Never a dull moment...

These videos were taken awhile ago, just in the interest of full disclosure. We're pretty sure that the jumping video is a sign that we will be spending quite a bit of time in ERs in the years to come.

Great Lakes Aquarium

Sunday afternoon we went to the Great Lakes Aquarium with Grandpa and Grandma Sharrow. Who knew it would turn out to be the Educators Open House during which teachers' families get to go for free? What are the odds? Anyway, Cole LOVED watching the otter, seahorses, and fish. He squealed every time the otter swam by him. There are places where kids can touch a stingray and sturgeon....Cole had no interest in touching the stingray (smart kid) but had no problem touching the sturgeon. I have a feeling we'll be going back pretty regularly!

Bayfield Apple Fest

Playing on the tires with Daddy at the marina playground

First Merry-Go-Round Ride!

Evan was so nice to show Cole which apples were ready for picking and which ones were not.


On Saturday we continued our tradition of going to Bayfield for their annual Apple Festival. We branched out and did some new things there this year, since it was our first year attending with our very own toddler. For example, we had never gone into the carnival before, but Cole needed to ride on the Merry-Go-Round with Evan. Also, we hadn't made a habit of stopping by the playground to play, but it seems is may now become part of our routine. Cole and Evan had so much fun playing together and talking about apples. After we all got back to town, everyone came over to our house to eat (more) and hot tub....except for Evan, Cole, and myself, who are not allowed in the hot tub. Bummer.

Catch-Up

Cole climbed into this bin and pretended to drive it like a car. Then he wanted
Daddy to get in too, but only his feet fit.

Wrestling with the big stuffed lion (and of course, juice)

Standing on the weird indoor lightpost at Tobies in Hinckley when we met Grandpa and Grandma Iverson for dinner one Sunday night.

Cole got his own potty chair! He's not quite ready to use it yet, but he is excited about it and we are hoping he will start thinking along those lines....

As the primary blogger in our house, as well as teacher, I apologize for the lack of September posts. September is always crazy for me, but things are starting to settle down a little bit. Of course our big news is that we are expecting to add another bundle of joy to our family in April! We are looking forward to expanding our little family to include one more member! We hope to find out whether Cole will be a big brother to a little sister or a little brother so we can prepare him (and ourselves, and the house) for the big arrival. Here are some random pics from September.

Spider Lake Golf Resort, Hayward, WI: August 14-17

Fun on the boat

Watching Uncle Brad tube








Steering the boat with Grandpa

Cole and Mommy tubing (very, very slowly)

Riding in the golf cart (although Cole kept calling it a tractor)

Cole didn't even seem to notice he didn't have his bath toys when he was in this gigantic tub.

Famous Dave's on Round Lake

Famous Dave himself with Cole and me (Cole looks ticked because I tried to make him sit on Dave's lap for a picture. Did not go over well).Famous Dave being filmed saying "Famous Daves: The best barbeque in the country" over, and over, and over, and over again. They took A LOT of takes of this.

Leaving Famous Dave's dock

Cutie Patootie

Last Thursday we spent time with Grandpa and Grandma Iverson and Uncle Brad at Spider Lake Golf Resort in Hayward, Wisconsin. It is the same place we stayed last year, and we are starting to catch on to the best things to do in the area. Last year we went out to eat at Garmisch, this really unique place in Cable. But this year, we had been out boating and didn't feel like getting all dressed up. So we decided to go to Famous Dave's. Turns out, you can dock your boat right at the restaurant. Perfect. To make our adventure even more special, who ends up being at Famous Dave's? Well, Famous Dave himself, of course! He was there filming some training video for the other Famous Dave's restaurants. And of course, Brad had to be "that guy" who asks him to take a picture with us (he lives in L.A. and does it all the time to random stars he meets, so it doesn't even faze him). Luckily, Dave obliged.

We spent the majority of the weekend relaxing, golfing (the guys), watching the Olympics, eating, and boating. Ryan was able to join us Saturday morning after Mark's wedding Friday night. It was a great trip, except that I had to ruin it by turning 30 on Sunday. Oh well.

Happy 18-Month-Birthday, Cole!

Well, today our baby boy turns 18 months old. Before we know it, it will be 18 years. Jeez. Cole and I started off the day by going to the library for toddler storytime. Afterward, we went to McDonald's for a Happy Meal....(since you can now get them with apple slices instead of fries and juice or milk to drink, it takes some of the guilt away!). He enjoyed waving to all of the people at McDonald's and midway through his meal he began to rub his eyes. I wore the poor guy out! One of my friends recently told me that kids are supposed to be able to say 50 words by the time they turn 2. I started making a list, and I think he is about there already!

BTW, I know it looks like he is dressed for winter. When we got dressed this morning, it was about 60 degrees and cloudy, so we wore jeans and sweaters. Then it got warmer and warmer. When we were driving home from McDonald's I saw a sign that said 76. Not hot, but too hot for how we were dressed! We were roasting!

We are leaving for Hayward tomorrow morning. My parents reserved a condo again (same place as last year) at a golf resort. My brother Brad is flying in from California, and we are all going to spend Thursday-Sunday golfing, boating, fishing, and hanging out. Well, Ryan will only be there Saturday and Sunday, as he is a groomsman in his buddy Mark's wedding in Minneapolis on Friday night. We will miss him! Congratulations Mark and Jenn!

Lake Superior Zoo

On Sunday the three of us went for a quick visit to the Lake Superior Zoo with "Unca" Todd and Steph. It was a quick visit because we kind of decided to go at the last minute while Cole was still napping, and it was closing in just over an hour. Fortunately, it is a pretty small zoo, so we could see most of the exhibits in an hour...although we really had to rush. Cole enjoyed seeing the grizzly bear, snakes, bats, and monkeys the best. We were all kind of perplexed by this peacock that was just wandering around the zoo grounds. We were feeling like it may have escaped from its enclosure, but whatever. Apparently they can just wander around like they own the place. Thanks for the fun afternoon, Unca Todd and Steph!