Sunday, October 13, 2013

Central Illinois Wine Crawl

The idea was born sitting around the kitchen table with a couple of our best friends....a wine crawl...to all the wineries in Central IL we could handle.  Planning began MONTHS in advance with transportation, babysitters, an itinerary, food, and entertainment involved.  The plan was to hit 6 wineries between Kickapoo and Fairmount in 12 hours.  Could it be done?  NO.  It could not.  The details of the night are fuzzy but I'm grateful for my camera to help me....

This beast was our transportation for the night!
 The kids couldn't believe how big it was ( it felt very small to us by the end of the night)
 Can't wait to get this party started!
 The crew!  This was, hands down, an incredible group of friends to do this crawl with.  We had a blast!
 1st winery we split into boys and girls
 well...except for Brian- figures.
 We even caught the first part of a wedding.
 The girls were so great to spend the day with
 After the first few glasses were in us, the fun and games began.  We had cards on our back and had to ask others questions.
 On to the next- the biggest and most accomodating by far.




 Wish this picture was better but you get the idea.
 So the limo was amazing but we had to find creative ways to get supplies from the back, communicate with our driver and get comfy.
 The wineries were amazing but our favorite memories were simply in the limo.  There was alot of this.....
 and this too!
 Next winery was tiny inside but had the most incredible outdoor space we could imagine!  And in the middle of no where

 yes, the wine was taking it's affect


 Damn!  I missed it.  Kyle went out on the stage and did the worm ( wonder what these nice ladies thought of us?)

 Our group
 The Stankos
 The Goods
 The Sowinskis
 The Bodznicks 
 Us
 The Pyatts
 and the Kappes
 More limo fun
 We stopped to get pizza on our way to the final stop- DEFINATELY necessary!

 The last place was already in the middle of a concert and they wouldn't even let us in to use the bathroom since they thought we were too rowdy.  So we peed in the trees and headed to the closest town to find a bar.

Yes, this is Brian.  And yes, I did take his beer and offer him water.
 Jello shots
 The convienent store provided beer for the trip home.  We all made it through the night without vomitting or passing out!  SUCCESS!

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Best Friends and Soccer!

Alaric's Best Friend, Caleb came to visit from out of town last night and GOT TO SLEEP OVER!  Alaric's first sleepover.  They both did great.  They he joined us to watch some soccer today.

 Alaric was really into it today-I think it helps having Caleb here!
 The black team lost but Brian was fired up with excitement about the way the kids played.  This was his post game pep talk!
 Mara has been having such a great time playing soccer too.  There are some really talented kiddos on the team this year- any they are only FIVE!


Saturday, October 5, 2013

Happy Birthday, Papa!

My dad's sister was in town for my dad's birthday and we needed an excuse to host and celebrate ( plus with all the dietary restrictions, sometimes cooking at home is easier)  This time it proved to be the best option- we had a blast. 

Brian and I went with a German theme because my dad is German, he LOVES German food, he loves German beer, and its OCTOBER!!!!!



 Alles Gute Zume Geburtstos, Papa!  Happy Birthday, Papa!
 Liverwurst on Pumpernickle
 One happy man.
 Oh wait...this made him even happier
 Oh wait....then he saw this too!

 That's a happy guy!
 See, it just keeps getting better
 Saved the best for last!  We love you so much, Papa!