Summer Fun

Before we get to the fun, of course all three kids had to get sick this summer. The winner - Roseola....here is a picture of the dreadful looking (although not really bothersome) rash after the high fevers. I don't have a picture of the girls but it started with Brynn who gave it to Hailey who gave it to Klayton. I am not looking forward to winter... Now, on to the fun!


We took the kids to Blank Park Zoo. They enjoyed it a lot more this year than last year. It probably helped that it was sunny instead of rainy this year!

The pink flamingos are the girls' new favorite animals.

Looking at the colorful birds with daddy.

Check out the big turtle in the background.

Klayton did a pretty good job and he enjoyed the big animals (lions, tigers, and giraffes) and was entertained by snacks in the stroller.

The giraffes. The girls were very excited that there were three giraffes so they labeled them the daddy, the mommy, and the baby.

The Aquatic center was one of their favorite spots this summer. The last hour is "free hour" so we hit the water quite a few nights. Especially when we had our streak of 90s it would still be 89 degrees from 7-8 in the evening and the kids all had a great time in the water. This is Brynn on her favorite slide.

And Hailey...

And Klayton....splashing can keep him entertained for the entire hour. That is no exaggeration!

"Observing". Hailey loved to go down the big slides with Daddy and Brynn preferred to hang back on the little slide and just people watch from a comfy spot in the water.

We also have a great splash park. If you go at 10 AM it is free so I ventured with all the kids by myself one morning to check it out. The girls had a good time but were disappointed when they got their swimsuits on and didn't get to go to the "big pool" :).

We hit the splash park during Klayton's morning naptime. He got a nice nap in the stroller while the girls played.

We checked out the National Balloon Classic this year. The girls loved the "big balloons".

We got there in time to watch a few of them lift off the ground and then a lot more balloons started coming in for the evening "night glow".

This hot air balloon was huge.

I am not sure which the girls liked more - the balloons or the kettle corn that Daddy bought them for a snack. Yummy!

Brynn would not look at the camera - she was worried that Hailey was going to pick up the next piece of popcorn :).

Klayton enjoys our evening activities but refuses to sleep when every one else is having fun - so, he joins in!

Oh - and the lemonade. Toss up between balloons, popcorn, and lemonade. The lemonade might just take the prize for the best thing of the night!

Reading books while we waited for the big night glow extravaganza.

Hailey's favorite balloon was this panda bear.

The long-awaited night glow. Now, this was beautiful...for the 10 seconds it lasted. I had some expectations about what this night glow would be and I did not anticipate it would only last for 3 "ready, set, glow" 10 second events. Oh well - the kids had a fun time and overall it was worth it to see all the balloons, eat popcorn, and drink lemonade!

In other news, Klayton is fascinated by the fridge and books it to the door every time someone opens it. And with Hailey and Brynn in the house, it is opened often. He also tries to get all the girls' letters which they don't always like. So, we now have levels - low where Klayton can reach and "high" so Hailey and Brynn can reach and "really high" where only mama can reach :).

Hailey has taken up reading to her babies. She didn't take a nap one day - guess she wasn't tired or something. The unfortunate thing about sharing a room is that she sings when she is not tired (have I mentioned how much she loves to sing) and I am afraid she will wake Brynn up. So, she comes out and gets to experience what being an only child is like. That is a very rare occurance at our house. I was folding laundry so she decided to read to me and her babies. It was so very sweet. She will be a great mama someday!

The next two pictures are very random. I realize this. But, these are the little people from the girls' dollhouse. Now, Jason will not have anything to worry about in old age. Notice how the daddy is in the rocking chair with a blanket so gently placed on his lap by his adoring daughters. Now check out where mama is...I am outside on the porch fallen over the railing with no one to help me. What is this??? I guess I will have to work harder on Klayton so that I too will get to enjoy a rocking chair with a blanket!

One other funny thing. Brynn always asks if she can have "two more minutes, mama. Two more minutes to play." They have caught on to my "give me two minutes girls" phrase. Uh oh! I am going to think of a new one!