I got my BuffMother tank top today. Here are a few pics that Kyle took. Look at that shoulder muscle! I'm making progress :)

Anniversary #5!

Eary in August Kyle and I celebrated our 5th anniversary by going to Sandusky, OH to go camping and to Cedar Point. We both love amusement parks and hadn't been to CP together. Unfortunately the first night it started raining right after we set up the tent. We had barely gotten the fire going and it started raining. We ended up cooking our hamburgers quickly and eating them inside the tent. Luckily we had brought the DVD player and some movies to watch. The next day was great! We went to CP and it was super humid and hot, but at least it didn't rain :) We had a blast going on all the fun coasters and just hanging out together. We stayed until the park closed, which Kyle had never done before. In the middle of the night we woke up to thunder and pouring rain! It didn't let up at all. We ended up having to take the tent down in the rain--Yuck! Oh well, all in all it was a fun anniversary trip!

Mac's First Haircut

Two days ago we took Mac for his first haircut at Snip-Its (www.snipits.com) -- a place especially for kids. He did a great job and was so chilled. I didn't really want to get so much cut off, but in order to blend it in they had to cut quite a bit off. He still looks adorable, but so much older now! And his hair is almost blonde...weird, huh? After he was done, they took a polaroid and attached it to a card with a certificate and a little ziploc with a lock of his hair. Good for the scrapbook ;) Snip-Its is pricey for a kid's haircut, but fun for the first-time experience!

Double JJ Ranch

We went camping with the Aasmans (John is the campus pastor at Eastside) at Double JJ Ranch a couple weekends ago...and we brought Ashlyn! It was just one overnight and the Aasman kids (Jordan, Jessie, Kaitlyn) were there, so we thought we'd try it out with her while Mac stayed with Papa and Mimi. We have an 8-person/2-room tent so we put her pack n play on one side and Kyle & I were on the other. Ashlyn did great! We had a fan going for noise, read her a couple books and she went right down. She woke up a few times during the night, but I think she does that anyway at home--we just sleep through it. As soon as it was light out, she was up for the day. She usually sleeps until at least 9:30! Double JJ is a great place to camp with kids. Everything is "Old West" themed and they have a great pool with a kids pool (water fountains, zero depth entrance, etc.) and a water slide. They even let Ashlyn go down the slide with Kyle and with her lifejacket on. She thought it was pretty cool, but once was enough :) They also have a petting zoo. With her fear of dogs we weren't sure how she'd do with the petting zoo, but she absolutely loved it! We'll definitely be going back to Double JJ with the kids :)

BuffMother!

I've recently joined an online group called BuffMother. It's a fantastic group of women who believe that they can be in the best shape of their lives...even AFTER having children! I'll spare you all the "before" pictures, but hopefully you'll be able to see in the family pics I post that I'm getting in shape :) I'm working on making life changes to my diet and making working out (lifting heavy) a regular part of my life. So far I really like what I'm learning. I'm gaining a lot of muscle. Now I just need to be eating clean consistantly so that I can get rid of the fat layers covering that muscle :) I'd love to have other mothers join me on this quest for buffness--check out BuffMother or just keep encouraging me in my mission!

Mac & Max...BFFs ;)

Our great friends "Uncle" Lee and "Aunt" Julie came for a visit and brought Mac's new BFF, Max! Even though they're only 5 months apart, Mac looked HUGE next to Max. Don't worry Max, I know that with your big feet, you'll catch up really soon! Maybe by Christmas time (when we come visit you in Chicago) you'll be able to fend for yourself a bit when Mac tries to grab your face!