Camping Fun

This past weekend we took Adelyn on her first camping trip. Stacy and Nick met us just outside Mankato at Minneopa State Park (my mom rode along with us). Adelyn loved playing in the dirt at our campsite, sometimes with the shovel and pail, sometimes not, and running around outside all day. She even brought her lawnmower - to keep the site groomed of course. Its a pretty area with a lot of walking trails that we took advantage of. On one of the hikes Adelyn passed out mid walk, while in her stroller, which is pretty abnormal for her. One minute she was waving and chatting, the next her head was bobbing over the side of the stroller. It definitly shocked us. She slept well at night thanks to all the activity during the day. The birds and sunrise woke us all up but we were able to go back to sleep for a few hours. The campfire chats were fun and the food tasty! It had been a while since we have taken a family camping trip. We had a blast and will have to do it more often!
I'll load the photos tonight...

Blueberry Heaven

Hmmm, this is cool...

Look at how many I can sqeeze in my mouth!

Aren't I funny?

How great is summer and the fresh fruit that's available?! Adelyn gobbles up most fruit but especially favors blueberries. She was helping me wash up the fruit when we got home from Costco and helped herself to some while we worked. First she would politely take one blueberry at a time but it wasn't long before she was shoving handfuls into her mouth. She thought she was pretty funny while doing it too. She would pause and give us a sly little smile that said "I know I'm not supposed to be doing this but I will anyway :)" I guess gone are the days when I need to cut each and every blueberry in half. I don't plan on letting her eat 5 at a time regularly but it made for some good photos!

Independence Day

"The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage."
Thucydides

What a beautiful day to celebrate the history surrounding the 4th of July. We enjoyed the day off together and the gorgeous weather. Since Adelyn was still awake, we packed up the van at dusk to watch the Lakeville fireworks. Murphy even got to come along since we couldn't leave him at home considering his great fear of fireworks.

Its interesting to think about fireworks and how they symbolize scenery from a battle field. The flashes of light must have meant something so different to the soldiers fighting. It is fun to see family and friends gathered together, squeezed on a blanket, heads tipped back and enjoying the show. I am thankful for the MANY privileges we have in this country. And especially thankful for those who have been and continue to be willing to fight for our freedom.
Happy 4th of July!

Pomegranate Passion

Gulp, gulp, gulp

Too good to leave any in the bottom

That was GREAT!

Adelyn drank from a straw for the first time this weekend! We spent Saturday walking around Centennial Lakes and enjoyed a Jamba Juice to cool off. We shared the new Pomegranate Passion, which is allegedly 100% fruit--quite tasty! It was just the motivation she needed to figure out how to suck on the straw. It was very cute watching how surprised she was to get some. Then she just kept on gulping--probably until the brain freeze set in. She looked at us funny but didn't pause long before going at it again. I had to pry it out of her hands for my turn. Fortunately there were some ducks swimming near by that we could distract her with long enough to get a drink. It was such a nice treat to have sunny warm weather all weekend. I'm already day dreaming of the upcomming weekend.