McDonough County Fair 2014

Emily shows Beauty, her gilt.

We learned that little ones will be entertained for hours with the
right equipment and some gravel! 

Emily in the ring with her barrow, Beast.

Emily shows her bunny, C.C.

Megan showing her bunny, Diamond.

Ball Fore Competition

What is more fun than a little healthy miniature golf competition? I wish all the cousins could have made it to Macomb for an afternoon of fun. 

Interestingly enough, we discovered that Megan is a left-handed golfer. Bowling and golfing are her "lefty" activities!

Here are a few photos of putt-putt fun!

                  

Go River Bandits

This summer we took a day trip to the Quad Cities on a sunny Sunday afternoon to meet up with some friends and check out the Quad City River Bandits baseball team. The River Bandits have a fun atmosphere and a beautiful stadium. The ball park is next to the river, with a scenic view of Centennial Bridge. There is a ferris wheel and a play area for younger fans who can't sit through the whole game. There is also a small zipline outside the stadium. It was "Bring Your Dog to the Game" day, so there were lots of canine buddies for the kids to pet. 

The River Bandits won the game in an excited ending. Sorry, Burlington Bees, we may have a new favorite minor league team!

We had a great time and there was a GREAT crowd. After the game, the River Bandits had a Mega Candy Drop on the field. (It was a Charlie & the Candy Factory promotional night.) This means that children are invited onto the field while a helicopter drops a HUGE amount of candy onto the field. Then it is a free-for-all as the kids rush to fill their bags with candy. Our kids decided not to go out on the field for the candy drop, so we enjoyed watching it from the stands. After most of the candy had been picked up the helicopter returned and dropped marshmallows on the kids. 

Afterwards, we walked around the stadium to take in the view of the river. It was so beautiful and a perfect night to take a walk. 

Dump Truck Pick Up

Eli loves to cut things. In tiny pieces. All over the floor.

After a cutting session with a piece of string I asked him to pick up all the little strings. Of course, this is the most logical way for a 3-year old boy to pick up tiny pieces of string. It takes a little more time, but it was a lot more fun!

Packing the Vans to the West Burlington Pool

Hot summer days just call you to the pool! I had always wanted to try out the waters at the West Burlington pool, so we packed the vans with a few cousins and Aunt Julie and we took off for some water fun. 

Cowboy Boots with Running Pants and Red Socks

Fashion. This is a topic that I am completely unqualified to talk about. I have never had a sense of fashion. Never. I have lots of childhood photos to prove this statement. Some days I still violate the rules of fashion. I have a very basic idea of what looks good together. It is minimal -- just enough to avoid funny looks at the grocery store, but nowhere close to being worthy of a runway. My wardrobe is primarily practical.

But I do know that cowboy boots do not go with running pants. And I have tried to impress that tidbit of knowledge on my children. But it isn't sticking.

Many times I have told Emily that tennis shoes really complete the look with her running pants -- running pants that are now running capris but that she refuses to part with. So, imagine too-short running pants with cowboy boots. Sometimes she heeds my advice on this matter. A lot of the time she doesn't.

Today I realized that this strange fashion bug has infected our second daughter as we showed up to a volleyball game and she was wearing pink cowboy boots with green fleece pants. It was a statement.

And, our sweet Eli. If I ever ask him to pick out a pair of socks on his own it will ALWAYS be a red pair. Regardless of what he is wearing because he is completely unaware that an outfit is supposed to coordinate, or at least be in the same galaxy regarding style and color. He just likes red socks! And, no matter what occasion, he wants his basketball shoes. The soles are falling off and I have glued them many times, and he still wants these shoes.

There are days that these fashion statements make me cringe. And then I stop and remind myself that these are the insignificant details in raising children. So, we choose to focus on ensuring that their attire is appropriate for the activity they are participating in, instead of what is aesthetically appealing. Our focus should be more on building morals and values in our children rather than how nicely they are dressed.


"For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”     1 Samuel 16:7b