July Summer Fun

Though our summer has been pretty hectic, we've tried to make some time for playing in the yard.  The water table is always a hit, unless your sister splashes you with ice cold water!

At the beginning of July, Olivia informed me that she's never wanted to do anything more than play soccer.  Thankfully, we were still able to register and she started practice at the beginning of the month.  So far, she is loving it and it is fun watching her try something new!

Simon and Mommy went on a Briar House date.  We sat outside on the patio and enjoyed our drinks.  He is so precious.

 

We spent a day with Grandma Patti, going out to lunch at Casa Mexicana, picking out books from the YMCA book fair, and playing at Pioneer Park.  We enjoyed exploring the train museum and playing on the playgrounds on such a beautiful day!

It has been a summer of new things!  Nolan decided to try tennis through the school district's program.  He was ecstatic that his buddy Isaac was doing it, too and absolutely loved it!  It's so fun watching the kids find new things that they love!

Our new hammock is absolutely wonderful.

Eric loves to do cooking projects on the weekend.  He really likes to make special dishes and involve the kids.  This time he made beef short ribs ragu with homemade pasta.  He got the pasta attachment for his mixer for Christmas and it made the process so much easier.  Everything turned out wonderful and the kids loved it too!

This little guy is growing so fast!  He loves to accessorize and always wants a cozy sweatshirt on.  He is also REALLY into shapes, the states, and the planets.

We took the kids on a day trip down to Wausau.  We went to Barnes and Noble, TJ Maxx, and went out to lunch at Becca's.  Then we headed to Marathon Park to ride the train, play on the playgrounds, and get some ice cream.  It was a super fun day!

The aftermath of a morning of hard play!

Olivia won her first soccer game!  She did a great job playing both offense and defense and rocked her first throw in!  She loved it!

We raised Painted Lady butterflies again this year and released them the other night.  The miracle of that process is still so amazing!  It is fun to  share that experience with my kids!

Olivia started riding lessons this summer at Western Connection Ranch.  She has ridden both Holly and Archie and is doing great!  She has a great seat and sits up so nice and tall.  She can walk and trot and is learning to stop and steer.  She's going to be a quite a good rider with some more hours in the saddle.  I love sharing this passion of mine with my sweet girl. 

Worm Race

 

Our library has held a worm race every year since Eric was a kid.  We have never competed in it before, mostly because my kids were (are) scared of worms, but this year they decided to pair up with a friend and give it a try.  We gathered with our buddies to paint our own team shirts for the Boo Hoo Bagels, the Wau-Wau Waffles, and the Rainbow Racers.  Each team picked out their worm.  In the case of the Rainbow Racers, it took a bit before either girl got enough confidence to actually touch the worm.  Once they did, it was important to keep their worm out of the sun and prepared for the race.  Each worm is dropped on a coffee can lid in the center of the table.  The first worm to cross the line around the edge of the table wins.  We cheered on our worms loudly, and we were so excited when Nolan and Broden's worm, Cream Cheese, won the first two heats!! Cream Cheese made it to the championship round, but crumbled under the pressure and lost the championship.  Nolan and Broden ended up winning second place in the tournament and came home with a cool trophy. It was a super fun (and unusual) activity to do with our friends and it was so fun to cheer on our worms!!