Beautiful day for the Arboretum

With not much to do on this particular day, I decided it was time to pack lunch and head to the arboretum. We haven't been there enough this summer and I knew Mason would be so excited to run around and explore, and go down the big slide!

The first thing Mason and Micah wanted to do when we got there was check out the slide area. They love climbing on the rocks and going through the tunnels.

I was able to convince them that we should eat lunch first and then explore. Mason was happy to sit on a rock in the sun and chat with me while we ate.

Micah enjoyed the freedom of walking around with his food!

We found a nice bench to sit on and enjoyed the view.

Mason just loves the amphitheater area, especially the black speakers that are permanently set up near the front. Micah enjoyed climbing up and down the steps and walking along the rows of seats.

Happy boy!

Beautiful flowers and gardens.

There are various seats like this that I wanted to get pictures of Mason sitting on. His interest in sitting and posing spiraled downward as the day went on.

The seat was too hot for him to sit for more than a second!

There were several frogs in this pond that we had fun watching.

After walking around most of the grounds, we put the stroller back in the car and made our way back to the play/slide area.

Love these two boys and all the time we spend together! It's especially fun to have afternoons like this: walking around, exploring, and enjoying time together...slowly, without rushing and no agenda.

Why not put rocks in the hole?!

Such a great natural play area!

Finally, the slide! Mason's the pinkish dot at the top.

And here's that pinkish dot at the bottom of the slide. And he was off again to run up the steps and do it again.

Micah kept busy climbing the stairs from the bottom to the top. He loved it!

Going down the slide together! Micah thought it was pretty fun and was happy for a reason to climb the stairs again!

A stop for ice cream on the way home... a perfect ending to all the fun! Except for the mess Micah becomes when he eats ice cream. I had to leave my "no sticky, no mess, no ice cream on the hands or shirt" mentality in the car!

Mason had no trouble with his cone, but I think I was left holding two sticky, melting cones after both boys had their fill of ice cream.

Picnic with Daddy

Since the weather was supposed to be beautiful, we made a lunch date with daddy and packed a picnic to eat at a park.

 Micah wasn't so sure about the closeness of the pose. I think he's trying to push Mason's head away!

 Before leaving, while Micah was napping, Mason played outside. He took off one of the bike's training wheels and proceeded to get his tools out to fix it.

 I pulled up a chair to watch him play, and he took that as his cue to get out his own chair. Voided the point of me watching him play, but it was fun to sit and chat together.

 We ate at the picnic area for the rails to trails in Millersburg which is just a few minutes from Brian's office. We thought we might have time for a short walk on the trail after lunch.

 Still working on drinking from a sippy cup...getting better, but loves to chew on the spout instead of suck.

 Eating is not one of Mason's favorite activities. It's not that he's terribly picky or doesn't like to eat, he just isn't a very fast eater and would rather not. It takes him at least half an hour to eat his meals, and that's including lots of reminding and helping.

While we were eating, the play area was in Mason's line of sight. Obviously he wanted to play and walking on the trail was out of the question! Good thing we knew this was a strong possibility when choosing the location.

 It was a beautiful day to play and enjoy being outside.

 Three happy boys!

Extra happy!

Day with Friends

A few weeks ago we went to Fairlawn for a "Concert for Kids" put on by the Akron Symphony.  They collaborate with a theater company and four young adults acted out four "Mother Goose" stories while a narrator read and the symphony played.  This was the second year we went and Mason enjoyed it, but got a little restless as some of the stories were a little beyond him!

 Then after the concert we drove to Silver Creek park for a picnic and hike.  This is the same park we went to with Brian's family a few weeks back and one of the same trails we hiked.

 Mason was a little slower than the rest of the kids and wanted to stop and inspect.  He remembered things that he and daddy looked at while hiking several weeks ago!

 Jennifer brought along two pairs of kids binoculars and they were a hit, and also something to "share". Mason thought they were so fun!

 Here he's comparing the binoculars and tree stump.  He said that they looked "the same".  Smart cookie!

Why hello there...as if mommy needs to look any bigger at this point!

Small Group Picnic

I am a little behind in posting...

Two Fridays ago we met up with our small group, the Steiners and Shues, for a picnic and playtime at Kidron Park.  Everyone packed their own supper and we sat together at one of the picnic tables.  It was such a beautiful evening to spend time outside!

Peek-a-boo!  Mason is at such a fun, playful age right now.  Sometimes frustrating, but mostly fun.  It's so neat to see him learn and discover things!

He's also quite the sharer.  Always willing to give something (of his choosing) to anyone, whether or not they want it!

Watching the kids run around and play on the swings and slides.

Harper and Seth inside the bottom of the boat.

Mason liked the bridge and making it bounce.  You can see he's got his knees bent trying to make it go.

More watching, playing, and talking.

And the runaway.

Veena is getting so big!

We also went on a hike in the woods behind the park.  Very nice trails that I didn't know were back there.  Then more playtime after the hike!  Fun and beautiful summer evening!