Enjoying Parks with Grandpa and Grandma

It has been a long time since we've been to Elephant Rocks (last time with you, Mandy).  It was so much fun to see the girls get into climbing on the giant rocks.  I would have LOVED this park as a little girl. 

 Lauren couldn't wait to climb to the top. 

 Love this pic.

 Exploring is great fun. 

 Picnic lunch on a beautiful fall day.

 Johnson's Shut-Ins was destroyed when the dam broke a few years ago.   Hence, the sign.  It took 3 years to rebuild. 

 The water was cold, but the girls didn't mind.

 Karl, Grandpa, and the older girls camped overnight.  After our church retreat camping experience we kept the twins at home. 

 Smokey - fearless guard dog! 

 Fall Family Fun Day at Forest Park

 Lauren's ready to catch a big one!

We were able to enjoy the last carriage ride of the day. 

Church Retreat

 First Annual Crossroads Square Dance

 Everybody was happy BEFORE we got into the sleeping bags. . .

 Still smiling the next morning

 Audrey and Aiden enjoying some breakfast dancing.

 Daddy is desperately hoping one of the girls understands AND executes an effective putting touch.

 A new game - can't remember what is was called but eveybody stands in an enclosed area and tries to prevent the ball from hitting any non-hand part of their body.  Last person standing wins.

 Our tent next to the Goodmans.  We warned them when we set up camp that it might not be a very good deal for them.  Turns out we were right.  Everything (3 out of 4 screaming) fell apart at midnight on night 2 and we packed up and arrived home around 2:00 AM.  As the old adage goes, "better to have tried and failed, then to be warm and cozy in our own beds."  The fact that there were icicles on the tent the next morning didn't help matters. 

 Despite the cold weather, the pool was heated so we enjoyed some afternoon swim time. 

 Lauren loved going down the big slide!  She's not tall enough to do the one at the maplewood pool, so she was pretty excited to get the chance. 

 Lauren ignored/was scared of Glen Woita for the first 3 years of her life.  They have now reconciled and she calls him "Mr. Wonderful." 

All quiet in the tent at 8:30 PM.  Not so quiet at midnight. . .

September Happenings

Pile on Daddy!

Labor Day weekend was perfect weather to enjoy the fountains one last time.  Audrey is our first 2 year old to love standing under buckets of water.

Sami took a more cautious approach to the water.

We knew it was time to remove the changing table when I caught them in the act of climbing up on it. 

See no evil!

We're too darn cute to get in trouble!

Along with taking down the changing table, we got rid of the motion-sensing monitor that we used with Annika.  A few days later we took down the cribs. 

Big girl beds for our babies! 

Labor Day was a beatiful day for a (free - thanks reading club!) ball game. 

By the end of the game we were all getting a little chilly - hard to believe for Labor Day in St. Louis!

The 9/11 temporary memorial on Art Hill was very impressive.  Each flag represented a victim of 9/11.

Annual Forest Park Balloon Race (look closely off in the distance).  We've learned from past experience and didn't attempt the loud, toddler-terrifying balloon glow on Friday night.

Jenn was throwing out this bench and deemed it a "twin bench" for us. 

Laurens' "all about me" day.  She's hugging her snuggle (that she still sleeps with every night). 

Technically these were preseason Blues tix that the girls won through the reading club.  The games, however, were MUCH (wink, wink) too late for the girls so Terri and I just had to make use of them.  (fyi:  preseason games are a great opportunity to sneak up close to the ice - lots of fun!)