Couch Commentators

This pic is a bit fuzzy because it was taken with a cell but you'll be able to get the picture...

Below is what happens when Jen is outnumbered in the Bolger house by 2 boys. When Mom wants to watch the red carpet of the Oscars to see the fashion, Dad and Ben make a coalition to not be down with the red carpet. This pic is them in the midst of their deal making of this red carpet protest.

Nap Time, Please

That's nap #2 of the day... we must have worn him out yesterday! But... we were going out to dinner last night (a very rare feat to do with a toddler in the Bolger household since dinner out usually = fits, throwing food and all around general embarassment) so thank God for nap #2 because it meant Ben was on his best behavior at the restaurant!

Ben & Sophie Lou Go on a Walk

Who is walking whom???

Bolger Birthday Bash

Jeff and Pat's birthday turned out to be more of a relaxing day because they were so sore from all the black diamond ski runs that they were on the day before. And... unfortunately, Ben came down with a fever. Not the best timing but he was a real trooper. We were planning on going up to the snow to go sledding because the snow had mostly melted in Boulder but the weather didn't like that plan so much. The temp droped quite a bit and the wind picked up so... we made a quick change and started at... get this... Chuck E Cheese. Yes, the boys wanted to take their tots to go play. Ben had never been to CEC and other than being totally dazed from the fever and the motrin, we think he liked it. Olivia loved being there, too.

Here the kids are on the ride together... Olivia is all smiles, Ben is a little out of it :(

 Try picturing a 6-7 foot tall Chuck E Cheese character singing a Justin Bieber song and you will get why Ben isn't smiling in this pic below. Apparently Ben isn't a 'Belieber.'

 Last ride before going to lunch... Ben very busy driving the school bus and Olivia doing a great job at directing the traffic and all the other kids.

 Fast forward a few hours... we went to dinner at Lucky Pie and Greg Gingo came and we all had great pizza. Pizza and Bolgers go together like peas and carrots so it isn't surprising that they wanted Pizza for their birthday dinner.

 Ben looooved Auntie Shannon in a major way...

 Cake Time! Great way to cap off a lovely birthday, a fabulous long weekend and an all around awesome Bolgerfest! 



Sunday Funday in Colorado

Sunday was Pat and Jeff's ski day so Shannon and Jen and the kids had our own day of fun. The morning started with Ben and Olivia both 'cooking' on the couch with tupperware and spoons. About 5 minutes of entertainment... not bad.

 Next on the agenda was the Butterfly Palace... basically an exporatorium type place for insects, fish and butterflies. Ben wasn't too impressed with the butterflies, as you can see from the pic below but Olivia loooooved it.

 Ben, on the other hand loved the fish and splashing in the water. Go figure.

 At night, Shannon and I went into Denver to Canvas and Cocktails where you drink wine and paint. Tons of fun!

 While the Moms were in Denver, the Dads were on toddler patrol. After dinner, the Dads and tots had a tea party.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's upload of the boys' birthday!

Saturday Afternoon on Pearl Street

For Saturday afternoon, we walked around Pearl Street which is Boulder's awesome downtown Pedestrian-only street. Tons of restaurants, shops, street performers etc. Lots of fun and a must for all of our trips here.

We started off walking and window shopping but the tots weren't too thrilled with that. So, true to Colorado's style, the little kiddie areas on Pearl Street are little rock/boulder areas where the kids can rock climb etc. It was a hit. Until they tried to eat the pebbles.

 Dinner time came and we went to BJ's Brewery. The kids were close to a melt down so we knew this could be a disaster. Olivia was pretty good. Ben had his moments... stay tuned for the last pic to see his version of a melt down...

 Greg Gingo, our college friend, just moved to Boulder and has hooked up with Pat and Shannon so he is going full circle with all of us in the Bolger family. Below, Greg is in the middle of a Bolger sandwhich.

 So here is Ben's melt down. He got spaghetti for dinner. As you can see, not much went in his mouth, rather everywhere else in the restaurant except his mouth. LITERALLY. He flung the spaghetti noodles in about a 4 ft radius all around his chair. Everyone started looking (none of our table neighbors were with kids and I doubt they understand that there is no stopping a toddler's melt down while its in progress) and we had no clue what to do because he was just in quite the mood. So... we pretended not to notice. Great parenting, I know. We were at a bit of a loss, not our normal parenting style but it is what it is.

Bolger Home Videos

Posting some footage from a rowdy friday night at the Bolger house in Louisville, CO

Saturday Morning in Colorado

Before Ben and Olivia were in the picture, our Colorado trips were always jam packed from arrival to departure with little down time in between. Now with kids, it is a much different story. We started our day with a nice, leisurely morning and then Ben accompanied Olivia to her weekly swin lesson.

Morning cowlic alert! Like father, like son. 

COLORADO!

So, we're here... finally! Every year, we come to Boulder to celebrate Jeff and his twin brother, Pat's birthday. We had a 2:45am wake up call on Friday AM to get to the airport in time for an early flight and Ben decided he had zero intention of sleeping or keeping any sort of peace from 9:30-12:30am the night before so needless to say, with 2 hours sleep, all 3 Monterey Bolgers landed in Colorado acting and feeling like zombies. But... we're here and that's all that matters. So yesterday after we landed and ate lunch, we walked to the Boulder Bolger's new neighborhood park to let Ben and Olivia run off some of their energy.

 Static electricity, much?!?

 Park time was fun then we BBQd and the kids had bath time. They splashed and splashed and splashed until the walls and floors were soaked. Bath time is usually the time where Ben winds down and starts to get ready for bed but not last night. He and Olivia had so much fun splashing each other and definitely didn't calm each other down.

Gotta Watch the Little Man

So... he's pretty smart. Scary smart. For the last month or so, he has been taking whatever he can find to stand on to get him up to the things that have been out of his reach for so long... lap tops, drawers, lamps, telephones etc. Here, the little man is standing on a pack of diapers to attempt to unlock to front door. Funny at first until you realize that he actually can unlock the door. Looks like we have more baby proofing to do...

Have a good weekend, everyone! We're off to Boulder today to celebrate Jeff & PJ's bday and for Ben and Olivia to reunite!

Outdoorsy Weekend Part 2

How do you know you've become a true Bolger? You actually want to go on hikes. Yes, it's true. Saturday's hike was so lovely we did the same hike after lunch on Sunday. Green hills, tons of hawks, pretty ocean and valley views... we were 3 happy Bolgers!

Lunch is always a good way to start off a hilly hike, no?!

 Sunday we went further back into the hills behind Toro and as you can see, the views were incredible. We were literally the only people out there and yes, Ben actually stayed up for this hike (although it was questionable if he was going to go for round 2 on his snooze...)

Outdoorsy Kind of Weekend

The last few weeks and weekends have been so beyond gorgeous and warm but the rain is on its way. So... we took full advantage of the remaining sun and warmth and did as much outside as we possibly could. Saturday was a great hike in the Toro hills in the morning. Lots of dogs were out which made Ben happy... at least for 15 minutes before...

 ... he decided it was time for a snooze...

Ben's New Trick

Jeff, having not seen this new trick, doesn't believe that Ben actually does this on his own but he does. Picture this... a little boy pulls his shirt pulled over his head and wanders all around the kitchen making funny sounds and bumping into cabinets and the doors. Pretty funny sight.

While the Cat's Away, the Mouse Will Play!

While we were in Sonoma over the weekend, Ben played with Grandma and Grandpa. They had a very busy weekend full of running, swimming and chasing the dogs!

First thing in the morning, Ben would join Stella out on the lawn and as she would look for her morning potty spot, Ben would come up behind her with the hose and chase her. Poor dog. Notice Ben is still in his PJs. Literally, this was the first thing he'd do in the morning... even before his breakfast.

Ben got a happy meal and was oh, so happy!

Ben was the hot tub hottie for sure. This water baby really loved jumping in the hot tub into Gommie's arms! Totally fearless.

Sonoma or Bust!

Jeff & my Christmas/Hanukkah gift to each other was a weekend in Sonoma and got very lucky that our fab Chicago friends, the Francis', were going to be in town, too, to visit Scott's fam. So... we made an adult's only weekend of it and drank some wine, ate at some fabulous restaurants and didn't have to wake up at the crack of dawn with Ben and Ella because they were very happily being spoiled by their grandparents! 

We started off our wine day being picked up by the limo, yes, the limo! We visited Chandon, Jarvis, Etude & Domaine Carneros. All were fabulous and we brought home a few 'party favors' so our wine cabinet is now fully stocked!

 The 2 restaurants we went to were The Girl & The Fig and Etude. Both great and so much better than the kid-friendly chains that are Ben-friendly...

 Here, the lovely Francis' are enjoying the sun while in the back of the limo. They had just escaped the worst storm Chicago had seen in a really LONG time and were very happy to thaw out.

 Jeff and Scott were roomies throughout college and then after college until Scott moved to Chicago so... it was so great for the boys to see each other. We have always been card carrying members to the "Scott Francis Fan Club" but he really out-did himself with Nicole. She is a fabulous, fire-cracker of a Southern Belle who we feel like we've known as long as Mr. Tuffy himself, Scottie.

Cin Cin!

Big Boy Breakfast

Ben decided this week that breakfast is much better when you sit at the table vs. sitting in the high chair. We hadn't anticipated this so we have no booster seat so for the time being, this will do. By the way, he does look cute but what you don't see is the mess that he throws on the floor to 'doggie' 'doggie.' FYI, 'doggie' is his new favorite word and he runs around the house screaming 'doggie, doggie!'

Colorado, Here we come!

Well, we aren't going to Colorado until mid-February but we thought we'd try on Ben's snow gear to make sure it fits. We'll be going to see the former-Boulder Bolgers, now Louisville-Bolgers for Jeff and Pat's birthday over President's Weekend so stay tuned for pics of Ben in the snow for the first time!