Fun week, indeed!

For our mini-vacation this year, we went to Michigan Adventure again, due to Ethan winning 2 free tickets to the park.

Having spent a week in Muskegon last summer, spending a day at Michigan Adventure and doing some other things, we decided to take just 3 days this time around.

Jason found a KOA campground that had a "park model" cabin/camper for us to rent about 45 minutes from the park, in Allendale.

Tuesday morning, after a quick breakfast and loading the car up, we started our drive across the state. The older boys had their DSI's to play video games for most of the ride and the toddler slept about half of it. We stopped at Burger King for lunch and to get out of the car for awhile about half-way there.

A quick trip for some groceries and then we made it to the cabin to unpack the car. Swimming came next, in the campground's pool. Even Jackson joined in the fun! The boys played on the playground and swings, and we walked around a bit.

Jason cooked us up some cheeseburgers on the charcoal grill - the boys each had a regular, but we splurged for him and I and got black and blue burgers, seasoned with loads of black pepper and stuffed with blue cheese! Seriously tasty!

After dinner came a bit more "exploring" and an attempt at fishing. It started getting dark and Jackson was getting sleepy, so we went back to the cabin for the night. While I got Jack down for bed, Jason took the boys outside to have a campfire, complete with s'mores and a scary story. Poor Alex wasn't too fond of the scary story, so Jason stopped early and came in. After all the boys were sound asleep, Jason and I sat outside for a little while.

Jackson actually slept from about 9:30 till 5:30am! That rarely happens!

Wednesday, we went to the amusement park and had so much fun. Ethan went on a roller coaster first thing with Jason, and I took Alex to ride a couple of rides by himself, while Jack and I watched him. Jack loved watching all the cool rides. After quite a few rides, we grabbed a quick lunch over by the water park, and all changed into our swimwear.

The water park was my favorite part. All three boys got to do something fun in there, including the wave pool, and for the older boys, water slides!

We did have a big scare at one point. Before we even entered the park, we went over what the boys should do if we should get separated or lost. I took Jackson in the tidal wave pool with the older boys and Jason waited outside off to the side. I decided to take Jackson out after a few minutes so we could warm up and I guess Alex saw me and followed me. I didn't realize it though and because he was a little ways behind me, he didn't see which direction I went. He walked around for a bit looking for me and Jason, while we were standing off to the side, talking and looking in the giant tidal wave pool, filled with so many people, trying to catch a glimpse of each of them. We saw E, but no Alex anywhere. Trying not to panic we walked toward the front and continued to look, thinking he was just lost in the sea of kids in the water. After about 10 minutes and still no Alex, I started walking toward the front of the water park to see if he had maybe wandered to the bathroom or for a life-vest (he mentioned maybe wanting one) and as I turned to start going around the corner, I saw him with a security guard, with a scared look on his face. Pushing Jackson in the stroller, I walked as quickly as I could to meet him and wrapped him in my arms, asking where he'd gone! I was almost in tears, and thanked the security guard, who told me he had gone to the first aid station and asked for help. I'm so glad we told the boys who to go to and what to say. I never, ever want to feel that way again. I really don't think Alex does either!

It was time to leave the water park then and ride some more rides, followed by a bbq dinner, more rides and finally time to go home. Jason mentioned stopping for some ice cream on our way back to the cabin, so we were on a mission to find some soft-serve. We found a little place called Whippi Dip between Muskegon and Allendale and sat outside in the warm summer breeze, as it got darker and enjoyed some yummy ice cream.

We had to check out by 11am on Thursday, so we packed up all of our things and got on the road. We decided against fast food for lunch and found a little hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant in Howell called Mexicali Allie's. It was pretty good and the boys all ate their cheese quesadillas, E ate his rice and Alex ate his refried beans. I decided on a ground beef taco, a bean tostada, beans and rice while Jason chose a chunk beef burrito, ground beef taco, beans and rice. Jackson ate a bite of beans but didn't really dig them, which surprised me, because he loves them on tacos at home!

Once we arrived home around 3, we were greeted with a "Welcome Home" chalk sign from Julie and the B's!! Well, actually two, the first on the driveway by the garage door and the second on the sidewalk/patio area by our back porch! That was really cute and sweet. At the last minute, on Monday evening, (because I forgot to find someone to watch the dog and none of our neighbors were around to ask) I sent Julie a text asking if she'd let the dog out a few times and feed and water him each day for us while we were gone. And because she's an awesome friend and my hero, she agreed!

THANKS AGAIN JULIE AND BOYS FOR HELPING US OUT! IT WAS SO NICE OF YOU AND YOUR FRIENDSHIP MEANS THE WORLD TO US!!!

Side note here: Make sure to follow Julie's new blog as she branches out from here and hopefully we will both grow our readership! 

After we settled back in here at home, unpacking and ordering pizza for dinner, Jason suggested go-karts and/or mini-golf. I thought that sounded like a fantastic idea. When we got to C.J. Barrymore's, we had to see if the boys were tall enough to ride the "faster" go-karts. E is plenty tall enough and Alex is borderline. However, the lady at the counter asked how old he was, and when we said 8, she told us "Sorry, he has to be at least 10 AND 54" tall to ride those ones". After buying E's ticket and mini-golf tickets for all of us except Jackson - he had to be a spectator in the stroller as he's still a tiny bit too young to play :( but he didn't mind, he laughed at all of us - we went over to the turbo track to find NO ONE else in line. E was going to be out there all by himself! Jason ran back in and bought a ticket for himself and they raced each other while we looked on. 

Mini-golf was fun, we chose the "green" course, and I did really well the first 5 or 6 holes, hitting it in with 2 strokes (par was 3 for every hole), then I kind of stunk for a while and then believe it or not, I, somehow, got 3 - yes, THREE! - holes-in-one! I don't even think JASON did that, lol. But Jason came in way under, winning the game. I had 63, E had 68 and Alex had 69.  

Jackson slept all night AGAIN! I'm loving the fact that he's sleeping anywhere from 7-10 hours a night now, although I know it could change at any moment. I'm relishing in the fact that I'm getting some good sleep myself now, except of course when my own body decides it doesn't need sleep, but I'm really, truly tired...

Yesterday (Friday), we are still technically on vacation, as Jason took the day off of work and the boys are not starting school for over a week. However, it sure didn't feel like a fun day. After having used up quite a few things before we left - milk, bread, peanut butter, eggs, you know the staples - I had no choice but to go grocery shopping, hopefully before lunch. Since I try and go "big grocery shopping" every other week and just get a few things that would go bad if I bought too much, and it happened to be shopping week, it took a little longer to plan the menu and grocery list out. Jack-Jack and I left after 11am and didn't get home till after 2! He was so well-behaved and patient in the two stores. We ended up going to Meijer for most things, and Costco for meat (they have organic chicken and ground beef for a good price), eggs - again organic, 2 dozen, great price - and a few other things. I even got 4 loaves of organic whole wheat bread for $11.38. I know it sounds kind of expensive, but even Aunt Millie's at Meijer is almost $3/loaf and it's not organic, but is my second choice. Meijer organic is about $4, I think? Regardless, we got everything, snacked on some samples and a slice of Costco pizza (eh, not my favorite) and came home. Jason took the older 2 out while we were gone, after lunch, to get new rotors for the front brakes on our van and to sell a buddy's riding gear. When we got home and got the van unloaded, they weren't home yet. We decided on leftovers or sandwiches for dinner. Jason was supposed to have his class last night, and still needs to find his 2 books, so he took off early, only to find the campus bookstore closes at 2pm. He stayed up there, went to class, his professor was a no-show so they all submitted attendance paperwork, and he took the long way home - meaning he rode his Harley around for a little while.

Today was a beach day. We decided on Lake St. Clair Metropark as there's a beach, playground, splash zone/sprayground and for an extra fee, a pool with water slides. We skipped the pool and slides and opted for free. I packed up some sandwiches, fruit, tortilla chips/cheese puffs, juice boxes and other picnic snacks for us, while Jason gathered our towels and beach gear. After everyone was dressed for swimming, we drove over and enjoyed 4 hours there! It was such a beautiful day, the water felt great, and the boys all got along. E even made a new friend that he and Alex played with in the water for a bit. Jackson went swimming - well sort of - and played happily in the sand. We ate our lunch and Jason and the older boys went back in the water. I took Jack to change his swim diaper and wash the sand off of his little bottom and change my own clothes, and then we met the 3 of them in the splash zone. After about 15 minutes (they were over there for about 20 before we even managed to make it back over that way, lol), we decided to call it a day.

Now that we are home, Jackson is taking a nice nap, E and Alex are playing video games, and Jason is off at the tattoo parlor getting more work done to his right arm. It's really nice looking so far, but he wants more added to it. While they are all occupied, I'm taking some "me" time and writing, finally!! Although, now I should probably go make some dinner for my little loves, because I know Jack will be awake soon and it's already 5:30!! Where did the day go?

Oh yeah, and tomorrow, we get to go hang out with JULIE and her little men! So excited. It's going to be an afternoon filled with visiting a metropark, geocaching - hopefully we will have better luck than before - and a cookout with friends.

I have a ton of pictures from our vacation, so I may make a slide show from them and share them that way. Still trying to figure out my photo software on this computer and I received it as a gift in December! Oh well.

32

My weekend went a little something like this. Crazy.busy.non-stop. Ha!

Friday morning, Jackson had a 9am dr. appointment which went pretty well. Jack is healthy and strong. He's 21 lbs 10 oz (he actually gained more than 1 1/2 lbs in just under a month! That may be a record for him!) and he's 31 1/4 inches tall! I had to fill out another questionnaire like I did at his 12 month appointment for gross motor, fine motor and speech assessment. He scored a little low on his gross motor again ~ but one of the questions was about climbing/crawling up stairs, which was impossible to assess since we live in a ranch (with a basement, but he doesn't go down there), so that was a "not yet" answer ~ and he was borderline for speech. The pediatrician ~ whom I love, but am a little frustrated with about this ~ is wanting us to call that early childhood place again. Since they said they would follow up in May and the PT gave me her name and number if I had questions before, I will call her directly and see what she thinks. Also, over the weekend, at my sister's, he proved he can crawl up a whole flight of stairs, and he learned a new word or two. Jack says "dog" now and it sounded like he said A's name and a couple of other things too. So honestly, I think it's so hard to follow those assessments. I understand why and that they are probably very helpful and a great tool, but sometimes, it's not a good indicator of skills/milestones. Also, she wants us to sign a form about vaccines, saying we are declining and it goes to the state or county health department. I really want to wait since I know we don't really need to sign anything till school starts (5 more years!) plus the way it reads somewhat worries me. We are not necessarily planning to get him any, but currently we are delaying until at least 2. E and A won't be getting anymore either. It's a personal decision based on lots of research and loads of discussion with Jas. I know it's a controversial choice and people may not agree but it's our choice. Besides, I have to say, he's been our healthiest boy so far... makes you wonder, you know?

OK. So back to the weekend's craziness!

Jas, E, Alex, Jack and I drove to Toledo, and took the older boys to Jason's parents' house for the weekend. Oh and Buddy, our dog. I have to say, my in-laws are pretty wonderful to not only take Ethan and Alex for 3 days but also our dog when they already have 2 of their own! It was super-helpful. After we dropped them off, we went to pick up my mom and visit my dad for a few minutes before heading South to Columbus!

On the way, we stopped at picked up my nieces (my sister's fiance's daughters), A - 10 and M - 12.

Friday night, we ate dinner and then between all of us girls, we got some of the wedding favors taken care of (no details, because I know some family members will be reading this! ;) ) and finally go some sleep.

We all woke up pretty early Saturday, some earlier than others *ahem, Matt!* (<--- he was up and out in the yard both days before us, building stuff!), ate a quick breakfast and headed out to the bridal store to look for dresses for us bridesmaids. Of course, the store had our appointment wrong, made Heather (my sis) pick up her dress that day ~ the wedding is in September... ~ and the first lady we worked with was so rude. We got "assigned" to a different, much nicer lady but we couldn't all agree on one dress. The one we all kind of liked was way over-budget, before alterations (and because I'm fat - hey, I am! - there was an additional $20-40 charge.) so we decided to keep looking.

Heather, the girls, mom, Jack, Chelsea (another bridesmaid) and her daughter and I went to lunch at IHOP in between shopping. I think it was a much needed break and we were able to sit and talk a little about our plans for a bridal shower.

 The next place we went to was not really any better. They were a little more polite, but the selection stunk and anything we did like didn't come in our color (hello, black is a pretty easy color for a dress, people!). No luck.

Off to the mall. Well, most of us. Chelsea and her daughter live about an hour from Heather and it was already after 4, so they had to get home. I feel bad that we wasted their time shopping. :( Chelsea is very nice and between her and her daughter, I was cracking up!

So we checked a few stores at the mall, to see if maybe they had any prom dresses that might work. Ugh. Time to just go home.

Late dinner - pizza which was yum! - and Heather and mom and the girls did some more of the favors while I tried to get Jack down for the night.

Oh by the way, Saturday was also my birthday. Not to mention, I'm not really a fan of clothes shopping but this was somewhat fun. Even when it was stressful, LOL. I got a sweet card from my honey.

Heather did some online searches and found another local bridal shop that opened at 11am Sunday that looked promising.

After a big breakfast, all of us girls and the baby went out to the shop, which is in a 120+ yr old farm house! To be honest, upon first sight, I was a bit nervous about their selection. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by three very sweet ladies who showed us where to look, got us what we needed and helped immensely. We found 5 dresses to try on and since the largest in-store size was a 12, we had M try on the dresses. 2 of them we somewhat liked, 2 we didn't really, and 1 we fell in love with. We can get it in black with ivory, it's much less expensive (by almost $100!!) and comes in every size we need. I tried it on with a corset-type strapless and while I couldn't get the 10 zipped all the way up, it gave me a good idea of the fit and I loved the flowiness (sp?) of it. By the way, Mom got it on, zipped and it was big on her! I think that put a big smile on her face :) She looked beautiful in it - too bad she's not a bridesmaid, LOL. Also the salesgirl didn't charge me the "extra" fee so I got it for the same price even though I needed larger than a 16 (typically they charge $25 per the manufacturer/designer). We put half down on mine, M's and A's. Chelsea and Marcy, the other bridesmaids, got pictures texted to them and they both answered with an affirmative answer :) Thank goodness. I was getting depressed that we were having such a hard time!

By this point it was after 1pm, so we had to get the van loaded so we could head back to Toledo, drop off Mom and go to Jason's parents' house. We didn't get there till 5:30. My MIL had dinner ready almost immediately (thankfully!) and we went out and played for a little while with the boys before cake and ice cream. We never got on the road till after 8, I think. Home around 10pm, boys were in their jammies, so they went straight to bed.

This morning was a little rough because all of us were tired from a long week/weekend and a late night again, and I didn't realize we had finished the juice boxes sometime last week so when I went to pack lunches this morning, I had to dig out $0.30 for each of the boys to buy milk (chocolate for E since he can't stand regular ~ he's got to have something with lunch and I don't have a small thermos for water that fits in their lunch bags :( ). We were late, but neither of them seemed to upset. I didn't remember till I was helping E at his locker, that I forgot snacks for both of them. It's going to be a long day...

Oh. Yeah. The title of the post is 32. I forgot. I turned 32 on Saturday. But apparently I look 17. According to A, at least. LOL. That was a great compliment. I look half my age! Yay! But I also don't look old enough to have kids, she said. Hehehe. Silly, sweet girl.

My dreams

Not only am I married to a guy who never seems to put his roots down for longer than a few years, I myself feel a bit like a "gypsy". If I had things my way, we'd move again. Not sure where, but somewhere. I'd like to spend some time out west, in Arizona, New Mexico, and California. Heck, I'd be happy to own a nice RV or bus (the kind you can actually live in) and travel around for months (or years!!) at a time. Just seeing things, meeting people, and learning new things.

If we could go to Europe for a few months, I would love to see Italy, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Poland, you name it. Then there's Australia, Asia, Africa, South America. Oh so much to see and learn! I'd love to really make a difference in some way in a far off place and teach my kids the true meaning of life, and what it is to be a citizen of the world.

I know that Jason has an amazing job, our kids are in a great school and we have a nice home, but I have this sense of longing, never truly being happy where we are, but always (or at least almost always ;-) ) happy with who we are with - Jason and E and Alex and Jax. They mean the world to me.
I don't know why there is always a nagging feeling that we should be doing more, that we should be living somewhere else, etc. I know it sounds silly.
"I should just grow up and settle down."
"What about school for the kids?"
"What about friends (for them) and family?"
Truthfully, I want so much more for them. I want their lives filled with diversity, and culture, and life-long learning, and philanthropy, and caring, and empathy for people who have less. I want them to see families around the world who may have less "stuff" but more love than we see day-to-day and who would share with you just because you are there.

As a child, I was always interested in Archaeology and History. I still am today. I'm interested in Sociology and other cultures. I want to learn a new language at nearly 32 years old and I want to take my three young sons on a never-ending adventure and for them (and I and Jason) to really live life, for us, for others, not for things and money and whatever else that doesn't really matter when it comes right down to it. I believe that God made me this way for a reason.

It's not always easy, being a parent, a spouse, especially when you have 2 extremely intelligent children, one of whom is also on the Autism Spectrum. It's hard to remember sometimes that they are just little guys still (10 1/2 and 7 1/2) and not "little adults". They know so much and memorize the craziest things. But then we have to repeat and re-teach the simplest things over and over, to the point of it being maddening. I want them to be children in the true sense and love life and really enjoy it and also see what the world is really like, outside of school, outside of the sheltered lives we all live...

Is that too much to want? Am I really asking too much? I know how crazy I sound. I am after all just myself ;) I love who I am and I'm learning to love who I'm becoming even more.

*Edited to add this final thought as well as this photo I took a couple of years ago: BTW, I know I am totally spoiled, lucky, whatever and have no idea what I would be getting myself into, as well as the fact that I have an idealized outlook on the world. But let me ask you this, if you had a chance to see the beauty in the world, would you seize that opportunity or would you stay in the comfort and confines of your own backyard?!? When I took this photo, I did not see the inchworm (or whatever it is). After I got home, I decided to crop the picture and enlarged it. After seeing it, I saw more beauty in this picture than before. I almost didn't even snap a photo of that flower that day, but something told me to. I'm glad I listened to that little nagging voice. :)*