VBS, Swimming Lesson, and Softball...Oh My.

Just like that, it's nearing the end of July! Sorry I have been a little behind on my blogging, but these past couple weeks have literally been a blur of activity.

Two weeks ago, Emma had VBS and swimming lessons all week long. VBS was from 9am to 3pm, and then swimming lessons were from 5-5:25pm. It was a lot of running around and shuffling Emma around. Throw in a busy work week, a couple nights of softball, and it was just plain a crazy week.

Last weekend, we spent most of the day on Saturday at the zoo, which was fun, but really, really hot. We were super sweaty and hot after that. After some naps for everyone, we headed out to Jim and Barb's to hang out with Dennis, Jenny, and Katie and just putz around on the farm. The kids had a blast, and it was nice to visit with everyone. We ate supper at the Bait Shop, and then called it a day and headed back to town.

This past week was another busy one. Emma had another week of swimming lessons. This year, we had to have them at the Midco Aquatic Center, so they were inside. It was fine though. Emma loved it, and she learned a lot this year. They worked with the kids on back floats, front floats, jumping in and going under water with their heads, and starting to work on some front strokes. Emma wore her goggles to every lesson, and loved putting her head under water and "swimming". She passed her lessons with flying colors, and is ready for Level 1 next year.

We also played Softball a couple nights last week, and we went to a Canaries Game with John's work. They booked out the party deck again, and it was a pretty fun night. It was hot again, but there was free food and beer, so that made up for it. The kids came along and they did pretty well. We did some of the bouncy house and walking around, but they were really well behaved, and did well at entertaining the adults. Elliott actually was chosen for the Shoenman's Bat giveaway, so him and I got to stand on top on the dugout and talk with the announcer. She asked Elliott his name, and then into the mic he said "My name is Elliott". It was super cute and I was so proud of him to do that in front of the crowd. The mascot, Cagey, actually gave him the bat, and Elliott was super proud of it. It was adorable.

On Saturday, we had our softball tournament. It was super, super hot, and we didn't play very well. We played three games and lost two, and won one. I also took a line drive to my thigh, and have a super huge, sore bruise. But, it was a fun season, and I look forward to next year, when I hopefully won't have to pitch.

After the games, we went to Tomczacks' for an after-season picnic. It was a fun evening to socialize with the team, and everyone had a good time. The kids had a blast playing with all the other kids. We didn't leave until after 9pm, we had some super tired kiddos.

Today was a catch up day. We did church in the morning, and then Emma and I went on a shopping trip. We went to the mall for crazy days and got some shoes for school, and then on a whim, Emma got her ears pierced today! She did so well. She just sat there, and they did both sides at once, and she didn't flinch or cry or anything. I was so proud of her. She loves her earrings, and hopefully things go well with them!!

So, that's our last couple weeks in a nutshell. I also bought some underwear for Elliott today, so that's out next major task, is to try and get him potty trained. His underwear is super cute, now I just hope he can stop being so stubborn, and actually use the potty. Emma also gave up naps at daycare this past week, so that's another fun adventure over here.

Hope everyone has a good week!!!

Ice Cream truck came to daycare

Ready for swimming lessons

VBS Fun

Carousel Rides at the zoo 

Train rides 

Emma passed her swimming lessons 

Grumpy Mornings 

Sweet Summertime :)

This past week flew by in a hurry, and just like that another week of summer is over. This week was a little bit quieter, we didn't have any softball this past week and we also didn't have Soccer Bible Camp this week either, so it was nice to have some more evenings at home.

I did take Emma to a painting/bible class on Tuesday evening, which was pretty cute. They did some bible stories, and then did a step-by-step painting class. It was fun to watch Emma be so focused and try her best to copy all the steps. Her painting turned out pretty well, and she was super proud of it.

The rest of the week was fairly quiet with evenings spent at home, playing outside and going for walks. On Friday, Dyllan and Lizz took the kids to a Canaries Game while John and I went to block party downtown to see the Eli Young Band. It was pretty fun, but it was pretty packed and hot as well. The kids did well for the Jensen's and it sounded like they all had a really good time.

My parents also came to town Friday night, so they were at our house to help put kids to bed and get them settled. On Saturday, John had a wedding to shoot in Brookings all day, so Mom, Dad, Emma, Eli and I spent the day together. We had so much fun! We started off the day going to Terrace Park and walking through the Japanese Gardens. We also had a picnic in the park, which the kids really enjoyed.

After some naps, we headed out to the McKennan Wading Pool to do some swimming. The kids loved this. They swam, and went down the slides, and played their little hearts out. After a good hour of swimming, we headed to Hy-Vee for supper. We had some really tired kids after that, and headed home for bedtimes.

Sunday was another hot, summer day. After church, we ate lunch and then stopped for some ice cream. We played at another park, and then my parents decided to head home. We spent the rest of the afternoon playing outside in the water, and enjoying the weather.

Today has been a great day! I had the day off from work, so I dropped Emma off at Vacation Bible School at 9, and then Elliott and I went to the zoo. We were there for a good 2.5 hours, and Elliott had such a good time. We saw all the animals and then played with the toys inside the museum. Afterwards, we went to McDonalds for lunch, and now he is napping away.

Later we have Emma's swimming lessons, and then Softball. It's going to be another crazy week!!

Emma's Painting Class

Paw Patrol Cupcakes at Daycare 

Swimming!!

Jumped off the picnic table onto the patio cement, and fell, not good. 

Eli Young Band!

Weekend Adventures 

Elliott and Grandpa Jack 

Feeding Ducks 

Slip and Slide 

Koala Bears 

Visiting the zoo

Happy 4th of July!!

It's been a crazy, hot, holiday-filled weekend over here, and we have had so much fun! On Saturday morning, we got packed up, and we headed out to Yankton to the Lewis and Clark Recreation Area to do some camping. We had a pretty nice deal, we just showed up and our camper was set up and ready to go already, it made it pretty easy for us.

After some unpacking and getting settled in, we ate some lunch. Then, we headed to the beach and did some swimming. That was probably the favorite activity for the kids, they loved the sand and playing in the water with their floaties. We also lucked out and had wonderful weather, so the swimming was great. Best of all, it was within walking distance of our camper, so it was super easy to take off and go swimming. We usually swam at least twice a day, and sometimes even 3 different times. Emma loved it.

We also did a lot of biking since the park has such nice biking paths. Luckily the kids can still both squish into the bike trailer, but I'm not sure what we will do next year. I guess Emma needs to learn how to ride a bike! Elliott loved the bike rides, and usually begged to go biking, John definitely got a workout hauling those kiddos around.

We visited the Aquarium and Fish Hatchery one day, and the kids really liked that. They got to see a bunch of different fish, and even some snapping turtles. They thought it was great!! They also got to feed some fish, which they really liked.

We made a few trips to Yankton for odds and ends, and to eat supper one night, but mostly we just stayed on the campground and found things to do. We stayed three nights, which was kind of a lot with two little kids, but it went pretty well. The first night was terrible, as both kids were too hyper to go to sleep, but the nights got better after that.

Today for the actual 4th of July, we headed to Lennox from the campground for the parade. We were kind of at the end of the route, so we didn't get a lot of candy, but the kids still had a great time. It was super-hot outside though, so it was nice to sit in the shade and enjoy the parade.

After the parade, we headed to the city park for some refreshments, and to let the kids play at the park for a little while. Then, at 1pm there was a kiddie tractor pull that Emma competed in. At first she didn't even want to do it, but after some convincing, she did it, and she did really well. She ended up placing 3rd in her division, and she was so happy to get her very first Trophy. It was adorable, and she worked so hard for it.

After Emma was done, we were all melting in the heat, so we decided it was time to head home. Both kids fell asleep on the way home, and we got the car unloaded while they slept away.

After going to Culver's for supper, we are just enjoying a quiet evening around here. The kids are in their jammies, watching Paw Patrol, and we are hoping they will be in bed shortly. Everyone is pretty beat around here. It was a crazy few days.

Dyllan and Lizz are planning on joining us in our driveway for fireworks later this evening, so that should be fun.

Happy 4th of July!!!

First stop, the beach 

Eli with his friend, Mr. Cheetos 

Emma floating away 

Summer fun!

Water Balloons 

Dipping his toes in the water 

Fell Asleep on the bike ride 

Someone's ready to swim 

Feeding fish 

Train ride

Hanging out with Grandpa 

Happy 4th of July weekend

Bomb Pops 

Elliott being "Superman" 

Ready for the Lennox Parade 

Candy Scavengers 

Emma doing the Tractor Pull 

3rd Place!! :)

Emma really missed Poppy 

Kitty Hugs!