Happy 5th Birthday Evan

 As usual I'm slacking in my blog writing.  Honestly, after working all day, doing family stuff until the boys' bedtime, taking some online courses and everything else on my plate, blogging is not high on my priority list.  But, Evan's 5th Birthday is definitely a reason for a posting. 

I truly cannot believe he is five already.  I know as a parent you always say you don't know how time has passed so quickly, and that is absolutely true.  It is simply amazing watching him grow and mature into an incredible boy.  I love that he is smart, funny, cute, polite, caring, and helpful.  He loves school and anything related to cars.  I can't wait to see what the next 5 years holds for him and us!  

I found this fantastic idea on Pinterest, which is to ask your child the same 20 questions every year on their birthday and see how they change over time.  

Evan Nicholas, 5 years old  – January 5, 2012

1. What is your favorite color?  red

2. What is your favorite toy?   cars

3. What is your favorite fruit?  apple

4. What is your favorite tv show?  Max and Ruby

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?  peanut butter and jelly sandwich

6. What is your favorite outfit?   Motorcycle shirt

7. What is your favorite game?  Operation

8. What is your favorite snack?  Cheese and crackers

9. What is your favorite animal?  dog

10. What is your favorite song?  I Got a Feelin

11. What is your favorite book?  Cars

12. Who is your best friend?  Aya

13. What is your favorite cereal?  Lucky Charms

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Ride Go Car (Mustang)

15. What is your favorite drink?  Apple juice

16. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My Bear

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?  Lucky Charms

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday?  Pizza

20. What do you want to be when you grow up?  Policeman

August 2011

Special Day Out
Early in August we did a fun day out, just me and the boys.  I took them to lunch, then we went to one of the local children's museums.  As usual, Evan enjoyed the different activities there, and Luke was so excited to explore somewhere new. 

 Playing instruments together

 My little drummer boy

 Our 3 hands

 Monkeying Around
We met up with my friends, Kate and Joe, and their 2 adorable kiddos Jack and Amelie.  I haven't seen them in a long time, so it was great to catch up with each other while watching the kids play.  We went to a place called Little Monkey Bizness, which has an indoor play area for the kids and a coffee shop for the adults.  Very cool!  The pictures aren't the greatest since the kids were running the entire time. 

Jack and Evan

Morton Arboretum
All I can say is this place is amazing!  The grounds are beautiful and they have a huge children's play area.  We will definitely be back!

In the tree house

 Pumping water

 Lots of water to splash around in

 Luke was too little to enjoy most of the activities, 

so he relaxed in the stroller most of the day

 Posing with Yiayia

 King of the mountain

Playing in one of many streams of water

July 2011

 Most of July was spent hanging around the house just having fun and enjoying life.  I was taking an online class since I am working towards an additional teaching endorsement (English as a second language), so I was extremely busy with a 4 credit hour course in an 8 week session...one of the many reasons I am so behind on blogging. 

 Napping with papa

Exploring every inch of the house

Goofing around together

 Where's Luke?

 Peek-a-boo!

What a good helper

Family Vaca

Although I'm posting the majority of our summer happenings month by month, I think our mini vacation we took in June warrants its own posting.  Seeing that we remodeled our kitchen and bathrooms in the spring (perhaps some pictures later?) and Luke has about a 3 hour limit in the car, we decided to stay close to home for our vacation this year.  We headed up to Gurnee, IL to Key Lime Cove, which is a hotel with an indoor water park. 

While we waited for our hotel room to be ready, we killed some time at Gurnee Mills Mall.  Evan was so excited to see the Hudson Hornet from the Cars movies.  We also had lunch at the Rainforest Cafe, however I was not able to take any pictures since Evan was terrified of the whole concept. 

 Like a kid in a candy store...

 in the hotel lobby area, where they also had Starbucks coffee (thank you!)

 Not the greatest picture, but a view of the whole water park from the lobby

 The slides in the kiddie areas were perfect for Evan, my super-cautious child.  They also supplied the life jackets for "free".

 Luke had fun splashing around in the mini fountains.

 At the hotel restaurant - ARRGGH!

 Hanging out in our room

 

On our way home we visited Kohl Children's Museum in Glenview.  It's one of the nicest ones we have visited, with a great selection of activities for Evan and Luke.  However, it was VERY crowded, probably since it was a rainy day.  

Playing in the infant area

 Who is that adorable baby in the mirror?

Building and painting a house

 Grocery shopping in Dominic's

Reliving mommy's college days as a cashier at Super WalMart

Making a sandwich at Potbelly's