Our road trip to Boston

A lot of people thought we were crazy for driving all the way to Boston for spring break. We thought of it as an opportunity to explore and show ourselves and the kids another part of the country. Now we normally wouldn't go on 3 big vacations in just 10 months but we decided to just go for it and try to be practical about it. My best friend Marina and her family moved to Boston last summer from Chicago, so this was our chance to bring the kids and have a nice long visit.

 

We left  bright and early the first day and drove 11 hours straight to Buffalo, NY. It was a good place to stop on our way and Bob was super excited to try some "famous" buffalo chicken wings. I don't know if we got a bad batch or what, but they were NOT good!!!

 

 

Yuck. :(

 

 

The next morning we drove about 20 minutes to Niagara Falls. It was breathtaking!!!!!

 

From Niagara Falls we drove to Vermont. We couldn't be out that way and not check out the mountains and try to get in a bit of skiing. The snow conditions weren't amazing and we had some ice to deal with but we had a great time. Addison had a stomach bug unfortunately and didn't get to ski...which meant Bob and I took turns with her and only each got a half day in but we still had a great time. Marina and her family met us there at Mount Snow.

 



 (Lucas has some work to do on picture taking).

 



 

Vermont is absolutely beautiful. I wish we spent more time there and we have to go back when the trees are full or in the fall. 

 

For the next 4 days we settled in at Marina's house in Boston. She lives in a super cute town right along the ocean. It is so charming and all that you would imagine for a coastal town in Massachusetts. Unfortunately it rained for about 2 days and we had to get creative with indoor activities for the kids but it was also good to have some downtime.

 

 

Addison was obsessed with Marina's adorable little girl (so was I of course).

 

When it finally stopped raining we spent the day in Boston....Amelie was so cute on the trolley. 

 

We took a trolley throughout the whole city and took in a lot of great history. 

 

On Thursday we said goodbye to our friends and set off back towards St. Louis. Our first stop was Cooperstown, NY...home of the Baseball Hall of Fame. The town was so cute and charming and the museum was really amazing. We were pretty blown away by it all and it was off season so there was no crowd at all. I'm so glad we made this stop.

 

 

 

 

We drove about 6 hours after the museum and spent the night in Erie, PA. Bob found this great hotel with a wonderful view of a lighthouse and Lake Erie.

 



We explored a park in the morning a bit and found these floating homes...something we have never seen before. 

 

Then we found a lighthouse.

 

Our last stop was in Cincinnati, OH to visit my friend Kris and her family....sadly I didn't get any pics but it was fun to get that time together.

 

So, we basically had a wonderful trip and the kids were great in the car.  We drove over 40 hours, across 8 states, stayed the night in 5 states. We saw Niagara Falls, snowy Vermont mountains, a major city on the Atlantic Ocean, one of the Great Lakes, etc....we saw a lot and had an amazing time together.

Winter so far

Winter has been good. It started off great with our trip to Colorado and then it was kind of a let down when it was over and we were back in the grind of things...especially after the holidays. We have been managing to stay busy with the kids. Lucas is still in off-season baseball training (indoors of course) and he can't wait for spring/summer ball to start. Addison just started indoor soccer with her team and she is about to wrap up a great season of basketball. She has only gotten one basket all season...but she loves playing and keeps improving !

 

Here she is in action at one of her games.

 

 

We have hardly gotten any snow this winter...but the kids took advantage of it when we did get a little.

 

We took my Dad out for his 70th birthday a few weeks ago. We went on a craft beer pub crawl and had a great night!!!

 

 

This past weekend Bob took Addison to her 5th Kellison sweetheart dance. It is hard to believe that next year will be their last dance. They had a wonderful time and I must say....Addison looked so pretty and so grown up.

 

Earlier this winter I was on a mission. As if painting all the doors, base boards, and frames wasn't enough....I painted the entry way, hallways, stairway and dining room

 

Here is a before picture. I don't know how I lived with these walls for 7 years...the multi color/sponge paint or whatever you want to call it.

 

After pic...much cleaner and fresh if you ask me.

 

I don't have a before pic of the dining room but you can imagine dark greens walls (lighter on top and darker on the bottom). It was ok...but I never loved the room. The light blue looks much better and matches the walls in the den right next to this room.

 

That's all for now.

We are getting anxious for spring break and spring weather. Our family is not meant to be cooped up and we can't wait to get outside!!!!

Christmas in Colorado!

Just a few weeks ago we spent an amazing 6 days in beautiful Colorado. We had been planning this trip for like 2 years. We have taken the kids skiing a few times locally and at another small resort area...but this time was the real deal. Bob loves to ski. I love to ski too...but I am not super great but I manage ok. Regardless, this trip actually had a bit more meaning than any other trip we had taken. We were celebrating Bob becoming a partner at his law firm!!!

 

We couldn't think of a better way to celebrate as a family than in one of our favorite places, with our favorite people and doing one of our favorite things.

 

We have been to a few different ski resorts in Colorado and after a lot of research we settled on Copper Mountain (which is pretty close to Breckenridge). It turned out to be a great choice. We stayed in a super comfortable one-bedroom ski-in/ski-out condo in the village. It was perfect for us as it had a pull out couch and another sleeping nook area in addition to the bedroom.

 

 

The kids enjoyed 2 days of ski school.

 

 

While the kids were at ski school Bob and I explored lots of runs.

The first day of skiing was nice and sunny and not too cold. 

 

I love this picture of me with the beautiful mountains in the back.

 

The second day of skiing was colder, windy and snowy...but we still loved it.

 



 

This picture was taken on a run that Bob and I loved....it was way up high on the mountain with tons of fresh snow. We loved making our own tracks in the snow and just enjoying the amazing mountain views.

After a day break we had a perfect third day of skiing. We all started off together in the morning and then Lucas was feeling a bit more adventurous so he went off with Bob. Addison stuck with me and we had an amazing day together. It couldn't have been a better day skiing with this girl. She has become such a great little skier and I am going to have to work hard to keep up with her and Lucas in the future!



 

A really nice skier volunteered to take her gloves off (in the freezing cold) to take a family picture for us. You can't really see our faces but I am sure we were smiling big.

 

Here is Bob and Lucas on their adventure near the top of the mountain. Lucas loved the fresh snow up there....and Bob loved experiencing it with him.

 

I think this picture was taken on our last time on the lift. Our last run down was a crazy one....Addison had a little mishap with a tree as she was trying to be a dare devil and ski off a bit from the trail. She got right back up though (after some tears and fear that I wouldn't find her in the trees) and we all finished up with huge smiles...and then frowns that it was all over. 

 

We loved this ski trip and can't wait for many more (hopefully). 

We arrived back in St. Louis around 2pm on Christmas Eve...and we were at my parents Christmas Eve party by 4pm. Yikes.

 

Santa came and brought the kids bikes...and many more gifts of course.

 

Then all of a sudden we were celebrating New Years Eve with some family at our house. 

 

Our Colorado ski trip was more fun than we could have imagined. 2015 was a good year overall...a few ups and downs but we ended on a very high note...

 

 

High...like the water level. Historic flooding so close to home. Most of the flooding is over now but so much damage. Here is to 2016...and hopefully no flooding...and hopefully more skiing.

Thanksgiving, Boston and more.

I'm trying to wrap up the year of pics before the last few weeks get crazy.

 

Thanksgiving was wonderful. Although the day is a reminder that my brother has been gone for so long, I still love to spend time with family. What made this Thanksgiving even better this year was the amazing weather. Bob and I ran in our normal Thanksgiving day 6 mile race. We even ran it together since Bob biked with a group before the race started.

 

 

Our family pic. You can tell just how nice of a day it was. 

 

Shortly after Thanksgiving I headed to Boston for a long weekend. My best friend Marina moved there with her family last summer from Chicago. So instead of a 5 hours drive she is now like 19 hours away....so I flew of course. Our other BFF Kris came from Ohio and we had a girls weekend.

 

 

Marina took me to the beach (they live super close in the most adorable area outside of Boston). It was chilly but so pretty. 

 

A pretty view of Boston. 

 

A girls night in the city!

 

On Sunday the 3 of us went out to lunch, shopping and then Marina took me on a great tour of the city before I left. It was such a pretty day to take in the sights. I can't wait to go back next time with Bob and the kids.  

 

Last weekend I hosted a bunch of Mom's from the kids school for a Girls Night In holiday party. It was fun to hang out with all these ladies outside of the school...and unwind!

 

So in addition to traveling a bit, getting ready for the holidays, hosting parties, etc....I took on a major home project. Well maybe not major but very time consuming! I painted all 13 doors in the house and door frames and all the baseboards. It took a few months of off and on work but I am finally done.

 

I really wish I took more before and after pics. 

 

I also changed out the old brass doorknobs for nickel. They look so much better.

 

More home projects to come soon including more painting and hopefully a very needed new deck in the spring....the joys of being a homeowner.

 

Now it's time to get ready and enjoy the holidays which are going to be even more exciting this year!!!!