Fun Times at the Fair

We went to the Pierce County Fair this past week with some family - lots of fun! Layla and Henry were lucky enough to get a wristband so they could go on unlimited rides. We visited the animals and, of course, had lots of yummy food.

Henry wasn't so sure of the rides - but Layla's enthusiasm got him into it!

Checking out the rides!

Playing a shoot-'em-out game. Uncle Randy won!

Feeding baby goats at the petting zoo.

The end of the day. Teddy had dumped water all over his outfit, so we had no choice but to strip him down to a diaper and strap him back in the stroller. Very classy look, so we decided to take a shot of it. But let's be honest - he fit right in at a county fair!

Cool Cousins

We recently spent some time in the Wisconsin Dells with family. Lots of fun, especially hanging out in the water parks all day!

Henry loved spending time with his BFF, cousin Layla. We were too busy running around to take many pictures during our vacation, but Matt did get a few of the kids.

Thanks again to Nana, Bumpa and Great-Grandma for the wonderful vacation. We loved it!

Reason #2,359 Why I Love Target

We snagged this monster shopping cart at Target the other day, and we had to take a picture of it. Loved it! Usually we have to resort to Teddy sitting in the baby seat and Henry sitting in the cart itself (which makes me a bit nervous), so it was very nice to have the boys strapped in and facing each other.

My Target recommendation... have an online reservation system so moms can book the extra large carts ahead of time. I promise, we'll then spend even more time and money at Target than we currently do. If that's even possible!

A Boy And His Dog

We took a family walk around Lake Normandale today. It was a great time... H and T loved it and even Lola was on her best behavior. Not her usual spastic self! She even allowed Henry to walk her. He was pretty proud to be holding onto her leash!

Wagon Rides, 5 Cents

Mommy took the boys out for a wagon ride this evening.

I can't believe that Teddy is already big enough to sit up in the wagon! Henry loved hanging out with his pajama-clad little brother.

Yay for spring and wagon rides!

Brunch with the Boys

With two young kids, Matt and I don't go out to eat that often. It's usually too much of a hassle and ends up not being fun for anyone. Especially now that Henry is in the middle of being potty trained.

But Matt surprised me this weekend by deciding to take the boys out for brunch. I love that kind of spur of the moment stuff, but was a little worried that it would end up in disaster.

I don't know if the stars aligned or what, but it was a great time. Teddy was laid back and hung out in his carseat while Henry enjoyed his Mickey Mouse-shaped pancakes. Henry even had a few successful ventures to the bathroom. Woo-hoo! All in all, we had a really nice time out. What can I say - small successes like these are a big deal with two little ones!

By this point, Henry was trying to spend some time under the table. We took that as our cue to ask for the check!

A Day On The Ice

Henry and cousin Layla took their first spin on the ice this week, at the Depot ice rink in downtown Minneapolis.

The kids did great - they were really excited to try skating. Henry was a little unsure at first but quickly warmed up to it. Although Matt did most of the work by ferrying them around the rink. As Laura and I quickly found out, it was a back-breaking work to push them along! And I think Henry sensed my sub-par skating skills and opted to skate with his former goalie daddy, who is a lot more comfortable on the ice.

Here's a slide show of their day on the ice...

One with Nature

Winter in Minnesota means we’re stuck inside most of the time. Which can be a bit difficult with an energetic 2-year-old. So I’m often on the look-out for fun places to visit that are: A) Free or low-cost B) Stroller-accessible and appropriate for Teddy and C) Offer Henry the ability to get his ya-ya’s out. As luck would have it, we found a new place that is fun, free and close to home: the Richardson Nature Center.

Oddly enough, we’ve driven past it hundreds of times, but just never had an excuse to visit until now. It’s a big, beautiful building with animals on display and interactive toys for kids to play with. That afternoon they were holding a “Critter Day” where they brought out the resident snakes, turtles and salamanders for the kids to observe up close.

Henry got to pet a turtle, although he declined to touch the snake. “I scared” is his new big phrase, and I guess the snake kind of freaked him out. He did touch the salamander, though. The nature center folks then fed the turtle some worms, which Henry was excited to watch. He was equally excited to see the snake eat an (already dead) “mousey”… Mommy wasn’t so thrilled to see that.

And Teddy? He just hung out and watched the whole critter show while seated in my lap. I guess one of the advantages to being Number 2 is you get exposed to things a lot earlier than Number 1. He showed his excitement by drooling profusely and trying to suck his thumb.