Kansas City Trip

Posted on April 8, 2013 by lauren

My trip to Kansas City with Ingrid was a much-needed escape and was, for the most part, amazing and wonderful. I would tell you it went without a hitch and that we were both skipping down the sidewalks hand-in-hand, our Swedish girl-braids glinting in the sun and swinging side to side as we laughed and flitted about… but that would have been a lie. Because one does not skip when she is trying with all her might not to soil her pants.

Although I have only dared venture away from my young family with zero children in tow twice, both times I have gotten quite sick only days before I was supposed to leave. The first time, I was pregnant with Emil, on my way to see Mary in Baltimore, and got so sick I ended up down for the count for an entire month and hospitalized twice! Needless to say, that trip was canceled. But this time, the day before I was supposed to leave with Ingrid, when I woke up with a really nasty stomach virus and horrible headache and body aches, even though I felt horrible, I vowed to make myself better (somehow, somehow!) before the trip. I knew that Ingrid had already caught this bug, so I wasn’t worried about getting her sick. I just wanted so badly to go and not miss the concert that she had already bought tickets to… and all the fun we had planned. So I rested as much as I could and even went to bed at 6:30 that night.

By the next morning, I was not 100%, but I was much, much better. So at around noon on Thursday, we left for Kansas City. The drive there was healing. Either the distraction of being with my friend or the giddiness we felt as we drove away from our responsibilities for a couple of days seemed to make my stomach issues take a backseat. We roared with laughter and listened to music and talked and smiled the whole 3 1/2 hours, and when we arrived we were so charmed by the little neighborhood we had decided to stay in (okay, the little neighborhood Ingrid decided on since she is the queen of figuring out what’s cool). We decided to forgo a hotel for AirB&B (where you rent out someone else’s place or in our case, a floor of their house) and it was perfect. So much more personal and interesting (and cleaner, in this case!) than a hotel. Plus, there’s so much character that you can miss when you are closed up inside a hotel. The place we stayed in was in a very hip neighborhood on the Westside of Kansas City with old houses intermixed with modern ones and restaurants, coffee shops, and a couple really cute stores as well. We were a block away from Little Freshie’s (pictured in the first photo of this post and the two directly below), a very simple (and tiny!) coffee shop with amazing coffee (Oddly Correct) and even more amazing orange chocolate chunk scones. They also sold local goodies. I brought back some coffee beans for Andrew and some locally made ketsup for Oliver that was sooooooo much tastier than the sugarbomb that is Heinz ketsup. He actually appreciated it and ate some with his dinner last night! We got settled in and went to dinner at The Westside Local (pictured in the second photo of this post) which had amazing food (having not eaten anything the previous day or that morning, or for lunch… okay, I was starving). Their parmesan parsley french fries were incredible and though I could only stomach a few, their gloriousness was not lost on me.

Later that evening we experienced Sigur Ros. I do not say this lightly: they are incredible, but seeing one of their shows is crucial to understanding just how amazing they are! And there were all walks of life at this show, which was just baffling but really cool to see: a bible-thumping mother with her teenage son; a (maybe autistic) guy with his partner(?) spouse(?) daughter(?); a whole lot of hipsters; a whole lot of hippies; a few just average normal types; old old people; young young people; people of every color and shape and size. And they all seemed to be having a wonderful time, bundled up in coats and blankets and scarves (or in my case, all of the above) under an open sky full of stars. Even through some pretty nasty… eh, em… issues with my lower GI… it was still an incredible concert. We had a great place to go “home” to, and slept in a bit the next morning before heading out to check out the city. We drove around quite a bit looking for cool vintage clothing shops that had unfortunately closed, but we did find a great flea market and spent the entire day looking through them as long as we wanted to. It was a serious novelty!

Our second night we ended up staying in and chatting and flipping through channels after we realized we were too late to catch a movie, but the down time was really nice too. And frankly, neither of us felt like getting all dressed up to walk to First Fridays (opening of all the art galleries down the street from where we were staying) but another time when we are feeling glamorous, we shall be back, Kansas City! We both picked up a few little things for the kids (vintage books and a firetruck for my boys) and I found a great pair of vintage Frye boots in my size that I ended up wearing all weekend long (not that I need another pair of boots… you see my weakness?) and an old kitchen scale that Milo has had a great lot of fun with weighing different items.

I returned to a bunch of little boys in a bathtub chatting away, and a very tired but happy Andrew. While I was off galavanting with my girlfriend, he had managed to take them all around town for fun times and nearly finished pulling up grass in the back yard for the expanded garden plan. We spent the rest of the weekend outdoors, mostly in the back yard, working and smiling and getting rosy cheeks in the sunshine. And by Sunday, my virus seemed to have completely taken off, leaving me appreciative of health, family, friends, good weather, and hard work ahead.

Stitches

Posted on January 3, 2013 by lauren

*** Turn back now if you are weak-stomached!***

On the last night of our trip, we left the nine cousins under the care of three very capable family members and headed to downtown Cincinnati for dinner and a concert. It was the first time all six of us had gone out together since before we had kids 7 years or so ago. We made it through dinner and were just getting settled into our seats as the opening band played, when we got word of Oliver’s accident: he had fallen down the entire flight of basement stairs (the kind edged in metal) and had a nasty cut on his eyebrow that would likely require stitches.

Andrew and I raced back in what was the longest car ride ever, knowing that Oliver was in good hands, but wanting desperately to be there to comfort him and see for ourselves that he was alright. We arrived to find him chatting away, partially lying down on Andrew’s cousin’s lap while she held a towel against his eyebrow. She uncovered him to reveal an inch-long gash on his eyebrow that was not deep, but gaped in a way that made me queasy. It was obvious that he needed stitches.

The whole time, Oliver kept talking in an animated, excited voice about how he had been allowed to have a Christmas tree cookie (!) after he fell down the stairs! He didn’t complain once about his head or eye, which was slowly swelling shut. We checked the rest of his body for broken bones while we waited for Andrew’s mom and stepdad to arrive (both doctors, thank goodness) and assess the situation. When they arrived, they quickly got to work. Michael had brought with him enough supplies to stitch up five little boys. They got some clean towels, washed up, and opened sterile supplies. The worst part of it all was when they had to give him shots to numb the area. I stood behind his head, tears stinging my eyes as I knew I could not take the pain away and even being in his view made everything somehow worse. I stood back and watched.

Seeing everything from a step away was really amazing. All of these people who loved Oliver and knew him were helping him in the most intimate and basic way. They were stitching him back together and telling him stories to distract him. Gina and Andrew held his focus, telling him elaborate stories with details only Oliver would appreciate. Gina made him giggle and soon the stitches were complete- 5 of them to hold his baby skin together while it healed. This was when I grabbed my camera.

Maybe the desire to document this event in photographs disturbs you. And that is fine. But it comes from a place deep within me. A place that, once my mothering instincts were satisfied, took over. It seemed important to me in a way that I can’t explain, other than the observation that there was so much love and attention and careful tenderness coming from these people who are part of Oliver. Their hands holding his, not only to keep him still, but to reassure him. The relationship between father (sewer) and daughter (assistant and headlamp-holder) was touching. The concern and interest on the face of Oliver’s youngest uncle, Austin. It was beautiful and I couldn’t resist.

And mostly, my need to document this comes from a place of love. I want Oliver to see the story, not just hear about it. And I think that when he looks back on these photos, he will not be disturbed. He will see their faces and gentle hands and feel so loved and cared for. Because he is.

Ohio Holiday Shenanigans (Part II)

Posted on January 2, 2013 by lauren

Most of our vacation was spent with these 9 whipper-snappers and their parents. Andrew’s side of the family grows at an exponential rate every year. His mother is one of 9, and each of her siblings had at least 2 (more often 3 or 4) children, and so on and so forth. We didn’t attempt to get together with the whole family, but it was the first time we gathered together with all 3 brothers and their families since we all stopped reproducing! It was the first time I had met Andrew’s youngest nephew Gabe, and the first time all of our kids were together at one time. We met up at Gina and Michael’s house (Andrew’s mom and stepdad) and had a really great time.

Yes, there was a lot of noise and chaos and children running in a pack all around the farmhouse, but it was also all smiles and very few tears. Emil clearly enjoyed the baby role, as his older cousins rushed him around in a baby doll stroller and fed him gigantic cookies. Oh, wait. That was his uncle. Ryan and Kristin (who claim four of these rascals as their own) made a fantastic dinner which we all devoured. They even treated us to homemade cheesecake with blueberries from their blueberry bush at home in NC (I did not hold back my state of envy). The wood stove heated the entire downstairs so well that it made Andrew and I revisit our desire for one. And the kids got along so well that there were tears when it was time to leave for the evening, even though they knew they would all be reunited at Bill and Annie’s house in the morning.

We self-timed the camera to take this family photo (and others), and were shocked to see just how many kids we had between the four families! When did this happen??? (Answer: oh, around 8 years ago… the below picture was taken a couple of years before any of us had kids in 2002)! Whole family at Ryan NC apt

This family is so amazing, and I am reminded of the fact every time I am lucky enough to visit with them. Warm, welcoming, relaxed, and full of life and fun. One brother in particular may have shown his bare bottom to unsuspecting sisters-in-law one too many times, and the little green looking child may have vomited a couple times before insisting she was “fine! just fine!” but the light-hearted nature of the night carried us through.

We set up camp at Bill & Annie’s house (where we always seem to land), and they put up with us and our rambunctious boys for several days, as well as letting Milo sleep over every night. He was beyond thrilled to share a room with his buddy Reina.

Emil quickly showed Annie his new favorite tricks: throwing stuff into the toilet and climbing onto tables and up on counters. I’m sure they are beyond exhausted and happy to have their house back!

And the last night we were there, Bill, Ryan, and Andrew went to the Bengals game (another family tradition) while the ladies held down the fort. We met up with them downtown for a dinner filled with laughter and just a bit too much food, then headed over to a concert which only 1/3 of us got to see. But that, my friends, is a story I will have to share with you tomorrow…

Ohio Holiday Shenanigans (Part I)

Posted on January 1, 2013 by lauren

Happy New Year!!! We are back in the lovely state of Missouri after a very exciting and eventful 5-day trip to Ohio to visit family. And though we packed in many day trips and attempts to see people, we still weren’t able to see everyone we wanted to see. But I did take a zillion pictures and have whittled them down to a few hundred or so! I’m going to go word-short, picture-heavy on this one! We had an absolute blast at my mom’s house; eating a delicious warm meal, playing in the snow, baking with the boys, exploring the woods, and following animal tracks before heading back inside for warm apple pie and pear tart.

And then this happened:

The fact that my mom and sister were stuffing snow down each other’s pants really made my day, and Milo and Oliver were in absolute heaven (they had been hoping for substantial snow for months). We barely felt the cold- it is hard to focus on that when you are too busy laughing! (Plus, it wasn’t really that cold)

Milo and Cousin Jack found deer tracks!

… and then mean old Papa threw a snowball down the back of Milo’s coat! Oh, the injustice of it all!

I have really come to look forward to these Christmas-time walks in the woods. As the boy cousins get older (there are only boy cousins, no girls, on my side of the family- 7 of them, to be exact), the dynamic changes. They were more raucous but also seemed to enjoy each other more; running off to wrestle or play hide-and-seek or throw snowballs at each other. They ran wild outside, winding through the snowy woods and chucking ice balls into the creek before stomping back to the house to collapse under a blanket all together for some hot chocolate and quiet time. And it seems that this is slowly becoming the tradition, one I am fond of and hope continues until the boys are old enough to whine and complain as we drag teenaged versions of them into the woods and all around Grandma’s farm.

Thank you, Mom, for another great one!

P.s.- Here is last year’s winter walk (without snow, but just as beautiful)!

Here We Go!

Posted on November 2, 2012 by lauren

Thank you for your supportive words about yesterday’s post. It truly did help me get through a tough day.

But I did keep very very busy, as Andrew left for a 5-day data-collecting trip out to the East Coast. Not even Hurricane Sandy could keep him from his research! And yesterday, after a full day of childcare with no break, including parent-teacher conferences for Milo and Oliver starting at 8am (the boys are off school for a nice long four-day weekend), I felt like I could collapse from exhaustion into my bed only to realize that it was 4:30pm. Yep. I’m going to have to figure out a better way to do this.

I am once again reminded of how much Andrew does around here. It is truly a partnership. And last night, at bedtime, Milo found a picture of his papa and held it close to his heart, then asked if he could sleep with the picture. Then, of course, Oliver chose one as well, and they both nestled in and went to sleep with a picture of Papa tucked under their chins.

Happy weekend. Wish me luck! No, seriously. I’m going to need it.

The Revelation

Posted on August 6, 2012 by lauren

Several pounds of apples from our apple tree — score!

Something interesting happened over the past 4 days. I had a complete zen-parent moment. I mean, it was a moment that changed my entire weekend. The first two days of Andrew’s absence was really rough. I was exhausted after two nights in a row of all three boys waking up at staggered times, only to wake up for good at 5:30am. So, while they endured maybe 2 wake-ups apiece, I had been up 6 or 7 times (no exaggeration) between the hours of 10pm and 5am and knowing that there would be no naps from the big boys made me dread those two days. I know, it’s so horrible to wake up dreading anything, especially spending the day with three awesome little people. But that’s where my mindset was, and I don’t want to paint the picture on here that everything is all lollipops and cupcakes all the time. It’s not. I’m not. Frankly, I think I’ve always been one to need a decent amount of sleep, and when it’s cut down to 5 or 6 crappy, interrupted hours, it wears me down really fast. Especially on the attitude front.

The difference happened on Saturday. Day three of all kids, all by myself, all the time. Friday night was another rough sleep night, but on Saturday morning, I just came to expect it, and I decided to pretend that I was well-rested! I made a pact with myself that included the treat of a coffee, then to not attempt to sit down or lie down for the rest of the day until it was bedtime. Crazy, right? My reasoning was that when I do sit down or try to take a nap (which never happens unless someone takes my kids), the exhaustion hits me like a ton of bricks. If I kept going, I would not have the chance to feel depleted until I collapsed in a heap at the end of the day. And… it worked!

The other interesting thing about this plan? I had a really, really good time with my kids, kept my attitude positive, encouraged curiosity and teaching moments, and didn’t feel disappointment about missing sleep. It’s kind of a big revelation for me because lately I’ve been kind of snarky and not as upbeat as I would like to be. So here’s to revelations!

What we did this weekend:

Grabbed a cup of coffee and a cookie at Winslow’s Home (and yes, Emil always wears these pants because I love them so much and frankly, he doesn’t own a lot of clothing that isn’t stained or beat up!)

Added to Milo’s insect collection (it’s in a drawer on our front porch with two dead cicadas and a smashed honeybee, if you must know)

Talked to Papa about Milo getting stung by a bee! And Oliver being a good boy!

Picked a whole bushel of apples from our apple tree (Milo took this picture!)

Baked chocolate chip pumpkin bread (and froze two loaves)

Made homemade salsa from our garden tomatoes and jalapeños (and cleaned up after it all! Whew, what a mess!) — recipe to follow tomorrow.

Made homemade applesauce from all the apples we picked (I know, it doesn’t feel like apple season yet, but it sure is around here!)

We stayed really busy — including trips to the playground, the grocery store, the zoo, a playdate with water fun in our backyard, a pizza picnic at the playground, and a trip to an incredible pool with some friends. Andrew will come home mid-week, but I’m glad I’m not just counting down the days until he returns. I think I would miss out on a lot of fun mama-boy bonding if I did that.

P.s.- I can’t wait for DIY Fun Thursday this week– we have a really good one for you!

The Last of the Vacation Photos

Posted on July 19, 2012 by lauren

Before we get on with the rest of the vacation photos, thank you for all of your kind words through comments, emails, and FB messages about yesterday’s post. I felt the love! I had a really amazing childhood and was actually very lucky to have my dad in my life for as long as I did, given his constant struggles with health through his short but rich life.

And though you are surely getting tired of the beach pictures, a lot of why I do this blog is to have a place to keep our memories so we can look back on not only the stories but also all the pictures of our adventures as a family. So, if you want to share in this journey, please feel free! I have to warn you, there are a lot of pictures in this post!

The weather for the first two days of our trip on Hatteras Island was blistering hot. I have to admit, I cringed a bit when looking at the forecast. We had been hoping to leave the hot, heavy St. Louis air behind for a week, but arrived to much of the same weather. It was so hot that it burned the bottoms of our feet just running from the house to the water. Luckily, some storms rolled in and brought cooler, more typical beach weather. Plus, the rain didn’t last long and brought beautiful skies with it. We took a family walk before the rain one day.

Getting tired of seeing this dress yet? Every. Single. Day.

Oliver during the heat wave= miserable.

Jamie fed seagulls from our balcony one afternoon. One even ate right out of his hand! (Thanks Mary for taking these amazing pictures!)

And of course, the mandatory pictures of Milo jumping off stuff:

Our daily routine went something like this: Early rising (Emil was up by 5:30am every single day– that’s 4:30 St. Louis time!); breakfast on the balcony while watching the sunrise over the ocean; sunscreen time (I swear this took like half an hour every morning); beach; walk to the pier (the boys enjoyed pretending to play the arcade games); lunch; nap (for some); beach again; dinner; pier for ice cream; bedtime for little ones; beer and laughter for the mamas and papas (and one night Jamie and Andrew took Ben and Milo out night-beaching with sparklers!).

Obviously the pier was a major highlight of the trip. It was the only place we went other than the beach the whole week; a nice place to go for a change of scenery without having to wrangle the kids into a vehicle. It was amazing. The pier itself was weathered and zig-zaggy from all of the storms and hurricanes it had endured. Still sturdy, but crazy to think about!

View from the pier: kite-flying

Oliver asking, “Could I slip through there?” (the crack)

And of course, the main reason for the trip? The popsicles and delicious ice cream treats!

Greta wondering if there might be any extra for her…

… and giving up on it.

My gorgeous bestie.

One of the best parts of the trip was watching Milo, Ben, Oliver, and Greta getting reacquainted. Their friendships (especially between Milo and Ben) grow and become more complex (read: literal head-butting, but mostly sweet tender moments) each time they see each other. Ben and Milo are so similar, both intense and very active and creative. To see what kind of shenanigans they got into was more than hilarious.

Documentation of the only nap Oliver took the entire trip (including the 20 hours of car time!). He passed out on the chaise lounge on the last day of the trip. My friend Allison would call him a neversleeper:

Sleeping as only a true middle child would: hand clenched around his stash of toys so that no one else could play with them.

He looks so lovely and peaceful when he sleeps. Too bad he doesn’t do it more often.

And now, here we are home! We did the entire drive home in one shot, which included a 2-hour stint of basically stand-still traffic 6 hours into the trip during which Oliver half pooped his pants/half pooped on the side of the road. Oh, the misery. But man were we glad to be home once we collapsed at our door at 1:30am. Thanks, beach. Thanks, Mary and Jamie, Ben and Greta. We had a fantastic time and we love you!

***Next week we will get back on track, including an outfit post, a recipe, and a DIY fun activity for the littles. Thanks for sharing our trip!***

Outer Banks Trip, Part II: Greta

Posted on July 17, 2012 by lauren

Don’t let the adorable curls, squeezy cheeks, and chubby little toes fool you. This girl is a firecracker and she can hold her own with these boys! Mary’s little girl Greta was one of the highlights of our trip. I’m not around little girls all that much. So what a breath of fresh air to be reminded that girlhood is no tea party with pink princesses. Well, sometimes it is, but more often it is mermaids (who bite on occasion), singing at the top of your lungs and dancing down low, followed by sneak-bites of your ice cream cone.

Toes, the TOES!!!

And she is two. Barely. So much personality and sweetness packed into that feisty girl! I love her.

… and HER!

Greta, you can steal my dessert any day. Just promise to let me squeeze you a little more.

Outer Banks Trip, Part I

Posted on July 16, 2012 by lauren

We’re back from our trip, safe and sound, a little bit sad it is already over, but also exhausted and happy to be home. And, as promised, we took a gazillion pictures that I have had so much trouble whittling down because I love them all!

But I do have a story or two about the trip there. We decided early on that it made the most sense for us to drive the 18-20 hours it would take to travel to the Outer Banks. We rented a house right on the beach and had to bring all our own bedding, towels, and food, so flying was not really an option to begin with. Knowing it was a real gamble to drive this far with three little boys, we used a bit of strategy. Day One: Drive as far as possible and hope for naps, then have a short easy drive for Day Two. We made it 12 hours, no naps (except for Emil, of course) to a place about an hour west of Charlottesville. But on the way, as I was driving, I felt the transmission slipping and suddenly we were extremely nervous. When we got out to gas up, Andrew noticed transmission fluid covering the back window of our van and knew that something bad was about to happen. On top of that, we were blindsided by the fact that the entire area surrounding us had just recently been hit by massive power outages from recent storms. As a result, most people had decided that to escape the 100-degree heat, they would hole up in the neighboring hotels for the air conditioning. ALL the neighboring hotels.

Suddenly, we found ourselves in a Ruby Tuesday’s parking lot with a bum van frantically calling hotels looking for any available rooms. Luckily, Andrew found one an hour away in Charlottesville. A room with one bed. For 5 people. We booked it, then dragged our kids back into the van for the 13th hour of car prison. They were actually really well-behaved. When we arrived in the parking lot of the hotel, we went to grab a few bags out of the trunk and panic struck. It quickly dawned on me that my bag- the one with my underwear, toothbrush, bathing suit, all my clothing for the week- was not there. Nope. It was at home. Upstairs, outside of Emil’s room, waiting to be packed into the van.

Yes, things were going from bad to worse. I may have thrown a few things, but let the record show, I did not cry. After a horrible night’s sleep that involved Oliver lying horizontal in the bed with Andrew on the floor, Emil in a crib, and Milo and I teetering on the edge of the opposite side of the bed, we headed down to University of Virginia’s campus (which was beautiful) to get some breakfast:

Doesn’t this place look awesome?

… but it was closed (we are early risers).

So, after we scavenged up some food from the Starbucks down the street, I had to head out for some essentials. Seriously. I had nothing but the clothes on my back and at least needed a swimsuit and some clean underwear. Thank goodness for Old Navy (see that dress in the first picture? I wore it pretty much every day).

And after I grabbed a few things for the week, we headed the rest of the way to Hatteras Island, hoping that our van would make it the rest of the way so we could get it to a shop semi-nearby, and fixed in time for our return home. And we did make it! And the best part? Our friends were already there with their family waiting for us. What a wonderful end to a rough trip!

Oliver’s first view of the ocean

And though we arrived pretty late in the evening, there was no keeping those guys off the beach or out of the water. And for Oliver, it was all about the sensation of the sand:

As for the van, Andrew found a place to get it fixed right up. I found that I didn’t need all that much clothing anyway, and got over my swimsuit issues (after a little sulking about not getting to wear the awesome suit that I had found just days before the trip) and also got over the fact that the underwear I had to buy in a major rush would give me a perma-wedgie for 8 days straight. In the scheme of things, these are not real problems.

The view from our porch balcony

***Check back later today for another post and more pictures from our trip!***

Baltimore Trip

Posted on May 29, 2012 by lauren

I am happy to say that I finally made the trip out to Baltimore to visit my bestest buddy in the world, Mary, and her lovely wonderful fantastic family. I had planned to go last year while I was pregnant with Emil, but I got very sick the weekend before I was supposed to go and so it was postponed. I would have been traveling with a very small belly full of Baby Emil, but this time I traveled with a very real, very mobile, very active (and very happy) 9-month-old Baby Emil.

“Crawl this way, Emil!”

Mary lives in this storybook place just north of Baltimore and honestly, I had no idea just how beautiful and magical this place was until I stayed there for three days. Before, when we lived in Baltimore, my visits to Mary’s house consisted of play dates and birthday parties and Halloween parties and the occasional hike in the woods (Loch Raven Reservoir is literally in her back yard!), but we never drove around and had the time to explore the windy hilly roads and cabins and cottages tucked into the belly of this beautiful place. But this time, with time to kill, stories to tell, and secrets to reveal while trying to get a cranky Emil to take a nap in the car, I was lucky enough to really see the place that Mary and her family call home. And their home is gorgeous, by the way. Every. Single. Detail.

And Ben, Milo’s very first friend, had grown tremendously since I last saw him at Thanksgiving. The sweetest, funniest, most thoughtful (and rivaling Milo with craziest) little boy who turns 5 next week (WOOT!) who loves babies and does NOT love pictures:

Showing me his strawberry plant

Ben invited Emil out to the trampoline so he could show him some of his best tricks:

… Followed by offering to help me bathe Emil (but swearing that he wasn’t going to get into the tub with Emil):

And Greta. Oh lordy this girl is just as plump and sweet as a strawberry, and reminds me of Oliver in so many ways:

Seriously, watch out. Because she could ask me for the moon and I would actually try to get it for her if she really wanted it. Sigh. But really, they’re all great. Jamie, Mary, Ben, Greta, even their sweet doggie Bella. Aside from making me feel welcome in their home, they cooked me amazing food, like this pizza that Jamie whipped up (with four eggs on top in little red onion circles- amazing!) and then Jamie took the kiddos to his parents’ house for two days so Mary and I (and Emil) could spend some quality time.

And quality time it was. I was completely spoiled when Mary dropped me off to get an hour-long massage (which was so relaxing I think I dozed off for part of it) while she took Emil. After that, we enjoyed lunch in the Inner Harbor and shopped around in our old stomping grounds (which have only become more amazing since we moved away 3 years ago).

Fells Point. Baltimore, MD

The Corduroy Button: quite possibly the cutest children’s store I have ever seen.

The Daily Grind: one of my regular coffee stops when Milo was a baby- great food, great people, and fantastic coffee & baked goods.

After lunch, we walked around Fells Point with a very sleepy Emil and enjoyed the boats and water and local accents.

But we did not enjoy the smell, thanks to a fish-killing algae that has recently taken its toll on the marine life in the Harbor:

Yes, it smelled as bad as this looks.

But actually, I know the smell of fish doesn’t bother me for some reason. Must be those Baltimore family roots (I was born there, after all).

The rest of that day was rough, as I barely kept a migraine at bay and nearly upchucked in Mary’s car before she dropped me off at her house to lie down for a while. And yet again, took a sleeping Emil for a drive so I could ~~go hug her toilet~~ hide my eyes under a blanket. Thank goodness I was able to recover quickly. Ugh. I hate migraines.

That night I put Emil down early and Mary and I ate all kinds of delicious goodies (including beets with goat cheese, a delicious lentil salad, arugula on toast with melted cheese, and lemon ice cream with raspberries for dessert!) in front of a movie while giggling and making dumb jokes. It was heaven.

On Sunday, Mary took me to Belvedere Square, a great market near Towson that boasts all kinds of local produce and goods:

Yes, the market was great- but isn’t her dress amazing?!

And timing it perfectly, we did a little shopping before taking a nice sunny walk at the reservoir before Emil and I had to be at the airport. Seriously. Mary timed it perfectly. To the minute!

And just like that, it was time to go home.

It was an incredible trip, and I miss my friend already. But no worries! We get to see each other in a month for our beach trip to Hatteras Island!

Hooray for Mary!!! Hooray for Jamie! Hooray and we love you!

And quite possibly the best part of this trip? Pulling up in front of our house to see two beaming little faces waiting up for me in their pajamas with glow sticks and a very tired (and tan) papa! Oh, and not only did Andrew wear those two out with activities like a train ride to Central West End and a long walk back through Forest Park and the zoo; a baseball game; a trip to the swimming pool; a bowling alley adventure, and trip to the newly-opened playground splash pad, but I walked inside to a completely spotless house and it turns out he also fixed the back hatch to the van AND cleaned it inside and out AND watered all the plants. I mean, seriously. Make me look bad at my own job, will you?

I am, without a doubt, the luckiest woman alive.

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