CAITLIN'S FAMILY PARTY

Caitlin's official birthday isn't until the 29th but we had her family party on Sunday.

It's hard to believe Cait is eight already.

Cait became a Scrabble expert when we were in Eagle River and continued playing when we went camping at the beginning of this month. Her Auntie Cheryl surprised her with this adorable Scrabble cake. It wasn't only cute it was super yummy too :) Caitlin chose Tinkerbell as her birthday theme this year and of course Aggie, the baker did another awesome job on the cake.All set to blow out the candles...
Then it was pinata time. We had a pull string pinata this year so there were no bats flying around. Sometimes these "open" really quickly but this one took until almost the last string.

Our very generous families showered Caitlin with gifts which she has spent the last few days of her summer vacation trying out!

STATE FAIR

We didn't have a whole day to go to the fair this year, so we went on late Saturday afternoon.

We had dinner, saw the animals, had flavored milk, watched the horse pull, and milled around for a bit.

The kids especially liked the cows and of course the bunnies this year.

Logan's set to plow the fields.

It's always amazing to see how huge the Clydesdales are up close!

And...we couldn't leave without having the famous cream puffs!

Logan's eyes were not bigger than his stomach - he finished the whole thing! Caitlin got a little messy!
Shannon didn't want her picture taken just yet.

We all had a really good time.

YELLOWSTONE LAKE STATE PARK

My brother Bill and sister-in-law Cheryl do a lot of camping.

Each year I try to take the kids for a long weekend.

Chris is super busy getting ready for football so he stays home to get some work done and we go off into "the wild".

This year Bill, Cheryl, my mom, and my niece Becky were at the State Park with us.

It was southwest of Madison and very nice.

Our home away from home for the weekend.

My brother has a camper and we set up a tent.

The girls love sleeping in the camper.

Logan slept like a champ in the tent with my mom and I. One of the best parts of camping is the great camp food.

These are our pudgy pie pizzas and that night we also made delicious pudgy pie pies!

Another night we had zip-packs and of course s'mores :)

The nights were perfect for campfires. Logan liked to snuggle with Grammy and fell asleep next to the fire each night.

My niece Becky and Shannon, Logan and Caitlin.

The beach at the park was very nice. The sand was super fine and very soft.

The kids made lots of cool creations including this sand city.

There was a very nice swimming area. The lake bottom was soft sand as well.

The water was a little cold but it didn't stop the kids from swimming and splashing about.

Even Logan ventured out a little deeper. Shannon wanted to go canoeing so we rented one and went out one afternoon.

She was a super "paddler" although a bit nervous when waves hit.

We did a little hiking while we were there, besides the hike to the bathroom that is!
Becky and I took the kids on a trail that went around our campground and wound up at the lake.

A nice picture once we got to the lake.
Then the next challenge was going up a super huge hill to get back to the campsite.
Shannon thought a better description of it was "the mountain"!

Camping is such an awesome experience for the kids. It's great to be outdoors and enjoy nature. We are so glad we got to go this year!

BUSY SUMMER DAYS!!!

We have had a fantastically busy but fabulously fun summer.

Each day has found us doing something new, although thankfully we've had some days just to relax too!

AMF Bowling Centers allow the kids to bowl 2 free games each and every day during the summer. All we have to pay for are the bowling shoes.
Logan did okay with the 6lb ball ;)

I couldn't pass up sharing this picture. First I love the little bowling shoes and then

I couldn't believe this form for a 4 year old.

I guess you learn a lot from Wii Sports!Shannon's friend Marina met us at the alley so the girls could spend some time together.
Caitlin's friend Isabel came too and the girls had a great time.

A few days later our goddaughter, Sophie, spent the day with us because her babysitter

was on vacation.

Sophie is 19 months old and an absolute doll.

She loved eating breakfast with the kids and ate like a champion.

I'm glad I kept a few baby "things" around the house including our highchair.

We snuck in a quick walk to the park before lunch and a 2 hour long nap.

We loved having a baby in the house again, but I must admit I do enjoy the level of independence our kids have reached :)

The following weekend there was an air and water show at the lake front.

We took the kids to a nearby park to see what we could see. We were pretty far from the action but we did get a good look at the Blue Angels (I think). They were quite impressive!