Here a goose, there a goose, everywhere a goose goose!

What a great day.  We drove to Rochester today and went to the Goose Park.  Jason's parents took him there when he was about Riley's age and he hasn't been there since.  He said the park has changed a lot but the geese are still the same.  The geese are all over and they swarm around you even if you don't have food.  If you have food they will eat right out of your hands.  It was neat but I won't lie they are a little scary.  Riley was not scared at all.  He just kept putting his hand out for them to eat off of it.  He was all smiles.  Austin just sat in the stroller and made noises at the geese.  I stood back after a while because they were getting a little too swarmy for me.

 

After Goose Park we drove to the Byron Zoo.  We weren't sure if there was a Zoo near Rochester but to our delight we found one about 10 minutes away.  It is a really cool park that has an awesome free Zoo.  We got there just as it was closing which was a bummer but we plan on going back next weekend.  We did walk around on one of the trails to see the Bisen and I took some pictures of the boys.  It was a beautiful day and we had a lot of fun.  After that we stopped at the mall and got some ice cream cones.  I love my family.  Thank God for fun days spent with family. 

 

 

Austin's Photo Shoot

 

 

Pictures

 

 

 

At the Beach

Today we took the kids to the beach for the first time this summer.  It was a perfect day for it.  Warm, sunny and NO RAIN!  Austin was a little worried about the water at first but it didn't take him long to realize the water is fun.  We put him in a little tube and let him float around which he loved.  Riley liked swimming in the water too.  We built a sand castle and Austin got down and dirty.  Austin just loves dirt.  He loves digging in it and smearing it all over himself.  He didn't try to eat it as much as I thought he would, only a couple times did we catch him trying to sneak a little taste. 

One of Riley's new favorite words these days is "Actually".  He likes to add that word to the beginning of most of his sentences.  Austin still does not say any words.  He speaks the language of "baby".  You can always tell what he wants but he speaks through grunts instead of words.  If you ask him what a duck says he does make a sound like "quack quack quack".

    

 

 

 

Happy Boys

Day one: Success!

Today was a success at the new babysitter's.  I knew all would go well.  Tammy is such a sweetie and I feel so blessed that she is able to watch my kids.  When I got there to pick them up, Riley asked if he could stay longer.  Good sign for the first day.  He got to dress up like Super Hero's today.  I even got to see pictures on Facebook of them.  So happy all went well.   

 

Just another family day together

Took the kids to Grand Dad's Bluff today.  Then went and visited Jason's Grandma and Grandpa.  Stopped and got ice cream on the way home.  Jason dropped Riley's blue moon ice cream cone but we decided on the 5 second rule.   Had a nice family day together. 

Logger game

Today we took Riley to his first Logger Game.  Gundersen Lutheran provided free tickets to all of it's employees and their families.  They had bounce houses, a big slide, face painting, autographs from the baseball players and free food too.  We were able to actually sit on the edge of the field to watch the game.  Riley had a lot of fun.  It was a  fun family event.  Maybe next year we will take Austin.

New Babysitter

Monday is the beginning of a new adventure for my kids.  Today I took them to meet their new babysitter Tammy Rouse.  I went to church with Tammy and Les a long time ago at Lacrosse Christian Church.  We were in a pinch and needed a sitter for the summer as Judy is having knee surgery and needs the entire summer off.  I found Tammy on Facebook and it just so happened she is a in home daycare provider!  I feel so thankful and blessed to have found Tammy on such short notice.  Finding daycare can be a nightmare and the best kind of person to take care of your children is always someone you know and trust.  The kids really liked Tammy and Riley was even more excited when he found out she will be taking them outside to play sometimes.  That will be so nice for him to get outside during the day sometimes.  I am glad it all worked out.  

Indescribable

Tonight I read Riley a book about Jesus.  Reading the book sparked some questions from him.  He asked me where Jesus is.  He has asked me this question many times before and you always think you would have a good answer until a child asks you this question.  It is actually a really hard question to answer for a little boy to understand.  I told him Jesus is all around us.  He created the world and everything in it and he is always watching over us even though we can't see him.  He responded by asking "When will Jesus come to our city?"  Well I tried anyway.  I told him that he is in Heaven above the clouds and we will get to meet him in person one day.  He then responded by saying "I can't wait until I get bigger and can get some web shooters that will take me above the clouds."(something along those lines)  Ha!  I ended the conversation telling him that Jesus loves him and always will no matter what.  Seemed like a good statement to end on.

God help me to teach my children about who you are.  You are indescribable!  

Father's Day weekend

Father's Day weekend was fun.  Spent the morning playing in the pool and on the slip and slide.  Jason made brats on the grill for lunch.  Took the kids to the Youth Bass Tournament to watch  Brian, our neighbor kid, weigh in his fish.  He placed 6th out of 60 which was really great considering he just recently started bass fishing.  He is always coming over to talk to Jason about fishing since Jason lives to fish.  He is a really cute kid and always plays with Riley even though he is about 11 years older than him.  Riley thinks he is the coolest.  There were a few professional fishermen at the weigh in.  We got a picture of Riley with Skeet Reese.  For Father's Day I made Jason a really cute Photo book titled "World's Greatest Dad."  I love making photo gifts, they are so much fun to make and always the perfect gift.  One of these days I am going to make myself one with pictures of me and the kids.  They are such a nice keepsake.  Jason made steaks on the grill for dinner which was AWESOME!  Riley loves steak too.

Ouch that looks like it is going to hurt.

Matching outfits courtesy of grandma.





Skeet Reese, professional fisherman.



Family picture on Father's Day.

Can't tell they are related!

Tonight I took the boys for a wagon ride all over town.  We walked to two different parks and played many different games.  I usually take the kids outside after supper and stay out until almost 8pm.  The wagon comes in handy so I can take both of them together and not have to wait on Riley to walk like a normal human being.  Riley sometimes rides his bike too but then I almost have a heart attack every time a car goes by because I think he will get hit.  Yes I know I am a little over protective but maybe it is just a woman thing.  The wagon just gives me more peace of mind.  Austin had fun roaming around everywhere and trying to climb on everything possible.  Austin has no fear he just dives into whatever he sees.  Riley was more cautious when he was his age but Austin you really have to watch because you never know what he is going to get into.

   

Baseball Star

Having kids really helps you to get outside a lot.  Tonight I took the boys to the baseball diamond.  I pitched to Riley for a good hour.  He got a lot of hits and every time he hit the ball he would run around the bases to get a homerun.  I would chase after him and most of the time let him make it without catching him.  Every time he would say, I won!  Austin just sat on the sidelines and watched contently.  Great work out for both me and Riley.  Austin chased after the ball for a while too. 

After playing ball we walked over to the Quick Stop and got some slush puppies.  Riley got a ring pop.  Austin wanted some licks too!