Making new friends...

Don't you just love the community that you get from blogging? I love that I can make a friend so easily online. There aren't any time constraints or distance issues online. I can be stinky with make-up smeared under my eyes at 2 am and meet a new person because of a blog. (I'm sure you're all clamboring over each other to meet me now, eh?) And because of my blog, I got to meet one of the nicest gals in a LONG time (heh. Gal. I couldn't think of a better word. "girl" is too childish. "woman" sounds like my mother. "Gal" sounds too uneducated... help me out, people!!)

I digress. As usual. ANYway, I got to meet Tonya from A Day in the Life of a MaMa! My brood and I met her and her gang at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL.

You know how when you meet someone, (especially someone from online that you've been "talking" to for over a year) and you're worried that she won't be what you thought, or that YOU won't be what she thought, or that you won't click, or that your kids will knock her kids down, or that something may go terribly awry? You know that feeling, right? Well, it instantly vanished the second I officially met Tonya. We began our conversation right in the middle and just kept on chatting like we had been doing it for forever. Love her to pieces! Almost as much as I adore her kids. I mean, they are SO cute!!

Evan and Corinne just couldn't get enough of Peanut. But, can you blame them? She is a DOLL, people. A doll. As Tonya and I were discussing, her pictures don't do her justice as her eyes sparkle and her face lights up with every smile (and she smiles ALL THE TIME).


Peek-a-boo! "Mommy, she really yikes my flower on my dress!!" (she did!)

Red gave us a minor heart attack when we couldn't find him for about 5 minutes at the SAME PLACE that I lost Evan at last time! Then, as you see above, the poor kid got a bit upset when he fell head over heals into the stream! He perked up, though, and was soon swimming in the dammed up pool the bigger kids were making with rocks downstream (though, apparently, they weren't supposed to... oops!)
DRENCHED kids. Absolutely soaked. Several times over and through...

Silly boys. Evan and Red at lunch. He was kindly sharing his crackers with Corinne.
Ever try to get 7 kids to pose for a picture? WithOUT candy bribes and alcohol (for me. Not them.) Actually, it wasn't that bad. I am not for perfect pictures, so these? These are great.
Ahhh... there we go. All 7 faces and only 1 set of bunny ears. Also, the baby wasn't dropped on the floor. A good day.
FYI, Corinne is not picking her nose. I swear.

Tonya, I love ya, hon. I had a really great time and so did my kids! We should definitely get together again!