Misc August 2013

*Written June 2014*

Here are some random pictures we took in August 2013.

Jane being helpful and giving Colin his bottle.

One day Colin realized that he could push this toy train around the house, and he has never, ever stopped.  He LOVES anything that goes, things with wheels, basically anything that you can ride and push and roll around the house.  I think it might be a life long love affair, and this was the very beginning!

Colin and Jane are finally starting to play together

I have no idea how Rocky was comfortable laying on this brush.

Chris and Camille were in town with their kids!
We were at the grocery store and having some fun
with Colin in the aisle.

Jane is laying on Rocky in this picture.

Colin trying out a sippie cup.

More playing.  I think I took a lot of these pictures to send to Daddy
while he was at work so he could see what we were up to.

Colin love to walk the shoes with his hands around the house!
There is some cute video of it at the end.

Cuddly Rocky

Not-so-cuddly Abba

We went to the library with Jane's friend, Gabi.  Jane sat on top of Gabi
in this picture!

You can see her in there!

Colin really likes shoes.

The shoe interest only lasts about six months
from now but it's pretty cute!

Mommy sneaking a picture in RS one day
to send to Daddy at work.

Trying more solid foods!
Colin LOVES bananas! 

I took Jane to a movie one day and she fell asleep in the theater.
This is us after the movie was over.

Some of the video highlights:
- Jane at her swim class.
- Colin playing with toys, which was pretty amazing to see him grow and learn how to play and bush buttons.
- Colin pushing his train around the house for the first time - SO DARLING!!
- Colin playing with Jane, chasing her around the chair in the room which was so great to see them play for the first time.
- Jane and Colin playing tug-of-war with Nana, which was a blast!  Colin laughed his head off!
- Colin sticking his hand under the door of his room, and Jane on the other side touching them, and then they both shout!
- Colin dancing, wiggling his body up and down and bouncing around.
- Colin finding another rolly toy and learning how to push it around (laying the groundwork for years to come!).
- Colin dancing with Jane around the front room.
- Colin walking his shoes around the house.
- Colin playing with shoes again and Jane wanting to be in the video, too.
SERIOUS CUTENESS IN THIS MONTH'S VIDEO, I'M TELLING YOU.

Camping trip August 2013

*Written June 2014*

We tried to take the kids camping in August, tried being the key word there.  It was alternatively really great and really horrible.  When we first got there and set up the tent, Colin had a BLAST crawling around inside.  I took a video and it's worth watching because he is so cute crawling around the tent like it's the best thing ever.



After that it got pretty bad.  We brought Colin's porta crib and put him to bed, but he cried for most of the night.  It was really cold, and I got Colin to sleep for a little while by stuffing him into my sleeping bag with me, but I was really uncomfortable not being able to move.  About halfway through the night, I gave him to Daddy, who stuffed Colin inside his sleeping bag and they both slept.  Unfortunately, Mommy didn't.  I couldn't sleep at all and didn't sleep for one minute the entire night.  I laid in the dark and watched my family sleep through the hours until the sky finally, excruciatingly slowly, started to get light.  I got up as soon as it was light enough and started warming up some milk outside for the kids and getting breakfast ready.

Everyone else sleeping.

Michael cuddling Colin

Sleepy heads

Yay people are finally awake!

We had delicious bacon and eggs, yumm!

We took Colin's porta crib out of the tent so he could enjoy the outdoors
without getting too dirty!  Or eating any dirt!

There was a stream nearby and we took a little walk to it.

Our campsite was next to this beautiful reservoir and Jane and Daddy had fun throwing rocks in.  Daddy is really good at skipping rocks!

After playing at the reservoir, we drove into a nearby city to buy some firewood.  While we were gone, a big storm blew in and covered our campsite in hail.  When we got back, things were muddy and disheveled, and it was still raining.  It rained for the rest of the afternoon.

Colin back in the tent playing in his crib.  The floor
of the tent was getting a bit muddy.

Amazingly, we got a fire started in the rain.

Jane still having a blast!

Everyone trying to stay warm by the fire.

 We decided after roasting hot dogs and then marshmallows that we wanted to call it early.   We had been planning to stay another night and then drive down in the morning, but we decided to break camp, pack everything up and head home before it got too dark.  We couldn't be sure if it would rain through the night and it was colder than ever after the hail earlier.  We were sad to go early but when we got into bed that night we didn't feel as bad anymore!

Beautiful views on our way home!

Colin's favorite activity

Seriously, Colin loves to do this and he does it several times a day.  He loves shoes and runs to them on the floor and will pick them up and start throwing them around.  Recently he started doing what you see in the video.  It's hilarious to see him come into a room like this.

Zoo trip August 2013

*Written 6/14*

So this is the zoo trip where Jane went with her cousin Evelyn, and this polar bear played with them (with glass separating them) for like 20 minutes.  So I have a MILLION pictures of the polar bear, and I'm only putting about half of them on this blog post.  But I'll put those at the end.  I also have a lot of video of it and that will be before all the pictures.  First I'll put all the non-polar bear zoo pictures.  Jane and Evelyn had a blast together and it was fun to see all of the animals.

Sea Lions?

Brown bear sleeping

Following a peacock

Colin was a trooper!

Spying on the meerkat

Here's the video of the polar bear.

And some of my favorite pictures:

Pretty amazing!