indiana beach '09.

just a few photos from our trip to indiana beach. thanks for the fantastic day, great grandma ann!

and just for fun, here is a link to our '08 trip... i can't believe how different the boys look in those little boats.

one burger, please!

last sunday, we took our annual summer trip up to new buffalo, michigan. and of course, we had to stop at redamaks to enjoy a burger. but even better, we found this awesome store called i love toy trains! i'm sure we'll be frequent visitors.

the lincoln park zoo.

last friday, we spent the day celebrating our fifth anniversary at the lincoln park zoo. and not surprisingly, the o.bug's favorite part was the train ride. (although, he did seem to enjoy watching the gorillas. and he was pretty excited about petting the goats.) it certainly was a fantastic day for this little family!

the indy zoo.

we had such a fantastic time visiting with the animals at the indianapolis zoo. owen + trev got the chance to feed a giraffe and touch a shark! they got to take a ride on the animal carousel and the white river junction train! and after watching the dolphin adventure show, they got completley soaked in the splash park! trevor's fave were the meerkats, and owen decided to mimic the giant tortoise by nibbling on a few blades of grass. the boys especially loved spending the weekend with papa d, grandma b, and uncle douggie!

choo choo.

we sure had a fun day, riding trains at the heston steam show, hitting up redamaks for some of the best burgers ever, and spending time with grandma jan, grandpa scott, and uncle jonah. we hope you have a fantastic birthday, grandma jan. we love you.

new buffalo, michigan.

just a few photos from our evening at the new buffalo beach.

and a couple from our favorite hamburger joint, redamaks.

and you can check out last year's trip to redamaks here...you won't believe how much the o.bug has changed.

thanks for the fun day, everyone.

swimming with grandma b.

gotta get some pool time in before the summer ends. 

thanks for the super cool nemo trunks, grandma bonnie + grandpa doug.

indiana beach.

our weekend adventure didn't stop with the lincoln park zoo. on saturday, grandma bonnie and grandpa doug treated us to a super fun day at indiana beach. owen + trevor absolutely LOVED kiddie land, and wanted to ride all day long.  they looked so cute together...they were steering their boat and driving their car. and believe it or not...the faster the ride, the bigger the smiles. in all the summers we've been going to indiana beach, i don't think we've ever had a more enjoyable time. here are just a few of the many, many photos...

thanks, mom and dad. we had a wonderful time. and you sure made the boys day.

lincoln park zoo.

adam had the day off on friday, so we decided to celebrate our fourth anniversary at the lincoln park zoo. adam and owen had never been there, and i hadn't visited since i was a little girl. i just loved how it was located right in the middle of downtown chicago, completed surrounded by the city. we spent about four hours exploring all of the different exhibits, and enjoyed a nice picnic lunch in the grass. owen seemed to really like the underwater penguins and the african rainforest. adam really enjoyed the reptile house and the aardvark. and i loved the giraffes and chimpanzees. it sure was a nice way to celebrate our family. here are a few photos... 

gary south shore air show.

with owen's newfound interest in airplanes, we thought the the gary south shore air show would be the perfect way to spend our sunday afternoon. so we packed a cooler, piled in the v.dub, and headed up to the indiana dunes west beach. (which just so happens to be the very same beach where adam's infamous boardwalk is located.) owen had a ton of fun...the airplanes were a HUGE hit. he would get so excited every time he'd hear one coming. and believe it or not, he even got brave enough to venture out into the sand and water. however... adam's legs are now the color of tomatoes. and uncle douggie is still a bit disappointed that the super fast jets didn't do any inverted passes. (i'm still not quite sure what that means. ) but we had a great time, nonetheless. 

i only took my camera out once or twice, as i was terrified of all that sand and wind. but i did manage to get a few shots that i thought i'd share. of course, they're looking at the airplanes and not me. 

valplayso on the 4th.

just a few pics of owen running around, having a blast at valplayso (a great big park here in town)...and hanging out in his radio flyer wagon, waiting for the town firework show to begin.













and just for fun, here is a link to last year's 4th of july post.

an evening at the beach.

these photos were pretty hard to get, considering the fact that owen didn't want the sand touching any part of his little body. we really had to bribe him with the beach grass and leaves.