Month of fun part 14

Jon and the boys went to the annual fall camping trip with Royal Rangers last weekend.  They've been asking to go camping for a while so they were very excited for the trip.

Eight dads and their sons braved the cold weather and rain for a weekend of camp fires and no showers.  It sounds like a 3.5mile hike was the best part of the weekend.  

They played, they ate, did a Bible study and wore themselves out.  Everyone had a blast.

The gang!

Month of fun part 13

We've spent the past week catching up on laundry, shopping and doctor appointments.  We decided to get out Friday and hit the zoo.  It was a little cold and very empty. Just one more reason I love homeschooling!  We had plenty to do yesterday so we each picked one animal we wanted to see and hit the road when we were done.

The boys left for their fall camping trip with Royal Rangers last night.  Of course, the little ones were devastated they weren't going so we had our own living room camp out. They got a little rowdy when it was time to go to sleep, but overall, they did great.  I'm looking forward to sleeping in my bed tonight though.

Month of fun part 12

Zach wanted to go bowling for his birthday.  After church we headed out and made that happen.  They all did great. Bumpers do amazing things for kids scores....and some adults!

After bowling we headed back to the house and Jon made dinner for everyone.  Of course, ice cream was a must for the birthday boy.

We had one last night with our friends and headed home Monday morning.  We squeezed 7 people and all our stuff back into the car and once again, they did better than I expected. It was great being back in Chicago and seeing our friends, but as always, its good to be home.

Month of fun part 11

My baby turned 4 on Sunday.  I hated every second of it. He woke up so happy.  He told everyone it was his birthday and took advantage of the fact that he could get extra treats.  Zach still has his little guy face and loves his little guy things.  His giraffe (yaffi) is still his best friend in the world and his go to guy for everything.  He loves to sing, the color green and thinks pizza is the best thing in the world.  He still has a love/hate relationship with Ellie. They are the best of friends until she takes his toy or wants to play something else.  Then they are mortal enemies.  Just like his siblings, he loves to cuddle all the time, but he's the only one that will crawl into bed with me almost every night.  Zach can get excited about absolutely anything.  Finding a crayon in the toy box is just as exciting to him as eating ice cream and going to the pool, which are 2 more of his favorite things to do.  Zach loves to play on his brothers Kindle and mess up  play their Minecraft games. He loves to tell jokes, but the punch lines are always the same and they never make sense.  He is always smiling, always pointing out cute dogs for us to see and just like Sam, he loves to be with people all the time.  He's the life of our party and we love him to pieces.

Month of fun part 10

We headed to a large candy store and factory on Saturday. After getting our sugar fill, we headed to a US war memorial park.  It was a long trail with little facts about the US from 1900 to today

The kids thought this helicopter was pretty cool.  It listed all the missions it flew in.  It was definitely the high point of the park for the kids.

Tough guys.  Ellie wanted nothing to do with the camera.

After lunch Jon headed to church with our friend to play in the praise band while the gals went home to watch football.  Michigan State and Ohio State did not disappoint!

Month of fun part 9

We headed to the Field Museum on Friday.  I think the Ancient Egypt and dinosaur sections were definitely the favorites.

The boys were hams and posed everywhere we went. They were in front of an Egyptian tomb below:

The museum was bigger than I remembered and absolutely beautiful.

Ellies smiles are harder to come by than the boys:

The kids loved the gift shop here as much as the aquarium, but mean mom and dad didn't spring for a souvenir this time!

Daddy the hero helping out on the long way back to the car.

Month of fun part 8

We picked up Corrie from the airport after the aquarium on Thursday and headed back downtown. We started at Navy Pier. Fortunately for Jon they took the ferris wheel down a couple weeks ago so he was off the hook.  Most of the out door things were closed for the season so we did a quick walk through and then walked to the water tower area.

The Leg store was a must and a hit.  They all spent some time building and Sam picked out a special birthday present.

Finally, we were at my favorite place, The John Hancock Building.  The kids thought the view was cool, but just didn't get the sentimental value the building has for us.

After dinner and more shopping, we called it a night and headed home.

Month of fun part 7

We celebrated Sams birthday at Shedds Aquarium on Thursday.  The kids loved seeing all the unusual fish.  All Ellie wanted to see were jellyfish.  When she saw this wall, she was beyond thrilled!

We also found some real jellyfish for her to see.

We went to the dolphin show and the kids learned about a sea otter that the aquarium rescued.  Ben fell in love with him.

The birthday boy!

The front and back with a view of Navy Pier.

The kids loved the beluga whales and the dolphins.  Of course, the gift shop was the favorite.  We let them each pick out a stuffed animal.  I think that was the best part for them!

Month of fun part 6

My second baby turned 7 last week.  He's finally looking more like a big boy rather than a tall toddler.  I miss his baby face, but he's turning into the sweetest little man. Sam is one of the most generous kids I know.  He'll gladly share everything he has, treats, toys or anything else you have your eye on.  He offered to give Ben one of his birthday toys because Ben didn't get anything.  What kid does that?  He loves to cuddle and he adores his big brother.  He surprised me by wanting to home school this year and he loves it, especially math.  I didn't see that coming. He loves showing off his knowledge, especially if its something Ben doesn't know. He's still my video game kid.  He would play Minecraft on his Kindle all. day. long. if we let him.  He is still completely oblivious to what is going on around him 99% of the time.  Sitting still and eye contact are not in his vocabulary, but he takes in a lot more than we realize.  He has some of the best one liners. He has to be around people at all times and isn't happy unless hes pretty much sitting on top of you.  He keeps us on our toes all the time, but makes us love every second of him.  Happy 7th little man.  We love you.

Month of fun part 5

We loaded up the car last week and headed to Chicago. We have some friends that moved just outside of the city over the summer so it was great to catch up with them and visit my favorite city.
The car ride wasn't too bad.  The kids had activities and snacks to keep them busy.  We made 3 stops along the way and made it to our friends late afternoon.  They made us dinner and we spent the night catching up on life.

We headed to Kankakee on Wednesday.  We saw the graves of my dad and grandparents.  We spent a couple hours driving through the city and had lunch in a local (and amazing) restaurant.
That night, we sent our friends on a date night.  Jon and I babysat and had some Chicago pizza.  It was a good night!

Month of fun part 4

Last weekend was ladies weekend.  We went to Amish country for a night.  Amish country isn't really my thing, but it was a lot of fun hanging with the ladies and no kids!

We hit a flea market and lots of antique and craft places. We randomly found a Christian restaurant/pool hall for lunch.  We hit local shops and ate lots of amazing food.

Unfortunately for Jon, while I was having fun, he was dealing with two sick kids.  At least it seemed to move through pretty quickly.

A good time was had by all!

Month of fun part 3

New pj's