great wolf lodge kansas city

after a wonderful time in nebraska with family we made a brief trip to kansas city. it was a last minute decision we made to surprise the kids. upon arriving at great wolf lodge we were greeted by violet! isn't she cute?! (just fyi the rest of these pictures are in complete random order.)

little wolf bauer.

both big kids loved these awesome slides they could do all by themselves.

water water everywhere!! :)

sweet shop bear and the three little day wolves. (note baby wolf is howling!)

big sis helping baby girl up to her favorite slide. and as a side note: frances LOVED the slides. she easily climbed these steps and went down the slide over 50 times in a row. completely obsessed...and adorable!

ready to go on the second day!

each room is complete with a "kid kamp". it is a room within a room and looks like a tent or cabin. complete with bunkbeds, their own tv and table, cute little fur-like linens, etc. they LOVED it!

v rockin the slide.

frances exploring.

our dinner tent.

frances ready to go after her morning donut. it was so cute. she was the first one awake...so she got in the suitcase, got out v&b's suits and went and woke them up saying "here. get up...lets go play!!"

the bucket in the center of the park dumped 1000 gallons of water every five minutes. if you look closely you can see the people under the water...and that teeny boy in the green shirt is brave brave bauer. ha!

sister sliding.

the great clock tower in the great lobby.

more waterfalls.

this might be my favorite picture. at 8 & 9 every night they do story time. we went down to see it, and bauer found a quiet spot in front of the picture window to the park (which was closing for the day). you could literally feeeeeel his longing.

the kids reaction to seeing their bunkbeds.
really a great couple of days....or at least these day's thought so! :)

fayetteville.

on the last leg of our journey we made a brief stop in fayetteville.

which isn't complete without a stop at razorback stadium.

next we headed to the square to enjoy the pretty morning at the farmer's market.
there were lots of cool little boutiques and fun booths. vivian especially loved this store where she finally was able to pick out her one souvenir from the trip. i must admit i might need to borrow that super cute hat! ;)

bauer found a hat too....but saved his surprise for later.

we made a quick stop at bliss. where we each got a different flavor cupcake. i got the elvis: banana nut cake with a peanut butter frosting and chocolate drizzle. delish!!

bauer picked razorback red velvet, vivian chocolate milkshake.

frannie picked a chocolate dipped cake ball...

yep...she liked it! :)

father's day

here we are today for our annual daddy's day golf adventure.

a few years ago we each bought clif a book for father's day. i must say...bauer's choice is still my favorite. a simple book entitled "my daddy loves me".
my daddy plays with me, my daddy washes me, my daddy laughs with me, etc.
our daddy does all those things and so much much more. we are so grateful for this amazing man. thank you cliffy for being...well....YOU! we love you!!!

yeah yeah...it's been forever...i'm way behind. you know the spiel. how about i just start now! :) the weather here has been unseasonably warm (it is TOTALLY my fault. i bought all three kids ski bibs. a sure fire guarantee there will be no snow\cold. but i digress...)

hey frances...you read to run?!

you betcha! after a quick "project" (a surprise for our impending anniversary) we decided to let the kids run and play...and of course take some pics!

this might be my favorite from all day. love that crew!

for the most part, this big girl was anti-picture...but she did have a lot of fun running from the camera. ;)

and even though bradford pears make me sneeze, i have to admit they are breathtakingly beautiful.

ummm....i said no pictures mom! ha...

okay...one, if you hold me.

or maybe two. (just for the record, vivian took and "styled" this picture. hence the flower in my hair.)

the bigs.

still no cooperation.

and all of a sudden b got mad. he decided to pout and have a moment with beary...

wait a second....he is all better!

and before we knew, it was time to go.

many thanks to my photography assistant. i'm sure with great help like that i can promise lots more new posts. ;)

caroline kate & FREE stuff!!

hello all...well...it has finally happened. caroline kate is open on etsy!!! click here for the link.

and to share the excitement, i have decided to do a little give away. yep, i said it...FREE stuff folks!!! all you have to do is this...link caroline kate's etsy site to your blog, mention it on facebook, or tweet about it.

then either leave me a comment here on the blog, via fb, or at the new company email address: carolinekatedesigns@gmail.com. do all three and you are entered three times! woohoo...

that's it....and one of these beautiful goodies will be yours. thank you so much for all your support over the last few months\years. it is because of the encouragement of amazing friends like you that i have finally taken this step...so THANKS! now get out there and spread the word!!! :)

this IS the life

what in the world have we been up to?!

i seriously have no earthly idea! christmas break was a blur. we spent time with family, feasted on yummy food, traveled a bit, played outside, stayed up late, watched movies, slept in, etc...but now it is time to get back into the routine and head back to work\school. but not before i post one last glimpse of our break. not anything earth shattering, just some lovely times i want to remember...

like me practicing with the new zoom lens on the camera. trying to sneak up on the kids...and them laughing hysterically when they caught me.

or how excited bauer was for the razorbacks to play in the cotton bowl. he wore his uniform all that day and when prompted to show how a razorback plays football would strike this fierce pose.

on a much sweeter note, a few days after new years he brought me this.

a chocolate donut covered with a mini airhead and a gummy bear. hmmm....i asked "what is it?" his reply, "baby jesus just borned in his blanket in his baby crib."

and my sweet big girl vivian...how big she is getting!! i found her downstairs quietly working on her drawing skills....SO SO proud of that talented girl.

and a very rare but beautiful appearance by miss josie. i promise you we must have the best luck with dogs. diagnosed with cancer four years ago (it's just a tumor on her leg about the size of a golf ball) she is still going strong!

like i said...not much earth shattering going on here...just enjoying the days with our day's. as b likes to say, "this IS the life!"