More adventures in CO

We have been loving our time out in Colorado. The more we are out here the more I am determined to make Joseph start a practice here. We'll see how that goes, seeing as Denver already has tons of dentists. It seems as though every other dental wife in the nation had the same idea that I do!

Almost every neighborhood has a beautiful playground for the kids. Jake has especially enjoyed visiting the different parks.

We went to a wildlife animal shelter a couple weeks ago. It is essentially a refuge for large animals who have been born into captivity whose owners can no longer care for them. For example, people buy tiger cubs thinking that they will make cute pets, but then realize that a tiger is not a pet and then they have no place to go. Many of the animals are abused or have never seen another of their kind, so the animal shelter rehabilitates them, then eventually they are put on acres of land where they can interact with others of their kind. There are lions, tigers, bears, wolves, camels, cougars, panthers, and more. It was very interesting, and neat to see the animals rescued.

In our most recent adventure, we met up with some friends who live in the area and went to the World of Wonder Children's Museum. We had so much fun!

Jake pretended to be a pirate on a pirate ship:

And a red dragon conductor of a train:What cute kids!!This is how we left - Jake in tears because he didn't want to leave:And Eli sleeping in the stroller. Sounds about right.

Adventures in CO

We have safely arrived in Colorado, and let me just tell you that that was no small feat. Our car has been in the shop not once, not twice - no, not even three times- but FOUR TIMES in the past two weeks. Cha-ching. With our car being in the shop most of the time we've been here, we've had to stay local and see what the quiet town of Firestone (which is about 20 miles north of Denver) has to offer.

We've hit up the local rec center where they have a surprisingly super-fun pool:

We have gone for walks and enjoyed the beautiful CO scenery:

We have played at some fun parks:

We visited the local lake (which was actually pretty smelly and not good at all for swimming, but still scenic)

Hopefully our car troubles will end soon (it's in the shop as I write this...fittingly). Once we get it back, we look forward to getting into the city and checking out all it has to offer besides semi-knowledgable mechanics!

Walking in Daddy's footsteps

I remember doing the same thing when I was a kid. What is it about your parent's shoes that is so alluring? Whatever it is, it makes for an adorable picture.

Oh, what do we do in the summertime?

On this scorching day in the middle of July, we (I) decided to stay inside instead of braving the summer heat (I'm not a wuss...heat index has been around 110 lately...unless that's wussy for you, in which case, yes, I'm a wuss). That means a nice blog catch-up for you, my faithful reader.

We were privileged to have a visit from my sister. It was wonderful to see her. My boys loved all the attention she gave them, and I loved all the help she gave me! Love this girl.

We said goodbye to our good friends, the Abarcas, who have graduated from law school and are now off to bigger and better things (read: a paycheck). Our kids became great little friends, and we were very sad to see them go. I know, Eli, I feel the same way.

We've also spent lots of time at the local Splash Pad. A free playground full of water. And when your dad has a two week break from school, it's even more fun!

And of course, while Jake and Joseph spend their time playing around in the water, Eli makes sure to catch some zzz's. It's a hard life for this baby.

There are tons of other things we've been up to, such as the local pool, refinishing our table and chairs, visiting relatives in Nauvoo, summertime bbq's, and even a quick trip to Chicago, but since I don't have pictures of those, the only mention that they get is this sentence.

Joseph had his last first day of school today. It was orientation, then we leave for CO on Friday for his externship. Let the summer fun keep on rollin'!

God Bless the USA

I love my country. Period. This Fourth of July I had a renewed appreciation for what it means to be an American. And I am proud to be an American.

America is the place where I can dress my kids up to attend whichever religious service we please (it's also the place where they are given adorable American flag pinwheels in nursery!):

America is the place where we hold parades down Main Street (or 5th Street) to honor our country and those who have fought for it.It is at these self-same parades that the kids are given gobs of free candy and delight in seeing (and hearing!) true americana such as bright red fire engines and blaring tow trucks.

America is the place where I can let my 3-year-old enjoy his very first sparkler.And where my 6-month-old is free to drool all over his mother.

America is the place where my children can grow to be whatever they want to be. Maybe a pilot?

A train engineer?

Or maybe even a dentist?

Whatever it is, I hope they grow up with an appreciation for the wonderful country that they were privileged to be born in.

I hope you all enjoyed your Fourth of July as much as we did. God Bless the USA!

The Funnies

Jake is getting to that age where he is saying some pretty funny stuff. Here are a few that I love off the top of my head:

Me: (muttering under my breath after a particularly stressful afternoon) "Jake, you're driving me crazy!"

Jake: "Mom, I can't even drive!!"

Jake asked if he could look at pictures on the computer. "Sure!" I replied. Then he looked at me, confused, and said, "No, mom, you gotta say, 'One second!'"

For the longest time, any time Jake wanted to be held he would always say, "carry you" instead of "carry me." Finally, one day when he asked to "carry you," I responded saying, "Jake, it's carry me, not carry you." Then he said, "Ok, mom, carry you me please."

One time Jake was in the bathroom while I was about to hop in the shower. He asked where my "weenie" was. I told him girls don't have "weenies." Then he thoughtfully replied, "Oh...you broke it?"

Outta the mouth of babes!

JUMP, JUMP!

Eli is a jumping machine! He has been going to town in his jumperoo, jumping as hard as his little 5-month-old legs will let him. Love this boy!

Could you really get any cuter? I don't think so either.

While Eli has been bouncing away, Jake has become quite the puzzle master in our home. I recently bought him a book of puzzles where the puzzles actually fit right into the page of the book (gotta love Usborne!). Each puzzle is at least 20 pieces and I bought it for him thinking he could use it in a year or two, but he has taken off with it! He will sit and concentrate on finishing each puzzle until all 6 puzzles in the book are complete. It's actually been eerily quiet in our home...

One of my favorite things as a mother is to watch my children grow and learn new things, even if it's just as simple as jumping in a bouncer or putting together a jigsaw puzzle.