Gone Fishin'

Yesterday we bought Mackenzie a fishing pole, and taught her how to use it in our backyard. After about 15 minutes, she proved her casting worthy-ness, so we decided to go to a real lake and test her out. Her patience. . .her endurance. . .her ability to cast without hooking her mother. . .

Alas, she didn't catch any fish, but I caught some amazing photos!

CHICAGO!

We took a recent trip to Chicago to celebrate Mackenzie's fourth birthday. This was our first family vacation since she was born, and it was long overdue! We took over 100 photos, but will just share the hightlights of the trip here. We all had the best time, and can't wait to go back. The only downfall of the entire trip was the TRAFFIC. It was horrific. . .at all times of the day!!

This was the view on the way to Shedd Aquarium. Lake Michigan was beautiful!!!
Mackenzie could not contain her excitement about the aquarium. We stood at this tank for about 10 minutes before we could convince her to move on to something new. . .

This fish was patient enough to let me take his photo. . .flash photography was not allowed. . .so, my ISO had to be set to 1600!
Next stop, the Field Museum. Our main goal was to see Sue!
Here's Sue! Her head is just a replica b/c the real thing weighs 600 lbs! Her head was on display on a different level in the museum. Mackenzie kept calling her Rexie, like in the movie, "Night at the Museum."

Mack and mama on the drums. I think we found our new calling!
Since we skipped her nap, and went to two major attractions, our newly four year old was exhausted! She asked Matt to carry her. To her delight, he put her on his shoulders!
For her birthday dinner, we took her to the Rainforest Cafe. She LOVED it. What's not to love??

Her birthday cake consisted of FOUR brownies with a caramel filling, icecream, whipped cream, and a sparkler! YUM!!!
Our last morning we spent in the hotel pool, and then headed off to IKEA. Matt and Mackenzie had the best time swimming!
Like father. . . Like daughter. . .what NUTS!

Mackenzie's Room is FINISHED. . .almost!

Mackenzie's room has been done for a bit, we just wanted to add curtains, a ceiling fan and some art. Originally we were going to take some cool photos and hang them on the wall. . .and we still plan on doing so, but for now we hung some painted canvases up instead.

We just got the lamp and curtains at IKEA. We LOVE IKEA, and think there needs to be one here locally!!!
The frame surrounds magnetic paint. . .we can stick photos, art, etc. to her walls using magnets. I don't remember which magazine I saw it in, but I LOVED it! It took an entire quart of magnetic paint to do that area!

The canvases only cost $3 each. . .the paint we had on hand. . .I am loving $9 art!!! I should have used bigger canvases. . .but at least now I know to get bigger frames when we put photos in her room.

We got the snake on our recent trip to Chicago. Mackenzie LOVES the snake. Her name is Freckles.
The paper lanterns are compliments of our friends Mika and Eric. They used them at their wedding reception, and the lanterns just happened to be pink and white. . .they match perfectly!!!
Mackenzie picked out her own ceiling fan. It is pink with flowers on it. The butterfly hanging from the middle is compliments of Mackenzie's Grandma. . .aka, BaBa.

My Child ate SPAGHETTI!

It's TRUE. On Tuesday we went over to Matt's parents house to celebrate Mother's Day. Matt's mom made the most delicious spaghetti for dinner. As I was about to put one of the last few bites into my mouth, my pasta-despising daughter asked for a bite. Give her some you say. . .well, the last two attempts at having her try pasta of any sort ended up with her vomiting everything she had already eaten onto the floor. We think she was having texture issues. So, as you can see, I was a wee bit worried about the possible results. Turns out she LIKED the spaghetti! In fact, Grammie gave her a little dish of her own spaghetti. Mackenzie actually ate a lot of it. Then had a bit of dessert, and then asked for MORE spaghetti. Matt and I were in total shock. Still are to be quite honest. Will this child ever cease to amaze us???!!!

Playing catchup. . .again. . .

We have been busy lately. In a good way, but definitely busy! Let me catch you up on the last week of our lives. . .

Last week Mackenzie had a dress-up day at school, she was supposed to dress up like a cowgirl. I think she looked very cowgirlesque!



Then last Sunday, she caught the dreaded stomach virus. It was nasty. She even got to stay home from school on Monday just to be sure she was feeling better again. Look at how pathetic she looks. . .




After laying around for a while, Mackenzie decided she felt better and needed a break - as well as some fresh air. So, I thought, let's go outside and blow bubbles. . .


OR, let's spill the bubbles on the ground and play with them!

A final photo of the resulting mess. It's a shame too b/c that solution made some great bubbles!

Mackenzie was proud of her accomplishment and she called me down to take some photos of her handprints. . .I was all to obliging!

Last but not least. . .Mackenzie was tuckered out from her 10 minute excusion outside, and decided to rest a bit.

After a quick break, she wanted me to take photos of her inside. Really? Intentionally wanting me to take photos? Hmmmmm. . .I love the results. She was such a little ham! Maybe next time she will let me brush her hair!!!!






On Tuesday I caught the dreaded stomach bug. I went to work, and all was fine. . .by the time I got home, I knew Mackenzie had shared her germs! Today I am now home from work. I decided that my stomach would hurt whether I was lying in bed watching TV, or lying in bed blogging. . .so I am multi-tasking and doing both. I'd rather be at work!

Our Little Prodigy

For Christmas we bought Mackenzie a digital camera. . .I know, I know, sounds like an expensive gift for a three year old, but we wanted her to be able to take pictures without worrying about the expense of our cameras. It was actually the perfect gift for her! She has taken some very interesting photos so far. On Christmas Eve she went around snapping everything, and I do mean everything. . .up close and personal! The most interesting photo was the potty. . .



I was happy when the weather was warmer and Mackenzie could finally go outside and practice her camera skills. Matt had shown her how to work her camera a couple of times. . .mainly the first night she got her it, and her progress has been amazing. She can take pictures, review her pics, and zoom in on them like nobodies business. It is amazing to watch her little mind soak up technology!

I haven't downloaded her recent pictures to the computer yet, so for now you are going to have to settle with the photos I took of her while she was taking her own photos. . .





Isn't she precious????