Summer Fun & Accomplishments

So with tomorrow being my last official day of summer, I figured I should post a variety of pictures from all of the fun we had the second half of summer!

Backyard pool fun-Payton, Chase, Hope & Pike
Casey & Chase crashed on the couch

At the Kane County Cougars game during the National Anthem, what patriotic little boys we have! We had a great time with the neighborhood crew as well as the Dolans.

On the field

Petting Jake the Wonder Dog!

Chase running around the bases (in the Bears jersey)

Luke & Blake

Rain Forest Cafe with all of our friends from Cathy's house

Another big rain storm left our backyard flooded for hours. The boys had a FANTASTIC time playing in the rain water although afterward they went straight to the tub! It still amazes me how deep the water gets in our backyards.

"Surfing" on our sandbox cover

Lukie

Blake & Luke fell asleep one night before bed time on the couch together

Another successful garden, our zucchini's were enormous!

Chase attended a summer "Sports Camp" for one week from 9-12 each day. The kids learned all about baseball, soccer and basketball. Chase and Payton had a great time together.

Our kitchen cabinets before...

And after...Blake and his mom surprised me by painting our cabinets for my birthday while we were away on vacation. I love the new look, it was just the update the kitchen needed without breaking the bank. We can't wait to put knobs on the doors!

My project over the summer was to turn Luke's room into a "big boy bedroom". In the end, this is how it ended up. I think that he really likes his Toy Story room.

Chase's T-Ball

Receiving his trophy & hand-shake from "Coach"

This summer was our family's first t-ball experience. After lots of laughs at the beginning of the season, the boys ended up learning a lot, getting a better understanding of the game and had a great time (even during the really hot games!) Coach Dad had a great time too!

Luke's 1st Cubs Game

Ready to go into the stadium

The fam and my sister Katie

Blake and I were sitting around a few weeks back and decided that we needed a family day out together so we decided we'd take the boys to a Cubs game. Chase has gone twice before with Blake and done awesome so we thought we'd roll the dice with both of them. Who knew that it was going to be 98 degrees outside when we bought the tickets???
We ended up heading to my sister's new apartment before the game, which happens to be just a few blocks from Wrigley. We hung out for a little bit with Katie and her roommate and stepped out into the heat for the afternoon. For being such a hot day, the boys did great. The Cubs however, didn't. The game was painful and disappointing. Luke could have cared less (he clapped when people around us clapped but we were surrounded by Phillies fans so that didn't work) but Chase kept asking if the score had changed, which of course we answered with a "no." We did stay to see the Cubs get there first hit of the day but left early because nap time had already past and the heat was making some little ones cranky. Despite the game, we had a great time together.

Turkey Run Camping Trip

How many men does it take to put up a tent??
Aahh...duct tape solves every problem!

A common site around camp, little boys going potty

Swimming at the State Park pool

All tucked into their Spiderman sleeping bags with their lanterns

Graham, Kevin & Blake

Kristy, myself & Allison

A few weeks back we decided to take our family on a camping trip with the Geers and the Browns, way more experienced campers than the 2 of us. After some anxiety about whether or not we should go on the trip (mainly because of Chase's bedtime issues/fear of monsters) we packed up 2 cars and took the 3 hour car drive to Indiana to the Turkey Run State Park. The men rode in one car with all of the kids and the women were together with baby Brady, we definitely got the better deal! When we arrived we set up "camp" with our tent giving them men some problems. They initially set it up at home and it took less than 5 minutes however at the campsite took A LOT longer! Once the duct tape worked its magic, we took the kids to the park, roasted hot dogs & ate s'mores, a very typical camping tradition. Once the kids were in bed though the adults roasted chicken teryiaki kabobs on the fire, they were delicious!!

The next day we had breakfast and headed out to the State Park pool. The kids had a blast jumping in the water. Afterwards we went on a hike. First of all, Blake and I are not hikers, not since the hike we went on on our honeymoon that took way to long. We haven't really given the boys a lot of "nature experiences." After this trip, we realized that we are missing out. This park was beautiful, rocks to climb, amazing cliffs, lots of bugs, and water to splash in, it really doesn't get much better! I wish I had my camera, it was so peaceful. We also went on a trip down river in a canoe and tubes. The kids loved the freedom to tube down river without having to be tied to an adult. All in all, we had a great time and wouldn't have made it without the guidance of our friends. Great memories were made and I can't wait to do it again next year, but probably not sooner!

July 3rd & 4th

Hanging out at Shell Lake
Graham & Blake

Kristy & Brady, check out those ear muffs!

Chase's reaction to the fireworks, whoa!

Luke, of course, inside watching a movie

Helping Grandma feed the fish in her pond

This year for the 4th we headed to our neighbor's house for a BBQ. Afterwards, we went to our friends Kevin & Allison's parents house for swimming and fireworks. Kevin's parents live on a small, private lake in Naperville and they set off fireworks there. It was unbelievable how big the fireworks were when we were directly underneath them, very cool. Luke didn't like the noise and spent the evening inside but Chase loved them!

The following day we headed to Blake's parents to celebrate his dad's birthday. The cousins got to play together which is something that everyone loves!

Garage Sale

Blake, Kristy & Kevin~manning the tables

Payton, Chase, Tyler & Ryan

The boys with their Mater teeth

The boys first lemonade stand!

So we had our first garage sale with our neighbors over the 4th of July weekend. Being a garage sale newbie, I relied a lot on my friends to guide us with pricing and calm me down when I felt like the sale was total chaos! In the end, the sale was a success for us, we sold a lot of big items and donated the rest. It feels great to have cleaned out so many unnecessary items in our house, it is like a weight lifted off. We're going to use the $ we made to buy a new patio set, can't wait!