We were able to make a visit to the Madison zoo on one of the very last decent days of the season. Grandma, grandpa, aunt, uncle, and cousins were all able to join with us. The animals were great, but one of the best features (according to the kids) was the playground, and most importantly, the slides.
Her First Day
It’s hard to believe that Elisabeth has been in school for a couple of months already. Here she is on her first day, flanked by her younger brother and sister. They may have been just as excited as she was on that morning.
Having a Ride
If you look closely here, you can see that the kids are having a horseback ride on daddy. This is a routine thing we go through around here, though they are all getting heavy enough to make it almost impossible for me to give a ride for very long. I’ll probably miss it when I can’t do it any more.
Our Zoo Trip
After three trips to the zoo over the past few months, we finally got to see the lions. It seems like they even posed for our pictures. Here is a closeup of the large male. All the kids seemed to enjoy watching them.
Playing With Engines
Today, Sarah asked to play with “engines.” So we brought down all the Thomas the Tank Engine tracks and trains for a little afternoon fun. She seemed to enjoy herself very much and refrained from eating the tracks…most of the time.
Man’s Best Friend
We take a lot of walks. On this particular evening, Hannah and I were on the boardwalk near the river downtown. She had to stop and have a picture with the dog statue.
Caught Mid-Kick
The game goes like this: Daddy chips the ball to Stephen who tries to kick it back in mid-air. He is successful a good percentage of the time, but always makes a crazy face. The ball is so soft, it hardly warrants this kind of wince!
Some House Soccer
Stephen and I love to kick the ball around. If we can’t do it outside, we have a couple of balls and a goal we can kick around inside the house. He is a very enthusiastic soccer player, with pretty good skill for a three year old.
Going for Walk
Mom tries to make sure the kids don’t get a sunburn when they go for a walk. Here is Sarah getting ready to venture out. She enjoys her hat and seems to realize it makes her look cute.
Riding a Bike
The biggest activity of the summer for the kids was riding bikes. We have a rather large driveway and a lot of lights, so the kids were able to keep riding into the late afternoon. Here is Hannah taking one more loop around the yard after sunset.