Playing Outside in the Unseasonably Gorgeous Weather and Carlton's 3rd Birthday Party

Just as I got all caught up on blogging, the rest of July happened! To be fair, we also got a new computer (because ours started revving up and sounding like it was going to explode), so I've been slow to warm up to the change of figuring out the new one. We've been busy with Lewis at camp, going out to play in this g-o-r-g-e-o-u-s weather, planning a big 60th birthday for my mom (last weekend), and visiting with my sister, niece, and nephew who are in from Boise. This morning, I had a volunteer event, so Lewis is off on a caving adventure with Grandma and Grandpa T. (that I can't wait to hear about). I'm finally sitting down to try to catch up (again).

Way back on July 15th, according to my camera, we went out to Carlton's house to play for the morning. We played with Carlton's new train table, on the swing set, and on ride-ons. Lewis took off on this tractor/trailer combo, but he couldn't keep up with Carlton who had a super nice (and fast!) tricycle. Through a combination of Mama helping push while he steered, we made it down the road and back.

 Wait up, buddy! I'm a-comin'!

 If you look closely, Tonya and Carlton are waaaay down the road.

Another morning, just Lew and I went to the park (Hounz Lane) for the playground and the creek. He spent most of the time walking along the banks of the creek and down under the bridge:

 Hello, down thar!

I was on the bridge above him. :) 

Whee! 

He did play at the playground some before it started raining. He and a little girl were chasing each other down the slide and back up around the stairs. I'm not sure if Lewis knew he was playing a game with her, but I sort of egged it on. I giggled at her every time she came down the slide, and she ran like she thought he was chasing her. :) She was adorable.

That weekend was Carlton's big 3rd birthday and party:

 Lewis ran upstairs and found the tractor and tiller from our previous playtime that week.

 Helping Carlton open his gift

Lewis wanted to go to Carlton's party for days before, simply so he could give him the gift and play with it, himself. :) He (Lew) had trouble understanding that the toy was for Carlton, so at one point, we had to take a break outside for him to calm down. He did and was happy going back to playing with the tractor.

That's a nice segue into the next set of pictures. Lewis didn't nap that day, and the party was right at his prime 'meltdown' time, so please enjoy:

:) I forget now what we were saying/doing/singing that set him off. I thought we were singing Happy Birthday, but then Tonya posted a video of that, sans Lew freaking out. I was laughing too hard to remember now.

Happy birthday to Carlton!

By the end of that and singing, it looked like Lewis was the one blowing out the candles (which he did help Carlton with). Carlton really likes to sing Happy Birthday, so I think that's why he's clapping (after the song ended).

We had a very nice time at the party, and Lewis slept very well that night. :)

Summer Snapshots

These are mostly pictures from Kevin's phone that I've slacked on posting:

 Packing himself and his toys up in his suitcase :)

 Lewis' First Corn on the Cob

I know, it seems he should have already done that, huh.

 Dad and Lew Time at the Playground

 Lunch w/Dad at Firehouse Subs

I forget what I was out doing, but I remember that I wrote back, 'Is he in pain?' :) He was just stuck in a mid-Cheetos/cheesing-it smile.

 Mmmmm, Blueberry Pie

With the first round of blueberries I picked

Lew's new thing--Laying ON the Baby

Yesterday was one of those air-so-thick-you-could-cut-it-with-a-knife kind of hot and muggy days (my very least favorite). Thankfully we had some storms last night to clear things up and cool things down, but this was the dirty, sweaty Lew that emerged from the garden yesterday afternoon. He'd been digging in the dirt with his tractor and dump truck, and the dirt just stuck to him and mixed with the sweat and ew. Needless to say, he had a pre-dinner bath last night.

Happy as can be :)

Do I have something on my face?

The last few pics are from this morning (Lewis is taking a good, long nap today, so, for once, I'm caught up on blogging!)--we went over to the playground at Cherokee Park to enjoy this GORGEOUS weather. I chose that park because I thought it might have a nice number of kids, but not too many. We pulled in to see two buses of YMCA campers playing, too, which almost scared us away, but I'm glad we stayed. We ended up having a really good morning, and the kids he played with were really nice to him. Shortly after we arrived, they broke up for lunch and hikes and other activities, so we were left at the playground with just 30ish kids (vs. 100+ kids when we first got there).

This was his first time on the zipline--I wasn't sure how he'd do, but he held on for a good while until it slowed to a stop (then dropped to the ground).

The video is from another turn when he didn't stay on for quite as long. You'll notice he is wearing one green Croc and one orange one. That was his doing--I told him to get his shoes on while I was finishing getting ready, myself, and that was what he chose. :)

Enjoying our picnic in the shade

I actually got CHILLY for a few minutes, which was absolutely fabulous. Thank you, Canada and Japan, for altering our weather pattern.

Blueberry Picking and A Family Canoeing Adventure

This past Saturday, we decided to go canoeing! We'd been talking about going since summer began, and this was our first weekend with good weather and without plans (except for a birthday dinner for Kevin at his parents' house on Saturday). I threw in the idea of stopping to let Lewis pick some blueberries on the way since I'd gone by myself this year (while Gma and Gpa T. had him). Since I'd already gotten the bulk of what we needed for the freezer, this was just more for the experience. We were there just around an hour, and I think we picked around 4 1/2 pounds (plus those that a certain 3-year-old ate). :)

 Out into the blueberry rows, we go. :)

 There was some picking on Lew's part, but let's be honest. :)

THIS was more like it.

I think right before this, he said, 'Blueberries are good, good, gooood.'

The blueberry farm was on the way, so we put the berries in a cooler and headed on out to Milltown to start our canoe trip:

  Ready to go!

The tiny paddle was cracking me up. I wouldn't say he learned how to paddle effectively, but he instinctively knew how to put it in the water to slow us down! :)

 Very excited Lewis, riding the school bus up to the drop-off site

  Pit Stop for Lunch

 He got in as Kevin and I were finishing lunch and said, 'Come on, I'm ready to go!'

By the end, we were so glad it was over. The last time we'd been there (when I was pregnant with Lewis), the water was really high and Kevin and I flew down the river (like, 7 miles in under 2 hours). This time, the water was really low, which meant we got stuck a lot and had to get out and walk through the shallow areas, and it took us the full 4 hours, plus time for lunch. Plus, we had a 45 pound toddler wanting to get up, lean over the side, and sit with Dad, then Mama, then Dad again. We never did tip, but there were a few times I thought we just might. We were/are both so sore, and we will have to keep this in mind the next time we plan a canoe trip. I think we said we'll go again, but next time will be kid-free and with beer, in order to improve the overall experience. :) At least I think Lewis had a good time. :)

Locust Grove (Cultural Pass #2)

Last week, we went to another stop on the Cultural Pass--Locust Grove. It's only about five minutes from our house, but we've never visited (except for a book sale a few years ago). It was built by the brother-in-law and sister of George Rogers Clark (William and Lucy Clark Croghan), and has a museum, main house, and lots of outbuildings.

They've created more kid-friendly tours for this summer to accommodate the kids using the Cultural Pass, but it was still a bit of a challenge to keep Lewis away from from roped-off areas and from touching and sitting on things he wasn't supposed to. The outbuildings/grounds were beautiful, though, and that was the best part of the visit (in my opinion). [And Emily, Juni would LOVE it, as it was a little reminiscent of Little House on the Prairie.] They were setting up for a wedding the day we were there, and it would be a gorgeous setting for that. 

We had a little time to burn before the tour began, so we went outside:

 'Oh, look, a house! Let's go there!'

 That would *not* be the tour we were allowed to go on, though Lewis got up to the porch before we caught up to them.

 One of the outbuildings

Some were pretty obvious in their purpose, while others were kind of a guessing game (like this one). Some signage might be helpful, or maybe there's a map that we didn't see. 

 There were slaves working at the house back in the day, and this was one of the family's living quarters.

On the other side of the same building was the kitchen.

I didn't get many pictures inside the house because flash photography wasn't allowed and because I was busy trying to keep my child from touching/breaking anything valuable. Before I knew flashes weren't allowed, here is Lewis in the boys' bedroom (I think there were four sons who shared this room):

  
And then, ahhh, outside where things can't be broken:

 Lewis in the herb garden (with the woodworking shop in the background)

 This is where Tonya said it was like Little House on the Prairie--the boys took off running down this neverending hill to the cold house and the creek (where they stored food).

 They kept leaning out this window, which dropped straight down into the creek below.

We climbed back up the other side of the valley to the stables, which were nothing but hay bales and a wooden cut-out of a cow (lame).  

Best attempt at trying to get the boys to pose on the back porch :)

:)

We wrapped up the morning with a picnic in the shade. It was a nice place to visit, though I think the house tour would be better when Lew's a little older. But, nothing was broken, and I think he got a little bit of knowledge and experience from it, so I'll consider it a mild success.

Lewis the Truest, Part X

The night before leaving for 4th of July, Kevin had to work late (11pm?!). I was in the kitchen, listening to Pandora and prepping food for the cookouts. Just when I thought Lewis might be asleep, I heard something very loud and clear, in the sweetest southern accent (all the 'I's were looong):

Lew: LIFE IS A HIGHWAY, I WANT TO RIDE IT ALL NIGHT LONG!

He repeated it a few times, clear as can be, and then he was silent and fell asleep. I was totally cracking up and had to call Kevin to tell him. I think we had watched Cars that day for the umpteenth time (and that song is in that movie), but I've never once heard him sing it aloud before. It was too cute. :) He wouldn't sing it for Kevin the next day, but finally the other night, he sang a little of it for him as we were getting ready for bed.

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As we got to the exit for my parents' house, Hattie started to whimper in her crate. (She 'knows' and gets excited when we get off the interstate and onto an exit.)

Lewis: It's okay, Baby Girl. We're almost there, Baby Girl.

:) He has many nicknames for her--Baby Girl, Hattie Boo, Hattie Roo, Pretty Girl, to name a few. He loves the dogs so much (as they do him, most of the time). 

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We hit up the playground one morning while in New Castle. Lewis went down the slide and kind of missed a step and ended up on his butt about halfway down (it was short, but steep). He's been really into me kissing boo-boos to make them feel better the last week or so. He got up from the slide and said:

Lewis: Kiss my butt. Kiss my butt, mama.

:) And there, on the playground, Mama kissed his butt, and he said, 'It feels better.'

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Also at the playground, there were some overly social squirrels that kept coming close to us. He walked over to one and said:

Lew: Hi, Squirrely. My name is Lewis!

Unfortunately we were the only people at the playground until it was almost time to go, so I think he was just looking for a friend to play with. :)

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I almost forgot about this one! I wasn't there to see it, but while Lewis was staying with Grandma and Grandpa T. a few weeks ago, Grandma took off his shorts/underwear (or swim trunks, I forget) in the backyard. He apparently squatted in the yard, peed, and said:

Lew: I'm peeing like a dog!

4th of July Fun

4th of July was a very busy day for us! We woke up and drove up to New Castle to drop off the dogs, and then we headed out to two cookouts (first was with family, second with friends). When we got back to my parents' house late that evening, we set off some fireworks (which Lew was pretty scared of) and called it a day. The rest of our weekend was much more laid back and relaxing and unseasonably cool, which was lovely. 

First, pictures from the 1st cookout at Paula and Tim's house. Lewis and Mathilda played so (unbelievably) well together the whole time. They are sweeties to one another. Mathilda introduced her doll to Lewis as Cinderella, and I think that confused him--he was calling Mathilda, Cinderella, most of the afternoon. :) Close enough.

 Lew likes to grab the corn hole bags and run them right up to the hole to toss them in.

If people were really playing, he also likes to just grab them randomly off the boards, which most people (understandably) don't appreciate. :) 

 Playing chase

 Buddies :)

 Visiting the Greyhounds (that one is Ozzy, I think)

My aunt and uncle have four of them, plus Dietgard brought hers over.

 Checking out Uncle Jim's Mustang with the other guys :)

Next, it was onto Don and Brenda's house for more food and swimming and cows and gator rides:

 Lew spent most of his pool time floating around, asking to be pushed around.

He didn't seem as interested in swimming that day (maybe because it was a little cool outside)--rather, he wanted to see the cows (THERE ARE BABY COWS!) and play with the other kids.

There is a toy tractor that he was pedaling around, and then the real Gator came out and Lewis' day was made. Will took a bunch of kids and I on the first ride around the property, and then I switched with another mom while Lewis rode around with them a second time. We went down to see the cows (3 adults and 2 babies), visited the neighbors' chickens, and went to see a huge, freshly cut hay bale.

Beyond excited :)

I had Lewis on one knee and sweet Cora on the other at first, but then Lew decided he wanted to ride in the back instead. I still got to ride with Cora who was such a sweetheart.

This is her big sister, Avery, who is also such a sweet girl:

The look on Avery's face KILLS me. :) Like, 'Boy, what on Earth are you doing?'

Hahaha and then Lewis' face here!! It's too much.

I'm crying from laughing so hard. Phew!

We thought we might make it home in time to see the big fireworks show in town, but we took longer getting back than expected. Gramma Pat had bought some fireworks, so we set those off in the street. I'm not sure how Lew would have done at the big show, but he was not a fan of the little show we had in the street:

His reaction to the first one started out as excitement but quickly went to 'All done, I want to go inside' as the pops and booms happened.

He went inside and watched mostly out of the window, but he did come back out for a few (short) minutes towards the end. He had no interest in sparklers, either. No, thank you! Maybe next year.