Down by the River

One of the fun adventures we went on this summer was a trip to the river with the girls and the Erickson clan. A few days after we returned home from our anniversary cruise getaway, we packed up and headed out to Cottonwood Cove. Being a first-timer, I didn’t know what to expect, but just hoped the girls would have fun and enjoy a new adventure.

Little did I know, it would be one of the most enjoyable and fun trips we’ve had so far with all 3 girls!

Katy & Steve found the perfect cove for us to enjoy for the weekend and the weather could not have been more perfect!

Love this view from the trailer

Headed out for a day on the water!

Enjoying our little cove

The girls especially loved all the water toys!

 

Meanwhile, this little love was perfectly content sitting in the front of the boat telling Steve to drive fast!

The grown ups had fun too! We went tubing, wake boarding, cliff jumping, sea-dooing and enjoyed crusing the lake!

Extra special thank you to Steve, Katy and the Stahovich Family for making this trip possible :)

We had such a great time at the river and hope we can make it back there soon!

Hello School

I can’t believe how quickly this summer flew by! Seems like just yesterday Jayden had her end-of-the-year school party and now she’s already back in school!

This year I felt much more prepared for her first day back! We went shopping about a week before and I let her pick out all her back-to-school clothes … which was interesting! Looking back at some of my childhood pictures, I now know why some (or most) of my outfits didn’t match :)

Although I must say, she did an excellent job at coordinating her clothes on her first day!

Volcanologist :)

Our little scientist ... she changes her mind between wanting to be an astronaut, a doctor and a volcanologist!

And of course the first person she sees when she walked in the door was her special friend Nate! You would have thought they hadn’t seen each other in weeks. Their little friendship is so special.

(I love how he is holding her hand <3)

Jayden and her teacher, Miss Emily!

I can’t believe how quickly our little Jayden is growing up. I’m making an effort to spend as much fun quality time with her before she goes to Kindergarten next year. Before I know it, she will be in school 5 days a week and no free days to play with me during the week.

The days are long but the years are short!! And if it’s up to me, we are going to make the most of them and go on as many adventures as we can!

<3 <3 <3

A Month Ago...

Exactly a month ago, Jonathan and I were able to get away on a much needed vacation! We try to have some time together each anniversary, and this year was no different. We headed out to New Orleans for a cruise down to Mexico! And we had such a blast!! 

Flight to New Orleans!

Having fun on the flight! 

The Sudoku King! 

Bourbon Street!

The next day was our first sailing day! So we headed to the docks and boarded our ship! 

We were so excited!!

Our new favorite after-dinner drink...

the Chocolatini!

Hello Cozumel! 

Playing on the inflatables! So much fun!

He's such a hottie!

and yes, one of his favorite things to do is play around! It's always an adventure with this guy!

Water slide time!

Relaxing on our anniversary!

Bye bye Cozumel!

Anniversary dinner! Couldn't get a better view and sunset if we tried! 

...and to top it off, some of the servers sang us a happy anniversary song! 

It's been a sweet 7 years! <3

The next morning we were in the Yucatan! Off to another adventure!

Loved all the cute elephants on the chairs by the pool! 

Dune buggy rides anyone?!

Our new friends riding with us for the day!

Exploring Mexico!

Salt baths - and yes, the water is pink!

Driving by the ruins!

After driving all through the town, seeing the salt baths, the flamingos & the local ruins, we went to a private beach club and swam at the beach. It was a great way to cool off. Luckily it was a little overcast, but it was still hot!

You can't go to Mexico and not take $1 shots of Tequila! 

Salud!

Adios Progreso!

Our last day on the ship, we lounged all day! We hung out at the pool, took naps and read. It was the perfect way to end our cruise! 

And it didn't hurt that we had such a beautiful sunset the last night! 

Once we returned to New Orleans, we had a few hours before we had to go back to the airport. So we decided to check out a few popular yummy restaurants before heading home. We heard we had to try the beignets at Cafe du Monde and the oysters at Acme Oyster House! 

The beignets were delish - warm and fresh out of the oven!

Now I'm not a fan of oysters, but I would gladly go back to Acme ANYDAY! Best charbroiled oysters ever! Such a great way to end our trip.

Special thanks to our amazing family for watching our girls and making our trip possible! <3