Weekend Recap: Looking at the Silver linings

 Oh buddy! 

It was kind of a tough one in the DeMoss household this weekend! 

Do you ever have those days where once something just starts to go wrong, it ultimately tailspins into pure and utter chaos? Well let me tell you, this past weekend was one of those moments! 

It all started Friday afternoon while at work. Lately we've been having CRAZY weather in Iowa and Friday was no exception. I was sitting at my desk going through my typical duties when all of a sudden the weather radio we have located at my desk in reception up front started going off. It all started with a severe thunderstorm with the mixture of hail in there. Fun. Hubs checked the radar and all looked well until it wasn't. 

It was wild! 

All of a sudden, little pellets of ice just started falling from the heavens, mixed in with golf ball sized chunks! It was insanely loud as it hit the awning, and all I could do was stand at the window of my office building and watch as my SUV got pelted with hail. Fortunately none of the ice made it through my windshield, but unfortunately like many in my state I will be filing an insurance claim since my roof looks like a golf ball now and piece chipped the paint all the way down to the primer. 

In addition to that I found out I was part of a security breach at my old eye doctor's clinic and had information compromised. It was all underneath my maiden name, so the notice got sent to my parent's home address that had information on the identity protection the clinic was offering. Which is fine, I often have things mistakenly sent to that address often; however, the post office misplaced my letter and I had to jump through some hoops to get information to the identity protection company, so I can have my monitoring for the year they are offering it for. 

When it rains, it pours....am I right? 

Luckily the storm cleared up in time for me to safely drive to pick up Liam at baby school and Hubs went to get stuff for dinner, and I was greeted with a bottle of my favorite wine. The perfect accompaniment to our 'lazy' dinner we had(grilled hot dogs-we've been on a HUGE kick lately!). 

The next morning Liam and I woke up fairly early for his first tumbling class! 

I decided to enroll Liam in a toddler Mommy and Me summer program class at a nearby dance studio to get him out and about and meet more kids. I thought it was a good way to see if it was something that he might be interested in the future, and if anything I was getting him out of the house for a bit of exercise. 

It honestly was a great program, and they had A LOT of little obstacles for the kids to go through, but I think I might have underestimated my toddler's patience. We ended up spending the first 10 minutes of class in the bathroom for a little bit of quiet time before we were able to return to class. Which to be fair, it was new, exciting and had A LOT of fun things to climb on and jump....it was practically sensory overload! 

We get to go back on Saturday, so I'm hoping we do better at class number 2. 

Once class was over, Liam and I headed home to shower up and get ready for Uncle Charlie's birthday party a few towns over. He was celebrating the big 3-0(welcome to the club, bud!) and we got to see a lot of people we hadn't in a very long time. We ended up having to leave earlier than we wanted to due to a very grumpy, tired kiddo, and it was a good thing too since we were heading in for another storm! 

Hubs ended up running to the store real quick to get a few supplies we were dangerously low on, and we decided on a quiet evening filled with frozen pizza and watching The Sandlot(which I hadn't seen before!). I noticed that Liam wasn't eating a lot that evening and usually pizza is his go-to(even for a picky toddler), but didn't think much of it until later on. About 3/4 of the way into the movie our power started to flicker on and off a couple of times before we heard a big BOOM and then.....DARKNESS. 

Great. 

Just Great. 

We gave it a little while before we began to get our puck lights that we use for power outages and checked with my in-laws that live in town to see if they had power. Liam and I ended up heading over to their house while Hubs waited for the power to come back on. While Liam and I got settled in at my in laws, I noticed that he started to feel a little warm, so I decided to take his temperature. Little man had picked up a bug, and luckily I had kept his medicine bag in his diaper bag so was able to get him something to help him sleep through the night.  Needless to say I didn't get a good night's sleep that night and neither did Hubs. 

Our power ended up coming back on at 1 AM and I ended up spending the night at my in-laws with Liam. 

The next morning Liam woke up still having a slight temp. He really wasn't eating, but he was acting a little bit better. I decided to gauge it for a couple of hours and if he still had a slight temp I knew we probably should bring him into Urgent Care. 

Now I know what you are going to say. 

"Why take him into Urgent Care for such a low grade fever?" 

Unfortunately, Liam's had some bad luck with some pretty nasty ear infections and Hubs and I were suspecting that that was the culprit for Liam's elevated temp. The last ear infection he had had had started out exactly out just like this, so figured we should just bite the bullet, take him in and get some antibiotics in him before it got worse. 

Three hours.

We ended up waiting to be seen in urgent care for THREE hours. 

I couldn't check in early, and two of those three hours were spent in the car waiting for our name to be called in. I'm happy to report that Liam does not have an ear infection, but instead he had picked up a virus(tested negative for strep throat).  Needless to say? I was a little bit of a mood after waiting all of that time to find out our suspicions had been for naught...especially since Liam was acting perfectly fine and running around the clinic like a crazy person. 

Liam was hungry and cranky. 

I was hungry and cranky

 

And our grocery store trip was miserable. 

I ended up picking some of those Uncrustable sandwiches for Liam and gave it to him frozen(he likes them this way and probably felt good on his throat) and I picked up some Triple Meat Pizza Rolls and a bottle of wine. I've been trying to make better eating choices and sticking to a 1600 calorie deficit(and drinking less), but after this weekend? Mama needed a bottle of wine. 

Hubs ended up having a bit of trouble himself with a little project he had started whilst Liam and I were away. We ended up getting a brand-new door to help with security and our energy bill. Our house is actually over 100 years old, and we are starting to find little....quirks to it that are making remodels a little bit of a pain. The new door was put in, but still needs to be capped and sealed. 

We ended up finishing the night with a late dinner of smoked ribs and baked beans and I FINALLY got to finish The Sandlot(and we started watching The Mighty Ducks). 

It was a wild, whirl wind of a weekend, and I'm honestly happy this one flew by with how insanely chaotic it was; however, I had to look at the silver linings out of this crazy, stressful weekend. 

1. The damage on my car could have been WAY worse. 

2. I was warned about the security breach and was able to take preventative measures before it got REALLY bad. 

3. Liam was excited and really enjoyed his tumbling class. 

4. Our house was safe, and we had somewhere to wait out until the lights came back on. 

5. Liam was okay and nothing serious was wrong with him. 

At the moment it all felt awful, but now that I'm looking back and reflecting on it all I can do is just shake my head in laugh. 

Fireworks & Lions & Tigers Oh My!

It was a wild and crazy holiday weekend for the DeMoss family! Liam got to spend a lot of grandparent time due to day care being closed the majority of last week and got his first multi-night over stay down at my parents. For those of you who don't know, I'm from a rural town in Southern Iowa, and when I say rural, I mean RURAL. My hometown is one of those that if you blink you'll miss it traveling on a main highway and oftentimes growing up I would have to find the next nearest, biggest town to tell people where its general location was. 

Although I'm totally a city girl now, occasionally I like to go back and spend a good, long day there enjoying the open, country fresh air and see the livestock and of course have our annual Fourth of July celebration at my parents house. I remember growing up it would very much be a huge event my parents would put on. My dad would grill, and my parents would invite our neighbors and closest friends and their families to come and celebrate. It was kind of like a potluck, people would bring side dishes, chips and BYOB, and they'd swim in my parent's ginormous above ground pool(RIP). There would be sparklers, snakes and other 'kid friendly' fireworks and once it got dark the real show would begin. 

At the time fireworks weren't exactly.....legal in Iowa, but somehow the trip to Missouri would always be managed, and my dad would put on a good show. 

Then all of a sudden it stopped for some reason or another. I imagine people got busy, lives changed and people moved away from home until a few years back I pleaded for my mom to bring back the family tradition and I would help her host it(with the help of my best friend) and now here we are. 

I didn't mange to take any photos that day after chasing around a two-year-old and helping set up, but it was an amazing time. My cousin Travis made a brisket and his brother Jeff made pulled pork. There were chips, salads and lots of other goodies to graze on. Just right before the fireworks Hubs made a fire, so the kids could make Smores, and then it was time for Hubs and Ben(my Bestie's husband) to start the show. 

My Bestie and her husband LIVE for the fourth of July, so much so that they have a yearly budget allocated to splurge on fireworks. Needless to say, they did not disappoint this year, and even Liam enjoyed them as we sat up on my parent's upper deck and watched them. After the fireworks were done it was bedtime for bonzos, and we tucked Liam in before heading back outside to help clean up after the party. 

We ended up spending the night at my parents house in my old bedroom(one of them, at least) and woke up fairly early to head back home. The rest of Sunday was spent basically hanging out until later that evening when we went over to a friend's house to grill hamburgers and shoot off more fireworks. I think by that time Liam was done with fireworks and wanted to be in his dad's arms because he was starting to get a little scared of the noise(to tell you the truth I  really don't care for the loud ones). I ended up taking Liam inside and he cuddled on the couch with a blanket to watch Scooby while Hubs and K-Bear finished shooting off fireworks. 

Needless to say, after two jam packed days of running around, we were ALL ready to go to bed. Liam had no trouble going right to sleep, unfortunately our dog was a little too anxious from all the big booms going on outside, so we spent at least a couple of hours snuggling her and letting her know it was going to be okay. That's the only downside about the Fourth of July, each year animals and soldiers who suffer from PTSD have to bear through the festivities. I would like to say people are respectful with shooting off fireworks, but like most situations there's always a few bad apples that shoot off way too late or aren't courteous enough. 

Impromptu Anniversary Weekend Getaway

Hubs and I got the opportunity to celebrate our anniversary weekend a little differently than we have the past couple of years since having Liam. Let me preface this by saying we have an AMAZING support system and very involved grandparents that practically froth at the mouth for the opportunity for an overnight stay and Grandma and Grandpas, but for the longest time 'one night' has been all this mama could emotionally take while he was still young. Now that he is almost two and a half years old, it as time to test the waters and see how he(I would, let's be real) would do for a weekend stay, and why not take a kid free weekend opportunity and jet off towards the lake? 

Grandma and Grandpa picked Liam up from baby school while Hubs and I packed our own bags after we got off work. We dropped off Liam's bag at the house and grabbed a few things that needed to be taken up to the lake, and then we were officially lake bound with a last minute addition to our party of two(we decided last minute to take our dog, Rey, so she wouldn't be home alone for the weekend). 

Honestly, the trip up was very relaxed because we figured we were in no rush to get there. We ended up stopping to get gas at a Flying J gas station and while I pumped gas, Hubs went inside to get our travel staples: BBQ Pringles, Air Heads, Sweet Tarts and a couple bottles of water. We're ALWAYS munching on Pringles whenever we go on road trips, what is your road trip/travel staple snack? 

By the time we entered Minnesota, we stopped at Albert Lea, so I could have a potty break. We had planned on getting McDonald's there, but the line was outrageously long to the point where I really didn't want to wait in line, and we really weren't hungry after gorging ourselves on Pringles and candy, so we decided to just hit the road again and this time it was my turn to drive. We ended up getting to the lake house around 9 o'clock at night after making a quick stop at a local store to get some 'mommy and daddy' drinks for the weekend. After we were all settled inside the house, we changed into some comfy clothes and made sure to turn on all the air conditioners to cool the house down. We ended up having a crazy late dinner of Kraft Macaroni and cheese(since there was nothing open by the time we got in) and sat in the living room watching Napoleon Dynamite on DVD. We ended up tucking in for the night at midnight, me personally barely to keep my eyes open since a little boy had woken me up at 5:30 AM that morning. 

Needless to say, mama was ready to get some much-needed rest and rest she did! 

I always joke that sleeping in for me now is about 8:30 AM. With a toddler, it's practically engrained in them to be early risers(at least in my experience). We managed to crawl out of bed around 9 AM, and I set to make my motor oil(my hubs endearingly calls it) to fuel me through the day.  

We really didn't have a lot planned that day, just take off in the general direction that we always did and see what Minnesota and Wisconsin had to offer. OF COURSE I insisted we had to go to Stockholm since we weren't able to really do so our lat trip up. So after showering, getting ready and making sure Rey was good to go we took out for our little date. 

Seriously, Minnesota and Wisconsin has this natural beauty that I have never seen before. They have these bluffs and meadows that almost feel like they should come out of storybooks instead of real life. I learned that they call these lands "The Driftless" because during the ice age, this area was left unscathed by the glacial drift, which is why you see those lush forests and bluffs in the Southwestern parts of Wisconsin and Minnesota. Who would have thought I would have gotten a geography lesson on vacation!

Hubs really came through, and we found a parking spot in Stockholm to wander around and check out the shops we hadn't been to(or seen) before. The little town with a population of 79(though the sign says 66!) was packed with tourist(us included). We wandered around in the boutiques, mostly window shopping to kill some time before we decided to grab some lunch in town, but first we wanted to check out this new shop(or at least new to us!) called Palette.  

Ugh! How do I even begin to describe how cute this place was!? It's literally a cheese monger's dream! The moment you walk in, it has a very chic atmosphere offering various varieties of wines, preserves and accouterments to take your charcuterie board up to the next level. They even have an open kitchen that literally should be in Better Homes and Gardens that they even host cooking classes for. They even offer outdoor seating that you can take your glass of wine(which they offer for purchase) and serve charcuterie boards. We ended up leaving Palette with two bottles of wine(Decoy: A Cabernet Sauvingnon and Bertrand Cote Des Roses....I'm a sucker for a pretty bottle). 

We dropped off our purchases in the SUV before going into the true reason why we love coming to Stockholm, WI. 

Drum Roll Please.....

That's right! Stockholm Pie and General Store! 

Seriously, this place is *chefs kiss* perfect. It has a very vintage atmosphere and even offers a variety of old-fashioned candies(salt water taffies, peppermint sticks, etc) on the general store side. Hubs and I decided to split a chicken pot pie and salad for our lunch, which we didn't get the chance to take a picture of before we completely demolished it. We also grabbed a couple of old-fashioned sodas and a pie for later(Hub's favorite, blackberry-raspberry). 

Tummies full, we decided to take off back towards the direction we came from to visit Ellsworth Creamery. The place itself was PACKED, so I didn't get the opportunity to take any photos, but we grabbed the much coveted Spotted Cow(if you're from the Midwest, you know), cheese curds and some cheeses/salami for something special I had planned for later that night. After Ellsworth, we headed home to go check on our dog, who had been such a good girl guarding the lake house while we were away. 

The weather was remarkable that weekend, we honestly couldn't have asked for a better weekend(especially since the weather was so hot and humid back home). I ended up grabbing one of my Barefoot Seltzers and took the book I was reading outside to read in one of the comfy lounge chairs we had out there; however, it was getting to the point where we needed to figure out what we were going to be having for dinner. 

We ended up heading over to the local grocery store, Fiesta Foods, to grab a steak and some asparagus for dinner. What better way to spend our anniversary weekend than with a steak dinner? Josh got the grill ready and I prepared our asparagus in the oven. The weather was so beautiful outside, we ended up eating on the patio and enjoying it. After dinner was cleared away, Hubs went out to start a fire for us to enjoy. We ended up popping open one of those bottles of wine to share and just talked by the fire about ideas for our house back home and ideas that would be neat for the lake house. All and all a lovely evening if I do say so myself. 

Remember that surprise that I eluded a little ways up? 

So it was kind of silly, and totally didn't play out how I wanted it to completely in my head, but we decided to have a sort of romantic picnic in the living room while we watched another movie. We laid down blankets and pillows and I brought out my simple cheese board for us to munch on while we watched our movie(Highlander....it did NOT age well).  

After our movie(that we honestly only made it halfway through) we cleaned up the living room and decided to head to bed if we wanted to head out at a decent time.  Which ultimately, we ended up sleeping in really late, oops! 

The next morning, after we finally were able to crawl out of bed, I made more motor oil, and we cut into that yummy pie from Stockholm for breakfast. 

Showered, packed up and ready to go, it was time to head home(of course not without swinging back to the house ONE LAST TIME because we forgot something that we needed back in Iowa). It took the first leg of the trip, stopping at the Trails rest stop(our half point that really isn't a half point) for a potty break for all three of us and some lunch. McDonald's was crazy busy(again) so we opted for a sandwich that honestly wasn't too shabby). 

All and all it was an amazing weekend where Hubs and I just got to enjoy each other's company, but needless to say I was ready to be back home and give my little boy lots of hugs and kisses(he was too judging by how his face lit up when we went to go pick him up).  It was a great way to spend seven years of marriage. 

-xoxo

Midwest Mommie

Weekend Recap

 We are OFFICIALLY in the dog days of summer here in Iowa. It always seems like once Memorial Day hits, Mother Nature decides to crank up the thermostat, and it becomes HOT. Like Hot HOT. I always joke that being a native Iowan(Midwesterner honestly) we're used to only having three nice days a year, and we're used to the extremities of the bitter cold Iowa winters and the melt your skin off and still be drenched in sweat Humid, Hot Iowa Summers. 

The original plan for the weekend was to go over to our friend's house and have a pool party to celebrate his birthday; however, the party ended up needing to be postponed due to a couple of the kiddos catching a summer cold, and we all thought it best to hit the pause button since we'd have littles there. 

We might not have a big pool, but we invested in a little $8 hard plastic pool from our local Family Dollar to get us by until we get our blow up pool in the mail(Thanks MIMI!).  My Sister-in-Law was in town for a Bridal Brunch downtown, so my brother-in-law brought the girls over for a little play date with Liam. Liam absolutely loves his cousins and had a blast playing with them. We had the girls bring their swimsuits so that they could play in the sprinkler and the kiddy pool while Hubs and his brother got to hang out on the patio. I made sure to quickly stock up on ALL the necessities for having an impromptu play date, which included juice boxes, goldfish crackers and OF COURSE bomb pops! 

Bomb Pops are totally a summer staple in my house, honestly any popsicles really!

I swear we probably used half the tube of sunscreen on these kids! But better safe than dealing with ouchie sunburn later on! We use the Babyganics SPF 50 Sun Screen for Liam since he has fairly sensitive skin. 

After their mom was done with her Bridal Brunch, they stayed over for just enough time to chat for a bit and then they had to make their way back home in Newton. By that time it was nap time for little man, so we grabbed our Tiger(his lovie he cannot go to sleep without) and a sippy cup full and milk and laid down for a nap. 

Having the girls over must've worn me out, because if you know me I DO NOT NAP. I told Hubs I was going to lay down for a little bit....which ended up being a couple of hours. Liam himself had had a bit of a late nap(5:30 PM...YIKES) so we knew we were in for a bit of a late night. I needed to make an Aldi run for some basics we were out of and decided to pick up some hamburgers for dinner since we didn't have the time to thaw out any of our meat that was in the deep freeze. While I was out a friend messaged me to see if we were doing anything tonight and if she could come over to hang out for a bit and of course I said yes and asked her if she would like to stay for dinner. 

I ended up picking the premade burgers(I couldn't find any of the 80/20 in regular hamburger), the sesame seed brioche buns(they're honestly the best), lettuce, tomato, pepper jack cheese and a premade pasta salad for Hubs and my friend(I'm a weirdo and don't like vinegar salads...or any cold salads if I'm honest). There might've been a chance that four bottles of Winking Owl Moscato wine fell into the cart as well(who's counting!). 

It ended up being a pretty relaxed evening. We ate outside on our patio while Liam nibbled here and there(yay picky toddler stage) and played in his yard. Liam, my friend and I headed back inside to get him ready for bed and settled in for the evening. We put on Disney+ and chose Finding Dory and made it about three quarters of the way into the movie before Liam was ready to get tucked in for the evening. Once he was taken care of, my friend and I went back out to the deck where Hubs was sitting with one of his friends(K-Bear came over to hang out for a bit) and just shot the bull, which felt nice. We've all known each other since we were 16 years old and have been friends ever since. 

Sunday morning came(a little too early if you ask me, but hey, that's raising a toddler for you) and after I made sure to get a decent amount of caffeine in me, Liam helped me make breakfast for all of us. Liam's really been loving helping us out in the kitchen lately, and I think it's a great skill to have. Chef Liam decided on cheesy scrambled eggs, bacon and toast. I had Liam help me break open the eggs and assisted him in throwing a little bit of milk in with the eggs(makes me extra fluffy). He whisked the eggs up and then put as much cheese as he thought we needed in our eggs. His next task was putting the bread in the toaster and pushing down the button. 

After breakfast was ready, I woke up Hubs and he came out to join us. Mealtimes on Sundays are BIG for us and we really started pushing the importance of it when Liam was old enough to start consuming hard table foods. Life is crazy busy, especially with both parents who work and it'll only get crazier once Liam is in school so why not find the simple joys and enjoy these nice, quiet moments with one another? 

Once breakfast was eaten, cleared away and my kitchen was put back in order, Liam asked me if we could go outside to play for a little bit. I lathered him up in sunscreen and got him into his swim attire so that he could go back out and play in his pool if he would like to. 

As you can see here, I enjoyed the pool myself. By then it was pushing close to 90 degrees F and I needed a way to cool off. Needless to say, outside play time was really short-lived and the two of us went back inside to finish Finding Dory. Liam and I hung out until lunchtime, and we made heart shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and watched Blippi(the bane of my existence). 

Meanwhile, Hubs started seasoning a rack of ribs to smoke on our grill. He's gotten so good a smoking meats and even has been told we should open up a stand and sell(we just do it for fun and for family). To go with our ribs I planned on making my famous baked beans and this cheesy corn noodle casserole that is a staple at ALL Midwestern potlucks. 

We ended up getting invited to go swim at K-Bear's for a little bit, so Liam and I packed up and headed across town to take a dip in the pool. We had a floatation device from last year that Liam still met the weight requirement for so we brought that and his life vest just in case. I grew up around pools and have always been incredibly comfortable around water;however, now that I have Liam I'm always watching him like a hawk to make sure he is safe and he doesn't fall into pools or bodies of water. Water safety is HUGE and he will be attending swim lessons once he is old enough, for now? He gets a life vest or his swim ring. This is the one we use and offers mobility and helps them become more comfortable swimming. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay for too long because someone turned into a grumpy-gru and it was WAY past his nap time. Let me just say this little boy loves to sleep and if you interfere with his nap time he basically because a Gremlin. 

Liam got his much-needed nap, it was time for dinner. To say that I stuffed myself to the gills is an understatement of the year! Let's just say Sundays are my cheat day because there was no way I stayed within 1600 calories for that day! 

We went back outside for a little bit to let Liam play before it got too dark, then finished up our night with a bath and some air popped popcorn accompanied by the "Fish Movie" (Finding Nemo). We have one of those Nugget Comfort couches and I always make what I call a 'snuggle nest' for Liam and me to hang out on while we watch the movie. We actually ended up watching that movie and Wall-E before it was finally bedtime for bugaboos. 

How do you like to spend your weekends? Do you have any special traditions for you and your family on a certain day? 

-xoxo 

Midwest Mommie

Lake City 2021

 Hello Everyone! 

I know I know it's been a HOT minute since I last wrote(honestly it was another vacation post if I do remember correctly). Like everyone, the beginning of 2021 spent me on a tailspin. Between learning the ropes of mothering a toddler(I'm still sobbing knowing my baby is growing up) to everything that was going on in the world pandemic wise, my blog kind of got tossed on the back burner for a hot minute. 

For those of you that are new to the blog, my father-in-law and mother-in-law(Hub's dad/stepmom) bought a fixer upper in Lake City, MN almost two-ish years ago. The house was in rough condition, but with a little TLC and lots of time it's starting to be a great little family getaway place for the family to have weekend getaways to spending a week at the lake. The real estate alone was worth the investment. You can see the lake from the upstairs of the house, and it's about a couple block walk away from the lake. 

Lake City itself is a charming little town, equipped with lots of family friendly restaurants and cute little boutiques to pick up souvenirs. They even have a grocery store in town for the weekend supplies for those who don't want to eat out every night and has loads of listings on the VRBO website to rent your own little lake house for your stay. 

Since we had a long weekend, hubs and I packed up our bags once we got off work and loaded up Liam and ourselves for the long car ride up to Minnesota. For us, it takes about four hours to drive, of course that is with us stopping to stretch our legs at our 'Halfway Point'(totally probably not half way) to stretch our legs and grab some McDonald's for a quick dinner. Liam recommends the 4 piece Chicken Nugget meal with fries and apple slices. We arrived to Lake City around 10 PM and took little man straight to bed to rest up for a fun day full of adventures. 

On Saturday, hubs and I wanted to do something a little different from our usual route when we go up to the lake. So when we woke up and were fully caffeinated(as if there is such a thing), we got Liam ready for the day, got him some breakfast and then took him to Lark Toys, which was about a 20-minute drive from Lake City. 

With a two and a half year old, we really didn't get to look a lot at the displays, but OF COURSE we had to snap a quick picture of Liam with the dinosaur. Then we wandered through the toy shop to check out all the wares that Lark Toys had to offer. This place is literally a child's wildest dream! Toys line the walls of Lark Toys, from market items(puppets, stuffed animals, etc.) to the ones that they make themselves. They even have a little section filled with books for those who would rather their little ones have a book instead of another toy to trip over(totally get it). We probably ended up spending WAY too much there, but Liam was totally enamored by this little pull plane toy and a little wooden tractor toy that was made right there in the toy shop. We even got him a kite to fly if the wind and weather were permitting and a cute book for my little dinosaur lover "MAMASARUS".

Once our treasures were paid for and packaged up, we went towards the attraction that brought us to Lark Toy Store, the carousel. The carousel at lark runs every 30 minutes, and you have to purchase little tokens(tickets) to ride. Ages 3 and under are free with a riding adult, otherwise tickets cost $2.00 per person to ride. We had about a twenty minute or so wait until it was our turn to ride the carousel, so what better way to bide our time than to share a scoop of Zanzibar Chocolate Ice Cream from The Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream. For starters, WOW. Like, there are almost no words to describe how yummy this ice cream was. It was rich, thick and not like store bought ice creams(sorry Blue Bunny, you're coming in last place here) that you can get at your local grocery store. Needless to say, I think hubs had more of the chocolate ice cream than Liam and myself, but it was tasty nonetheless. 

FINALLY, twenty minutes were up and Liam was almost plowing through kids to get to the carousel. After much deliberation, we decided to ride the dragon for our ride. I think it's safe to say....he had a BLAST! 

After the carousel ride was over, it was time to head back to the lake house so that we could get ready to ride Great Grandpa's boat. We packed up an uncrushable, some fruit bars and of course plenty of water(and adult beverages) before making our way down to the marina. Let me take a moment to really reiterate how important it is to have a properly fitting United States' Coast Guard approved life preserver for your little ones. Accidents can happen within a blink of an eye, and it is required for all children to be wearing their life vest at all times. Before even stepping on the dock, we made sure that Liam's life best was properly secured to his body because accidents can happen on the dock too and with boats coming in and out of the marina, it's always important to practice proper safety procedures to make sure that everyone is safe. 

With the boat loaded up, we made our way out of the marina and onto Lake Pepin for a nice little boat ride towards one of Wisconsin's finest restaurants along the lake, The Pickle Factory. Cheese curds were a MUST! Being on the Wisconsin side of the lake, cheese curds are practically a staple on every restaurant menu, whether they be fresh or fried. I personally love to dip my fried cheese curds in ketchup(yeah I know I'm weird) and ranch is a go to for hubs. Liam prefers them plain, but maybe I can get him on the ketchup side. ;) 

What do you love to dip your cheese curds in? 

For our main courses, Hubs got a mushroom Swiss burger with their homemade potato chips and I got a pulled pork sandwich that I shared with Liam. Tummies happy and full we made our way back to the boat with a grumpy toddler who had too much fun for that day.  Luckily his Papa was able to rock him on the boat a little bit to get a little cat nap in; however, it was short-lived once we got back to the lake house. After a bit of relaxing(and a failed attempt at a nap, we all decided to spend a little time outdoors on Papa's new patio. 

Since we had eaten a bit of a late lunch, we decided to just order a pizza to munch on while we all sat around the fire pit and watched Liam run around in the yard a bit. Luckily, since he had skipped a nap, he was able to lay down really easily for an early bedtime so that husband and I could have a little alone time before the two of us tucked in for the evening. 

Now for the not so much fun part of vacation that we encountered. At 2 AM we woke up to a crying kid and his pack N play covered in vomit. We're not really sure what had happened that night, whether it be too much dairy(he honestly had more than he normally does), a strange place, a tummy bug...who knows! All I know is mom-mode fully kicked in and dad-mode did as well. Hubs took care of cleaning up the pack N play and I took care of getting Liam out of his dirty PJ's and washing him up as much as we could. Unfortunately, he did puke again, but after tummy was settled and another new set of PJ's we cuddled in the bed Hubs and I were watching and spent the next couple of hours watching Disney Plus shows until Liam and I finally fell asleep. 

The next morning? Perfectly fine! Just like a fairy godmother had settled Liam's tummy, my two-year-old was acting as right as rain; however, mama wasn't convinced and put him on the BRAT diet for the rest of the day(at least until the morning). After a rough night, and a little bit of rest, Hubs and I decided to jet off for a couple of hours for a 'day date'. We typically start off in Red Wing, MN to wander around and explore the local shops, but this time we needed to run to Target to grab a few basics before we could go back to the lake house....plus a double shot espresso was kind of a must after a night like we had. Supplies replenished, coffee's in hand and a full tank of gas Hubs and I decided to just pick a general direction with no real plan and just wander around Wisconsin/Minnesota. We had sort of planned on stopping in Stockholm for lunch, but after having a BIG breakfast(and the restaurant being busy) we decided to just keep driving(oh well, next time!). 

We managed to get ourselves lost in the beautiful hills of Wisconsin, happy to have a full tank of gas and happy just to talk and relax together. Hubs and I absolutely love the Wisconsin countryside and have a pipe dream of moving up there ourselves in a little cabin surrounded by farmland. Who knows, maybe we'll retire up there some day! 

When we finally made it back to Lake City, a lot of the shops were closed due to them coming back from the pandemic, but my favorite shop(Treats & Treasures) to visit there was still open even at four in the afternoon. They have goodies for literally everyone! From t-shirts to local honeys, it's a one-stop shop that everyone will enjoy. I snagged myself a cute little boutique hoodie, a Lake City crew neck, and a new Pepie Monster(Lake City's version of Nessie) t-shirt for Liam. Soon it was time to wander back to the lake house, Hubs needed to help his dad with the grill and I had a load of puke laundry to do at the local laundromat(fun). 

We decided to head back the next day about mid-morning after grabbing some breakfast at Perkins in Red Wing. The gathering up things and shoving them in suitcases before heading home is always my least favorite part. I'm always worried about leaving something or losing something important. Luckily, Hubs has an eagle eye for that sort of thing and ensured that I had packed up everything that needed to come home with us. 

We were able to grab just a little more outdoor sunshine before being crammed in the car for the next four-ish hours. We both decided to not have to stop unless we had to(we ended up stopping for potty breaks twice) and pack up snacks and a PBJ Uncrustable for Liam to eat on the drive back home. Car loaded up, another cup of coffee and snacks all packed away we said our goodbyes to the lake house and are already planning for another trip up in June during our anniversary weekend(just Hubs and I) and then again during Labor Day Weekend with the family. 

How did you spend your Memorial Day Weekend? Did you go on any trips or did you just spend it at home with friends/family? 

-xoxo Midwest Mommie.

Our First Family Vacation

Hey All!

The first summer of our marriage Josh and I went up to Lake City, MN with my in laws and absolutely fell in love with the little town on Lake Pepin on the Minnesota side. This darling little town is a total tourist trap; however, it has its charm from the cute little antique stores all the way down to their local grocery store Fiesta foods. Before they had always rented out vacation houses for us all to stay in that were super cute and just within walking distance from the lake, but last year my father in law announced that  he had purchased his very own lake house there! 

It totally is a fixer upper, but with a lot of tender love and care the place has turned into a quaint little home away from home for us all to use as we please for a little R & R or a weekend getaway.  This picture was taken in one of the upstairs bedrooms facing the lake and as you can see we're literally a couple of blocks away from the lake, so TOTALLY within walking distance!

 The drive up itself wasn't HORRIBLE with a dog and a toddler in tow. The originally plan had been to wait until sometime Thursday to make the four hour drive up to the lake house, but after talking it out it made more sense to try and go when Liam was sleeping for the night instead of trying to coordinate nap time and pray that he would stay content and napping the whole way up. We ended up leaving shortly after 6 PM and made it until about one hour left of our journey to when Liam was starting to get a little anxious(which I think for a 17 month old he did REALLY well!). We arrived at the lake house around 10 PM/11 PM and tried to wrangle the grumpy toddler the best we could to go to sleep, but of course after being cooped up in the car for so long he had been full of energy. Eventually we were able to lay down our weary heads and go to sleep, ready for the day's adventures. 

Thursday was pretty relaxed and honestly I don't remember much of that day's events.  We went to Ellsworth, WI to visit Ellsworth Creamery(A must always when we are up there) and bought some fresh cheese curds, fried cheese curds, Spotted Cow(a Wisconsin delicacy) and a Strawberry Rhubarb wine made from a local winery. Liam even got to share an ice cream cone with Grandpa Phil(They have the best ice cream!) and see some dairy cows getting ready to take a trip in the trailer. 

Afterwards we drove to Red Wing to pick up some supplies at Menards and Walmart and then made our way back to the Lake House to relax. Josh got to show his dad how good he had gotten at grilling and I made my famous baked beans as a side. After clean up from dinner we all just hung out in the living room and enjoyed each other's company. 

Friday was an amazing day! Josh and I got to sneak out a little bit and be baby free for a few hours. We hopped in the Ford Escape and just took off towards Red Wing for a little mommy and daddy adventure. We just kind of poked around through the town of Red Wing. With the Covid-19 out break a lot of things were still closed, but the places that were open requested for us to wear masks and obviously maintain social distance guidelines while we were in the stores. We ended up finding a cute little baby boutique and picked Liam up a tool box pop up book. We didn't stay in Red Wing too terribly long and decided to just get in the car and drive. We ended up just driving and enjoying the scenery with no true plan or itinerary in mind. Eventually we knew that we would need to stop for lunch somewhere, but decided that if we saw a place that looked interesting we would stop there. 

Josh and I decided on a road that would take us around the lake and eventually we found ourselves in the little town of Stockholm, Wisconsin. They had this darling little eatery called Stockholm Pie and General Store and found out that they sold sandwiches and other lunch items there as well. 

After poking around in the general store and buying some dark chocolate salted caramel truffles, we decided that we would stop there for lunch and the hubby had a roast beef sandwich and I had one of their chicken pot pies. To wash down our tasty finds we got a couple of Jones sodas from the cooler and found a little, two seater table by the window. Let me tell you this, the chicken pot pie was TO DIE FOR. It was so savory and even writing about it right now makes me want to make the four our trip up there just to load up a cooler full of them. 

After lunch Josh and I grabbed a 10" blackberry/raspberry pie to bring back to the in laws as a thank you for watching little man. Which as you can tell in the pictures he was having a blast going on his own little adventure with grandma and grandpa. 

Once the pie was bought and carefully transported back to the vehicle we took off again down the road. We essentially just made a huge loop around the lake and finally we were back to the lake house early afternoon after checking out a couple local shops as well.

 As a thank you we made some grilled chicken thighs/ hind quarters, cheddar broccoli rice and some baked broccoli for dinner. We even had some additional guests! Great Grandma and Grandpa had come up to the lake and even had taken Liam on his first boat ride! 

After dinner we all enjoyed the pie, vowing that we would have to make a special trip back to Stockholm to go get more if they were open, being as it would be the Fourth of July. 

On the Fourth of July, Josh and his dad went on a father son day while grandma and I hung out with little man. The morning was pretty relaxed and after morning nap we decided to go hit the beach to take Liam swimming. He absolutely loved the water and I had him in this cute little baby raft thing I had bought from amazon to help keep him safe and secure in the water. He kept singing 'row row' from the nursery rhyme. 

After about a hour of swimming we went back home for a snack and an afternoon nap. By that time Josh had returned to the lake house and was getting ready to BBQ some ribs and I needed to help with the sides. 

Josh and I love cooking and we especially love cooking for our families and people that we love. He smoked two racks of ribs on the grill and I made corn bread, my baked beans(I know again, but they're so good!) and my famous baked 

macaroni and cheese. To say everybody left with happy tummies is an understatement! And for desert we had some more of those awesome Stockholm pies topped with vanilla ice cream. After all you cannot have a Fourth of July celebration without pie! That's simply un-American! 

After dinner was cleaned up we headed towards the marina to  go watch the fireworks on great grandma and grandpa's boat. We had a little time to kill so we decided to take a little boat ride around the lake until we found an amazing watch that was perfect to watch the fireworks. 

It was an amazing fireworks show with a grand finale like nothing I had ever seen before. Allegedly it had been very last minute thrown together due to them not sure if it would still be going on or not due to Covid-19. Needless to say I was impressed, after all who doesn't like a FREE fireworks show? 

Sunday was return home day and after sweeping the house to make sure we didn't leave anything behind we packed up our little caravan and said our farewells. 

We had an amazing weekend, but one thing was for certain it is always an amazing feeling to return home. I cannot wait to go back up to the lake house and create more memories with my little family. 

I hope you all had an amazing Fourth of July and got to create memories even though this year we've all been trying to be safe and practice social distancing. 

-xoxo

Midwest Mommie

I have returned!

Hey All! 

It's me again letting you know that I am back and really wanting to dedicate some time to blogging again. It seriously feels like time has flown and I literally have no idea what happened between the time that I posted last to this moment. There is SO much that has happened between then and now and I honestly have no idea where to start with this little life update. 

For starters I now have a 17 month old and have no idea where time has gone with my little man. It seems like yesterday I was holding a baby and now I have a toddler with an attitude of a teenager. He has so much personality and it's been amazing watching him learn and grow. He's officially mastered the art of walking and now wants to run everywhere, especially into the bathroom to steal mommy's make up brushes and play with the toilet paper holder even though he knows he's not supposed to. 

He absolutely adores our dog, which we call his puppy, and is often caught giving her love and snuggles(which she totally soaks up). He even has been known to chase around the two cats that we have and calls out to them 'Ki Ki'(Kitty) before he catches our big, fluffy, orange one and cuddles him. The cats are still uncertain over the tiny human that has been living with us for the past 17 months and our more recluse one often hides in the basement 99% of the time when Liam's free roaming our home. 

This year a coworker of mine gave us their old baby pool which was a pretty decent size for Liam to play in. He absolutely loves playing in the water and just being outside in general. We call him our little fish and I have a feeling he's going to enjoy swimming as much as his daddy and I did when we were little. 

Other than that I feel as if not really much has happened lately other than watching him grow and going through the motions of life. 

I guess the only big change that happened was that I did make a career change in late October for a job that would provide better work/life balance and had a better pay scale for my qualifications. I absolutely love my new job and the agency has been amazing to work for, especially once Covid-19 hit and caused a bunch of shut downs in my state. 

They've been very kind, cooperative and most important an amazing agency that has taken care of their staff members and listened to the concerns of their employees. Honestly, I believe I have found my forever job now and will probably retire from this place now that I have found a career that fits all of my life goals. 

Anyway, I just wanted to hop on here and give you a little life update and tell you that I am officially back for good. I have so much to write about including our first family vacation we had last week AND a new update on something I have introduced to Liam(Y'all are going to think I'm crazy!) 

-xoxo

Midwest Mommie