The Mid Summer Classics

Pittsburgh continues to entertain the whole family!  Trips to the library, parks, and pool parties never get old when there are a couple of 14 month olds with you.  Mom and Dad even got a little relief this week thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Esker and a few supportive opera friends.  We went out to celebrate 6 years of marriage with a nice dinner on our anniversary and Dad was able to watch Brenden and Jackson's amazing Mom perform as Giulietta in "Tale of Hoffmann!"

The boys ran up to Mommy while she was doing a little singing at the  cabaret.  The 3 of them stole the show!

Although Mom's rehearsal schedule has been pretty crazy as of late, we have still managed to enjoy quality family time.   Last week, we took a trip to the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh to get a library card.  Brenden and Jackson spent most of the time pulling books off the shelf so we didn't leave empty handed.  We also tried out family story time one evening.  We were able to get Brenden and Jackson to sit through about one song and one story, but again, the boys spent most of the time pulling books off the shelf.  It was nice to get them some interaction with kids their age.

The Carnegie Museum has a really cool playground right in front, but it didn't take long to grow bored. Most of the time, we are totally content if we find a good stick to play with or some wood chips to sample.

The Fourth of July was a really cool experience.  All of the young artist were invited over to a home on the hill that overlooked the city and festivities for the day.  The house was literally right above one of the observation decks.  The pool provided most of our entertainment for the evening, but Brenden and Jackson also enjoyed weaving their way through all of the people at the party.  Towards the end of the night, Dad took it to the streets for a little stroller ride in an attempt to shut down some sleepy eyes.  The attempt fell short so the remainder of the night ended up a bit restless.  The balcony provided an awesome view for the fireworks.  Jackson was even pointing at them, which made the restless night completely worth it.

The weekend brought some familier faces to Pittsburgh!  Grandma and Grandpa Esker couldn't have come at a better time with the busy rehearsal week.  We were sure to enjoy all of the same amenities, but it made it that much more enjoyable to see Brenden and Jackson interact with their Grandma and Grandpa.  It was an extra warm welcome since we hadn't seen them in a month.  The boys must have remember their grandparents because we played and played and played without a single meltdown.  It also helped that Grandma had made a trip to the toy store and arrived with a bag full of goodies... NEW TOYS!  Grandma and Grandpa's hotel had an indoor pool in which Brenden and Jackson floated every square inch.  They even dipped their feet in the hot tub for a bit.

We capped off the weekend with pizza and drinks at Church Brew Works for Dad's birthday.  Brenden and Jackson might have eaten just as much as each adult.  They sure were in a good mood on our walk to the car.  The night ended with some surprise cupcakes that grandma picked up at the bakery.

The next day we spent some time at the park and picked up some lunchmeat and cheese from the local deli.  There was no need for bread because Grandma had brought some of her infamous sourdough!  We were definitely sad to see them go and look forward to seeing Nana and Pa in a few weeks!  Brenden and Jackson have the best Grandparents ever!

Solo Cups and Shakers

Just when Dad thought we may be getting in a bit of a rut, Pittsburgh picked us up and provided another fun filled week.  It was a little warmer  this week so the boys and I explored every square inch of the tiny apartment.  Its a good thing we all have such big imaginations.  First, we took a trip back to the spray park.  Brenden was a little more reluctant this time, but Jackson was the exact opposite.  He was right up there with the big kids, face first in the sprinklers.

We also had a few rainy days this week.  In fact, Dad got caught in a downpour on his morning run with Brenden and Jackson.  The radar looked clear when we left, but these storms just seem to pop up this time of year.  As a result, we enjoyed plenty of quality time in our humble abowed.  When regular old baby toys failed to do the job, we let our imaginations run wild.  While the average person may look at an empty paper towel roll and think, "What's the big deal," Brenden and Jackson pretend its a sword or a telescope or just use it to make awesome cow noises.  The same goes for red solo cups, water bottles, cereal boxes, and milk jugs.  We have been known to even pretend that a bookshelf is a jungle gym.

Red solo cup... I fill you up... with my pacifier

Lets have a party

Shake it

Showin off

Friday, Dad went out for a jog with the boys and noticed tents going up outside next to Pitt's campus.  After doing a little research, he found out there was a children's festival going on later that day.   That afternoon, the boys all headed up to Schenley Plaza for a little fun in the sun.  We spent most of our time at the music tent.  They had a spread of ukuleles and the boys made noisemakers.  We spent the rest of our time watching the fire dancers and doing a little dancing of our own to the anti-bully band.  It was a really fun afternoon!

Food over fire dancers any day of the week

We're with the band

Hangin' With the Boys

Pittsburgh has been treating the Esker boys very well this week.  Mom had a little more time off than expected at the beginning of the week, so we took the family for a few outings.  Our first trip was on Monday.  We packed a small lunch to enjoy at the park before we took on the jets at the spray park.  Don't worry, waiting 30 min after you eat doesn't apply if its just a little splashing.  We didn't really know what to expect and neither did the boys.  Our transition from picnic to spray park wasn't so easy. In an attempt to wrestle the boys into their swim diaper in the back of the suv, Brenden decided to make his very own spray park on the floorboard.  I guess he couldn't wait.  Lucky for us, it was only number one.  After Mom and Dad had enough of wrestlemania, we both tapped out and thought "this better be worth it"... and IT WAS!  All I have to say is look at the pictures.

Cinema in the Park night was on Wednesday.  We knew it was a long shot since the band went on at 7 and the movie was at sundown (9ish).  The expression "go big OR go home" does not apply here because we did both.  We packed our homemade pizza and high stepped to Flagstaff Hill.  Brenden and Jackson loved the pizza but didn't do so well with their balance on the hill, although, it was very entertaining to watch.  We didn't last long enough to see the movie, but enjoyed a family dinner without any cleanup.  It was a win, win.

With Mom's schedule starting to pick up, Dad's curiosity begins to wonder.  Which children activities are safe enough for Dad to manage on his own... All of them!  We continue to take advantage of the park circuit in Pittsburgh.  Schenley Park has a few playgrounds with stuff for the little guys.  Even though Brenden and Jackson are a little young, they love watching all the older kids.  I can just see them getting ideas.

We also made a stop at Carnegie Mellon's soccer field.  Brenden and Jackson are getting pretty good at kicking the ball around.  Jackson even picked up on some soccer lingo.  He runs around the apartment screaming "GGOOOOOAAAAAAL!" First word, mark it in the book.  Hahaha.  He wakes up in the morning, "GGOOOOOAAAAAAL!" He plays, "GGOOOOOAAAAAAL!" He goes down for a nap, "GGOOOOOAAAAAAL!" He wakes up from a nap, "GGOOOOOAAAAAAL!"  Its not really even baby jabber.  He says it with authority.... too funny.

Today, we dropped Mom off at rehearsal at 10:00 and headed down to the Pittsburgh Children's Museum.  All was going well until we hit a wall of traffic.  Took us about 2 hours to go a half mile.  I was surrounded by a party on the highway.  It was obvious that these people were not going the same place as us.  Apparently, Kenny Chesney decided to schedule a concert at Heinz Field and his fans love to party hours upon hours in advance... How inconsiderate.  I wasn't gonna steal anyone's tailgate spot. All we wanted to do was get to the museum.  Much like many situations in parenthood, we experienced a couple of hours of being miserable for a big payoff at the end.  WE HAD A BLAST!  The boys did awesome at the museum!  We are definitely going to have to bring Mom back to this place.