Happy Birthday Uncle Peter!

Uncle Peter and all the nieces and nephews.. there are a lot of them!

We had such a fun time together as a family celebrating Uncle Peter's birthday on Monday. The kids ran around and played.. the adults got to chat.. and everyone got to enjoy some very yummy cake (with buttercream frosting.. Peter's favorite). It was a great night! 

Happy Birthday~ We love you Uncle Peter!

An Apple A Day...

They say an apple a day keeps the doctor away...

Well maybe not the doctor.. but hopefully silly big brothers! 

(The stuff Cole is playing with is called Floam... seriously the coolest thing ever! He got it at preschool and it has been a HUGE hit at our house.)

Oops!

I just realized while I was looking at my blog, that I never put up a post about our newest family member. Oops! I don't have the picture on my computer... and thanks to the flooding in our area.. I am not even entirely sure which tote it ended up in. (we moved our whole basement upstairs.. and thanks to a forecasted second crest... I have not moved my scrapbooking or pictures back downstairs.) Anyway.. We are having another BOY! Can you believe it?! Four boys! Madison was so sad when she found out.. but has now grown to love the idea of another brother. Her response when someone says, are you excited for another brother? "Yeah.. besides, mom can just get another baby in her tummy next and this time it can be a sister." You have got to love the mind of a 6 year old.  For those of you wondering... NO.. we will not be having another child. smile. Soon I will find our ultrasound pics and post one. I promise! 

Day One.. The Drive..

Are We There Yet?

The question was only asked once... which was pretty impressive considering we actually spent 12 hours in the car in one day. The kids did great. Thank goodness for Leapsters, books, coloring pages, Nintendo DS, and the laptop to watch movies. Ah.. modern day entertainment.. how would we travel without it?? 

Day Two.. Our First Day in Chicago

Boys at the zoo... Girls at the American Girl Doll store. Fun!

The boys (Ryan, Ethan, Cole, Kai and Eric) headed to the zoo for the day. They loved it! The got to see two bears fighting in the water, dolphins swimming, a polar bear, and play with a seal. Plus lots of other cool things... according to Ethan. smile. The bummer was that lots of the exhibits were closed because it was still so cold. But the boys didn't seem to mind. Ethan loved the bears fighting in the water. Cole loved the giant alligator. Kai laughed and laughed at the seal swimming.  But the best part.. the pizzas and icee drinks for lunch. Go figure!

Mom, Madison, Christine, and Emily headed in to downtown Chicago for a girls day. We headed straight to the American Girl doll store. All that Madison asked for for her birthday was an American Girl doll that looked like her. (well.. and a puppy.. but that is another story. smile) Christine had set up a special birthday lunch for Madison. It was so much fun. The dolls even had a place to sit for lunch.. complete with their own cup and saucer. So cute! Madison was so excited to see them walk out with a birthday cake just for her. What a fun lunch! Then it was off to find the doll that looked just like her. After the American Girl doll store, the girls got to shop at the Disney store. They both got matching pjs. It was an amazing day! One I know that both Mom and Madison will not soon forget!

Day Three...

The Jelly Belly Factory!

The crew on the train waiting for the tour to start and getting on our awesome hats!

The Jelly Belly man.. made completely of Jelly Belly candies. Way cool!

The whole crew... minus Christine, who had to work.. headed to the Jelly Belly Factory for the afternoon. We got to ride a train through the factory.. so cool. They don't allow pictures during the tours. Bummer for the scrapaholic mom.. there was some great photo ops. smile. After the tour, we all got a bag of Jelly Belly treats. The kids all picked out a Jelly Belly gummy alligators. The parents.. a bag of the famous Belly Flops.. irregular sized and shaped Jelly Bellies. It was so much fun!

Day Four...

~ Shedd's Aquarium ~

We got to all head in to downtown Chicago and spend the day at Shedd's Aquarium. It was such a beautiful day.. and thankfully it was not too crazy. The kids loved the aquarium almost as much as the parents. It was a great day!

The kids on a sea turtle

Madison, Emily, Cole & Christine checking out a giant sting-ray

Daddy and Kai checking out some HUGE fish

Cole pointing to the water snake.. his favorite

Madison got tired out from walking... so she took a break in the stroller

Ethan getting his face painted.. a hammer head shark.. cool.

Madison's sea horse

Cole's smiling shark

The whole family against the Chicago skyline

The four kiddos!

Eric, Christine and Emily.. such a cute family!

Thanks guys! We love you!

Day Five.. the Drive Home

We all had such a great time in Chicago. The weather was beautiful, the kids had a blast and it was so much fun to catch up with our friends. The drive back was pretty uneventful... until just before Fergus... then the rain came.. and it came hard. So the last hour of our trip turned in to more than an hour. Thankfully.. the kids fell asleep. smile. Thanks Eric, Christine and Emily for hosting us and entertaining us. We love you guys! Hope to do it again sometime soon.. as a family of 7! smile.