"Blog already."

That was a text (in its entirety) sent by my sweet but apparently not verbose sister-in-law tonight.

Yes, dear blog friends, it's been awhile. I'm sorry.

I stopped writing a couple weeks ago when my days were consumed with some digestive issues with Madeline. There really was no delicate or humorous way to explain all of what was going on without 13-year-old future Madeline reading it and wanting to shrivel up in humiliation with the possible outcome of her never speaking to me again.

So I chose to not write anything. For a really unfortunate and unnecessary amount of time.

Which is why I'm sworry (as Gilbert Blythe would say).

In case you were wondering, she is 100 percent better and my sanity would like to thank the following:

• modern medicine
  
• effective laundry detergent
• Miralax
  
• mini Snickers
• microwave S'mores
• InsideRedbox.com and their free codes
• McDonald's diet Cokes in styrofoam cups
• Madeline who managed to stay completely adorable during a very rough time
  
• my husband who listened to whiny phone calls that interrupted his important and busy day with ramblings like "And then there was poop all over her! And there was poop all over me!"

So now you know the reason for my absence. Let's get to a super crucial and riveting story about what we did exactly three weeks ago today.

(Disclaimer: the following includes many pictures. If you believe I took a single one, then you must be new to my blog and I want to welcome you personally. For the record, Lani took all of them. I'm so grateful to be friends with people who use cameras. Especially when my daughter is in them and I can pretend to document her life later.)

Madeline and I drove up to Muncie, the home to my beloved alma mater, Ball State University. One of my college roommates' son turned three so we spent the day up there with them and met his gorgeous little sister.

It was kinda strange to go back to a place where you have so many fun and crazy memories with so many fun and crazy people but take your kid with you.

Years ago, never once did I sit in Muncie IHOP in the wee hours of the morning thinking one day my order might include "and a Funny Face pancake but hold the Go-Gurt."

Actually, now that I'm looking at these pictures, I realize she's behaving exactly like her mom did in those very same booths.

All I can say is, "It's in the genes, baby. It's in the genes."

The kids discovered one of the greatest joys on a beautiful day at Ball State: Frog Baby.

When I splashed through it at 1 a.m. in flip-flops about seven or eight years ago, I never imagined my daughter would one day beg me to do the same.

I do believe we have a future Cardinal in our future.

I do believe this picture will make an appearance at her high school graduation open house.

I do believe after this picture was snapped, I headed straight to the bookstore to buy her a small bright pink BSU t-shirt.

I love this picture because we met up with Bridget (a fellow Linden Lady) who adores our kids and is willing to lie on the ground just to be next to them.

Clearly, they adore her too. Who wouldn't?

We took a group picture in Woodworth which has been remodeled beyond recognition.

Ending on that note meant I drove home with a nagging reminder that I am getting old (as if the sleeping toddler in the back seat wasn't enough).

Even though I like to complain about getting old, I really don't mind it.

I feel so lucky and so blessed and so fortunate to have so many wonderful memories. They are memories I wouldn't have if I didn't age.

So I will gladly trade years for memories any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

P.S. So much more has happened in the past several weeks including the last fact that the last time I blogged, I was mom to a 2-year-old but now there's a 3-year-old in the house who continues to follow me around the house asking for food. More on that later.