On a whim, we booked an Airbnb getaway for Mother’s Day weekend after mom saw the Friendship Cabin advertised online at a 50% discount. It was just what our family needed to slow down amidst the hustle and bustle of year-end field trips, soccer games, mom’s work obligations, and the celebration of mother figures.

Dad took me out of school early that Friday, then we drove home to pack up the grandparents and pups, and hit the road around 1:30 p.m. for a 90-minute trip to Friendship, WI. Mom and Genesee met us at the chalet, since it was only a 40-minute drive from the Dells, where they had been busy field trippin’. By Saturday afternoon, the Nicolai gang joined us as well.

While mom used the peaceful backdrop to get some work done here and there, the rest of us had SO. MUCH. FUN. Not only did we get to play Euchre, hide-and-seek, ladder ball, arcade games, and foosball, we also fished our little hearts out, tossed the football, went on walks, ordered in pizza, watched Netflix, sat around a campfire, and explored Roche-A-Cri lake via kayak and canoe!

If this is what spontaneous feels like, we should plan to not plan more often!

Thanks, Sweeney Stays, for letting us pretend we lived in a charming log cabin, even if for only a couple magical evenings.

Life truly is better on the lake.

Genesee’s end-of-year field trip plans took the first graders to Timbavati Wildlife Park in the Wisconsin Dells. Mom got to tag along as a “chaperone” to keep those knuckleheads in line. She made it sound like it was going to be grueling, challenging, yet honorable work. But, after reviewing all the photo evidence, it appears mom was in attendance just to meet the animals, soak up the nice weather, and make fun memories with the youngsters. I’m not even mad at her for that, however, I will also be volunteering to help chaperone all future field trips because it sounds like they could use additional assistance.

Today and yesterday, Genesee and I got to host very important people at school so they could experience a typical day in the life of an elementary kiddo!

I got to host Mom for my VIP day and, since my cousin Cortney was helping out, I also got to see her a little bit! My favorite part of the day was challenging the adults to a game of kickball. It was quite the competition, with lots of smack talking on both sides. In the end, the adults claim to have beat the kids by one point, but I find that suspicious since the scorekeepers were also adults.

On the next day, Genesee got to host mom AND Laura. Lucky duck! They went on a nature hike, played on the playground, made crafts, and then visited G’s classroom to see what my little sis is learning.

It was so much fun to have our important people hang out with us for part of the day; I wish everyday was VIP Day.

Today, we celebrate me.

In just two days, on April 16, I will officially enter the double digits club. And there’s no better way to ring in my new year than celebrating with food, family, and fun!

These days, as I enter my 10-year-old status, you’ll often find me dribbling and shooting a basketball, working to improve my golf swing, battling it out in Fortnite, or learning how to keep up with the adults in the game of Euchre.

However, a few big changes that happened over the last year are that I’m now comfortable staying home alone, I wear the same shoe size as my mom, and I’ve experienced hives on my body – twice!

But some things never change, like my nervous habit of biting fingernails (still guilty), my incredibly stinky feet (guilty again), and my love for mom-made scavenger hunts! I also continue to grow taller everyday. In fact, my only character flaw is that my pants can’t seem to keep up with my growing legs, so sometimes my sweatpants become capris.

After being on this earth for almost a decade, I can confidently say that my favorite school lunch is orange chicken, and one of my most-requested meals at home is chicken fried rice. It should also be noted that I can unload the dishwasher on command, I remain well-hydrated (special thanks to my Cirkul water bottle), and I’ve gotta be the proudest puppy owner that ever existed.

I can’t wait to take another trip around the sun, especially with a new best friend by my side!