Mini-Vacay (take 3)

More pics from our mini-vacation that we took to Northern MI....lots of pictures....few words!!

Blake wanted to walk most of the time...he feels he is too old for the stroller! He is nuts, I would have given anything to be pushed around in comfort!!

Walking down a very steep hill...made me nervous the whole time!! I bet her walked over a mile straight without stopping or fussing!!
My Sanders boys in front of the Sanders chocolate store...(no relation :))

A view of the lake and the Mackinaw Bridge...

The bridge again

Blake taking in the beautiful sights!

Lighthouse...

Another one...

The Grand Hotel...so pretty!

The lawn in front of the Grand Hotel...

This past weekend we pretty much laid low. I had an overnight Leadership Retreat on Thursday night. Friday I was very tired! We just watched a movie. On Saturday Ryan went fishing, so we spent the night at my parents house. On Sunday my dad raced his car, so we went to the track. I have a few pictures of that that I will post later this week!!

A day at the park.....

We have a small part across the street from our house, and Blake loves to go there and play on the slides and swing! These are pictures from our visit there last week.

The whole time Blake was swinging he pointed to the swings on each side and said "mama"...and pointed one way, and then "dada" and point at the other swing...SO, of course we just had to swing with him!!

Here's Blake and dada swinging away!!

And then he decided that he was to big for the baby swing and wanted to swing with daddy....sure did make this mama nervous, but he LOVED it.

Two cutest boys I know!!

I LOVE this picture...and I love these boys :)

"weeeeeeeeee dada!"

And now for a couple of trips down the slide....or "side?!" as Blake says over and over!

Enjoying what's left of summer!!

We spent last weekend enjoying the lake...and the last of summer! Although it is in the 90's here today, I hear that it is supposed to be down to 69 this weekend!! I am ready for fall...but we will miss these fun days of swimming at the lake. Blake is such a water baby and just loves to be swimming and jumping in the lake!

These are some pictures I snapped of he and Ryan swimming on Sunday!

Blake will count one, two, three...and then want Ryan to toss him in the air!
He laughs so hard each time he comes down. It is music to my ears!

Here he is counting again already for another toss!!

weeeeee!

This seems so high....but Blake just really cant get enough of it! He is such a baby daredevil!

My boys :)

Ryan would swim out and then swim under and pop up in front of Blake and he would just get the biggest kick out of it!

Like I said, I am ready for the cooler weather...but we do love the summer sun!!

Spray Park!

On Saturday evening Ryan and I took Blake down to the Spray Park downtown. I thought that he would love it, because he LOVES swimming and running through the sprinkler.

When we first got there he was a little apprehensive.

He would just stick his fingers in and look around...
Little by little he became more brave about getting wet!

He checked out all of the different sprayers...and tested the water!

and THEN...he was ready to play!! After he got the lay of the land he really got into it!!

And by the time we left....he was soaked!!

All in all he had a great time, and next time we go I don't think that it will take him as long to get used to the whole thing!!

Summer Snacking

One of Blake's favorite treats this summer has been Popsicles! My mom found him some of the slow melting mini pops and he really loves to have them!!

Cousin Addy was over the other weekend, and had one for the first time...they really enjoyed their treats!!

Blake and Addy taking a break from swimming and having a snack!!
2 little cuties!!

Blake at 19.5 months and Addy at 15.5 months!

Making a mess...but luckily the got right back in the lake and washed the sticky off!!

Mr. Photogenic

I havent been doing the best job at taking pictures of our little Blake lately. It kind of goes in streaks with me. However, in my defence, he isnt the easist subject right now. He is a busy little guy and it is hard to get him to stay in one place long enough to get a good snapshot!!!

I either get this....just the top of his head as he is ignoring my plea for him to look at me with the camera....

Or I get this look...the "hello mother" I am busy....please put that thing down....

Or every once in awhile me begging for a smile works...but then he smiles like this......

Oh boy....what am I going to do with him?!!?

ABC's

I saw this here and thought I would do it too!!
A- My AIR CONDITIONER is set on: 76ish…but it stays MUCH cooler than that in my house. Must have awesome insulation.B- My BEDROOM theme is: not really a theme…just neutral. Dark Cherry furniture with oatmeal comforter and pillows. Mocha walls.C- The CAR in the driveway is: A black Lincoln Zephyr. Mite need to upsize soon.D- My DESK looks: like a work in progress. Lots of files…but organized. And lots of pictures of my Blake. E- The EXACT time I wake up daily is: 7:21. Ry sets his alarm for 4:40, so I wake up briefly with him and then go back to bed until 7:20, unless Blake wakes up before that.F- The FIRST thing I wash in the shower is: my face. G- My GARAGE is filled with: my car, Ry’s truck, bikes, lawn mower, junk…just the usual garage stuff.H- My HOUSE is: Home…
I- If you peeked INSIDE my bedroom you'd see: my unmade bed :(J- My favorite JUICE is: not a big juice drinker…but had lots of apple at the beginning of this pregnancy to settle my tummy.K- The best part of my KITCHEN is: the open floor planL- The LAST person who visited my home was: my mom and dad.M- The last piece of MAIL for me was: junk mail…couponsN- My NEIGHBORS think I'm: who knows…we don’t really speak. They are a little “different”O- If you OPENED my fridge you'd see: 2 gallons of milk (we go through a LOT), pickles, ranch, maybe some leftovers…P- My last house PARTY was: gosh…we haven’t had a party in awhile. I had a girls night party in February…that may be the last time!?Q- A QUICK meal I like to fix is: anything frozen that I can just pop in the oven! hahaR- My favorite ROOM of the house is: don’t really have a fv..but spend the most time in the living room.S- The SHAMPOO brand I use: whatever is on sale…Pantene, Dove, etc. Not that picky.
T- My largest TELEVISION is: in the living room.U- UNDER my bed you will find: dust bunnies…and a box containing all of the cards, notes that Ry has given me since we started dating.V- The last time I VACUUMED was: a couple of days agoW- Looking out my WINDOW I see: no window in my office…boo…that is where I am now.X- I wish I had X-TRA: money….I’d go on a shopping spree :)Y- My YARD is: looks better this year than it has ever looked before…thanks to Ryan!Z- ZZZZZZZ My bedtime is: around 10. I usually fall asleep between 10 and 10:30.

Dog Days of Summer

As I have mentioned before one of Blake's favorite things to do this summer is run through the sprinkler. My parents have the perfect set up for him with their underground sprinkler system. It spray just the right amount of water..and he loves it.

We went to my parents on Sunday and I asked Blake if he wanted to run through the sprinkler...it took him about 2 seconds to be out the front door and heading for the lawn!!

Look at how excited he was waiting for the sprinklers to come on!
And he's off....he didn't hesitate one bit to run right through....

And coming back...he was going back and forth so fast....here he tripped!! That didn't slow him down at all..he was up and running again in no time!

Weeeeeee.....

Pretty great way of cooling off if you ask Blake :)