family. First, we stopped at this excellent Mexican restaurant in Libertyville called Casa Bonita. It was amazing; much like Frida's here in Madison, and Frida's is one of our favorite places. Kate loved the chicken enchiladas; this 17-month-old eats more types of food than some adults I know! Friday night, we went to Lou Malnati's, one of our favorite deep-dish pizza places down there. On Saturday, we got ready for the Italian party that Chris & Mike were hosting that night. But what Chris didn't know is that it was actually a surprise party for her upcoming 60th birthday (at the end of August). About two hours into the party, we all gathered in the living room, my mom started playing "Happy Birthday" on the piano and we all sang to her. So, that was a fun twist to the party.

I love this dress she had on for the party!


Can't keep her away from the piano!


I can get down by myself, Mom.






My grandma and her three daughters




Kate intruding on Chris's mother-daughter photo


After the party. I had already changed into my pajamas (I obviously didn't look like this at the party)


Kate loves her Uncle Dan






The group

Our trip to the lake

I was so thrilled that we were able to go up to the lake a second time this summer. Luckily, we went in the middle of an extreme heat warning, so it was perfect weather for swimming!

We went up on Friday the 15 and met my mom, Chris, Karissa and Grandma (they had all come up earlier in the day, while Dan & I didn't leave until about 3, since he had to work) at one of our favorite restaurants, The Five O'Clock Club. They have the most delicious seafood; I absolutely love that place. Of course, Kate would rather wander around outside where the flowers were (flowers are her new favorite obsession), so Dan & I had to take turns eating. Oh well, such is life with a toddler :)

After dinner, we went back to the cabin and hung out for awhile. I love my family; they are so much fun to be with! It was especially nice to see Karissa, too, since I don't see her as much now that she's away at college much of the year.

Saturday we swam until the three of them (Chris, Karissa and Grandma) had to leave. On Sunday, we also spent a lot of the day in the water, which was a blast. Kate had her own little lifejacket, and she loved being in the water with me. She is such a daredevil; I would be on the raft with her, and she would just leap off and try to swim to my mom (who was obviously quite close to us, but still!) It was so funny to see; she clearly had no fear!

Sunday night, Tracy, Rori, Kirsti and Colin (Kirsti's boyfriend) came up. We had a lot of fun with them the next three days. Kirsti, Colin and Dan spent a lot of time fishing, and being the little fish she is, Rori loved being in the water with Kate, my mom and me. When Kate wasn't swimming, she loved to sit on the shore (still wearing her life jacket) and sort through the rocks. It was so cute to see!

We spent the nights playing Euchre or Clue. There's the original 1950s board game at the lake, and since it's one of my favorite games, I convinced Rori to play with me. She quickly became obsessed with it, too, so we had a blast playing it over and over with Tracy & Kirsti.

Overall, we just had the best time up there. It was so relaxing and so fun to be with family (and of course I love it that my mom is here; we miss her whenever she's not); it was undoubtedly one of the happiest parts of our summer.




I love this gorgeous view of the lake






All tuckered out on Saturday afternoon, so napping on Daddy




Playing school with Rori

Our trip to the Dells

On Sunday, July 10, we headed up to the Wisconsin Dells for our annual trip to Wilderness on the Lake. We had such a great time; we stayed in the condos there like we've been doing for the past 7-8 years, and there is such a beautiful view of Lake Delton from our screened-in porch. It was incredibly hot most of the time we were up there, which is perfect for swimming! Kate loved the kids' pool. There was this kids' slide that had about five steps to get up, so I would stand there as she crawled up (so that she didn't fall backward) and then as soon as she got up, I stood at the bottom to catch her when she came down. She certainly didn't need much help though! She is so independent, she loved going down the slide by herself. She would often go down literally 20 times in a row. Now, if only that independence included sleeping by herself... one can only dream!

At night, we had a great time just hanging out in the condo and playing cards or watching movies (Rori brought up White Chicks, which is an absolutely hilarious movie that you can watch over and over without getting bored). As always, we said that three nights were not enough, so we're thinking that next year, we'll have to do four.






The beautiful view from our room; too bad the screen is so noticeable!


Is she a baby Dan or what?


Entranced by the TV; we never let her watch, so she was thrilled that she could watch Dora the Explorer (or whatever Rori was watching; can't quite remember)

She made my day!

I've been awfully busy with work the past week or so, which means I have to do some work when Kate is awake (which I hate to do; I like to get it all done when she's sleeping). Today, Kate was sitting next to me on the couch eating breakfast while I was updating our group on LinkedIn. She saw my headshot on there, pointed to it, looked at me (and it was clear she understood the picture was of me) and said, "Pretty!"

Never knew such a little thing could make my day :)

More pictures of Kate

On Tuesday, July 5, I decided to take Kate to the zoo, since she always loves that. We had the best time; there is an entire family (mom, dad, baby) of lions, and we got to see them romping and playing with each other, instead of just laying there like they normally do. Kate kept patting her chest and saying, "kitty, kitty, kitty" like she does when she wants Maxine to come to her. I don't think these are the type of cats you want to come over to you!

We of course went on the carousel, since that is one of her favorite things to do. We also rode the train, but she didn't like that nearly as much, and I didn't think it was worth it, since it didn't go around the whole zoo like I expected, but rather just a small part of it.

We also went to the zoo on Friday with Meghan and Adelaide. My mom was here by then (she got in on Wednesday the 6th) and she had a hair appointment downtown, so I took her to that and then went with Kate to meet Meghan & Adelaide at the zoo. We had a great time; Adelaide and Kate are to that age now where they really interact with each other. We rode the carousel with them, too, and they were both so excited! Kate was kicking her legs like she does whenever she's excited, and Adelaide was clapping and laughing. It was so cute! Afterward, Kate & I went to the lunch at the Laurel with my mom. I was hoping Meghan and Adelaide could come, but Meghan thought it was too close to her naptime. But my mom and I really enjoyed our lunch there; that is one of my favorite places.


Her shirt says Mommy's Little Sparkler; boy, is she!


Playing in the part of the play area that's like a fossil


Happy to be on her zebra. I obviously ride with her; I just stepped back so I could take a picture of her.








Proudly showing off her UW sleeper. Go Badgers!


Learning to feed yourself is messy business! (And yes, I stay right there to ensure there's no issue with poking herself with a fork)


Forks aren't for combing hair, silly!



All ready to go to the Original Pancake House on Saturday, July 9 (we met my grandparents, Tracy and Kirsti there). We say she looks like she's ready to play tennis; I love this outfit!

New Year's Resolution #4 Complete!

With Dan's paycheck on the 15th of July, we paid off my second (and last) student loan. We're so excited; it feels good to get so much of this debt paid off, so if we ever have to go down to one income (since my company isn't the most stable), it'll be a lot more doable.

And, that means that in the not-quite-four years we've been following the Dave Ramsey plan, we've paid off 73,000 worth of debt. Yay!

Our Fourth of July

Sorry I've been so bad about updating; we have been having a fantastic time this summer with my mom here, but that doesn't leave much time for blogging! Our 4th of July was a lot of fun; Dan, Kate & I went with Kirsti and Rori to a parade in Columbus; I thought that a parade seemed like a fun, old-fashioned way to spend the day. Afterward, we went to Tracy & Dan's to spend the rest of the day with them, my grandparents, and Roberta. We had fun grilling out and swimming in their new pool (especially since it was so hot out!) We tried to stay for the fireworks we always set off, but Kate was too tired, so we headed home.


Uh, how do I work this thing?






Some old cars we saw at the parade.




A close-up of the watermelon cookies I brought to the get-together at the Hines.




The girls in their red, white and blue--Kate looks like she's trying to escape!