A New Toy for the Boys

At long last, the moonbounce arrived!

Dan and I ordered it in early June and it was on backorder for a long time. But finally it arrived and the Korsvalls came over to help us break it in!

We also brought our ball pit and tunnel outside (a Costco find, gotta love Costco) and Andrew loved crawling through the tunnel.

Although the moonbounce it fairly large, it is mobile. We plan to bring it on our vacation in a few weeks, so you'll probably see some more pictures of it again soon!

The Sweetest Place on Earth

We left the hotel around 9:15 and headed to our next adventure.... Hersheypark. Are we the coolest moms, or what?

So what do you think we should do first?

All of the kids were great as we explored all corners of the park. There was so much to see and do, that we didn't even spend any time in the waterpark area which seemed pretty big. We did spend some time in ZooAmerica and saw some Elks. Check out those antlers!

But of course, most of the time was spent on the rides. The FrogHopper was definitely a favorite!

And what's a trip to an amusement park without any ice cream?

Late in the afternoon, we ran into a bunch of the Hershey mascots. Which one is your favorite??

For me, it's probably the Peppermint Patty, but the KitKat bar is a close second. To end our visit to Hershey, we stopped into Chocolate World and took the tour.

And finally, at 9:15 pm we pulled out of the parking lot and started the drive home. As expected, all of the kids fell asleep and Kristy and I were able to enjoy some adult conversation. It was the latest I have been up in a long time! It was a really great trip!

Willow Valley

On Thursday and Friday, my friend Kristy and I piled our kids into our mini-van and headed to Pennsylvania for a short trip. First stop was the Willow Valley Inn in Lancaster. Our boss had recommended this as a good hotel for young kids and I couldn't agree more. The kids enjoyed time in 3 of their 4 pools, one of which is a water playground with this small frog slide and one bigger waterslide.
After dinner, we took a little time to explore some of the other amenities and just enjoy the beauty of the hotel grounds. There was a great playground for the kids on the far side of the pond,

and a small corn maze that the kids loved tromping through.

We got the kids to bed nice and early at 9:15 pm (that was sarcastic) so they could be well-rested for the next day's adventure.

Pool Party

After church on Sunday, we headed over to Dan's parent's house to enjoy some time in their pool. Nathan the water bug enjoyed every minute he could in the pool. I can't tell you how many times he pushed of the seat ledge in the pool attempting to swim to the other side.

Andrew, on the other hand, was happiest with his feet planted firmly on the ground and playing with the water table.

Luckily we got to their house early, because around 3 pm a big storm rolled through that wreaked havoc on our neighbors in Maryland and other parts of the DC metro area.

Happy Birthday, Emilia!

It was a record breaking hot Saturday afternoon, but that didn't stop us from having a blast at Emilia's 3rd birthday party. Luckily, the Korsvalls were prepared for the heat and lots of fun water activities outdoors to keep the kids cool.

The combo slide/slip & slide seemed to be a favorite...

We even had Andrew try it once... He was not a big fan.

And when the kids were ready for a break from the heat, they were able to make a lollipop craft inside.

It was a great party!

Adventure to the City

On Friday, I took Nathan on an adventure into DC to the National Building Museum. There was a Lego display there that I thought he would enjoy. There were about 10 buildings made of Legos that were amazing. Here's one of the Empire Statue Building and ___??__ ( I forget the other one).

Nathan's interest in the Lego buildings lasted all of about 10 seconds when he saw the next part of the exhibit.... a big open space with lots of Legos so you could design and build your own building. Nathan quickly went to work.

Here we are with our creations....

Afterwards, we enjoyed some time in the Building Zone, an area designed for toddlers and preschoolers with lots of blocks, books and other fun activities.

Nathan and I had a great time and finished off our outing with a burger from Fuddruckers, before boarding the metro for the ride home.

Afternoon at Adventure Theatre

On Saturday afternoon, the 17th, Wendy, Erin and I took the big kids out for a special evening. We piled in the mini-van and headed to the Adventure Theatre in Glen Echo Park, Maryland for a performance of "If You Give a Pig a Pancake." In preparation for the outing, Nathan, Clara and Emilia read the book many times and were very familiar with the story. The performance was excellent and the kids really enjoyed it. Afterwards, the kids also enjoyed some pancakes for dinner at the Silver Diner. The only bad part of the evening was that I forgot my camera. Sorry, no pictures..... unless you check them here at the Korsvall's blog: http://korsvalladventures.com/?p=567.

Cookout at Home

We decided to have a summer cookout on Sunday evening. The menu included Flank Steak, Broccoli Slaw Salad, Corn on the Cob and Watermelon. We offered Andrew a plate of this food cut into bite size pieces, but all he did was fuss. So finally we offered the corn and watermelon in a different fashion and we had a happy baby!

After dinner, we all enjoyed some mini ice-cream cones.

Andrew, however, had a different approach.... eat the cone first. Although it worked for him, we would not recommend this approach.

But unfortunately, all good things come to and end..... and unhappy Andrew returned to the dinner table.

Super Underwater Man

It's a fish, no, it's a submarine, no, it's........... SUPER UNDERWATER MAN.
Last week Nathan finished up his 4 week swim class. The progress he made over these few weeks is unbelievable! He is now going fully underwater and spinning around. He will also jump into the pool all by himself with no one to catch him. He is just so excited and wants to go to the pool all the time, s0 we decided to sign him up for the next class. Maybe he'll be able to swim a few feet by the end of the summer?!?!?

Picnic at Potomack Lakes

Last Saturday, we awoke to the peaceful pitter-patter of rain. It continued to rain all morning so we enjoyed some quiet time at home. We kept checking weather.com and the forecast for the afternoon did not look good. But around 1 pm, the sky began to clear and the sun began to shine. We were relieved because we had agreed to host a potluck picnic at the Potomack Lakes Pavilion in Sterling for families at our church.

After our picnic, the kids enjoyed trotting around... and playing on the playground.

What a fun afternoon!