Getting things done

I have been busy crossing things off my list of things to get done before the baby arrives!  This weekend we rented steam cleaner for the carpets and boy were they gross!

(dining room with stuff from the living room stacked in)

We also cleaned out the 4th bedroom/office and it is now ready for baby stuff!!  Then today I ordered almost 300 pictures that will arrive sometime while we are on vacation and once they are in albums I am officially caught up with my pictures!  Yippie!  That has been a big project since I have done about 3 years in the last 14 months!  But the kids love looking at the pictures now and I am hoping they still enjoy them when they are adults.

So what have the kids been doing while we have been so busy?  It involves 3 things. Chalk, water, and outside.

They have been busy coloring all their outside toys with their  sidewalk chalk.  They also figured out that if the chalk is wet the colors are brighter!  Will's favorite thing is water so he loves this.

The wet chalk makes a paint almost and Will turns into a Smurf since all he uses is the blue.  Clothes obviously have to be washed and hands scrubbed.

The wet chalk remnants are on everything.  The bubble car, the grocery cart, basketball goal, the lid of the sand table and the deck have all been hit!

But I won't complain not even once since this activity occupied a solid HOUR of Will's time.  By himself!!  I might even go buy more chalk and scrub everything clean so he can start over!

Caroline updates:

She lost her second tooth last Thursday!  She is still so excited and loves showing anyone who will look.  She also swam the entire length (25ft) of the pool Sunday to pass the "i can swim in the pool by myself challenge".  Without stopping.  She did the correct freestyle stroke and everything (minus the side breathing).  We were so proud of her!!

The 2 adult teeth are already coming in.

George George Park

That's where we had dinner last night.  We went to a nearby park with our friends the Krosts for a picnic dinner.  We spent the afternoon going for a walk, playing on the playground and then grilling brats and hotdogs for dinner.  The weather was great and we had a wonderful time.

The kids gathered around for a chance to hold the toad.

Caroline wasn't so sure and pulled her hands back and dropped the poor thing.

Caroline, Will, and Madeline walking with the dads.

Pavilion in the middle of the park.  This place used to be a golf course and still has the nice paved cart paths.

Awesome playground!  Will was running to catch up to the big girls.

Ava, Madeline, Will, and Caroline enjoying dinner.  What a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Ann Arbor Hands-on

Yesterday we decided to go to Ann Arbor and go to the Hands-on museum too.  We had never been to Ann Arbor and we really enjoyed the feel of the place and all that was going on in that city.  The population is a little over 100,000 and with the college, you know the little school known as the university of Michigan,  there on Saturdays the population a little more than doubles since the stadium holds about 110,000 now after some renovations. Which for you fact loving people is the largest stadium in the US.  We didn't go on campus or even drive by "the big house" but we did walk around downtown and have lunch outside at an italian restaurant.  The town reminded us somewhat of Boone, lots of people walking around all with reusable shopping bags, the smell of incense wafting out of some stores, and even some random hippie spottings.
But most of our time was spent at the hands-on museum playing.

Building a house out of foam blocks.

Our leaning 3 walled house.

Will's favorite thing about building things is knocking it down!

Caroline climbing a firepole.

Will and his new friend riding bikes together.

Climbing with Dad.

They even made boomerangs that mostly worked.

No kids museum would be complete without some water fun.

Making shapes out of rubber bands on a peg board.  Will only popped his fingers twice!

Caroline made a house with a roof and a door.

Outside the museum after a fun afternoon.

Then we drove a little farther west to Chelsea, MI where the Chelsea Bear factory is located.  The kids each picked out a bear (Will's is blue!).  The little town was having a festival and even though it was raining by this point there were still lots of people walking the streets and several groups performing.  After walking a round for a few minutes we headed home.  I am really looking forward to going back to Ann Arbor to see more of the town and of course we might just have to see a football game too!