Minnesota State Fair

I finished up my last night in Minnesota by going to the State Fair. It's the 2nd largest fair in the country (congrats Texas for #1). There were TV stations covering the fair all week while I was in Minneapolis. They only thing they talked about was the FOOD. Seems eating is all one goes to the fair for. Mike, Ali, Bennett and I met Pat and Lauren Grant there. Lauren grew up down the street from Mike and Pat has lived in Minneapolis since he was a youngun.







Here we are arriving. Bennett didn't find it too exciting.




We saw the Queen as soon as we walked in. Then we saw lots of Toddlers in Tiaras throughout the evening, just hoping they will someday....(have their own trashy TV show)




Bennett woke up in time to see 'Beer on a stick'. (I got the one in the middle and it was tasty).

Here's what we ate (in chronological order)
1. Walleye cakes
2. Salad on a stick
3. Beer on a stick
4. Cheese Curds
5. Sandwich- it was eaten before I could see what it was.
6. Chocolate Chip cookies- 1 bucket of them
7. Snow cones



I tried to capture how many people there were, but you had to see it to believe it. It's like a small city with many intersections.

I had a fun time in Minnesota. Now it's back to life in Cbus.

Transition Day

No, you're not seeing a repeat of a precious blog posting. There's another Transition going on. This one is just a day, not a week.

Bennett was invited to meet his new teachers at Kinder Care prior to starting there next week. His Daddy dressed him in official Miami of Ohio college wear for the first day.


He's rocking the Red Hawks wear!

This is what Bennett looked like before he left for school.


This is what Bennett looked like when I picked him up from school


And to celebrate his new transition and that fact he's the most talented baby in Room 4--we went to Starbucks. This was Bennett at Starbucks.


And lastly, I want to share a picture of Bennett after his 2 hours at his new school.


It's been fun to be part of Transition day/week for Bennett and Morgan.

Where's Waldo?

If any of you are following the GPS tracking of 'me', you know I'm in Saint Louis Park, Minnesota; visiting Ali, Mike, and Bennett. Ali started work last week and her parents came up to watch Bennett. This week it's my turn and next week Kinder Care takes on their prime student.

Bennett has grown so much since I saw him in Georgia. He smiles, coos, and says, "Grandma". (not really, but it will be soon). We've had fun taking walks and watching the coverage of the hurricane. (Sadly, there's more coverage on 'ya better not loot' than where the storm is headed)

Here are some pictures of Mr. B.












And here's a picture of a tree I've seen on our walks- Hydrangea Tree.

Restaurant Opening

When Columbus gets a new restaurant, the town comes out to celebrate. It took a month after the Burger King opened in the mid 80's to get a parking space...let alone a Whopper.

Since May there has been a sign for a new frozen yogurt shop: Yo Mama, about 1 mile from our house. I asked all of my friends in the know why the delay in opening and no one was sure.

The Trobaugh's must have been camping out in the parking lot, because they knew the day it opened. They have been many times. Jim and I get our party clothes on and joined the Trobaugh's for a visit. Ethan greeted us at the door and showed us what to do. (yes...it took instructions- self serve, add toppings, proceed to weigh and check out station). We would still be trying to figure it out if our guide hadn't demonstrated.
Grandad held Morgan and shared his sorbet (Morgan's favorite flavor- Very Berry. Least favorite- Dream Orange)

The place is really fun. We'd love to take you there on your next visit to Columbus.

And the winner is....

Yesterday morning I drove to the Trobaugh's for a play day with....
Corey and Anne decided who stayed home with grandma based on who needed a break from school. I guessed with was Ethan as I rounded the corner to their house. But, Morgan just started school last week so maybe she was due a nice nap in her bed.

And the winner (or loser depending how you looked at it) is:







Miss Morgan!

We had a fun day taking a walk, 3 naps, bath, and lots of yummy snacks-puréed peas, rice cereal, and spinach puffs. Morgan sang some songs and worked on saying 'Mama'.



The fashionista changed outfits twice---because she can!

Next week I travel to Minneapolis to visit Bennett. I'm taking a large suitcase to bring him back home.

Mark This One Off the List

Jim left for the UK a few weeks ago. He asked me if I had any projects I was going to work on while he was gone. That's a nice way of saying, "what are you going to do while I'm gone"?

So.....



Big ugly headboard.


Sand and primer.



Paint, sand ...repeat, repeat.

When Jim returned he saw my work and said, "it needs something". Is this what management is all about??




Wax to the rescue!


Voila...the new headboard!

Transition Week

For those of you who have been following the Trobaugh Transition Week; it's over! Yea!
I'm happy to report that all participants made it through the event with minimal wounds, tears, and sleep. Restate that 'sleep' item, since there was little sleep from both parents and child.
Here's some pictures of Morgan when she spent her full day at school on Friday. She loves the fun toys they have at school.




And her serious--I'm ready to learn look:

Birchbox

I received my first Birchbox today!




For those of you who aren't familiar with Birchbox, it's a monthly box that arrives to your door with 'high end cosmetics' samples. I wanted to get one for Ali and Anne (both new Moms). A friend told me about it and I signed up. Unfortunately, there is a wait list to get 'invited'. After waiting a month I asked my friend (Tammy--who's aware of everything cool in life) if she would use her magic powers to sign Anne and Ali up. She had no idea there was a wait and told me she felt proud as a prom queen that she could do that!
A week later an email arrived that explained I had made the cut. I had 72 hours to order my boxes, then after that I was scratched from the list. Talk about feeling like Cinderella approaching midnight. I decided to send one for Moi!
So that's the story of how I received my Birchbox. Now here's the reason Birchbox works. In my box was a sample of a lotion to make my eyelashes longer, darker, and thicker; lip stain; Japanese hand cream (could have been Crisco tinted yellow); 2 natural hand sanitizer wipes; Juicy Cologne and a granola bar. I tried every sample and ate the granola bar. That granola bar was so tasty I stopped by Target and bought 5 more. (the samples were Apple Turnover flavor, but since it was noon and I was hungry I picked up a Bananas Foster one also!




I'm really excited about next month's Birchbox I hope they throw in some more tasty treats. Maybe I should start a tasty treat box subscription. Yum Box here I come!

Gratitude.

Sometime you're lucky enough to be born into a wonderful family. A family that cares about you and others. A family that instills hard work and fun in the same sentence. I'm one of the lucky ones. Here's another example of such generous giving from my sister, Linda Elaine White (Morgan Elaine Trobaugh's namesake). Linda made a donation to the Hospice Center in Columbus in memory of our Mother, Elizabeth White (Anne Elizabeth Trobaugh's namesake) and in honor of the great staff at the hospice center.





We have all felt Linda's generosity and love her dearly!

Day # 3 of T week

Transition week is going well. Morgan was so excited she woke up 3 times last night and grabbed a snack while she relived the day.

Morgan is positioning herself as the fashionista of Infant Room 3. Catch the blue jean skirt she's trending for today. Outside of looking like a baby Pentecostal, she's definitely on the best dressed look at Cummins Day Care!





And the completed look- with matching socks!

Transition Day # 2

For those of you who woke up this morning wondering what Day # 2 for Morgan would be like..the suspense is over. Morgan loves her new friends. When I arrived to pick her up she was playing with the toes of a little boy sitting next to her in this bathtub like device.


Funny how we measure a successful day!

Transition Week

Morgan starts Cummins Day Care this week (academic excel class...of course). Anne decided that a transition week for Morgan would work better than just throwing her to the day care wolves. Poor Anne is still in therapy after Ethan's first day of day care experience when everyone just stared at her when she brought Ethan in.

So what do I have to do with this process? I'm the transition sitter when Morgan isn't at Cummins. Morgan went for about 1 hour this morning. This was what she looked like after the experience:


By now you've figured out the transition is for Mama Anne!

Art

Before we packed up and headed back home today, I took a beach walk. There's some driftwood that has turned into a 'decorator's dream' (nice way of saying junk collector). The first time I saw it was in February when it was decorated in valentines to all sorts of things. Today's collection is 'End of American Beach Vacation'.


Let me know your shoe size and I'll pick you up some slightly used flip flops next trip!

Children having Children

Both of my children have children! It's such a pleasure to see what caring, wonderful parents my children have become. You don't take lessons for that.





Anne--I need some pics of you with Morgan or Ethan. You are always snapping the pictures.

Guest of Honor

We are in Georgia for a long weekend and have a guest visiting us. Bennett Michael Trueblood blew in with his parents a few days ago. When you are 7 weeks old (going on 8), life is busy. There's observation time:




Taking in Bubba's Mexican Restaurant:




And lots of time spent .....




He's truly a bundle of joy!

Organizational Skills

I took Ethan out for lunch at Chipoltes last week. He enjoys eating there, but he most likes keeping his tray clean and avoiding any cross contamination of different food groups. Notice how there are no beans or rice kernels outside of their little compartments. Where does this trait come from??

Rain!

We were welcomed in Georgia by the wet stuff formally known as rain. It's been so long since we've seen any in Indiana!



One of my favorite things about Georgia are the clouds. They are breathtaking.

I'll share some more during our stay.