30 times 2

Our past two weekends have been in the planning stages for a long time!  We started planning a girls trip to Chicago late 2011 for Racquel's 30th birthday.  She was pregnant in January during her actual birthday, but considering it was a milestone we wanted to be sure to do something once she was all the way ready for the celebration!  We purchased tickets to Cirque du Soleil's Immortal Tour which is the tribute show to Michael Jackson.  The weekend seemed so far away when we surprised her with the tickets in January, but the time flew and we were all looking forward to a fun weekend just us girls!

We had a wonderful weekend full of entertainment, good food, shopping, great conversation and laughter!  I am truly blessed to have a handful of amazing women in my life that are much more than just my friends...they are my sisters!  Happy (belated) Birthday, Quel!  We love you and hope your 30th year is your best yet!!!  (I tried to upload a picture of the birthday girl, but it wasn't cooperating -- probably best that it didn't!)

This past weekend we had another special birthday to celebrate!  Monica's 30th!!!  We had been planning a cabin weekend in honor of her birthday since March!  We loaded up our families and a group of 13 of us went to the cabin! 

I've got my bucket and shovel, now all I need is sand!

We pulled into Guttenberg just in time for lunch.  We stopped at the Riverview Cafe for a bite to eat.  The view of the river was great and a hole in the wall spot was a perfect way to kick off the weekend!

The Three Amigos!

Friday afternoon was spent getting settled in at the cabin, putting groceries away, kiddos napping and welcoming Scott, Racquel and Sloan!  Then it was off to McGregor to Old Man River for Monica's special birthday dinner!  If you haven't been to Old Man River it is worth the trip!  It is a neat restaurant downtown McGregor with good food and a nice atmosphere!

Make a wish!

Lila is pretty proud of her grandpa's cabin!

It was back to the cabin for the evening to put the kiddos to bed and enjoy some adult time.  The weather this weekend was absolutley perfect for time spent outdoors.  It has been so hot that I worried a fair amount about not being able to tolerate being outside for very long.  We were all excited to use the deck, light some citronella candles, and enjoy each others company!

The next morning we woke up to beautiful sunshine!  The kids were chomping at the bit to get on the boat and get to the sandbar!  After breakfast and a little playtime we got ourselves around and off we went!

The kids couldn't have enjoyed themselves more on the boat!  They all earned their boating stripes as you saw lots of smiles as we cruised around on the river before finding the perfect spot for building sand castles and splashing around!

 



Sloan's first boat ride!



The birthday girl and her sweetie!

Captain Eddins!

Here we go!

Splish Splash!

Sloan enjoying the shade!  She is a natural beach baby!

Quite the project!

Brandon & Henley

Dig, dig, dig!

Soaking up the sun!

A castle is in the making!

Family Pic!

Little Miss Lila took some time adjusting to the water this time.  She had a spill of the tube the last time we were at the cabin and I think it rattled her a bit more than I anticipated.  She eventually settled down and allowed herself to enjoy the time spent in the water and at the sandbar! 

We had an amazing weekend with the little kids and the "big kids!"  It was so nice to have some time together where we didn't have a schedule to keep, it was relaxed and all about enjoying each other and the beautiful weather!  We are blessed with the greatest friends and we are so lucky to have our kids grow up with each other and form friendships that will be long lasting!

Buddies!

Happy Birthday, Monica!  We love you and wish you nothing but happiness during your 30th year!