Good morning/afternoon/evening, whenever you may be reading this! I am currently in the nursery with Quinn, trying to get her to nap in her crib. Right now, she only does contact naps in my carrier, so I’m hoping we can get her used to some crib naps before starting daycare. She’s happily just looking around at the moment, mainly fascinated by the cascading vines and flowers on the wallpaper, but I hope she dozes soon because I know she’s tired. And I’ve learned it can be very difficult to get her happy again when she’s overtired.

Anyway! Week 9 was a jam-packed, but wonderful one.

 It started out Saturday July 2nd with an early morning walk with the whole gang.

 (Not pictured – a sleepy Quinn in the stroller).

That morning, I had my first ever outing away from Quinn. It was hard to leave her for even a couple hours, but lemme tell ya- my hair was begging me to give it life again.

I went to get some blonde put in while DJ stayed with her and gave her a bottle. I called him on the way home, and he said all was going really well, so I even stopped to grab some coffee.

It felt like such a huge thing we had accomplished!! The rest of the day was just getting the house in order, doing chores, etc. We fit in some Yellowstone in the evening too.

Sunday July 3rd, we went for a very early morning walk before driving to a place called Lakeside in Danbury Township, OH for the day.

 DJ’s side of the family has a big reunion every year on the weekend of the Fourth. It was hard for us to make it while living in CA and TX, so we were excited to be able to go this year. We decided since we’re still working on Quinn’s sleeping, we would just go for the day of the 3rd rather than stay overnight. Both Moose and Quinn did very well on the way there. We laughed at Moose who sat like a human most of the trip, eyes straight ahead on the road 🤣.

 We only needed to stop to do one diaper change/feed break.

 The face of a happily fed gal with a fresh diaper!

When we arrived, we met up with Gigi, Gordie, Laura and Ricky and their daughter (our niece, Lily) before they headed back to Chicago. So good to see them all!! They’ll be back in a couple weeks, and I cannot wait!

Gigi and Quinnie!

 First Fourth of July family pic!

I asked Deej to take a picture of just Quinn with her outfit. This is how the pics turned out 😅. Sweet pea was not having it!

She was happy to get a picture while on her play mat though!

I just kept her in my carrier the whole day, besides when others were holding her. She met her Aunt Amy for the first time too! I couldn’t wait to see Amy, I miss living close to her.

For lunch, we had some incredible barbecue. Can we talk about what a CRIME it was that I lived in Austin and didn’t eat the meat when going to BBQ spots?! I missed out on some good smoked brisket 😭.

After visiting with family, the delicious lunch, and feeding/changing Quinn, we had a little downtime. DJ and I took Moose for a walk and enjoyed beautiful Lakeside.

Lakeside is situated right on Lake Erie. It feels like a step back in time when we go there- it’s a little oasis of cottages, old fashioned donut and ice cream shoppes, mini golf, a gorgeous chapel and the most peaceful dock. This place is special to me and DJ as it’s the first place we said we loved each other. DJ spent many summers here growing up, and I’m so glad he shared this special place with me too!

It was a great day with family and being in a place we love!

The next day, the actual Fourth of July, we went to another place we both frequented growing up- Szalays Sweet Corn Farm & Market! Side note- The Fourth of July also marked day two (in a row!) of me putting on regular clothes and makeup. Something that never happens lately!

Anyway, we just love this place. Szalays is known for probably three things- their BIG wooden swing, amazing corn on the cob and a great corn maze at Halloween.

It was scorching out this day, so we decided to just get some corn and then hit the road. We had a fan on Quinn, but still didn’t want to overdo it.

 We got our corn!! Moose laid happily next to us even with people walking by- we were so proud of him.

 That afternoon I read Three Little Kittens to Quinn. I read one book a day to her. I used to change it up every day, but I started doing one book through the whole week, and it seems the familiarity holds her attention better? Or I could be just reading into that ;).

 

July 5th was back to the usual! I just love ‘the usual’ which includes spending all the time and cuddles with my girl.

 Her cuddles are the bestttt.

 Lately on our walks, Quinn has started getting fussy at the turn around point. I’ve cut them short due to this, especially with Moose. If it’s just her and I, then I’ll put her in my carrier to finish out the walk.

 

Oh also!! Apparently there have been a number of black bear sightings around here. Gigi’s neighbor even saw one in their yard. So I’m definitely on high alert out on our walks.

 The smiles get more and more frequent every day! I’m obsessed.

 July 6th marked Quinn’s two month birthday 💕💕💕.

 The next day, July 7th, Gigi stopped by to hangout with me and Quinn while someone worked on our treadmill which broke that week. Getting it fixed is VERY important as it is one of my main ways to soothe her- I put her in my carrier, put the treadmill on a low speed, and she’ll conk out in a matter of minutes.

Since Moose has been a bit of a booger lately with having kennel cough and not being able to get his energy out as much at daycare, my mom sent him a care package (which indirectly is very much a care package for me). Thankfully he was acting totally fine and the cough went away, but he still couldn’t be around other dogs for two solid weeks.

July 8th Gigi helped me out big time by watching Quinn while I went to get a dress altered for a wedding I’m in in August.

That afternoon I discovered Quinn’s new favorite hobby- watching dancing fruit! We only play this for about 10 minutes a day – but my goodness she could probably watch this all day if we let her. And I truly think she intentionally dances along with them to the rhythm too! She also gets a real kick out of DJ and I dancing along to it!

 That evening DJ stayed back with Quinn and Moose while I snuck in my first trail run this summer and since having her! I only went two miles, but it felt amazing.

 And that brings us to the end of week 9!

Update on the nap- did not happen in the crib. We tried! She just was not having it. Maybe better success next time. For now, I’m soaking up the naps in my carrier. I know I’ll miss them.

Question for you:

– Do you have any summer traditions?

<3,

Mackenzie