The Iowa State Fair

On Saturday, August 11th, Roy, Hudson, Ben, Jenna (and baby Benna) and I went to The Iowa State Fair.  This happened to also be our 5 year anniversary.  What a great way to celebrate?!  :)  This was Hudson's first time at the fair and he seemed to enjoy himself greatly.  He was quite the trooper and really took it all in, especially the animals and tractors.  

First, a few pictures with the animals.  

It was great to spend the day exploring with Ben and Jenna (and baby Benna).  Won't it be fun when we can take the little lady here too (maybe next year...Ha).  :)  

One of Hudson's favorite things at the fair was the tractors.  Can't imagine why?  :)  He ran up to every one, touched it, and said Ooohhhhh!  

Checking out the Army exhibit.  

He even took a turn at driving one of the large machines.  

3 Swinger boys examining the John Deere bean head.  "Pretty sure this is just like our Dads (aka Papa Ed's)."  

"This is soooo cool Mommy.  Did you get a picture?  I think I'm ready to start mowing the lawn now."  

saturday morning with the steenhoek gang

A few weeks back Hudson and I connected with "The Steenhoek Gang" for some Saturday morning fun.  They were passing through central Iowa on their way to bring Lydia to college.  We enjoyed some time browsing at the Farmer's Market and eating breakfast burritos before the sky turned black and it started to downpour.  So we went with Plan B and headed to the Historical Museum.  I was impressed and there was plenty of exhibits to keep us interested, and we learned a few things too. :)  Here are a few pictures from our time.

  

Geselle with her 4 kids and me with my 1 kid.  :)  

Jori and Hudson posing at An American Gothic - Hudson does love to peek-a-boo.  :)  

Cameron could teach Hudson a thing or two about building with Legos.  

Check out that piece of work - 801 Grand.  

Cool!  

Cameron, Jori and Hudson examining the silver pieces.    

As I was driving home and reflecting on our morning together I was brought to tears.  I have been friends with the Steenhoeks since I was 15 years old.  I babysat the children at a young age and now they are all grown up.  :)  I have known them for over half of my life and they are still good friends, even as distance separates us and time changes circumstances.  They are dear friends, always have been and always will be I believe.  I thank God for His amazing blessings through friendships.  He is such a good God for loving me through them.  Gifts from above, each one of them.    

Proverbs 17:17 "A friend loves at all times."     

smarty pants

The former teacher in me needs to post this.  I just can't contain myself.  :)  Soon after Hudson turned 18 months old I introduced him to the letter "H."  It actually just kind of happened, it wasn't super intentional, just basic exposure.  Without me even knowing of it Roy had also started teaching him the letter H too through the use of an alphabet toy we had at home.  He caught on super quickly and started identifying it in different places (books, signs, food packaging, magazines).  It was then we realized he really "got it."  From there, I used his HUDSON puzzle (which he got as a gift from G&G Swinger for his 1st birthday) to introduce the other 5 letters.  He has caught on to those just as quick.  Only 20 letters left to go!  :)  So proud of our little learner.  What exciting adventures we have ahead of us.  Watch the video to see the proof (sorry its sideways, can't turn it).    

eighteen months

On August 3rd Hudson turned 18 months old.  Its crazy to think that he is now officially closer to 2 years old than he is 1.  People are right...the time does go faster as they get older.  What an amazing gift this little boy is to us.  A few of my favorite things about Hudson these days are...

*his constant giggles, smiles, and laughter

*how he loves the game peek-a-boo no matter how many times we play it

*he keeps busy playing with his "dishes"

*his love for reading and picking out books

*his new Stride Rite tennis shoes

*he recognizes the 6 letters in his name

*how he blows kisses and gives hugs

*he continues to be a fabulous sleeper and eater

*he is so content and adaptable in different routines and environments (gets this from Roy)

*creating art masterpieces together with stickers, water color paint, play dough, crayons, and glue

*he is a BIG strong healthy boy - 35 inches (99%) and 27.1 pounds (84%)  

*his interest in the great outdoors - running and exploring

*his bright blue eyes

*his interest in helping me with jobs around the house

*how he thinks our mini van is pretty cool and likes to ride in it

*his toddler monkey backpack

*the sounds he makes for things (tractor, puppy, car)

*his new found interest in climbing

*recognizing and pointing to many of his body parts (now we are working on the less common ones, such as his nostrils)  :)  

*giving him hugs and kisses all day long

*how he loves to collect rocks and hold them in his hands

*the different "sounds" he makes and how they seem to be just like a sequence of words put together into a sentence

 

Happy 1 1/2 Hudson John!  We LOVE you!  

the BEST time of the day is...

when daddy comes HOME! 

Reiman Gardens - The Remainders

Have I mentioned before how much we LOVE our SLR Cannon T3i camera?  Well, we do!   And we recommend anyone with a little one to start saving their pennies and buy one.  Totally worth it (and thanks again to our parents for the gift money to purchase it).  Pretty sure they are enjoying it just as much as we are.  Nice camera = lots of pictures of their grandson.  :)  With the fact that we love our camera so much we take so many pictures with it.  I have a hard time weeding them out, so tend to just post lots of them.  :)  Roy especially enjoys trying to figure out what it can do, how it works, and the creative shots he can capture.  So...here are the remaining pictures from Reiman Gardens.

Hudson and Daddy

 

Hudson and Mommy

 

Hudson had a blast exploring, pointing at things, running around, climbing, and getting dirty.  

One of the craziest things was this GIANT gnome hidden in the back of the gardens.  Hudson just loooooked at it and wasn't sure what to think of it.  Seeing it got Roy and I excited for the upcoming season of The Amazing Race!  

And the rest of these pictures are basically just Roy messing around with the camera, catching lots of unique shots from various spots around the gardens.  

Reiman Gardens - LEGO Sculptures

The "exhibit theme" this year at Reiman Gardens is Sculptures Built with LEGO Bricks.  A total of 27 Lego Sculptures are spread throughout the gardens.  We didn't get pictures of all them, but several of them.  So here is just a taste of a few of our favorites...

Lawn Mower - 13,704 LEGO pieces

5 Goldfinches (Iowa state bird) - 2,875 LEGO pieces

Bison and Calf = 61,372 LEGO pieces

 

Water Platter = 5 Lily Pads, Lily Bloom, Frog, Jumping Koi

Total of 57,132 LEGO pieces

Hummingbird and Flower (look closely) - 31,565 LEGO pieces

The Rose (our favorite) - 41,242 LEGO pieces

Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly - 37,481 LEGO pieces 

(which was right outside of the Butterfly Wing)  

Reiman Gardens - Butterfly Wing

The last week of July Roy spent a good part of his week in Ames on campus at ISU taking an Agronomy Class (he is working on his Master's Degree).  Ames will always be a special place for Roy and I - its where we met, fell in love, and got engaged.  Soooo many fond memories.  :)  Roy was done with class on Friday at noon so Hudson and I came down to enjoy the afternoon with him.  We had a late lunch at Hickory Park (Hudson's 2nd time there) and then went to Reiman Gardens.  It was a cool day (so welcomed after the 95/100 degree days we had been having) and beautiful in every way.  I loved seeing all the vibrant colors, creative plants, and unique Lego displays.  Hudson loved running around and exploring and Roy took most of the pictures.  He captured so many good ones I felt overwhelmed when I sat down to the do this post.  Therefore, I'm going to split it into several different ones this week.  :)  Our first stop was The Butterfly Wing.      

Family picture before heading into the gardens.  

R & H taking a close look at the butterflies.  

For those of you who know Hudson well, you know exactly the sound he is making in this picture. "Ooooohhhh...."  

"Let me get a closer look at this Daddy.  It is pretty interesting.  What are those butterflies eating?"  

Posing for a picture with the unique "knitted bench art."   

"Go State!"  We did buy Hudson a new ISU tshirt when we were in Ames.  We should have put it on so he could have matched his Daddy.   

Lots more pictures to come...