Dairy Breakfast

Over the weekend we attended our first "Dairy Breakfast!  In Wisconsin, the month of June is dairy month and every weekend there are a number of local farms that host a dairy breakfast.  It's almost like a mini festival where a local farm serves breakfast and opens the farm to the public to come look around.  The one we attended served pancakes, cheesy scrambled eggs, sausage, and a variety of Wisconsin cheese.  They also had some locally made ice cream that the kids really enjoyed.  We took a tour of the farm in a horse drawn wagon ride and walked around to explore some.  They had some face painting and a fire truck that the kids could sit in.  It was a lot of fun and really neat to learn about the way farmers in Wisconsin run their farms and take care of the cows.  Randy had a baseball game so he missed out, but I'm really glad the kids and I had a chance to go!  I'm going to post more photos on Facebook, but here are a few from the day!

Going to the "beach"

Yesterday on a whim we decided to pack up and go to the lake!  Since we grew up in Florida, the beach was a pretty big part of our childhood.  When we moved to North Carolina, we still had access to beautiful beaches and the only thing we really missed was the powder white sand we were used to.  The beaches in NC are wonderful and we learned to love them just as much as the beach in Florida.    We are "beachy" people so when it's Summer time, we go to the beach.  That's just the way it is. 

Since we don't have access to a sandy ocean shore, we had to improvise!  I think we all agreed that we are more than pleased with the results.  Yesterday, we went to a local state park (maybe 10 minutes from our house) and visited their "beach".  We had the best time!  It was definitely NOT the powder white sand of our childhood, but that didn't stop the kiddos from having a blast!  They played in the sand for hours going back and forth from the water with their buckets.  They also were really brave and  went swimming in the cold water.  We loved it!  It was pretty crowded, but we were still able to keep a close eye on them from where we sat.  Also the water was shallow for a descent amount out so it was easy for them to "swim" around by themselves.  No worries about waves or riptides.  It was perfect!  The only problem we had was keeping up with our daredevil Noah who kept trying to wander out too deep.  He was making me a nervous wreck.  He really has no fear at all.  Thankfully, the water really was shallow so if he stood up his head would be out of the water, but we still had to keep on him to stay closer to the shore.  Crazy kid!  

I can't imagine a lake replacing our love for the ocean, but I can definitely say we're a fan!  It's sand, water, and sun.  It was in the upper 80's.  The scenery was beautiful.  And it did the trick.  

*big sigh*

Well we survived the first half of our adventure this week.  The kids and I had two great flights and made it to Nashville around 9:00pm last night.  Only bummer is that we had a 2 hour drive from there to get to a bed and we were TIRED!  Worn out and exhausted.  Thankfully, the kiddos were able to crash in their carseats!  I couldn't have asked for better flights.  The kids were busy and wired from all the sugary snacks I was distracting them with...so by the end of the night, I was beat! Still, they both were so good.  Ella listened so well and was such a great help to me!

Here we are at RDU about to leave for our first flight...

I carried Noah in this little sling thing called a "hip hammock" so that I could have my hands free.  Ella rode in a stroller.  It worked well, but I looked like a pack mule trudging through the airport..

Ella the fashionista decided to wear her necklace as a headband.  She got lots of giggles from people she met on the flight. ;)

Saying bye bye to Daddy...

I didn't realize my camera was on some funky setting when I took these...oops!

and here's a coule I took really quick tonight.  We've had a busy day and the kids are getting tired and cranky from being out of routine.  Naps have been sporadic if any at all.  We're a mess!  So tonight we settled in early for baths and cuddles in bed.  They are both clean and resting now.  Not quite asleep yet...but getting close.  Yipeee. That means I can sleep, too!

"Princess Tiana" formerly known as "Ella" all ready for bed...dressed in her best!