Fun

I tried to come up with some great title for this post but as I looked back through the week in pictures one word kept coming to mind. Fun. Whether it was just a quick trip to the local park or a big trip to St. Louis, we just had plain ol' fun this week. 

This "cooler" weather had us outside every day. When was the last time we went to the park and actually enjoyed ourselves? (Well the kids always do...I on the other hand am not a fan of sweat.)

Em loves a slide and Auggie is a fan of climbing. Doug and I are fans of watching:)

Going to the park on a cooler evening had me feeling all things fall. I guess the teacher in me knows it is about that time. Fall is going to be so fun.

We spent other evenings playing outside at home. I told Em to run inside and put shoes on....I didn't specify which ones. Too small, gold sparkle shoes would have been what I picked too! Emery has been trying to master her bike but always ends up in the Barbie Jeep. Auggie tags along with Doug as he throws and hits every ball in sight or tags along with Emery if she lets him.

On Wednesday we got our pool fix in. We are water people! We always go to Newton Pool because it is the best around but we decided to try out Effingham's. Em loved the bigger slides but other than that....we are definitely still Newton Pool fans. It is just so nice! Em always talks about the life guards....maybe she will follow in her mother's footsteps one day!

I can't say Auggie really enjoyed the pool. About an hour or so in he was burning up with a fever and fell asleep. Poor guy. We let Em swim while he napped and then when he woke up he demanded to swim again. The cold water sure didn't hurt his fever! We went home, took some medicine and he acted fine the rest of the night. I blame teeth. Don't all mothers of toddlers blame everything on teeth?

By the looks of this picture and that crazy smile, he was better by Thursday. Which was a good thing because we had big plans! The original plan was to go to Grant's Farm with Nana, Dee Dee and Alayna. The weather showed about a 100% chance of rain so we went with option two: The Magic House. I think everyone else in St. Louis and the surrounding area had the exact same idea because I have never seen so many kids. It was packed but it was a lot of fun! (And guess what...it didn't rain at all once we got there..go figure.)

Lots of Magic House pictures are up next.

August Samuel was so good. I was afraid I was going to spend the day running after him/yelling his name but he stuck by our sides and listened. Way to go big boy!

I wasn't worried about Emery at all. She is not a fan of crowds and the place was crowded. So she was always close. I want to go back (when there are less people) because there were so many things she loved to do and I want her to get more time. 

She LOVED the grocery store (as did Aug) and the Vet clinic (we need to take a tour of Aunt Kaci's some day) and the pizza parlor. She liked the craft stations too.

Auggie loved anything that had a ball along with following Emery around.

I have said it so many times this summer, but I have enjoyed being with them and doing things so much. They just seem so big all of a sudden. Makes me excited for all the fun we can have in the future (with a sweet Baby Boy on my hip too.) This summer has just reminded me of how blessed Doug and I are. 

The girls had a lot of fun together. We heard them tell that to each other in the car. Isn't that sweet!?

We need to be planning their next adventure!

Nana treated us to this trip and for that we are thankful. Really we have Nana to thank for a lot of our summer fun. She spoils us!

We took it easy on Friday. Kids played inside all morning. My Mom heart does a happy dance when these two play together nicely. It has been happening a lot more lately. How much do you love Auggie with his sideways mask? Don't worry...after this pic, Em fixed it for him. After making messes and getting out every toy we own, we decided that nice weather was calling our names again. 

So we packed up a picnic and went to Ballard. 

No one else was there so we had the whole place to ourselves. We bird watched, played and then fed the fish. Sooo many fish and turtles. Now Aug wants to go fishing. Soon bud!

All week we had planned to grill homemade pizzas Friday night. It was a great idea.....until the kitchen was a wreck and we barely ended up with any edible pizza. Next time....we will just order some. 

Saturday morning we texted Uncle Chuck to see if we could have a lake day. It was such a beautiful day. His answer was of course. So after naps we headed that way. Emery knows how to ride a boat. She just relaxes and lets the wind blow in her hair. Her brother does an okay job....but "relax" is not really in his vocabulary. 

The Probst's joined us and the kids went swimming. Did you notice they are all holding hands AND almost looking at the camera?? I love them. Em, Aug and Hank loved jumping off the dock (Knox jumped too, just didn't love it as much) and then for supper Uncle Chuck made homemade pizzas. Successful, yummy, homemade pizzas. We will leave the pizza making up to him. 

Usually Auggie is on a two hour time limit at the lake but we let him stay all night with us. We made s'mores (in waffle cones...you have to try it!) and enjoyed the perfect evening.

That fire had me thinking Fall too. Apparently I am ready. 

We stayed out late Saturday, so after church on Sunday the kids (and Doug and I) took big naps. Love a family nap! After that we headed to Hidalgo for a quick visit. This swing was a staple in my childhood so I love it when my kiddos run to it as soon as we get there. 

After Hidalgo we headed to Grove for supper. I totally called Sue and invited ourselves over but I think she was just fine with that. Some of Em's favorite people were there too so it just turned into a fun evening. Kids picked tomatoes out of the garden and went on golf cart rides and we all ate too much supper and dessert. 

Perfect way to end the week.

We are taking it easy today and planning a few more fun things for these last two weeks of summer. That's right...only two more weeks left. But I have learned not to dread the change of seasons. We have a lot of fun all the time.

Happy Monday all!