Backbone State Park

As a trial camping trip, we hit Backbone State Park for the weekend.  One little boy was very excited about the tent. 

Another camper was very excited about his new toy—a GPS. 

Sophia enjoyed her cozy hiking seat.

And Caleb found many things to explore and enjoy.

The excitement over the tent and sleeping bag lent to a late night.  Unfortunately, our early bird was up with the sun. 

More hiking:

Looking for a geocache on a small side trail:

We also swam/waded in the lake, rented a canoe, and enjoyed a s’more before the thunderstorms hit the second night.  Overall, it was a fun trip, but camping with little kids is a lot of work, too.

My Days

I ran into a former co-worker the other day and was at a loss as to how to describe my life these days.  Maybe these pictures will help. 

We’ve been enjoying the outdoors: taking care of flowers, building a retaining wall, painting our front porch rail, swinging on the new swing set, picnicking with PB&J, splashing in the water at the splash pad (Sophia), and avoiding the water at the splash pad (Caleb). 

Tired of cheesy grins, Caleb began “eating” the leaves:

If he didn’t enjoy this so much, it’d be a great time-out spot-- 

Middle of the day hugs and smiles--

Random decisions to be gross while Sophia’s cuddling with Mommy--

Trumpeting, just like her older brother--

So what have I been up do lately?  Random, silly, and simple things. 

Grandpa and Grandma’s House

Some more pictures from our trip to Grandma and Grandma’s house over the Fourth of July:

Caleb sitting on a decades-old Cat in the Hat ride-on toy and playing with a similarly old Transformer. 

Caleb loves playing with the toys at Grandpa and Grandma’s house. (Hopefully not more than he likes seeing his extended family. Caleb recently woke up from a nap and immediately shouted, “Uncle Paul!” So I’m guessing he likes the people too.) ;)

Sophia we her usual clingy self in the midst of the crowd of people, so Grandma had her hands available to hold Noah.  I caught this picture in a rare moment when Sophia was not in my arms:

Thanks for the great weekend!

Waterpark

Over the Fourth of July, we visited Luke’s parents and family which included the usual relaxing, eating good food (that I don’t have to cook), and playing a round of frisbee golf.

This time we also added a visit to the waterpark.  I think we went down this slide at least 50 times:  

On your marks:

Get set (making sure to cover your eyes so they don’t get):

Go!

Each time we’d reach the bottom, both Caleb and Sophia would run as fast as they could back to the top.  Sophia loves water, so even though it looks like she couldn’t see anything in these pictures, she was having a blast.  And although Caleb is generally cautious in water, the fun won out over his need for control this time. 

The waterpark also had a playground in the middle of the kiddie pool.  How fun! (That is, if you’re brave enough to get past the sprinklers.)