Back at it...

Fun with bubbles

Evan loves playing outside !

Evan's first Twins game

In awe of the "baseball guy"...Kirby Puckett

In the big glove with Grandpa Stan & daddy

Piggyback ride to the car after the game

Congrats Hannah & Matt!

Cute ring bearer...

Playing at the park after school

Happy 1st Birthday Sophia (left) and Peyton (right)!

I have been on a vacation from the blog...not really, just haven't updated since mid-August!! Here is a recap of what we have been up to...

*Our summer ended with a few more visits to the local pool and the beach in Maple Grove, playing at various parks, a trip to Alexandria and Eau Claire, and a few more playdates with friends. I was sad to see the summer end, but it was a wonderful one and I feel so blessed to have had that time with my fun little guy!
*I am back at work and Evan is back at Betsy's. The school year is off to a good start and Evan is excited to be back with his buddy Lars. They love to run around the backyard, jump on the couch cushions, put rocks in their dump trucks, and keep each other entertained. They both keep Betsy busy too!
*Over Labor day weekend we went to Alexandria to celebrate Peyton & Sophia's 1st birthday. Evan had a great time playing with his cousins...he loves to run around with Hailey and Maddy and thinks the babies are "cute"!

*On September 25th Matt & Hannah were married and we had a great time celebrating with them! Aaron, Evan, and I were all in the wedding. I was nervous about how Evan would do walking down the isle, but he did such a good job! The flower girl held his hand and walked him down the isle. So cute!! My friend Theresa came to the church and brought him into the nursery during the ceremony. She also came to the dance so that she could take him to my parents house when he got tired. Thanks Theresa! My aunt, uncle, & cousins took him to get a nap in after the ceremony, so he was all rested up for the dance. He had a great time running around dancing and also did some "breakdancing" moves on the floor...good thing mommy didn't mind if he suit got dirty! It was a wonderful day and we are so happy for Matt & Hannah!

*This weekend Grandma & Grandpa Pasche came down to go to the Twins game with us. The weather was great, we had good seats, and Evan had fun watching everyone. I thought that I was going to spend most of the game chasing him around, but he was entertained by what was going on around us and we made it until the 6th inning! It was a lot of fun and we will definitely

take him to more games next year.

*Evan will be 2 on Oct.21st! He is constantly on the move and is a very busy boy! He LOVES to go to the park, go to the carwash with mom, play with his toys, play on the computer, help mommy and daddy do things (laundry, cook, dishes, etc.), and would be outside all of the time if we let him. He is putting words together to form sentences and mimics everything that we say and do. He also counted to 10 the other night all by himself. It's the first time he has actually done it and gotten from 1-10 in the correct order. He is growing up so fast and is such a sweet little boy. We're excited to see what the 2nd year has in store! (There have been some "terrible two" incidents already and I'm sure we'll see more!)

*We are excited for the fall. Apple orchards, pumpkins, big 2nd birthday, and playing in the leaves!

The first haircut

Not sure what to think...

Very serious...

Showing off his sucker...which took him about an hour to finish!

Looking confused about what just happened...

Our big boy...

I realize that Evan is almost 2 and that it is just hair, but this was a big deal for mommy! He had some little curls in the back and little "wisps" on the side that I just loved. When it was hot out, it would get all wavy and cute. It looks cute now too, but he looks like such a big boy! Where has my little baby gone?!

I was nervous about how he would do and didn't trust myself enough to cut it. He was a little unsure of things, but did a great job. He was VERY serious through the whole thing...as you can see in the pictures. They gave him a sucker and a little truck to keep him occupied, but he was also very interested in what was going on and kept trying to look at the scissors. Luckily mommy and daddy were able to "pump up" how cool getting a haircut is and that seemed to distract him a little. After the haircut was done, he ran around playing with toys and checking the place out. I guess he thought it was a cool place to be...just not too sure about the whole hair thing!!

We had a great time in the Dells and have been busy since we've been back. I will post more later in the week!

Fun, Fun, Fun

Swimming in Aunt Kim's pool with his clothes on!

Playing with Macie

Swimming with Cole

Jumping...his favorite thing to do!

Trying on his outfit for Matt & Hannah's wedding

Getting into mommy's lotion

Picking (and eating) blueberries

Playing with mommy and uncle Matt's old barn

Fun at Como Zoo

He loves playing with his animals!

I can't believe that it is almost August and almost time to go back to school! I have been having a wonderful summer home with Evan and it is going to be really hard to go back to work. We have been having lots of fun! Playdates, swimming at the pool and beach, running at the park, picnics, ice cream, Como Zoo, Underwater World, picking blueberries, and other fun things.

This is a short posting because we are getting ready to head to Alexandria to visit Grandma and Grandpa Pasche, then to the Dells with my parents next week. I'll post more when we return!

Loving summer

Enjoying the long car ride to Door County!

Throwing rocks into Lake Michigan

Feeding the baby pig

I can't believe he lets the goats eat right out of his hand!!

Playing at the park in Sturgeon Bay

Yummy blueberries!

Helping Grandpa Marv wash mommy's car

Drinking the lake water!

Swimming at the Crystal pool

Doing dishes and getting water all over the place!

Evan loves mommy's sun glasses!

Playing with our friend Cole (drying off after being in the pool)

We LOVE summer! My summer vacation is flying by and I'm trying to enjoy it and not think about going back to school in a month!

We had a great time in Door County. We stayed in Sturgeon Bay at a place that Aaron and I had stayed a few years ago. We were right on Lake Michigan and enjoyed waking up to a beautiful lake view every morning. Evan would say "water, boats" and run over to look out the window. We spent our week playing in the water, visiting various parks, feeding the animals at a local farm, eating at fun restaurants, and just enjoying being together.

My parents were dog sitting for us, so stopped back at their house on our way back. Aaron headed back home and Evan and I stayed for a couple of days. There was a neighborhood parade on the 4th and then we headed over to Carson Park in Eau Claire for a mini train ride. Evan seemed to be a little out of it and was more clingy than usual. He ended up being sick for about 4 days with a high temperature. He would sit in my lap or lay on the floor with his blanket, so I knew that he was not feeling well. Usually he is up and running non-stop! It was good to see him finally acting like himself.

We have been getting together with friends for play dates, swimming at the local beaches, and playing at the park. I am really enjoying my time home with Evan, but am also realizing how hard it is to get things done around here! I have a list of projects that I want to get done this summer, but I'm not sure they will all happen. I figure if I can get some laundry done and the house picked up once in a while, I'll be good!

Last weekend my mom came up to babysit so that Aaron and I could go to the Basilica Block party. We have been talking about going for a few years, but just hadn't made it there. We ate dinner downtown on Saturday and then went over to the Basilica. The music was great and we had a lot of fun. Evan and Grandma went to the park, played outside with the hose, and Grandma even gave Evan his first shower!

Evan will be 21 months on the 21st...my baby is almost 2!! Is is talking a lot and copies everything that we do. He LOVES to play outside, go to the park, chase the dog, run, jump, and make a mess! We are loving every minute with him!

Summer Vacation!

Being silly in his pj's...

Climbing at the park

Full of giggles!

Playing the piano with his buddy Lars

More interested in the horse's ball than in the horse!

A ride around the barn with Rusty the horse and Judi...he looks serious, but he didn't want to get off!

He LOVES ice cream!

Doing dishes with grandma Mary Jo

Getting wet at the E.C. Children's Museum

Pretending to be a puppy!

Fishing with Grandpa Stan...he wasn't too amused once they actually caught one however!

"Catching" his own fish

Toothless grin...

I haven't posted in a long time, so I thought I'd include lots of pictures...

I'm officially done with work for the summer, but went in yesterday and am going in tomorrow to finish some stuff up. It has been so nice to be home with Evan and we are excited to be heading to Door County next week. It will be a great, relaxing trip! I have been very stressed with work, so some relaxation is much needed!

Evan has been so much fun lately that I can hardly stand it! He loves to laugh and is always doing and saying funny things. He is talking alot and loves to mimic what we say. He also is really into labeling what belongs to who. "Daddy's shoes", "puppy's food", "Evan's milk", "mommy's coffee" (which sounds more like mommy's copy, but we know what he means), etc. He is excited about every little thing, which is fun. He especially loves going to the park right now, so we have been exploring some new parks. We have been to a few by our house, a couple in Maple Grove, and went to Teddy Bear park in Stillwater with some friends today. We plan to spend a lot of time at the park, beach, and pool this summer!

We have had lots of visitors in the past week. Hannah graduated from grad school last weekend (congrats Hannah!), so she was here for a few days last week. Matt came up and stayed a couple of days too, which was fun. Grandma and Grandpa Pasche came down last weekend and brought Hailey and Maddy with. Evan is wild about playing with the girls and they are so good with him! My parents came up yesterday to hang out while I went into work. They went to the park and got caught in the rain, which Evan loved! He was the center of attention and seemed to enjoy every minute of it. He is definitely social and loves to be around other people...especially kids!

We have been busy in the past month. We went to Alexandria for a weekend and went for a great boat ride. He wasn't thrilled about the life jacket at first, but got used to it. He even fell asleep on the boat for about an hour! We were in E.C. for the weekend and spent part of the afternoon at the Children's Museum. We hadn't been there before, but will definitely be heading back. Aaron, Evan, and I also spend Memorial Day at the Como Zoo. Evan was very into the giraffes, monkeys, and the train. We're planning to spend more time there this summer as well.

My co-worker Judi had us out to her house after school one day. She boards horses and also has a few of her own. Evan liked being there, but was more interested in the giant horse ball and playing in the mud! He was a little afraid of the big horses...he did like riding with Rusty the miniature horse though!

Evan has been Mr. Independent lately. He likes to try to put his own shoes on, buckle the belt in his car seat, go up and down stairs holding onto the railing, and walk instead of being carried. He'll say "Evan do", and then is determined to do it himself. We don't always have time wait for him to do something, but we try to be patient and let him attempt it. He is talking lots and is a very smart little guy. He loves to point out things that he sees. His favorite things right now are trucks, trains, airplanes, tunnels (bridges), animals, water, parks, and rocks. He is such a boy!

We are looking forward to a GREAT summer and will be posting lots of pictures of our little adventures!