Bayfield Apple Fest 2016

Bayfield weekend is upon us again!  I was so excited for Esme's first Apple Fest!  As usual, we stopped at Coop's for the pizza buffet lunch and to stock up on candy and baked goods at our favorite Hayward shops.

Tremblay's Candy and a cookie from the bakery!

We stayed in Ashland this year at the same hotel as 2013.  After checking in I ran out to get dinner at Buddy's.  The fries weren't that great, but they had also gotten cold.  Jimmy said his reuben was delicious and my burger was really good too.

After dinner we went down to the pool for a dip.  The pool was a bit chilly, but the hot tub felt great!  After putting Esme in we realized it was probably too hot for her, so I just sat on the edge and splashed her a little.

We didn't have to get up and on the road as early this year since we were staying so close.  I found this adorable apple outfit while shopping at Once Upon a Child a while back.  I knew it would be perfect for this weekend and she can wear it for a few more months.  Unfortunatly we didn't get to show it off because she was bundled to the max.  It was in the low 40's, breezy and mostly cloudy.  

We didn't eat as much this year, which is probably a good thing.  I only got one apple brat on the way in, but we did try the apples romanoff.  They were dipped in funnel cake batter, deep-fried, and covered in romanoff sauce (sour cream, brown sugar, cinnamon, and rum.)  They were delicious!

We were back to the hotel by about 3:00 and just rested for a while.  I didn't want to run out again, so we just ate dinner at the hotel restaurant.  They have a lot of great fish options since they are right on the water.  Jimmy had fish tacos and I had fried cod.  

Both kids were awesome travelers once again.  Esme fell asleep both nights without any issues and Parker loved having a big bed to himself.  We hit the road by 10:00 the next morning to head back home.

Our final stop was at Burnett Creamery just outside Grantsburg.  We don't normally go this way, but wanted to avoid a detour on our normal route.  They have a large retail store and bistro.  Jimmy had The Wisconsin (Alpha’s Morning Sun cheese, oven roasted turkey breast and fresh baby spinach with a homemade cranberry-orange spread on cranberry wild rice bread) and I had The Tuscan (Alpha’s Morning Sun cheese, grilled chicken, roasted red peppers and fresh baby spinach with a homemade sun-dried tomato mayo on Italian herb bread.)  I couldn't leave without dessert and took a twist cone to go!  We may just have to take this way every year!

It was such a fun trip, but we were happy to be back on Saturday.  

The No-Longer Toothless Wonder: Part 2

It's been a very exciting week for us.  Esme has been having a lot of fun with her feet lately.  Her favorite activity is knocking over her activity gym.  There is a video below that is pretty funny.  She did it about four times in a row the other night.

She has been loving rolling lately as well.  She will stay on her tummy for a long time, then get frustrated, rub her face in the carpet and cry until we come get her. 

 Now to the tooth news!  Part 1 of the saga can be found here.  She has been chewing on her hands a lot in the last few weeks, but just started showing big signs of teething this week.  I know that symptoms can last weeks and even months without a tooth popping, so I wasn't expecting anything soon.  I have been checking every day and sure enough I felt the first one on Friday night and another popped through yesterday!  It was a little tricky to get pictures, but I did it!  She was sticking her tongue out a lot, so I had about 20 like the first one below.  Just another sign that she is growing up.  Less than a week until she is 6 months old!

Autism Speaks Walk 2016

We had another great year at the Autism Speaks Walk.  We raised over $1800 towards research and services.  This brings our 4 year total to almost $6000!  Parker was even a part of the Grand Club thanks to a generous donation from the Corcoran Lions Club!  We are so grateful for all the support we've had.

We made it on the jumbotron!

 Esme wasn't nearly as impressed with the festivities, but she tolerated it well and ell asleep shortly after this.  Parker also kept yanking her crown off, so it didn't last long.

 Eek! Four princesses, every girl's dream!  Good thing they didn't have a sleeping beauty, because Esme had that roll down!

Can't wait for next year!

2016 Ryder Cup

A couple months ago my dad scored free tickets to the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National in Chaska.  When he called to see if Jimmy or I wanted to go I knew right away that Jimmy would be working and I would have to "take one for the team" and go.  My mom had volunteered to watch the kids even before he called, so all of us spent Friday night there.  We left at 4:50 in hopes of beating the traffic and it paid off.  We had minimal waiting to park and get on the shuttle and it took less than 10 minutes to get through the gates.

We headed straight to the first green and grabbed a spot behind two people in chairs about 30 yards from the pin.  We waited there about an hour to finally see some golf.

After the four groups passed by we walked towards hole 10, hoping to have a view.  Since only 4 holes are being played at a time it can be hard to get a spot to see anything.  We got a pretty good spot looking out over the green at the lake.  It was about another hour before we saw the groups come through again.

Patrick Reed ("my man" according to me dad) and my favorite, Jordan Spieth, were paired up all Friday and Saturday.  Jordan didn't have a great weekend, but Reed was hot!

Included with our tickets was access to the Hazeltine member club.  This gave us access to luxury portable restrooms (go ahead and Google that!), charging stations for our phone, a premium bar, better food options, and a place to sit and watch the action on TV.

There was 4 different food themes and we chose two to share.  A cheesesteak from the deli and bangers and mash from across the pond made for a great lunch.  My dad loves the banger and mash so much that he has already requested I invite him over to have it for dinner.

The morning rounds were wrapping up as we finished lunch.  We were on our way to the 3rd green when it looked like the last group would end up playing 17, so we stopped and watched for a while.  Why dad attempting to get a picture of me with the golfers, but I had my brightness turned down to save battery and he didn't realize the camera was pointed at him.

We continued our journey to hole 3 once Jordan and Patrick hit.  It was about an hour before golfers got to us again, but we were able to watch what was happening on a nearby video board.  We got a but of a surprise when a ball ended up in the ground just a few feet away.  We didn't know who's it was until Brooks Koepka walked over.  We got to watch him hit a great shot from a few feet away.

We went home later, checked out the recording, and found ourselves on TV!

We walked to a couple other holes and watched a bit, but were getting tired.  We swung through the merchandise tent before leaving and got on the shuttle about 3:45.  We were both pretty sore when we got back to my parent's house, but a hot tub soak and early bedtime helped with recovery.  I am so grateful for this once in a lifetime opportunity.  Thanks for taking me along dad!

Big Laughs

Just a quick update, we've been having all sorts of fun over here.  Nothing is better than hanging out with these two!

Jimmy got Esme really laughing on Sunday, it was so cute.

 Here are Esme's pictures from last week.