Look what we found in the punkin patch!

 One very very cold and windy day we headed up to the pumpkin patch (on the very top of the bluff of course!) with Brianna, Hannah and Claire. The kids had fun watching the animals, feeding the goats and going for wagon rides. Once we started the trek through the pumpkins, the little girls started to wear out and were ready to head home and get warm! Pete was a trooper though!

 The next day we finished picking all of the raspberries and tomatoes in the garden. I found a little helper in there!

 She was really good at finding raspberries and cherry tomatoes to eat! All year I'd find both kids hovering next to the fence pulling the red tomatoes off of the vines and gobbling them up! I'm lucky that I stuck the berries in the back where they couldn't get to them!!

 Working hard at finding just the right one...

Cruisin'

We got home last weekend and there was a brand new Jeep Wrangler in the driveway with top off! Mike and Julie were lending Rachel their van and she left her car here.

As soon as Peter saw it he started running around saying- let's use it! Let's use it!

So we buckled his car seat in the front and as soon as Ms. Rachel came back- off they went for a little cruise!

Pete Rides Again!

MVI 1178 from garrick holey on Vimeo.

Riding a two wheeled bike is one of the passages into the big-kid world. I never thought that he would be crossing this bridge- but off he goes. Also, excuse my breathing in the background. He is so fast that I can barely keep up by walking! Pretty soon I am going to have to put my running shoes or maybe my roller blades on to keep up. He currently is going around the block and stopping 2 or 3 times... but it improves each time by leaps and bounds. Please slow down kiddo!!

Day Out in Winona

My parents came to spend the day with us a while back. You can always tell when school starts up because I go so long between blogging. I have a hard time sitting at the computer after I've sat all day!

But my parents came to visit for the day and helped me get a few things done, and had a lot of fun along the way as well. One of the activites that we did was use the free canoes on Lake Winona. We loaded up the kids and off we went. This is how the kids spent the entire trip, splashing in the water and leaning out as far as they could. Emi was leaning particularly far out so my dad was watching her when all of the sudden Pete (who was using my mom's paddle) went PLOP! Right into the lake! Without missing a beat, my dad reached in and scooped up Peter who was still holding onto the paddle, had one dry shoulder and was laughing! He must be the ONLY kid in the whole world who wouldn't be fazed by that.

Bike trip

 We went back to the Elroy Sparta Bike trail for what has started to become something of an annual trip! Garrick's goal for the year was for us to take the tandem out of Winona on the top of our car. I only wish I had gotten a picture of that! It is really big up on top of my little car. We also left with this little beauty. A new bike trailer for Peter to use to haul books from the library, watermelons from the Farmer's Market and his little sister around as needed.

 We just did a little ride to one of the closest tunnels so that the kids could walk through the tunnel on their own, play in the creek on the other side of the tunnel and then Pete could ride his bike back. Which he did. Almost 3 miles (mostly downhill) on his little Skut bike. 3 years old. He is a stud!

WSU

We have been having a lot of fun at Winona State this summer-- one of the reasons may be that we keep a container of fish food in the stroller and we also have learned where to buy ice cream on campus. Both of these reasons lead to lots of fun and games!

 Walking around after ice cream

 Clapping for the fish eating!

 Walking on the wall- because she is a big girl.

To the Fair!

 We went to the state fair this week and tried to participate in as many of the features as possible! We were among the first people in the baby animal barn and saw piglets, lambs, a calf, chicks and ducklings.

 Pete had a photo op with this guy.

 We tried out a LOT of tractors. No big surprise, but there were a lot bigger and better tractors than we had at our county fair.

 Worked at a farm for a while

 And got AWESOME hats!!

 Garrick's cousins and aunt and uncle came and met us at the fair too-

 Pete got a beef stick almost as long as he was.

 And participated in the group sing a long by yelling as loud as he could into the mic. We could hear him for sure over the other 100 people singing.

The girls also took the kids on rides! A big slide, a train and some really annoying tractors that had horns that beeped. Pete double up on the horns for his whole ride.