A Berry Good Weekend

Bam! Look at me go, another blog post...:) 

Last weekend, we had some friends from Iowa come up to visit! Amber, Cory, Kellen & Raef Hines came up from their new home in Cedar Falls. Amber and Dave started working in the SICU at UIHC back in the summer of 2004:) We've been friends ever since and went through anesthesia school together, went to the river together, went through our pregnancies together, and moved away at about the same time! 

Kate and Kellen - summer of 2011 on the Mississippi

Anyway, we hadn't met Raef yet and they hadn't met Collin, so that was pretty fun and watching Kate and Kellen is pretty funny. They play pretty well but also bicker like an old married couple at times. They've had play dates since Kate was 6 weeks old, so that is kind of cute. 

The weather didn't cooperate too well for us (as we all know around here!) We played out on the back pond (fishing, paddle boarding, playing in the sand), took some naps when it got dark and moody outside.  We went out on the boat and played on a beach, the little boys ate a lot of sand, Kate and Kellen moved a giant rock, it was a good time:) We capped off Friday with fish fry at Shipwreck, of course:) As they say, the state bird of Wisconsin (and Minnesota) was out in full force. We were all pretty much attacked by mosquitoes much of the time. It was kind of torture to constantly be swatting yourself or drowning in bug spray. And then another kind of torture for me to see everyone's bites swelling up and complaining. Not fun! It is not like that all the time up here, but at times it can definitely be a downer. I kept joking that they would never come back after being attacked like this, but they said they would come:) 

Our friends are here!!

I loved these action shots...it's just a more accurate reflection of the moment

On Saturday, the kids played outside in the morning and we planned a picnic lunch on another beach. We made it to the beach near Portofino Bay and just got our lunches out when the thunder started and our radar indicated we should head right back home:(  We were rained/sprinkled on during the ride back, but we are tough:) We regrouped/napped and then planned an evening in the Dells. 

These kids have been boatin' their whole lives!

Moving the rock...

The nicest weather we had all weekend!

The weather turned around and we enjoyed the Tommy Bartlett Waterski Show and then had another meal out! After supper, we showed them downtown Dells and walked the strip a bit. It was a Saturday night in June in the Dells - it was busy. Busy. The highlight was deciding to get the kids' picture taken at one of the Old Time Picture places! After awhile, we finally decided on a theme of Western Formal Portrait:) Kate wasn't sure about it at first, but when I got the dress on her, she perked way up. She saw some other women getting dressed up and wanted a hat like them:) So they gave her a "bonnet." She was in heaven. Kellen was too cute in his little outfit. They were adorable. Collin was super tired and so he didn't fight it too much. Once Raef was dressed, he kept running around the studio and he kept running into another picture! The cutest photo bomber ever. 

We were waiting for this bar background and when the natives (our children) were getting restless (running in every direction, taking all the clothes/props and waiting to try them all on) we decided to just do a simple background that we could do immediately! It was a bit tricky, the adults acted like monkeys to get their attention, I hid so Collin wouldn't try and come toward me and they got 6 photos. Victory. Honestly, the best part was just being there watching them:) But we picked a photo and took it home. Well, Hines' did. When I collapsed the stroller and put it in the back of the car, the photo must have slipped out. We don't have ours:( We scanned theirs, but damn it! 

After a quick ice cream stop, we headed home with some tired kiddos. And tired parents. Who am I kidding, here? They left on Sunday and I attempted to get the house in order again. Dave accomplished some work outside and cleaned the boat. He then took the kids to the pool so I could have some quite and uninterrupted time to clean the house. The rain cut that excursion short too! Oh well, a very fun-filled weekend in the books!

Other fun this week...

Picking strawberries! We ran out there to see if they still had some to pick and Kate and I picked while Dave walked Collin around. Both kids had strawberries and we picked enough for some ice cream at night. The crop is pretty much done, all the rain has made it a less than ideal crop, or so they say, I thought it was fine! I came back the next morning and picked another flat to make some jam:)

Collin inspecting his strawberry

Kate and I picking/eating:)

Quick trip to Madison! We wanted to go to the zoo and ended up needing to replace the rocker in Collin's room, so we dodged some rain/storm threats and had a nice little day out. 

The giraffes are definitely one of our favorites

What a trooper, no nap...we're going to the zoo!

Waiting for Baby Brown:)! Well, as most of you know, we are all anxiously waiting for our niece/cousin to arrive! I've been able to chat with Tara and email with Tony during the last week and have enjoyed that very much. It is such a special and crazy time! They will be heading back home soon as well, so we have a lot to be thankful for. Hopefully, I will be announcing that we are soon an Aunt/Uncle/Cousins for the first time!