conversations with kennedy

Kennedy has been extremely obsessed with horses lately. Yes, even more than before. Typically we do our grocery shopping at Kroger since it is right around the corner but Brendon took them to Meijer yesterday. After reading a story last night, Kennedy asked if I could take her to Meijer after I got home from work.

Kennedy: "Can you please take me to Meijer tomorrow?"

Me: "Why, so I can buy that toy that dad said no to?"

K: "No, so I can ride that horse."

M: "We'll see, it's not that close to home."
K: *sigh* "Ugh, I just wish I was an adult."
M: "No you don't."
K: "Yes I do."
M: "Well, then you'd have to go to work."
K: "No I wouldn't."

M: "And how is that?"

K: "I'd just be retired."

She gets this whole 'adult life' thing.

Leia

ludington state park

This place was such an unexpected gem! The day prior we stopped off at Sleeping Bear Dunes which was somewhat of a disaster. I was 100% disillusioned in what I expected them to be. I imagined that we'd pull up with the kids, hike up and down a few dunes and then get down to the beach. Apparently there is a scenic hike that is just that, but we were miles from the beach the way that we came. So not only did we sweat our asses off and fight with kids who were tired of walking, I had messed with my camera settings and never adjusted them back so it was also poorly documented.

Anyhoo, the day after we set out to see the dunes Rachel's mom told us about and boy was it heaven. The water could've been warmer and we could've survived if it was less windy but the kids didn't mind a bit.

Everyone seemed to just be parking on the side of the road within the state park near a pathway down to the water so we, being outsiders, simply followed suit. We gathered all our gear and set off. The route down to the beach we picked was a bit steep but everyone handled it like a champ. Once we were down by the water, we found our own little section of beach and set up camp.

^^ this picture is just an illusion. There really was no time for adult relaxation.

Every 30 feet or so there was a large wood plank dividing the beach into sections and it was nice for the kids to have that physical barrier; they could see it and know they couldn't go any farther. Haha, who am I kidding. We had to yell at them countless times to get back into our area. It was also nice because I never felt like the kids were bothering other people, because at that point if you plopped down next to our section you did it to yourself willingly.

^^ these are the posts that had the beach separated into sections. We couldn't quite decide what they were there for or what they had previously been.

 The Sandy Buttcrack Gang.

 The water was so cold. It sent a chill down my spine just looking at the kids let alone trying to wade in with them. There was a sandbar not far from shore that people were going back and forth from. I kept trying to get the balls to take the kids out there but seriously the water was too cold. I don't have time for that mind over matter crap. The kids nonetheless were not affected by the cold or the thousand grains of sand in every crevice of their bodies and they had a blast. Sort of the whole reason for the trip anyways. Rachel and I mentioned countless times how nice it's going to be the next time we come without kids, haha.

Oh, Mr. Sandman.

Leia

great wolf lodge

Fourth of July weekend me and my longest/childhood/bff loaded up the car with all four of our girls and headed North for Traverse City.

That's right. 4 hours in the car with a 5 year old, a 3 year old, a 2 year old, and a 1 year old. There's a word for people like us and what we were attempting: insane. We were prepared with snacks, beverages, blankets, and an emergency iPad for movies. Luckily it didn't come down to severe measures and we only lost an hour between stops for gas, snacks, and bathroom breaks. A success in my book!

The kids had their moments of bickering and we had our moments of drowning them out with music. You gotta do what you gotta do to stay sane, right?

In the weeks leading up to our trip I had kept the waterpark a secret for my kids. We went a few summers ago and Kennedy has begged to go back ever since. The expression on her face when we pulled up and she read the sign was priceless and I felt awesome.

After all those hours in the car we were ready to hit the pool. We ordered some pizzas and as soon as we were done stuffing our faces we changed into our 'babing suits' and headed out. The kids were all in awe. It was great. Upon entering the pool area they were all measured and were given an additional wrist band to show where in the waterpark they were allowed to be with and/or without an adult. Kennedy got yellow and they explained that she could do everything alone minus the two large slides in the back; for those she would need an adult. To me this meant that the little ones with red bracelets needed an adult at all times.

^^ Who cares about looking at the camera and giving a nice grin?

We all headed up the water jungle gym to the medium sized water slides. Kennedy shimmied down first and then it was my turn stepping up with Piper. I asked her which one she wanted to go down and proceeded to lift her in with me when I was told that she would have to go down alone. The look on my face was probably sheer horror. I was prepared for water works and for her to be absolutely frightened. I calmly told her that if she wanted to go down the slide that she had to go down alone. Without ANY hesitation she said okay, plopped down on her butt and was gone. She didn't even say goodbye. I almost lost it. My baby. My sweet little Piper showed no fear and straight up left me at the top of a two story water slide.

The bottom of the slide was a little tricky. It didn't exit into a pool but since I had planned on going down with her there was no one waiting for her. Kennedy was given permission to go up and down as many times as she pleased since we were slow going with the little ones. The large pools and such were a different story. I was just so proud and heartbroken at the same time. Happy that I got my money's worth at least, though!

I highly recommend taking your kids here. It's extremely affordable if you are able to split to cost between multiple groups/friends/family. The food was great too and not too horribly priced.



At the Great Wolf.. at the Great Wolf Lodge!
Leia

truly madly guilty

Liane Moriarty strikes again. All of her books are 🔥and this one did not disappoint. 10 out of 24 in the books. Har, har. Hate me I don't care.

Truly Madly Guilty followed a similar rhythm to her other stories. A group of adult friends (or are they) are involved in some major catastrophe that may or may not affect all their futures once the twist is revealed. Typically we don't figure out who is the good girl, who is the bitch, and who is just there to try and throw you off the scent until the end. But I mean really, who actually enjoys figuring it out before the author tells you?

When reading her books, I more often than not find myself relating to multiple character types that Moriarty creates. Usually there is a working/career mom who feels like she is spending too much time on herself or her own needs when she should really be allocating them elsewhere. This time around it was Clementine and a particular passage hit me.

"She murmured sympathetic words of comfort and rocked Holly back and forth while she stared longingly at her cello, sitting quiet and dignified up against her pretend audition chair. No one warned you that having children reduced you right down to some smaller, rudimentary, primitive version of yourself, where your talents and your education and your achievements meant nothing."

While I'm not a professionally trained cellist and while I haven't even begun a career I feel that when I take the steps to try and make something happen there are so many obstacles and feelings from all angles; internally and externally. On the same hand though, I do not feel like a wasted shell of my previous self either. Do I wish that I had this stuff figured out before I became a mom? Sure. But should I be exempt from trying to accomplish my own dreams because I have to help make my offsprings dreams come true? I don't think so.

Regardless this book is a good one to pick up this Summer and I recommend it along with her other works as well. Specifically Big Little Lies (don't watch the mini series on HBO first if you plan on reading it) and The Husband's Secret.



"Like drinking a pink cosmo laced with arsenic." - USA Today.
Leia

mid-week meal share: creamy broccoli salad

It's been a three month hiatus for recipes so there really was no rush for me to get this posted on Wednesday, the official mid-week day. 

It's Summer and it's time for barbeques and backyard get-together's! Who really likes to come empty handed to those things? Sure we all ACTUALLY want to come empty handed but then there's the guilt of enjoying everyone else's food when you didn't contribute. I mean just feel the room guys. But to be honest, this is such a great recipe for the occasion. There aren't too many ingredients to gather and the preparation is super simple.

Easy to concoct: 👍
Cost effective: 👍

What you need:

medium head of broccoli
medium head of cauliflower
½ cup toasted, sliced almonds
¾ cup craisins
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp lemon juice (1 lemon)
½ cup mayonnaise

I used a recipe from Natasha's Kitchen and she gets a little fancy with her almonds.

1. Cut off stem of broccoli and cut into small florets. Raise your hand if this was your first time making broccoli "from scratch"! I sort of didn't have a clue if I was doing it the right way but hey, we got there even if it made a huge mess along the way.

2. Cut out core of cauliflower and cut into small florets (is it still a floret if it's not broccoli?).

3. If you're like me you took the easy way out and bought sliced and pre-toasted almonds. If you follow the original recipe this is the part where you're going to toast the ovens on the stove until they are golden.

4. Force your daughter to juice the lemon.

5. Mix together mayo, lemon, and honey. And I could not find honey ANYWHERE at the store so I just added a stitch of sugar and found I still had enough dressing.

6. Add broccoli, cauliflower, cranberries and almonds to a bowl.

7. Pour on dressing and mix.

8. Enjoy!

The perfect crisp and light salad to bring along or prepare at home as a light dinner side dish.



Next time I'm adding bacon.
Leia

kindergarten completion

We have officially finished our first weekend of summer and I already know how fast it's going to go by.

Putting Kennedy in Kindergarten 'early' was one of the best things we've done. Thanks to her preschool teachers recommendation we registered her even though her birthday was five weeks past the cutoff date. I already told myself that if she had difficulties we would pull her out and wait a year but this chick took right off! Her writing improved rapidly and she was learning how to read literally overnight.

When I ask what are some of her favorite things she learned over the past school year this is what I get:

• how to put spaces in between my words

Reading and writing were two of her favorite things. They had workshops for both which I always found slightly comical but I'm happy that our school district is able to offer these sections to the students. In addition her classroom offered 'centers' once a week. Each table in her classroom would be setup with a different activity for them to choose from.

It's hard to believe that at the end of this year she'll be turning six and starting first grade. Cliche always wins when it comes to the time passing; it really happens in the blink of an eye.

Now for twelve more years of grade school.

Leia

real life day camp

Hooray! I was finally able to go on a field trip with Kennedy! I'm not sure if it's just our district but each field trip only allotted for a specific amount of chaperones. Growing up I always thought it was if your parents wanted to come so I kind of thought their rules were bullshit 😜. Either way, my name was never drawn or I flat out wasn't available to attend.

On the day of the field trip Kennedy was dressed and ready to go asking if she could get a head start and pack her own lunch before our alarms even went off. 

PURE NOSTALGIA. Well, sort of. When my sister and I were younger we spent a few summers here for day camp but little did I know the barn and the grounds had been completely renovated! All around the camp you could see new neighborhoods that weren't there before and instead of the death trap of a rocky hill leading to the barn we were met with a beautiful brick-pavered getup. 

Every day leading up to the field trip I was bombarded with notes sent up explaining how important and matter-of-fact the departure times were. The parents were scheduled to leave ahead of the buses to be there when the kids arrived. First, the amount of chaperones was staggering. I was only responsible for Kennedy and one of her classmates. Second, the buses didn't arrive for almost an hour after we did? I know they have to drive slower and with more caution, but shit!

Finally, the kids arrive and we are off! The first thing we got to do was head over to ride horses and play on the playground. 

^^ in-between the two orange cones a bird decided to make it's nest and lay eggs. Each time anyone got remotely close it started squawking bloody murder (which as you can see is constantly since it's right on the main path). I'm not sure why it made that life decision.

 ^^ go best friend, that's her best friend!

Next on the list were farm duties. The kids all got to take turns feeding and holding the baby animals and were also able to take a turn milking the cow if they so desired. 

  

^^ why are it's eyes so large and alieny?

 ^^ I have never seen someone enjoy their job so much. 

  

^^ "Mom, what the fuck is in my hand right now."

And have you ever seen a cuter goat? This little guy was about the size of a green bean and absolutely adorable.

 Lastly it was our turn to take a hayride. This was probably Kennedy's least favorite part. 

She couldn't jump and run around, there were no animals, and the trail was through the woods with no entertaining sights to see. While we were on the hayride Kennedy's teacher got a text from one of the groups that was taking care of the baby animals saying that one of the goats gave birth to twins! Admittedly, I am not upset about missing the actual birth, but we weren't allowed to go back in to see the wee babes.

While we were waiting for all the groups to finish they got to play at the park for awhile longer and check out the animals in the fields. Ken even got to help walk a donkey back to the pasture. And then things took a turn for the worse. While she was running around she slipped and fell into a mud puddle. I am SO HAPPY that it happened within our last fifteen minutes because she was noticebly upset. But was that going to stop me from documenting it? Nope. Sorry, kid. I promise, I do love you!

She was cleaned up within a matter of moments and then it was time to head back to school. Even though I was a chaperone they wouldn't let me take Kennedy with me so I felt horrible that she had to ride back on the bus in soggy clothes. She's a trooper though.

 At least we got to ditch the three sizes too big fluorescent orange t-shift, right?

Leia