"Paci Trucks"

Since the day Lucas came home from the hospital he loved his paci. When he was almost two, we limited it to just nap and night time and then soon came the day to take away the paci for good...  a struggle most older parents I talk to seem to remember.

I went back and forth on the best way to do this. Lucas had become very interested in babies and I figured I could somehow incorporate that. So one morning when Lucas woke up, I told him it was time to collect all of his pacis. I told him there were other babies who needed them now. He never questioned me, collected all his pacis and helped me stuff them in to an envelope. Later that day, we walked down the street and together we dropped our oddly shaped envelope in the mailbox. To this day, any time we pass a mail truck, Lucas refers to it as the "paci truck."

Pool Day!

Wednesday is pool day. It is a weekly tradition that Jeannie and I started in order to get our little ones out of the house. A few months ago when we first started going to the pool, Lucas was uncharacteristically timid. While I want Lucas to know his limits in the water, I didn't want him being afraid.

He's come a long ways over the past few months. He now holds his breath, closes his eyes and jumps off the side into my arms. He splashes down the slide without being afraid of getting his face wet at the bottom. And his best buddy Callie even taught him how to "float" on his back... with a little help from mama :)

Pool day has easily turned into one of Lucas' favorite activities of the week. Here are some pics!

Callie's face says it all... "Oh no, what is Lucas getting in to this time?"

After pool snacks!

Two tired little fish!

We love chipotle lunch dates after swimming!

Off to lunch, hand in hand. <3

Burnside Farms Festival of Tulips

Thanks to our friend Jeannie, I have a new favorite northern Virginia spot... Burnside Farms! Tulip season at Burnside Farms, which only lasts 3-4 weeks, is known as Holland in Haymarket. The field is full of over 150,000 tulips and is breathingly beautiful!

Jeannie and I took the kiddos for an afternoon at the farm, where they got to visit the pigs, goats, and new baby chicks! As a typical boy, Lucas helped to "pick" tulips leaving us with a bunch of petal-less stems :)

Few things in life could make my heart happier than watching Lucas and Callie run freely through the tulip fields!

Here are some pics from our day-

A Day at the Cherry Blossoms!

My favorite time of the year in DC is cherry blossom season. The first year we lived here, Lucas was about 6 months old and we happened to stumble upon the cherry blossoms in bloom by chance. Lucas and I had taken a day trip to the national mall and it just so happened to be the week of the cherry blossoms... they were breathtakingly beautiful and since then I've been hooked!

This year, Jeannie and I packed a picnic lunch and ventured into DC for the day with our 3 kiddos. After an interesting adventure on the metro with 2 strollers during rush hour, along with a few broken elevators, we eventually made it to DC in one piece. Our first stop was the carousel. Lucas and Callie loved getting to ride the horses! After that, we ventured towards the Jefferson Memorial. We found a shaded spot under some of the cherry blossoms and set up our picnic lunch. Lucas and Callie danced to the live music and chased each other in circles while sweet baby Taylor napped on our picnic blanket. After a full day in DC, it was naptime for the kiddos and we started the trip back towards the metro. All the kids fell asleep within the first five minutes of our walk back, so Jeannie and I took advantage of this quiet time and made a detour to the White House!

It was a picture perfect day... can't wait to go back again next year!