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Rockin’ Rogers

Nolan, Larissa, and I went to a parade today.  The “Rockin’ Rogers Parade” as Nolan will tell you.  My cousin, Amy, is a flag girl for her high school.  We’ve been able to see her perform two of the last 3 summers.  Unfortunately, we couldn’t bring Lincoln this year because he was sick.  Poor kid.  Last summer he missed another parade because of an ear infection.  Maybe next summer!  The Rogers parade is a great one because of all of the entries.  They had over 100 cars, floats & bands.  Plus, it’s always more fun to go when you know someone IN the parade.  After Amy’s group passed by, we took Nolan over to the midway and Larissa rode down the giant slide with him.  You can’t tell by his face in the picture, but he did enjoy the ride.

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New pool

The weather has been SO hot already this summer.  Today I reached a breaking point.  I loaded up the kids into the suburban and headed for Menards.  The boys love going to any of the big box hardware stores.  They actually know the difference too, which is hilarious to me.  When we drive by one, Nolan is usually quick to point out which one we are passing.  We have also taught him what Ace Hardware is as well, since it’s important for him to know Uncle Mark’s store 🙂

Anyway, I digress.  We picked up a cart and headed for the garden section.  The boys were given the choice between a purple or blue pool.  They chose purple.  We loaded it into the truck and headed right home.  They were uber excited to fill it and play.  Water temperature doesn’t phase them in the least.  Their lips could be blue and their skin have goosebumps and they’ll continue to play.  As for me, dipping my feet is enough!  I have a feeling the pool is going to be an important part of our outdoor play this summer.

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Taking the field

Let the fun begin!  Nolan and Jake headed to the soccer field tonight for Nolan’s 1st game 🙂  It was fun to watch the kids play.  You can definitely tell the difference between the 6 year olds (several who have played before) and the 4 year olds.  The older kids “get” the concept of trying to kick the ball toward the opposite goal, while the younger ones just like to watch the others play and cheer them on.  It’s really cute!  The kids play 5 minute periods and then switch positions.  The great thing about the league is that there aren’t any refs.  The coaches are on the field with the kids and coach them as they play.  I think it’s a great way for them to learn some of the fundamentals about the game while also having fun.  It’s totally a no-pressure game.

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Father’s Day and 50 years

We spent Father’s Day at my parents’ house this year.  The weather was beautiful!  We played in the backyard, which the kids loved.  Bocce ball, hula hoops, wiffle ball, oh and of course, “water squirters!”  Good times.

After dinner, we headed to Jake’s grandparents’ 50th anniversary party.  50 years!  What an awesome event to celebrate!  Jake had taken some of their wedding slides and scanned them, so those at the party were able to “relive” the original celebration along with Lois & Dale.  (Photos taken by Jake’s cousin, Beth.)

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1st camp out

For Father’s Day this year, Jake asked for a tent.  We picked one out as a family and he and the boys set it up in the backyard for the kids’ first camp out.  We put their sleeping bag cots on each end and Jake slept in between.  The boys got a good night’s sleep – I don’t think Jake really did.  Apparently they were woken up by the crows in the neighbor’s trees at about 5AM, but they were kind enough to let me sleep until about 7, when they came back into the house.

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Mommy, take our picture!

Every once in a while, Nolan will say to me, “Mommy, take our picture!”  The two of them are usually not doing anything wild & crazy when he makes this request, so it’s nice to be able to capture them on their better behavior once in a while 🙂

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Picnic with Nana

Nolan has Vacation Bible School this week.  He has had a lot of fun!  Instead of just going home afterward, today we met Nana (my mom) at the “purple park” and had a picnic lunch.  This is one of the boys’ favorite parks.  They love the sand, the swings, the purple dinosaur, and of course, the digger.

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What’s a cassette tape?

Note to self – my kids have no clue what VHS or cassette tapes are or how they work.  Therefore, these items should not be left out for little hands to attempt to “use”  unsupervised.

Today, I made the mistake of snoozing on the couch while I thought Nolan was playing in the toy room.  Apparently he was also doing some research into how to unravel a cassette.  Maybe he thought it was like scotch tape??  This is what I woke up to:

Unfortunately, the tape couldn’t be reeled back in – too much damage had been done.  🙁

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Garbage truck assembly

Nolan received a Lego garbage truck set for his birthday from his May birthday buddy, C.

I’m not sure who had more fun putting it together – Jake or Nolan!

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Brotherly love

I love it when the boys play together nicely.  Here’s a glimpse of them sharing the piano bench.  They’re practicing a duet 🙂