Danes' Family Farm

We went to the ORTHO playgroup this month and got a little messy... ok, a LOT messy! Wet, freshly mowed grass does not work with little kids. But the humiliation was soon forgotten.And it was on to see the animals. Here is Hannah, Cooper and Katelyn waiting for us to get in.

Then Porter and Aspen showed up... and they got a little more restless. Coop didn't want to be left out so he tried to climb as well.

This lamb below had a little house it was hiding in and Cooper kept trying to go in and get it. No FEAR I tell you! I think he was prepped from our visit to the fair.

All animal poop and sprained ankles aside, a BIG thank you to Darci for planning such a fun outing! All you moms: If you haven't done this yet it is such fun with the kids and they give you FREE ice cream after the petting zoo at their dairy - yummy.

FAIR PLAY

We made it to the Iowa State Fair this year, it's suppose to be the best in the nations so, of course, we HAD to check it out. First thing was first: Randy had heard about the food so the boys went in search of the "good stuff".

And I think they found something...

A plethora of goodies were consumed this day - let's just say that Randy would gladly pay $10/each next year just for the chance to eat.

Then on to the animals where we saw the biggest SWINE and BULL of the fair:

Both were well over 2,000 pounds - now THAT is some SERIOUS Iowa dieting.

This little calf was adorable with Cooper. He started licking him all over his face and hands which honestly grossed me out, but what do you expect at the fair... can I say SHOWER TIME!

Yes, the fair was a big HIT. So to all of you who STILL have not come to visit us, yet another exciting attraction IOWA has to offer that will leave you saying, "Let's make Iowa our vacation destination EVERY year!"

Sweet baby girl

She's ADORABLE, as you can see. I'm not biased or anything- he he. My sister, Cindy, gave birth to her on HER birthday, July 22nd. You ROCK sister of mine! Happy (late) birthday, I love you soo much!

What to do in IOWA for fun...

WELOME to the SOLON BEEF DAYS. Of course, we HAD to attend the festivities. Anything with BEEF in the title sounds like fun, right?? Randy entered the Haybale throwing contest for a whopping 5 buckaroos. I bragged that I would enter for the WOMEN but glad I didn't once I saw the guns on those girls. I would have been HUMILIATED. They started the men out at 7' and increased in increments of 6". I must say, Randy still has some STRENGTH from his football days! He threw clear up to 10'6"!! I didn't realize I had my camera on me until his last throw:

The winner threw an astounding 12'6", a new record. If you know Randy's competitive nature, don't be surprised if you see us practicing in the backyard for next year. Jon and Theo were great to console him after his loss.

The deck is DONE

After a few weekends of digging in the MUD, a little work here and there (ok, a LOT), I present our FINISHED deck project for the summer.

BEFORE:


AFTER:

I think it turned out pretty nice, and now we have extra storage for all the yard stuff. Randy says I'm not allowed any more projects for THIS summer.

Sweet 4th Fun

This year's 4th of July was one of the most fun in a long time! It started with Cooper and I running in the Dylan Campbell Benefit 5k - he was a trooper and we finished in about 29 minutes (under 30 sounds good to me) I realized that since I've been running alone I don't haven anyone to get me motivated to pick up my pace - which means I was sucking wind trying not to let the old man behind me pull ahead at the end - if anyone ever wants to RUN... call ME.

Here we are L to R: Kristie, Melissa, Heather, me and Rivka - thanks for the fun time, ladies!

Then it was off to the Coralville parade to bask in the sun. Donigan's mom had popcorn so Cooper wouldn't leave her alone once he figured that out, she was a good sport about sharing. That town knows how to throw a parade! Yes, there was plenty of salt water taffy, but we also scored cloth grocery bags, sparklers, free movie passes, discount massages, a t-shirt, beach balls, and ice pops. By the end of the parade Rivka and I were as bad as the kids next to us, pleading for someone to throw us goodies.

The Boyer's were nice enough to invite us over for a BBQ that afternoon, so after a quick nap we picked up Randy and headed out. Coop had to share when Kate decided his food looked better than hers. Luckily there was plenty to go around.

















After my reluctancy to give in to the popsicle with a nice white polo shirt, Jessica reminded me that they're easy to bleach and - after all - it was the 4th. I also believe he would have heisted Megan or Claire's if he didn't have his own.

We went downtown to watch some fireworks but tired boys and loud noises don't mix, so we lit some sparklers and headed home - hope you all had a wonderful 4th, too!

Utah Fun

Cooper is smiling in his car seat... he didn't realize how long he would have to stay in it!

24 hours of driving to get to SLC, but it was worth it! Randy and Cooper amused themselves by coloring when we stopped to eat.

And, of course, you have to make LOTS of STOPS to let everyone run around for a few minutes (and rest their backs because if you have to listen to SOMEONE say their back hurts one more time you might lose it). This is our stop in Nebraska at the Pony Express where the boys rested and I picked up some AWESOME mosquito bites - ouch.

We called the parents and told them we could drive no further than the SL valley, so Sunday night my parents hopped in the car and surprised us at Cindy's house - yea! Too bad they didn't tell anyone they were coming because by the time they arrived we were all asleep and no one heard their cries in the driveway (where they spent the night). Don't feel too bad, the mafia ride has plenty of room (how many bodies in the trunk??). Cindy is due next month - doesn't she look great!!

Off to Gateway for a little fun in the fountains... but wait - is this an Iowa reunion? Here comes Jessie, Kasey and Amy who just happen to be doing the same thing :) How serendipitous

That night we enjoyed a great BBQ @ the Thompson's and caught up with Kristie and Julie with their cute families. Unfortunately I left the camera case there... so no pictures of our fun time at the Hogle Zoo, Greg's superb dutch-oven dessert, the drive-in movie at Redwood, or the day at the swimming pool. Let's just say that much fun should never be crammed into 2 days. Thanks to Cindy, Greg, Trevor and Tyler for a great time!

Next it was off to Layton to visit Jane and Dan. I totally stunk at badminton, but beat Randy so that's all I cared about. The Richards are fierce competitors, they make it look easy. Next day was a mtn. bike ride up the Temple Quarry trail at the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon. It's a constant climb that follows the river... so beautiful! I highly recommend this trail, you can hike as well as bike if you're a little intimidated. Here we are at the top.

And our SWEET babysitter at the bottom with Cooper - no bike trailers welcome on the terrain.

Thanks to Dan we dined on his homemade LASAGNA... mmm, good and watched RAMBO that night. But Jane and I snuck away to enjoy a little Alfred Hitchcock, the boys didn't even miss us. Then it was Friday - bbo hoo - thanks to Aunt Ruth for breakfast, and Grandparents Clark for lunch, and finally good ol' Denny's in Salina where we met up with Harold, Bonnie, Jess and Sierra who drove from Saint George to meet us.

Thanks to the family for our impromptu trip and how much fun we had! It makes me wonder if we could endure the ride next year... I think I need a little time to forget about sleeping in the car before I commit. Love to all!