Off to Grandma's!

All summer the kids have been looking forward to one thing above all others: Going out to Grandma and Grandpa's house. We finally headed out August 3rd and were able to stay for almost 2 weeks this year. I was a bit more random than usual with photo taking, but I've put together a couple collages and a "scrapbook" with some of the pics I did get...
 

Having Fun with Grandma and Grandpa Haroldsen
    We always have a great time visiting Jen's parents. As well as making a few "excursions", we played at a couple nearby playgrounds, visited the library, and had "Early Christmas". (Early Cmas lets Grandma & Grandpa watch the kids unwrap their presents and also lets the kids enjoy summer-related gifts, like the girls' tent).

Exploring the Carnegie Science Center and Children's Museum of Pittsburgh      Carnegie Science Center is always a great place to visit --- for Matt as well as the kids! This year was our first time checking out the Children's Museum, though. We teamed up with (Jen's sister) Lisa and her boys for the day, and had a great time. Enjoying the Lake at Raccoon State Park (PA)      On the Friday the 12th, we went out to the lake at Raccoon State Park with Lisa and her family. We had been there last year and really enjoyed it; this year the weather was not as warm, but we still had a great time. (The kids missed having Uncle Joe & Aunt Mary along this year, though --- Joe was always the one up for taking them out in the "deep" water....) We're so glad we got to go out to Pittsburgh this year! It's a bit of a drive (10 hours + potty stops, etc) but always totally "worth it"!

Vacation was Great!

We just got back from 2 weeks in Pittsburgh --- staying with my parents, of course!

It was great fun, and I have lots of pictures to share, but that will have to wait a bit...

I'll come back and "edit" this post later to include fun stories & photos... but now I've got loads of stuff to unpack and a "Sharing Time" to prepare...

Pittsburgh Adventures: West View Firestation

My brother Joe's wife, Mary, is from the Pittsburgh area. Her family still lives there, and her dad, Ed Glatz, is a volunteer firefighter. He arranged a tour of the firestation for the (older) kids while we were out there....

(Once again I was home with baby --- many thanks to my Dad for escorting the kids --- and for taking these great photos!)

Note: this "Smilebox" is a postcard-style creation; click play, it will open in a new window, then you can click on individual photos for a close-up)

Pittsburgh Adventures: Going to the Zoo/Aquarium

One of the super-fun activities we like to do in Pittsburgh is going to the Zoo. This time, Grandma & Grandpa and Uncle Joe & Aunt Mary (my brother and his wife) took my three older kids, and Riley, my sister Lisa's oldest. I stayed home with baby Esther, since she and I were both still sick. (Lisa was home with her littler boys, too.) The kids had a blast, of course --- and I confess I'm a little jealous!

(This particular "Smilebox" is a digital scrapbook, click on "play", it will open in another browser window, use the little round button(s) at the bottom of it to "turn" the pages)

Bye, Daddy --- We're going to Grandma's!

We've wanted for a while to go out and visit my parents and sister who live in Pittsburgh. Unfortunately, not only does Matt have little vacation time to spend right now, his job keeps sending him to Seattle --- And no way was I going to drive 10+ hours with 4 kids all by myself!
Well, in the meantime, my brother, Joe, and his wife have been wanting to see everybody, too. So, it finally occurred to us that these were highly compatible goals: Joe flew into Chicago, the kids and I drove down to meet him, and we continued on to Pittsburgh together! (There's only so much room in the van, so Joe's wife, Mary, flew out directly to PA.)

We got there just in time for "Mothers' Day", which was way cool. We spent a fair amount of time just hangin' with the grandparents (and often my sister Lisa and her boys), but also had a few fun excursions. (I'm making separate "Smileboxes" for a couple of the fun outings --- the Zoo and the Fire Station)

Anyway, it was all very fun (except baby Esther and I having a cold) and I very much hope to do this (at least once a year) in the future!!!

Thanks Again, Joe!!! (aka "Uncle Funny!")