one lovely evening, olive and i went over to my parent’s house to help my sister kim bake cupcakes for reagan’s soccer team. the occasion? his birthday!
we headed over and got crackin’ on eating dinner. hello. first things first! hc placed an order for pizza…enough pizza for a small village. after noshing, kim was so excited to give olive her gift. awwww, such a thoughtful auntie and godmother! she gave olive a hello kitty rattle plush toy {olive loves it!}, the kitty cat is usually olive’s buddy during car rides! she also gave little o an adorable pumpkin coat! so fun! of course, we dressed olive in the garb and she was like, ‘stop playing dress up with me…i’m busy playing’.
[hello kitty rattle plush toy // gifts from auntie kim]
[pumpkin coat…hmmm, not impressed]
[there she goes!]
[pizza night]
[holy pizza]
[same noses]
[stuffed mushrooms]
[being super silly with her cousins]
after the shenanigans, we got serious with our cupcake making. thuy started the cupcakes, i decorated them, and kim finished out the packaging. total sister work! they turned out super cute. it was, obviously, a soccer theme. kim had gotten the polka dot cupcake liners, soccer toppers, and cups. i added in the cellophane bags, sprinkles, black ribbon, and frosting. ta da! soccer themed birthday cupcakes for reagan’s team!
[getting ready to pipe some icing]
[whose pout is bigger?]
[goofing around]
after we assembled all the cupcakes, the kids were stoked to eat them! well, the kids and hc. olive wanted to partake in all the yumminess as well…she only got a taste. we gotta hold off on the sweets until her numero uno birthday! don’t want to spoil her tastebuds too much right now.
[cupcake time!]
[belly baring, frosted covered nose girl]
it was a fun evening. the kids always have so much fun together. hc took olive home early to bathe her and grace stayed behind to play a little longer with the boys. after a bit, we finally headed home {ya know, that long drive from my parent’s house 😉 ]. all in all, it was a sweet, perfect evening.
we had a low key, simple night out with the fam. i love moments like these. we can get together, have dinner, hang out, and shop! us gals can really shop. i don’t know how and why. it cannot be explained. were we born with the shopping gene?? yup, i think we were. there is such a thing as a shopping gene, right? some people are born with it and others are not. when you have the shopping gene, you can shop for hours on end. you are able to go to one store, to the next, to the next, and the next without getting bored or exhausted. yes, that is what me and my sister’s have. the unique shopping gene. 😉
well. we started out the evening with a tasty dinner at cpk. we had our usual server, our usual order, and the usual routine. the boys colored and i fed olive her dinner. hc ordered a pizza and i wasn’t super hungry {what?!}, so i ordered a bowl of soup. split pea soup…delicious, add a dash of ground pepper and it totes is a meal!
[selfie and cpk]
[chunker cheeks]
[coloring]
[my love]
[these two being silly!]
[pizza! pizza!]
we actually went shopping before dinner {because there was a wait} and before dinner ended, i ran out to pick up a few things for miss olive at babygap {a fav store of mine for the little missy}. the fam finished up at the restaurant and hc came over to tell me they were headed over to nordstrom. i made my purchases at babygap and we walked our merry way over to nordstrom kid’s shoe department. i could spot them from across the store…all three cuties had their balloon in hand!
olive was having a great time playing peek a boo with her balloon and reagan. oh, reagan. he is the sweetest with her…always doting on her and being such a great, big cousin to little olive. it is so sweet to watch. as you can see, she was all smiles!
[peek a boo]
[weeeeee! weeeeee!]
after much strolling, shopping, and a whole lotta fun, it was time to go. the usual…get miss olive home and start her nightly routine for bedtime!
having family close is the best thing. easy dinner. easy company. easy shopping partners. God bless my family and yours!
we crossed off two summer to do’s on our list! we attended a concert in the park and then some.
we met up with my famille in downtown hinsdale. it was a beautiful evening. hc and i parked up the street, south of the tracks, and walked our way towards the park. it was a lovely, leisurely, short stroll. there was a band playing there called 7th heaven. apparently, way, way, way back in the days, they were an opening band for bon jovi.
my sister had already popped a squat by the fountain and we made our way back there. everyone started to gather within the hour. terry came by, then mike and sam, thuy, then helen and gabrielle! we mingled around a bit; the boys eventually went towards the booze and food area to grab us some grub and drinks.
[seventh heaven was the band]
olive was out. she fell asleep in the car {she was a tired little peanut…she didn’t have much of any naps that day} and was zonked out with all the craziness and noise around her. she finally awoke an hour later and everyone got a chance to dote on her!
[baby girl fell asleep and slept through all the noise]
we were relaxing, enjoying our surroundings, and reveling in the wonderful weather and temps. then it was time for me to break out some bubbly {uh, no, not that kind of bubbly!}! the boys were so excited! they went nutty over the bubble guns and so did the kids around them. they were like pied pipers with these bubble machines! wherever they were, the kids followed and surrounded them to break all the bubbles and break out in sweet giggles!
[sisters, olive, and helen]
[we were watching the train roll by as we were leaving the park]
it was getting late {late by baby standards} and we had to go. it’s always this: leave early, get olive home, give her a bath, feed her, and put her down…all by 9pm, every night.
we walked our way back to the car {such a beautiful night!} and as we were crossing the tracks, a freight train rolled by! we stopped to watch the train go by…olive wasn’t very impressed. so move along we did. we got home, scurried around, and everyone got settled and snuggled in.
it was another fabulous summer evening with friends and family! yay to warm weather! we love you!
my sisters and i teamed up together and threw b his fifth birthday party!
wow, i can’t believe it’s been five years since this little guy was born into this world to brighten our lives! my how time flies! b is so sweet and playful and thoughtful. i love his curious questions and backward hugs. we couldn’t wait to celebrate his special day!
kim and thuy had been planning it for some time. they accumulated party paraphernalia throughout the month and slowly came up with some really cute party ideas. b wanted a construction party and, boy, did he get one!
the day before the party, kim, thuy, and i got together to prep and plan for the fete. we organized, fluffed, stickered, and unwrapped everything. there was so much to get done! we worked into the wee hours of the night to prep as much as we could.
the next day was game time. everyone worked really hard to put the party space together. hc set up all the tables, kim and thuy worked on the decor. terry picked up the food. slowly but surely, the party came together and it all looked so stinkin’ cute!
before the guests arrived…hc and i wanted to present little b with one of his birthday presents. hc worked really hard on it and we were really excited to give it to bennett! hc pulled it out to the backyard and we had b walk out to it. it was a success! he loved it! his own little wooden dump truck…so cool. hc is the greatest uncle evah!
[the boys in their matching shirts]
[the birthday day boy going out to see his surprise gift from uncle rich]
[his handmade dump truck from uncle rich!]
[birthday boy and uncle rich]
[centerpiece]
[the p’s and the hostess with the mostess]
[home depot aprons/favor ‘bags’]
[yellow and black poms]
[truck piñata]
[favor table]
[favors]
[the boys and the truck]
it was party time and the guests started to arrive. there were plenty of libations for everyone and little popcorn snacks to munch on. as the guests strolled in, if hc could, he would grab them for a house tour!
[auntie lynne and cousin patrick]
we had craft tables for the kids. where they could draw, color, and build structures with popsicle sticks. it was quite a hit with the creative little ones.
[the craft and arts table]
[grace being the best cousin ever and pushing b around in the truck!]
[jana, sonny, angel, tricia, thuy, and olive]
[me and my awesome brother dan]
[avery and lan]
the first game of the party…pin the flag on the construction bennett! the kids excitedly lined up, we blind folded them one at a time, and they gingerly walked towards the poster to pin their flag! it was so amusing to watch them, they tried so hard and i know some of them were peeking out from under that kerchief! ha!
[pin the flag on the construction bennett]
after some games {there were hula hoops, golfing, and crafting going on}, we went inside to prep the food for everyone. kim and terry ordered from uncle bub’s {pulled pork, coleslaw, and mac n cheese} and my mom whipped up some of her specialty dishes {a vegetable noodle dish and egg rolls}, we cooked up some hot dogs for the kiddies and we were set to go!
everyone slowly made their way in to grab some grub. we all sat down outside {a warm but humid day} and enjoyed our meals.
[manger!]
[auntie thuy and olive]
after eating, we decided to take down the piñata! the kids got so jubilant when we called it out. they lined up and one by one, were blind folded, spun around, and wildly aimed and swung at the piñata. oh these kiddies! no one was making a true dent on that poor truck. so, they all took turns again and finally the piñata busted down! the kids dove for the candy! it was so funny to watch, they filled their little home depot aprons up with their treasures.
[piñata time!]
[it took many tries but the piñata finally broke!]
i went inside to serve the birthday cake! i had fashioned it with a bunting, dump truck, and ‘dirt” {kim’s idea find!}, we lit his candle and presented him with the decadent concoction. we sang happy birthday and served the delicious cake…we also had lan’s amazing paintbrush rice krispy treats and lynne’s yummy m&m cookies, sooooo good!
[party napkins]
[rice krispy paint brushes by lan!!!]
[chocolate dump truck birthday cake!]
[love, love the cake!]
[jana and gary’s adorb kids]
[helen and baby olive]
[happy 5th birthday bennett!]
[singing happy birthday!]
[reagan and sam]
[sisters]
[the boys being silly!]
[gabrielle and helen]
[kevin and lisa]
[my two loves]
the party started to wind down and people were slowly trickling out. as the night enveloped us, bennett wanted some of his favorite songs to be played, one of them being gangnan style. i was inside cleaning up when i walked out back to the dance party! it was hilarious! grace and i became the back up dancers while bennett danced and lip-synced to the words. it was toooo cute and fun!
[bennett dancing to gangnam style with his back up dancers…lol]
[the party winding down in our living room…p.j’s were on! well, at least on olive]
after i quickly cleaned up the place {i’m quite the quick professional cleaner}, i bathed olive and got her ready for bed. the guests were gone and our family lingered behind. the cousins all gathered in the living room to relax with their favor loot and hang out together.
it was quite the successful evening. a fun, cool party, awesome decor, tasty food & drinks, amazing friends and family, and some really good, fun memories created! we throughly enjoyed hosting the party, it was a spectacular time!
we did it again! this time with the legos movie. annndddd it was actually bennett’s birthday!
we gathered on the green to hang out, ‘watch’ the movie, and eat some food. kim’s friend, helen, came along with her family…gabrielle, sam, and her husband mike! so it was a picnic party in full swing!
[my chunker]
[tete a la tete]
[mimicking]
[awww, so cute]
hc ran to macy’s and picked us up some grub. it was actually quite delicious. he had picked out salmon, mashed potatoes, sautéed green beans, and carrots. i wolfed my meal down…i was so hungry! we were chatting it up, we ate, and we all played with miss olive while we hung out. helen was loving olive! i must say…she is quite the doll! gosh, i love her too! 😉
[a really good meal from macy’s]
[she wears short shorts]
[feeding miss olive some fruit]
since it was bennett’s birthday, i had purchased cupcakes so we could celebrate! i brought plates, flatware, napkins, and a candle. yes, i was going to light a fire right on the grass. hey, it was his birthday, and birthday cupcakes and the birthday boy deserved a lit candle!
bennett picked out his cupcake {chocolate}, i lit the candle and he made a wish! perfect! i passed out the cupcakes and plates…they were a success {yum, yum}. perfectly sweet and delicious. we devoured our cakes and continued to have a swell time together.
[happy birthday bennett! make a wish]
after the cupcakes, the kids and boys ran amuck within the mall. the kids wanted to play at the fountain and go to the microsoft store, while the boys went into the tesla dealership. oh boy…hc came back with a plethora of information around the cars…he droned on and on about it but it was actually quite interesting and informative learning about these cars!
once the movie was over, we gathered our belongings and headed home. it was another wonderful night with movies on the green and celebrating mr. bennett’s birthday! yay!
i was super excited to find out that oakbrook was hosting movies on the green! i immediately texted my sisters to let them know about it. we agreed on hitting the event on the first night. engaging in this qualified us to check off another fun activity on our summer list!
oakbrook erected a forty foot screen to host this event every wednesday throughout the month of august. the first wednesday was despicable me 2. i sped home to pick up miss olive from mary’s house {my awesome daycare neighbor!}, i had to change clothes myself, get her solids ready, nurse her, pack the stroller, pack her bag, and speed back to oakbrook to meet up with the fam.
we got there just a tad behind the start time and we excitedly walked over to our little picnic spot. my sisters and nephews were already there, we plopped down and joined the fun. i ran over to starbucks to grab a bite to eat and then fed little miss olive her food. kim so kindly took over the act and fed olive the rest of her broccoli, potato, and chicken puree.
[excited for movies on the green!]
[i looove b’s expression towards olive]
[bennett trying to get olive to clap]
[auntie/godmother kim loving o’s cheeks]
during the movie, thuy and i took the boys to macy’s to get them some froyo. being with them is always fun and goofy! they are kids and they are boys and they are so full of energy!
thuy grabbed us some coffee from starbucks and i ordered the boys some yummy frozen yogurt.
[goofing around]
[getting their froyo]
[bennet’s red white and blue star sprinkles]
[reagan’s twist aka swirl]
we came back to our spot and enjoyed the rest of the movie. it was such a beautiful night. so many people were out enjoying a perfect evening together. it was so great to be part of a fun family event at the center. what a great idea!
[movies on the green]
[show’s over!]
once the movie was over, we trekked our way back to our cars. of course we had to make a pit stop at build a bear! reagan picked out a ninja turtle and bennett could not make up his mind! little o started to get grumpy tired, so we said our goodbyes at the store and headed our way home.
it was a great way to spend our evening. i love hanging out with my family and we are super excited oakbrook is hosting such a fun event this entire month! we can’t wait to for movies on the green next week!
we celebrated my dad’s birthday on a beautiful, sunny sunday {common theme of late…i just can’t get enough of the sunshine right now}.
we all met up at pf chang’s, in lombard, for a birthday lunch in honor of our papa. little o was having a good ol’ time in her carseat before she got a little fussy. i had to then pull her out so she can get all nosey and see what was going on around her!
we ordered apps and waited for my parents to show up {um, the guest of honor was late!}. they finally did arrive, along with my lovely o voung. i love my aunt. she’s such a sweet, sweet lady. i was so happy she was there to celebrate with us!
[selfie at the restaurant]
[wearing their favorite hockey team]
[my two loves]
[olive being all melancholy]
after lunch, we invited everyone back to our place for cake and ice-cream! yay! my parents walked my aunt through our new house as i prepped for serving desserts! i purchased two yummy, yummy cakes from whole foods. a decadent carrot cake and a sweet vanilla cake to serve. we topped off each piece with either chocolate or vanilla ice-cream. nom nom.
so i am the worst picture taker ever on this day. i didn’t get to snap a photo of everyone who joined us in my dad’s birthday celebration {ya don’t see kim, terry, my mom, aunt, or thuy} and worst so…i didn’t even snap a pic of my dad! whaaat?!
anyhoo, it was a great day to celebrate my dad’s 77th birthday. happy birthday to the best dad ever.
this one takes us back to 2011. this is such a fun, sweet picture of r+ b!
we were celebrating hc’s birthday over at his parent’s house {in crystal lake} and r+ b insisted on celebrating with us as well {with them being in clarendon hills}! hey, a few miles doesn’t stop a family from missing a joyous occasion together!
so, kim pulled out some party hats, bought cake, and we tech connected via facetime and sang happy birthday to hc! it was a success!
the boys were super happy {yay!} and so was hc…he was delighted to be celebrating his birthday cross towns! how special!!! and everyone got cake…score!
this was literally a sweet memory! happy friday y’all! cheers to a fabulous weekend!
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!
[easter basket chaos // first easter bunny rattle from aunt missy]
[ta da! the final products for the kiddos!]
[my little lamb]
[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.
[chambray world]
[my little easter bunny]
[awesome cinnamon roll // olive with the boys, she’s staring adoringly at her uncle terry]
[sister love // bloody mary loving]
[thuy and dan]
[kim and olive // mini boden dress and tights]
[the beautiful sunshine]
[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.
[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.
[reagan and olive]
[gift basket exchange]
[olive’s basket from kim, thuy, r + b]
[her adorbs doll // her cutie outfits]
[how cute?!]
[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.
i love family. i am so excited to have olive grow up with her wonderful cousins r + b. on a beautiful sunday afternoon, we were able to get together and hang out. reagan just loves little olive. he loves holding her! whether she’s calm or crying, he just smiles contently to have olive in his arms!
on this particular day, i dressed olive in her pink ralph lauren dress that auntie kim and thuy had given her {at one of the baby showers in honor of olive}. r + b came on over to grandma and grandpa’s house dressed in ralph lauren themselves! how adorbs…coordinating cousin outfits!
[bennett, reagan, and olive all in ralph lauren]
[reagan loves olive!]
we couldn’t resist a little photo sesh with these cuties! cousin bonds…you can’t beat that true love!
