Today's Adventure: High Trestle Bridge

This bridge is amazing.  It is located right between Madrid and Woodward, so it is about 30 minutes from our house.  We headed out about 11 and packed a lunch.  Finnean was pumped to ride his bike and we were excited to get moving.  It is about a 3 mile trip from where we parked, across the bridge and back.  It was a nice day for a walk but the wind made it almost a chilly.  I told Finnean that it was really windy on the bridge and he just said, "I like the way it feels on my skin!" So we just let it just push us along!  Michael brought the tripod (good thinking, M!) so we were able to snap some photos of all of us.  The bridge wasn't that busy today, so it made for perfect picture taking.  Here are a few photos from our adventure.

My heart is so full.  I am so thankful that I get to call these boys my family.



Just when you thought we looked so normal...

These boys love to make this face.  I asked them to show me their teeth and this is what I got...
"TEEEEETHHHHH!!"

Ugh.  Again, he is looking so old.

I love this shot of the boys exploring. Looks like Hutchinson is spying something!

We took a little break along the way...you know to rest and dig in the mud.

Hutchinson had to have a stick too!  Can you see the beautiful scenery behind the boys?  It is just awesome and would be so nice to check out during the fall.

More funny faces!

Momma's boy.

:)

I just want to squeeze him!!

Love him!

He put in 3 miles today and I think he is darn proud.  He did great staying on the right side of the trail and we are working on him saying "on your left!" like all of the other bikers say when they pass you.  :)

 

Garage sale fun!

We swore we would never have a garage sale...but we had one Saturday.  It was super nice day, so I didn't mind sitting outside trying to sell our stuff!  It went well and we have some extra spending money for Cali too!  This is how we passed the not so busy times!

{This just might be my new favorite picture!}
photo credit: Finnean Wagler

Fun Friday

Finnean has been LOVING swimming lessons.  On Friday he got right after it and had his head under the water within minutes!  He has been so brave, which I am shocked (but thankful) about!  He is usually a little timid, so I hope that he keeps it up this week! 
 

We had dinner with the Darrington's on Thursday night and Abby asked Finnean if he wanted a cookie to take home for after swimming lessons...you can bet that he didn't forget about that!  They both loved having a cookie for morning snack!

We picked Carter up for a little park time after lessons on Friday.  They big boys LOVE to bicker.  So we are working on  and hopefully as they spend more time together, it won't be so bad!  Hutchinson just loves Carter---it is so nice to have him back in the area!
(Left picture: H giving out some hugs...he is just a loving guy Doesn't he just melt your heart!!)

Finnean!

This kid ROCKED his first day of swimming lessons!  He got right in, bobbed around, used his hands to move some water and even put his face in!  He was so brave (despite the two other boys FREAKING OUT) and had a lot of fun!  He said that he wants to go back tomorrow, so that is a plus :)

Most of the day was rather dreary but this evening the sun was shining in all his glory.  It was perfect!

This kid cracks me up.  He looks tough, doesn't he?  Or maybe eclectic is the right word!
 

A few random bullet points...

• Today we went to Kohl's to find something for a fund raiser that Finnean and I are doing (so excited and details soon!) and it was kind of raining.  He ran in to get a cart to push and TOTALLY wiped out on the hard floor, not the carpet but the tile.  He was screaming at the top of his lungs and obviously hurt.  It was like in a movie, you know how the actors feet fly up in the air and he bonks it...that is what happened to F.  I ran over to him and tried calming him down.  After I finally got him to stop crying, I looked up and saw FOUR associates standing at the cash registers right by where we were and not ONE of them came over to see if he was okay.  They didn't ask me if he was fine, didn't holler over from their post to see if he was okay...they just stood there all talking to each other.  Am I wrong to be upset about this?  Come on people!  A kid totally whacked his head in your store and you can't even ask if he is okay...obviously, I am still working on letting this go.  It just doesn't seem very customer service friendly! 

• Have you ever made a decision and then about half way through you thought "what in the hell am I thinking?!"  That was me today.  We decided to run errands and we HAD to get groceries.  No fruit or milk left, so that meant that we had to go, even if it was rainy and cold.  Anyway...after the errands we headed to the grocery store and about 10 minutes in I realized it was 12:20.  The boys were hungry and getting grumpier by the minute (we usually eat at noon)and we had a huge list of things to get.  A few weeks ago I was introduced into the word: hangry.  You know when you are so hungry you start to get angry.  That is what was wrong with us.  We were all hangry.  I seriously considered just leaving our cart in the middle of the store, getting jimmy johns and then coming back to finish up our groceries.  Instead we powered through and after I was super annoyed with the checker for putting 3 times the amount of stuff in one bag that should have been there, we got out.  Whew.  We made it.  Hutchinson fussed for most of the time but we made it.  Did I mention I bribed them with suckers?  That helped for a little bit.  So we get to the car and the darn gas light was on.  Seriously.  That thing is on all. the. time.  How!?  Anyway, we got our gas and headed home for a very late and very needed lunch.  Thankfully we made it without much trouble and I had to remind myself to be grateful that we have money to fill up our refrigerator with good food .  I also reminded myself to never got to the grocery store at lunchtime again and don't be hangry. ever.

• I just read a snippet that a little old lady said about parenting "say yes to everything you can when they are little, as long as it is safe."  This got me thinking.  Do I have to say yes to playing hide and seek every time? Or to playing house?  Or Legos?  The list goes on and on and sometimes I am just tired.  I have played and explored and ran errands all day.  Do I just need to suck it up and keep playing or is it okay to say no?  I said no tonight and all I could think about was that little old lady saying they are only little once...and I am missing an opportunity to be a good mom?  To show them how much I love them?  Man, there is a crazy amount of pressure to be a good mom.  It is my job.  My job is to be a mom.  It is my dream job but it comes with some pressure.  You want to be good at your job, right?  Being able to be home with the boys is what I have always wanted, always, BUT it is hard!  If they are screwed up...it is because of me!  They spent their young years with me.  I feel like I have to provide them with healthy food, activities to stimulate their little minds, teach them to be kind and respectful and all of the other things you need to teach a little person to help them prepare to be an 'normal' adult while maintaining a house and being a good wife and friend.  So after all of these thoughts, I am just trying to give myself some grace.  Trying to remember that I am THEE BEST mom for Finnean and Hutchinson.  That I am doing okay as a mom and the best part is I am not doing this on my own.  Thanks to my amazing husband and our family and friends, I do not have to have all this pressure on me, even though sometimes I feel like it is all of my responsibility.  They can help me screw them up too :)  This rambling reminds me of one of my all time favorite ecards...
  

My next favorite one and one that made me completely laugh out loud when I read it for the first time...

 

Now to wrap up this post of randomness, I leave you with one of favorite songs at our house right now.  I need to get Hutchinson dancing to this on video...asap.  And, we are currently obsessed with waffles right now.  You know, the store bought kind, not home made kind with whole wheat flour and such.  Yes, the unhealthy ones.  Yes...my good mom meter is going down every morning when they eat waffles :)

 Do you like waffles!?   http://youtu.be/UtlaTNI1TaU

Magnifcent Monday

 

 We have had another awesome Monday!  I am hoping that we don't end the night at Urgent Care like the last time we had a really good Monday!  The weather is just about as perfect as it can be.  72 degrees with a ton of sunshine.  You know that kind of sunshine that just makes your skin feel warm to the touch, that is the sun we are dealing with today.  It is amazing!  We did find out on our picnic that if you are not in the sun, it is a bit chilly BUT we are not complaining...not one bit! 

Here are some snaps from our morning adventure.  I am so bummed that I didn't have our actual camera for the trip to the Capitol but I guess we will just have to go back!

Waiting for Mom is tough but it is easier with your brother right by your side!
(They were being SO patient while I got everything in the car for the zoo!)

Free train ride Monday at the zoo...we are in!  The boys enjoyed their snack on the train today and loved waving at all the people!  Hutchinson loves the fish and says "OH! WHOA! WOW!" when he is looking at them.  He is starting to be able to repeat colors, so it is fun to hear him say the color of the fish!  He also LOVES to drum!  I think he just likes making noise, so the new African exhibit is right up his alley!  Finnean spends his time spying animals and finds ones that I don't ever see.  He also is our tour guide.  Keeping an eye on the map, making sure we know what our next stop is. 

After the zoo we picked up Michael (he is not documented in the pictures BUT he was there!) and headed for a picnic lunch on the Capitol lawn.  It is one of my favorite places to be in Des Moines.  I just love how grand the building is and that you can see the little city skyline perfectly.  The boys seemed to enjoy it a great deal.  They are free to run as they please.  The grounds are beautiful right now-in full bloom.  If you need to get out and about in Des Moines, I totally recommend it hitting up the Capitol Complex for a walk!  I also recommend City Bakery in the East Village.  O my.  They have some tasty food and that is what Michael and I had for lunch!  It was a great little family date.  Here are some shots from the boys running amok.  I am still bummed that I didn't have the big camera...but these will do!

This boy.  I almost don't have words for how much this smile makes my heart smile!  He just loves to be outside and love to watch his "Bo-Bo" run around!

Exploring.
(Top left: Totally going down.  Unlike Finnean, he gets right back up and starts running again!)

Perfection.
These flowers are some of my favorite and I have no idea what they are called.  The are all over the grounds at the Capitol and their purple color just pops off all of the neutrals of the concrete.   They do attract some HUGE bees, which we had to watch out for.  

 

These boys.
Have you noticed that Hutchinson pictures outnumber Finnean pictures about 10 to 1?  There are two reasons: #1 Finnean is SO fast, he is hard to capture and #2 I have to stay closer to Hutchinson because I just don't quite trust him to run too far yet!

I feel kind of weird taking pictures of myself but I thought I should probably document what I look like too.  I love seeing pictures of my parents and grandparents when they were young, so I am trying to do that same for the boys...so they have something to look back on.  The will most definitely make fun of how big my glasses are I am sure :)

Hutchy

Have I mentioned how much I love this little boy?  Goodness, he has my heart.  He is SO expressive and someone just told me that his little smile is contagious.  It totally is.  He just lights up our world.  He has fit right in to our little family.  I especially love this series of pictures.  Michael was throwing the football to him, with football and Dad, there are sure to be smiles.

Ellie, Winston and Carter moved to Des Moines this weekend!  We are excited to have them back in the area and to be able to see Carter grow up!  He seems like he grew 3 feet while they were away for a year!  This series of photos make me smile. Hutchinson LOVES to splash in the water.  It just doesn't get any better than getting your feet wet.  He was sticking his head under the downspout to get water in his hair (just because Finnean was doing it!).  I asked Lisa if she thought I would ever let Finnean do this at Hutch's age...she just laughed.  We both know that it would have never happened!  I am thankful that I have loosened up in my old age a bit!  Sweet boy LOVES the water!

Randomness...

For real.  The cuteness.
  I LOVE how Finnean can make Hutchinson laugh.  Just love it!
 

Silly, silly boys.  They can't get enough of the outdoors!  It is easy entertainment!

This is my favorite.  I love H's crazy, messy hair and Finnean's long lanky legs.  He is killing me with his "kicks."  Michael thinks they make him look very little rascal-like.  I would have to agree!  It was hot and humid for lunch today (and the risk of ketchup on their shirts) made for a no-shirt lunch.  This is fine by these boys.  Finnean would rather be in his underwears most of the time anyway! They sure had fun!

Outdoor lunch = perfection.
Michael came home for lunch and I grilled up some hot dogs.  We stopped at the store after all of our errands today and got some chips and cookies (to make it extra special), added some fruit and called it lunch!  I love when things fall together easily.  After the boys finished up, they ran off the last of their energy before naps.  Finnean even took a nap today (he NEEDED it) until the storm sirens went off.  I wish they only went off for tornados.  We have had a TON of severe thunderstorms lately...just seems like they are crying wolf.  YES, I do understand that thunderstorms are dangerous BUT it is not a tornado.  Maybe if there is super high wind, I want to know that too but come on...we can't have them going off all the time.  They seem to lose their effectiveness!  I am alone on this? ! Anyway...we are enjoying watching the rain now... :)

Yesterday it was bright and sunny!  SUCH a nice change a pace from all this rain. We headed outside after a slow start to the morning.  Weekends are hard on all of us...we stay busy!  I have found that I like side walk chalk WAY more than the boys, so they tell me what to draw and they play ball.  It is a good collaboration..chalk is SO relaxing!  :) 

Soooo....gas is outta control.   We jumped on the Hy-Vee fuel saver bandwagon and are loving it!  I only buy things that we need and manage to save quite a bit of money on gas.  We drive the trailblazer until it is on E and then fillerup, 20 gallons baby! Today I saved almost as much money as it takes to fill up the Vibe (our other car)!!  I LOVE saving money, I mean who doesn't, but today was extra awesome!!! 

Have I mentioned how old this kid is?  He is too big for sippy lids right now...so that just means I have a cleaner floor with all the water that is being dripped on it :) 

Family Walk

We go on "family walks" as much as possible, usually everyday if we can.  I asked Finnean one day what one of his favorite things to do and he answered family walks. :)  I am so glad because it is one of my favorite things to do too.  We don't always walk the fastest but we do try to soak up as much time together and soak up the nature around us.  Tonight's walk proved to be extra awesome!  We found lots of worms after the big storm rolled through and even had a few sprinkles land on us.  There was a bit of a chill in the air but the sun was peeking out, just a little.  Mr. Golden Sun has been hiding for the entire day, so it was a nice change! Hutchinson is getting big enough that he can make it around the block without a stroller, so he gets in on the exploring too!  Here are a few pictures from our adventure.

 

I love this picture.  Captures all the boys on the walk.  Hutchinson is surely spying a bird, one of his favorite things to spot!

O man!! Did you just say "Awwww!!"  I did! Goodness, I am just smitten with these boys.  I love watching them interact, problem solve, play, imagine and even, not get along.  It is amazing to think that each boy with shape the others life and how they are as an adult.  I love when they learn from each other or when Finnean really plays up being Hutchinson's big brother.  One of my favorite things is when Finnean is so patient with Hutchinson and helps him get something done.  Finnean said tonight that' building with Hutchison' is one of things he loves about him.   

Hutchinson is such a copycat these days!  He does or tries to do EVERYTHING that Finnean does.  I was squatting down to get a picture of him and that is why he is squatting down.  :)  He is still pretty darn cute.  I can't get over how old he looks in these pictures.  He really loved looking at the worms and when I would tell him it was time to keep moving he would wave and say "Bye-Bye" to every worm.   Tonight he started saying Mom-Mom.  Halleluiah!  He totally made my day!  He has also started shaking his head "yes" when he actually means it!  This is a big improvement from always shaking his head "no!" He also signed his first "sentence" earlier this week by signing "more please."  It was so cute and Finnean thought it was so cool! 

After we came around the corner we saw a rainbow!  The boys LOVED it and then it kept getting brighter and brighter!  After a bit we noticed a second rainbow and Finnean that was extra awesome!  He thinks that Jesus makes the rainbows.  Michael said (not to him) well it is technically God who makes the rainbows but who are we to rain on Finnean's parade :) 

We could almost see the whole arch of the bright rainbow!  I am just fascinated by them...just so beautiful and an amazing thing to witness.

When the sun did come out, it put on a show!  The clouds made for a beautiful sky.  Rainbow on one side of us and these crazy clouds on the other.  It really made for a great walk.  So thankful for the time with my beautiful boys. 

 

 

Overheard...

Michael likes to keep things tidy at our house (thank goodness)!  So he started cleaning up the "library."  The conversation went something like this...

M: We should clean up the library.  We have a lot of books!
F: HEY!! We should donate some of them! (My heart!)
M:  Sounds like a great idea.
F: Okay,  let's start organizing!!!!!!!!

This only seems funny if you know my very organized husband.   :)  Thanks, Michael Wagler for passing along your skills to our son.  

A few minutes later, Finnean ( holding a notepad and pencil) says to Michael.  "You missed some, Dad!"  Michael responds, "You are going to be a great supervisor someday, buddy."   :)

Date Night!

Last night, Michael and I volunteered in Valley Junction at Smoking in the Junction.  We hoped for nicer weather but we still had a great time.  It is so fun to volunteer together.  So often when we do get a chance to volunteer it is separately.  It is nice to get a chance to spend time together and sets a good example for the boys.  It is hard to volunteer with kids-you have to get a sitter to help!  SO we just made it a date!  We had a blast and we are so thankful for our sitters, Jane and Dan.  They seemed to have a pretty good time too! :)  After we finished our duties in the Junction, we met up with the Murphy's at 515 Brewing.  If you are in the DM area, check it out!  It is a fun little brew company with a fun tasting room!  On a side note, we try to have a date night each month.  Sometimes we get to do more than one, which is awesome!  We even have a line item in our budget for date night.  It is something that we have made a priority and it is so good for us!   It is the perfect way to make sure we are taking adventures without the boys :)

Wrapping up the week...

We haven't had too much excitement here...which is just okay by me.  We have been hanging in because the weather has been chilly and rainy-hoping that shapes up this week!  We need to get outside and explore!! 

So this guys just seems to be getting older and older every second!  He has been adding new words, repeating colors and eating cereal with milk! He LOVES cereal and milk.  He does a pretty good job of not getting it everywhere but it seems that it takes a lot of concentration!  Sometimes I add a spoonful of yogurt in the milk to thicken it up and that seems to help!  He also RUNS everywhere he goes and climbs on anything.  He is a real pro at hit the golf ball and has been trying to get on the plastic motorcycle outside but is just a little too short!  He is really good at "coloring" and loves to play play-doh.  He just seems like he skipped being a little, little guy and went straight to being an old boy.  He is kind of destructive but I guess that is just a part of the job, right?

This is how I work when I need to get something done for Bare Root while the boys are awake.  It is not easy but we get the job done!  Finnean actually LOVES to help but Hutchinson's form of helping is not productive :)

Oh, sweet summer!  We are excited for the yummy fruit that summer brings.  We got these blackberries from Sam's and they were the size of a small egg!  Crazy big and soooo tasty.  Sometimes they were "too tart" according to Finnean but he powered through.  Hutchinson eats them like candy.  Oh man, so tasty and now I want some berries!

Wedneday fun!

I am thankful that today was a much happier day.  No time outs, no grumps, no staples.  It was cold and dreary, so we had the make the most of an inside day.  Thankfully, I got to iron the crap of some clothes!  I despise ironing BUT my handsome, hard-working husband needs to look crisp.  I always feel like a super hero when I iron a whole bunch of clothes.  You should too.   :)

Our morning started off like this...can you see his grumpy face?  Yes, he is eating macaroni and cheese for breakfast because that is what he did NOT eat for supper last night.  I felt terrible but he just dinked around the whole time at dinner, so I took a stand.  My neighbor gave me the idea and I thought I would give it a shot!  He declared that he did NOT like macaroni and cheese for breakfast.  Who knows if it will actually work and that he will eat in the future (we had pancakes tonight-he ALWAYS eat those!) but it was worth a shot :)  



Finnean has been really in to playing "kitchen."  He tells me what to cook, Hutchinson delivers it to him (after adding a sprinkle of imaginary something) and then Finnean takes people's money and gives them their food.  So today I suggested playing grocery store.  They LOVED it!  I love when I have a good idea :)  First, we found all the containers and boxes from our recycling and put them out on the kitchen floor.  Finnean made a cash register with the little couch and Hutchinson was his first customer!  Finnean told me I had to pay with my gift card.  Man, I wish I had a gift card for groceries!!!  Then it was time for Hutchinson and me to be the cashier and I showed Hutch how to scan the groceries.  He made the cutest little BEEEEP and happily bagged the groceries for "BoBo" to take with him.  After they tired of that, they stacked all the containers and then after that we added sprinkles to the peanut jars and they became perfect shakers!  Those boys LOVE to make noise, I mean music!  They had so much fun and kept them entertained for most of the morning!

After naps we headed outside for a chilly walk with Jerry and some outside time.  They can't get enough time outside.  Golf was the thing to do today and I am amazed how far Finnean can hit it!  When we got back in, we timed it perfectly for Curious George to be on PBS.  That show saves me.  Yes, I use TV as a babysitter.  Look at them...completely mesmerized!  I have exactly 26 minutes to get supper ready and I better not take any longer than that! 

Michael was still gone until later tonight (home now-thank goodness!!), so we headed to the library for a little change in scenery.  I LOVE the library in the evening.  It is so quiet and there are not any other children there...perfect for just relaxing.  I can read the paper and the boys just do this the WHOLE time.  They have so much fun! 

 

blah...

Remember how I said that it isn't always rainbows and unicorns around here.  Today was one of those non-unicorn days.  I feel just blah. I HATE that feeling and I really don't like to use the word hate but I really do strongly dislike this feeling.  I tried everything.  Eating healthy, eating crappy, exercise, taking a nap, being grateful, praying---still blah.  Finnean didn't want to listen to anything I had to say today and that only makes me grumpier.  So here is my last ditch effort to get outside of myself and turn this day around (even with a headache sneaking in)...I am grateful for the following:
-My sweet baby boy finally stopped crying and I think he is asleep (without his paci).
-I have one heck of a support system-amazing people in my life that would help me if I just asked.
-I have a nice bed that I am going to sleep in tonight-so many people can't say that.
-I have a girls night planned for Thursday and business meeting on Friday-so thankful for Michael who is always willing to have "Dad Days" and shoos me out of the house
-Finally, I am thankful for my non-listening child, Finnean and that he is okay.  Last night was scary and I am so thankful that it just took one quick stitch to fix him up.  Just as an update, he is doing great and was full force this morning and took it easy this afternoon.  He said that his head hurt tonight-so hopefully he isn't too uncomfortable. 

What are you grateful for?  What do you do to get out of a funk? 

Here's to a rainbows and unicorns kind of day tomorrow :)