The trip to camp and a little more

We had a great drive up to camp this year as a family!  David drove with us to make sure pulling the trailer north for the first time went smoothly.  The first day was super long, but we made it to one of our favorite parks on the Missouri River, Burynek state park.  This is the third time we've stayed there and loved it as always!  The boys were really excited to wake up and play on the playground.   We stayed far away from the river because it was "too big" for one little guy and too tempting for the other one to jump in too!  

Upon arrival to Concordia, we were given strict instructions to head directly to the facilities department.  They needed to see this trailer that was going to be parking in the woods.  Needless to say, when we got here, it was more than they were expecting.  One of the crew took David out to show him the "site", but DB determined quickly it wasn't going to be good for the trailer or us to be at Voyageurs.  So, this year, the boys and I are living at the Finnish village, a first for me.  They actually have  5trailer pads with 30 amp electric that they built years ago to host people that came up to help with work weekends!  Luckily, the director of Finnish was supportive of our arrival.  The good news is that I can run my AC and not worry about blowing a fuse if I turn anything else on!  The heat has been crazy here this summer!!!

The first few pictures are playing at Burynek after breakfast.  

 Flushing the potty and drinking some water.

 Cheese face at breakfast!

 10:05 PM on the longest day of the year.  Ridiculous how light it stays up here!  I woke up this morning at 0300 to pee and was certain it was 0500 because of how light it already was.

 Our home for the summer.  We are 3 miles from David's site one way but living the life of luxury!  

 Time out from bike riding for a snack.

 "Wack weeding" the bushes to "help the lawn guys."  Abers is in love with all the maintenance guys and they treat him very patiently with all of his stories he tells and his "toolbox" he shows off.  He has made a few of his favorites new toolboxes from cardboard, stickers, and crayons.  They graciously accept them!!

The good looking, cleaned up Voyageurs family for a beach side service.  #3 is 25 weeks in this picture!!!  

The off weekend is coming up and then Oma gets here!!  Hopefully, more pictures to follow soon!

Spring time, birth time, mother's time.

Can you tell I'm doing a mass update?  This is from early May to last week.  A picture review!

 Had to have a nap in his swing after "helping" with yard work.

 Tackling Dad, or else making him a horse.

 20 weeks with #3...as of 5/21.  Along with a new haircut!

 Loving the snakes and lizards exhibit at the Denver Museum of Science and Nature.  The super active burmese python.

 Super cute eating his sucker.  He sticks his tongue out so gingerly and then licks his sucker!

 These two love to sit on the steps together and read books or just be silly.

 DB found Aber's like this one morning after putting Solly down for a nap.  He got all the books by himself.  One side was waiting to be read, the other side was completed.

 Mother's day bike ride and picnic.  It was super cold and a little rainy, but we had a great time.  The next week was much nicer.  We rode further and had Oma join us!  Forgot the camera that weekend.

 Happy birthday DB!  Got a new French press, but not the cozy yet.  Haven't had time to knit that one up....

 Birthday boy with his boys.

 Playing on the merry go round.  

Fishing at Manitou Lake with Oma.  Abraham got to use a "real" pole, hook included!  Poor Solly though had to use a right handed reel and was having some trouble.  We all had fun though and then all slept well on the way home.  

(Some) of the uncles come to town

 The little white dog had to get in on the action.  That is Beaver "Bea" Benson, the newest addition to the family.  She's an 8 pound maltepoo.

 Bapa and his best friend.  Solomon runs around shouting BAPA!

 Getting a lesson from the uncle.  Maybe Aber's is teaching him how to play City of New Orleans.

 "Helping" Uncle Jake

 Loving his gluten free beer that Dad was so nice to share!  Too bad I didn't get the after shot of his look of disgust.

Happy Memorial day all!  We had a nice barbecue with Oma, Bapa, Uncle Dake (Jake) and Uncle Cutafer (Christopher). Sorry to say Kandin couldn't make it down since it was one of the days she had to work.   David planned it so that we all could get together on my day off from work.  It was a hot, super windy day but we had fun!  Yummy food.  The boys enjoyed their uncles, especially when the guitars came out!   Hope you had a great weekend too!

Friends visit during ECS!!

Much to my delight, my best friend of 25 years, her daughter, and her mom came to visit us while David was gone!! It was so great to have Beth and crew out here for the week. I didn't get many pictures taken, but a good time was had by all. We ran errands, found awesome stuff to make our own cloth diapers, caught up after not seeing each other for 2 years, and just relaxed, as much as possible with little people running around. The Oma's were a big help and let the moms go out for dinner!!

Come visit again soon!

Think Bapa wants a girl baby this time?

Blackmail.

The Omas, the moms and a couple of the kids.

Beth and Clara!

Bath time together! One looks, and then the other looks, but never in the same picture.

Oma's 60th birthday bash in AZ.

The birthday girl!

Happy birthday, Oma!

Late February 2012

To celebrate Oma turning 60 this June, the grandparents decided to have a mini family reunion in AZ. All 4 siblings were in attendance with our family and Jake's girlfriend to round out the group. We had a great time enjoying each others company while watching pitchers and catchers practice. Unfortunately, the full spring training didn't start until the week after we were there.

Bapa arranged for a bus and boat tour of the area one day. We got a history of the area, walked around an old mining/ghost town and went on a very nice paddle boat ride on a gorgeous lake. It was a very relaxing way to get to spend time together.

Instead of making the little guys behave in restaurants in the evenings, the main meals were shared at the hotel. Uncle Ryan spearheaded the grilling and made steaks with vegetable kabobs. It was delicious! Another night we were on our own, for pizza, or going for sushi after the little ones were in bed with Dad as the babysitter. Thanks for letting me go out with my brothers!

It was a short weekend, but enjoyed by all. Baseball, boats, good company, and pools. What more do we need?

Kandin and I on the paddle boat adventure.

After a nervous start, enjoying himself.

So much to explore. The adventurous one and the cautious one, which is which?

The birthday girl and the planner.

Abraham enjoying the company of his bald uncles.

The whole gang that was able to attend.

Super yummy dinner at the hotel.

Mr. Cool guy with his new sunglasses, reading a book.

Having a moment with Uncle Ryan.

Solomon's own personal cabinet to play in!

Taking in the sights at spring training.

Just so tired. Must nap.

Happy birthday trip, Oma!

Major snow day in Parker, CO with Uncle Jake and Kandin

Early February 2012

Seeing how the Springs never actually gets a bunch of snow, we had to go where there was. Alas, one phone call, and a full truck later, we arrived with sleds and snow gear to outfit the family at Uncle Jake's house. They had gotten about 20 inches of snow in Parker, which is 49 miles north of us. Oma had a wipe out before we even left the Springs, but she too was a trooper and broke trail and had fun sledding. All were wiped out by the time we were done. Abraham kept asking for more, again, more please! Solomon, unbeknownst to us, had bilateral ear infections and was feeling a bit under the weather but enjoyed being outside.

Catching a ride to the top.

Oma, with battered knee and face, broke the trail for the "little hill."

Mom and Abers about to head down.

Solomon's first sledding experience with dad!

Best picture ever. Pure joy.

Kandin also sledding for the first time and loving it. She was as excited as Abraham!

Uncle Jake

Sad Solly refused to leave his gloves on. He did enjoy riding this way.

The big guys working on a project.

Lots of pictures, but I don't think it does the day justice. Abraham asks each time it snows if it is enough to sled again. If we don't have enough here, he asks to call Uncle Jake to see if there is enough in Parker.

Love it!