Parties, Carnivals and Family!

Posted on July 23, 2013 by LindsayMac

Hi Girls!

What a weekend we had! On Saturday, we went to a graduation party. It was for someone in Nana’s family and was all the way out in Hillsdale! We picked up Nana at 1:00 and hit the expressway for an hour and twenty minute drive. You guys fell asleep pretty early into it. Once we got there, we got to see Nana’s sister, Aunt Ann. She has 11 or 12 kids and they all have a ton of kids themselves! Can you imagine?! We saw a lot of other family members that we don’t get to see often. I think Nana was happy that we joined her! We had lots of good food and dessert and headed home a few hours later!

When we got home, Daddy started up the BBQ and we ate a very yummy meal! He had gotten chicken for us and fish for him, but you guys ended up loving his fish! I’ve never tried fish before (and don’t plan to anytime soon) so I stuck with the chicken! After dinner, I realized there was a summer carnival going on in town. SUMMER CARNIVAL?! Yes, please! So, we got our shoes on and into the car!

You girls had a BLAST! After going to the Northville carnival a few weeks ago, you were a seasoned pro. You went on all the rides without fear. But, your favorite part was the FUN HOUSE! This thing was huge! I really didn’t think you would make it all the way through. I thought for sure you would realize how high you were and make me come up there and get you. But, boy, was I wrong! As soon as you finished, you both yelled “one more time?!”. And then one more time and one more time after that. I think you probably went through that fun house about 20 times! Finally, at almost 10:00pm, we had to get you girls home!!

Sunday was another lovely day, too. We went to Bubba and Didi’s house for swimming and a BBQ. Aunt Dawn, Uncle Mark and Google came too. It was only last weekend since you first learned how to swim by yourselves (and a life jacket) in Bubba’s pool, and you guys surprised us yet again! Swimming from end to end, jumping in, floating on your backs and twirling all around… you girls were crazy! While we waited for dinner, you requested I drew chalk with you guys. Ten minutes later, I had drawn (at least TRIED to draw) every single character in the Lion King! haha… guess I should have paid better attention in art class! You guys liked it though!

On the way home from Bubba’s, we stopped at Gaga’s house. Gaga, Pop Pop and Mimi were gone all weekend for Mimi’s softball tournament and you guys were missing her bad! As she was you! It’s so funny- you go 2 or 3 days without seeing her and you act like it’s been a year!

I’m looking forward to another fun week with you girls. We have some fun things coming up! Can’t wait to write about them!

Love you,

Momma

Up North for the 4th!

Posted on July 18, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

Here I go getting behind on my posts again! Oh well, better late than never!

This 4th of July weekend was so much fun! We started it off with the Northville Parade. I have gone to this parade every year of my entire life! Gaga and Pop Pop have been taking me since I was a little girl. So naturally, I have taken you every year since you were born, too! You guys had picked out your “parade dresses” weeks in advance and were really looking forward to the event! Every time we talked about it though, you were sure to remind me that Daddy is afraid of clowns but you are not!

This year, Lauren, Adam and Jon were up north so Gaga, Pop Pop, Mimi, Nick and Jodi tagged along with us. You guys enjoyed the parade and were “supa fast” in collecting the candy! Definitely a fun morning! Afterwards, we stopped at Nana’s for a bit to get some Nana time in because you wouldn’t be seeing her for a few days. Why, you ask? Because we were headed UP NORTH!! 🙂

I love being “up north”. Anyone not from Michigan probably doesn’t understand and is definitely missing out. There is just something about the beautiful Michigan lakes, clear skies, boat rides, fireworks lighting up the sky, snuggling in a hoodie next to a bonfire each night, and living in your bathing suit and no shoes the whole weekend! It’s a little min-vacation and a carefree atmosphere. You went up north when you were a few months old, but obviously spent most of your time sleeping! This year was so much different!

You girls played in the lake, jumped on the water trampoline, collected rocks and seashells, made smores by the bonfire, watched fireworks, lit your first sparkler, learned to fish with Daddy, and thoroughly enjoyed your daily boat rides. Lauren was kind enough to cook us delicious meals each day and let you two snuggle in her bed each night. My favorite part of the trip though- our pirate adventures! You girls have such creative imaginations and I love to get them going! At the pool all summer, we have been playing “shark”- one of us will make a shark fin with our hands on top of our head and chase each other around the pool while you guys scramble to be “safe” and scream and laugh. So, when we boarded the boat and headed onto Higgins Lake, of course I thought it was the perfect opportunity to play shark! You’d point into the water, scream “SHARK!” and duck down into safety! Before we took off, we also found a map on the boat. What kind of map? A pirate treasure map of course!! Molly was the navigator and told Captain Jon exactly where the map said to go 🙂 Unfortunately, we didn’t happen upon our treasure that day. But the next day was a different story!

The second day, we were more than prepared for our pirate adventure! We had new pirate maps, marked with an X. We had pirate bandanas and pixie dust. You girls kept checking the map and telling us which direction to head. And guess what? YOU FOUND A TREASURE! When we stopped the boat, a special pirate treasure came floating up to us on a raft. We wrangled it onto the boat and found pirate bags with all kinds of goodies and candy inside! This was SO much fun! Your imaginations are THE BEST!!

We stayed up north at Lauren and Jon’s house from Thursday night until Sunday morning. It was such a great time and a wonderful 4th of July spent with family!

Hope you had as much fun as I did! Love you girls!

Love,

Mom

Happy Birthday, Pop Pop!

Posted on July 9, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

June 29th is Pop Pop’s birthday! We had the whole family over our house for his birthday dinner! We had a great time playing outside, eating Daddy’s BBQ, and hanging out with everyone! Pop Pop is the greatest grandpa in the world to you… you are so lucky to have him as your Pop Pop! And I know this, because I know how lucky I am to have him as my dad!

In true Pop Pop fashion, he somehow got you guys to have a cupcake eating contest with each other- using no hands! He is crazy! And you girls went right along with it!

We hope Pop Pop had a great birthday! We love him so much!

Love you!

Mom

Weekly Recap

Posted on July 9, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Girls,

I got a little far behind in writing to you. Sorry! We have just been so busy! The week before last was filled with rainy skies and lazy days! I think we spent most of Monday hanging around the house and cleaning. Tuesday was laundry day. When I ask you if you like to clean, your response is always “no! boring!”. Girls, I totally agree… but sometimes, it has to be done. Wednesday cleared up enough for us to go to our neighbor’s birthday party. Donnie turned 4 and he had a Road Rally throughout our sub! We decorated our wagon and joined in on the parade of bikes, strollers, wagons, and power wheels throughout the streets. We ended at his house where we had snacks and cake! It was fun!

Thursday, Mimi and Lauren met us at the pool. We didn’t stay long… the rain clouds were rolling back in and he headed home. Lauren and Mimi came back with us and we made smoothies, popcorn and watched a movie! What movie, you might be wondering? Well, there is only one movie being played at our house right now… LION KING!! Molly, you are OBSESSED!! Totally obsessed! My friend Pizzo gave you a Lion King book at my softball game and you were so excited you gave her a hug. She couldn’t believe it, as you had never given her a hug before! So, the next day, she showed up to our house with the Lion King DVD. I think we have watched it about 3 times a day since! You know the entire movie by heart now and are completely in love with Simba! I’ll add a video here in the morning!

The next day, we went with Nana and Nick out to Great Lakes Crossing. Nick wanted to go to a store out there and I thought it would be a lot of fun to tag along and have lunch at the Rain Forest Cafe! To my surprise, there was a Disney Store there! So, of course he had to go and see if they had any Lion King things. They only had ONE Lion King item left in the store- a set of figurines. So, we snatched it up! Maddy, you are still in love with Tangled, so you got a new nightgown and Rapunzel doll. Clearly, it was a very successful shopping trip!

The week just continued to get better! Over the weekend, Daddy and I took you to a carnival! You girls were so excited. Dad and I were a little sad though- you girls were big enough to ride the rides BY YOURSELF!! What?! How are our little babies big enough to go on rides alone?! I just cannot believe how fast you are growing and how quickly time is passing. It is sad and exciting all at the same time. While we were there, we ran into my friend Amy and her son Blake. You three spent hours riding all the rides at the carnival and had so much fun!

Except for the Crocodile Rollercoaster. That was not so much fun. In fact, Molly screamed “STOPPPP!!” at the top her lungs until the operator stopped the ride and let you guys off!

Despite some rainy days and that stupid Crocodile roller coaster, we had a blast this week! And I love you so much!

Love,

Mom

Sunday Adventure!

Posted on June 27, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

Sunday we had so much fun! We woke up with no plan in mind… But, we certainly found plenty to do!
We started off with a visit to DiDi and Bubba’s house. They recently gave their whole backyard a makeover so we wanted to go see it. It looks great! We stayed and played for a little bit. Mommy and Daddy were super hungry so we wanted to go to lunch.. But you wanted to stay! So, we ran to Penn Station while you had lunch at Bubba’s. When we got back, Molly, you started talking about an adventure. (You were wearing Dora’s backpack so you were ready to explore, I guess!) After some discussion, you told me that you wanted to go on an adventure to Diego’s house and that you knew how to get there. We had to go over a bridge, up a hill, then we would find Diego’s house. (Diego is Dora’s cousin on the show and has also been claimed as Maddy’s boyfriend.) This sounded like a perfect opportunity to run with your imagination. I thought of the perfect place to go to make your adventure come to life! So, in the car we went!
In downtown Northville, there is a place called the Mill Race Village. It’s a little village of very old, restored homes and buildings. When we pulled up, you saw a bridge and squealed with excitement! And the adventure began! We crossed the bridge and began our search for Diego’s house!
What I didn’t realize is that on Sunday’s, the Mill Race actually has people dressed up as old fashioned people who give yours of the buildings. It made our adventure even better! We went through the houses, the church and the school house. The woman even let you try on old fashioned school girl clothes and write on their wooden tablets! It was a blast!
On our way out, Gaga called and wanted to take you to the pool! So, we dropped you girls off there with Gaga and Pop Pop while Daddy and I went grocery shopping. At the grocery store, I found water balloons and squirt guns! Of course, I had to buy them! While I waited for Gaga to drop you off, I filled up 250 water balloons and invited your friends over for a water balloon fight! It was quite a surprise for you to come home too and so much fun! It was the perfect way to end a perfect Sunday! All the adventure helped you fall quickly to sleep after the water fight!

Hope you enjoyed the weekend as much as I did!

Love you!
Mom

Another Late Night Chat

Posted on June 23, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

Last night, you girls were just NOT falling asleep. After playing referree for a few hours, you guys called me back upstairs yet again. This time you wanted to have an “interview”… you guys are enjoying making little videos and have fun re-watching them! Here is our little chat from last night… enjoy!

What A Week!

Posted on June 23, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

Another fun week is in the books! The weather was beautiful all week. We spent most days in our bathing suits, with family, or both. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent at the pool ad with Gaga, you spent much of the day hanging out with Aunt Lauren on Thursday, and Friday your friend Carley invited you to the splash park at Kensington! We also spent some evening nights at the high school track. While Mommy ran and exercised, you ran around and played! The track sure tires you out- those nights you fell asleep the second you hit the sheets!

Saturday was super fun too! Daddy came with us for the first time to the pool! You were so excited to show him your pool and all the things you can do now! You are so brave in the water! You are getting to be pros on your kick boards and going under the water!

Today (Sunday) was so fun-filled, I think it deserves its own post… Which is coming up next!

Love you!

Happy Birthday, Uncle Doug!

Posted on June 21, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

I’m a little behind in my updates this week! Per usual, it’s been a busy week!

On Monday, we went over to Nana’s house. It was Uncle Doug’s birthday. Every year on his birthday, she makes him his favorite cake. So, we went over to enjoy a piece of it.
I so wish you would have been able to meet Uncle Doug. He was the epitome of cool. Doug was Gaga’s only brother. He very sadly passed, or went up to the sky as you would call it, when I was in high school. It was one of the hardest things I have ever experienced. But, despite him leaving us too soon, he sure did leave a huge imprint on all of our lives.
He drove a black Mustang convertible and was the reason I insisted on getting a Mustang when I turned 16, too. He had this thing hanging from the rear view mirror- it was a red bandana with feathers and other little things intwined within it. I’m not sure why I thought it was so cool, but I did. When I got my first car, I asked him to make one for me. He didn’t… So, I tried making my own and it hung from my mirror for years. He was very good looking, with slick black hair, a few cool tattoos, and always tanned. He claimed to teach me how to walk at a bowling alley (I’m not sure if Gaga goes along with this story). He was a bit of a rebel, but had one of the biggest hearts you would have ever encountered. He was Nana’s little boy, and the best uncle I ever had. But, he liked to mess with me a bit. Looking back, I realize it was probably out of love and good fun. But he would always smack the back of head whenever I walked by him… And, boy, did it piss me off! But, boy, do I miss him. You would have loved him and he would have absolutely adored you. As you get older, I will tell you all about him!

Anyways, as soon as we got to Nana’s, you guys got down on a piece of his cake. Or more like two or three pieces! After cake and lunch, we decided to make a day of it at Nana’s and we set up the slip n slide. I thought you’d be a little shy on it like previous years, but I was mistaken! You girls were wild! Upside down, face first… You certainly weren’t scared! And, as always, Papa had white butterflies flying around and circling the slip n slide, to let us know he was there. It was a fun day!

And, once again, I was reminded how quickly you are growing up! One year sure goes by quickly!

Happy 50th birthday, Uncle Doug!

Love you girls!

Love,
Mom

Late Night Interview with Maddy!

Posted on June 17, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

After such a long weekend, I was sure you would both pass right out tonight… But, Maddy, you had taken a little nap today and weren’t quite tired. At 10:30, you yelled for me from your room. You told me you weren’t sleepy yet and you were still sad about Lauren having a baby boy. I asked if you wanted to talk about it and you said, “yeah, interview!” So, we got out the computer and did a little late night interview. Per your request. 🙂 Here you go, Mads…

Best Laughs Ever!

Posted on June 17, 2013 by LindsayMac

Dear Molly and Maddy,

On Saturday, as we were laying outside waiting for the fireworks to start, you girls were entertaining us all. You know all about how when you were a baby, you were sick and had to stay in the hospital for a long time. You know about your feeding tubes and surgeries. As a result, you girls love to play “doctor”. But, you probably don’t play doctor like most other three year olds. It usually involves one of you laying down saying “me sicky”, while the other takes her temperature, pretends to put a feeding tube in her nose, and gives her medicine through it… then you both jump up, switch, and do the whole thing again. Over, and over, and over! Well, as we waited for the fireworks, you girls wanted to pretend Daddy was the sicky baby. As you pretended to put a tube in his nose and he squirmed, you girls laughed so hard. Your laughter is so contagious, you had the rest of us cracking up. I love your laughs!!

A daily journal to my babies.