The Evers' "Stay-cation"

As a follow-up to my last post on Eric, I was expecting him to give me a nickname such as cheesy. One other way we are so different is that I have a lot of feelings in any given day that I need to express and share. Eric on the other hand, will deflect emotions with humor, and a lot of it. I am not saying it is a bad thing because truthfully he is a very funny guy. I chuckle to think of the emotions Eric will have to swim through living in a house full of girls. At least he'll always have ESPN.

True to form, while I am cooking dinner in the kitchen and Eric comes behind me with a hug and kiss and says, "Thanks for the note on your blog.....you big cornball." Cameron overhears the whole thing and says, "Yeah, Mom, we should just make popcorn out of you." I think this is only the beginning because Cameron is proving to be as funny and witty as her dad. I am truly amazed by the connections between thing without an adult telling her how they are related. I also take her statement as a compliment considering popcorn is her favorite food.

Anyway, now that I got my computer back and running well, I can start posting pictures again. I would post some of our Florida vacation, however, I took so many of them. I think those will just go in an album. Eric still had some vacation time left, so we have been hanging out this week at home. The week started with the half marathon in Chicago which was an awesome experience. I can't wait to do it again next year! I surprised myself and ran the first 10 miles straight. After crossing the 10 mile marker I lost my steam and started walking, however, Eric and the girls were waiting for me at right before mile 11 and it totally re-energized me to finish running the rest of the race.

My family waiting at mile 11ish.

Team Stevers !!

Uncle Doug come out from Iowa for the race.

This is my friend Laura who is one of the cheetah girls. Maybe I can be one next year. I already have the skirt!

Then on Monday we took the kids to Bourbonnais, IL for Bears Training Camp. We did this last year and the kids loved it. This is going to be an annual event. The practice was pretty uneventful, but it is fun for the kids to see the players up close. The kids are dying to go to a real game, but Bears games are not for little kids. This will have to suffice for now.

Here's the girls trying to find their favorite players.

When the girls got bored watching practice, Eric took them to a open field to play catch with a football that the girls got from their uncle Lane. Here's Cameron giving me the thumb's up because she is actually figuring out how to properly catch and throw. I am still holding out hope that Cameron will enjoy and thrive playing sports. We'll find out with soccer starting soon!

Below is a picture from Bears camp from last year.

On Tuesday we took Brooklyn to the dog beach. This is the first summer that she is swimming. As Kaylee likes to say, "Brooklyn hates to be wet, but she loves the water." While it doesn't make sense to outsiders, it totally makes sense to us. Our dog hates to be wet, but loves to swim. The beach is always fun for all of us.

Cameron has been exerting her independence by choosing her own clothes. Don't you love the Easter dress she wanted to wear as a beach cover-up? Seriously, not a battle worth fighting.

Kaylee with her favorite person in the whole world.

Kaylee taking a break from throwing sticks to Brooklyn to be buried in the sand.

I love that Brooklyn smiles all the time.

Wednesday we continued on trying to get some stuff done around the house. Boring.

On Thursday Eric took me downtown to do some shopping. After that we had some dinner at the hotel and some tapas at the rooftop bar. We stayed at the Wit hotel which just opened on state and lake. The only way to describe this place was swanky or like Cameron likes to say, "Snaaazzzy!!" The whole place was decked out in all classic art deco fashion. Everything was very eclectic and made primarily out of metal, glass, and/or mirrors with fluorescent accent colors throughout. Here's the view from our room.

Later we went to second city to watch the sketch show "America, All Better". It was really awesome being in a place that had so many famous comics as cast members. The show was so funny and I can't wait to go back there to watch another one. Happy Anniversary, Eric!

While we were in Chicago, my kids were staying with my parents. When we went to pick them up, Eric and my dad went golfing while my mom and I took the kids blueberry picking. This has also become an annual family tradition with my mom, however, this year it was raining. That didn't matter to the girls though. We put some hoodies on them and still picked almost four pounds before the kids were ready to go. It was a fun experience despite the rain. Kaylee kept commenting, "I have never done that before!"

The girls blueberry picking last year in more favorable weather. Love Cam's expression!

On Saturday we were able to catch up with Ryan and Michelle for a relaxing bbq at their house. We always love seeing them. I was trying to find some pictures of them, and I couldn't. That is so weird. We must be too busy chatting and laughing to remember. We made plans to go to a Bears game together so we'll have to remember the camera then.

Unfortunately, Eric is back to work, and we are getting ready for school to start. Summer has gone by way too fast! I think it might be time to start planning another vacation to look forward too. California, maybe?