Me and my girl on Memorial Day Weekend on Lake Bella Vista in Rockford, Michigan.
Hello Summer!!! We officially kicked off the beginning of summer at the lake a few weeks ago celebrating Memorial Day Weekend with family. The weather was incredible allowing for both Jeff and me to get the typical Michigander sunburns. The weekend was filled with boat rides, snacks, cocktails and playing on the beach.
Last weekend we joined friends downtown at The Festival of the Arts for our once a year meat-on-a-stick (Souvlaki) donation towards Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church. It's marinated pork that comes with warm naan bread and cucumber sauce. So so good! Festival makes for a solid Saturday morning stroll with the family and if you haven't been before, be sure to tackle the event next year.
Later that afternoon we met up with friends at Thousand Oaks C.C. for a double Birthday tournament/celebration. We were paired with teammates Brent and Meleah Gibson for the day and I ended up winning closest to the midline taking home a bottle of Tito's Vodka = Best prize ever. It was the first time I've golfed at Thousand Oaks and holy moly is it beautiful. It's very well maintained with super long fairways and is surrounded by the most beautiful woods.
Something we haven't written about in a while is our progress on our 2017 New Year Resolutions: 1. less TV/more reading 2. getting rid of stuff we don't use and 3. implementing more faith practices into our lives. Happy to share I think we've got a passing grade... we are watching far less TV (but likely because the weather's been wonderful) but struggling on book reading (of which I blame Thomas for). We've done a stellar job on dropping stuff off for donation which continues to feel cleansing and Jeff is totally kicking my butt on implementing faith practices with a once a week Men's neighborhood prayer group. I've reaped some of the benefits getting in on their social events which have included spouses. We've also kept up with 'Breaking Bread' around our dinner table by hosting friends for food and conversation which has been a lot of fun. And one we haven't done much of yet is getting closer to nature which is something I look forward to practicing on our annual trip to the U.P. in August. All in all, not bad progress report I'd say.
This is my last week of maternity leave and I'm feeling both excited to return to work and yet sad about how quickly the time went. I'm sure that sounds like every other mom who's heading back to work post baby, but gosh it's a true statement. A newborn baby is a (very cute) physical reminder of how quickly time passes and how important it is to enjoy each and every single moment. Leave has been a blast and I'm only half joking when I say this, that everyone should go on leave every couple of years to recharge. I'm feeling so refreshed and therefore looking forward to jumping back into the normal swing of things.
Thomas Christopher at 11 weeks old.
Thomas is doing great weighing in at the doctors office at just under 16 lbs which is in the 95th percentile for growth. If he keeps cruising at this rate he's going to play in the NFL as a linebacker. He's sleeping a consistent 6-6.5 hours a night so we can't complain about that and when he's awake he prefers to be held and paid attention to. He's smiling now and cooing which is always more fun than the blank baby gaze and he eats like a champion - obviously. He loves baths and long stroller rides and he's starting to capture Natalie's interest more and more everyday.
Natalie Elyse at Watermark C.C.
Natalie is 2 and developing quite the personality. She's a girl who knows what she likes: mostly fruit snacks, Tinker Bell, hot dogs with ketchup and she's still holding fast onto that pacifier. We are waiting for Thomas to catch onto her sleep routine which continues to be 11 hours at night (God bless her) and we're getting a kick out of her continued attempts at riding her tricycle. She's goofy and happy with the occasional sassy pants... so mostly, she's a 2-year-old :)
Happy 30th Birthday to me at Terra GR with girlfriends celebrating Friday night. Cake from Nantucket Baking Co.
Last weekend I turned 30! Whew. 30 somehow feels appropriate in every way for where we're at in life right now. It's like I'm exactly where I should be at my age and it feels good. Jeff planned the best day for us to celebrate the milestone and I plan to share more on that in a later post. But for now, enjoy the rest of this week... I know I will! It's back to work on Monday!
POSTSCRIPT (Things we're into lately)
- 7 Monks Taproom - Located off Michigan and recently opened... like the atmosphere and LOVE the Korean Nachos.
- Anna's House - New location in Kalamazoo is just as wonderful as their other spots. I'm obsessed with their Hippie Hash!
- The NEW Madcap Coffee - Their new location off East Fulton is WONDERFUL! And completely stroller friendly.
- Swell Water Bottle - A great gift from a girlfriend for my birthday that keeps drinks cold forever!