Day 900 | 900!

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As promised, our spooky spider and ghosts pumpkins. Unfortunately, they didn't make it to Halloween. I blame the squirrels + the warm temperatures. In that order.

As promised, our spooky spider and ghosts pumpkins. Unfortunately, they didn't make it to Halloween. I blame the squirrels + the warm temperatures. In that order.

Another 100 days have come and gone. Man, have things changed for our little family. If you remember, the 800 day post was soon after the move. It simultaneously feels like forever ago and just yesterday. Based on the last few weeks around here, I don't think we can bank on things slowing down at all. Just another reason (and extra motivation) to keep on keepin' on with my blog. 

Sara

FAVORITES: spending time with my nieces between dance commitments, observing the boys playing together, breakfasts with my dad, brother, grandma + the boys on a regular basis, having Mary Catherine back as my designing buddy (it wasn’t nearly as much fun without her), wearing scarves again, listening to Hamilton (it's the best!)
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: deciding on what holiday crafts are on my list this year + finding time to create.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: carving out *a bit* more time for myself (including a chiropractor appointment last week and my first post-surgery yoga class scheduled for Wednesday). I’m hopeful I can actually do it this time!

Chris

FAVORITES: getting home from work in time for dinner, any quality time with his boys, the mad deals he gets on adult beverages here in WI, the complimentary coffee at his new office, enjoying the new fireplace, driving to work (no more walking in the rain). 
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: keeping up with raking the tons (and tons) of leaves in our yard. Maybe having so many mature trees on our lot isn't such a great thing. At this point, we've loaded up 37 landscaping bags. That's no joke.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: finding the perfect location for our first Christmas tree in our new house.

Chase

AGE: 4 years, 7 months
FAVORITES: his school + school friends, collecting treasures to store in various treasure boxes around the house, playing Superhero and/or Star Wars with daddy, chasing his brother around the house in circles, reading (current interests are Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, superhero books, + Star Wars), talking (like, all the time…he’s got a lot going on in that little head), his mad scooter skills, studying the book order pamphlets that he brings home from school, translating for Robbe.
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: narrowing down his Christmas wish list, he's just so excited about everything.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: convincing his mom and dad to let him watch as many movies as he wants. Sorry, friend, you've got too much playing + reading on your to-do list.

Robbe

AGE: 2 years, 8 months
FAVORITES: giving big hugs to his brother (and sometimes his parents...if we’re lucky), thumbing through the Christmas toy catalogues + carrying them everywhere with him, his six sleeping friends (stuffed animals), picking Chase up from school, talking about reporting all his injuries to Papa (grandpa), reading (current interests are books about trucks, books about tools, our animal book), stickers (still a hands-down favorite), playing with Chase
BIGGEST HURDLE TO OVERCOME: his inability to contain his enthusiasm when we have company. His little body just can’t handle the excitement.
DREAMS FOR THE FUTURE: wearing his new snow boots. I promise it’ll come soon enough, let’s not rush it, ok?

And here's the rundown of how far we've come:

Day 899 | The Hunting Shack

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To clarify, the image above is showing the outdoor bathroom, or torpedo, not the hunting cabin. :)

To clarify, the image above is showing the outdoor bathroom, or torpedo, not the hunting cabin. :)

The boys (Chris and Chase) had a great trip to Northern Wisconsin with Grandpa Paul. Chase enjoyed the ATV rides, the marshmallows, and the quality solo-time with two of his favorite people most off all.

Robbe was super sad to see them go yesterday but he did rebound as the afternoon wore on. Let's just say he's more than ready to sign on when the next opportunity arises.

Day 898 | Fall Days

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I've said it before and [hopefully] I'll say it again, if this is November in Wisconsin what was I doing in DC all those years? You just can't beat sunshine and 65 degrees when you're out taking leaves and planting spring bulbs. 

Chris and my dad even took Chase up to the hunting shack up north to spend some serious time outside. They'll be back tomorrow with some good photos to share, I hope! 

Day 890 | Hello, Chicago

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I'm so sorry for missing yesterday's post. I have a good excuse, though! I spent most of the day prepping for today's trip to Chicago and didn't have the energy to pull my phone back out after I fell into bed. Forgive me!

Why am I here, you might ask? No, not for the World Series (the city is crazy because of that, by the way). Mary Catherine is here for a wedding so I popped down to meet her new baby and score some highly-anticipated baby snuggles while Mary Catherine performs her maid of honor duties. Win-win. 

Side note: baby snuggles are the best, aren't they? 

Day 889 | Halloween Festivities Begin

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Chase's school hosted a fall festival today so we got to try out the boys' Halloween costumes. That's right...the big reveal of their costumes comes early.

Chase is Frozone from The Incredibles movie. He wanted to be a superhero and after listing about 20 options, he selected Frozone. I was happy...no kit for this superhero so we pieced the costume together (thanks, Amazon and a local thrift store) and I'm pretty sure we won't see another Frozone quite like him. 

Robbe requested a "tool guy" costume so that's what he is. Probably the cutest tool guy you've seen.  

I'm sure there will be additional costume photos to come. Don't worry!

Day 886 | Superhero Power Party

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Chris took Chase to a pretty fantastic superhero party over the weekend. I just received this collage in my inbox from the party's "photo booth". 

The local Children's Museum did a fantastic job organizing an impressive series of challenges and tasks geared towards helping the kids hone their super powers. You'll be glad to hear our budding superhero gave it rave reviews. 

There's already discussion about whether Robbe will be old enough to attend next year. So far there are two "yes" votes from the younger demographic and two "undecided" votes from the older demographic. 

Day 884 | Pumpkin Time

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We spent the beautiful fall morning (I feel like a broken record bragging about this amazing weather), carving this year's pumpkin display. Chase requested a "spooky spider" and Robbe requested a "boo" (a ghost). 

I wouldn't say it was our most impressive carving session, but we had fun and the quality family time was appreciated by all. 

**Note: I promise to post a pic of the carved pumpkins when we light them up. Stay tuned.

Day 883 | Apple Crisp

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Nothing screams fall like heaping serving of apple crisp. It's probably my favorite dessert. And, thanks to my Aunt Pam, I finally found the perfect recipe. I realized what I need the most out of apple crisp is the crunchy, sweet oats + brown sugar topping. This recipe has plenty of that. Hope you enjoy.

Apple Crisp

Ingredients

3 cups apples, peeled and sliced (I prefer Cortland, of course)
Cinnamon
2/3 stick butter
1/3 cup flour (I used white whole wheat flour)
1 cup old fashioned oatmeal
1/2 cup brown sugar

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

  • Spread apples in a greased 9x9 pan. You want a decent layer of apples so add extra slices if you think it looks a little sparse. Sprinkle apples with cinnamon.

  • Melt butter and stir in the brown sugar.

  • Add flour and oatmeal to the butter + sugar. Mix to a crumbly texture. Sppon over apples.

  • Bake for 40 minutes.

Notes

  • Serves six

  • Double recipe for 9x13 pan

**Again, special shout out to my Aunt Pam for coming to the rescue with this recipe years ago (October of 2009, to be exact). I hope she's not offended by the *small* tweaks I made. :)

Day 882 | Open Gym 2.0

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Our go-to open gym has been upgraded.  I will always look back at the Sherwood Rec Center and the Coffield Rec Center with warm nostalgia, but man if this place isn't an amazing upgrade from the open gyms the boys have grown up in. 

Bouncy obstacle course? Check. Tons of vehicles + trucks? Check. Various toy stations including trains, legos, + puzzles? Check. The downside, though? It's not free (that's probably how it can be so awesome). $3.50/kid, so I won't complain...too much.

Yeah, I think the Eau Claire Indoor Sports Center will be a fine way to spend an occasional cold-weather morning.