And the winner for Spring Break 2024 Destination.....COSTA RICA!!

 When trying to figure out where to go for Spring Break this year, Ryan and I were all over the board.  Hawaii, Bahamas, Texas....the list goes on.  I started asking friends for recommendations and someone recommended Costa Rica.  She said it was one of her family's absolute favorite trips and she used a travel agent so it made everything super easy.

I no sooner got the travel agent's contact info from her and I had already sent out my first email to her.  The travel agent's name was Rebecca with Namu Travel and she was absolutley amazing.  She wrote me back within minutes, asked me a few questions about what we were looking to do during our trip, budget, etc, and then sent me a full itinerary within the same day.  She asked me to make whatever adjustments I wanted as far as excursions and other things, we went back and forth a few times on what dates made the most sense, and the trip was booked!

She made it SO easy!!!!!  They had someone that would pick us up from the airport, help us through customs, drive us to our first hotel and pick us up for any excursions we did.  The activities she picked for us sounded amazing and the hotels were breathtaking.

We are SOOOOO incredibly excited for this new adventure and are counting down the days to Spring Break!   

SNOW DAYS

 Yesterday we had a huge snow storm (I think we ended up getting 8-11"), so they called a snow day for school.  There was a possiblity of getting lake effect snow today, so in an "abundance of caution" they called another snow day.  Typically I LOVE snows days.  I remember staring at the scrolling list of schools on the bottom of the TV screen, just waiting for ours to show up.  Or the excitement of waking up, only to find out school has been cancelled and you have the whole day to play.  Unsurprisingly, our school district has found yet another thing to ruin.

Instead of the kids (and teachers) having the day off, they are now expected to e-learn on snow days instead.  What used to be a fun, exciting day filled with sleds, snow forts and hot chocolate, is now a day filled with scrambling to set up three e-learning work stations in our house and then arguing with the kids all day to keep them focused on their Zoom calls.  Miles' teacher was literally teaching his class with her 3 year old on her lap because his school was closed and she was expected to teach.  It makes me so frustrated and angry.  It's just one more thing they're taking away from these kids (and teachers) at a time where all they could use is a surprise day off.

Thankfully the boys were able to get out during their breaks and enjoy the crazy amounts of snow we got.  They did their fair share of ice skating in the backyard.  I've tied more ice skates this year than I probably have in my entire life!

 They really wanted to go sledding, so they got creative and used the stairs at the church across the street.  Now this is what snow days are all about!  

They were having a blast until the fun killer from the church came and made them stop.  I was really impressed with the boys though.  Not only did they stop, but they all helped him shovel off the stairs, and continued to help him shovel the sidewalk in front of the church as well.  It was really sweet to watch.

Snow days may not be the same as what I remember, but I think it's safe to say the boys still had a great time. 

Happy 41st Birthday Ryan!!

 Today we get to celebrate Ryan!!

We were in the middle of a crazy snow storm, but I braved the snow and slippery roads so we could start the day off with the most amazing donuts from Firecakes!!  (From Top Left: Cinnamon Roll, Chocolate Espresso Cream, Tahitian Vanilla, Bottom Left: S'mores, Apple Fritter and Red Velvet).  They are SO good!!  The best part is the kids prefer Dunkin Donuts, so Ryan and I get these all to ourselves.  We cut them in fourths and then make ourselves plates with a taste of each of them.  I mean, if you can't be glutinous on your birthday, when can you?  And yes, I went to Dunkin Donuts also so they kids could celebrate with donuts too.

With the crazy snow, the kids were home from school, so we spent the day e-learning.  But then we wrapped the day up with dinner at one of our new favorite places, Victory Italian.  They have kids meals that are HUGE portions, include a drink and ice cream and are only $6!  And then Ryan and I get to have wine and a delicious "date night" caliber dinner.  It's a win for everyone.  Plus with the snow, it was empty so we basically had the place to ourselves.

Happy Birthday Ryan!!  We love you SOOOOOOO much and hope you had a special day!

Let's Go Hawks!!

 To celebrate Ryan's upcoming birthday we wanted to do something fun, so we took the kids to a Blackhawks game.  We had the absolute BEST time!!!!

Fully decked out in our Blackhawks gear, we got there with plenty of time to find our seats,

make a few signs,

and grab some dinner.  They have the BEST food choices at the United Center.  I was super impressed.  Ryan and I had a Honey Butter Fried Chicken sandwich, Owen and Joe had chicken tenders, and Miles went classic with a soft pretzel.  ;)

Finally it was time for the game to start.  As the Hawks take the ice there are tons of lights, horns, loud music and cheering.  It's so exciting and fun!

Miles sat there totally in awe!  It takes a lot for him to sit still, so clearly he was mezmerized.

We had great seats and were only 10 rows off the glass which gave us a nice view of all the action.  

It didn't take long for the shock and awe to wear off and Miles was bouncing in his chair. 

What I love about hockey games, in comparison to other sporting events, is that the whole game is fast paced and action packed.  It's hard for the kids to get bored.  Plus it's a shorter game, broken up into three periods with short breaks between them to give the kids a chance to move around, go to the bathroom and go get more snacks...which we obviously did.  

We had such a great time and I'm already looking forward to going again.  Although next we may try a Bulls game.  :)

Disney - Day #1

 Normally when we go to Disney World, we max out our first day.  We get up at the crack of dawn and head to the airport right away, rush to the parks and try to spend our first half day at one of the parks getting some rides in.  This year we decided to do things differently.  We wanted to relax a bit instead of rushing around.  So we planned our first day to be at the hotel.  The kids LOVE the pool and are always asking when we're going to swim, so we decided to spend our first half day swimming.  We ordered a late afternoon lunch to the pool, Ryan and I got a few drinks and we just relaxed.  It was amazing!!!!

Then, in true winging it style, we got dressed and walked next door to The Beach Club Resort to see if there was a table available at Beaches n Cream.  I have totally been wanting to get one of the Kitchen Sink sundaes for the boys, but it has never worked out on our previous tripos.  Today was our lucky day because right as we got there a table was opening up and we were able to sit.  And look at this sundae!!!!!!  It's hard to even gauge the size looking at the picture, but it was huge!!!  Not something to be easily forgotten!!

Even with all five of us sharing this one sundae, we still couldn't finish it.  Although I think we made a pretty good dent in it.  ;)

After our bellies were entirely full and happy, we decided to call it a night.  We were exhausted and wanted to get a good night's rest leading into our first full day.  

Once we were back at the hotel, showered and ready for bed, I got a text message from Sarah on my phone.  It was a picture of her and Stacey in the lobby of our hotel.  She had been hinting about coming to Disney the same weekend we were here, and joked with Joe about sneaking into his suitcase...so you can imagine how excited he was when he saw they were actually here.  Can't wait to hang with them tomorrow...but for tonight, this crew is off to bed!

Disney - Travel Day

 Today's the Day!!!!  All our bags are packed (Marie Kondo style) and we're ready to go.

We made it to the airport with plenty of time to spare.

While we were waiting to board the plane, Joe was sitting in the window and waved at the pilot.  He in turned pointed to Joe and motioned for him to come see him.

When we walked onto the plane we told the flight attendant what the pilot did and she directed us to the cockpit.  I don't know if this is some secret we never knew about or if this was just our lucky day, but the pilot took all three boys into the cockpit and let them each sit in his seat.  As a grown adult I thought this was a super cool experience, so I can only imagine how the boys felt.  When I was little, all I got was a pin with wings on it!  ;)

Truthfully I felt a little nervous traveling, espeically flying on a plane, during COVID.  But I was tired of being cooped up, had read how safe planes were, and honestly just needed to get away.  I was pleasantly surprised with all the changes the airline had made.  As you walk on the plane they give you a sanitizing wipe to use for your seat, tray table, arm rests...whatever you feel needs it.  And when it's time for the beverage cart to come by, they give you a prepacakged bag with a bottle of water, a bag of pretzels, some cookies and another sanitizing wipe.  You can also ask for another beverage to go along with it.

The boys are so used to having snacks at school that they were great at taking a bite and then pulling their masks back up.  It's crazy to think that it's just how they're used to doing things now.

After a relatively uneventful flight, and a few movies later, we made it to Florida!!