Haute Dawg Fest 2012

We had our annual Miller Family Reunion over Memorial Day weekend. This year was a lot more enjoyable for us because the kids were way more manageable. Last year, they just tried to run away out of the yard. And even though last year was very hot, it didn't seem as humid this year, which was a blessing.

We got to the hotel around dinner time on Friday night. After a quick dinner in the lounge, we went swimming. The boys just love to go to hotels for the pool. It was fun for us, too. Bedtime went pretty well, too. You just never know with hotels and kids. We laid down with them and they fell asleep after about 45 minutes of talking to each other.

The next morning, we grabbed breakfast in the atrium and got to see my family. The kids were very happy to see familiar faces.

After a quick swim again, we loaded up into the car to go to Barry and Dawn's for the Haute Dawg Fest. We call it that because my Dad makes his famous Cincinnati-style coneys and Chicago dogs for everyone & we eat all day. There is always a contest to see who can eat the most. Of course, there are always all of the yummy side dishes and desserts, too. Here is a peek at some of the stars of the show...

Here is a picture of my Dad, hard at work in the kitchen making coneys.

I was able to get way more photos of the twins than I was able to get of Corbin because Corbin wanted to hang out with his girl second cousins all day. He hung out in their bedrooms, in the garage, in the bouncy house- wherever they were is where he wanted to be. He really liked Bella, whom he called "Miss Bella", and she was a really good sport about letting him tag along.

A pic of my mom and the boys:

Here are some photos from the bounce house, which Barry and Dawn were so kind in renting for the kiddos

Ella is the youngest Miller. She was the center of attention because she was super cute, smiley and sweet- even after skipping all of her naps.

Uncle Kevin and Aunt Carla did something very special this year. They had official t-shirts made for the kids (and Dad). My boys couldn't wait to change into theirs.

Love these goofy pics:

The twins enjoyed a little game of corn hole with Aunt Carolyn. They might have cheated a little bit.

Little Maya loved playing with Remy.

It got hot! They boys ran through the sprinkler a bit and cooled off with some Popsicles.

Chris was the champion this year, with 8 total hot dogs and fixin's consumed. Tristan came in second, and is likely to take him next year.

The man cave. Errr, tent.

It was time for family photos once again. This year, I found myself in the photographer position. I thought that I had brought my tripod, but I had not; Luckily, Barry had one to borrow. Aunt Diane and I tried out different spots around the house. She posed for me for a while so that I could test the lighting, but soon got bored and started posing and dancing. Haha!

Set up is always a fun process. Here, we try out some standing boundaries with two new models...

We got some good family shots, but the best was when Barry improvised and flipped a cartwheel in front of the camera.

Bud's family

The Miller Brothers

Cousins

The "Chosens"

All in all, it was a very special day where we all came together- from Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Colorado and Florida. I'm very lucky to be a part of this amazing family.

Sarasota Trip 2012

Jon and I like to get away for a long weekend once a year to enjoy each other's company sans children. It is a really nice way to reconnect. We do end up missing the kids a lot, but it's not too long away that we can't handle it. Jon's mom came down to stay with the kids, and we also had a sitter assist for 4 hours at night.

I am lucky to have 2 cousins who live there, too, so it was nice to meet up with them.

Our first day, we got into Tampa at 9 AM, rented a car and drove down to Sarasota. Jon's co-worker lives right across the street from Crescent Beach/Siesta Key, and we stayed there. The location was prime. We sat on the beach for a couple of hours the first day.

After soaking in some rays, we decided to walk down to the village to see what was going on. Not only do they have a myriad of fun places to eat at and buy souvenirs from, but they had a couple of great bars that were pretty fun, too.

Our first stop was the Daiquiri Deck, where Jon had a Purple Haze and I had a Mangolada.

I tried to get ahold of my cousin while we were there & succeeded. We made plans to meet up for breakfast in the morning (Mother's Day). We took one of those golf cart free rides back to "our" house since the walk was 3 miles each way.

The next morning, we met up with Biff, my cousin. We went to this great French Cafe' that had just opened called Bonjour. They had fantastic homemade croissants. I had the yummiest ham and cheese croissant with bechamel sauce. I also got a free crepe for Mother's Day.

Oh wait- I forgot that on Saturday night, we traveled back to the village to hang out. We ate at a local place called the Old Salty Dog, where we had scallops and a really yummy crab dip. Cheers!

I had also purchased this fun beach hat to match my new bag and sundress.

Anyway, back to Sunday...

We made plans with Biff to hang out at Siesta Key beach for the afternoon. The water was just fabulous. It was kind of an overcast day, but it never rained and the temps were perfect. Whereas the water was like green glass the day before, there were actually waves this day.

The sand at Siesta Key is like powdered sugar. It is currently rated the number one beach in the US, and the sand is a big reason why.

We took the above photo of our feet on the beach before my cousin joined us. I forgot to mention that we also ran 5 miles that morning. I've been sick and my asthma and allergies have been bothering me, so I complained a lot. We ran back on the shore, which was much easier than the pavement, but it was a bit rough on our feet.

After hanging out with Biff for a while, we headed our separate ways. But not before grabbing a quick photo or two.

That night, we had dinner reservations at the place my cousin Jeff works at. We met him there and he was a great host. He knew exactly what was the best at Salute', and we had it all. We had quite a few courses, as well as wonderful wine from their vineyard in Tuscany and their own barrel aged grappa. The meal was superb and the company was great, too.

The next day was my birthday. We started the day off great with a 10k run on the beach in bare feet. It was heavenly. Then, at Biff's advice, we ate brunch at an Amish buffet. We were completely amazed to find when we got there that the placed had been bought at the beginning of May by Der Dutchman. We could not believe it! It was strange to see Plain City listed on the front menu. Talk about the comforts of home!

Also on Biff's advice, we checked out Nokomis Beach, where we were hoping to catch some glimpses of dolphins, but they werent around that day. Pretty and relaxing area, though!

For dinner, all I wanted was a burger on my birthday. We ate at Gilligan's, which was a very friendly, fun place in the village. We dined outside with the lizards.

I also wanted a birthday drink or two back at the Daiquiri Deck. We had some crazy 7 daiquiri rainbow blend. Drinks were two for one during happy hour!

We took one last stroll along the beach at night and snapped some pics. We wrote down names of rentals while we were out, because we would love to bring the kids back with us next time.

After dark, we watched live music and ate raw oysters at the Siesta Key Oyster Bar. Jon still can't believe that he ate 3!

We met a nice couple, Suzy and Chip, that were on their first trip together. We always meet the most interesting people on vacation. They were nice enough to take our picture together.

Tuesday morning, we had jut enough time to walk along The beach one last time before heading back to Tampa. It was bittersweet. So sad to leave such a beautiful place, but we were so happy to tuck our little boys into bed that night.