Happy 6th Birthday Josh!

Wow...I can't believe how quickly the last six years have flown by.  In some ways, it has gone by slowly and I have to admit, some seasons of it were really challenging for me and other seasons have gone by way too fast.  I am in a season now where I want things to s.l.o.w. d.o.w.n!  They boys are at that "easy age" that I have heard other parents comment about.  Between ages 5-10.  After the toddler years but before the tween stage.  I just want to savor and really enjoy this time with them!

Josh woke up in the morning to find the house decorated (by Caleb and I the night before after he went to bed) and he spotted his gift from Caleb right away!  Caleb bought this dinosaur Webkinz with this own money and he was so excited to give it to his little brother!

Daddy made him a pancake & eggs breakfast and we opened gifts right away because we had fun plans at a water park that afternoon!

This is his remote control racing car that we (and many others) pitched in on.  We raced it around once in the backyard and it just was not running right.  After a few calls in to the manufacturer, we realized that it had a defective motor...go figure!  So we returned it to Amazon.  We have since discovered that Josh may have another idea of what he would like even more than a remote control race car...a compound bow!  We have taken him out a few times to shoot Jon's bow and he really likes it!  So, we will let him decide what he wants to spend his birthday money on...  Stay tuned!

Getting ready to swim at Wild Water West...after a little ice cream!

We raced go carts and did bumper boats there too!

We spent lots of time in the wave pool and mommy got to enjoy a little sun too :)

Josh got a fun fossil digging block that he was eager to dig in after swimming and we enjoyed some dinosaur cake that Caleb & I made before bed.  I think it turned out pretty well!

We had such a fun day doing all the things that Josh loves to do!  Happy Birthday little guy...you are so special and loved!

Garden Update...for my mom & dad :)

We got back from the farm and found our garden bursting at the seams!  Josh was thrilled to find a few "sugar sweet" tomatoes ready to pick and the cucumbers were really flowering!

The garden fence has been successful at keeping out these critters...

We also found a little nest of baby bunnies in our backyard!  They provided lots of entertainment for a certain animal lover :)

They were quite calm and just sat in our lap and snuggled in!

And even our not-so-much-of-an-animal-lover kind of liked them too ;)

Fourth of July Week at the Farm...

We spent a week at the Miller Farm over the 4th of July holiday this summer.  This has become a tradition that we really look forward to :)  We had an amazing red sunset the first night there...gorgeous!

Joe took the bike out that evening to "blow out the cobs" as he says!

We bought a box of simple "no light" fireworks for the kids and they loved them!  I don't know how long these types will remain "exciting" the older they get, but they are much safer for them and provided lots of entertainment!

We left for the Redfield 4th of July Parade the next morning...this is definitely a fun tradition and I have to say our boys are spoiled FOREVER because they think all parades should throw out this much candy!  They are generous in Redfield!

Josh watching the American flag pass by...so cute!

Lots of candy and cars...a perfect combination for Joshy!

The boys enjoyed cooling off on the slip-n-slide at Cassidy's house...it was a REALLY HOT day!

We had a DELICIOUS BBQ at Anne & Stacey's place on the 4th.  Stacey smoked some pretty amazing pork loin :)    Nathan & Katrina also put on a great fireworks show for all of us!  Josh seemed pretty interested in the big box of fireworks and I am sure he will want to be Nathan's sidekick in the next year of two!

Later on in the week we made our way back to the yellow brick road in Storybook Land!  I don't think the boys will tire of this place anytime soon!  They were pretending to be Dorothy, the Lion, the Tin Man & the Scarecrow!

Lets go this way...no...lets go that way!

Augh...this door mush be locked!

Jon, Caleb & Cassidy wanted to go the balloon ride...reluctantly!  They knew that Jon would really give them a ride and he did not disappoint!  He had that thing spinning really fast and I could hear all the screams and giggles below!

Josh chose the safer carrousel ride!

Josh also lost his first tooth on July 5th!  It was pretty exciting and the tooth fairy managed to find him even at Grandpa & Grandma's house!

Grandpa was out bailing hay and found Josh a little pet turtle.  He was pretty thrilled with his pet and reached out to pick him up and the turtle snapped at him, so Josh quickly found out that he should pick him up from the sides by the shell!  He had lots of fun making a little habitat for him!  We ended up letting him go a few days later and he seemed like a pretty happy turtle back in the water!  The last picture in this post is where we released him.

Josh and I also rescued a baby morning dove and returned it back to its nest before Ally ate it!  Josh just loves finding little animals to hold and take care of...kind of like his mommy!

Josh took this picture of me after we rescued our little bird :)

Grandma's cactus bloomed while we were there...beautiful!

The corn looked pretty good by Grandpa's house despite the drought conditions.  They have since gotten some much needed rain...yea!

The boys love playing in all the tall corn!  And, pretty much the only benefit from the drought...NO mosquito's this year :)

We also celebrated Josh's 6th birthday early with the Miller family...fun!

We had to get a few rounds of Catch Phrase in...a family favorite!

Anne & I took the boys to the Redfield pool one afternoon to cool off...did I mention that it is HOT this summer!?  It felt great for them to swim!

Not only does Redfield offer LOTS of candy to its parade attenders, but they allow kids Josh's age to jump off the diving board and to go down the water slide!  Josh can't do this in Sioux Falls because he is 2 inches too short :(  So, he had an awesome time on the diving board and water slide!

He also had fun tormenting his big cousin too :)

I was kind of surprised that Josh wanted to tackle the slide alone, but he is a bit  of a dare devil with this kind of stuff.  He went about 20 times I think!

Joe was busy with the mower conditioner most of the days this week...there is always work to do a the farm!

This was the place Josh let his little turtle go.  We also got to enjoy another sunset and skipped a few rocks too!  We always enjoy our time at the farm...it is a special place to be!