Denver Visit

Once again I enjoyed parts of our drive from our home to Denver. It is the 2nd (actually possibly 3rd) summer in a row I have enjoyed the beautiful fields of Sunflowers in August.

We had a wonderful visit with the Denver Crandalls. We walked to Crown Hill Lake on Sunday morning as their church didn't meet till late afternoon. It was peaceful and fun!Andrew's favorite part was eating the ritual Sunday morning popcorn, lakeside. I like the view of the mountains in the background and the clouds reflected in the lake.Levi is sporting his new hat. (Found on a wonderful thrifting trip with Hillary.) I LOVE this picture: my two favorite men!We also went on the Celestial Seasonings Free Factory Tour. It was interesting and the free tea tasting was enjoyed by all (including Levi!).The dress and shoes are made of tea packages.

After our tea taste and tour we had a wonderful picnic out under the trees. Here are a few adorable pictures I got of the nieces!More to come soon!

11 Months (a little late)

I didn't have a chance to post his 11 month picture as we were out and about enjoying time with the Denver Crandalls and my parents. Isn't he just getting so big?! I cannot believe he is almost a year! (Yes, he is holding a snack to "help him sit still", hah.) I did notice when I would bring out the camera and say, "smile for mama", Levi would move the snack from in front of his mouth and smile.
I wanted to add a few more photos from the Chicago wedding before moving on to our time in Denver! (pics thanks to Jen R.)
(1) Pre-wedding flower arranging, set-up and rehearsal.(2) Pre-wedding photos.(3) Post-wedding reception.
I will blog about the Denver trip ASAP so watch for it!

Onions & Carrots & Tomatoes, Oh My!

We have been enjoying the fruits of our garden. We have zucchini, banana peppers, carrots, onions and tomatoes ripening these last few weeks. This carrot was an interesting shape. I think it was trying to multiply. I also did some research on eating carrot greens because they are so abundant and seem a waste to throw in the compost. Here is what I found on eating carrot tops, and also recipes to try. They seem to be very nutritious! and bitter... so they need to be used in something.

I have made 2 loaves of zucchini bread already with this zucchini and I still have 1/3 left!
We also enjoyed a fresh pizza with home grown tomatoes, onions, and farmers market green bell peppers. YUM.

Chicago Wedding

It was wonderful to be able to see my old high school friends Jenn, Renee, Bethany (MB, Sara and Deborah too) after 3+ years without being in each others physical presence. The last time I hugged B, J & R, they were in our wedding! This time we were celebrating Bethany's wedding in Chicago.
Andrew was AMAZING and took care of Levi for most of the weekend. Thanks, Hun! I love you! Levi did quite well considering he spent 27 hours in the car and was all off his schedule.

I was so upset that I somehow left the camera at home so these are courtesy of other wedding goers. I will have more soon I hope. We took some outdoor photos with the wedding party. It was warm but we couldn't complain too much because the guys were in full tuxes and one was in his Marines wool outfit.Bethany looked gorgeous as always. Love her beautiful hair.

The ceremony: (I am 3rd from the left)

In other news: Levi is sneaking in to the pantry and fridge now.

Here he is raiding Lucy's food dish. You really gotta keep an eagle eye on him at this age!

Crandall Family Fun in SD Part 2

We had a great time with the Denver Crandalls at our own little SD beach. We had a picnic with Subway sandwiches (literally "sand"wich for Louise :) and a big watermelon. I figured it would be easy cleanup to eat a watermelon on the beach.
Levi did great with his 1st big boy slice of watermelon. Look at how wide he opens his mouth! Too cute.
Hillary bought the kids sand buckets and even got one for little Levi to try out. He had fun with Louise digging around, splashing, and eating sand.

Then there was swimming fun and water gun fun. It was great to get a break from the heat!

Oh, and we can't forget the end of the day ice-cream stop! Even Levi got a taste.P.S. I am feeling so bad that some of you Denver Crandalls are sick.... I am so sorry! Get well soon. We are praying for you!

Crandall Family Fun in SD

We had a great time showing the Denver Crandalls around our part of SD. DeSmet Ingalls Homestead really seemed to be perfect for young ones. You can touch EVERYTHING and climb all over EVERYTHING and pet animals and just run around.
It was fun to watch Theo, Grace and Hannah take turns driving a team of horses with all of us riding along.

Louise enjoyed climbing in and out of the buggies by herself.

Even Levi got to try riding on this mini horse.

I thought that Hannah looked adorable and very Laura-like in this photo. She was "riding the horsey" (even though you could ride a real one :)

The kids made corn husk dolls and ropes.

Next blog will be about our trip to the beach. :)