may 28th - happy birthday farrah

Nice lazy sunday with some sunshine this morning. Alex and Daddy took a long bike ride and Mommy followed Gemma who wanted to "go for a run."  She made it around the block but had to get some recovery time at each corner. 

In the afternoon, we went over to Farrah's Aunt Erin's house for a memorial day picnic and birthday celebration for Farrah. On the way, we stopped at a garden store to get a flower pot. Took some time to find the right one. Gemma was obviously in a hurry to get to the party and ice cream cake, so she recommended that Mommy, "just get the duck pot."

 

may 27th - dreby time

We spent the day in Newtown with the Dreby clan. Their neighbors were out of town so we took over their backyard full of goodies. Alex and Kyle played on the trampoline for hours. The girls played in the house and "made dinner."  Lots of fun and S'MORES!

 

may 26th - don't step there

The day started fine. Mommy and Daddy getting a jump on the holiday weekend and getting stuff done while the kids were in school. Not so fast. While walking into school, Gemma suddenly vomited. Right on Mommy's shoe.  Daddy had to run and get paper towels. Mommy was like a soldier who stepped on a mine and could not budge:). Had to take a photo before getting towels.  

Needless to say our 'alone day' just got turned upside down. As we were driving to run errands, Gemma gave us another vomit warning and Daddy pretty much drove up on someone's lawn and Mommy pulled her out of the car. Saved the car but we took casualties on Gemma's pants and sneakers. 

Crazy start to the day, but jesus was watching over us.  Gemma was in Alex's seat which allowed for the quicker escape AND we were returning some clothes while out on errands so Gemma had a makeshift change of clothes available. We dropped Mommy off at Beeps' house to go buy flowers and Gemma got a new skirt, which she added to her ensemble and wore all day long while hanging with Daddy. 

We finally got to celebrate Mommy's birthday the proper way...with Kelly cake. Alex picked out a cool Moon Cactus all by himself to give to Mommy and GemGem gave her pretty flowers. Another rollercoaster of a day. Serious belly laughing. 

 

 

may 25th - accomplished

Gemma is super proud of her ability to put together her mermaid puzzle. Clothing optional. 

 

may 24th - back to school

Alex's friends were so excited to see him back at pre-school today. Miss Jessica told us that Ella was asking non-stop if Alex was EVER coming back. Ooooooo. 

He told everyone about his trip and was most excited for everyone to see his new sneakers that he got before we left. 

 

may 23rd - the journey home

Mommy left early to head to Atlanta to receive an award for being a social media 'mover and shaker' so Daddy was on his own with the kids. Started our day with an Uber at 8:30am, flight to Charlotte at 11am, and a 2-hour layover. The kids were great and things were pretty seamless. Alex got a badge from TSA that he was very proud of and Gemma was in good shape. 

Arrival in Charlotte was a little bumpy due to isolated storms. We sat down for some food after waiting for a table and Gemma decided she had to poop. Couldn't get three humans and three 40 lb backpacks into a bathroom without losing the table where we just placed a huge order. Gemma offered to just poop in her diaper since we had that contingency planned. Innovator. Getting three bags and three humans into a single stall for a vertical change procedure of a nasty dump is not on Daddy's bucket list to repeat. 

Got to EWR at rush hour so 10 express trains blew past us...then we had to switch at Rahway. The wheels started coming off, Alex had to pee in a water bottle on the train platform, and a $175 uber alternative ride home was an absolute necessity. Both kids fell asleep in the car. Bedtime snack of peanut butter and jelly on hamburger buns because we had no damn bread.

Nightmare complete. 

 

 

may 22nd - happy birthday mommy

Another day relaxing in Savannah and celebrating Mommy's 36th birthday. We slept in, wandered through town and relaxed in a half dozen different squares. Alex and Daddy played soccer and Gemma played in a fountain. Had a big lunch and then rolled ourselves into the pool at the hotel. 

There was a big thunderstorm that rolled in so we took advantage of the hotel's complimentary happy hour in the lounge before heading out to dinner. Alex and Gemma loved the homemade strawberry lemonade. Birthday dinner on River Street and lots of fun watching the kids run around on the way home. 

 

 

may 21st - savannah from the water

Daddy has been getting some good sunrise pictures in the mornings while out for runs. Lazy bones have been sleeping in every morning, but today everyone was up in time for 9am breakfast at a great spot near our hotel. We spent the day wandering around and doing some shopping.  Skipped lunch to hit the pool so when we went for our educational Riverboat cruise on 'the georgia queen' we needed some fuel. Alex went for the Riverboat hot dog and Gemma inhaled mozzarella sticks. 

Savannah is an amazing port and it was a very interesting cruise around the river.  Alex even got to see them fire a canon at Fort Jackson on our way past. Did some shopping on River Street on our way back to our hotel for dinner. Gemma got a purse. Alex got a pirate water gun. Mommy got candy. The restaurant in our hotel, Pacci, had some good italian. Gemma did not share her ricotta donuts stuffed with nutella.

   

may 20th - sightseeing

Big day in Savannah. We hit a hipster coffee shop for a quick breakfast and then wandered down to Forsyth Park and took in the sights. They have a huge playground for kids that Alex and Gemma conquered before we visited the weekly farmers' market. Got some watermelon juice and homemade ice pops...which very quickly became juice running down little arms. 

After a dip in the hotel pool and a little snooze, we were back out in the heat to check out City Market. Got some famous cookies and ice cream before dinner. Listened to music, drank sangria, watched the kids run around Ellis Square and made it to dinner at 22Square. Great meal so we figured we would chase it down with some more ice cream from the famous Leopold's on Broughton Street. It was worth the line. 

 

 

may 19th - our journey south

No school today for Alex and Gemma as we are off for a long weekend in Savannah, Georgia. As Alex calls it, the state with the peanuts on my America map. We hit a train, plane, monorail, car, and a taxi today...and the kids were excited for every one. They did great and we were in Savannah for dinner. Alex insisted we first check out our hotel before we do anything else, so we dropped our bags and went to The Pirate's House. The restaurant is rich in history and was really cool to check out. Alex and Daddy even found the Herb House contained inside the restaurant after we got lost going to the bathroom. Oldest house in Georgia. Unfortunately not the herb we seek. 

 

 

 

may 18th - lab day

 

may 17th - mid-week tee ball

Gemma's new favorite place is Tico's Juice Bar. She loves the Jamaican Jammer smoothie. Alex's repeated tee ball cancellations due to the rain every Saturday has led to a reschedule tonight. He was really excited to finally get to play again and wear his "baseball costume."  Grandmom Burger came to watch and then we had some Nomad Pizza for dinner. Alex picked up the tab. 

 

 

may 16th - more fun with daddy

Alex had a special request to go to PJ's for pancakes this morning. So beautiful that we got to sit outside. Off to Marquand Park after school today for a little nature hike and some fun in their epic sand pit. We had dinner at the Rocky Hill Tavern. Free ice cream. 

 

may 15th - park, grill, pj

Mommy is out of town in DC, so it is fun time with Daddy. We went to Community Park after school for some time on the playground. Out to dinner at Witherspoon Grill where the kids got to color pictures for Mommy. Dance party at home before bedtime.  Alex loves Pearl Jam. 

 

may 14th - mommy's day

Mommy didn't get to sleep quite as long as she was anticipating, but she did wake up to a nice breakfast prepared by Daddy and the kids. We did a low key relax day because we couldn't get Mommy off the couch. Packed a picnic for lunch and a stroll through the university. The kids must have done 50 laps around the fountain of freedom. More walks and dinner at home made it a perfect day for Mommy. 

 

 

may 13th - a flood is coming

Today was the day of rain. It began early this morning and was raining when we woke up...raining when we went to bed. Drove through three states. Still raining. 

We had breakfast at Lilipies with Beeps and Grandpa and then spent the day inside. Traveled down to Delaware to visit Jackie, Fred, and Emily. The kids loved catching up with Emily and bringing her birthday presents. 

 

may 12th - mothers' day tea

Mommy went to the kids school for a special mothers' day celebration. Gemma said no boys allowed but Mommy is only one person and had to combine efforts. Alex made Mommy a pretty card with an envelope that had original Alex artwork. Gemma brought Mommy a flower pot that had her little handprints.  

 

may 11th - thursday fun

Grandmom Burger came over today for some fun and dinner at Trattoria Procaccini. Lots of board games, good italian, cupcakes, and dance party. 

 

may 10th - gemma

Gemma got dressed up in her favorite skirt and new Sofitel slippers for a playdate with Alex on the front porch. She was the teacher and Alex was the baby. After she put him down for a nap she made a few phone calls. 

 

may 9th - carpe diem

While Daddy was driving this morning listening to sports talk radio there was mention of a Nascar parade happening in Philly today. After some meeting schedule work, Daddy made a u-turn and picked up Alex at school. Everyone was very surprised (and concerned) that Daddy was back at school at 10am, but Alex was very quickly excited about doing something really fun when Daddy told him about going to see racecars.  We had street truck hot dogs, saw lots of racecars, pace cars, saw them drive around the streets, and got pictures with the cars. Alex even got lug nuts from on of the race teams after they had to change a burned up tire. He now uses them as quite the conversation piece. 

Alex chose Stella Pizzeria for lunch and took down a big gelato. When we got home, we went for a bike ride into town to shop for mother's day gifts. Then watched some Princeton baseball on our way back. It was quite the man day. His teacher said they got a full blow by blow description of his entire adventure the next day at school. 

 

may 8th - the road more traveled

Alex and Daddy took an evening stroll to get out of the house and keep the legs moving. Our adventures somehow always lead us to ice cream. Alex's choice tonight...thomas sweets. 

 

may 7th - broad street

Daddy had to sneak out at 6:30am to get the subway and make it up to the start line. When Mommy and the kids woke up they went for some Federal Donuts to snack on while they waited for Daddy. They were so excited to see Daddy come by after watching so many other runners. All smiles and Gemma even said "mommy can we got to the next time daddy runs a race...pleeeeaase!"  Likely had more to do with the donuts. Daddy got some hugs and went to finish up while Mommy and the kids went to secure a table at Hawthornes for a post-race feast. They got to see the old hood, play at Palumbo, and see RUFUS. Chip, Mickey, and Sandy came with us for brunch and we got to catch up on how the whole neighborhood misses Alex and Gemma. 

We had a late checkout at Sofitel, so went back and had a family nap. Before we checked out, Alex and Gemma wanted to see where we got married. Almost 10 years later, they arrived at our happy hour. Then we went into the reception area and they just stood and looked around. "Why weren't we here again?"

Hit up Seger on the way out of town, a swing through our whole foods so Gemma could pee, and some more ice cream for the road. Awesome weekend. 

 

  

may 6th - philly weekend

Daddy is running Broad Street this weekend, so we headed down to Philly after Alex's baseball game to have some fun in the city. The kids were excited to "stay in our married hotel" (Sofitel) and LOVED the big plate of cookies that were left in our suite when we checked in...as if they knew us. Mommy and Alex fought over the chocolate chips, so Daddy and Gemma started on the chocolate covered madeleines. 

We had dinner at Sampan (mommy's fav) where Alex and Gemma worked on their chopstick skills. The waiter gave them free ice cream cones. Stopped for a drink at the Sofitel lounge on the way home and they got another plate of cookies. It was amazing that they ever went to bed. It must have helped that Gemma had her own Gemma-sized robe and slippers waiting for her when we got back. She LOVED that. She even packed her slippers to bring home with her:)

 

may 5th - under utilized real estate

Gemma has a huge comfortable bed and she is only just scratching the service of its full potential. Her bear takes up the majority of space which leaves her to get creative about how she wiggles her body into the cracks. Some nights it is hard to find her in her bed. 

 

may 4th - innovative thinking

Alex wanted stadium seating to watch his cartoons so he did not let the lack of height on our couch set him back. He hauled his own chair up on the ottoman for a 'theater experience.'

 

may 3rd - school days

 

may 2nd - tidy yard

Our landscaper finally made it out to remove all of the remaining stumps in our yard and cut down a couple dead trees. The yard looks great with more lawn space but now we are working on growing some more grass. Never ends!  Daddy picked up the kids early today. Gemma was bummed she missed snack time but turned that frown upside down for afternoon gelato. 

 

may 1st - field trip day

God help the teachers!  Alex and Gemma both had a field trip today to Terhune Orchards. They learned all about how to plant seeds and what it is like to live on the farm. Gemma was very excited to tell us she saw the house where the farmers live. Alex was more excited about the bus ride...he got to sit with Ella❤️️, Caleb, and Tyler Neely. They both brought home seeds to plants peas and we have been watering them every night. Very responsible little ones. 

 

april 30th - communiversity

Today was our first Princeton festival experience and it was not a bad turnout. We had been reading that this arts festival is the biggest thing of the year and draws thousands...not sure if it was being blown out of proportion. It was packed. People everywhere. Tons of food, music, booze, and stuff for the kids. The Dreby's joined us and all the kids had a great time. 

Gemma made it all week with no accidents at night time so she got her "umbarella" at the toy store. We had no idea that Jazams sold unbrellas, but she marched right in and picked it out. 

 

april 29th - alex ❤️'s ella

The day that Alex has been waiting for is finally here...Ella's birthday party. He and Gemma went together to celebrate his main squeeze turning 5 years old. We knocked some chores off the list once they got home and were rewarded kindly with ice cream...AND beignets. Gemma couldn't decide which she liked better.  We tried a new place, Dolceria, because Thomas' was mobbed. New place was amazing.