Where have I been and Turkey Trot 5k

Let's see . . . kids not sleeping, crazy holiday travels which require me to start packing and prepping weeks in advance, and a tired mama.  The good part was since the hubs had only taken off 4 days all year (when our son was born), he was due for a vacation.  And surprisingly, even though I took off 12 weeks from work, I still had plenty of vaca time as well.  My dad invited the whole family (extended fam) to FL for Thanksgiving.  My brother-in-law (the genius that he is) decided we should take off the entire week and if we were going to take the whole week off, then why not leave the Friday before Thanksgiving after work.  I tell you the man is a genius.  So, the week before Thanksgiving, hubs and I started gathering up everything to pack for 8 days in FL.  So the kids and I took and picked up the hubs from work on Friday and started our way down to FL.  I was so excited to have an easy Thanksgiving.  The trip down was uneventful but we didn't arrive until 1:15am.  Yikes!  Of course both kids woke up and it took a little while to get them back down.  For all the families coming down, we had 3 condos.  So Saturday, we were able to trade off some to get some much needed naps.  The weather was ok on Saturday, overcast but in the high 60's.  We made our way to the beach to do some playing.  The ocean was freezing.

The days following were warm and sunny and we were able to hang out at the beach for some time during the day. 

On Thanksgiving, we had a number of family members who participated in the 5K Turkey Trot near where we were staying.  We knew the course would be flat (hello, FL), so everyone was hoping to do well.  I finished 2nd in my age group (24:05), my brother-in-law won his age group (19:30) and my father-in-law won his age group (24:33).

Dinner was stress free and then we headed home last Saturday.

My lack of posting is from my darling son still not sleeping well and I just haven't had the energy to write or run for that matter (have not even exercised once this week and it's Thursday afternoon).  Also, since my daughter has started school, I have had more responsibility (I am the PTO President of her pre-school and chairperson for the Breakfast with Santa).  I have been cooking some, but haven't posted many recipes yet.  I took pictures, so if I ever get around to it, you will see I am still going. 

I hope to post more soon.

Our "babymoon"

Adam and I decided to do a little trip away from our daughter before the new baby arrives, so we went away last weekend.  It was a short trip; we left Saturday morning and returned Sunday afternoon (just in time for me to take Hope to a birthday party).  We went to a vineyard/spa/resort and had a wonderful time. 

We had massages at 11:30am on Saturday, but luckily the place is only 40 minutes away from our house so we didn't have to rush very much.  We had wanted to do a couples' massage (we have never done one), but they were already booked.  I had a prenatal massage and Adam and had a hot stone massage.  He said it was really nice.  We hung out in the spa afterwards and relaxed, then we checked in to our hotel room and grabbed lunch at the winery.  Adam had a great glass of wine and lunch was very nice.  Unfortunately, the weather was pretty crummy, so some of the things we had hoped to do (tennis and hiking) did not happen.  Instead we vegged in the room, took naps, watched tv, snuggled, etc.  We decided to have a date night so we got dressed and went out for dinner and movie.  We had wanted to see Just Go With It for a couple of weeks because we had stayed at the hotel in Hawaii where a lot of the film was made.  It was so awesome to watch the movie and know exactly where they are.  It was neat.  Not a bad movie either.

Sunday morning, we relaxed some more and were very lazy.  It was very hard to chill since every weekend has revolved around working on house/nursery or doing things with/for Hope.  We headed back in town and had brunch and did some shopping for the kids. 

We forgot our camera all weekend so we don't have any pictures to commerate the trip, but we have wonderful memories. 

Anyone else ever go on a babymoon?

VACA 2010

Finally!!! Vacation time! We couldn't wait! We usually go in July but we had my brother-in-law's wedding, so we pushed our vacation back until mid August. I can say it was worth the wait! We went last year when Hope was 9 months old. We had a good time, but Hope was still napping twice a day and wasn't walking or anything. This year was very different. I thought we had fun last year; this year was so much fun! It was so much fun to see Hope enjoying the beach. We had toys for her to play with on the beach, toys for the baby pool, etc. She was so much fun and we tired her out, so she took some great naps and even slept in until 8am (that's huge for us).

On the exercise front, I was able to run twice, went on 2 bike rides, and played some tennis. I was hoping to run 3 times (and at least once on the beach which didn't happen) but I wasn't planning on both of the bike rides.

Here Hope is trying calamari for the first time. She loved it along with fried shrimp.

My baby girl playing in the sand. We did good - she never got burnt. Props to us.

Ready for lunch and a nap it looks like. She played very hard.

Getting ready for the bike ride. We rented a bike with a seat on the back for Hope. She enjoyed it so much that we are thinking of getting her a seat to go on the back of Adam's bike at home. Any recommendations???

A sweaty mommy after tennis holding her sweet angel baby.

Hope helping Daddy build a sand castle.

Diva!

A sunset on one of last nights on vacation.

Pics from our quick vaca!

Thanks to all the moms who helped me with advice on traveling in the airport with a toddler. So that Tuesday morning Adam went off to work extra early and my dad came over to take Hope and me to the airport. I was so nervous about getting Hope's car seat into my dad's car that I actually forgot the stroller. I didn't remember it until we were half way to the airport. Too late to turn around, so I was going to have maneuver Hope through the airport without a stroller. Yikes! But one of the best pieces of advice was the click the car seat to my carry on rolly bag. Awesome idea! Never had to worrry about it again. Once we got to the terminal I was very friendly to the woman at the desk and she looked up my seat and told me no one was sitting by me so I could take the car seat on the plane and put Hope in it. Yeah!!! Here she is all ready for the flight.


She had had such a busy morning that she actually fell alseep before we even took off and slept for over an hour. It was awesome! She did so well. As soon as we got to Fort Myers, FL, we got our rental car and went to find our hotel. There was a Super Target not even 2 miles from the hotel, so I grabbed one of those cheap $20 strollers for the rest of the trip. Then Hope and I hit the pool. :) Here she is all ready to go.


Adam met up with us Tuesday evening, and then he had training all day on Wed. but got out a little early and we all went back to the pool so Adam and Hope could play in the pool. She loved the water! Not afraid at all.

We went to a fun little restaurant outside of the hotel on Wed. night and it was really good. Here is a picture of Hope ready to eat. :)

We actually had to take a boat to get to the beach. Hope was so excited and had a fun time on the ferry ride.

Here is Hope playing in the sand. She enjoyed the sand much more this time around than last year. She hated the texture I think.

Watching Daddy intently as he makes a hole in the sand.

She loved playing with her beach ball. It was nice because the water was so calm that she was able to go in a little and she didn't get dragged out to sea from the waves.

Playing in the pool in her ladybug. We had this toy last year and it's funny to look at the difference in her from one year to the next.

Lastly, playing with daddy in the pool. I know he loved to have that extra day to play with his daughter.

It was a short trip but a fun one none the less. We can't wait to hit the beach again. It was difficult sharing a room with Hope and since Adam was tied up a lot with his training it was a lot to handle, so I didn't get to run like I had hoped, but maybe next time.

Traveling with toddler, HELP

So Adam's company is sending him to South FL for a couple of days and Hope and I are going with him to soak up some rays. We have been pretty lucky when it comes to traveling with Hope. We usually stay in places where we have plenty of room and she has only been on an airplane twice (once good, once not so good). The flight will only be 1.5 hours long at most so that is good, but now that she is a toddler, what do I need to bring to help her? Also, can I bring milk for her through security or not? No, not breast milk, just regular milk for her?

The airport is 18 miles away (Fort Myers airport, FYI), so I guess we will be renting a car. According to Delta's website, we can check her car seat at no charge. Is that true?

Any tips or advice with all of us staying in one hotel room? Nap time? I was thinking of just taking her on a walk during her afternoon nap but she probably won't sleep very well. I won't have my jogging stroller with me (too big and doesn't fold well) so I will be sporting my McClaren on the trip.

I am very excited about getting away for a couple of days and going to the beach. Should be a lot of fun! I just want to make it as smooth as possible for Hope so she has as much fun as we do!

Hope's first flight and trip to Notre Dame

Well, a few weeks ago, we went to South Bend, IN via Chicago to see the Notre Dame football team face Boston College. It was Hope's first flight and all in all, she did very well (the trip up was much easier than the trip back). We stayed with friends both nights (Friday and Saturday) which was nice because they have little ones so we didn't have to bring as much stuff for Hope. Saturday morning we were up early to make the drive from Chicago to South Bend (a little over 90 miles). The drive was no problem, but once we got to South Bend, it was very cold and looked like it was going to rain. We parked the car and made it over to the bookstore where Adam could get a new t-shirt, some gifts for family, and a whole slew of stuff for Hope. As soon as we reached the bookstore, we saw the leprechaun and I had to get a picture of Hope and the leprechaun. Hope looks more interested in his glove, then him. :) Notice how bundled up she is. I had to hit the store on Friday before we left to buy her a winter coat, something she won't need much for winters down south.





After that, we made our way to the tailgate. It was very cold and windy (42 degrees and 10+ mph winds). Then it started to rain. After an hour of being held, poor Hope wanted to get down and move around. I walked her around for a about 10 minutes, but knew I couldn't do this all day and we were both getting cold.

So we grabbed a few pictures of Hope in South Bend and Hope and I headed to the car. Here we are in front of the stadium.

Hope and Adam with Touchdown Jesus.

The fam in front of the golden dome.

Hope and I got warm at a local diner that Adam recommended (he went back to the tailgate and then to the game with college roommates of his).

This is what Hope ended up doing during the game. We were lucky enough that we had some friends who were also in town and had a daughter just a few months older than Hope. So we spent the rest of the day inside watching the game and Hope was able to play with toys and new friends. I think she enjoyed it!

Where have I been?

Good question! Last week we were at the beach. I have been going to Amelia Island for 29 years now. Wow! We had a great time! This was Hope's first time to the beach and see seemed to love it just as much as we do. I was able to run 5 out of 6 mornings and twice on the beach. I think I did about 30 miles worth of running, plus biking one day and we walked almost everywhere we could, but we also enjoyed the food everyday. :) It was a great vacation and here are some pictures from the trip.

Hope at the beach, Day 2.

Hope and Adam at the marsh before dinner.

Hope at the pool just chillin'.

Happy girl before dinner (pasta night at the ocean club).

At lunch one day.

Playing in the ocean and sand. :)