Mama, Max, and Papa - June 2015

I have finally decided to document Max's third year of life by photographing

some mama, Max, and Papa favorites each month.

Let's pretend I'm not a month behind already...mmmmkay?

 

This is what Mama, Max, and Papa were into during June 2015.

 

READING: Lizzy and Jane/ Dinosaur Books/ Twitter

 



WEARING:  Saltwater Sandals/ "Flip flops"/ Homage t-shirts

 

EATING:  All the Cheeses sticks/ Popsicles by the box/ Custom Breakfast cereal

LOVING: Oils/ Thomas the Train/ Sound Link mini

MAKING: Mickey Mouse Sandwiches/ Sticker messes/ Dinner for all of us

 WATCHING: Orange is the New Black/ Mickey Mouse Road Rally/ This Old House

 



WORKING ON: Growing Peas/ Sitting in a Booster/ Getting the Clematis to Climb

 

I'm hoping the results of this project will yield a sort of visual time capsule of our lives

this year.  This is the kind of stuff I'm totally interested in about my own childhood.  Heck, even about my own parents. So, I hope I can keep this up :)

 

Don't worry - I will also try to post any funny tidbits of conversation Max drops on us too.

Just as a preview...tonight he said "mommy, I have a good idea. (pause). I want to paint on

my legs".  And, because he was already practically naked in our backyard.  And because you're only two once (when else is appropriate to have tiger stripes on your legs?).  I let him.

You do you, Max. :)

 

Xoxo

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

Hocking Hills Weekend

We hit the road this weekend for Hocking Hills. 

The trip started out as an excuse to get away for Auntie Stacy's birthday

(and was initially just going to be girls...) but then we decided it would

be more fun as a group and to keep it local.

 

This is an area only about an hour south of us - but so different than Columbus.

We headed down on Friday and left on Monday (Memorial Day) just after lunch.

Fair warning - this post is going to be super photo heavy...but hopefully you'll

find that it's worth it :)

 

Papa Rob had to work on Friday, so Auntie Stacy, Max, and I drove

down on Friday (during naptime).  We arrived at our house (which was a little

nerve wracking since I'm the one that booked it - sight unseen). But, thankfully,

the house was just amazing!  It had a game room (complete with dart board,

pool table, and pony for Max to ride), brand new kitchen, family room,

and then three bedrooms.  The master bedroom (which we got because of the walk in closet that perfectly fit our pack n' play) was lofted above the kitchen with a steep ladder.  The ladder was kind of treacherous and Max was obsessed with trying to climb it -

but...the actual sleeping arrangement was perfect.

 

 

We spent the first night exploring the area around the cabin. 

It had a large pond with lots of frogs, a snapping turtle, and even

a salamander! Max loved walking around the pond and tickling all the

frogs and saying "jump mommy!"  There were also lots of big bull frog

tadpoles wiggling around in the water.  Of course, it didn't take long

for him to start tossing rocks in the water too. (What is it with boys and throwing rocks??)

 

We ate dinner each night in the cabin and thus had to bring all our own food.

When we first arrived it looked like we were going to be staying for a week...

but by Monday, we had definitely made a large dent in the food stash.

Since Friday was Auntie Stacy's birthday, we celebrated with "million dollar

spaghetti" made by Mim and grapefruit shandy (my new favorite beer).

I had brought a strawberry cake (which my Mamaw usually makes) and

it survived the whole ride down - and was delicious!

 

After dinner - a rousing game of darts was had by all - and Papa Rob

won easily. It was so nice to just relax and enjoy the company!

 

 

Saturday we had big plans to visit Old Man's Cave, Konkle's Hollow,

and return for lunch/nap. I was nervous about taking a two year old hiking

but I will say I think it's doable for sure.  The secret to our success was

everyone being willing to hold him at different times and also our ERGO carrier.

I thought we were done with the ERGO long ago but I did some refreshing on it

and it turns out you can use it with kids up to 40 pounds.

Carrying Max on our back ended up being super easy. 

He was more than willing to ride there (sometimes requesting it) and then

always wanted to do the stairs (of which there were many) on his own.

 

 

The descent into Old Man's cave was fairly easy - and not too long.

Also - all of the areas were covered with tall trees, amazing rock formations,

and greenery.  Seriously - the damp air under the trees was perfect for ferns,

moss, and lichens of all shapes and sizes. The ferns would just blanket whole sides

of the trail. Once we made it into the cave, we walked along the Upper Gorge trail

for some different views of the area.

 

Conkle's Hollow was a nice hike after Old Man's cave - a little

bit more flat - and full of spring wildflowers (May Apples, Trilliums, Jack in the Pulpit, and more that we didn't recognize). Max was more than willing to crawl up into

the recessed caves, over rocks, and even trees!

 

 

We headed home after a busy morning for some lunch - and

Rob grilled up some hot dogs :) Then, Max headed to his

nook in the loft for nap and I headed out to the deck for some Mama time.

It was so lovely to sit (undisturbed) and read while also listening

to the frogs calling, bees buzzing, and birds calling in the surrounding forest.

 

Saturday evenings activity included a fire built by Eagle Scout Rob.

Seriously, he went out after dinner and had the fire going in like

ten minutes (maybe less than).  It was unreal. We came prepared with

all the smores' supplies! Max got right to work preparing everyone's smore

stick with a marshmallow (seriously - he was obsessed with putting the

marshmallow on) and taking it right over to the fire. He had approximately

one bite of smore and then handed it over to anyone willing to eat it (hello every

adult there) - but loved the grahm cracker.

 

 

Sunday morning dawned and we were ready for another day of hiking.

(I would also like to add that Max was sleeping sooooo late in his nook hideaway - like 7:30, which is basically unheard of in the Hauck's nest). Anyway - we took our well rested selves over to

Cedar Falls and Ash Cave. (Can I also add that driving in this region, while picturesque, also makes

me want to vom because of all the twists, turns, and hills).  Anyway - we arrived (vomit free) and hiked down to see Cedar Falls.  Cedar Falls is actually the most photographed place in the Hocking Hills area (and incorrectly named because they are not Cedar Trees, but rather Hemlock). 

 

Cedar Falls really was gorgeous and we got very close to the actual water.

Mim got Max to dip a toe in before he proclaimed "it cold Mim!"

Rob unintentionally put his whole shoe/foot in the water while trying to

carry Max closer - but never even complained.  #readyforsainthood

 

 

The hike into Ash Cave was through a narrow gorge which

eventually gave way to this HUGE recessed cave.  The cave floor

was sandy - and cave walls were covered in holes of all shapes and sizes. 

Max was convinced that maybe a raccoon (raca-coon is how he says it)

was living in the holes and brought us all over to see and possibly confirm his theory.

Silly boy!  There was also a constant drip (small waterfall?) over the top edge

that Auntie Stacy helped Max stick his hand under. He loved it because she would

set him on a rock and he would stick his hand out and feel the water.

 

 

Another delicious lunch (leftovers for the win!) and glorious nap period

and we were out on the trail again! Our last stop was Rock House.

We weren't quite sure what to expect in this area - but were treated

to probably the only true "cave" in the park. All of our hikes

were comprised of lots and lots of stairs - but this time, the stairs

led us to a cave (technically a cavern carved into the sand stone) - and you could actually walk

through.  It was really dark inside, except for the occasional "window" carved by water

into the sandstone. The geological formations all over Hocking Hills are pretty incredible (despite being very hard on the knees).

 

 

Another fantastic feature of our cabin (and most in the region)

is the hot tub!  I have to say after walking up all those stairs

and then down...and up all over again - the hot tub felt incredible!

 

 

We woke up Monday morning with no real agenda - but didn't have

to check out until 11:00.  So, we lazed around the cabin for a bit -

packed up the remaining food, searched for frogs one last time, and

finally decided to head over to Lake Logan (the only local spot we hadn't been to yet).

We had some trouble locating the actual trail head - and got side tracked

by not one but two nests of Swans!  One of the swans had six babies that

followed along behind her on the lake.  It was so, so, CUTE!

In the end, we attempted to get Max to play in the sand (not to sure about the actual sand on his feet), and ate an early lunch before saying our goodbyes.

 

 

It was such a GREAT weekend! 

We created lots of new family memories and exposed Max to lots of new

experiences.  In fact, we can't wait to go back maybe over the winter!

Thanks for hanging in for this super long recap :)

xoxo

Weekending

Our weekend looked a little like this.

(I'm counting the weekend as starting on Thursday...sort of like being in college all over again...when you go out on Thursday nights and then maybe don't go to class on Friday....). 

Grandpa Jim had to go back to Oregon on Thursday morning (we miss him already!)

It was so fun to see Max and him interact - the two of them content to push trains around for long periods of time, check out new I-pad apps, draw silly pictures, watch Mickey Mouse Club House, and generally just be adorable. 

Thursday evening was the Pirate Island preview party for staff at the Zoo. 

Papa Rob brought Max to the Zoo, we all met up, and walked down to Water's Edge for 

some pizza. After dinner, we gathered up everything and headed to the boat ride entrance. 

There is a huge sign over the entrance with pirates sitting on top...here's where the trouble started.

The pirates would shoot off their cannons and water would mist everywhere

and they would grumble weird pirate talk, and also, did I mention they look like zombies?

Either way, Max was having no part of that business.  We tried, we really did.  

But, the closer we got to the boat, the harder he would cling to us, and then 

the parrot squawked in his ear and it was basically game over. 

We hauled the stroller over the boat ride and walked out...while

Max proclaimed "bye bye pirates".

Friday I spent the day at the Springfield Flea Market with my parents.

This is a tradition we've been taking part in together now for about seven years (I think). 

It's an indoor/outdoor flea market - and the junk is just about everywhere. 

But, if you are willing to bargain (I'm not, I make my parents do it for me!) - you 

can get some pretty sweet stuff. 

 

Came home and we hustled Max into the car for a dinner at Chipotle!  Yum!

Then, we drove to Lowe's to look at and then purchase our annuals for the front yard....

plus six sugar snap pea plants. Ever since our trip to Oregon last summer, I could not stop thinking about growing sugar snap peas (like Grandma Sugar)! I could wander around in the garden center for hours, but it turns out Max would rather splash in every single fountain - so we

wrapped it up pretty quickly and got home. 

Other Friday night happenings included watching Papa Rob mow the grass 

from the safety of the front porch and then the deck. 

Max also conned me into a popsicle before dinner!

To we fair, we split it so I didn't completely spoil his dinner. 

We also conceded to a last minute park visit to burn off some bedtime energy.

This was a new to us park and Max was loving the stepping stones, 

swinging bridge, and small hill to run down and jump off the end step. 

He also had a very dirty diaper while there and we changed it in the car, 

and I taught him to say "it's a doozey".
I 

Saturday morning it was off to work for this mama!

We had our official family day for our grant funded programs (Chase Classroom Safari and Head Start Seedlings sponsored by PNC Bank).

I decided to make it more fun by instagraming every detail. 

The details included all my co-workers, the hotdogs I consumed for lunch, 

the promotions animal visitors, Pirate ambassadors, and all other 

shenanigans that happened. 

After Zoo Day was over, I zoomed back home to tag Papa Rob into work. 

We both don't normally work Saturdays but as the Zoo was expected to have

record breaking crowds - the warehouse needed to be fully staffed up and ready for any emergency! 

I woke Max up from his nap and he immediately wanted to put on his

Mickey Mouse took belt!  Rob said he was pretty into it all morning - even wanting

to nap with it on.  After some negotiating between the two of them, Max relented

to let Rob take it off and lay it just outside of his crib. Such a funny boy!

 





Auntie Stacy let us come over for a visit in the evening (I kind of invited us over...but hey, that's what Aunties are for!) Max hauled out all his toys and continued his fascination with Stacy's cat Dot.

Dot is definitely more tolerant than our cat (Miss Pecan) - but he still hisses from time to time.

Auntie Stacy and Max ran around in the rain...built lego sculptures...shared some animal cookies...all the while I browsed through some of Stacy's clothes.

 

We finished up our visit with dinner at Wendy's where Max gave a rousing rendition of the Pledge of Allegiance (you have to follow Stacy on Instagram to see it).  Side note: The little stinker said it perfectly in the car on the way to Wendy's and Stacy managed to capture it on video and then somehow Max deleted it! Gah!

 



 

On Sunday Max and I met up with our friends Amanda and Ronin.

Ronin and Max go to school together and Max loves him!

We brought donut holes, apple juice and towels (to dry off the playground equipment)

and the boys had a blast!  The danced around, walked all along the stepping stones, chased one

another over and around the playground slides, used the swings...and finally

we convinced them to settle into the wagon so us mama's could catch up! ha!

 



 

                                     

Finally we finished off Sunday by planting all those annuals (geraniums)

in the front yard.  The nap time hustle was in full effect.  I had rolled up all the old tulip leaves, weeded, and then planted even through a few rain showers!  You have to make the most of that long afternoon nap to get things done. Grandpa and Mim arrived during the hustle - and helped us finish up everything.  Thank goodness!

 

Dinner at Jason's Deli...watering the plants...repacking the diaper bag...and

finally off to bed to begin the week again!

XoXO