Would You Like an Ice Cream Cone?

During my pregnancies ice cream was the one and only thing that I "craved" with both girls.  It didn't matter what kind (but mint chocolate chip is my favorite).  I was so bad that I had to buy two cartons at a time. Then, like a light switch after I delivered that ice cream craving disappeared.

However, it looks like my little craving made an impact on my girls.

I don't know if it was all the mint ice cream I had while pregnant with Morgan but her favorite ice cream is also mint chocolate chip.  Morgan and I decide to see if Brooke would have the same love for our favorite green treat.  And guess what?  If you can't tell by the picture, she loved it! 

Brooke wouldn't let go of this cone.  I tried to keep her contained to her little chair and everytime she got up I asked her if she was done.  She would immediately run back to her chair and shake her head.

This is her thinking she's in charge of the situation.
"Mom told me to go back to the chair, she didn't say I had to sit in the chair."  

Trying to get both girls to look at the camera and smile together is a challenge!  This is about all the patience they could take with the camera.

Happy 1st Ice Cream Cone Baby Brooke.  I know we'll share many more cones in the future.

Our Morning Good-Byes

It's official, Miss Morgan is now embarrassed to give me a kiss good-bye in front of her daycare friends...

Our mornings are usually pretty hectic.  The best case scenario is get myself ready, get Morgan ready,then get Brooke ready and leave the house on time.  It usually doesn't happen that way, but it's a goal I stride for.  Once we are out the door things seem to happen like clock work.  On our ride to daycare, we chat about the day we will have, sing A LOT, and maybe even a little dancing.  I love looking in the back seat and seeing Morgan's latest dance moves.  Brooke often gets into it too.  Sometimes, she's even the first to start nodding her head.  We unload with all our "stuff" at daycare, take Brooke to her room and then I walk Morgan to her room.

It started slowly a few weeks ago when Morgan wouldn't even look up at me when she said "good bye".  It was like pulling teeth to get a hug.  After a few mornings, I finally realized what was happening and decided I needed to talk to Morgan about it.  I told her that I understand if she was embarrassed to give her mommy a kiss in front of all the kids.  If she wanted to say our "good-byes" in the hallway, I would understand.  I would just let her take the lead and should could let me know.  Well, we now say our "good-byes" in the hallway.

Hard to believe this little girl doing her pirate "eeerrrr" would be embarrassed to give mom a kiss.

Today while in the car the CD we were rocking out to was still playing (nope it wasn't Hannah Montana).  After a few minutes, it turned to a song called  "Never Grow Up".  Needless to say, the water works started and I instantly started thinking about how fast you are growing up. 

Morgan - At this moment in our lives, I am enjoying those special snuggles on the couch, watching you do a show for me, listening to you read to me and I will treasure those good bye kisses even if they are in the hallway. Love, Mommy

Snack Time

When I had my first baby, I loved taking lots of pictures.  I made sure I had professional photos for every milestone (newborn, 3 months, 6 months, etc.).  I usually did the inexpensive route, but still, I made sure I went in.

People often mentioned to me that they would be curious to see if I continued this with the second child.  I've always had this in the back of my mind.  I want Brooke to have just as many pictures on the walls and in the photo albums as her big sister.  But yes, time seems to slip by faster when you have your second one.  I haven't been as diligent as taking her in for those milestone shots, but I have taken her.

Here's one of those great milestone pictures.  She did such a great job diving into her 1st Birthday cake.

This past month, I've tried to be a lot better about keeping the camera handy for some of those candid shots.  When I took a quick peek at my months worth of work, I had a camera full of my sweet baby girl Brooke.  I was very excited.  I was starting to visual my scrapbook layouts as they downloaded.

In our house the pantry isn't something that is off limits.  It's pretty much baby proofed.  We don't believe in buying stuff and telling the kids they can't have that particular snack.  Therefore, every snack is a "healthy option" most of the time.  I won't say that occasionally, a package of Oreos makes it way home with me, but for the most part I'd say we do pretty good.  One of Brooke's favorite snacks are Cheerios.

I had previously given her a small bowl with a few Cheerios.   I want to say that she just ran out and wanted a few more.  However, learning more about her personality...she wanted to do it herself.

I think she was eating as fast as she could before I took the box away.  Silly girl, I was busy taking pictures.

"Mom, this is serious business, quit laughing at me"

Notice the ones only inches from her, yet she is determined to find the perfect one.

Awhhh, Cheerios... we have a love/hate relationship. 

Hoppy Birthday

My husband has recently taken up the hobby of home beer brewing.  While trying to plan a special getaway for his 40th Birthday, I came across the Bend Brew Bus.  This was the perfect opportunity to incorporate his new found hobby and a weekend away. 


Touring breweries would be way more fun with friends, right?

Our first stop was the Bendistillery This wasn't part of the tour, but since we were childless why not check out everything.  The coffee vodka was by far my favorite - so delicious!



Next back to the hotel to meet up with our tour guide.  Our first stop was the Boneyard Beer The history behind the name of their brewery is because every piece of the brewery was previously someone else's junk.  It was great to see the little guy doing such an amazing job.  My favorite beer was the Femme Fatale, sadly this is a seasonal beer.  They even have a Girl Beer!  It's slightly rose tinted with a few champagne bubbles.

Next on to the big guys - Deschutes Brewery  This is pretty much a full scale operation in my book.  They started out with their little public house in downtown Bend (which is still there).  They are now a full scale operation shipping to almost all 50 states. 

Since it was Casey's birthday, they had a special hat to wear

Sorry the picture is a little dark, I wasn't camera ready when they presented his hat to him.  He was a great sport.  It wasn't until later, after seeing the pictures, he said he didn't realize how big the hat actually was.  Hee Hee.

Ever see fresh hops??  I must say this is an acquired smell.  I am impressed by the delicate texture of these little gems and the power they control.

I won't try to explain what each of these do, it was a lot of information.  I did catch that these containers are all one piece.  They were built, shipped to Bend and the brewery was built around them.  Yes, they go several feet below the floor.  I'm going to say 20 feet, but I could be making that up.


The final stop on our tour was to the McMenamin's St. Francis School This was a great tour because they gave us a lot of the history behind the building.  If you every go to McMenamin's, take a look around at all the amazing artwork. 

Here's a picture of their brewery

Here's a picture of they're cooler.  Wish I would have captured a picture of all their kegs of beer, there were A LOT.

I will definitely return to McMenamin's and sit back to enjoy all the decor.

I must say, this was a great weekend.  We had some relaxing adult time, tried lots of new things.  we all decided we need to make a return trip when the weather is warmer.  Stay tuned for future adventures to Bend.

Happy Birthday Casey!!!