Make Monday: Make Memories

Believe it or not, I won a contest from our local TV station. KCCI, to be exact.

I know, I'm like a unicorn. Something you hear of, but you've never met. But I won.

We couldn't use the whole package, because the best time to use it was early June, when my husband was working, I was in the midst of a special congressional delegate election, establishing a new non-profit group, and the boys had scheduled for Cub Scout/Star Wars/Library camps.

But our family really needed to reconnect. And we did.

My husband was off of work early on Friday. Even though the house was a disaster, when he got home, we packed up.

We surprised the boys, all 4, after school, at Grandma's house.

I drove the 2.45 hours to the hotel room. The kids were tired, they were hungry. They wanted to know where we were going. And then we got to the hotel.

We checked in, put our bags in the room, just steps from a restaurant. A 28 inch pizza for $29.99? Cheaper than what we would pay for a meal for all 6 of us.

Yep. A good photo op. The room service information said "it feeds 10 adults". It should have read, "It feeds a Catholic family with 4 young boys."

We did have left overs...but not many.

After dinner, we went to the room and crashed. Daddy in one bed with the middles, me nursing Harry and, the oldest, Liam, with his kicking legs. It's no wonder he doesn't sleep at night!

We woke up, ate breakfast, and went back to the arcade. After about 10 minutes, David and I decided it was time to get the boys outside. Because being an arcade family is not what we want to raise the boys in.

So we visited the sites. Snake Alley....the boys ran both up and down it...

Harry chases his brothers down Snake Alley, "Wait, wait you guys! I have wittle wegs!"

And we even visited the Mississippi River.

I was "Super Mom" when I used a stick to flip a dead fish so the boys could inspect (no touch) it.

And then I thought we should visit a park....and there was a slide that made me nervous. 

But they loved it.

I thought they would love playing in leaves for a great fall photo...

And I thought wrong...

Really, Harry? Really?!?!


Thankfully, we had a great lunch at Big Muddy's...Brendan chose the kid's unlimited salad bar, and he loved it...and this money saving mom loved it! Only $1.99!

After lunch, we decided to see what else Burlington had to offer. It was the largest spine in the world, in honor of Dr. Aunt Sandy Bowman, the family Chiropractor! It is anatomically correct and carved out of a tree! Only in Iowa!

After that, we found the Our Lady of Grace Grotto. The boys loved seeing all of the Geodes and learning about the Stations of the Cross.

When I have a garden, I want this.

We went back to the hotel, played at the pool and crashed....ish.As much as you can crash with one adult and two kids in a Queen sized bed.

Sunday morning, after checking out, we went to an awesome mom and pop restaurant called the Hungry Bear.

The pancake was the size of the plate....and the syrup was in a clear squirt bottle...why I have never thought of that?!?!

And the omelet....we all ate for less than 25, including a $5 tip.


Our boys had so much fun...we made so many memories...

Throwback Tuesday post....that continues our trip....will be posted tomorrow...

Wash Wednesday: The Post Vacation Laundry Pile Up

I love vacations. I really do. But I really dislike the post vacation laundry pile. REALLY dislike. Considering on a regular day, I usually do two-three loads. Times that by how ever many days we've been gone. Plus any clothes I bought for the kids, husband and myself (if any).

Clothes. Clothes. Clothes. Yes. I realize this is a first world problem. I should consider myself blessed. And I do. But all of the laundry. And it never fails. I get it sorted into nice piles when someone manages to come tearing in to the laundry room to mess them up...or forgets to put their bag in the laundry room...then there is more to sort.

Word to the wise? Take at least one day off of work AFTER your vacation ends to catch up on house stuff. Thankfully we had cleaned the house BEFORE we left, but that still didn't mean that within a few minutes of being home, it was a mess.

When it comes to laundry, it has become my job to wash/dry and my husband folds and we both put away (well, mostly him). But the day after the end of vacation was his birthday. And being the nice wife I am, I let him go to a movie that afternoon with his dad. The evening was spent with his folks...which left no time to fold/put away laundry. So there it sits. Two FULL baskets full of clean clothes. I have catching up to do on work, husband is back at work and, well, I take care of three kids while working. So yes, at the end of the day, I'm exhausted too.

Ah, laundry. It never ends.

Shuffle Saturday: Going Somewhere?

Recently, we took a trip to visit Great Grandma for a week. After a twelve hour drive and 600 plus miles later, I realized I forgot to take care of something at home.

At my house, packing for a long trip practically means turning your house upside down with washing laundry, doing last minute errands, packing suitcases, and endless worrying that you did not forget anything. These things can consume your brain so much that you find yourself on the road, thinking about all that is left undone.

I used to clean my house before I went, making sure everything was fresh and picked-up including new sheets and vacuuming. Then after one weekend, I came home to find the cat had pulled down our books off the bottom book shelf and started tearing out pieces of pages since we forgot to put enough food out. Luckily, he had enough water! That is when I decided why add the stress of cleaning beforehand when you come home and probably will find the house messy anyways. If it is not dusty or dirty again when you get home, it will be by the time you unload and dump everything as soon as you walk into the door.

I did put together a list of things that still need to be done though before we left home for an extended amount of time. Notice that this list contains things that pertain to smell, our pet, and taking care of the house in general.

• Clean out old food of fridge; finish eating leftovers.
• Take out trash and recycling.
• Empty your sinks of dirty dishes and wash last load in dishwasher on way out.
• Provide access with key to person checking on pet.
• Leave extra food and water for pet.
• Turn off water to clothes washer.
• Turn down heat or air conditioning.
• Cover couches with tarp.
• Water plants.
• Clothes doors to rooms.
• Cancel newspaper for duration of trip.

So as you travel for the Holiday season, put together your own list of things that need to be done around the house before you leave. However, limit your stress about overall cleaning of the house. Chances are you will clean it again anyways when you get home.