Jordy Turns 38

Jordy turned 38 this week.  We were able to go out for a night alone Saturday.  I had a full day of training on Jordy's birthday, but I was able to make him a cake and send him an Edible Arrangement to school.  This is the 20th birthday we have celebrated together.  It's hard to believe.  Life isn't always easy.  At times it is very ugly, but there is no one I would rather do life with.  It was nice to see Kaylea excited about Jordy's birthday.  She used her own money to buy him a Star Wars t-shirt.  She said she wanted to get him an Apple TV.  It was sweet that she had listened and thought of things he would like.  She also sang to him last night.

It's Fall Y'all

We needed to find a place to get pumpkins around here.  I've been looking around for some places that will live up to Huber's.  We ended up driving 30 minutes to Cox's Farm.  We spent $51 to get in, but there were a lot of activities included.  Kaylea did farm chores, went down the slides, went through a corn maze, an imagination maze, an imagination maze, on a hayride, and sampled apple cider (which she loved).  We couldn't leave without a traditional caramel apple (cookies & milk for Kaylea).  On the way out we each got a small pumpkin.  Kaylea said it was fun, but it was no Huber's.  I don't think she gave it enough credit.  She was running from one thing to another with a giant smile on her face.

Kaylea's Halloween Party

We didn't slow down this weekend.  Kaylea has been asking to have a party since we moved here.  We were finally able to fulfill her wish this past Friday when we hosted a Halloween Party.  I was originally worried that no one would show.  I was wrong.  We had six little girls at the house from 6-9.  They were wild.  We served dinner complete with mummy dogs and vampire floats.  We did a craft, painted pumpkins, played games, and went on a scavenger hunt.  There was even time left over to play.  It was nice to meet some of Kaylea's friends from school  IT is also nice to make contact with a few parents . Kaylea was very pleased  I think she will be asking for a slumber party for her birthday.

Struck Family Visit - Part 2

After an exhausting Saturday, half of us decided to sleep in on Sunday.  Jordy, along with his dad and sister, got up early and went to Arlington National Cemetery.  When they returned, we left for a cupcake and macaroon tour.   It was slightly disappointing, but who can be mad with a visit to Georgetown that includes several sweet treats???

After the tour, I headed back to the house with Nana & Kaylea, while the rest of the family went to the Lincoln Memorial.

Later we had breakfast for dinner and relaxed the rest of the night.  It was a great trip, but it passed quickly.

Struck Family Visit Part 1

The Struck’s arrived on Wednesday night.  They actually were at my house before I got home with my mom from chemo.  We enjoyed not having any plans on Wednesday for the first time in a while.  We knew we were going to be busy the next few days.  Thursday after school, we cooked dinner at home and took Brenden and Kaylea to jump at Flight Zone.  They ended up having a buy one get one free deal, so I jumped for a little while, too.

Kaylea had Friday off so she got to spend the day with the family.  They went out to lunch, went shopping, and went to see a movie.  After, we met at On the Border to celebrate Jordy’s birthday early.  Dinner was good and it was good to be out with everyone. 

Saturday was extremely busy.  We started the morning with a visit to the Washington Monument.  It was neat going up inside and seeing the inside of the monument on the elevator ride down.  Kaylea even enjoyed it. 

After the visit to the monument, we had a White House tour scheduled.  I was very excited about the White House tour.  I was not impressed. The décor was so old and outdated.  There were some awesome chandeliers and it was pretty neat just to be in the White House.  I’ve tried two other times to book this self-guided tour without any luck. 

Next, we hopped on the Metro and went to Union Station.  We had lunch before going on a 90 minute Duck Tour.  The D C Duck is unlike any vehicle you’ve ever ridden it.  It is a tour bus and boat all-in-one.  The DUCKS were originally built as amphibious military personnel carriers immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1942.  It was really neat to ride in this vehicle, especially when it went into the water.  Kaylea volunteered to drive the boat and we got some photos of her.  Our tour guide knew a lot of the history of DC. 

When we finished with the Duck tour, we were all exhausted.  We took the Metro back to our vehicles and drove home.  The adults had dinner at The Fireside Grill, while my mom, Kaylea, and Brenden stayed behind.  It was a good day, but I think we all slept well.

The Hamm's Visit DC Weekday Edition

Jordy and I had to work during the week and Kaylea had to go to school, but that didn’t stop our fun.   After work on Monday, we met up at the National Harbor.  We had dinner at a Mexican restaurant.  After dinner the kids ran around some and then we rode The Capital Wheel.  We got a great deal on Groupon.  It was nice to hang out on the river and the weather was much better than Saturday.  We stayed around for ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s. 

Tuesday night we were able to have dinner together and take the kids to Flight Zone (a trampoline park).  We were actually able to find time for adult conversation.  We were sad to say good-bye at the end of the night.

Moments - Buckets

Last night as I was singing to Kaylea, she had the biggest grin on her face.  I said, “what are you doing?”  She said, “Mom, I’m just so happy.”  I said, “I’m so glad, but why are you so happy tonight?”  She said, “Because you’re just so nice and I love you.”  I thought that was sweet. Then she says, “I bet your bucket is full.”  I was pretty sure I knew what she meant.  I said, “Do you mean my love tank?”  She said, “I mean your bucket.  We all have an invisible bucket in our heart and people fill it with love.”  My heart melted.  I asked if her bucket was full and she smiled even bigger and said, “Yes.”  This was such a sweet moment for me. 

The Friday Before Our Chaos

In preparation for 10 days of fun, we decided to chill out on Friday night.  It was Kaylea’s kind of night.  She came home from school and relaxed with us and played a game no the computer.  Jordy and I picked up Chic Fil A (and McDonald’s) for dinner.  While we were gone Mimi played with Kaylea for 45 minutes.  After dinner, I played with Kaylea for about 90 minutes while Jordy installed our TV on the newly finished fireplace.  The house was built in 2000 and had a large square hole for an older style TV.  It looks so good.  Kaylea asked if we could blow up the air mattress and let her sleep in the basement.  I was surprised, but she slept down there all night.

The Hamm's Visit DC - Tourist for the Weekend

We decided the best way to see DC is to be tourist with our friends when they visit. Our first set of friends visited this weekend and let me tell you, we fit in a lot of fun!  They arrived Saturday morning.  The expected hurricane messed with our plans, but we still had a wonderful time.  We met at Red Robin for lunch and then took the kids to see Hotel Transylvania.  They seemed to enjoy it.  The Hamm’s had just enough time to check into the hotel before we had a sitter lined up for some adult fun on Saturday night. 

We went for a Segway tour of the DC monuments in the dark.  We had an excellent tour guide.  However, it was really cold and rainy.  By the end, I was pretty miserable.  Thankfully, we had dinner reservations at Medium Rare.  It was really good.  It is a steakhouse with only one menu.  They bring you steak once and then they bring it to you again when you are finished.  The only thing we had to decide was how we wanted it cooked and what we want for dessert.  

Saturday morning we got up early.  We had brunch at one of my favorite restaurants, Farmer Fishers Baker.  Thankfully, kids eat free.  It is pricey and Kaylea didn’t eat much.  Jordy suggested we try Georgetown Cupcake and see how the line is.  I have been wanting to go there since the first time I visited DC.  I couldn’t believe my eyes when the line wasn’t out the door and around the block.  We purchased a dozen cupcakes for dessert that evening. 

We spent the rest of the day at the National Zoo.  It was huge.  The kids had a good time.  I love the prairie dogs.  They were so cute.  After the zoo, we came back to our house to hang out.  We fixed dinner at home and played games with the kids.  I think everyone was pretty much exhausted.  It is safe to say we are going to sleep well the next 10 days!