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!

18 Months Old!

Checking out the pinecones at the park

Playing in mommy's car

Trying to take a drink??

Playing in his new sandbox

Being silly at Grandma & Grandpa's house

Evan is 18 months old today and I can't believe that our little baby is now such a big boy! He is always on the go and doing something to entertain us daily. He is smart, funny, sweet, and VERY busy! He has his 18 month appointment next week and I'm anxious to see how much he weighs and how tall he is. He seems like such a boy to me!

Every morning on the way to school we have to look for buses and trucks. He'll keep saying "bus" or "truck" until I acknowledge it and then he'll want "more". My dad found a little school bus for him at Farm and Fleet, which he thinks is very cool. Grandpa Stan drives a school bus, so maybe we'll get to see it the next time we're in Alexandria!

Evan is defininately very social. He loves to say "hi" to everyone he sees and smiles at everyone. Whenever we go somewhere, he makes sure to get the attention of the people around us. He especially loves to follow other kids around when we go to the park. The other day we were at the park and he kept trying to get the attention of another girl that was there. She kind of ignored him and was doing her own thing, but that didn't seem to bother him. He just kept smiling and saying "hi". Such a friendly little guy!

He loves to go to the park, ride in his wagon, play with water, climb onto everything, and play with his toys. He is at a very fun age right now and thinks that almost everything we do is fun and exciting. Hopefully he won't grow out of that anytime soon! We have been spending a lot of time outside and have been going to various parks. He seems to have no fear and thinks nothing of going down the big slides or climbing up high onto the playground equipment. Makes mommy and daddy a little nervous sometimes, but I guess we'd better get used to that!

We are VERY excited that tax season is done and that we actually get to see Aaron! We get home around the same time, so we're able to hang out and do things before Evan goes to bed. We spent last weekend just hanging out at home, playing outside, and doing some fun things as a family.

I have been wanting a bigger vehicle for awhile, so we decided to trade my car in for a Hyundai Santa Fe. We were really happy with the dealership where I bought my car, so we decided to go back there. They had a play area with a little kitchen, trucks, dolls, etc...Evan was giddy about it! He was having so much fun, that he was very sad when it was time to leave. He "helped" me clean out my car on Sunday and now he wants to play in the car everyday. We got my Santa Fe on Monday, so he thinks it is very cool to "drive" mommy's new car!

Evan continues to talk more everyday and is very inquisitive. He loves to check things out and notices everything! He loves to laugh and is VERY ticklish. We are having so much fun with him and love him more everyday. We are even getting used to his "toothless grin"! I hardly even notice anymore...who would have thought?!