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!

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.  

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.

The 7 cousins, Leah (4), Tyler (2 months), Avery (4), Kylie (6), Chandler (1), Jadon (6), and Dylan (5).

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.

Our New Pool

This 15 ft. round pool is the perfect depth for Jadon and Leah.  The water goes up to Leah's shoulders.  The kids love it and play in it for a long time, on the days we're home.  Jadon has learned how to dive for things and they both have improved a lot with their swimming.  

Leah loves the camera and took this picture of Sophie...not bad.