June Bug's Bike Rides and Picnics

June Bug and his dad enjoy their picnic sandwiches!

With Tadpole and Cricket both at Camp Invention this past week, June Bug got to go for a bike ride and spend some special time with his mom and dad both Monday and Tuesday.  In reality, he rode in the trailer behind my bike.  Since it was his first time riding in the trailer and he's a wiggly little boy, we were a bit concerned about him actually staying inside so we could get a good workout and cover a decent distance. 

After hooking up the trailer, pumping up the tires on the bikes and trailer, filling camel backs for us and a water cup for him, making sandwiches for the three of us, adjusting one of the girls' old helmets so that it would stay on his little head, and applying sunscreen, we finally buckled him into the trailer and took off.  He was quite impressed at first, but it didn't take long for him to get a little squirmy.  We had to make several stops to remind him to stay seated, facing the front, and to let him know that he couldn't open the screen on the front. 

We traveled the Mariner's Trail, along Lake Michigan, toward Manitowoc, and enjoyed a beautiful day.  We had the opportunity to see some planes from EAA AirVenture flying in formation over the lake, and also saw the SS Badger Car Ferry heading toward Manitowoc.  Since June Bug is fascinated by both planes and boats, this kept him somewhat occupied and willing to sit back and enjoy the ride.  We had hoped to ride further into Manitowoc and actually watch the car ferry arrive, but we were delayed when we assisted a girl whose chain had fallen off her bike, and by then, June Bug was ready for lunch, so we stopped a little short of where we had intended, and enjoyed our sandwiches. 

On the way back, June Bug actually fell asleep!  We took a nice break at The Honey Pot to enjoy a coffee (for me) and a smoothie (for June Bug's dad).  Monday evening, we invested in a more comfortable seat for June Bug's dad and a new bike helmet for June Bug so he wouldn't have to sport his older sisters' pink helmet again!  We managed to ride about 11 miles on Monday and eight on Tuesday.  And we're looking forward to enjoying bike rides with Tadpole and Cricket soon!

Spring Cleaning

With temperatures nearing 70 along the Lake Michigan shores, and the promise of rain looming, Sunday was a perfect day to get a start on spring yard work.  Clad in old clothes and new rubber rain boots, Tadpole, Cricket, and even little Junebug set out to help their dad clean up the yard.  Shrubs and perennials were trimmed, leaves were raked, stray trash was picked up, and lawn ornaments were pulled from their winter resting places in the garage to be placed on display in the garden once again.  By the time the rain threatened, the kids had helped clear a load of materials for the compost site from the yard, and numerous shoots from spring bulbs had been uncovered.  The April showers arrived later in the evening, giving the crocus, tulip, and daffodil bulbs a thirst-quenching boost, and encouraging them to produce the May flowers we're all dreaming of enjoying.  With any luck, we'll have plenty of flowers before it's time to turn the calendar page to May.

Summer Plans Seem Far Away When it's Snowing!

The arrival of 7 inches of snow, slush, and ice on March 23rd sure doesn't seem like the promise of spring and summer to come!  Tadpole, Cricket, and I had a snow day yesterday.  Junebug still got to go to daycare, but with classes cancelled, the girls enjoyed a fun morning of outings around town.  We enjoyed two competitive hours at Schroeder's Red Bank Coffe House, playing cards.  We played 7 Ate 9 and Snap it up Math, two fun and challenging games to practice addition and subtraction facts.  Then we moved on to Spot It, a fun game that's tough to describe, but loads of fun and a little addicting.  It's also a bit intense--sorry to the other coffee shop patrons if we were a little loud!

We went to Subway for lunch, then squeezed in some haircuts at GJ's.  By then the weather was much worse, so we went home.  Once there, we decided to do some shoveling.  We hope it will be the last time using the snow shovels for the season!  Everyone in our house is anxious for spring to arrive!

Note:  Our card games were purchased at The Read Apple and Gnome Games.

Looking forward to summer 2011!

Summer plans for Tadpole, Cricket & Junebug: 

1. Attend as many free festivals in Two Rivers as possible.
2. Enjoy the Lake Michigan shoreline as often as we can.
3. Visit all of the historical museums in the area.
4. Visit the Lincoln Park Zoo in Manitowoc.
5. Visit the NEW Zoo in Green Bay.
6. Plant a lot of flowers in the yard.  Weed them.  Pick them.  Enjoy them.
7. Plant, weed, & enjoy the produce from our vegetable garden.
8. Visit a new park or playground every week (and have a picnic).
9. Take swimming lessons at the Y.
10. Rollerblade along Lake Michigan.
11. Go to girl scout camp.  (Tadpole & Cricket)
12. Start talking!  (Junebug)
13. Visit the Farmers' Market.
14. Go to the Manitowoc Garden Show.
15. Go to Summer School.
16. Go to Camp Invention.
17. Go to Story Time at Lester Public Library.
18. Eat ice cream at Cedar Crest, AKA 'The Big Cow.'
19. Fly kites on the beach.
20. Visit Woodland Dunes Nature Center.