Lake Erie and Kirtland Mini Vacation

We decided to take a little mini vacation to Lake Erie over the weekend. When we got there it was very bright and sunny and hot. So we decided to take a little detour and stop by Kirtland for a few hours before we hit the beach. We took a tour of the Kirtland temple and of a few other historical sites like the Newell K Whitney store. The girls loved looking at the old fashioned pioneer surroundings. After that we headed to the beach. It was so relaxing sitting on the waters edge and having the waves come in around your legs. It reminded me of something I miss about Florida. :( The girls had a blast building sandcastles and playing in the water. Ashley loved the waves and she would sit on the edge and let the waves hit her and move her around and would just look at us and grin from ear to ear. They all collected a lot of stones and shells and some sea glass. Ashley got tired the last day there and took her nap in my arms. She wanted to nurse to sleep, and of course I was covered in sand, but I went ahead and offered it to her. She looked at her "nursie" and said, "That's a yucky nursie." :) But then she went right ahead and nursed and fell asleep. It was such a relaxing a fun time, we all hated to leave. We did decide that for only a 3 hour drive, it was definitely worth coming again next summer and maybe even staying longer.

 

Meteor Shower

We've studied Astronomy this year using the Apologia Science series and so we were all really looking forward to the big meteor shower in August.  Luckily we had a good clear night, so we took the older two girls outside and we all laid down on a blanket and watched the shower.  It was beautiful.  We could see a shooting star every minute or so.  I didn't take our camera, so this isn't a picture I took, but it does remind us of what we got to see.

Waterpark Fun

After Alexis got her cast off we spent a good bit of time swimming. We went to the nearby waterpark quite a few times and played. It's one of the girls favorite places and they are always excited for it to open up each summer. 

Daddy's Birthday

Don turned 31 this year.  We celebrated by giving him gifts and making his traditional birthday cheesecake.  This year I made him a cheesecake with a chocolate chunk brownie layer, then a caramel layer, and then a cream cheese layer.  On the top I drizzled chocolate fudge and caramel.  It was SOOO tasty! 

Ohio State Fair 2010

This year Daddy was out of town flying the day we decided to go to the fair.  We went on Monday, which was the day kids get in free and you can also buy one wristband and get one free.  However, Aunt Becca was able to go with us, so ladies had a good time.  Unfortunately it was INCREDIBLY hot that day, (in the mid 90s), so everyone was kind of hot and miserable, but the girls still wanted to ride on some rides for a while before we left.  So we ended up being there for a good 4 hours.  Alexis rode the bumper cars for the first time and both Alexis and Emily rode the big carousel for the first time and loved it.  They also rode lots of rides in Kiddieland and Ashley rode her first rides.  The first one she rode with me, which was the flying elephant ride.  She kept saying, "Oh, no." very seriously as we were going round and round.  I don't think she knew what to think of it.  After that she rode the carousel horses and loved it.  She had a big grin on her face most of the ride.  She also rode a couple of rides alone with Emily and did great.  During this time we had a minor incident.  When we were waiting in line for one of the rides in Kiddieland, Ashley suddenly said, "Oh, no!  A rock!" and then pointed up her nose.  I looked up her nostril, and sure enough there was a small black rock up in there that I couldn't reach.  So I had Becca take the older two girls on some more rides in Kiddieland while I looked for a first aid station.  By the time we got there and they looked up her nose with an otoscope, the rock was gone.  There was a small rock in the seat of her stroller that looked like it could have been the one, so maybe she got it out herself while I was looking for the station.  Or maybe it went back far enough she swallowed it.  Either way, she was fine now, and so we met up with Becca and the two girls and went to eat inside one of the air conditioned buildings.  After that we headed home.  It was fun, but next year if it's that hot, we may skip it.  ;)