i know, i know...i'm a bad blogger...

I apologize for my laziness/absence/general bad blogging. Summer has caught up with me in the last week or so, and I'm behind on everything. Sigh.

To make up for it, how 'bout some pictures of the cutest Tootsie Girl in the land, K?

This is how we get the wiggles out before bedtime. 'Round here, we call it "The Burnoff."


The County Fair went on last week, and Emerson loved the petting zoo. I LOVE this picture...pure kiddo bliss.

We visited cousins last week, and Emerson had her first taste of a lollipop. She was hooked. She's still talking about it!We got out on the lake for a bit of skiing. Check out the skipper! She's a Sorren alright...boating is in her genes.
We painted her toes for the first time, blue of course. She was quite curious about what was going on.
That's what's going on around here. I promise that I'll be better this week. Cross my heart :)

summertime bliss

When I was a little girl, the ultimate special treat was heading down to Annie's Ice Cream Parlor in Lake Geneva for a cone of Blue Moon. My grandparent's house was not far away, and I spent most of my summers there. Annie's was the only place I ever found Blue Moon, and if you've never tried it before, it's a sweet, creamy, unique taste that brings me right back to age 6.

Well, we have a newish snack/ice cream parlor in town, and guess what? They have Blue Moon too! And it's just as good as I remember. Being that Emerson's favorite color is blue and she loves all things blue, it was a foregone conclusion that a cone of Blue Moon was in order. Grandma was right there to guide her through her first ever cone. It was an epic mess, but boy oh boy, was she ever a happy girl!

my running playlist

So, several people have asked me recently for some suggestions of music to run to. While I usually listen to Podcasts for my long runs (I need to "get lost" in something to make the time pass more quickly), this is my running playlist. ( I apologize for the lack of punctuation, but I copied and pasted from iTunes and am too lazy to add commas.) It's quite eclectic, but then again, that's me. Feel free to tell me some of your faves~

Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) Toby Keith
Fly Away Lenny Kravitz
Do You Feel Loved U2
How We Operate Gomez
Higher Ground Red Hot Chili Peppers
Even Better Than The Real Thing
U2 Rattle and Hum
Rebel Yell Billy Idol
Barracuda Heart
Slither Velvet Revolver
Settle for a Slowdown Dierks Bentley
Danger Zone Kenny Loggins
Baba O'Riley The Who
Mo Money Mo Problems (Featuring Mase & Puff Daddy)The Notorious B.I.G.
Low Cracker
Fast As You Dwight Yoakam
Down Under Men At Work
Billie Jean Michael Jackson
Other Side Aerosmith
Sultans of Swing Dire Straits
Señorita Los Lonely Boys
Nothin' Better to Do LeAnn Rimes
Stolen Car (Take Me Dancing) Sting
Soul of a Man Susan Tedeschi
Never Coming Home Sting
Drive In Drive Out Dave Matthews Band
(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection Nelson
In The Evening Led Zeppelin
57 Channels (And Nothin' On) Bruce Springsteen
Mary Jane's Last Dance Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
He's a Pirate Klaus Badelt Pirates of the Caribbean (Original Soundtrack)
Tamacun Rodrigo y Gabriela Rodrigo y Gabriela Latin
American Girl Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Freedom George Michael
Circle Big Head Todd and the Monsters
Just a Dream Carrie Underwood
Space Sarah Buxton
Life In a Northern Town (Live) Sugarland, Little Big Town & Jake Owen
Then Brad Paisley
Already Gone Sugarland
Joey Concrete Blonde
Seether Veruca Salt
What Goes Around.../...Comes Around Interlude Justin Timberlake
Hero (Motion Picture Version) Chad Kroeger featuring Josey Scott

have you ever wondered...

...just HOW all of those mismatched shoes end up along the roads? I see them all the time. Men's shoes, kids shoes, work shoes, play shoes...hmmm, now that I think of it, I rarely see women's shoes strewn about...we just have more regards for our footwear, I guess. When I see one, I often wonder what its story is...was it in a car of pranksters who tossed it out for a joke? Did someone get tired of the mess in the car and fire the shoe out the sunroof as the first shot in the "War to Get Clean?" Was it wrestled off of the owner's foot, or was it casually laying in the backseat, minding its own business, when WHAMMO, out the window?

The world may never know.

Make it a good week.

be a do-good-er

One of the blogs that I read is for a scrapbook supply company called Cosmo Cricket. I love to get scrap-inspired there, but I also like that they frequently blog about the everyday, non-scrapping related business of life. Earlier this week, I was moved by this post and wanted to share it with you: Christmas in July

Em & I were pretty good about bringing food to the local food pantry on a weekly basis earlier this spring, but we've gotten away from it lately. This is a good reminder that people are still hungry, and we need to do our share to help out.

Maybe this week, you can take a few minutes out of your schedule to help those who are hungry too?

Happy weekend!

2 peas in a pod

I have no idea what went through Jeff's mind when he heard the doctor say "It's a girl" on that August day in 2007, but I'm sure that a tiny part of him was the teensiest bit disappointed not to have a son. I think every guy has the vision of playing with their " 'Lil Slugger" and doing "man stuff," so it's only natural to hope for a little boy.

Well, flash forward almost two years...Jeff could never have imagined the amazing bond he has with his little girl. The two of them laugh and giggle and talk and just generally love on each other like they're the only two people in the world. One of my favorite sounds is hearing them playing and talking together...just makes me smile right down to my core.

Hope you're having a great week~

newsflash

Breyer's cherry vanilla ice cream is like summer in a bowl. it's sweet, creamy, and is the epitome of summer.

Alright. Carry on.

our holiday weekend

Happy belated 4th of July, all! I hope the weather cooperated wherever you were celebrating. We were at Jeff's parent's house, and unfortunately, the weather did not get the memo about our party. We were stuck inside due to rain but still had a nice time catching up with family. And of course, Jeff's mom and aunts put on a delicious spread. I always eat WAY TOO MUCH when we're there. Oh well.

Today, the weather was awesome, perfect, bottle-me-up-and-sell-me terrific. Jeff & I planned a unique "date" this morning...we strapped on our shoes and went for a 7.5 mile run together while Emerson stayed home with Grandma & Grandpa. I think we all benefited from that time. Then, our good friends Mike & Adri and their twin boys Tyler and Lucas came over to play. We literally NEVER went inside! It was so nice to have the room to play and the interesting stuff to keep everyone's attention...between the sand pit, ponds, playhouse, and chalk everyone was busy having fun. I love seeing my kiddo playing with the children of friends that I've known for years. I don't think I'll ever get tired of that.

On to the pictures!

Grandma brought out of some of Papa's old cars and toys and Em was enthralled! She loved them.

Grandma scored a smokin' deal on this playhouse. We had to drag Emerson out of it when it was time to go.

There is a family of tiny frogs living in the pond. Em loves to see them and the fish in the water.

Sometimes, she likes to get a wee bit too close to those frogs!

We made our own parade in the driveway.

This is my favorite picture from the weekend...it captures Emerson's ever-moving energy and her LOVE of the flag. She's seriously obsessed with them and was quite excited to hear that they'd be all over the place on July 4th!

Jeff showed the boys the frogs in the pond.

Emerson was not excited about sharing the playhouse and quickly found herself in Timeout after trying to forcibly remove Lucas from the house.

But eventually, Em was able to come to terms with the fact that the boys were here to stay. She and Tyler had fun digging for, well, dirt.

Jeff's dad has a rain barrel on the deck, and this was a never ending source of entertainment for all 3 kiddos. It was also a perfect place to hose off after playing in the dirt and eating a messy lunch.

Make it a great week...it's going to be a busy one for us. We LOVE summertime!

another update

So we went to the Doc...she has an infection in her throat caused by a lingering sinus infection (sorry, kid...you've apparently inhereted my penchant for infected sinuses.) That's what made her temp soar. But as of bedtime at 8:15, she was down to 101.9 and took another dose of ibuprofren when she got in bed. I'm hoping for a righteous battle of the white blood cells tonite while she sleeps resulting in a healthy kiddo tomorrow.

Thanks for thinking of us~

fever update

We're up to 103.8 and are heading off to the Doc. I don't mess around with high fevers. Period.

Keep the prayers coming~

sick kiddo

So for the second week in a row, Emerson has suddenly spiked a fever of over 101. This morning, she was fine, playful, even jumping around, which is par for the course for her. But we visited a friend with a brand new baby (I'm SO SORRY, DI!), and on the way home she asked for her binky. I can't tell you the last time she did that. Then, at the grocery store, I noticed monster goosebumps on her legs. I even commented that I was surprised she was so cold. When we got home, she was shaking because she was so cold and her head was burning up. She started crying inconsolably, and couldn't even talk because she was so upset. Poor little thing...I think she just felt like absolute crap!

Yesterday was one of the worst days we've had in a while; she was out and out combative with me and was, to put it politely, a stinker. In hindsight, I think it may have been the start of this whateveritis that she has. My mom tells me that I used to turn into the spawn of Satan right before I'd get sick. Now there's a family trait I could have done without.

Last week, the Doc said we had Coxsackie virus, or "pool sickness" as he called it. Blisters on the back of her throat, temp, runny nose, cough, but nothing serious. She's still been draining, but I thought it was just lingering, but now I don't know. Any of you had experience with this (MEGAN: I'M TALKING TO YOU...I consider you the expert in sick kids!) Overall, she's a pretty healthy kid, so I REALLY don't like fevers 2 weeks in a row.

Prayers for a speedy recovery would be most welcome :)

a.