Cuddling with Claire

Claire woke up from a very short morning nap and was still exhausted. She was having a hard time falling back to sleep in her crib, so I gave in and let her cuddle in with me. Most of the time we try to be tough, but sometimes the mom in me gives in. She's only a baby once, so I may as well enjoy moments like these.

Cars, Cousins and Cake

We headed up to Art's parents on Saturday afternoon to spend sometime with his family. Katie, Steve and Sam were in town, so it was nice to have all the cousins together. We also had cake to celebrate Kristine's upcoming birthday. It was perfect way to spend the day.

The one downfall was the fact that the 30 minute trip up to his parents took us closer to 60 minutes both ways...SO MUCH construction. Half the reason we live in the middle of the city is because it never takes us long to get anywhere. I swear that every major freeway within a 5 mile radius of our house is under some sort of construction. It is going to be a very long summer...I might have to start taking side roads in order to keep my sanity. Sorry for the rant (Art is already sick of me complaining about it)!

Mommy, Why Can't I Move?!?!

It Was Fun While it Lasted..

We have taken advantage of the beautiful sunshine and 70 degree temperatures the last few days. Unfortunately, things are supposed to take a turn for the worse tomorrow.

Goodbye Spring. Hello Winter. Again.

Memory Lane

We went on our first road trip last weekend to the lovely city of Willmar, MN where my cousin got married. As most of you know, Art grew up in Willmar. Unfortunately his parents moved to the Twin Cities after he graduated from high school, so I was never able to get the grand tour until now. While he may not admit it, Art was LOVING the trip down memory lane. We drove past the house he grew up in, his cabin, his high school, the golf course where he frequented...we even went past the skating rink where Art was a 'rat rink' (I'm still not sure what that is, but I do know it was documented in the local paper at one point). It was quite endearing to hear him talk about the place he spent the first 18 years of his life.

The Tour Guide Himself

Art's childhood home (he was very disappointed that it has been completely remodeled)

Johnny Jump Up and More...

I put Claire in the Johnny Jump Up today. She was convinced just long enough for me to snap these cute pictures:

In other Claire news, she finally has both arms out of her swaddle. Yes, I know that it may seem weird that at 4.5 months we still have her all wrapped up, but it has really made her sleep better. We took the left arm out a few months ago, and finally took the right arm out last Friday. It hasn't seemed to faze her at all. In another week or so, we will probably pack away the swaddle for good.

Complicated.

We did a Riedel wine tasting event at Solera last night. At the beginning, we were told that the appetizers would be removed from the tables - to ensure that nothing interfered with the aromas of the wine. Also, Georg Riedel (yes, it sounds like Needle) promised to "complicate our lives" by introducing us to the dramatic impact of high-end wine glasses. Seriously; pretty intense wine tasting.

Georg walked us through 3 different types of wine glasses and advised us to the types of wines that work best in each.

Our new favorite wine glasses (the Sommeliers Burgundy Grand Cru):