June Currently

Digging: around in the flowerbeds.  I actually mulched the back flowerbeds last week on a weird Wednesday afternoon when I was home and Max was napping. Lots of things are just about to bloom - coneflowers, iris, lilies and more!

Eating: lunch at work more (instead of going out) and trying to pack my lunch the night before.  I'm also sneaking some chocolate chip cookies left over from a get together with some girlfriends.

Listening: to my I-tunes playlist - more specifically "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten - it pumps me up in the morning.

Drinking: chai tea lattes on the way to work this week

Wearing: my uniform - it's camp season - which means I always have to be in uniform in case a guest of parent of a camper needs something.

Reading: well I just finished a cute book called "Lizzy and Jane" and now I'm onto a much thicker book called "The Goldfinch".

Feeling: anxious about the potty training we sort of started with Max.  It's harder than I thought it would be - and we're only on day 2! I think we will have to commit to staying home (so we can set a timer or something) and I hate staying home!

Weather: so rainy - while good for the plants - it can stop anytime now - we have weekend plans! 

Wanting: find the perfect bathing suit. One that doesn't scream "mom suit" - but I definitely need the tummy coverage!

Needing: the alterations lady to hurry up with all my dresses :)  I took four dresses to be hemmed (short people problems)

Wishing: our new sliding glass door would hurry up and get installed...come on Champion windows!

Watching:  Orange is the New Black - third season and Bachelorette.

Enjoying: sugar snap peas (THAT I GREW) in my garden on my salad for lunch.

Loving:  my gel nails and getting my hair blown out.

Thanks for reading :)  You're the BEST...Imagine Max handing you some flowers through the screen!

XoXO

summer adventures no.2

Our second summer fun item is going to be an ongoing adventure through 

eight of the Delaware Parks to do some letterboxing.  

Never heard of it?  Don't feel bad - we hadn't either. 

But, it's basically like a treasure hunt within the park. 

We registered our family at the library and got the "clue book". 

This book contains all of the maps, park info, and clues you would need

to find each letterbox. 

Auntie Stacy came along for our first experience at Shale Hollow Preserve!

The clues are very simple (i.e. find the tree with the beetle markings and turn left).

And eventually, you discover the actual letterbox! (see below).

The inside of the box contains a stamp, stamp pad, "conservation hero", and 

memo pad for recording your name. Max was less than impressed with the contents 

of the box, until he realized we could use the stamp not just in his book, 

but on his body.  He loves getting stamps on his belly now (thanks to We Joy Sing). 

So we stamped him up, signed our name, rehid the box and were on our way. 

Previous to our trip to Hocking Hills, I wouldn't have thought

to bring a toddler hiking, but now - I kind of like having him along. 

Max forces us to go slower and look at everything - we

try to find bugs, look under logs for salamanders, throw 

rocks in the creek (bonus points if they skip on the water)

and generally just appreciate things more. 

Shale Hollow is aptly named for all of the thin shale rocks that

are on the banks of all the creeks! We saw tons of chipmunks, 

a water snake, and even a chipmunk SWIMMING through the water! Crazy!

Our second adventure took us to Emily Trapehagen Park
early on a Sunday morning. This park was perfect because it had
a pretty cool playground and lots of different habitats to explore too!
The trail hike was a little bit longer this time but Max actually walked quite
a bit more too - so no complaints here. (And when you can't walk, no better
place to sit than Daddy's shoulders, right?)

The actual letterbox wasn't hidden that well, but never fear, Eagle Scout Rob
used all his camouflaging techniques to fix that!

I just love getting outside!  If I pass on anything to Max (other than his curly hair) - 

I truly hope that he loves nature and learns to appreciate our wonderful planet!

The best part of completing the letterbox adventure?  

Well, the snacks of course! :)  

We have six more letterboxes to find...so stay tuned!

xxOO

Max's Favorite Books vol.1

 

I have a small confession to make.  While I really love the idea of

scrapbooking, collecting all the supplies, hoarding all the washi tape,

and keeping up with the details of our every day life - I haven't actually

done any of it since the end of December.  Gasp!  I know!

 

Now, I still take pictures like crazy, instagram like it's my (second) job,

and use the collect app on my phone to jot down our day to day happenings -

but honestly, this blog has become my little scrapbook.

 

So, while today's post doesn't contain a whole lot of pictures of Max

(which I know you come here for :) - I still consider it important because

how else will I know the books I read over and over when Max was 25 months old??

 

As you can see from the picture - it's all about trains, animals, and other randomness.

 

1.) Tuck me In - this was a book a received at one of my showers (from my mom I think)

but it's basically saying good night to a bunch of different animals.  The pages are

halved, so when you flip them it looks like you are "tucking" in the animal by covering them with a blanket. Max loves identifying the animals and then flipping their blankets on them.

 

2.)  Roadwork - a random purchase at Kroger's (our local grocery store) believe it or not.

Some people add chapstick and tic tacs to their baskets at the last minute...I've been known to throw in a book :) Max likes seeing all the construction equipment on each page. He also loves to point out the construction workers eating lunch and having milk.

 

3.) Goodnight Dump Truck - this was a gift from Grandpa Jim I believe - and I'm sure caught Max's eye due to the cover (which has a large dump truck on it). Each page has a construction vehicle on it - starting with the vehicles you see working during the day - all the way to those that work through the night (snow plows). 

 

4.)  Chick a Chicka Boom Boom - this book is a zoom through the alphabet and is catchy because of the rhythm of the words.  Max likes to go "boom boom" and practically has it memorized.  He frequently requests this during bath time.

 

5.)  Red Truck - a gift from Auntie Stacy.  She likes to pick out a book for everyone at Christmas (which is a tradition I personally love). It sat untouched for a long time - but now we've read it so many times, Max has it completely memorized.  He loves the page where it reads "red truck can, red truck will".

 

6.) Peedie - a silly book I brought out at Easter, last year.  The illustrations are adorable - and the little gosling can't remember where he put his beloved red hat.  I like to read this but also ask Max questions about the objects on the pages.  (i.e. where is the frog? can you find the butterfly?)

 

7.) Trains Go - another Christmas gift!  I knew this would be a hit because we got it from the library first.  It's not text heavy - but does require a bit of animation when it comes to making all the sounds for the different trains.  Max will take care of the speed train sound though - he knows it goes "whoooooooooooooooosh"! And he likes to look for the caboose.

 

8.)  Little Blue Truck - another we've had forever!  At first, he couldn't sit still long enough to read this one - but now he loves to look for all of the farm animals, and make the "beep" sound.  It's a winner for sure - and has a good message about teamwork!

 

9.) Dear Zoo - clearly this was going to be part of our collection - and I bought it for Max when I went to a conference last year in Chicago. He has loved it from the start - at first just because he could lift the flaps...but now he can identify the animals and their sounds. My favorite is the camel :)

 

I love that he's getting into reading more and can sit long enough to read longer books.

If it has a dinosaur, train, vehicle, funny animal, or is just plain silly, he will love it!

He's also starting to drag out bedtime by requesting more stories...it's hard to deny his

requests because who doesn't love cuddling up with a good book?!

xoxo



summer adventure no.1

For the last couple of summers, I have made a "summer fun list" in which I list

out activities that would be fun to do around the house or town.  These ideas usually range from 

something simple like chalk paint to a little more involved like Zoombeezi Bay! 

This weekend felt like a good time to get started on our list....and so we headed 

out to Plain City, Ohio to pick some strawberries!

Sidenote:  I'm pretty sure Rob thinks I'm nuts when I create these lists...but

usually always goes along with the shenanigans. 

Strawberry season is pretty short (not to mention weather dependent) so it

was kind of this weekend or never. We bundled up (it was chilly for June!) and 

actually had a lot of fun.

We pulled up to the patch, the ladies gave us our basket, 

and we were off in no time.  There were rows and rows

of berries to be picked but they place you in certain areas 

(probably to give some rows more time to ripen, and

to make sure other rows don't get over picked). 

At first Max was in charge of holding the basket and dropping

the strawberries in.  But then, he got a little more 

adventurous and began to tell us, which ones to pick.

He also managed to pull a few of the smaller strawberries

off the vine himself.  (Fun fact: did you know strawberries

ripen from the top down?) 

We only ended up picking a basket full because 

Max and I are the only ones who like strawberries. 

But, I actually wish we would have picked more 

because they tasted just like candy!  Seriously - 

they were so sweet and unlike the grocery store strawberries.

Towards the end, it was getting pretty cold and our

basket was over flowing, so we headed back to the car. 

Max seemed very proud of his contribution 

and liked the idea of using the strawberries to make 

smoothies with later! 

This final picture cracks me up because he looks like he's about

to grab a strawberry right off the top! ha!

This is definitely a tradition we will probably repeat

because the berries were so yummy!

xoxo