February was a short month (of course) but life was busy! In the middle of our craziness was our trip to New Orleans, which made the month seem even crazier. Add in some winter weather and we've got one memorable month. The month began with a Mom and Minis Weekend. The next weekend was the Des Moines Children's Museum much anticipated Giggle Gala.
Months ago, the idea of a Gala was brought to the Board by...me, on behalf of the programming committee. We've spent the last few months putting together our very first Gala. Not one of us had ever planned a Gala before and had no clue what to expect. We were blown away by the support and success of our very first Giggle Gala! The night was a blast!
The Gala was held at Decades Event Center in West Des Moines. I highly recommend this space (if you're looking for one) and their bartenders are top notch. They created this special drink for our event. I 100% approved of it.
I didn't want to spend a lot on a dress since it's not like I regularly attend a lot of galas (plus, I'd want a new dress for each one). I gave Rent The Runway a try and loved it! It was a bit more expensive for a one time thing, but I received the dress on time and the return was easy too.
A Sunday snowstorm on top of a late night kept us home. We relaxed a lot, watched a movie, and read books.
Clearly the bunny had a hard day....
A few days later Hubs and I were in New Orleans. I had a great six days off and came back rejuvenated for the rest of our winter. Read about our trip here, here, and here.
A few short days after our return from NOLA was a very big and busy weekend. I celebrated my birthday early with friends, which coincided with National Margarita Day. I enjoyed delicious strawberry margaritas at one of my fave Mexican restaurants, Nacho Tequilas.
The next day was Saturday Family Fun Day. The minis picked out new books at Barnes and Noble (and did some reading too), with lunch at Smash Burger, and a long walk/run through the skywalk downtown. It had been awhile since we explored all of the skywalk level of downtown. I highly recommend this activity for wintertime in Des Moines. The minis were exhausted afterward.
Plus a game night, where Elizabeth cheated at every game played. It's kind of her MO.
We were woken the next day by layers of ice due to yet another storm. We made it out of the house to celebrate my birthday with family, then right back home.
The first weekend of March was the busiest of all. Hubs had to work, Harrison had his acting class, I had a spare hour with the minis before heading off to a Celebration of Life, and errands needed to be ran because Sunday was even busier!
With our spare hour, we went to the Art Center.
Completing their bingo sheet
Hubs and I crossed our fingers when we told the minis they'd be coming with us to a Celebration of Life. They have never been to one, a funeral, or anything of the sorts. We set up expectations ahead of time, but I really wasn't sure how it would go. They did a great job, minus Harrison telling me I "looked like a mom" when he saw my outfit.
The minis had a long few hours of sitting still and quiet, so I took them to the mall. Mostly to run our errands in the disguise to looking at the toys at Target. Harrison was severely disappointed to see the RV's had moved out of the mall (from the past RV shows).
Sunday we were back over at my parents, this time to celebrate my dad's birthday with family. It was a quick visit because Hubs and I had somewhere very special to be: the Des Moines Children's Museum new location! We spent our Sunday afternoon moving and organizing, getting the space ready for the grand opening. The minis got to spend a relaxing afternoon at home watching a movie.
