Splish Splash

With our tax return money in the bank, we decided to treat the family to a mini excursion. We had talked about visiting a water park and spending the night, and we scored a great deal at Key Lime Cove in Gurnee (warning for those who click on the site--very loud Caribbean music plays). We visited some friends who live a few minutes away before we headed to the resort, and we had a great time meeting their new dog, Winston. As much as I'm not a dog person, Winston is a cutie.

We arrived at the resort about 2--check-in wasn't officially opening until 4, but they allowed visitors to start using the park at 1. We waited in line for ONE HOUR before we were allowed to do anything, which was plenty annoying, especially since we had already paid for our rooms. Luckily the kids were decent, which is more than I can say about myself! What I did like was that the room key was electronic and attached to our wrist bands.

We finally checked in, changed, and got down to the water park. The kids were overwhelmed with all that they could play on. There was a giant pineapple that drenched unsuspecting visitors with a thousand gallons of water. There was a lazy river right off a wave pool. There were water slide tunnels to slide down. And there was a smaller area for littler kids (Jeremy). We took the kids over to the pineapple first, and Jeremy went down a few slides. Riley was having fun exploring, but Phil had to follow closely behind.

The gigantic pineapple.

Slides for the adults, which we didn't get to experience.

Then we attempted the lazy river, which was difficult in itself to secure an inner tube for two. We all were able to float around a few times, which I enjoyed thoroughly. Before we knew it, we were getting hungry, so we headed back to the room for some food. Phil went to grab some grub, and the kids and I hung out in the room.

This is to prove that Phil was actually there.

It was while watching the news that I realized why the park was so packed on a Sunday evening: March 2 (Monday) was Casmir Pulaski Day, which meant a lot of school closings for Chicagoland. That explains why every middle-school-age child was at the water park!

After dinner, we went back to swim for a bit. We were hoping it would be enough to wear out the kids, and we were right. Riley slept in the queen pull-out bed, and Jeremy slept on the floor. The entire family was asleep by 9:30, which hasn't happened in eons in this house.

They can be such angels when sleeping.

It's enough to make you love them again.

To top it off, we all slept in until 8:15! The pool reopened at 9, so after a quick breakfast, we suited up and went back down. Although we could have stayed at the park until 8 pm (checkout was at 11, but we had full access to the park until 8), we felt we were pretty much dried out from the chlorine. I actually almost lost a contact in the pool when some kid accidentally splashed me, and I blinked and turned my head quickly. A fast walk to the bathroom to fish my contact out of the corner of my eye, and everything was fine.

Riley down one of the slides.

Jeremy's turn down the slide.

We were able to secure a life jacket for Riley, and she had a lot more fun in the deeper parts of the pool. But we all agreed that by 11, we were ready to hit the road. Especially since there were a good 2-3 inches of snow on the ground.

Riley with her jacket.

Coming up for air.

How Jeremy spent much of the time out of the pool.
He slipped one too many times not taking his time.

Overall, I think we're all glad we went, but the kids probably would've had more fun in 2-3 years. Jeremy said several times that kids pushed him. And we each had to have a child with us at all times, which was fine, but it made it hard to really enjoy yourself, say, by floating down the Lazy River by yourself.

We Interrupt This Blog...

...for a brief brag. I went and chopped off my hair yesterday. Only about eight inches. I'm still in shock. I plan on donating it to Pantene's wig program, and was inspired by my brother who did the same in the fall before he left for Lebanon. I decided spur of the moment on Friday to do it, and Jeremy was a trooper while we were at the hair cut place. My head feels so much lighter, and I still can't believe I did it.

Here's the most recent before shot:

This was from our water park excursion
last week, which I still need to write about.

I was apprehensive about Jeremy's reaction, because he's so into hair. For all his life, he's loved hair. He twirls his hair to comfort himself, and there has been on more than one occasion where he wants me to take my hair out of my ponytail so he can run his fingers through it. He did say afterward that I looked beautiful, but he said he wanted the lady to put my hair back on my head. Sorry, buddy.

The after pics:

Jeremy didn't want to join us in this shot.

Ta dah! Quite the difference, huh?

Visit Up North

The kids and I took a daytrip up to Wisconsin last week to visit my cousin and her family. She gave birth to baby Samuel on January 2, and he became an instant celebrity by becoming the first baby born at that hospital. Anyway, with it being such a bitter cold winter, add that to the fact that Sam is a little fussy, we decided to bring some relief in the form of two kids and a cousin.

The trip was actually decent, considering I was worried about having to deal with stopping alongside a two-lane highway to tend to bathroom breaks. I came prepared, though. I packed a mini potty, just in case. Jeremy was able to hold it the entire way--Riley was the one who insisted on using the portable potty. I think she just wanted to pee in the car, quite frankly.

We made it up there and had a great visit. My aunt (my cousin's mom) was up there and she whipped up a fantastic lunch. I was able to get a lot of snuggles in with the little guy, and the kids had fun playing with Colton, who is now 5!

Riley and Colton sharing a chair.

Jeremy watching a movie.

Unfortunately I didn't take advantage and snap a lot of pictures of "Baby Samuel" as Jeremy calls him. No nicknames here! But trust me, he's a cutie. (Although the stories Kim told me of the lack of sleep, balancing life with three kids, and dealing with winter makes me wish we lived many miles closer.) Thanks for letting us visit!

Baby Samuel enjoying a bottle.

Basking in the milk coma.

Class of 2022

This week was kindergarten registration, which meant I had paperwork to fill out. I opted to take both kids on Thursday after our weekly trek to the library. We were there for about 45 minutes, and luckily the kids were able to watch a movie or color while I filled out papers explaining about Riley, and then logging onto a computer to input more information. At the end, she had her picture taken for her school ID.

It's so crazy to think that she's going to be in all-day kindergarten this fall. From 9:00 to 3:55. That's a long day. But I'm hoping that she'll be tired enough to not be so antsy as she is now! But really, it will be good for her. We'll get her school supply list in June, followed by bus routing information later in the summer.

Class of 2022. Wow.

We are a Hockey Family

Yes, we named our son after a hockey player.

Yes, we enjoy the sport of ice hockey.

And yes, we're brain-washing our child at an early age.

Exhibit A:

And for those die-hard hockey fans, please notice what we have Jeremy call the Detroit Red Wings. Yes, we are a Blackhawk family.

Life with a Boy

Last week Jeremy was spinning around in circles. For no reason. Other than he's a boy. And we've been stuck inside for what seems like 10 years due to Chicagoland winters. Yuck. Anyway, the little boy lost his balance, fell down, and slammed his head into the dining room chair.

Blood came spurting out of his head. Poor guy. I immediately applied pressure to his wound, all the while he's telling me he's fine, although he was sobbing a bit. Not nearly as much as his sister would have if she did the same thing.

Of course thoughts were running through my head like "I have no idea where the nearest hospital is" and "What happens if his wound won't stop bleeding." Luckily the bleeding subsided, but the only bandages we had in the house were Hello Kitty. Riley helped me out by locating one and we applied it to his owie.

The patient.

Saying "cheese."

And then the next day we went out and got him some Diego Band-Aids.

Post Hello Kitty Band-Aid.

Dentist Appointments and Hair Cut

Jeremy had his first dentist appointment last week, and I have to brag that he did remarkably. Riley had her teeth checked first, and she's a pro at everything. She showed her brother how it's done, from the wearing of the nifty shades to getting her teeth polished to even having the fluoride without a problem. They did want her to have X-rays done (something they said they like to start after the kids turn 5), but her mouth was too small to house the mouthpiece. They said next time would be fine.

When it was J's turn, he was excited to wear his "fishy napkin" around his neck and ride up and down in the chair. He even proudly told the hygienist that he has 20 teeth! He let her polish his teeth, but then he got a little freaked out by "Mr. Thirsty" and decided he didn't want anything to do with the fluoride. They said that was fine. All things considered, he did a heck of a lot better than his sister did her first time! (Think screaming bloody murder and Phil having to hold her down.)

After that, we headed to get Riley's hair cut, but I was quickly reminding of how much fun a recently potty-trained kid can be. The minute we get onto a busy road, I hear from the backseat: "Mama, I need to go potty." I raced to the nearest location that had a potty, which happened to be Target, and hurried both kids inside. Luckily the little guy held it in until we got in there. I'm happy to say that he is officially potty-trained! And he even stays dry at naptime! I am thoroughly impressed.

Anyway, we went and had Riley's hair cut at a place that I don't care for. I had a coupon, and in hindsight I should've just gone to our regular place. The lady was a bit rude, and I remember her from before when she told me I needed to have Jeremy stop twirling his hair. (Really? Because of what harm? I doubt he'll grow up and need hair plugs from the twisting! And there are worse vices.) Riley sat in the chair by herself, and I told the hairdresser that I wanted Riley's hair "cleaned up" and maybe an inch off. The next thing I know Riley hops off the chair without the woman even asking me if I liked it! Nice. Not that she did a bad job, but it wasn't very classy.

Here's the finished product:

Smiling pretty.