Special Outings

During their visit here, Grandma and Grandpa came with us on a variety of outings. Some of the places we visited were regular weekly or monthly outings for us, while others were completely new experiences. It was SO great to have Grandma and Grandpa's company on these adventures.

On their first full day in town, we visited a park close to the river. It was a beautiful spring day to be outside-- our first day reaching into the 70s. 

The best thing about this park is that the water is home to TONS of ducks and geese.

The ducks and geese came quite a bit closer...

...and even closer once they saw the bread in our hands.

Both boys, but Cody in particular, quickly learned the art of "bread tossing."

Mommy appreciated having two extra sets of hands to watch these excited boys play next to the water.

Here, Cody attempts the word, "duck."

Sometimes, the ducks and geese would fight over pieces of bread, and the geese would begin honking loudly and nipping at one another.

Our boys found this behavior, and especially the honking noises, quite hilarious!

Eventually, we ran out of bread, so it was no longer fun to just sit and watch the geese. Now, it was time to give 'em some action (at least according to Cody).

This pic is one of my favorites from our morning adventure. :) Cody was having SO much fun!

After the geese feeding and chasing time, we took the boys on a nice stroller ride along the park's walking trails. What a beautiful day!

The next day was another warm and sunny day, so we stopped by a different park on our way to an event at church. The boys LOVED the playground at this park. Jaden and Cody were very proud to show Grandpa how they could slide down the bigger slide all on their own.

 The taller, winding slides are also big hits with our little toddlers. Mommy is so happy that the boys can use most playground equipment fully independently now. It makes park visits much easier! 

Jaden was a big fan of Grandma's pushes on the swing.

Both boys laughed and laughed when Grandpa gave them underdogs. What a treat!

After this quick park visit, we journeyed to church for our monthly "Rock of Ages" gathering. This event is a storytime session for young ones under 5. It's called Rock of Ages because we have senior members of our congregation come, too, and read to the kids in rocking chairs. The boys and I love Rock of Ages and have been attending for over a year. It was nice to have Grandma and Grandpa join us (and to take pics of this event, too-- Mommy doesn't usually have an extra hand for picture taking when we visit.).

As we wait for everyone to arrive, we have free reading time. Grandpa and Cody enjoyed a good book together.

Then, Miss Deb always has a wonderful Bible story narrative. She captures the kids' attention so well with props and pictures and even actions sometimes, too. Following the Bible storytelling, we usually have a type of simple craft and then music time. Dancing to the music is one of the kids' favorite parts. Good thing our boys have a few girls around at this event to teach them all the dance moves!

 These sweet little girls are always so good at including everyone in their little dance.

Another regular outing that Mommy and the boys love attending is our library's Books and Babies time. This weekly storytime is designed for kids under 2. Daddy actually got to join in on the fun this day as well, since it was his day off. Just like Rock of Ages, Books & Babies begins with a bit of free reading. Grandpa and Grandma were GREAT readers!

Our newly rebuilt library has a beautiful story tower, complete with a super tall skylight (that's what Jaden is gazing at in the picture above) and a cozy bench with pillows. Grandpa and Jaden enjoyed relaxing by the colorful pillows with a good book.

Because the kids are all so young, the librarian doesn't actually read a group story. We do a series of fingerplays and a variety of poems and songs, like "The Itsy Bitsy Spider." Then... it's time for the toy box!

Cody showed Grandpa and Grandma a familiar-looking train (we have the same one at home!).

Jaden loved doing a peg puzzle with Grandma...

...and enjoyed exploring the room with Grandpa. Can you tell that the boys' grandparents are great playmates? :)

Another day, we went on an outing to the grocery store. Now typically, that journey may not seem so special, but it sure is a treat when you get to hold hands with both grandparents!

And just to enjoy the nice weather again, we went to yet another park. This park is only a quick walk from our house, so we visit here quite often. Our active boys like playing on everything at this playground-- but for only about a couple minutes at at time. We jumped around from the swings...

(this time with Daddy and Grandpa BOTH giving underdogs!)...

...and on to the BIG slide. With the boys' athletic pants, they sure flew down the slide quickly! Thankfully, lots of loving hands were there to help on the way down.

Don't be deceived by Cody's terrified expression here. He starts out each downward slide this way but obviously loves it-- once he hits the bottom, he giggles and runs right back to do it again!

Jaden, however, wears a big smile the whole way down! (Surprisingly, both boys are now able to slide down this slide all by themselves. Since G & G's visit, they've figured out how to hold their feet against the sides to slow themselves down.)

After the big slide, it was on to the merry-go-round...

...and then on to the tunnel slide. We've learned all kinds of new ways to slide down this one!

The boys were sure stylin' in their sunglasses on the walk back home. (Okay, so they only wore the glasses for a few seconds... but it makes for a funny couple of pictures at least!)

Our final big outing with Grandpa and Grandma was to an Easter party at our church, put on by our Cradle Roll Guild. When we arrived, we found all kinds of little active games to play. Grandpa showed Jaden just how to toss the pins into the ring on this particular game.

Then, we were free to move around to various craft stations. Daddy and Cody colored a special Easter decoration,

while Mommy and Jaden used stickers to decorate this foam cross.

The boys enjoyed sitting in Grandpa and Grandma's lap for most of the Easter storytime.

And then the party ended with the best part-- an Easter egg hunt! Grandma was so patient with following Cody around with his bag. He knew just what to do.

Jaden found some eggs tucked far into a corner...

and then ran back to Grandpa, who was keeping track of Jaden's eggs.

As you can see, our church is located next to a fairly busy street, so it was helpful to have the boys outnumbered, for a change! :)

Grandma and Grandpa, we appreciate your ready, willing attitudes to join us on all these adventures. You are wonderful helpers for Mommy and Daddy and fun playmates for the boys. Thanks for all of these fun memories. We love you!