September - Orlando and More!

Wow, what a month this has been!  It is hard to believe that September is coming to a close already.  Summer is done, and Autumn has arrived.  Lets start with family first.

Here we are, all having fun at Bike Safety Town :)  What a cool park.  We are blessed and lucky to be enjoy some of these sunny days, as they are going to be few and far between for the next several months.

One of the benefits of having some mornings off during the week is that I can surprise the Kid Wonder by taking him out for ice cream after school!  I remember doing this with my Grandma when I was little, talk about fun. Forrest's friend came along too :)

And even when the weather wasn't great, the Boy Genius and I found time to put some puzzles together.  I crave QT with this kid, hope I get more through the winter.

Forrest continues to amaze us with his love of letters.  Letters, letters, everything letters.  Whether its arranging them in ABC order, or occasionally making some words he loves his letters.  This particular venture kept him plenty happy.  Play-Doh for the win.

(pardon the fuzzy picture)

The little lady has grown a lot too.  9 months old!  Holy Cow.  She sure is a happy kid.  She loves her toys, Yukon Cornelius is one of her favorites :D

She has also discovered football!  The bright colors and moving pictures are as mesmerizing to her as they are to me.   Having some letter toys to chew on helps take the entertainment value up a few notches as well.

And this big girl is standing up!  She wants to walk, but those legs just aren't ready.  Which is probably for the best, Mandi and I aren't ready yet either.

So as the title implies, there was a fun trip this month. I had the Family Medicine Experience conference to attend in Orlando, and managed to convince Mandi to come down for a few days to share some sun and fun with me.  A big thank you to Gigi for holding down the fort and helping out with the kiddos.  It was a great trip, and here are some of our highlights.

We stayed at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress - and WOW what a hotel.  The crowning jewel of their gorgeous property is their MASSIVE 880,000 gallon lagoon style pool complete with swim-through caves filled with waterfalls.  It was almost just as I remembered it from my last visit there in 1996.  Throwback trip!

Free as birds, we had some quality time touring Disney Springs, and hanging out at the Hotel.  There was fine dining, quality time, and quiet.  We love our children more than life itself, but it was nice to reconnect and be, even if only for a few days, those carefree kids that fell in love way back in 2004.

Here we are posing together at the Lego Store.  Too bad someone made me angry.  Its okay, Mandi calmed me down before I could do any real damage.  Wish I had that kind of hair when I was chill ;)

Anyway, onward and upward to October.

Stay Healthy!

August 2016 - Birthdays, Growing Kiddos, and Another Boys Trip

Wow, what a month!  We had a ton of fun this month, and there is a lot worth sharing, so here goes:

Forrest and I managed to fit in a trip to the Peoria Zoo and Emo's Ice Cream one sunny day when I was off work.  It was a good time, the Kid Wonder was really excited to see some snakes and was willing to pose for me on his turtle :D

Meanwhile Letty Bean keeps growing. She has joined us at the dinner table now, she really enjoys the communal time, and all the new flavors to try.  She's an adventurous eater so far, lets hope she keeps it up.  No matter what, gotta love that face.

Its not the greatest pic, but it is worth sharing.  Forrest had a fun birthday party at Gigi's house, complete with some time spent with Great-Grandpa Joe.  Its always good to see Forrest connecting with his family.

Happy Birthday Cupcake!

Little Letty is growing in other ways too.  Here she can be seen clapping her hands, her new favorite trick to charm all the adults in her life.

In Non-family news, I had what may be a final trip to the cabin for the year.  After we bought the place last year we were informed by our home insurance company that we would have to get a railing put on our deck.  It was a bit of a bummer, as we loved that view!  The construction was done by my cousin Jacob, who both put a new flooring down on the deck and put up the railing (pictures later).  Here are some photos documenting our trip:

First off is a picture of me with my best friend Mark.  Mark and I have been buds now for over 13 years.  Wow, that seems like a long time.  He has taught me much.  And in addition to being a best friend, he is the best business partner I could ask for.  Through his monumental efforts, Titan Games has grown to a roaring success.  Why this picture among the northwoods trips?  Because Mark came with of course!  This was his 3rd trip.

Mark was kind enough to indefinitely loan us his canoe so we finally have some watercraft on the lake.  Felt like some classic Americana vacationing tying it to the top of the SUV.

My friend Wes also made the trip up.  He and I are the early risers among the men at the cabin.  Morning swims in the lake followed by coffee were an everyday occurrence.  Wes managed to get some yoga done as well.  I passed on that part.

I tried to make sure everyone was well fed.  Breakfast time!  Thanks again to Grandma Grogg for hosting us a few times as well for all we can eat pancakes at her place!

In addition to the work on the deck, and morning lounging we also found time to go hiking at Amnicon State Park - this place is awesome.  The hikes are easy if you stick to the trail, and moderate if you veer off.  There are some great swimming holes as well.

Wes and I braved Snake Pit Falls - seen here.  I even took a leap into the pool below.  Wes declined (feel free to comment/ridicule below).

We managed to make it out to the Gordon Range.  It was a great trip, and we zeroed the Scar 17H out to 200 yards.  Still working on hitting that 300 yard target.  Wes and Mark hadn't fired a rifle that big before, it was a great experience.

Of course we can't forget the purpose of the trip.  Jake did (by far) the most work on the deck.  We assisted when he needed it but the credit goes to him.  It looks great, and the composite deck covering will keep us splinter free for many years.  And as Jake would put it: "That looks like some HGTV s*** right there!"

The car was packed, and we were headed home when we stopped to take an end of the trip selfie.  2016 was a great year to own a lake home.  I am glad that I got to enjoy it with my family, with Forrest on our Father-Son trip, and twice with my friends.  By the end of the trip though I was ready to be home.  I missed my children and they missed me.  Its hard to leave them for more than an evening.  Not only does my heart ache when I am away, but it is unfair to put Mandi in that position too often - these two kids are a ton of work.  My genuine thanks to her for going solo on the parent front for those 6 days while we worked, played, and traveled.  You're the best, Chinch.

Leaving paradise is tough, but its much easier when you're coming back to these two ;)

And the best wife/mother-of-my-children that I could ask for.

And puzzle time with the Kid Wonder.

:)

Stay Healthy!