LegoLand

Jason and Jake went to the Legoland Discovery Center today. School was cancelled because of snow so we thought Jake would like this place. I didn't actually go, I stayed home with Olivia. Jake told me all about the fun time he had looking at all the characters built out of Legos. They took a riding tour in a dragon car that showed Lego scenes. He also watched a 4 D castle movie where the Lego mini figures were the main characters. Jake had a great time and said he would go again if I wanted to see how fun it was. What a nice guy!

Family Pictures

It's that time once again to get the family all together at the portrait studio and try to take a decent family picture. Olivia would not sit down or cooperate no matter what any of us said or did. She had her own mind set to what she wanted to do. Jake on the other hand would not stop getting his picture taken when it was time to go. He wanted to sit in front of the camera all evening. Considering the crazy time we had, we did manage to get a few that we liked.

Thanksgiving

We went to grandma's house for Thanksgiving. The kids had fun hanging out with grandma and grandpa. We watched a couple of movies and relaxed most of the time. Jake also helped make the apple crisp that we had for dessert. Overall, it was calm and uneventful, just how we like it!

Timeless

OK, I love this picture for three reasons. First, Olivia is just cute despite the bland look on her face. Second, only a little kid wants to put their gloves on while they're watching cartoons. She insisted and I couldn't resist. Third, I use to wear this great velure shirt when I was a kid. Hey, it's not every day you have a treasure like this that your mother saved for thirty some years and actually get to use it.

Weekend Home

We went back home to visit family and friends this past weekend and had a pretty good time. Jake was able to get together with his uncle Adam and ride a horse named 'Nick' on Saturday afternoon. We hung out over at Jay's parent's house with his brother Ben and his wife Lindsey and his sister Leslie on Sat. night. It had been about 4 months since I'd seen my parents so we had lunch over there Sunday afternoon. It was great to see everyone and we shouldn't wait so long to do it again!

Downtown Halloween

We went to the downtown area where they had their annual Halloween festivities. They had trick-or-treating, a petting zoo, live music, a costume parade, a costume contest, games and prizes. The kids loved dressing up and getting candy and we liked watching them have fun. It was a little windy but nothing to stop us from having our fun and doing all the activities. Jake was a black ninja and Olivia was a fairy princess compliments of grandma. Thanks!

Boo at the Zoo

We have gone to Boo at the Brookfield Zoo since we have lived here. Jake loves going and Olivia loved going this year as well (now that she's old enough to enjoy it). They went through a hay maze, rode in a play car, saw pumpkin carving, made a scarecrow (which Jake said looked like Jay), saw the animals and of course, got a goodie bag on the way out. Can't wait to do it again next year!

Princess Olivia

Olivia has been so much fun lately! She loves to put on these dress-up clothes that grandma gave her and parade around like a princess. She loves reading books and is always bringing them to us to read to her. She will sit for a long time listening to stories. She has also discovered the joy of watching Blue's Clues. If you mention Blue or Blue's Clues, she'll get a big smile on her face and run to the tv waiting for it to come on. We go for walks outside almost every day and she loves pointing out the birds and dogs that go by and saying their names. But most of all she loves it when dad and Jake come home from school and she'll run up to them and give them the biggest hugs!

First day of school

Since we didn't have the internet when Jake started school, I didn't get to post his first day of school picture. He loves being in first grade. He's in the same class as his best buddy, he has gym everyday and his backpack is really similar to dad's backpack. School couldn't be better for him! He is reading and writing very well (thanks to all day kindergarten and lots of practice at home) and we're really proud of him!

Wisconsin Dells

We decided that our family needed a little vacation to unwind and have fun so we went to the Dells. We stayed at the Kalahari resort where they claim to have the largest indoor water park and we weren't disappointed. There were fun things to do for every age group and we all had a blast! Jake is the perfect height to go on just about everything and many of them by himself. There were a few kiddie areas for Olivia to play and have fun where the water wasn't very deep. We spent two days in the water park and one night in a royal two room family suite (that they upgraded for us with no extra charge) and since the Dells are a three hour drive from us, we were pretty tired when we got home. We all had fun and we'd definitely go again!

no internet service

So we haven't had internet service on our main computer since we've moved. We've only had it on Jay's laptop and my pictures are on our main computer. This is why I haven't blog for the last month but I'm tired of feeling like a slacker so here I am doing the best that I can. We've actually done some fun stuff and I'll start out with our trip to Warren Dunes state park in Michigan. We went near the end of August and we all had a great time. Olivia did much better then I thought she would. She loved sitting on the beach where the tide comes in, playing in the sand. Jake just loved swimming, especially under water. We all climbed the big sand dune (Jake actually ran up it) and enjoyed the view.

Fun filled days of summer

School starts next week so I thought I would make a tribute to our fun filled days of summer. We have been able to do many fun and educational activities while Jason has been busy with school and the kids have enjoyed doing things instead of just sitting at home. Even though summer is coming to an end, Jake is REALLY excited to start first grade.

Lake View Nature Center

Today I took the kids to Lake View Nature Center. It's actually not that far from us and we usually ride our bikes there. Every Wednesday in the summer they have a program called "Wild Wednesday" where they have about 15 minutes of stories/ puppet plays about animals and then they have someone come in with a live animal the kids can see and sometimes pet. Today was a great one! This girl brought in a Wallaby (that Jake is petting) and a Kinkajou (that I'm holding). Most of you know that I'm not an animal person (although they are interesting to learn about) and I certainly don't go around touching animals but today for some reason I really wanted to hold this little guy. He was really soft and I really enjoyed holding him. We can't wait for next week when they are scheduled to have a tarantula!

Children's Museum

We went to the children's museum today and had a great time! This is one of the places that Jake went on a field trip to when he was in kindergarten. Jake didn't want to leave after 4 hours but what do you do when the baby needs a nap? Olivia didn't really want to leave either but I can only put up with grouchy for so long before I turn into a grouch myself.

Back to Grandma's house

We went back to grandma's house for a few more days. Jake went to the county fair with grandma and loved every minute of it! Jake also made ice cream (and ate it), had smores on the camp fire with uncle Adam and aunt Leslie, built a blanket fort in the family room with Leslie (and slept in it), went to the lake swimming, helped grandma put up the hammock and found and played with a toad. Olivia rocked in the rocker, played with the water hose, got into axle grease and rubbed it on her body and on her teeth, swam in the lake, pushed around a baby stroller and loved having grandma hold her. We always have a great time when we visit grandma!

Togetherness

I just love it when my kids have tender moments. By tender moments, I mean no one is crying, screaming, pushing, kicking or taking toys away from each other and they are playing in a harmonious manner. Like this picture. They were playing so good together and sharing their toys. Times like this make me feel happy and content!

Vacation

We had a great visit to grandparents in Indiana where Jake and Olivia played to their hearts content with their cousins. We went to the lake, rode 4-wheelers, made jam, got pedicures, played at the park, went to the zoo, ate out and just had a great time. Thanks grandma and grandpa!

Check out my Slide Show!

Sharing

Everyone loves a good slushy from the local gas station, especially in the hot summer. Jake said he'd even share with Olivia because he's a nice big brother. (If only all big brothers could be so nice) She was so excited to get a sip every now and then.

End of the season

Jake played his last soccer game of the season last Saturday. He enjoyed playing goalie (in the green jersey) and loved getting his metal. It was a good season but we are glad to have a break for the summer.

peeking out

I'll try not to post too many bath pictures...but Olivia kept peeking out over the edge and laughing so I had to take a picture of her. She was cracking me up!

Lilac Festival

Every year the city of Lombard has the Lilac Festival. It revolves around a park that is filled with lilac bushes that a Col. William Plum donated to the city in 1927 in memory of his wife Helen. It is a gorgeous park filled with lilac bushes and tulips and we took the kids to see it at it's finest. We also went to the lilac parade. Jake had never been to one before and to our amusment, this one lasted two hours. He really enjoyed it!