First Fieldtrip!

 Since the opportunities are vast, I decided to take advantage and have our first fieldtrip while we were in Iowa! There were many to choose from (although I was really sad to find out that we had missed Living History Farms by a week!), but I decided to do the Science Center of Iowa. Anna really likes science, so I figured they would enjoy this. I debated about going to an IMAX film, too but decided the day would be long enough for all of us (especially Isaac!) just doing the Science Center.

 We left around 10am and the first thing we see when we get inside is a place perfect for all three kids! Isaac had as much fun as the big kids!

 There was a great conveyer belt system and produce stand that Anna and Jacob loved playing with. (I hate that I just ended that sentence with a preposition!)

 Up, up, up they go!

 Anna loved sorting all the fruits and vegetables. She got a little math lesson in, too since each produce item had a price! :)

 Papa took an early (and long) lunch and joined us for a couple hours (that's who Isaac is looking at).

 There was even a bubble room!!

 This was Anna's 2nd favorite thing of the day. It was a system of water wheels. You were supposed to use the blocks to direct the flow of water toward the wheels and see how much electricity you could generate (there was a board that displayed the amount of power for each wheel). I don't think Anna really understood the concept of water flow, but she caught on to how I was using the blocks to direct the water flow. She had fun!

 Anna and I built this arc! 

 Isaac had fun exploring, too!

 This was Anna's favorite part of the whole place! There were plastic balls that you put in the baskets and they would shoot up and through and around. It was very interactive and the kids would have stayed there all day and played!

 Isaac liked the train table!

 He could barely reach, but that didn't stop him!

 We packed a picnic lunch (except it was much too cold to have an outside picnic!).

 Isaac did so good. He slept some of the time, but he was happy to ride around in the stroller and crawl around and play, too. Such a good boy!

 Every 30 minutes, there were presentations on different topics. We hit the chemistry session! Anna was excited that she knew what the lady was presenting (states of matter) since we had already studied that! She also got to volunteer and be a helper!

 Uhh...how cute are those safety glasses?! The experiment she helped with was changing a liquid to a solid. I was so surprised...I really didn't think she would want to stick her hand in the liquid and reach for the goo!

 But she dove right in and loved it!

Jacob got to volunteer, too! He was hilarious and those safety glasses just would not stay on his big ol' noggin. I'll have to upload the video of his experiment...

Iowa visit

It had been quite a while since we took a trip to Iowa, so after Isaac got the all clear from the doctor (he had bronchitis), we took off. I'm happy to say that the trip was much more successful than the last one! It still took us about 8 hours. And the low tire sensor came on about an hour before we got there! But I was able to stop in a couple miles at a gas station and air it up and it was fine.

The kids jumped right into the toys and playing :)

 Cowgirl Anna. "Stick 'em up!"

 Isaac just has to be in on ALL that big sis and big brother do! He loved riding around on the bike with Anna!!

 What's a trip to Iowa without going to Incredible Pizza?! Isaac even had fun playing.

 All the other times we've been here, Jacob hasn't wanted to actually play any of the car racing games. I think the Wii has changed that! He played several and actually does pretty good steering.

 Isaac thought the little carousel was so much fun!

 By the second ride, it was old hat.

 Isaac also LOVED riding the mower with Papa!! The noise didn't scare him at all. Unlike his brother...Jacob still won't ride it!

 When they expanded their front porch, they built around the Japanese Maple. So now it's a great climbing tree! :) Anna was actually pretty fearless about climbing it.

 Ugh...if I can just get my foot riiight there...

 Hmmm....now where do I go??

 Maybe if I smile pretty and pose for a picture...

 Mama will let me climb onto the roof...maybe??

 I bet I could sweet talk Papa into it!

 Uhhh...Mama?I think I'm stuck...

  I love this girl. So much my heart hurts!

 If I had photoshop (and knew how to use it!) I could really make her beautiful blue eyes pop in this shot. :)

 Such a silly boy.

 Ohhh those blue eyes! What an ornery little squirt!!!

 He comes by it naturally!

 Like I said...Isaac has to be right there in the middle of it all. Literally!!

 This was about 2 seconds before Isaac chomped down on Papa's thumb!! HA! I think he forgot how many teeth Isaac has! It almost broke the skin!

 Papa replaced the timing belt on our van for us. Isaac was more than happy to help. I've noticed since we moved (and have had various tools laying around constantly) that Isaac really likes tools.

 Anna helped, too. :) Papa is so good about letting the kids "help" and giving them little jobs to do to make them feel included and spend time with him. Even though I know it makes the job go much slower! (Jacob was out helping, too...I guess I didn't catch him in the picture)

Here Papa, let me get that for you.

Family Photo Shoot

 It's been a couple years since we had family pictures taken. Since Aaron was coming up to Iowa for a weekend and the fall colors up there were perfect, I decided to have Dad take some Saturday afternoon. There's a great park close to their house that has a small pond and perfect scenery. Anna wasn't very cooperative, but we got a couple of good ones.

 Jacob was very willing! What a handsome boy!!

 My boys! Isaac had some crazy hair that I could NOT get to lay down. And he wasn't very smiley either. Stinker.

 I am SO blessed!!

 This isn't a good picture, but I love Isaac's face! 

 This was 5 seconds before Anna let go of Isaac and he fell off the bench! Amazingly enough, he managed to catch himself with his arms, so his face didn't even touch the cement. My heart skipped a few beats!

 Of course, AFTER we finished taking pictures (Isaac was DONE and ready to eat), Anna was ready to pose and smile!

10 years (of being together) and 3 kids later...here we are! :) Still alive and loving each other ;)

The Things He Says

 It's been a while since I posted one of these...not because there's been a lack of his "sayings"! I was telling a friend about a Jacob story and she said "You need to write that down somewhere!"

So here it is...

 Not that this sweet, precious little boy would do anything naughty!

Alright, last month when Uncle Windell visited, Anna and Jacob shared the bunk bed in Jacob's room. It was the first night and Jacob said he wanted to snuggle with Anna. She agreed so they both climbed into the top bunk. I turned the light off and left. At least an hour went by when all of the sudden I hear a blood-curdling scream coming from Jacob's room. I run back there and Anna is screaming and crying, saying Jacob kicked her in the face. I turned the light on (I admit it...Anna has a flair for dramatics, so I wasn't expecting a big deal) and see blood literally running down her face! I asked again what happened, then I asked Jacob if he did and he said yes. I pulled him out of the top bunk, *panked him, and put him on his bed. After cleaning Anna up and getting her calm, I talked to Jacob. This is what he told me when I asked why he kicked Anna, exactly:

I wanted to give Anna a suh-pwize but I didn't have a toy ohw a tuffed animal, so I dave her a tick in da mouff...

Like dis!

I made him repeat his answer 3 times and that's exactly what he said every time!! I didn't know what to say. Seriously??? They do play this game, where they'll give each other "surprises"--they go get a toy, wrap it up in a blanket and there's the surprise. Now, why on earth he thought 1) it was something to do when he should have been sleeping; 2) it was a good idea to give his sister a kick in the face since he didn't have a toy....is BEYOND ME!! I still can't figure it out. And he's sticking to his story a month later. He just told the ladies at Aaron's office that story yesterday. Anna had a huge fat lip for a day. She woke up in the middle of the night, thirsty, and her poor lip was so swollen! The lasting effect from the kick is a loose tooth! I think that one will be the third one that falls out