In the Summer, You Can...

More Summer, Summer Randomness, Full-On Summer Fun, Summer Means...  These are the last four posts and any of these titles would fit again.  We rarely sit still and pack a lot into each week.  More randomness of full-on summer fun...

In the summer, you can take a Sunday evening pontoon ride and not worry about packing lunches and laying out clothes for work/daycare the next day.

In the summer, you can wear jammies all day!

 

In the summer, you can get sucked into social media.  I've been playing around with Instagram.  I don't really need another social media outlet, but it's kind of fun to choose different lighting.  Same picture, but the trees and bubbles look way better in the IG picture.

Hadley has perfected the arms-crossed, lip-out, head-dropped pout.  Once in awhile she lays down too.  Fortunately it's not a fit with screaming and kicking, it's more drama-queen than anything.  I'm hopeful I "did my time" dealing with major fits/tantrums/ugliness when Finley was a toddler and she's my easy kid...until she's a teenage girl.

What a difference a day can make.  I start my posts mid-week and the day after I called her my 'easy kid' I ate my words.  Finley & I were playing downstairs while Hadley was getting ready to nap, or so I thought.  I heard Hadley's door open/close/open/close and it scared me for a second.  I ran up (picturing a masked man stealing her) and found a VERY guilty looking little girl OUT of her crib!

Twenty minutes later she had a roof over her head.  I have hopes of keeping Hadley in a crib until she turns 3, it should be no problem now.

In the summer, you can go mini-golfing with friends!

Due to Finley's ultra-competitive stubbornness, it was the fastest round of mini-golf ever.  He absolutely raced to be first - first to tee off, first to putt in, first to get his ball out of the hole, etc.  It was super annoying, but no matter what I said he would.not.slow.down.

Nice form!

Since it's rather unavoidable, we stayed and played a few games in the arcade.

One of our elementary schools has a new playground, it's absolutely incredible!

In the summer, you can take your time at the store.  We stopped for a few groceries and Hadley had her first 'go' with a mini-cart. 

 Cute, but not efficient.

In June we visited the Weinermobile while the Gordy's Guru was filming a commercial.  The kids were asked to join and very un-enthusiastically waved to the camera.  It's finally on the air!  I saw it at the gym one morning, then taped twelve hours of TV in hopes to catch it - I did!

My kids are way on the right, Finley's wearing a blue/white shirt, Hadley is covering her eyes and Elle is in the pink dress.

Can you feel the excitement - snore.

In the summer, you can NOT go to Como Zoo.  I really wanted to take the kids to Como Zoo, but evidently I wasn't the only one with this idea.  We arrived to find the parking area and neighborhood streets completely packed.  Detour to the Mall of America.

Grandma, Auntie, Easton & Nolan joined us.  We went to the Underwater World aquarium, I'd never been, kinda crazy that it's in the mall.

After a quick lunch, we hit the Nickelodeon theme park in the center of the mall.  Finley recently told me he'd never been on fair rides, so this was a perfect substitute for the zoo...and since everyone seemed to be at Como, the lines were very short for the rides.

Finley talks big, but he's kind of a chicken.  I didn't know how he'd do on the rides...he surprised me and loved them!  This ride goes up, then drops the kids down, back up, drops, etc.  It was the kid-version, so pretty tame, but great for them.

The entire ride was empty, but Finley & Easton chose to ride together.  I feared they'd end up fighting over the controls to move "Blue" up/down.  Again surprised, they didn't...I seem to always fear the worst?!

 Hadley went on two rides - the hot air balloons...

 
 ...and the merry-go-round.  She cheered and was excited on both rides! 

 
Finley's very favorite was the roller coaster.  I couldn't believe he wanted to go!  He wanted to sit with Auntie, so I didn't see his face at all.  After the first hill/fall (it went pretty fast) I asked if he was scared, Heidi replied he was smiling.  He got off and wanted to go again!  Maybe he's braver than I think.

I had two days with Hadley to myself.  We didn't do much, but stayed busy in a relaxed way.  We missed Finley, but it's kinda (way) easier having just one kid to bathe, feed, put in a carseat, etc.  We took Hadley's Bitty Baby for a walk.

Stopping every ten steps to adjust the blankets because baby sleeping.

Hadley took her trike for a spin - I'm amazed how she can pedal, I don't remember Finley pedaling so early, maybe he did and I just don't remember?!  There are a few things I feel she's doing earlier, but maybe trying to keep up with an older sibling has pushed her faster?  Regardless, she's a cute peddler, not the right word, triker?   That's not right either, you get it, she's cute on her trike.  And she pedals it.

Stop, no follow me.  All this new talking is super cute (insert sarcasm).

We were excited to spend time at Liam & Rory's cottage!  Hadley looks like a giant next to Rory!  His chair is pushed back, but seriously, she's only 7 weeks older?!  Look at how her legs hang off the chair, she must've been scooted up?!

In the summer, you can go on a special overnight with Grandma, Grandpa & Spencer in Wisconsin Dells!  This starts an annual get-away for them, next year Easton will be old enough to join.  Going off the texts and photos on my camera, they did it all!  The WI Dells Original Ducks!

I'm not sure what this is, but it looks like a bucket ride over something.

Bumper Boats!  According to Finley these are a lot of fun, because you crash!

 
 A carousel.

 
 Some kind of rope-obstacle course.

 
Mini golf with both boys making a hole-in-one!

 
 Go-carts!

 
 They had their own room with a giant bed for each of them. 

 
The resort included an indoor and outdoor waterpark.

 
 Even Grandpa got in on the fun.

 
Finley was a little nervous about some of the slides, super sweet Spencer held his hand on the walk up.

 
They went to the Tommy Bartlett Water Ski show.

 
There was an arcade.  Which was (sadly) Finley's second favorite thing about the WI Dells trip.  Ugh, for real?!  I'm guessing Grandma & Grandpa put money into the video games, I make him pretend, so I guess it was a real treat.

More mini-golf!

 
They ate at fun restaurants, Buffalo Phil's was by far the coolest.  Their food was delivered on a train!

Right before they left for home, they went to a wild life park.  I can't believe how close the animals are!

Giraffe looks like she's posing for the picture too.

And now she's telling them a story.

A train ride.

 
 Gross.

 
 And the highlight - riding a camel!

 
 What two lucky-lucky-lucky little boys! 

 
In the summer, you can ride the Carson Park Trains.

 
 It's a must to ride both.

 
Hadley's hair isn't quite long for a do-able pony tail.  Ironically, it's the only hairstyle Patrick will attempt.  She looks like a total rag-a-muffin.  He seriously needs to attempt something else.

 
In the summer, you can run out of time to do everything.  It always surprises me.  There are still projects I want to tackle (and doubt I will).  And there are still places I really want to take the kids - the build-your-own yogurt shop, the butterfly garden at Beaver Creek, Music in the Park, the children's museum in the cities, some waterfall near Heidi's (actually, this is more Finley's need, Auntie told her they could go, they haven't yet and he hasn't forgotten.  This isn't a public plea to get her to take him, just another thing we're running out of time for).  Ugh, I have a love-hate with August.

Tomorrow we are starting that final push of summer.  The kids have their first day at daycare, while Leslie & I start putting our classroom together.  Thursday we'll leave for our annual summer weekend in Chicago - including a Cubs Game this year!  I'll catch up next Monday....cause I can do that in the summer.