the County Fair

I have heard about the Monroe County Fair for years. I've known people who compete in things there....like the rodeos and horse shows. Not my normal scene, but Jayjay and I decided to brave the sweltering heat to check out the Fair, since we Albrachts are legit Monroe County residents.

Luckily our buddy, Corbin was at the Fair too.  We got to hang out with him while his momma finished up some work stuff.

These two took rides pretty serious.  And had some serious fun!

Max and I swapped sweat.  Then Jayjay and Max swapped sweat while I let sweat trickle down my legs.  And then we switched back so Jayjay's sweat could soak through her shirt. Switch and repeat...

Jayjay and I decied that the Lemonade shake-up that we had been longing for (that may have even been part of the reason we went to the fair) would help us to beat the heat.  

Fail.  

Worst. Lemonade-shake-up.  Ever.

Round two on the space ship was more fun.

Max took it all in.  Give it a few years, baby girl....

The boys were so cute.  We had wristbands....aka a VIP pass for the County Fair.  These boys were free to roam and play!  (with us dragging behind and leaving a trail of sweat).

Cole was so brave!  He climbed the stairs to slide down the GIANT SLIDE!

Woah....it's a biggun.

Hey Corbin!

These boys are two of my favorite. So handsome.  Can't wait to see them grow up and I hope they'll always be buddies...maybe even soul mates like thier mamas!

It wore us all out.  We trudged around, sweaty messes, until we were completely worn out.  

See ya next year, Fair!

happenings....

There just isn't much time for blogging these days but I look forward to catching things up around here.  In the meantime, here's a snippet of what we've been up to...

 playing with family in Jamaica,

 Schroedeling,

 trying some foods,

 playing with friends,

and growing up (too quickly)!

Fun with Friends

We have been spending as much time as possible with friends over the past few weeks.  

I love having friends with children that my children can befriend! 

April, Adalyn, and Carson came to visit and kick off their summer.  Cole loved playing with Ada and Carson while Maxine and I enjoyed visiting with April.  We've come a long way since college, but conversation flowed just as easily as our time living together in Carbondale!

Erica and I ventured to a nursing group in St. Louis with Elijah and Maxine.  It is so fun to have another mama/baby duo going through so much of the same as Max and me....even if it does land us in the YMCA parking lot nursing our babes in the front seat after a "scream off" in the backseat!

We had family fun night with the Lange's.  Cole loves playing with Corbin and all of Corbin's awesome toys.  Carter caught my camera's eye with his entertainer ways.  He makes me laugh!  I seriously love me some Lange Family! 

Maxine and I ventured to visit with Brooke and Miss Carley.  We had our first ladies lunch with them...Carley at nine days, Maxine at nine weeks.  The trip was long but so very worth the time with my dear grade school friend!

I am so grateful for my friendships.  I look forward to my kids developing friendships...and hope that they can be as lucky as their dad and me in finding friends that will last a lifetime and weather all seasons of life.

Now- gotta fly, we are off for another playdate!

May 28 {mudbug}

This afternoon we attended our first crawfish boil as guests of the Harding's.  It was SO fun! The hosts went all out with authenticity - newspaper covered tables, zydeco music, cajun snacks (including gator and snapping turtle) and of course LIVE crawfish!

Maxine got gussied up for her first party (outside of family functions).  

Cole arrived and quickly took to Stevie and Charlie.  They had a great time together.

The process of preparing the crawfish was more involved than I knew.  First the little buggers were put in the baby pool and covered with salt and water.  I learned this process was the "purge" - - cleans 'em out.

 Can you tell?  Dirty water!

 The kids were spectators and terrified watching the mudbugs jump and pinch.  The big boys did the work...

...and played...

Cole was NOT interested....

..until he was.  You know.

The view was amazing.  Just outside of Waterloo, although it reminds me of somewhere dreamy.

Back to the boil...

 Crawfish in!

 Spicy goodness

 Dinner is ON!

Did I mention that I was a bit taken by the view?!?

It was a great afternoon and evening.  We enjoyed the adult company and Cole had a blast with the girls.

Our hosts were so gracious - we hope we earned an invite again next year!  ;-)

Friends Visit

Our friends and family came to visit this week!  Na, G, Jayjay, Laura, Chris, and the girls brought dinner and spent the evening with us.

Jayjay got to meet her niece for the first time.

Cole loved having "Stewwa and Wia" (Stella and Maria) over to play!  They ran, worked puzzles, played hide & seek, and had tons of fun. 

 We took turns trying to keep little Miss happy. D & Laura had the touch!

And, Little Miss got her first chirpractic adjustment!  We are hoping that getting her aligned and balanced correctly might help her little digestive system!  We will be scheduling a follow up with Dr. Murry soon!

 It was so nice to spend time with friends!  We all enjoyed it and can't wait to do it again!

Play Date

My wonderful friends planned a visit to meet Maxine and brought us brunch, gifts, and entertainment!  Melissa, Brooke (& Carly) & Mason, and Amanda & Ruby came over Friday morning for our first official play date (for ladies and kids!).  So fun!

Melissa pleased Cole with doughnuts and unphotographed matchbox cars!  Mason opted to snack on apples, oranges, and carrots.  His mama must be doing something right!

Brooke & Ruby

It's so funny to think about how much life changes in a few short years.  It wasn't long ago that we rarely got together for much other than cocktails!  Now here we are talking about work, relationships, and kids.

The kids had so much fun: Cole trying to boss Mason, Mason doing his own thing (and eating healthy!), Ruby yelling, and Maxine nursing (as usual!).

Aunt Melissa.

The birthday buddy boys. (Mason was born on Cole's first birthday)

The girls.  They will be in the same grade, here in the same town - I can't wait for them to be friends!  Maxine has already borrowed clothes from her!  I know Ruby's mommy was a great friend to me as we grew up together!

What a great day!  Thanks to my wonderful friends!  I can't wait for future playdates - with or without kids!  ;-)