Tripoli Shrine Circus

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls,...we went to our first circus today!!! Mom and Dad took us to the Tripoli Shrine Circus, and Gigi and Pop Pops joined in on the fun!  We had no clue what to expect, but we guarantee you that the three hour show exceeded any ideas that may have been in our little heads.  Immediately upon arrival Pop Pops got us fired up by getting us each a cotton candy, and then it was off to our seats to enjoy the show.  The first half was filled with tigers, dancers, magicians, tight rope walkers, and trapeze artists.  Lily took a once in a lifetime ride on a elephant during intermission while Pop Pops and I went in search of the perfect light up toys.  The entire arena was aglow with light sabers and wands of every color so we thought we should get in on the action as well!  The second half of the show involved elephants, motorcycles in cages, and a human cannonball.  Each act was just as amazing as the next, and our eyes were glued to every minute of the performances.  It was definitely a sight to see, and something we will never forget here in our world!

Buzz

This afternoon Mom and Dad headed to the Marquette game, and left us in the hands of Ms. Mary (Mommy's coworker), Mr. Chris, and Buzz.  Buzz is only the second cutest dog ever (after Wrigley of course), and what makes him so much fun is that you can carry him around for FOREVER!  I'm pretty sure Lily would have carried him home with us if she could have, but unfortunately that was not possible.  We're definitely up for another afternoon with Buzz in the near future since it may also entail a game of "spy", dominoes, and a major snowball fight at the park.  Hopefully Ms. Mary and Mr. Chris are up for it since I'm pretty sure we wore them out!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love is in the Air

This year's Valentines are signed, sealed, and ready to be delivered!!!

Sweaty Little Beast

I've taken up basketball again this winter, now playing for an organized league here in Mequon.  There are eight teams in my league all composed of first graders.  This means lots of my friends play too which makes it that much more fun!  You can always count on me to be the first one down the court whether on offense or defense, and I squeeze in a few sprints to the bathroom and to refill my water bottle during every game as well which results in me be one sweaty little beast by the end of every game!

Celebrate

Today was a day of celebrations.  We spent part of our afternoon celebrating our friend, Kristin, at her birthday party at Ozaukee Skateland.  We had never been roller skating before, but jumped right in and gave it a shot.  We left with plenty of bumps and bruises, but there were no tears which always means it was a success.  We had so much fun that both of us added roller skates to our wish lists as soon as we got into the car.

Later in the day Mom and Dad took us out for dinner to celebrate our great report cards, and then we stopped at our favorite spot, the Cedarburg Coffee Roastery.  Here we indulged in hot chocolate and monster cookies while playing UNO with Mom and Dad.  This stop is always a treat for us here in our world!

Rainbow Tiger

This is what birthday parties for 7 year olds result in...I guess things do keep getting bigger and better  here in our world!

Frosty and Friends

We've been dying to get outside and play, and this weekend finally allowed us some time to do just that.  Warm temperatures resulted in some quickly disappearing snow, but it also made what was left of it super packable which means Frosty is back!!!  This year he isn't alone either as he brought along a mini Frosty as well as a snow dog.  Due to the lack of snow we weren't able to break out the sleds or snowboards, but we did dig three tunnels which we love!  Playing in the snow just never gets old here in our world!

7 Year Check-Up

We're a few months late, but we made it to the doctor today for our yearly check-up.  I came in at 47 inches (18%) and 52 pounds (50%).  Lily was 45 1/2 inches (9%) and 47 pounds (28%).  The doctor said based on our growth curve over the last 7 years we most likely have what is called Constitutional Growth Delay which is something Mom most likely had as well.  It just means that we will grow at a slower rate than most of our friends until high school or maybe even college and then we'll have a larger than average growth spurt and catch up to everyone.  He said it is nothing to worry about as we will simply be "late bloomers".  Everything else looked good from our heads down to our toes so we're set for another year of just being Ryan and Lily here in our world!

There is No Place Like Home

Today our vacation came to an end, and it was time to fly home with Mom.  This was both good and bad as we were ready to get HOME, but we really wanted to stay and hang out with Dad.  Once at the gate, sadness was replaced with excitement as we watched tons of planes take off and land which is still so amazing.  Our flight was good, although delayed, but Mom said we were troopers and great travelers.  The free snacks always help our cause, and this time we got hot chocolate to drink from the very nice flight attendant which made the flight even better.  We also saw a beautiful sunset which disappeared faster than we could count to 100.  We arrived back in Wisconsin to frigid temperatures and a freezing cold car, but we warmed up quickly and were pretty happy to be home.

Vacation - Day 5 & 6

Day 5 (Friday) was not very eventful as it rained all day.  We tried to go to the aquarium, but the lines were too long so we switched up our plans and relaxed for most of the day at Ms. Kim's.  We did travel to Dacula, Georgia for dinner and to visit our cousin Tommy and his family.  We were introduced to Alex and Avery for the first time, and spent hours playing checkers with them.  We were pretty bummed when we had to leave, but I guess the fact that we passed out upon leaving their driveway was a pretty good indication that we were tired and ready for bed. 

This morning we woke up refreshed and ready to go.  Titi Nery and Uncle Choo-Choo stopped by to say good-bye as they were leaving to make the trek back to Illinois.  Then we headed out to give the aquarium one more shot, and this time we were successful.  We thought this visit would be a quick one since we were just here seven months ago, but I guess we were mistaken.  Nearly 3 1/2 hours later we exited through the gift shop, where we of course scored a few new treasures.  We loved the whale sharks, belugas, and manta rays as much, if not more, than the first time we saw them.  After the aquarium we walked through Centennial Park to the SkyView ferris wheel.  We took a ride on the giant ferris wheel going almost 20 stories up.  We unfortunately couldn't see very far due to the fog and rain, but it was still pretty cool being that high up and seeing the teeny tiny world below.  All the fun made us pretty hungry so we grabbed a bite to eat at Yeah! Burger (Daddy's favorite burger joint), and then headed out to Serenbe, a community just outside Atlanta, to check out some homes and grab a treat at a yummy bakery Ms. Kim told us about.  It was another busy day for us, but we love the adventures here in our world!

Vacation - Day 4

We started off the first day of 2015 with a little swim and a dip in the hot tub.  We then said good-bye to Hilton Head and headed back to Savannah where we did a little shopping and strolled down River Street.  Before leaving we waited in the block long line for Leopold's Ice Cream which was well worth every minute of the wait (even though I didn't think so while we were actually waiting).  The drive back to Ms. Kim's was uneventful, and we quickly settled in to bed so that we can be ready for another day.

Vacation - Day 3

Today's adventures led us to the outlet mall, a hidden burger joint, the hotel pool, the beach, and a yummy dinner to celebrate the New Year.  A morning walk down to the beach led to the discovery of a few seashells and some Hermit crabs.  We didn't stay long, but made it back for sunset to play a bit in the Atlantic Ocean, and leave a few messages for everyone as we say goodbye to 2014.  In the afternoon we convinced daddy to swim with us even though it was only in the 50's!  The pool was heated, and plenty warm enough for us to swim like little fish for over an hour.  Afterwards we headed out for dinner at The Black Marlin where we indulged in Strawberry Daiquiris, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate lava cake to celebrate.  Happy New Year y'all!!! 

Vacation -Day 2

Today we road tripped it to Savannah, Georgia and Hilton Head, South Carolina.  In Savannah, we were only able to make it to Wormsloe Plantation due to weather and time, but we're swinging back through on Thursday so we'll be able to explore some more then.  Our brief history lesson led us down a street lined with over 400 Oak trees at the Wormsloe Historic Site which is also home to Savannah's oldest standing structure.  The century old Oak trees are covered from trunk to tree limb in Spanish moss, and make for some amazing photos especially if you're our Mom.