princess

chicago with gwyneth

Annabelle asked to spend the day with my mom and her cousins while B, Gwyneth and I explored the city. I think the girls were pretty happy with their decisions and were equally spoiled. 
Our day started with a trip to the Art Institute of Chicago. I’ve always loved that museum and I couldn’t wait to share it with G. There are so many amazing paintings and she soaked it all in.

After our morning at the art museum we grabbed Chicago style pizza at Giordano’s. The timing was perfect because it started to rain just as we hopped in line. We waited out the storm with delicious pizza.

We opted for the thin crust and it was even better than I remembered. 

After lunch we needed to walk off all that pizza so we explored Michigan Avenue. 

Another trip to the candy store.

We grabbed drinks on the 96th floor of the Hancock Tower. We had a great seat right by the window.

Then dinner at Carson’s ribs. Another favorite from the years we lived in Chicago. 
We did lots more walking and then ended up at the Cafe Luxe for late night desserts. 
It was a pretty great day with our baby girl!

the 4th in Chicago

After lunch we took the Amtrak from Milwaukee to Chicago. It’s a quick, easy trip and the girls thought it was pretty great. 
We checked into our hotel and met up with my mom. We stayed at the Omni Hotel in Chicago which is in the best location; walking distance to trains and so many great landmarks. We were in the heart of the city and loving it. 
We cruised Michigan Avenue and went to a few of our favorite stores. Everything was closing early because it was the 4th of July but we still got to do some great window shopping. 
A quick stop at the American Girl Store. 
Then, of course, the lego store next door. 
dinner at Ditkas
Dylan’s candy bar
We walked to Lakeshore drive and fought the crowds to get a sight of the fireworks. As we were walking back to our hotel we got caught in quite the downpour. Annabelle is pretty freaked out by thunderstorms and was not liking that one bit. We cowered in a covered bus stop with several other tourists and waited for the rain to let up. We were finally able to grab a cab, but we couldn’t all fit. The storm was letting up so B took the girls in the cab and my mom and I walked back to the hotel. It was a crazy night! 
When we got back to the hotel, Annabelle begged YaYa to take her home with her. She got YaYa all to herself and was able to spend the next day with her cousins. She was a pretty happy girl and G didn’t seem too disappointed to be spoiled by us. 

milwaukee | day 2

My sister, Becky and her family drove up to Milwaukee to spend the day with us. I was so glad to have them join us! The girls were thrilled to have the day with their cousins. It was kid day at the ballpark so we were able to get some pretty cheap tickets for the game. We had so much fun and the day was full of baseball and laughs…and everyone fighting to hold that little baby. 
Luckily we are Chicago bound after this, because Becky and her family headed home for the night and the girls did not get enough time with their cousins!

milwaukee | day 1

We were up bright and early for our flight from St. Louis to Milwaukee. It was a super quick flight – just one hour! We had one day to explore the city before my sister’s family drove up to meet us. We were all so excited for them to arrive — we all love that little family and were ready to get our hands on that little baby. 
First stop: Pabst Mansion
Then off to the Lakefront Brewery for lunch
We spent the afternoon exploring Discovery World. It’s a great children’s museum right on the lake. Gorgeous views.
We finished off our evening with dinner at Mader’s Restaurant. It was a busy day with a bright and early start and we were all ready to crash into our beds that evening! 

saint louis arch

We grabbed lunch at Fitz’s, which has delicious root beer, and then headed downtown to check out the arch. We parked a few blocks away and cut through the Old Court House. It’s so beautiful and up next for renovations. 
This picture cracked me up. You know, summer in Saint Louis!
We got a sneak peak of the new arch museum. It looks really great and the girls had a great job exploring. 
After the arch we celebrated mine and Annabelle’s birthdays with dinner at the Capital Grill. 
We finished the night with a special light show at the Botanic Gardens.

swimming in st louis

We arrived in St. Louis just in time for lunch. We hit my favorite place in town — Rigazzi’s. We enjoyed St. Louis pizza, fried ravioli, provel cheese sticks, and of course, fishbowls! It was an extremely indulgent lunch and we loved every minute of it. 
The sun was blazing, but my gals appeased me for a picture. 
We had planned to head to the city museum, but the girls were not the least bit interested. They were hot and had their mind set on swimming. We went back to my dad’s house and he hopped in with them. We watched some golf while the girls swam the afternoon away. 
My dad brought out a bunch of pool toys for the girls. It kept them entertained for hours. 

DIA staycation

We met up with B’s cousin, Amanda who was visiting Colorado for a work conference. It was great to see her! She is such a sweet gal. We grabbed lunch at 5280 Burger Bar downtown. We had plenty of time to catch up and we appreciate so much that she took time out of her visit to meet up with us. 
After lunch we dropped Ryan and Reagan off with B’s dad and we set off for the airport. We had an early morning flight…early, early! We treated ourselves to a stay at the airport. The price tag is hefty, but when you wake up in the morning you walk a few paces and are already at security. At 6 am that’s a wonderful benefit. 
We grabbed dinner at the hotel restaurant, Grill & Vine. It was ok. I think we need to give it another try during our next stay. We shared a few different small plates, but want to give the entrees a try. 
After dinner we hit the pool, which may have the most wonderful views I’ve seen in quite some time. The pool is on the top floor of the hotel and you look out over the runways. We were able to watch the airplanes line up for take off and one after one take off into the sky. It was a beautiful view! So lovely and relaxing. It was a night to remember. 
Taking in the views
Annabelle is the queen of the pool handstand.
Showers and slumber and ready for our big trip ahead. 

newsies

We got to spend an evening with Ryan and Reagan while their parents were in Hawaii. We had tickets to see Newsies and luckily were able to add two additional seats. We all had a great time at the show. It wasn’t one of my favorites before, but redeemed itself for me this evening. I really enjoyed it. I’m a sucker for some good tap dancing. 

happy birthday, annabelle

Happy, happy 11th birthday to our amazing Annabelle!
Both of our girls’ birthdays fall on Wednesday this year which just happens to be B’s busiest workday of the week. It’s not negotiable that he will be at the kitchen. He was disappointed to not be able to spend the entire day with the girls but made arrangements to be there in the evening. 
We spent our day in Boulder. We stopped by the Verizon store to get a phone upgrade, but were turned away because Annabelle had a tiny crack in her old phone. With insurance, it was $100 to replace the old phone and then simply turn around and return it for a new phone. There was a lot of soul searching on this one and Annabelle decided she wanted to use her birthday money to get her old phone fixed so she could go forward with the upgrade. Although it was her money to do as she pleased, we spent most of our lunch talking through the pros and cons of her decision. In the end the decision was hers and once it was made she didn’t look back. 
We had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen in Boulder. I made a big stink about it being her birthday to both the host and the server, but they didn’t make a stink for her. I didn’t want a free dessert, I just wanted them to come out singing and embarrass her a little. Ha! We had a lovely lunch and the girls even let me snap a few pictures. 
This is my favorite. This is Annabelle. I love that laugh.
After lunch Annabelle requested a visit to the Celestial Seasonings Factory. I’m not a coffee drinker, but I can drink some tea! I really love it and the girls do too. 
We didn’t have to wait long for our tour, but we made great use our time in the tasting room. We tried so many different teas and found several new favorites. 
Annabelle’s favorite is the peppermint and she could easily outlast us in the “mint” room on the tour.
We made it home in time to pick up B and head out for dinner. Annabelle’s request was for salad at Olive Garden. After dinner we headed downtown for a special 40th anniversary showing of Grease at the IMAX. I haven’t watched that movie all the way through in quite some time. It was a blast seeing it on the big screen and watching the girls bop along in their seats. It was such a fun day celebrating our Miss Annabelle. I’m so lucky to be her mom!
I tried to gather 11 pictures of my sweet girl for this special day….but once I started I couldn’t stop with just 11. I sure do love this little lady.

paint with tape

I’ve been teaching classes at Color Me Mine and was ready for this week’s class. I was going to teach the kids to paint with tape. We had a small turnout and friends showed up to take me out for a late birthday celebration. My staff offered to take over the party for me. Everyone was happy and I was feeling quite spoiled.