A Mother's Day to Remember

Sometimes I wonder why we try to plan 'perfect' days when we have children. Such was the case on Mother's Day. Our girls went to bed on Saturday night with fevers so we knew we couldn't take them to church. Pat and I stayed up late watching the Blackhawks knowing we wouldn't have to get up early. Or we thought...Reagan came into our room at 6:30 - after Pat told her it was still the middle of the night I went to lay with her in her bed, hoping for more sleep for both of us. But at 7:15 she was in the bathroom getting sick - Happy Mother's Day to me.
Got her settled with some Sprite and good TV shows and hung out for the morning. I tried to make banana bread but our oven needs to be cleaned so it was smoking too bad. Luckily my great neighbor let me borrow their oven. On the way back from taking it to their house I realized that our lawn was the only one on the block that hadn't been cut yet. So I changed and mowed the lawn - but that is something I actually enjoy donig. After getting Reagan settled, Nola and I went to my parents' to have lunch. They had picked up Maggiano's - so lunch was fantastic! We had a great afternoon - Nola loved being outside with her cousins.
Then we brought Grandma Jane back to our house (Grandpa came in his car) so that Reagan could see her for Mother's Day. Reagan was still fevering a little bit, but was glad to celebrate the day as best she could. It was a great day - I am so blessed to be a mom - and to have the most wonderful girls as my daughters!

Mother's Day Tea

Reagan's preschool held a great, Mother's Day tea. Nola and I arrived with the other moms to be greeted by our children and brought to tables for a treat. Nola had the brownie bite finished before the prayer - but that was ok. We also had apples and grapes and could choose from apple juice and iced tea to drink. It was fun to be in the classroom and enjoy watching Reagan interact with her friends and teachers and enjoy being a mom.
After the treat, the kids lined up and sang several songs for us. Reagan was so excited to be performing (imagine that). She might not have been singing too loud, but she was doing the actions in her very dramatic way. So fun to see!
They gave us cute gifts Reagan had made and sunflower seeds (which are now part or our garden). It was a great morning - so thankful for her preschool experience!

Happy Birthday, Pat!

When I first met Pat I was very excited to find out his birthday was Cinco de Mayo - because I knew I would never forget it. So when May 5th rolled around we were excited to celebrate with him. The girls and I (including Cassidy) went to Pat's office and took him out to lunch. (Sidenote - we had to stop at home after preschool to get a pretty dress for Reagan to wear because she couldn't imagine going to visit her dad on his birthday and NOT be in a dress) We had a great lunch at Buona Beef and then stopped in to say hi to some of his friends at work.
In the afternoon the girls and I took naps and got ready for his celebration. Papa Pat, Grandma Jane and Grandpa John joined us for Giron's pizza and ice cream cake. Pat requested chocolate ice cream cake with both chocolate and caramel sauce - and he was delighted! As were his daughters - Nola couldn't get enough!
He received some steaks (yum), memory for his tablet, and Bamboo for the computer (don't quite know how it works, but he does) and a t-shirt from the Ft Myers tea party.
The girls loved his musical card they game him - and danced around to 'Go Daddy Go'. It was a great night - happy to celebrate another birthday with my amazing husband.

Happy Birthday, Hannah!

The 2nd of May is a special day - it is Hannah's birthday. This year it fell on a Saturday so we were able to celebrate with her on her day. It was a nice day so the kids got to play outside most of the time. Sean did trip Reagan, but we have decided not to sue :)
Hannah was excited to by 6 and had a great time at her party. It was fun to see her having so much fun and enjoying being the birthday girl!

Congratulations, Dan

Dan celebrated his confirmation in April. We had a great time at his party - it was fun to celebrate with him. Nola loved chasing Chester, their dog, around the house. Reagan was thrilled to be playing dress-up with Shannon and her other nieces.
Hard to believe I had no pictures of Dan - but plenty of the girls!
We'll get some pictures of Dan at his graduation party (hopefully).

More Florida Fun

Its so hard to put into words what a wonderful vacation we had. The weather was perfect - only rained one evening - the girls were great (took long naps), we relaxed, we ate great food, enjoyed some of the best ice cream ever, and Pat & I even got a date night.
Our mornings would be low-key with playing, eating breakfast outside and then getting ready for the pool or beach. We would then be in the water until lunch time. Nola would usually go in earlier with one of us for her lunch and nap and the rest of us stayed with Reagan. By the end of the week Reagan was jumping into the pool by herself -
There was a small park close to the house, so we went there one morning while we waited for it to warm up a little. The girls loved the swings and slides, but were most excited to pet the dog that came walking by with its owner. Pat and Reagan did try to play frisbee - it was a great attempt.
In the afternoons we rested, read, watched TV, whatever we felt like. Then we would get ready to go out to dinner. We ate at great restaurants every night. My favorite was the Fish Monger where I enjoyed stone crabs for the first time - Delicious! Nola and Reagan loved their fish tanks and the chocolate mousse - fun to watch Nola eat it with her hands. But since we were coming from a very long, cold Chicago winter, we did try to eat every meal outside if possible.
One afternoon Pat, Reagan & I attend the Tea Party in Ft Myers. It was a political demonstration against the government's taxes. We hung out in the back so Reagan could play at the jungle gym and the swing. It was one of the highlights of our trip for Pat.
Usually at the end of a vacation I am ready to go home, but not this time. I was trying to figure out how we could stay a few more days - more fun in the sun and pool, but it didn't happen. We had an uneventful trip home (except for a very unhappy flight attendant who didn't like kids) and quickly settled back into life at home. We were only home a few hours when Reagan asked, 'can we go swimming today'. Unfortunately I had to tell her no, since it was about 40 degrees and raining. But that afternoon I got online and started looking up pools to join for this summer. We are now signed up and awaiting the opening on Saturday! (won't be warm enough to get there on opening day but the first hot day after that you know where to find us!)

Beaches, Beaches, Beaches

After 2 days at the pool we decided to change things up and head to Ft Myers Beach. After packing up the van (thanks Pat) we headed out for a great day on the beach. Maureen and Roy had recommended an area of the beach to try, so we did. It was a perfect day for the beach - mid 80's and sunny. The water was really warm and the girls loved playing in the sand. The waves were a litter bigger than Reagan would have liked, but she did get in the ocean. Pat took her past where the waves were breaking and she did some swimming.
2 days later we headed to Barefoot Beach in Bonita Springs. First of all, the houses we passed to get to the beach were unbelievable! Reagan thought one was Cinderella's house. The beach was filled with seashells - Reagan loved it! She picked out so many shells we weren't able to bring all fo them back with us. The waves were calmer so she spent a lot of her time swimming in the ocean. The water was a little cooler than Ft Myers Beach, but still comfortable. Nola loved digging in the sand and getting a little wet from the ocean. She was most happy on the blanket, under the umbrella, having a snack!
Right before we left Reagan and I built a sandcastle. It was fun and she was, of course, making up a good story about who lived in the castle. As we were building one of the beach patrol came up and asked me if Reagan had sunscreen on because she was looking very red. I explained that she was wearing 50! (guess he hadn't seen any Irish people lately!!)
It was so fun to watch the girls enjoy the beach and ocean. We had so much fun at the beaches - looking forward to getting to some beaches this summer.

Florida!!!

After a great morning at church, we went to Tony's (our favorite local breakfast place) for a late breakfast. Uncle Bill picked us up around 12:30 and we were off to Midway.
The girls loved running around the airport as we waited for Grandma and Grandpa. The check-in and security went smoothly and we were on our way!
We did not buy a seat for Nola, but lucked out because there was an empty seat in our row. We had hoped she would nap on the way down there, but were sadly mistaken. Reagan did great on the plane (and great for us she sat next to the window and grandma the whole time!)
When we got to Ft Myers you could just feel the warm weather - fabulous!
We got our luggage and as we were loading the van Nola finally fell asleep.
We had time to get a little settled in the house and then headed to Bahama Breeze for dinner. We ate outside and there was live music that kept the girls entertained. They were happy to be dancing and running - with no coats!!
The next morning, after a quick trip to the grocery store, we headed to the pool! Reagan couldn't wait to get in and start swimming. And either could Nola - she thought she could walk right into the pool and ended up under water. Being her tough self, she came up and shook it off with no tears!
The girls loved the water - Reagan was swimming by herself (with her floats) and loving every minute. Nola thought she could swim by herself but we had to slow her down.
We ate dinner at Pirate Key - a favorite from our last visit 2 years ago. Great food and, more importantly, live music with a large dance area. After we ordered Pat and grandpa took them dancing and when dinner was finished they headed right back to the dance floor. Reagan made a friend to dance with and Nola found a little boy to chase.
We had a great night - and had to drive quickly so we could get to the Love Boat - the amazing ice cream store - before it closed. Grandpa got us there in time and we all enjoyed amazing ice cream. Off to bed before another fun day in the sun...

Here comes the Easter Bunny...

After the MOPS Easter Egg hunt Nola and I headed to South Holland - to drop her off with grandma and grandma so I could attend Shadia's baby shower.
Pat was lucky enough to take Reagan and Leo to the Erb's for their Easter celebration - complete with the Easter Bunny. They loved the Easter egg hunt but weren't too sure about the bunny. More candy - another big hit! It was such a fun time for them to be outside - so fun for them to spend more time with family.
They had a great time and then headed down to South Holland for the Scanlon Easter celebration.
Since we were flying to Florida on Easter we celebrated Easter with the Scanlon's on Saturday night. Great dinner (kids really loved the rolls and butter!) and then the kids (yes, only the grandkids - the grown kids no longer receive Easter baskets - we see how it is) searched for the Easter baskets.
Nola was most excited about the Fannie May chocolate Easter eggs she found on Grandma's end table.
Reagan and Hannah played with their Polly Pockets - the ones where the heads and bodies pop off (kind of creepy but they loved them).
Then it was time to get home to finish packing before our flight the next day...