Memorial Day Weekend

We lived life to its fullest for the holiday weekend. Fun with friends and family, a little of this and a little of that. Dylan was supposed to be in Idaho, but his trip ended up cancelling. This was a welcome surprise, especially because it was in the middle of a long string of trips. I'll give the play-by-play with the photos I captured. Today at the gym my brain juices were seriously flowing and I was all inspired to write one of those blog posts that has a lot of truth and attitude. But then all of a sudden it was 8:30, I have two kids in bed peacefully asleep, and I'm just whipped and not feeling it anymore. Solo parenting burns a lot of energy, and while I recognize that I'm not actually a single mom, being that Dylan is off working and making all the money that I spend, it's always nice to have man-to-man defense for the bedtime routine. But without further ado, our weekend...

What is it about a baby wrapped in a towel?

At a Babymoon meet-up at the Halle Heart Museum

When it was time for music class, Gavin didn't want to leave this grocery store. Cue the meltdown.

We made it to music class and he had fun for five seconds, until it was time to potty.

He shook some bells, and then when the second meltdown began, I decided to cut my losses and carry him under one arm to the car while wearing Graham. I often find myself in this situation but rarely ever see anyone else in the same battle. Is it just me? In other news, that is not our princess bag in the background.

Saturday had an awesome start, with Gavin learning to ride a real bike for the first time!

Then we went across the street for a BBQ with a bunch of our friends who we hadn't seen in a while. The kids had a blast, and it was wonderful to catch up with everyone. Isn't it crazy how many kids are in this photo?!? Thank you for hosting, Palmers!

Gavin is looking up at his crush. Thanks Kristin for doing the hard work of gathering everyone for this photo and sending it along!

Sunday morning started with church, and no trip to church would be complete without some climbing on the playground afterward. In Gavin's words, "It's not too dangerous."

On Sunday night we celebrated my sweet nephew Hudson's kindergarten graduation. Way to go, H!

Gavin already knew how to cheers. Where'd he learn that?

He idolizes Hudson, and Hudson is so sweet and patient with him. I love seeing them interact.

Kristin always captures the happy faces. (I think it's because G has a crush on K.) Thanks, K!

I just have to keep on increasing my upper body strength because I will continue to pick him up and squeeze him no matter how big he gets!

The boys started the day at Nonna and Papa's house on Monday while D and I caught a movie.

Gavin spent a long time in the garage "helping" my dad build his car.

Then Max's family came over and everyone had a swim and some dinner.

Graham's first time in the pool!

All five boys.

Gavin's not allowed to put his head underwater because of the eye surgery, so he got a helping hand from his big cousin. So sweet.

I just checked on him and found him facing the opposite way in bed with his legs through the slats. Whatever.

Dylan and I saw the movie The Lobster. It was super weird but overall pretty good. We both agreed that the beginning half was much better than the second half. Afterward, we gobbled down burgers at the Shake Shack before heading back to the boys. We always appreciate the rare chance to get out together. Thanks, Mom and Dad for taking our boys!

Lastly, a quick update on Gavin's eyes. They don't seem to be bothering him too much, and he's perfectly happy, but sometimes I think he has some double vision. It would appear that one or both eyes were overcorrected and he's looking pretty cross-eyed right now. I'm not sure if that's normal. I wasn't told what to expect, and I have no idea why I didn't think to ask. So, of course I've been Googling because I'm completely sick about it, and I still have no idea what to think. His follow-up appointment is Thursday morning. This eye surgery often has to be repeated, sometimes in a matter of months and sometimes after several decades, so it's possible we may have to do it all over again, and that makes me very sad. Please keep G in your thoughts and prayers, and I'll be sure to give an update!