Labor Day Fun

We haven't done a whole lot this summer, so today we decided to go fishing.  Aaron took us to a completely empty park with a little fishing pond.  We started out with lunch while Aaron got the fishing poles ready.  I'm sure the kids are so excited I took pictures of them eating.

 

Aaron working hard to get the hooks on the poles.

The kids ran over to the other side of the pond and were running up and down the hill.

Austin getting grossed out with the worms.  Aaron told him to rip them apart.

Abbie tried to put her own worm on the hook, but then decided it was gross and wanted Daddy to do it.

Yes, she dressed herself this morning. Instead of brushing her hair, she put on a hat.  It was only in the 90's today...

Aaron demonstrating how to cast.

I forget how beautiful Logan is sometimes.

Father Daughter bonding.

I don't know if she was bored or tired.

The pond we were at was a catch and release only.  Unfortunately there didn't seem to be any fish in it.  So, we headed off to Second Dam to see if we would have any luck there.

Success!  Ashley caught a fish.  Don't you just lover her expression?!

The proud fisherwoman with the only catch of the day.

"Don't you make fun of my Barbie fishing pole."

It was a fun day.  We definitely need to do this more often!

Jump, Jump, Jump, Jump Around!

Now that summer is here, we decided to splurge and get a trampoline.  We're hoping it will keep the kids in our yard a little more so they're not running around the neighborhood as much.

It was quite a process to put it together.

Everyone helped.

Even Zoe wanted to get in on the fun.

The kids worked together pretty well.

Aaron got to do the hard part.

Abbie took a break under the tramp with Zoe.

Andrew got bored while Aaron was putting the springs on.

Austin wasn't quite strong enough to stretch the spring but he sure tried.

He was pretending he was the monkey from the Lion King.

After getting the springs on, Aaron just wanted to sit back and put his feet up.

The kids sure love Zoe.

Andrew and Abbie couldn't wait to jump!

Andrew's turn with Zoe.

It was getting dark when we finally got the safety net up, but that didn't stop them.

Andrew had fun rolling around in a ball while Abbie and Austin jumped.

He's still getting bounced around like a ball.

I love the action shots!

Go, Austin!

All afternoon today, the kids were either splashing in the little pool or jumping on the trampoline.  It wore them out!

First Day of Summer Vacation

 June 1 was the first day of summer vacation.  The kids didn't sleep in, of course.  They pulled the pool into the front yard, filled it up, and splashed away.

 

 

So starts the months of long days, messy kids, a messy house, bored kids, late nights, weekly trips to the library, outings to the park, sunburn, neighbor kids running through the house, temper tantrums, fighting kids, tears, yelling, laughing, movies, swimming, and one exhausted mom.

Pumpkin Carving

Last night we carved pumpkins. It's been a few years since we've actually carved them. We've decorated them with foam stickers that make monsters faces and with the plastic push in pieces. Andrew was the most excited about the pumpkins because he doesn't ever remember doing it.

We got the tops cut off, then it was time to dig for guts!

This is the inside of Andrew's pumpkin (he said it looked like it had ribs inside).


They look so thrilled. The pumpkins had been sitting outside for almost 2 days, so they were a might chilly inside.


Aaron had to show Abbie that it was okay to stick her hand inside.


She got the hand of it pretty quickly.






I love the look of disgust on Ashley's face!


After the pumpkins were all gutted, it was time to carve!




The finished artwork:



"Ouch! Ew, boogers! Ouch! Boogers!" Yes, the pumpkin is eating her hand and she does have a finger in it's nose too.


We had lots of fun carving pumpkins! It was fun to do something together as a family without the fighting/complaining. Tonight we roast pumpkin seeds!!