Mural Hunting

Like many communities, we have murals popping up all over the city!  

They're so pretty and unique and we have had so much fun hunting for them this Summer.  

It's been an easy, free activity that our whole family has enjoyed.  It started when I hosted a mural hunting challenge with my local mom's group.  It was really cool to drive around to find them.  Some are located in spots with several in a row and easy to walk to.  Others are more of a drive.  We broke up our mural hunting adventures into several days.  The kids loved it!  I'd drive (obviously) and they would keep their eyes peeled for murals.

We'd highly recommend going to see all of them in person if you're local even if you don't feel like snapping a picture with each one.  They're beautiful and we are lucky to have so many unique art pieces on display in our area.

All of these murals are located in and around Terre Haute, Indiana.

 This Terre Haute postcard is brand new!  It's in the alley around the corner from JFord's downtown.

@ JFords restaurant - facing Walnut.

@Terre Haute Brewing Company

@Java Haute drive thru

@ Deming Park on the train garage

Drive Down Wabash Ave and you'll see these murals!

Terre Haute: Birthplace of the Coca-Cola Contour Bottle (&Fletcher and Leo!!)

This one is a bit of a mystery.  It showed up on the side of a building that experienced a large fire earlier this year.  My kids crack up every time they see it so it was fun to check it out up close.

@ Indiana State University

Head North up to the 12 Points area and you'll find several beautiful murals.

And if you're up for a short drive, head 20 minutes east of Terre Haute to Brazil, IL.  There are lots of murals around the city, too.  We found a really great alley filled with 10+ different murals all in a row.  The kids loved checking out these interactive murals.

 

Do you have murals in your city??  If you do, you should definitely go and check them out!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!  See you back here next week.

PS Have you entered my 10th Bloggy Birthday Giveaway yet??  The winner will be announced on Monday.

10th Bloggy Birthday & Giveaway!

Happy 10th Birthday to Polka-Dotty Place!

I cannot believe I've been blogging for ten years.  Wow!  My blog is older than my kids - ha!  

I started blogging back in 2011 to stay connected to family and friends.  I have blogged about everything from teaching to travel from pets to parenting.  The good and the bad of my life over the past ten years.  My blog has survived 6 moves, 4 states, adding 3 kids, 2 kittens and much more ups and downs.  I've loved every minute of it and am so thankful to have had this creative outlet.

 

 

 

I'm a list maker so here's my list of blogging favorites ten years later:

1. My friends.  

I'm so thankful that you show up here every week to read what I write.  Thank you for following along and being my friends.  I've known some of you since the very beginning and you've become dear friends to me.  And if you're a newer blog friend, I'm so glad we got connected.  I am always so thankful when I see a comment, a text or a card in my mailbox from my blog friends.  I just love that I've made friends that I can connect with about so many different things all thanks to this blog.  If I had to scroll through my phone you'd see text and emails about adding a 3rd kid to the family, losing a beloved dog, praying for a friend's husband, a new house, a new move, cats, prayer requests, kids going off to college, bonding over the lack of sleep we're getting in this stage of life, tips about traveling to Naples, cancer and the loss of a daughter.  All from blog friends that I've mostly only met online.  It's wild and wonderful!

2. Documenting the Highlights

I love scrolling back through the archives to see the highlights of our trips, our family moments, day to day life with littles and more.  I'll always be thankful that I took the time to write stuff down.  My memory isn't the best so rereading old blog posts is my favorite.  I really love rereading each kid's birth stories, our infertility story, birthday party posts and funny things the kids say.

 3. Sharing What I Love

I love my family and being a mom.  I love cooking, making pretty food and wearing outfits I love.  I enjoy all things hospitality related - party planning, hosting, organizing, holidays, decorating and making friends.  It's so fun to share those interests with you and build community here.  I've enjoyed meeting other bloggers, working with brands, reviewing books, styling products I love and sharing things I use and love with you.  I really, truly look forward to blogging when I see it on my to do list.

And since we're talking favorites...

I have a fun giveaway to celebrate Polka-Dotty Place turning 10!

I'm giving away one $25 Amazon gift card via email to a lucky reader.

All you have to do is comment below:

Tell me your favorite blog posts from me or any future post ideas that you'd like to see from me!

 

For a bonus entry, head over to instagram (@polkadottyplace) for one more entry option.

You've got from now through the weekend to enter.  I'll announce the winner on Monday morning.  Be sure to include your email in your comment so I can contact you :)

THANK YOU for reading and enjoying my blog!  You're the best!

Leo 10-12 Months

Better late than never... Leo turned one in April.  

I've had this post on my to do list since April to document his 10-12 month milestones just like all of the other kids.  I was determined that anything I did for Olive, I would do for the boys.  I can't let this milestone slip by.  So here's the last of his monthly milestone posts.  I'd done all the work of snapping the pictures.  I just had to gather them all here.

Someone asked me how many months Leo was the other day and I said: "Ummm he's one!"  Then had to do some counting to say he's almost 16 months.  I probably could have answered that question easily with Olive, with a little hesitation with Fletcher and now my brain is just on overload keeping track of all the things this time around.  Any other moms out there that can relate??   

Leo // 10 Months

You are VERY BUSY.  You are a baby tornado leaving a path of destruction wherever you go.  You like to dump all the baskets, empty all the drawers and you are starting to have opinions.  You want your own snack bowl, your own space and you've started pulling hair.  You can now give kisses, take 1-2 steps and you enjoy going on winter walks since we got a bubble cover for your stroller.  It must be cozy in there!

We got well over a foot of snow this week and you loved it.  You weren't so sure about those single digit temp days of playing in the snow, but when things warmed up a bit you crawled and tunneled your way through the yard.

You aren't sleeping very well this month and are very accident prone.  You decided you no longer needed your paci.  That made us all sad.  We had to travel to your first funeral - your great grandpa - Papa passed away.

 

Leo // 11 Months

You started taking enough steps and wanting to be mobile so you wore your first pair of shoes (hand me downs from Fletcher).  You're standing really well, waving hello and got to go to your first trip to Wisconsin Dells.  You enjoyed the water parks and are trying to say a few new words.  You blankets are your favorite.  They were the soft swaddle blankets that you loved as a baby and now you drag them around with you wherever you go. 

You are a foodie and love most foods we've introduced you to.  You also love to chew the erasers off of pencils anytime you find them.  That really frustrates your big sister.  You enjoy stroller rides and babble the whole time.  When you hear music you love, you dance.  The Beach Boys made you dance this month so we keep singing it to you.  You took 7 steps and will be walking in no time.  This makes you our earliest walker.  You've got to keep up with your siblings. 

Mama is still your #1.  You cry when nice ladies talk to you and are totally smiley and friendly around men.  You're wearing size 5 diapers and size 18 month clothes.  You have 11 teeth and 4 new molars.  Maybe that's what has been interrupting your sleep.  You still take one nice nap every afternoon that allows mom to get done all the things.

 

Leo // 12 Months

You had and really enjoyed your first DumDum sucker.  You're a big fan.  You are walking well now and have started throwing tantrums.  You love cake, loved a cheeseburger kid's meal at Culvers and are happy to hang out at home. 

You celebrated your 2nd Easter, were skeptical of the furry Easter bunny and hunted your first eggs.  You love finding treats inside of them, but probably enjoyed shaking them and making noise more. 

You love bath time, any water, snuggles, getting into all of the kitchen drawers, the cats and you love music.  

Time sure flies!

And that's a wrap on the Leo monthly milestones.  We love you tons, Leo!