4th of July & a Busy Summer

We had a great Independence Day with my family. We always start with breakfast on my dad's side, followed by a water fight, no matter how chilly it might be that morning. This year was on the chillier side, but it was still a great fight.

We spend the evening with my mom's side. BBQ and then to the fireworks. It rained on the end of our BBQ and we almost didn't go to the fireworks due to the weather. Thankfully it cleared up and we made it out there to enjoy the rest of the night. I loved watching the boys watch the fireworks. They were so excited about it all.

What I see and what she sees. :)

Baby mostly enjoyed the fireworks as well.

Last weekend we went up to Tony Grove on our way to find a good picture taking spot at bear lake. I'd never been to Tony Grove and it is gorgeous! I had fun getting some cute photos of the kids of course.

We had a picnic at bear lake and enjoyed some time at a little beach that, due to the waves, sounded like the ocean. Sam is just in love with the water and was in up to his knees before long. Tyler loves throwing rocks in the water. Baby was content just holding some rocks.

The boys finished up swim lessons for the summer. Tyler cried for the first several times, but did good for the most part. Every day he said "I don't want to jump in." So I told him he didn't have to and he did everything else. Sam did great this year and seemed to really enjoy it. Baby and I got to hang out, but she mostly just got bored unless she was eating something.

We also did a few weeks of T-ball. Sam got pretty good at hitting the ball, and we ended up having Tyler hit it left handed, cause he did better. Watching these kids in the field was usually just hilarious.

Summer at our house looks something like this on a regular basis. I love where we live and all the neighbor kids. My boys are blessed to have such awesome friends already. 

They are so good to play with her.

Bus ride to summerfest to have a picnic with Travis.

Travis & I try to get in date nights when we can too. Keeps us sane and gives us a chance to have an uninterrupted conversation. :)

Donut bike rides, aggie ice cream, farmers markets, picnics, splash pads and parks. 

We Love Summer.

One of my favorite things that she does to me right now.

Sam is 5

This little stud turned 5 today. He amazes me with his intelligence, his love and his kindness towards others. He still drives me nuts at times, but I'm so thankful for all that he teaches me. He is so tender-hearted and often nervous to try new things. But he then surprises me by hopping on a big bike with no training wheels the first time, enjoying rides at Lagoon and making friends at Chick fil a. He's a little social butterfly. Every day he's asking to go play with a friend and makes the rounds on our street to see if anyone can play. :)
I love watching him grown and learn and be a big brother. He and Tyler are the best of friends, most of the time, and watching them play together is such a joy. So happy he's ours.
Happy Birthday Little Man!!!

While Sam was less than thrilled to start taking photos, Tyler flashed his smile effortlessly. :)

All Sam wanted to do for his birthday was have lunch at McDonald's with some friends. He had a blast and we're so lucky to live where so many kids are around!

Lagoon & Thanksgiving Point

I feel like we've already accomplished half of our bucket list items for the summer and it's only been a week!

We got to go to Lagoon for Travis' Centeva work party! We weren't sure how it would go with Sam since he just watched Tyler on the rides at Sea World last summer. But we started him on some real basic rides and he ended up loving it. :) Tyler rode the biggest little kid roller coaster that he could and did great. Baby even had some fun on the rides, until she was too tired, then she was just cranky.

We got to hang out with friends there too, so that made it even more fun.

Sam didn't want to ride this roller coaster, but we were already in line and Travis had gone somewhere with baby so he reluctantly decided it would be fine. A few seconds into the video he gets a little nervous, but by the end he seems to be enjoying himself. (While still holding on for dear life.)

Bumper cars were probably their favorite.

We also got to go to Thanksgiving point with my parents and my niece. I loved the butterfly exhibit and watching the kids (especially Sam conquering his fears) ride the ponies a couple of times.

Sam even fed some animals for the first time.

The boys are on a little t-ball team this month and it's pretty cute. After 5 minutes of standing in the infield both boys came and sat down next to us for a "little break." And they're probably the only kids running the bases in crocs...

We went to a little bit of Travis' mom's work party up on campus and got rained out so we ate our food in the van and then went to Aggie Ice Cream since we didn't get our free ice cream at the party, ha ha! Baby loved it. 

Dinosaur Park

Went to the dinosaur park as per our usual this time of year. I love seeing the excitement of the boys. They ran around so excited to see all of the dinosaurs.

And below is an example of how many shots it can take to get a decent photo with this crew. :)

Sam graduated from preschool! He loved it, had a great teacher and learned so so much.

Dinner with my parents for Travis' birthday, sleepy boys and our walkway that Travis made!

Cutest little helpers, and baby always trying to get in Tyler's space, ha ha!

Best dad building forts to read stories in.

Love this little girl.