VBS (...again! ...with a friend!)

Emma's friend Jessica invited her to Vacation Bible School at her church this past week. Since Emma had enjoyed our church's last month and was already asking when she could go to another one, she was excited to try it. The theme was "Kingdom Rock," where "Kids Stand Strong For God." Each night a different animal helped them learn about the theme; Emma liked the lion the most and kept asking when it was going to be the lion's night! Unlike Bible School at our church, I just dropped Emma off, so I wasn't sure how she'd react, but she was fine-and maybe even happy-with leaving me! On Sunday July 28, the church held an outdoor picnic and the kids performed some of their favorite songs from the week. Emma seemed to enjoy the music and really got into the hand motions! She is already asking Jessica if she can go with her next year!

New Adventures and Old Favorites!

On Wednesday and Thursday, July 17th and 18th, we went back to Kings Island. The 17th is our anniversary, but we didn't mind spending it at Soak City Water Park, even if it was an unconventional way to celebrate! It was mostly a hot, sunny day, with just one quick 10 minute shower after we arrived; in other words, it was a perfect day to go out and get wet! In the evening, after the water park closed, we spent a couple of hours at the main park, where Todd won Emma another Lalaloopsy doll, as he had last month. Emma actually wore herself out; shortly after we got to our hotel, she tucked herself in bed, asked for a story, and fell asleep halfway through it (which is totally out of character for this night owl)!**On the 18th, we went to the main park again, where Emma got to enjoy two rides she'd never experienced before, since she's now passed the 47 inch mark! Both were water rides; on both, we got pretty wet! Later, we went to Snoopy's Splash Dance, which it hadn't been warm enough to enjoy on previous visits, and Emma and I both were drenched! We also went to the Dinosaurs Alive exhibit, which we had not seen since last fall, and saw the 3D Dinosaur move for the first time (and the first 3D movie of any kind for all three of us)!**On Friday we visited Jungle Jim's just north of Cincinnati, which Todd dubbed "a grocery store on steroids". It's been featured on news stories throughout the country and is called "An Amusement Park for Food Lovers." Not only does it feature foods from all over the world, but it has a lot of unique decorations, such as a gigantic singing soup can, a singing Elvis bear (presumably purchased from an old Chuck E Cheese's), and a yacht! (Please note in the pictures: The "portable" restrooms were actually regular restrooms with an unusual entrance!) It was the first visit for all of us, but I'm sure that we'll go back! Our last stop for the trip was Ikea, a Swedish furniture store (also enormous). We'd been to other Ikea stores on vacations in the past, but this was our first visit to this one. After a lunch of Swedish meatballs, we perused the store. Emma loved the displays and kids' play areas. We couldn't have planned this trip better; Friday had rain and storms throughout the day, but we were so busy enjoying the stores that Emma barely noticed!

Sizzlin' Summer!

Over the past week or so (July 12-16), Emma enjoyed a lot of activities now that the weather is finally heating up and drying out a little bit! She had playdates with friends Jessica and Addy which included a lot of backyard time, got out our tent for the first time(to see if she's ready to give camping a try soon), attended Jessica's Daisy Scout meeting to see if she might join a troop, rode the slip 'n slide, went to family night at our community pool (which included a game of tug-of-war in the water), and went to the Y pool to enjoy the water slides!

Biker Chick!

On Friday July 12, Emma rode her bike without training wheels and did remarkably well! I noticed when we were riding around the block that her training wheels hardly touched the ground. When I mentioned this to her, she said she was ready to ride without them. On her first try, after I gave her a running start, she rode about 20 feet. For her second try, she rode from our driveway to our neighbors'. Finally, she rode about 4 houses down, stopped, then fell over and got her leg stuck underneath the bike. Now she's a little nervous about trying again. Hopefully she'll try again soon! (Please note: I couldn't get the video of her riding to load onto the blog, but it is posted on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L22tqUuWllA

Toledo Trip

We spent July 2-7 in Toledo, visiting Todd's family and enjoying some of our favorite places there. We went to the Imagination Station on Wednesday, where we enjoyed the travelling exhibit, "Grossology," with interactive activities like a walk-in nose that sneezes on you, a digestive system slide, and a skin lesions climbing wall! We also revisited old favorites, like the Little Kidspace preschool kids' area, simulator ride, and hurricane chamber.**On Thursday, the 4th, we went to the zoo, where the animals were even more entertaining than usual; the polar bear cub twins were wrestling with each other, while their mother jumped into the tank and played with a floating toy right beside the glass; the baby giraffe was off by itself, trying to reach the leaves of a small tree with its long purple tongue; a chimpanzee sat right next to the glass and stared at us while it ate. We also enjoyed the Walkabout exhibit, which included an adorable 9-month-old wallaby!**On Thursday evening, Karen said Sarah and Tommy were coming over to go to the neighborhood fireworks with us. However, we had no idea that they were bringing "everybody"! Aunt Mary and Frank, who had just driven up from Georgia that day, arrived with Courtney, David and Baby David (now 2). Shortly after, Aunt Sarah and Uncle Tommy came over with their sons, including their oldest, Derek, who was visiting from Colorado for the holiday with his wife and one-year-old daughter, Elizabeth. She, Emma and David were sizing each other up while I wondered how Emma got to be such a giant! Then we walked over to the neighborhood park 2 blocks away, where the kids played on the playground and ran around while we waited for the fireworks to start. We had a great time, and the fireworks were spectacular!**On Friday, at Karen's suggestion, we went to Penny's for family pictures (see link, https://viewimages.jcpportraits.com/sharealbum/sharealbumlist?rndId=AwMIBARGXQ%3D%3D&uId=BQkJBQRGXA%3D%3D In the evening Todd, Emma and I went to a Mud Hens game. Emma enjoyed seeing her favorite mascots, Muddy and Muddonna, and she even got them to sign her Muddonna shirt! She also got a picture with the Rugrats (there as a part of the 90s night theme) even though she didn't know who they were! We also had front-row seats to the fireworks after the game!**On Saturday, we went to Sarah and Tommy's house for a get-together. We were supposed to have a cookout, but it was raining all day, so we had a "cook-in" instead. No one really cared, though...we were just happy to get to see so many friends and family. Emma enjoyed being surrounded by other kids (a rare event as an only child), and she especially enjoyed playing with her cousin Lily, who will also be starting Kindergarten this fall.**On Sunday we had lunch with Karen at a Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza restaurant downtown (delicious), then visited the book store before heading home in the evening. Just think, a trip we originally planned mostly as a visit to Grandma Karen turned out to be a mini-vacation and a family reunion!