Fourth of July Weekend

This year, the Fourth of July weekend wasn't too eventful for us.  We kept it kind of low key for a variety of reasons.  On Friday, my sister came to visit.  She had a bridal shower in town Saturday morning, so she came up Friday around lunchtime.  After lunch and naps, we went to the zoo.  I was afraid it was going to be super crowded with it being a holiday weekend.  Surprisingly, it was not crowded at all.  We got there around 3:00, and since the zoo closes at 5:00, we didn't have a ton of time to walk around.  But since there were hardly any people there we got to see quite a bit.  Our big disappointment was not being able to see Lucas, the new baby elephant.  I didn't realize he was only out for certain hours of the day (which totally makes sense considering he's a newborn).  We got to the elephants about 4:15, only to find out that he goes in at 4:00.  Oh well, next time we will know.  Unfortunately my camera batteries died while we were there.  I have some pictures we took with my camera, and my sister took a few more - I just don't have hers yet.  She took one at the end of all three of us, so I'll have to make sure to get those from her ASAP.

 

Logan and Jenn Jenn on the train

 Brayden and me on the train

 We thought it was cute that he was holding on

Nature's Neighborhood

Jenn left on Saturday morning for the shower and then home.  The plan was to try to get a bunch of work done around the house.  We're still prepping to get our house back on the market, and we have a list that we're slowly checking items off of.  Todd's parents had said they were going to come over to swim that afternoon, so we thought we could have them take the boys for an hour or so while Todd and I got some work done.  It was super hot that day, so our work day ended up turning into an entire afternoon in the pool.  We swam from 2:30 until about 5, and then it was time to make dinner.  Needless to say, we didn't get much checked off the list that day, but we had a blast anyway.

On Sunday morning we headed up to the lake.  Troy and Stacey were there, but Todd's parents were staying home because they were leaving for Las Vegas on Monday.  It was the first time that we were up there by ourselves.  We were excited to test out the feeling of having our own place.  We took a walk, ate lunch, napped, and then spent the rest of the day by the beach.  This was the first time we really spent an extended amount of time at the beach.  Todd's mom doesn't like the heat, so I always feel guilty going up to the lake and spending the majority of our day away from the cottage.  But this was so much better!  The boys had so much fun, I got some sun, and we had a great time!  We will definitely be spending more time at the beach the next time we go up to the lake...and I won't let myself feel guilty!  

 Brayden and Lilly - She will make the best babysitter in a few years!

 We kept trying to get him to jump, but he wouldn't unless someone was in to catch him.

Logan and Lilly

We ran out of time for a boat ride, which was a little disappointing, especially for Logan.  But Todd took him out on the jetski instead.  I was a nervous wreck, especially since Todd totally fibbed about how far he would take Logan out and how fast he would go.  Nothing bad happened, and Logan loved it, but I still can't help but think about what could have happened.

 
The fireworks at the lake were Saturday night, so we missed them.  I was bummed that Logan didn't get to see them but glad that I didn't have to worry about Brayden waking up during them.  We came home early Monday morning and just relaxed at home.  Nothing super patriotic, though I am disappointed I didn't get a picture of the boys in their cute outfits (thanks to Grammy and Papa).  

I hate to wish my boys' childhood away, but we kept saying that we couldn't wait until next summer.  Todd and I both remember how much fun Logan had at the lake last year, and that's the age Brayden will be next year.  We won't have to deal with nursing schedules, sleep issues, or a baby that can't walk yet.  I'm crossing my fingers that next year can be worry and issue-free.  And Todd and I decided that we really liked being on our own at the lake.  We're making plans to save some money so that we will be able to get our own place in a few years.