Park Outing in December

Ben had the day after Christmas off from work, so we took advantage of the unusually warm December day and headed to the park to play and ride bikes. (All month has been pretty nice - 40-degree temps in Chicago at this time of year are a treat!!) Look at those blue skies!

First, here's Ben showing off on the playground... :)

Then Eli copying him -  

 Climbing Charlie:

 It was high noon when we were at the park, so the sun was pretty intense and overhead, but I liked the effect on the photos. 

Charlie had a nice juice mustache from indulging in cranberry juice at breakfast. We don't usually give our kids juice, but I'm okay with it on holidays/vacation/when we're not at our house.

Love these boys! They are so fun.

(I will post Christmas pictures soon!)

Monday Night at the Park

On Monday night, we drove to a huge park so Ben and Paul could throw a frisbee around and the kids could play on the playground. The kids were so cute that evening and it was a little surreal to be outside at the park in the middle of January. 

 

Nature Walk, Playing at the Park, and In-N-Out

On Tuesday morning, Paul had to go in to school for a bit, so Becca took us to a nearby park for a little nature walk and to play at the park. 

 Photographing cactus never gets old!!

 Rocky mountains - 

 I wouldn't want to be poked with one of these - 

 It's so great that parks there have these canopies to shield the sun and keep the kids a little cooler, especially for the hot months. The sun is so intense there. 

 After the park, we swung through In-N-Out for some yummy burgers and headed home for the kids' naps. 

Some Highlights (and Lowlights)

The kids I used to nanny for always share highlights and lowlights at dinner each night, and for some reason I had a running list of highlights and lowlights going through my head this morning. Here are a few of them:

Highlight: Going swimming yesterday with some friends. I don't think Eli had been in a pool since he was a baby and it was funny watching him get used to walking around in water. He got the hang of it after a while, but in the beginning he looked pretty tipsy and went under a few times. Charlie was asleep in his car seat for the first half, but then woke up and I brought him in the pool too. I was grateful for help from my friend who helped me with my kids the rest of the time!

Lowlight: Wearing a bathing suit on for the first time after having Charlie. It's one thing to put it on; it's another to wear it in a pool, where it clings to every un-toned, chubby part of your body. Not my favorite thing.

Highlight: Deciding I'd better get my butt outside this morning and exercise since it was a nice day. I threw the boys in the stroller, jogged for about four blocks, and walked fast the rest of the time :) I am not in shape, but it felt good to get out and we walked for more than an hour along the lake. I love living near Lake Michigan!

Lowlight: We stopped at the park on the way home - Eli was getting restless by the end of our walk and I knew he would be happy to run around on the playground and dig in the sand. However, Charlie soon became hungry and was really fussy, so we needed to leave and go home. Eli threw a HUGE fit, screaming, kicking, yelling, "NOOOOOOOOOO" as I put him in the stroller. The park was full of nannies talking on their cell phones and a group of moms who all seemed to know each other (they all had the same look - tall, skinny, 35+, with well groomed toddlers - I really looked like the mom who didn't belong) and I was embarrassed to draw attention like that.

Highlight: Eli cheered up when we came home, ate lunch, and happily played in the bathroom while I took a long shower (Charlie went down for a nap before that). I love listening to him play happily and I love when taking a shower is not stressful.

Lowlight: I've had hip/muscle pain on my right side for the last week now. I have a feeling it's related to carrying Charlie in his car seat, because it is SO heavy. I know that my core is still weak from being pregnant/having a baby, so it seems like my other muscles are compensating and something strange is going on. It strange--it hurts pretty much all the time, though it's much worse when I'm carrying the car seat or standing on my right foot when I'm getting dressed and not as bad if I'm just walking around without carrying anything/anyone. Has anyone else had this hip pain before??

I'll end on a highlight: It's a beautiful day! The sun is shining, it's in the 70s and just a little humid, so it feels perfect. I'm happy it's almost the weekend. AND - both boys are napping right now! I'm really thankful for some time for myself.

Eli's First Fish

Yesterday we went to a nearby park that has a pond with blue gill and ducks. Eli had his first fishing experience and loved it! I'm sad Ben was gone at work, but it was fun that Eli got to experience it with his grandparents, who instilled a love for fishing in Ben at a young age.

Larry had dug up 10 worms earlier in the morning from our back yard, and it was the perfect amount for Eli's quick attention span :) They caught three fish total and it was all pretty fast. The wind was blowing and it was pretty chilly... brrr!

Fish #1

Fish #2



Fish #3
We threw each one back in the pond, but I was a little worried about this last one. Eli had fun holding it (being as gentle as a one-year-old can be), and thankfully the fish swam off when he landed back in the water.
Done with fishing, running over to the playground!
It was a fun morning at the park!