Swimming with a Turtle

Braden in his happy turtle state!
And he's off! Our little turtle cruising around.

It's crazy how life changes so quickly. If you would have asked me two years ago what my favorite summer activity was, I might have said running around the lake or hanging out on the patio with a cold drink. Last year if you would have asked me, it might have been going on dates with Joe (knowing that those would soon slow down post-baby), going on weekends away or getting a pregnancy massage to feel better. Well, this year it's swimming with a turtle!

We bought this turtle raft a couple of weeks ago and we take it to the Linden Hills wading pool. What is so great is that the LH wading pool is shallow enough that Braden can touch the bottom while he's in his raft. So, he cruises around the pool just like he is walking. He has so much fun and barely even notices if I am around! So, this year...swimming with a turtle is my favorite activity.

Starting The Day Off Right!

This morning Braden and I ate breakfast outside on the patio, one of my favorite things to do. We are relaxing after a busy weekend. Joe's parents came to town this weekend to watch Braden all day Saturday while I renewed my YMCA teaching license and Joe coached his 9-10 year old team in a state tournament. Braden enjoyed hanging out with Grandpa and Grandma, who took him to two parks and gave him some ice cream (not his first time, don't worry). We also got to have a date night on Saturday - dinner and a movie which was really nice after being in class all day long. So thank you to Jack and Theresa for helping us out, giving us a night out and spending precious time with Braden. We appreciate it. Sunday they took off and we watched Joe's team take third place in the tournament. We ended the weekend with a little swim in the Linden Hills wading pool.

Oh, and speaking of patio- I took some pictures of ours. We are hoping to put the townhouse on the market this fall to see if we can sell it and I wanted to have pictures of the beautiful summer flowers and plants. So, if you know anyone who wants an adorable end townhome in Edina that is close to shopping, parks and restaurants AND has this great patio for entertaining- let me know. :)



We hope you all had a great summer weekend and are starting the week off right with something you love.

First Tooth

I forgot to capture this milestone - Braden's first tooth. He has one lone tooth at the bottom. If you click on this picture you should see a larger version where the tooth is more visable. Was teething bad? Well, he was a tiny bit fussier when this tooth was trying to come through, but nothing major. He woke up crying a few times as well but a little baby Tylenol fixed that right up. We think he might be working on one on top now, so bring on the teeth. It is strange not seeing just a full gummy smile anymore. I just wanted to capture this very first tooth before I forget and then soon enough you will see pics with multiple teeth! :)

Happy (Belated) Independence Day!

Dad teaching Braden to swim. I think he likes it. :)
Braden in his red, white and blue on the Fourth of July, just hanging on the lawn.
We have a waver!

We hope everyone had a Happy Independence Day or Fourth of July! We had a really nice weekend. Joe traveled last week Mon-Wed night so it was really nice to have him home Thurs-Monday (he took vacation days on Thursday and Friday)!! Our weekend consisted of swimming, a Forth of July parade, music at the park, lots of family giggle time, a day at the lake, friends on the patio and the list goes on.
Were there any firsts for Braden this weekend? Well he wasn't up for fireworks but he enjoyed his first parade. He liked all the people waving to him, the fire truck and the bands. He did not like the tuba player that blew his tuba very close to him though, he crawled up into my lap and started to cry a bit. We even saw Sunshine and O'Neal from the Biggest Loser- they were the Grand Marshalls of the parade. It was a humid weekend but we enjoyed spending it together.
Braden is showing his own independence now. He is waving, clapping and yes- even kicking and splashing in the pool. Soon enough he will be a swimming man.
We hope you all had a safe and fun holiday weekend with your families and friends! Now back to reality tomorrow, ugggg...