Summer Vacation

We are trying to keep busy this summer although I must say that's somewhat hard to do when the weather is so unpredictable here in Chicago. One day it's 88 and sunny the next day it's 56 and rainy. What to do? What to do?

This past weekend for the fourth was filled with family fun. Robert was able to take the day off on Friday and we ended up taking the girls to Cirque Shanghai. Great show! We also ended up going to my parents for the fourth for a bbq. I love that we can make an escape from the busy city and get our feet into some grass and a backyard.

The girls have been getting along (most of the time). Neither one wanted to do camp because they wanted to spend their summer vacation with me which to be honest with you I don't mind and actually cherish the time I have with them. Ava will be starting full day preschool 2 x's a week in the fall and I can't imagine what I will be doing with my free time. Chloe will be going into 2nd grade and as you can see from the pictures looks like she's 10! Please someone stop time for me. I kiss on Ava everyday hoping she will stay 4 forever!

Anyway, before I start shedding a tear thinking how fast they are growing I will end my blog here. Enjoy the pics of the girls.

Is it summer?

I know it's officially summer time but it DOES NOT feel like summer here in Chicago.
It feels more like April because we have been getting more rain than sun. I was planning on spending our days at the parks, beaches and strolling along the lake instead we have been indoors trying not to drive each other insane. I have a very strong-willed 7 year old and a very naughty 4 year so playing indoors all day gets a little crazy. Let's just say there have been a lot of prayers to Jesus on my end.

Although, I must say I'm loving the fact that we don't have to get out the door by 815am to get everyone to school on time. We can sleep in and have a decent breakfast. No more cheetos in a bag for breakfast. Come on... I know that I'm not the only mother out there that did that.
Anyway, we are hoping the weather gets warmer and that we'll be able to enjoy some days at the beach before school starts back up. Here are some pictures of the kids at the park and at the Garfield Park Conservatory. Lots 'o fun!!

Preview To Summer

This past weekend was a preview to summer. We had great weather and time was spent with family and friends. We threw a big birthday bash for our girls and had a great time. Thank you "Pump It Up" and thank you to all family and friends who made it to the party. I think that next year we will be having a low key birthday bash.

We had lots of fun touring the city with my sister Jean and her husband Jay who were visiting us from Los Angeles. Jay is quite the "professional" photographer and was able to get some great random shots of the girls as they explored the city. Ava is not one to take photos. She is very camera shy so it was great to actually have some cute photos of her.

We are counting down the days until summer vacation. The girls have a couple weeks of school left and then you can find us at the beach everyday! We have lots of fun outings planned and we really look forward to our big 1 month vacation in July to the west coast.

www.340wsuperior601.com

So, do we have any takers? Our home has been on the market for 3 months and I am giving myself 90 days to sell. Spread the word.......

What is up????

Okay, I know I've been terrible with the whole blogging thing. I think I'm just going to accept the fact that I will never be the kind of mom who blogs on a regular basis, nor will I be the type of mom who makes a bird house with her kids out of pinecones and peanut butter. I love sleep way too much to stay up late to blog and as far as crafts go, someone always ends up with too much glitter in their hair! But for you mothers who find the time to blog and who make caterpillars out of pipe cleaners and cotton balls, please keep it up. I'm always looking for a hero!

Here is the Pace update...our house is still on the market. I guess you could say I've been really busy with open houses, showings, etc.. It is a pain in the arse to keep my house spic and span 24-7! Didn't really think about that tiny detail when I decided to put the house on the market. Oh well, at least the kids can eat off the floor it's soo clean. No need for the 5 second rule at my house.

The girls are back at school this week after having had spring break. We didn't get a chance to actually go anywhere because the girls did not have the same week off. So, we were happy to hang out here and find lots of fun things to do around the city.

I can't believe that they will be celebrating birthday's next month. We are very excited to have it at Pump It Up! The girls said that they would share a birthday party (each get their own cake of course). I love the fact that their birthday's are exactly 3 days and 3 years apart. Makes it especially easy for mom to remember. No excuses in forgetting that date.

Chloe is our very outgoing, passionate, determined and dramatic daughter. This girl will wake up at 6:30am to do homework if she hasn't finished it the night before. Am I bad mom for telling her to go back to sleep? Needless to say I haven't had to use an alarm clock in.....7 years. As for the dramatic part of her, I always tell her that she better come home with an Oscar when she grows up because her mama mama can't take no more drama drama.

Ava is our shy, compassionate and highly sensitive girl. She is a joy to be around. I forgot how much fun a 3 year old can be. I tell you....the things that come out of her mouth are hilarious!!! The other day she said she wants to be naughty because she likes the time out chair. Guess where I put her-the time out chair. Oh here's a good one...we were in the dressing room at Nordstrom's the other day. I was trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans (and I mean squuueeeezzzze). She looked at me and said "mommy those look too tight, don't rip the pants". nothing like walking out of the dressing room and feeling like a 500lb. cow! So, I'm back to my eat nothing but everything diet. We'll see how that goes.

Okay, before I spend too much time on this blog I will throw in some recent pictures of the girls.

Enjoy!
p.s. dosen't Chloe look like she's 12 years old in the first picture. She just got bangs and she looks soo much older.

For Sale...

I mentioned earlier that I am a licensed real estate agent and I just had to share the good news with everyone that I have my very first listing. Does it count that it's my own home? Yes, Robert and I are hoping to move very soon. We've been in our condo for over 6 years and it's getting too small for a family of four. Check out the listing below and start spreading the word. Oh, there will be pictures uploaded within the next few days.

www.340wsuperior601.com

My Kind Of Town...

This past week our family has played tourist in our favorite city. We can't believe how much there is to do and we feel we've barely scratched the surface! Because we stayed here for Christmas this year we decided that we were going to try and take the girls out everyday for a fun activity. Our week started out at the History museum and that was a lot of fun. As you can see from the pictures the girls had a lot of fun pretending to be a hot dog (hold the ketchup please!)

The next adventure was Navy Pier and the ever so exciting Winter Wonderland Fest. If you missed out this year, I highly recommend putting it on your list for the holidays next year. It was fantastic. The girls had a blast. Navy Pier converted one of their ballrooms (170,00sq. ft.) into an amazing festival of fun. There were 2 ferris wheels, 3 rides, a carousel, a skating rink, over 10 sliding/jumping inflatables, over 100 Christmas trees and plenty of tired parents!!! Memories to last a lifetime.