We're back from The Land of Lincoln (aka: IL, for those of you that don't know state nicknames) ;) The trip down and back were marginally better than the trip to Madison in July. Aubrey screamed a little less and slept a little more, which allowed me to keep my sanity. You get pretty good at tuning out the high-pitched, maximum-volume scream of a 5 month old. Aidan was, again, very well behaved. Sesame Street dvd's are the key to a happy 2 year old.

Our visit to Nana and Poppa's house was jam-packed with fun. We spent Friday in the pool, relaxing, and getting to know Baby Reese. She is a "fiery little redhead" as Poppa likes to say. I think Kali is going to have her hands full with that one. I can't wait to hear the stories when she's a teenager! Aubrey has also been nicknamed. She is now known as "Smiley". We were fortunate enough to see lots of friends and family on this trip, and every single person commented on what a happy baby Aubrey is. The word everyone used was "content". Aubrey is a content little baby (minus car rides) and I am thankful every day that she is not high-strung. I already have a whirlwind of a 2-year-old to deal with, I'm not sure my poor brain could take a baby that screamed and demanded attention 24/7.

Other highlights from the trip included the riding lawnmower, swimming, and Kali's baby shower. Aidan would have stayed on the riding lawnmower night and day if we had let him. We had to pry him off of it by saying it needed to take naps and go to sleep at night because it was so tired from all of the rides it had been giving him. He accepted that and let it take "naps", but when he thought it had "slept" enough, he wanted to get right back on it. My parents probably went through at least two tanks of gas giving Aidan rides around the yard and up and down the street. Poppa also bought Aidan a life jacket so he could show off his new swimming skills. Unfortunately, Aidan's attention span in the pool can be measured in nanoseconds. Aidan would swim for a little bit, then get out, and you guessed it, play on the lawnmower. Aubrey was a much better companion in the pool. She was happy to just sit in the little car and float around the pool. (and chew on its steering wheel)

Kali's baby shower was a success, which Aidan will attest to. He ate at least 10 brownies. I am not exaggerating. I gave him one, and he "snuck" the rest. I put that in quotations because my mom's friends were watching him do it and they thought it was hilarious. Thankfully he did not throw up or have a sore tummy. Kali and Reese got lots of great presents and now have a well-stocked library of fantastic books to read as Reese gets older.

We'll see Nana and Poppa again in a few weeks when they come up to stay with the kids while Kyle and I attend a wedding in northern Wisconsin. I have a busy week planned for us, as it's my last week of stay-at-home-mommyhood. Back to work on Monday. :( We got our new fridge today, I've got a massage and facial tomorrow, we have a play date on Thursday at the splash park, and I think we'll hit the zoo on Friday, not to mention the MN State Fair begins this week. When am I going to find time to gorge myself on all that delicious fair food? Maybe Saturday or Sunday?