After lunch, we left Mark and made our way to the Cosley Zoo. Monroe loved it and had so much fun looking at all of the animals. The Cosley zoo is small and quaint and has mostly farm animals. Her favorites were the goats (until it got a little too friendly) and the sheep. She called them all puppies, though.
It was a much nicer day than it was yesterday. Still a bit cold, but very sunny. We stayed there for a few hours then headed home to put Monroe down for a nap. When we got home, Monroe wasn't quite ready to sleep, so she played in the living room. I'm still always up for a nap these days, and ended up dozing off on the couch. I woke up probably two minutes after falling asleep (due to the fact that I was hit in the face with a book by Monroe) and shared the dream that I just had with Michelle and Stephen. I really don't know how I was able to dream that quickly, but I did. I dreamt that Michelle made brownies. I ended up putting Monroe to bed and headed to my bedroom to rest my eyes for a bit myself.
Soon, I awoke to the smell of chocolate...amazing chocolate!!! My talented sister-in-law made my dreams come true. These weren't box brownies, people! No, this girl cooks from scratch. They were heavenly!
Don't they look so good?!!!
She also made her snack pretzel recipe and I'm telling you, you HAVE to make these. They are so yummy and so easy to make. Here's a link to her blog and the post that describes how to make them. It's the perfect snack.
Mark got home and we hung outside for awhile. The boys made up a game (this is a common occurrence when these two get together) and Michelle and I acted as coaches. They take these games very seriously and I find them to be quite entertaining. This one involved hitting tennis balls into the tennis hopper. Here's a pic of the action.
Can you feel the intensity?
It got a little chilly, so we all came inside and that's when the madness began. Mark and Stephen had the best time chasing Monroe, wrestling Monroe, throwing Monroe...you name it, they did it. That little girl has never laughed so hard. She will probably never sleep better as she will tonight. All the rough housing really tuckered the kid out. It was so fun to watch.
Uncle Stephen, in disguise...Monroe thought this was hilarious.
There was a lot of this going on. She loves to be tossed.
Mark and I had to run a quick errand, so S & M started on dinner. How we ate dinner after our VERY filling lunch, I can't tell you, but we did and it was incredible. These people really know how to cook. They grilled corn, sweet potatoes and vegeburgers. Very yummy. They really know how to season things well and I'm convinced that is the key to being a good cook. Here's a link to Stephen's cooking blog if you are interested in some grilling tips and other great recipes.
I almost forgot to post pics of the table and chairs that Nicole found for us. Here are a few pics of Auntie Michelle and Monroe enjoying them already.
Aren't they adorable?! The table and chairs are cute, too:)
I can't wait to paint these! I just know they will be even more adorable!!
In other news, my little garden is doing quite well! The tomato plants are really taking off. The recent rain has done wonders! I have been pretty worried about the cilantro. That is the only thing that I started from a seed packet, instead of buying a plant. This afternoon though, I found this!!!
Okay, you probably can't tell, but there are tiny little green sprouts coming up all over!!! Yay! Hopefully, they will continue to grow and we will have more cilantro than we know what to do with.
I'm sad that I have to go back to work tomorrow! Stephen and Michelle are taking Monroe to the Brookfield Zoo. I know they will have so much fun. It is an amazing zoo. Our friends, Jared and Jen gave us some free passes (thanks, guys) for them to use. What a treat!
Well, I better get off this thing. I hope this Monday was great for everyone. We are no further along on the name search. I'm feeling even more overwhelmed. Stephen and Michelle need to step it up with the help;)
Love you!
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