happy dad’s day

by golly, it was father’s day! a day to celebrate my hubby is who an amazing dad! not only is he an amazing father, he is a wonderful partner, a doting hubby and dad, a sweet, kind, caring, loving person.

olive and i are lucky gals to have this man in our lives. we started out the morning in bed, hc wanted to open up his gift right away! we gave him a tent from rei! he was so excited that he set it up right away in the kitchen! lol.

via tandeminlove.com

[hc wanted his gift right away! right when we woke up!]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[papyrus motorcycle card…tres cool]

via tandeminlove.com

[little olive ‘camping’ with her daddy in the kitchen]

via tandeminlove.com

since it was daddy day, olive and i ventured out to starbucks and got us coffee. it’s dangerous that the starbucks is so close {literally a couple minutes away}. we relaxed and ate a small breakfast before we headed out to brunch with our family.

via tandeminlove.com

[staple]

via tandeminlove.com

[relaxing before we head out]

we cruised to the city, parked, and walked to the restaurant. it was such a beautiful day; sunny, warm, and bright. so perfect! kim, terry, and the boys were already there. we said our hello’s and ordered tasty beverages to imbibe.

via tandeminlove.com

[family time // the boys going over the drink list]

we started out with apps…scones and jam, fried pickles, and poutine. an interesting combo but nevertheless delicious. this place is so good. i ordered a latte, um, i could have downed four of those! so smooth, nutty, and sweet.

via tandeminlove.com

[scones and lattes…so good]

via tandeminlove.com

[reagan showing off his shirt]

via tandeminlove.com

i ordered the smoked salmon…it was so tasty. the cream cheese was peppered with chives, the capers were perfectly salty, and the accoutrements were like a fresh salad. i was able to wolf some it down {thanks to kim for taking the babes}, my little olive was tired and fussy. kim came back and i took olive for a walk down michigan ave.

via tandeminlove.com

[delicious smoked salmon]

via tandeminlove.com

[enjoying his fruity drink]

via tandeminlove.com

[lovingly eyeing each other]

we absolutely enjoyed brunch. i really like the gage. the staff was so friendly and quite kid friendly. the ambience is fantastic, the food is delicious, and it was fun. i wished we could have enjoyed more of this beautiful day with them in the city but the other family duties called! so, off we went to spend some quality time with hc’s parents!

***

we drove our way to crystal lake…oy vey, it was almost a two hour drive. yowza. once we got there, we hung out outside with dick and jane. gramma brought out the swing and olive had a fantastic fun time on it! she made the funniest faces, she smiled relentlessly, and actually was waving at her daddy while they were swinging together! we chilled out in the yard and enjoyed the wonderful weather. it did rain just a tad. we brought olive inside for a second and then out we went again to continue the fun.

via tandeminlove.com

[papa and olive]

via tandeminlove.com

[olive loving the swing and waving at daddy!! look closely, her little hand flapping in the wind]

via tandeminlove.com

[loving her carrot rattle from land of nod]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[look closely at olive’s face…she has the funniest expressions]

via tandeminlove.com

we spent many hours lazily relaxing. jane whipped up some dinner, we filled our bellies, and then downed too many sugar cookies she had baked. after olive’s feeding, we hit the road back to our maison.

it was such a delightful, beautiful day with our families. we are so blessed and couldn’t ask for anything more. we are so lucky to have such amazing father figures in our lives. happy dad’s day…but we like to celebrate them everyday!

xoxo

long overdue

andrea and i were finally able to set a date for lunch. oh em gee…it was way, way too long overdue for a girly gab session with her!

hc and the gals headed to the grandparent’s house, so i had the morning and early afternoon to myself! that is such a rare thing for me! when I am at home, i always have olive, so to not have her is an odd thing for me. i’ve got to learn to appreciate my time without her {i mean, i do enjoy it but it’s not often so it’s not easy to acclimate}! i do love being with that little gal all the time!

i headed out and quickly cruised to the city. i met andrea at her house. we needed to go over some event planning {some future fun stuff in store} and fine tune some of the details involved. after our gab session and hashing out some great ideas, we headed out to brunch.

our choice to manger? the savoy. it was a beautiful day and we traipsed our way to the restaurant. none of us had ever tried this place so we were quite curious about it. we walked into some cool decor and we were seated right away.

via tandeminlove.com

[the menu]

via tandeminlove.com

[love the barstools]

via tandeminlove.com

[fresh daisies]

andrea and i ordered the same plate…the granola pancakes {yum}. of course we ordered a side of bacon with it {i love bacon!}! annndddd, to wash down all that food, i requested coffee and orange juice as well. a perfect brunch combination.

we conversed, caught up, and had a really good time. i love hanging out with these two! after brunch, we walked back to andrea’s place and then headed out to do some fun errands together.

via tandeminlove.com

[the wonderful couple]

via tandeminlove.com

[granola pancakes and bacon]

via tandeminlove.com

[my girl]

via tandeminlove.com

[coffee and juice…i love the juice glass it was served in]

after a few fabulous hours together, i headed back home. it was a wonderful time spent with these two wonderful people. i’m so happy we were finally able to catch up and spend some quality time together.

xoxo

chirp chirp…hoppy easter

soooo…i’m finally getting my easter post up! woo. woo.

easter definitely was a whirlwind. being smack dab in the middle of our move, it was a much needed, forced break for us. to make it even more amazing was the fact that it was 70 degrees outside!!! so beautiful! the sunshine was wonderful and always puts me in an even better mood!

we traipsed our way downtown to zed451 to meet up with the fam for a delicious easter brunch {ah, missing the city life already}. it was the immediate famille and terry’s sister, lynne, her son patrick, and their mom barbara who joined us for this fabulous holiday!

via tandeminlove.com

[getting the goodies together]

via tandeminlove.com

[olive’s basket]

via tandeminlove.com

[easter bunny shoes from etsy]

via tandeminlove.com

[easter basket chaos // first easter bunny rattle from aunt missy]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[ta da! the final products for the kiddos!]

via tandeminlove.com

[my little lamb]

via tandeminlove.com

[ready to go!]

i really enjoyed the brunch at the restaurant, it was tasty, and very diverse in their selection of foods. their kale salad was amaze {i could have taken the whole plate to our table and eaten only that}. the cinnamon roll was sweet, fresh, and gooey. the offerings of meats were endless {brazilian steak house style}. there were lots and lots of decadent choices of accrouments to nosh on.

i love food. it makes me happy…i dislike being hungry and i will always try something new and different. i am so perplexed by people who are so steadfast in their limited, narrow choices of food. for me, life revolves around eating {savor the flavors of the earth!}, drinking, and family! there should be no limitations on ingredients, just personal exploration to really take it all in and enjoy all of your senses.

via tandeminlove.com

[chambray world]

via tandeminlove.com

[my little easter bunny]

via tandeminlove.com

[awesome cinnamon roll // olive with the boys, she’s staring adoringly at her uncle terry]

via tandeminlove.com

[sister love // bloody mary loving]

via tandeminlove.com

[thuy and dan]

via tandeminlove.com

[kim and olive // mini boden dress and tights]

via tandeminlove.com

[the beautiful sunshine]

via tandeminlove.com

[drinking beer with daddy]

after a wonderful brunch with the famille, we headed back to our house before we drove that long car ride over to my parent’s {hehe…it’s like a one minute & thirty second drive 😉 so, before we did that, we pit stopped at the home depot {we were surprised that they were open on easter}, our new favorite store, and purchased some house goods. during that field trip, our little sweet olive fell asleep…what doll.

via tandeminlove.com

[since we were in the middle of a move, we did a pit stop at the home depot before heading to the p’s. olive decided to nap 🙂 ]

we did an outfit change, when we arrived home, {comfy clothes, here we come} and sped our way to my parent’s house. there we had a wonderful dinner together and the kiddies received their easter baskets.

via tandeminlove.com

[reagan and olive]

via tandeminlove.com

[gift basket exchange]

via tandeminlove.com

[olive’s basket from kim, thuy, r + b]

via tandeminlove.com

[her adorbs doll // her cutie outfits]

via tandeminlove.com

[how cute?!]

via tandeminlove.com

[the aftermath]

the entire day was just wonderful. we had such a great time celebrating easter with our families! blessed be this day of love.

xoxo

sunny day

on my day off, olive had a doctor’s appointment at noon, so that left some room to meet up with the darling dana for a early afternoon brunch.

we went to olive’s sweet pediatrician, dr. perlman, for her four month check up {best doctor ever}. ugh, i had forgotten that she was due for her immunization! poor babes…she just has a freak out when she gets her shots. but she did good 🙂

after her appointment, we rushed to meet dana. olive’s appointment took longer than expected and dear dana was already waiting for us. we quickly found a parking spot {score!} and ran inside. of course, we decided to brunch at southport grocery! one of our favorite spots!

i had to order the baked oatmeal again. feeling a little obsessed with it of late. dana and i were on a feeding rampage. we were feeling like our stomachs were bottomless pits, so therefor we ate a lot of food and we were still hungry!!! nom.nom.nom.

olive was awake for the beginning of the meal and then decided to doze off and take a little nappy nap for the rest of the dana date.

after brunch, dana and i decided to get ourselves some starbucks. we stopped by my car and assembled the stroller to take a little walk on this beautiful, cool, sunny day. the sun was shining and that was all that mattered. it put a smile on our faces. dana wanted to push the stroller, so that turned into a very slow walking pace! she was worried that the bumps and cracks would disturb olive! ha! that baby can sleep through anything!

after our coffee run, we perused a few more shops and then said our goodbyes. i was a little sad to be going home {i really wanted to walk outside some more, but olive needed to wake up and get a feeding}, i did want to enjoy the beautiful sunshine a little longer, c’est la vie.

via tandeminlove.com

[olive looking up at her momma]

via tandeminlove.com

[baby gear and food choices]

via tandeminlove.com

[decisions, decisions, decisions]

via tandeminlove.com

[yum oh yumminess // baked oatmeal and bacon]

via tandeminlove.com

[hiiiii…just chillin’ with my girls]

overall, it was a wonderful day with my baby girl. we had a swell time together on this lovely day! cheers to sunny days off!

xoxo

lunch date

i was way excited to meet up with jod!  it’s still makes me sad that we don’t work together anymore.  tres triste.

we had such a great time, all these years, working together.  and she had to go off and get her own store.  humph!

so, we try our best to squeeze in time to meet up and catch up and laugh it up.  our lunch date was at the little goat {holy busy place}.  i snagged a parking spot and cruised inside to a 30 minute wait {oy}.  jod was on her way, so i settled myself into a little corner nook outside the restaurant waiting for her {gotta take advantage of the beautiful weather!}.

she finally arrived and we were deep in our conversation when my phone alerted me that our table was ready.  yes!  i was hungry!  we were seated and perused the menu.  i had such a hard time deciding {so confused}!  kimchi pancakes, biscuits and gravy, or grilled cheese??  yeah, no correlation what so ever but hey, a girl is preggers!

via tandeminlove.com

[my current obsession]

via tandeminlove.com

[kimchi pancakes]

a virgin bloody mary and kimchi pancakes on order, we dove back into our non-stop chatter.  we talked about babies, work, life, and love, just a few of our favorite things!

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[just bump it // my then 24 week state]

afterwards, we talked and walked to my car {how romantic!} but not until after we snapped a photo of me.  jod insisted on a pic to show peeps my pregger state {such as her wonderful mom ann & former co-wokers i don’t get to see anymore}!  we lingered a bit longer, sometimes we can just go on and on!  finally we said our goodbyes and parted ways.  it was so great to see her!  until next time!

xoxo

fireworks

our 3rd was my 4th!

i had to work on the 4th, so we made it a fun day with grace on the 3rd instead!

we started the day with breakfast at the bongo room.  we walked our way over to one of our favorite brunch places on this beautiful day.  i was so hungry by the time we got there!!!  argh!  feed me!  the wait was just a bit and before we knew it, we were seated and ready to enjoy some yummy goodness!

via tandeminlove.com

[waiting for a table]

via tandeminlove.com

[i love the window display next door!]

via tandeminlove.com

[handmade soaps]

via tandeminlove.com

[her drinking horse]

via tandeminlove.com

[my usual]

after breakfast, we traipsed our way back to our place but not without stopping at wicker park!  it was quite a scene full of mommies and their kids!  hc was the only dude there!  after trying out every single playground feature available {well, mostly grace played!}, we continued on our way home.

via tandeminlove.com

[seesaw time]

of course, not without stopping by to say hello to rhoda!  we love rhoda!  the cutest, most cuddly dog.

via tandeminlove.com

[getting and giving some love to rhoda]

via tandeminlove.com

[the cute bug eyed bugger]

we hung out at home to relax before our evening activities.  we watched movies, i crafted, hubby charming fell asleep, & grace begged us to go to the ‘breyer’ store, aka berwyn’s toys & trains store.  so on another adventure we went!

when we got home, we made sack lunches for the homeless, dropped them off at st. clement and moseyed our way towards navy pier!  our mission was to eat at bubba gump shrimp {how can you not when you are at navy pier??  you gotta go tourista all the way!}.  we were excited to teach grace all the famous sayings from the movie.  she was so intrigued!  she had never seen it, and it got her so excited to watch the movie!

we walked the pier while we waited for our table.  we shopped, explored, and were delighted by all the little kiosks throughout the walk way.  we rounded our way back to the restaurant, once inside, everyone was so polite!  i was very impressed by how friendly everyone was at the restaurant!  it was very pleasant.

via tandeminlove.com

[her flashy watermelon drink]

via tandeminlove.com

[not so flashy]

we timed it out quite perfectly!  we had a chance to explore navy pier, had a yummy meal at the restaurant, had a minute to buy grace a candy apple, and then the fireworks started!  we ran outside and got a front row seat to some pretty fireworks!

via tandeminlove.com

[enjoying the fireworks]

via tandeminlove.com

[our view as we are leaving the pier, pretty and not so pretty traffic]

we had such a good day!  it was a successful patriotic day!

p.s. my 4th of july dessert // yum!

via tandeminlove.com

xoxo

delicio-so!

a sunny sunday afternoon called for a fun, shiny outing!

i met the fam and friends for brunch at hub 51.  delicio-so!  i came in and saw that the fam was already seated {so excited for our day}.  we were waiting for miss thuy to arrive, when she finally showed up…let the manger begin!  it was early enough where it wasn’t super crowded, so getting into line wasn’t a hassle {i no likee when you have to wait in super long lines at brunch buffets!}.

i filled my plate full of copious amounts of yummy goodness.  pancakes {butter & whipped cream, mind you}, honey bacon, sausage, potatoes, fruits, oh my!  i’m infamous for going to a buffet and eating just a plate full {not quite the bargain eater!}.  besides, being preggers, i get full quite quickly {only to hear it gets worse in the 3rd tri…um, ugh!}.

after brunch, we headed down to the lake to hang out at millennium park.  the boys were loving the water!  b has finally gotten over his antipathy of public watering holes!  they giggled, they ran {um, big no no but they wouldn’t stop!}, they splashed, and had a grand ole time!  after spending some time there, we traipsed around lurie garden, got some lemonade, and merrily went on our way home.

via tandeminlove.com

[mommy and daugher]

via tandeminlove.com

[enjoying his desserts]

via tandeminlove.com

[the infinite plate of sweetness]

via tandeminlove.com

[happy father’s day!]

via tandeminlove.com

[sistas!  enjoying my iced decaf americano in this hot weather!]

via tandeminlove.com

[what a cute little man]

via tandeminlove.com

[the boys having a blast]

via tandeminlove.com

[such hams!]

quite a great sunny, summery day it was.

sunny afternoon

it was a perfect day off.

a sunny afternoon and a lunch date with a friend was in order.  i was super excited to meet up with jodi and jett!  we planned a lunch rendezvous at floriole in lincoln park.  it was sunny and beautiful outside and i was itching to sit al fresco, thank goodness they had outdoor seating!

i got there first and i was really, really excited because i hadn’t told jodi, yet, that i’m pregnant!  it was bursting with excitement to tell her!  i saw her strolling up the sidewalk with baby jett and i got up to greet her, we hugged, and sat down {trying to hide my protruding belly}.  we talked about ordering, so jodi got up to peruse the menu and then we both got into line to order.  only a few minutes had gone by before i blurted out, “i’m pregnant!!!!”.  she was so happy!!  i couldn’t contain myself, besides, i was so self conscious about my bump, i know it would have been only a few minutes before she would notice!

she was so ecstatic about the pregnancy!  we sat down, our yummy food came, and we chit chatted non-stop about everything.  it felt so good to be out in the sun too!  after spending quite a bit of time at the restaurant, we decided to traipsed around the neighborhood since it was so nice.  we stopped by a few stores and strolled around the block.  we both had gotten new cars and we wanted to check out our new vehicles!  so we walked to each other’s cars to admire the newness!

via tandeminlove.com

[jodi and jett]

via tandeminlove.com

[jodi insisted on a picture to show her mom, ann {love ann!!!} and other peeps]

after talking, and talking, and talking, we finally parted ways to go about our merry day!  it was so lovely to see jodi and the babes {he’s so adorable!!!!}.

xoxo

big 4-0!!!!

happy birthday party to my hubby charming!

tonight was his fabulous night to party like he is 4-0!  well, almost!  his birthday is on monday but we were ready to get festive!  i was so excited to have this day finally come into fruition!  after months of planning + creating, it was a complete welcome to have it all come together this very night!

it was a very relaxing day to start.  hc dropped me off at st. clement for my meeting {as a team captain for our upcoming service day!}, after a short informative meeting on our upcoming duties, hc met up with me, again, and we walked to a favorite after mass brunch restaurant, frances!

we went home and relaxed {time well spent before we parrrrtayyyyyyed!}.  i actually got ready for the night and hubby charming and i went on a little errand run!  balloons, cake, decorate, oh my!  we picked up a few goodies {hubby charming was not allowed to peep at the cake!} and he dropped me off at the party destination to get ready whilst he went home to get all gussied up himself!

there i was, cake in hand, balloons in hand, and ready to decorate.  i’m sure the patrons inside the bar were eyeing me all funny…who’s this girl who came in with this party package in hand?!  hehehe.

away i went, commencing all the details to add to the festive mood for the night.  i was super excited and on track.  then, in came our first guests of the night and away we goooo!

via tandeminlove.com

[the beginning of the end]

via tandeminlove.com

[menu + favors]

via tandeminlove.com

[the delicious meal]

via tandeminlove.com

[party favors]

via tandeminlove.com

[tassels + 4-0 balloons]

via tandeminlove.com

[laughter]

via tandeminlove.com

[kt + me]

via tandeminlove.com

[buttons celebrating hc]

via tandeminlove.com

[matt, johann, + travis]

via tandeminlove.com

[ken + pete]

via tandeminlove.com

[thuy, lan, + kim]

via tandeminlove.com

[sistas]

via tandeminlove.com

[kt + kar]

via tandeminlove.com

[posse // dan, pete, kim, + terry]

via tandeminlove.com

[wild things // o, dana, kt, matt, johann, + kar]

via tandeminlove.com

[don’t make faces you don’t want me to post!  ha!  heart you O}

via tandeminlove.com

[thuy, lan, leyla, + charlie]

via tandeminlove.com

[beautiful people // chaz, courtney, janice, + johnny]

via tandeminlove.com

[this was the riot table // ruth, dave, ken, pete, carrie, jody, + lisa]

via tandeminlove.com

[pabst beer cake!!!]

via tandeminlove.com

[happy birthday hc!]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[everyone loved the fondant beer can!]

via tandeminlove.com

[enjoying our beer]

image

[hc + kt comparing their height!  yes, kt is a tall skinny lady!]

via tandeminlove.com

[token]

via tandeminlove.com

via tandeminlove.com

[getting creative]

via tandeminlove.com

[what’s left of the big 4-0]

there you have it!  although the pictures definitely don’t encompass all the joy, laughter, silliness, deliciousness, happiness, fun, energy, and love that we experienced tonight!!!  it was the best time ever with friends + family, and hubby charming was as happy as a kid in a candy store.  he was so ecstatic!

thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate hc’s birthday!!!!  we are all so very thankful for each and every single one of you!

xoxo

imaginary moments

ahhhh, lazy days.  those are sometimes needed.

i definitely slept too much today.  is twelve hours too much?  lol.  anyhoo, i got up and proceeded to get ready to meet kt for our movie date.  i walked over to prasino for our lunch destination.  we sat by the window, all cozy and warm, and started our chat fest to catch up on all of life’s crazy offerings.  as usual, we had to decide on our meal choices before we continued to talk or else we would never get an order in!

after lunch, i coerced kt into doing a little grocery shopping before our movie time!  i needed to pick up a few things because it was that time of the month again, making sack lunches for the homeless!  we hit our local jewel and accomplished what i needed to do and wanted to do early because, honestly, i just knew i didn’t want to go later in the evening.  no way.  dunzo.

once we got back to my place, we settled in to watch the hobbit {i’m a huge lord of the rings fan as well}!  yes!  we are such fans!  i loved, loved the book as a kid.  i read it over and over during my sixth grade summer.  it was so exciting to watch the movie and relive the imaginary moments i had as a child; to be able to recite the lines from the book, too.  as the movie went on, i couldn’t wait for bilbo and the crew to get to the misty mountains!  well, all of a sudden the movie ended!  argh!  nooooo!  i have to wait to see the other half?!  bummer!  but i was quite content to have seen it with my buddy kt!  it was awesome!

afterwards, we just hung out and talked.  it was quite a chill day.  it was marvelous to relax and take it easy with my ‘leg’.  😉

via tandeminlove.com

[heart kt]

via tandeminlove.com

[strawberry blonde // so delish!]

via tandeminlove.com

[getting ready to watch the hobbit // yay!]

via tandeminlove.com

[yeaaahhhh, fab movie]

xoxo