Ann Arbor Children's Museum

Last week we took the boys to the Ann Arbor Hand's On Children's Museum.  I'm really enjoying our family fun days this summer.

Belle Isle Boat Races

Bowling

Yesterday we took the boys bowling and they loved it.  When we got to the bowling alley our friends were already in the middle of a game but the boys were so ancy and ready to start bowling so they grabbed some balls and tried to make their way to the lanes.  They both did pretty well for their first time; with scores of 87 and 83 they even beat some of the adults lol.  J loved his bowling shoes so much that he had a fit when we had to give them back.  

 

Crossroads Village

Sunday we took the boys to Crossroads Village for trick or treating.  Justin enjoyed the train ride and stared out the window intently pointing at everything.  Both boys were on high the entire time and while trick or treating through the village we got the same comments over and over again: oh they're enjoying their candy, you've got your hands full, it'll be more fun for you guys some day. Well we definitely had our hands full but the boys had a blast so it was worth it.

 



Fresh Beat Band

Friday we took the kids to see the Fresh Beat Band in concert.  They were excited all week; every time they saw their personalized shirts we had made for them they shouted out "Fresh Beat Band, Fresh Beat Band".   As we left the house Friday afternoon AJ kept saying "let's go see Fresh Beat, we go now".  And as we turned off the freeway onto Mt. Hope headed toward MSU's campus AJ said "we're almost there".  How he knew we were almost there when he's never been to State before is beyond me lol!

 





Donne's Birthday

Seeing all three boys play together at Donne's b-day party was so cute; I'm sure they'll grow up to be close friends.  After the party we decided to get some pics in another area of the park and the boys had a ball running up and down the stairs.   

 

Motor Madness



Today we took the boys to Motor Madness, an extravaganza of cars, trucks and motorcycles.  They fell in love with Hot Wheels at the event so afterwards we headed to Toys R Us to buy them their first Hot Wheels and a track. 

 

To see the rest of the pictures from Motor Madness click HERE.

Family Fun Fest Carnival

Last month we took the boys to a carnival with one of our friends and her daughter.  The boys had a good time riding the pony, petting and feeding the animals and even rode some kiddy rides.  While J was a little hesitant on a few of the rides, Nathan was fearless and rode all of the rides.  It'll be interesting to see if J warms up to the rides next year. 

 



Justin is 4: Ann Arbor Hands on Museum

In lieu of a birthday party this year we invited friends to join us at the Ann Arbor Hands on Museum on Sunday. 

Today we sent cupcakes to school with Justin so he could share with his classmates.

And this evening the 4 of us celebrated Justin's birthday. It was so cute seeing J get excited about his birthday cake. When he got in his seat he knew exactly what to do and started trying to blow out the candles before Carl could even finish lighting them and we could sing to him.

Fun at the Park

Carl and I have been taking the boys to the park every Thursday since the weather's been nice.  The boys are having a blast and Carl and I are getting a great workout chasing after them.

The Detroit Zoo

Today we bought a family membership to the zoo; although the boys didn't pay too much attention to the animals they still seemed to have a good time. Justin was a little ancy sitting in the wagon and preferred pulling his brother around. Nathan was perfectly content with his Leap Frog scribble and write. Carl got some great animal shots and I took some time to improve/work on my photography skills.

To see more pictures click HERE.

Family Fun

We took advantage of the warm weather Sunday by going to the park; of course the boys had a ball running around.  

Crossroads Village

Carl and I took the boys trick or treating at Crossroads Village. We joined my friend and her family who take their kids every year.  The boys had a blast so it looks like this will be our new family tradition as well. 

The boys' Yo Gabba Gabba costumes were a hit; Justin was perfect as DJ Lance Rock and Nathan was perfect as Brobee. You can view the pictures here if the slideshow below doesn't work.

Click here to view these pictures larger

Sesame Street Live...

was a hit and Justin & Nathan loved it.  I loved watching Justin completely glued to the stage, clapping and slapping his hands to his face in disbelief.  And of course their favorite part of the show was Elmo's World. 

Skating with Elmo

Justin is so adventurous and laid back that I thought he would enjoy roller skating but boy was I wrong.  He was really into the lights and music when we first got to the roller rink but was fussy from the moment I put the skates on him until we left the roller rink.  He'd take a few steps in the skates and then throw a tantrum and fall out on the floor.  We barely made it out onto the rink and the one time we did we couldn't even make it 1/4 of the way before Justin had had enough.  Aiden on the other hand absolutely loved it and kept dragging his mom out on the floor so Justin and I spent most of the time watching Carlene and Aiden skate.  

Surprisingly both boys were scared when Elmo came out.  Justin wanted nothing to do with Elmo and wouldn't even go out on the floor with him.  Aiden was fine on his own terms and would slowly inch closer to Elmo, but as soon as Elmo walked his way he started backing up. 

Free picture collage created with Smilebox Our attempt at skating on the rink.  

After going out on the rink this was the only way I could get Justin to move. 

Yo Gabba Gabba Live

I'm not sure who had more fun at Yo Gabba Gabba Live, the kids or the parents.

This free picture slideshow created with Smilebox

TACOM Org Day

Every year Carl's job hosts an organization day with food, music and family friendly activities. We thought it would be fun to take the boys and enter them all in the cutest baby contest and Justin & AJ in the toddler crawl/race. Unfortunately Carl didn't realize that we had to pre-register for those activities early in the day so by the time we got there we missed out on the fun. And sadly they didn't have many other activities for toddlers; the one bounce house that was suitable for Justin & AJ had too many bigger kids in it. But J & AJ did enjoy looking at the animals and playing at the park after we left Org day.

A Day at the Zoo