Monday, July 30, 2012
Pins Family Reunion
There was a big family reunion at my Aunt Sue's house in Dubuque, IA. I got to see my aunts, uncles, and cousins. Jadon and Leah mostly hung out with my cousin Melanie's son, Addison. We think Jadon and Addison look so much alike and they have a blast together. We wish they could hang out more often.
4 out of the 6 cousins, Brett, Melanie, me, and Greg.
The next day there was a baby shower for my cousin Greg's wife Sharmin. They are expecting their first child Aug. 20th. Below, Sarmin holds a cute tooth fairy pillow my aunt Paula made for the baby.
Greg shows his Mr. Mom side.
VBS 2012
The theme for VBS this year was Exploring God's Promises on Adventure Island. I lead the crafts for pre-k and Jadon and Leah attended the whole week. It was a lot of work, but very rewarding and the kids loved it!
These are the promises and samples of each of my projects.
I had 3 tables in my room and a little over 50 kids that I would see each day. We had record attendance at our VBS this year which was very exciting.
Tonja supervises the pre-k wing of VBS and the leads the Cubbies part of Awanas. She is a kind, servant-hearted woman and I love working with her.
Cooper the Dog is the VBS mascot and the kids love his daily hugs.
Leah plays with a craft she made, reenacting the account of the crippled man who was lowered through the roof by his friends, to see Jesus in a crowded home.
Jadon had several friends at VBS with him: Henry and Brecken, as well as Dale, Sawyer, and Luke.
Here, Leah and Micah stand up to sing the songs.
Jadon colored his hair orange for "Crazy Head Day".
My Day with Kate
On July 22, I was able to reunite with my Jr. High/HS friend, Kate. We haven't lived near each other since we went off to college, but have kept in touch. It had been a couple years since we saw each other face to face, so we set aside a day to spend together. We met in Gurnee and went for a long bike ride along the Des Plaines River Trail. Then we got pedicures and went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner. It was nice to sit out on the patio and talk, talk, talk. Kate is a great person and friend!
Farmer's Market
This year my dad has a stand at the Gurnee Farmer's Market selling cookies and biscotti. The kids and I surprised him with a visit a couple Fridays ago. He has a neat, bright stand and had constant customers while we were there. It was great to see him in action!
After stopping by the Farmer's Market, I took the kids to Great America again. We did a lot of the water rides, but after about 3 hours we got even wetter when it started to downpour.
The kids and I sought shelter under a covered bridge, before braving the walk to the car. I was thankful to have the stroller and towels and the kids were good sports. It was an adventure!
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Family Day
On Monday we went to Family Day at the WalMart Distribution Center where Brian works. It's basically a free carnival for the families and the kids love it. They played for 2 1/2 hours, going in bounce houses and down inflated slides, playing sports and carnival games for prizes, and eating sno cones, popcorn, and cotten candy. Then we went inside and Brian showed them all around the banana aisle. They were excited to open and close the banana "garage" doors, turn the lights on and off, and sit up on his forklift.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Wisconsin Dells 2012
Again we stayed at the Wilderness Resort for 3 days, Saturday-Monday. It seems to be a perfect vacation for our family and we all had a great time once again.
Larry and Cindy are fun to hang out with and great with the kids. They go all over with the kids and down the waterslides too.
The 2 younger cousins, Chandler and Tyler, did a lot of napping poolside.
The three brothers got their daily dose of veggies with these spicy Bloody Mary's.
"The wheels on the bus go round and round..."
Chandler and Leah enjoyed the baby bouncers. Leah liked me to swing her in it.
Betty's 80th Birthday
For Betty's 80th birthday, we had a dinner party at a seafood restaurant. We had a private room and the whole family was together, except for Brian who had to work. She is very healthy and still runs 2 miles a day.
4th of July Parade
This was our first time being IN a parade and the kids loved being on the other side of it. The Jones family put together a float for Aunt Vicki and Uncle Keith's business, QCA Pools and Spas. The theme of the parade was, "Let's have a picnic!" Our float had a picnic table, spa, and kiddie pool on it. The kids and I rode in the pool, shooting people with water guns. 4 teenagers in bikinis rode in the spa shooting people as well. Keith rode in the back of the pick-up truck and operated the bubble machine and music. Larry drove and Nancy and Avery rode with him. Dale, Brant, and Amie walked alongside the float and passed out candy and small balls with the QCA logo. It was a hot day and the crowd seemed to love our float. Overall, it was a really fun experience.
Fireworks
Dale and his family came to town for the 4th of July. We all went to Red, White, and Boom, the fireworks display in Rock Island on Tuesday night. The kids looked adorable in their patriotic clothes, but they didn't seem too thrilled by the display. I think they'll appreciate it and enjoy it more when they are older.
We had a neat view overlooking the river. There were lots of boats down below and the fireworks exploded right over the bridge and water.
The 5 older cousins enjoyed riding together in my van.
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