Our Summer in Summary

We haven't updated in a little while, so there is much to post about, but I'll be brief. First, we were so happy to have Jordan, Chelsea and family come visit us in June! We were planning on attending the famous "Cardboard Cup Regatta," but we were notified that the event was canceled due to E. coli. So, we decided to head into downtown Chicago on the train, instead. It was a beautiful, warm day and we saw lots of neat things.  The children were completely worn out near the end, so we took a water taxi back to the train station. Here are some pictures:


We were also very excited to have Nana and Papa come visit us over July 4th in Saint Louis! Crista, Wayne and little Adalyn came too! We were able to do many fun things including a parade, museums, Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, the Arch, an air show, Pappy's BBQ, homemade Cafe Rio salads, fireworks, and best of all, Nauvoo:

Grandma Eddington sent Leila a bonnet that was waiting when we returned to Crystal Lake. Also we had some barn swallows on our deck that eventually left the nest. The mom and dad are still hanging around:

Lastly, some pictures of the America's Cardboard Cup Regatta, which was rescheduled, along with pictures of an incredible storm a few nights ago. In some parts of Chicago, nearly 9 inches of rain fell...we received a little over 6 and had fun the next morning in our little lake.

I Love My Husband!

Tonight I had a little bit of a melt down, so being the GREAT husband that he is, Brent cleaned the kids up after dinner and headed outside to play before bed.

It has been a windy day - perfect for kite flying.

Brent had to chase the run-a-way kite a few times.

Ben would rather play with the football than the kite... it doesn't get away from him as easy.

Leila loves her new "Little Mermaid" kite!

What a GOOD dad!! I love you HONEY!

Our Little Monkey!

Ben is such a monkey boy!! He saw his bottle on the counter and it was JUST out of his reach, so he thought he would climb the wall to get to it....

What a cute little monkey! :)

Memorial Day at Lake Michigan

We decided to chance a trip to the Chicago Temple and Lake Michigan even though the weather wasn't great.

The temple was beautiful, but we arrived in a downpour. Leila really wanted to get out in the rain just so she could use her umbrella. Mommy was a good sport and took her out to see the temple fountain...about halfway there, Leila was soaked and complained it was "too cold." Silly girl.

Our first attempt at the beach didn't work out. The storm had too much lightning and the lifeguards wouldn't let us out onto the beach, so we drove north in search other beaches and a break in the storm. We saw some of the most beautiful neighborhoods, beaches, and vistas on the way. Once we found a beach that suited us, both Leila and Ben had a blast playing in the water, the sand, and on the swings. Here are some of our pictures and videos:

Crystal Lake, Illinois

We made it here to Crystal Lake (Northwest of Chicago). For those of you who don't know, Brent has an internship here this summer with Centegra Health System. We are excited for this opportunity, and hope it opens doors for us in the future. We have been here since May 16, and have already had 2 sets of visitors. Both were my cousins, and we didn't do much (because we don't really know what to do for fun here... yet). We have enjoyed staying here! So, if anyone is up for a trip close to Chicago, please come play with us we would love to have you!