Fun with Friends

Nothing like spending a Friday morning playing with friends...
Especially when you are allowed to run and jump and throw things for hours on end!

Pile o Boys in the Foam Pit!

While these two stayed busy hula-hooping -

I still have a few more years til I have to make sure they hula in SEPARATE hoops right?

They sure have fun together!

Speaking of fun - Check out the air that P was getting on the trampoline!

And this little blue eyed beauty - well, she stole the show once again - after a teeny tiny bit of hula hooping - H was all about Baby Grace -

If she were just a smidgeon older - Gracie's Mom would be able to get a little break while H 'took care of' the baby - as it stands now - every time we get together - Katie just ends up with one more kid to hang out with! ha ha!

These two tho - partners in crime they are -

I can just see their little minds working - I hope they can be buddies forever...and that they don't get into too much trouble!

It was P's first time here with us and he had a ton of fun - the first couple of times we went D refused to go off the end of the trampoline at all!
I just love watching P scale himself down off the trampoline and into the foam pit!
Can't wait to go back again soon and see just how much 'braver' the boys are together!

We had so much fun, that we decided to bring home an extra 4 year old for the afternoon...

And it was hard to top the morning fun - but we did it...we just don't have the pictures to prove it...next time P - next time we'll get some great shots of you on the 4 wheeler!

The Cycle of Life

We have had SUCH FUN watching the life cycle of the Painted Lady Butterfly...
They started out as pretty tiny little Caterpillar guys....

And right on schedule...they hatched from their cocoons into cute little butterflies...

The little instruction booklet that came along with our Live Butterfly Kit was right on the mark as far as what we were watching for...# of days between cycles, etc -

And sure enough - shortly after the chysalides turned black...our butterflies emerged...


And shortly after THAT...we saw a lot of THIS.

Yikes!

Our instruction manual did not tell us anything out the mating habits of our new friends - but there was sure a lot of um, friendliness going on...I hope if they WERE indeed doing what we think they were doing - that they lay their eggs somewhere in our garden and we can enjoy more butterflies!

We knew we couldn't keep them for too long - so we took them to daycare & shared with our friends there - (and why I didn't think to bring the kit to daycare daily so the kids there could take in the life cycle with us is beyond me...next time right??)

And then after a week - we decided to release them...

Except they were a little bit reluctant to leave us!

Big Sister WAS interested - but we had company - and she's more about her older cousin than anything else...

So the little guy and I did the bulk of the release...

I just love his gentle side... someone please tell me he'll always be this sweet...

Hastings Car Show - Take One

One of our favorite past times in the summer is going down to the Hastings Car Show -
We go as often as we can -
And we've been looking forward to going this past weekend along with our out of town company...

Grandma Tammy, Auntie Christy, H, Cousin Maddie & Big D.

One thing we didn't realize was that with a group of 8 people, temps in the 90's and the hot hot sun...it wouldn't be quite as um, leisurely?, as we are used to?
A few hundred hot rods with hot engines on the pavement didn't help the temperature factor much either...

Nothing a nice cold ice cream cone couldn't help out though...

Or some sticky cotton candy...

We cooled off down by the river - and what I wouldn't of given to had my SLR with us (it's broken) so that I could have captured the bald eagles soaring high above the water...sooo beautiful!)

D was THRILLED to get back on the pictures with mom bandwagon -

SEE?

D has been around long enough that at the ripe old age of three, he'll walk around saying things like "Hey Dad! Check out that cool 'maro!" As in...CAmaro...pretty cute! They'll have a lot of fun together over the years those two...

H took this photo of Grandpa Larry & Grandma Tammy and the hubs and I hanging out at the river...

And three generations of Gust boys...enjoying the night...

When we got home, it was time to say good bye to Grandpa & Grandma...much too soon -

We do hope they'll come again very very soon -

We all had SUCH a good time and cannot wait to do it again!

WildLife Preserve...Or something...

It was an eventful weekend in the wildlife area here in our little neck of the woods... except that we live smack dab in the middle of the city!

In addition to the Butterfly Release...

Uncle Denny had a little game of catch & release going himself!

Saturday morning - he finally caught the elusive woodchuck...
only, it turned out to be one of two (we know this because we saw one trying to figure out how to free this guy...that guy was finally caught the morning after!)


I sure think they are cute...if they weren't a little bit scary to have around - we might just keep them - instead - they get released down at Murphy Hanrehan....hopefully that's far enough away for them to not come back...

Bosco wanted to say hi - but this as close as we let him get...

And a little later that same day - this crazy bird that's been hanging around was wresting something in the neigbors yard...

Is that I snake I wondered?

Couldn't be....but what if?

Turns out we got just a little too close before the bird was done doing whatever it is birds do with snakes (in this instance, pecking him like crazy and tossing him up in the air over and over again!) - and he flew away...

We figured the snake was dead and went to investigate ... (because dead snakes in the yard and two large dogs between us makes for some stinky rolly polly 100 pound animals that live in our homes)

But he wasn't...

He was just pissed off!

When snapping his picture from several feet away...he tried to 'strike' me!

WHAT?

So...seeing as how this was a teeny tiny snake compared to what we usually get - Betsy and I decided to have a little fun...(because normally we are running in the opposite direction screaming our heads off!)

And shortly thereafter - out for my morning run jog/walk I encountered these two little guys a couple of blocks from home - One laying eggs!