Splash

We enjoyed a good old fashioned visit from our friends, the LeComptes, this past weekend.

Friends who are willing to travel to visit us?  High on the list of God's blessings to our family.

We have fantastic memories with these folks.  Like that weekend where we watched the first two seasons of The Office straight through.  The one where we played Guitar Hero constantly. The one where the four adults (pre-kids of our own) babysat for another friend's baby.  At that other friend's house.  The one where we picked out prints of Venice and frames to hang on the LeComptes' living room walls.

The LeComptes were the first to bring kids into the mix, and then they really outdid themselves with having twins two years later.  Caroline arrived on the scene just two months later.  Let's just say our weekends together look a bit different than they used to. 

They came down for a visit in December of 2010, when their twins were just a couple months old and Caroline was brand new.  If I remember correctly, DeeDee and I spent the weekend on the couch.  Nursing. A couple of months later we Browns went to visit them in Michigan, and I think DeeDee's and my only excursion was a trip to the grocery store with all four kids.

But this trip?  Now that all of the little buggers can walk and run and don't need to nurse constantly?

We can do extra-fun things.


Like the splash park in downtown Columbus.


Look at this place.  Summertime kiddy paradise.  AND it's free.


These kids ran around like crazy folks.


Up and down the aisles. 


Back and forth.

Pit stop. Kisses needed.


All morning long, they were as happy as clams.


Here's Drew.  And Will.  Let's just say all three kids were easy to spot with bright red hair and matching swim shirts.


And then we stopped for a picnic lunch.  What more can you ask for?


Then it was time to pack up and head home. Why? Because of the MAJOR LEAGUE WONDERFUL TRUTH about water play. It makes for spectacular nap times.  And not just for the kids.

These two? Be still my heart.

Our weekend adventures with the LeCompte family will continue to evolve as our families grow up and change and all of that.  Paint ball?  Movies?  Kickball in the backyard?  Keeping the boys away from the girl(s?)

But what we appreciate about these friends, these weekends, is that it doesn't matter at all what we all do.  Toddler-centric activities or otherwise.  We will always have good times and make fantastic memories.

Cape Cod Vacation

Looking for a great summer destination?  Get thee to Cape Cod.

We met up with Josh's parents in Boston, and rented a little two bedroom place on the water halfway down the Cape.  Perfection!

With the Cape you'll find picturesque islands, cute towns, fantastic beaches, and delicious seafood.  And then if you want to enjoy a day or two exploring a big city, Boston is super close. 

And what's not fun about Martha's Vineyard?

Ferry ride?  Check.


Good food, beautiful water views, sandy beaches?  Check, check, check.


Gingerbread cottages?  Yes indeedy.


Bike rentals?   Yes as well.  Although why has no one ever mentioned that bike riding while pulling a small child in a Burley trailer is HARD WORK?  We had to take turns with that bike, and almost died riding back to the bike shop.  This one, on the other hand, took a nice nap.


We were on the Cape for a week, and did all kinds of local/touristy activities.

Beach walking (despite the chilly weather.)


Lighthouse viewing.


Lobster and clam chowder eating.


Mini-golf playing.


More eating.  Well.


And driving down to Newport, RI, and exploring some crazy/elaborate/over-the-top mansions from the turn of the century "Gilded Age."


At the end of the trip, we did some Boston sight-seeing.


We had to hop on this donkey (in front of Old City Hall) because that's exactly what we did on our 2004 Boston trip.

2012: Married for almost 7 years, one toddler in tow, one baby on the way...


2004: In college, still dating, on vacation with my parents.  Don't we look like kids? That's because we were!


In closing, I'll leave you with my favorite "let's get a group shot" pic. This particular group shot happened to include a tired toddler. Classic.

Visitors!

For not living in a place all that long, we've actually had quite a few people stay with us.

We love it.

So if you know us and there is any possibility that you'd drive to Buckeye-ville for a night (or a weekend!), please come. We'd love to have you. And if you're a Michigan fan, we could use your cheers on football weekends.

Both of our parents have come (and helped!) along with my grandparents who have now visited twice. Our friends Lora and Patrick stayed a random night or two before their house was ready as well.

And then our friends Tom and Bethany Reese drove up from Bloomington a couple of weekends ago with their baby Ainsley. Tom is currently a student at Kelley, one year behind Josh, and we lived in the same apartment complex last year. There were many evenings last year that Beth would find me on her front stoop, accompanied by a certain furry leash-puller. She'd get Ainsley set in the stroller, and we'd walk the neighborhood. I miss that!

But we LOVED having them come visit. Ainsley, at 14 (I think) months old, was a complete angel, and she is obviously as cute as a button. And she LOVED Riley. After the first five minutes, anyway. If we were in the house, she wanted to be petting him.


They hung out for awhile at the top of the stairs.



We had fun showing them around town! Beth, Ainsley, and I went to Easton (fantastic outdoor mall), Tom went out to Scotts with Josh, and all of us headed to downtown Dublin for local pub grub, and then out for our favorite ice cream.

Ever since we moved to Columbus, I've wanted to visit the zoo. Believe it or not, it is actually ranked #1 in the country. Jack Hanna, the guy you can see bringing animals to Regis and Kelly and The Today Show, is from the Columbus Zoo. Who knew? An award winning zoo in the middle of Ohio. But Josh claimed that we were "too old" for the zoo if it was just the two of us.

Well, as soon as I finalized plans with Beth, I pitched the zoo idea to her. It will be perfect, I figured. We'll have Ainsley with us! And Beth was totally on board. Saturday morning we met our other friends (the Rich family) and all enjoyed the zoo together.



The big attraction these days is the baby elephant. Holy cow is he cute.

I can just hear the mom. C'mon now junior. Move along.


The more I spent time looking at the animals, I realized that they're actually pretty similar to the little furball living under our roof. They like to sleep.

So do babies.



The only drawback to the zoo that day was that it was cold. And rainy. I hijacked baby Ainsley out of her stroller and carried her around for awhile, and that helped keep me warm.

We were thankful that we remembered to bring umbrellas.


Josh inadvertently wore this festive zoo-themed shirt that day.

Wearing festive clothing isn't something Josh is usually interested in doing, so it made me laugh when, at various points of the day, our friends were like, hey Josh, nice shirt! Especially perfect for the zoo known for the baby elephant exhibit.

After the zoo, we even snuck in a trip to North Market for tasting some international food. Including divinely authentic Belgian waffles.

We loved having the Reese family come to visit! We were sad to see them go, and will continue to actively campaign that they move to Columbus next summer after grad school. And that they move in down the street. I miss my walking buddy. And my friends.

For more on our fun summer weekend with the Reeses, check here.

Summer Lovin'

We love this guy and use him all the time during the summer months! Isn't he cute?


I have to admit that we're not experts. Our go-to grill outs tend to include a lot of hot dogs, and the occasional hamburger. I have also mastered the art of potatoes grilled in aluminum foil. Yep, pretty basic.

Last week I decided to get fancy with things, after being quite inspired by Short Stop's post on shish kabobs.

They didn't disappoint. The marinade is JUST terrific.


MMM... come to mama.

Now that I have confidence that we can tackle more complex grilling projects, I need some more recipes!

Any ideas?

Wordless Wednesday: Sunset

Monday Afternoon Randomness

1. Riley's new motto: Will Work For Speedboat Rides

We spent the 4th at my grandparents' cottage on Big Whitefish Lake. Riley took his first speedboat ride and decided he liked the feeling of wind in his face. From then on he begged to go along on the boat when anyone took off. We enjoyed beautiful weather, relaxing time to read and play tennis, and some boating fun.

2. I love, love, love Rose's on Reed's Lake. Especially the deck.

We spent Saturday evening with my parents and Oma (dutch for grandma) enjoying the perfect summer evening and a delicious dinner.

3. I miss giong to Ada Bible Church.

Josh and I started to attend Ada right before we left for Bloomington last summer. We went there again on Sunday. We really like it there. Who knows? Maybe God will bring us back to GR someday. Until then we'll just have to listen online.

4. Bloggy Book Giveaway

Copies of Messy Spirituality have been sent! I'm looking forward to hearing what you all think! Short Stop, I have given out all ten copies, but I just might be able to get you one anyway. I'll work on it!

5. Girl's Night Out

Jamie (friend from college) is here and we're hittin' the town with Jessica (another friend from college) tonight! We did a spa/wine tasting weekend together last summer, which was of course excellent, but that was the last time we were together. We'll be missing a crucial puzzle piece, DeeDee, tonight. I'm sure we'll still manage to have a good time, however.

Best Easy Summer Dessert

I got this recipe from (where else?) Kraft Food & Family and it is my summer favorite

Why?

-It is easy (we're talking like ten minutes)
-It doesn't require a hot oven (yay - especially because we don't have central air here)
-It is relatively low calorie (one piece only costs me 3 points)
-It doesn't require lots of pots/pans/dishes to make (which is great for us because our furnished rental house is lacking a bit in that area)
-It is delicious - light, cold, and sweet.
-It even looks pretty!

We're taking it to the Fourth of July festivities up at my grandparents' cottage tomorrow. Gram, reserve me some room in the fridge!

Here is the recipe:
1 can (20 oz.) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
1 pkg. (4-serving size) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Fat Free Sugar Free Instant Reduced Calorie Pudding & Pie Filling
1 cup thawed COOL WHIP LITE or COOL WHIP Sugar Free Whipped Topping
1 pkg. (10 oz.) round angel food cake
10 fresh strawberries

MIX pineapple and dry pudding mix in medium bowl. Gently stir in whipped topping.
CUT cake horizontally into three layers. Place bottom cake layer, cut-side up, on serving plate; top with one-third of the pudding mixture. Repeat layers two times.
REFRIGERATE at least 1 hour. Top with berries just before serving. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

And with that, have an excellent holiday weekend, everyone!

Memorial Day Weekend - Lake Michigan

Are you sensing a theme?

Josh's parents are visiting for the holiday weekend and we took them - where else? - to the dog-friendly beach in Stevensville.

Riley was SUPER good and was even allowed to trot along without a leash. He especially loved running up and down the shore with us. It was the perfect day for it - sunny without being hot.

My in-laws walking down to the water.

Loving the sand dunes.

The family shot.

I could run with my dog on the beach all day every day. We both love it.

The beach bum...

More Beach Stuff

For those of you asking about dogs and beaches, from what I understand they're not allowed on about 95% of them. However, after a brief google search for dog friendly spots along Lake Michigan, I was delighted to find one about 15 minutes away (by car, unlike the last one, which was a 15 minute walk). Yee-haw.

So of course that is where we went last night.

More sniffing and licking and getting paws wet for Riley, who loved every second. We walked down along the water for quite a while, just enjoying each other, the lake, and our puppy. Josh even taught me (successfully!) how to skip stones.

And let me just tell you - it was beautiful. Both nights now - just pure and gorgeous and serene and wonderful all around. And since we're still in mid-May, it was both cool and mostly deserted. Perfect for a leisurely stroll.



There is just something about beauty in nature that turns my (often distracted) mind toward my Creator. I'm so thankful for glimpses of Him in the "rocks and trees" and "skies and seas." As I sat there tonight listening to the waves roll in, I grabbed a handful of sand and looked closely at it - the thousands of little grains in tans, blacks, and browns. And it hit me anew. As big and majestic as God is, He still knows about every grain of sand. Like hairs on my head. The little details of this world - and my life - don't escape Him. Incredible.



This is my Father's world, and to my listening ears

all nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres.

This is my Father's world: I rest me in the thought

of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; his hand the wonders wrought.