Loving on Minneapolis

Just home from a long weekend away in Minneapolis. I'm so full of love as I look at this photo.

Love for the beautiful weather we had while there. Love for the fun outings we took, including the Como Park Zoo where I snapped this picture. Love for a gorgeous city I got to return to and further explore. And love for two boys who are blossoming into awesome little travelers. (Not to say there weren't a few tantrums and meltdowns mixed in with all this sunshine and flowers...)

And most importantly, love for my brother-in-law (you'll spot him in the background with Big Arrow on his shoulders) and sister-in-law. They love the Arrows so much it makes my heart melt. And they were amazing hosts. We can't wait to come back. They, however, are probably still recovering from having two little ones crawl, snot, cough, run, and bounce all over their house.

I'll be sharing a little more on how we spent our long weekend in the Twin Cities on Friday, so check back if you've got travel plans that way anytime soon.

This post is part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. The theme this week is something you love.

Looking in on the world

I've got so much to say about our trip to Chicago last weekend. But here is a sneak peak at all the fun Big Arrow had. He's at the beautiful age where each day his world gets bigger and his discoveries get broader. Museum visits are turning into giant learning opportunities and it's so fun to watch him soak it all up like a sponge.

"Feeling" a tornado at the Museum of Science and Industry.

Peeking in at all the tiny treasures at the Chicago Children's Museum.

More to come about our trip. Tomorrow I'll be loving on all the great friends we got to visit while there.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. The theme this week is Looking In. Big Arrow certainly had a lot to "look in" at last weekend!

Beautiful Boston

I have rarely traveled on the 4th of July holiday. With fireworks, cookouts and parades, there's usually too much fun to be had around home to be motivated enough to leave. When I learned that I won HomeAway's BlogAway competition a few months ago, I was really excited to spend this very patriotic holiday in Boston. It is a city so infused with patriotism that it is infectious. I can happily report that it did not disappoint.

So while I didn't partake in my usual backyard cookout or fireworks show, I'll never forget this holiday. I spent much of it watching my son run wild on the very ground that centuries earlier our nation's forefathers were taking the very steps that made our independence possible. (Besides, the delicious lobster roll I ate that day beats any hot dog I've ever had!)

Next week, I'll be posting our Boston Trip Report so that you can get a sense of how we spent our time. And there are many more posts to come about our trip... as soon as I "free" myself of the mountain of post-vacation laundry! If you're interested in info on visiting Boston with a 2-year-old, check out Devon's post at Trekaroo. It is fascinating that both our families managed to fill three fun days without doing hardly any of the same things!

This post is a part of Capture the Everyday at Adventuroo. The theme this week is celebrate freedom. I am also linking up with I Should Be Folding Laundry's You Capture this week, where the theme is patriotism.

Disclosure: As the winner of HomeAway's recent blogging contest, HomeAway paid $2,000 of our travel expenses to Boston. For us, this meant they covered all of our lodging costs and a portion of our flight costs. We paid all other expenses. All opinions expressed about the trip, the contest and HomeAway are entirely my own and I was not asked to express a particular point of view.

Nature in our Backyard

I have been spending a lot of time lately thinking about how much I appreciate my very own yard. We absolutely love adventures and traveling, and I really enjoy sharing those moments with you. But there's nothing easier than spending time in the backyard, and maybe that's as far as some people are willing to "travel" with their kids.

Outdoor dining with a friend. How sophisticated.

This being the week of Earth Day, I wanted to share my family's strategies for giving the arrow an appreciation for the great outdoors. We think it starts at home. So I kept my camera handy for the past week to capture some of the fun. It starts with one very basic principle. We have no outdoor toys. No playhouse, no swing, no trampoline, nothing. I know this will change as he gets older. In fact, don't tell him, but he's getting a tricycle for his birthday next week. And occasionally I bust out some sidewalk chalk or we blow bubbles. But for the most part, he's free to wander wherever he'd like around the yard without any man-made entertainment devices. I usually bring out a soccer ball for him to play with, but he almost always abandons it within the first few minutes we're outside.

Lonely soccer ball

This leads directly to my second strategy. Lighten up. He plays in dirt. He gets crud all over his hands and clothes. He whacks our trees with sticks. He sometimes rips grass right out of the yard, and has mangled a few flowers. But he's exploring, and I think that's totally worth a yard that won't be winning awards from Better Homes and Gardens anytime soon.

Third strategy? Back off. I typically sit on a patio chair with a magazine in hand. Early in the spring, we established the principles of "stay where mommy can see you" and "don't go beyond the sidewalk." As long as he continues to obey those rules, I leave him be. Not only does this foster independent play, but did you catch that I spend an hour reading a magazine? God bless you, Great Outdoors.

That's not to say that kids won't enjoy some organized activities outside in the yard where you can engage with them, like starting a garden, hunting for bugs, or birdwatching. I'd love to start composting again, and I think the arrow could be my helper. There are a lot of great resources out there if you need ideas to get started. Nature Rocks and Go Explore Nature are two of my favorite sites when I need some inspiration.

Stay consistent. Unless it's raining or the temperatures are below freezing, we spend at least 20-30 minutes outside almost every single day. It's just part of our routine.

I think you'll find, like I have, that your kids will soon develop their own outdoor interests. Lately, the arrow is obsessed with finding pet rocks. He brings them to me, one by one, and shows them off. He hugs them and kisses them, and then he lines them up as if they were on display. I think it's totally adorable.

Our pet rocks

I know that the number of outdoor toys we have will multiply (and that's totally fine), but I hope we've cemented a love for outdoor exploration in the arrow. May his love for those rocks be just the beginning of a love affair with Mother Nature.

Plus, I just love that smile.

Don't have much of a yard? That's ok! Find a nearby park or open, grassy area and claim it as your own!

I'm linking this post up with I Should Be Folding Laundry's You Capture and Adventuroo's Capture the Everyday. Nature is the theme of both memes this week!

Window Clings: A Great Toy for Traveling Toddlers

We've got a new favorite toy around here: window clings that I bought at Target in the clearance section for a buck. I got these window clings to entertain the arrow on our flight to Florida, but they were buried deep in our bag and I forgot all about them. I stumbled upon them this week and thought I'd see how he liked them.

He kept saying, "Mom, I paint! I paint!" (My little Picasso!) He moved them around and around and around for about an hour. He loved the bright, vibrant shades of purple, red, green and yellow and we practiced saying each color.

Window clings would make a great "stuck inside on a rainy day" toy, or an easy craft to bring along on a trip since they take up no space (and make no mess). You could stick them to a table or side of an oven. (Or car windows on a road trip!) I'm still going to keep them on my airplane goodie bag list, they'd be perfect for sticking to the window or tray table and keeping little hands busy.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. The theme this week is Vibrant. I'm also linking up to Things I Love Thursday at the Diaper Diaries and Fun for Kids Fridays at Local Fun for Kids.

A morning at Ellis Park

Now that the arrow thinks he's quite the accomplished walker, discovering new playgrounds wherever we go has been a lot of fun for our family. This weekend, we visited my sister's family and got to explore a new-to-us park that is her family's favorite. I wrote about the Playscape playground at Danville, Indiana's Ellis Park at the Indiana Insider for Visit Indiana this week.

While the playground is wonderful, my greatest joy was watching my arrow and his cousin arrows play together. We hadn't visited them in more than a month, and it was really heartwarming to see them make memories together.

Mastering the bouncy bridge.

Playing peekaboo with my nephew

Wanna go for a ride, Mom?

My niece was a little too young to keep up with the boys on the playground.
But I couldn't pass up an opportunity to show off this sweet face!

If You Visit:
Ellis Park
600 E. Main Street, Danville, Indiana
Free admission.
Insider Tip: Pack a swimsuit if you visit in the summer. The park has a nice pool, complete with a few waterslides. In December, the park has a great Christmas lights display.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. The theme this week is Youth.

Traveling with an iPad

We've only had our iPad* for a few months, and I already can't imagine life without it. Which is probably a real testament to this device, because despite having a blog and now an iPad, I'm really not very techie. If you saw my cell phone, you would think we had all traveled back in time to at least 2001. We have found the iPad to be particularly helpful while traveling--it is a source of entertainment, our GPS, and a "let's look that up" device while on the road. Someday I'll do a post on favorite iPad apps while traveling (I'm still in research mode on that), but until then, I'll give you a sneak peak at how we put it to use entertaining the arrow during last week's flight.

While he's usually pretty happy to look at books or color while flying, our return trip fell during his usual naptime. It was pretty clear that he wasn't going to curl up on our lap and doze off on this trip, so it was nice to have something with which he could still relax and settle down. My husband and I even got to indulge in some adult conversation while the arrow was singing along with his buddies from Yo Gabba Gabba. I call that a win, win for everyone.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. This week's theme is technology. I'm also linking up to Things I Love Thursday at The Diaper Diaries.

*Amazon affiliate link.

A blissful, happy morning

I got back late last night from Blissdom, a blogging conference held in Nashville, Tennessee. I learned so much from the sessions I attended and met some great people while there. The conference continues through Saturday, but the middle of the week is a tough time to get away when you're a stay-at-home mom. I really appreciated my day there, though. (And many thanks to my parents and husband for caring for a sick arrow while I was gone.)

I had some time in the morning to go on a self-directed photo walk of the Opryland Hotel, where the conference was held. The Opryland reopened last month after being devastated by the floods that hit Nashville in May. (I talked a little bit about that here.) My, what an amazing job they've done with the renovations. It is truly a spectacular facility. My favorite part was all the lush plant life you'll find. I'm sure part of my attraction to this is the cold winter we've had. The arrow just seems to go from one illness to the next (nothing serious, fortunately), and this winter season has gotten me down. We've been stuck inside more than I'd like. (I have a little rule that it has to be above 20 degrees to go on a walk in our neighborhood. Which we've been able to do only one time this month.) My own walk through the Opryland was a much-needed tropical escape from all the stuffy noses and fevers (cabin and temperature!)

The theme at I Should Be Folding Laundry's photo linkup this week is happy. A big dose of Opryland happiness was the cure for my winter blahs, and I'm glad I could share these photos in case you needed some too.

Look for more photos from my time at the Opryland in the weeks to come.

Over the river and through the woods to find our Christmas tree

Now that our little guy is beginning to understand the magic of this season, I wanted to make our Christmas tree experience something special--a trip to a mass retailer parking lot just wouldn't cut it for us this year. So this weekend we headed out into the woods to Roberts Tree Farm in Seymour, Indiana. It was an awesome spot. Uncommercialized. Friendly. Still doing business the same way they always have. I just love places like that, and it's particularly refreshing this time of year.

You know those outings that end up being just about perfect? This was one of those times. I'll let the pictures (and running commentary from the arrow) show you all the fun we had.

Mom, stop talking about how cute these Carhartt overalls are. I'm a manly man!

You mean I'm going to get to run around a snow-covered field? I can't wait!

They have a dog here too? Oh, this place is great!

I love a good chance to snuggle with dad, especially on a hay ride.

They all look good to me, Mom.

And they smell good, too.

My parents say this is the one we're taking home.
(Note from mom: When selecting a tree from a large, open field, trees look much smaller than they will in your house. This massive mound of pine is now taking up 75% of our living room.)

Cookies and a warm fire? Let's call it a day.

We ended our adventure by warming up around a real wood burning stove in a cozy little cottage while they drilled and tied up our tree. The cottage was stocked with cookies made by the owner's wife and hot chocolate and cider in crockpots. A sweet and warm ending to a perfect morning in the crisp winter weather.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. This week's theme is outdoors.

Inspiration.

I've mentioned before that I enjoy participating in I Should Be Folding Laundry's weekly photography linkup (called You Capture) because it encourages me to focus on taking some interesting photos each week. Photography is definitely an area that I want to learn more about and hopefully improve. (Sounds like a 2011 resolution in the making!)

This week's theme is "What Inspires You?" Such an intriguing question. I decided to focus on what inspires this blog.

This statue marks the exact spot along the Ohio River where Lewis met Clark and the two began their journey.

My husband. My son. Travel. Discovery. Exploration. Nature.

I took this picture on Saturday at Falls of the Ohio State Park in southern Indiana. (We spent most of our time there exploring the amazing fossil beds). We stopped to admire this statue and reflect on its historical significance. I'll be writing more about our adventures there soon.

Orange you glad it's fall!

We've been having so much fun enjoying the fall season around here. I blogged about Nienaber's Farm Market over at the Indiana Insider. It was a great stop to pick out pumpkins and other delicious fall treats. (We're stilling making our way through a jar of their delicious pumpkin butter, and when it runs out, I'll be back for more.) There are several larger pumpkin patches near us, but at the arrow's age (18 months), sometimes I find we have more fun in an environment that's not so overwhelming.  And hey, a pumpkin's a pumpkin.

In year's past, I've looked out at a yard covered in leaves and sighed knowing it would require lots of raking and the impending winter, but now I see those leaves through the arrow's eyes. And its nothing but F-U-N to him! He loved romping around them, and most especially, tackling daddy. (Dad was, afterall, trying to rake them up.)

This week's inspiration at I Should Be Folding Laundry's You Capture is orange. And as you can see, we've been surrounded by that most wonderful fall color lately!

Togetherness.

My favorite part of our recent trip?  That these two got to spend more time together.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry.