Trains

 Photographs by Cana

Simeon spends lots of time at his train table on his own. Cana captured these shots on my phone.  I just love all his facial expressions.

Lego Towers

Saturday morning fun - building Lego towers.

We learned how to build towers taller than we were!

And then along came brother...

Pickup on Aisle...Living Room!

Preschool Play Day

Its almost the first day of school.  This was the day to meet your teacher, find your cubby and decorate your homework folder.  Cana's teacher is Ms. Cindy. There are 10 students in the class, 8 boys and 2 girls.  Cana cannot wait for school to start!

First Piano Lesson

 First Piano Lesson - August 25, 2014

Alfred Palmer Lesson Books

Teacher - Mommy

Back to School Apple Pie

My name is Adley and I like Apple Pie

My name is Cana and I like whip cream

My name is Simeon and I like everything

The kids claimed they had never had Apple Pie.  Adley used apple pie in an icebreaker game for school where you had to name something that started with the same letter as your name.  So we celebrated back-to-school with apple pie.

Greeters

Greeters in training

First Day of 2nd Grade

Second Day of Second Grade

Lots of rain in the forecast and the new rain boots were just in time.

Summer Reading Club

We spent a lot of time reading this summer.  All three kids were signed up for the Joliet library and the Naperville library reading clubs.  They enjoyed finding books, adding them to our lists and picking up prizes.  Adley also completed the reading club with Barnes and Noble for a free book.  This was dinner at Meatheads, one of our prizes.

Woodworking

 Woodworking with Daddy - chopping block

So proud of the finished product!

Thanks Daddy!

Fort Wayne, IN

We stopped at Concordia Seminary in Fort Wayne on the way home from Ohio.

Simeon loved all the fountains.

After visiting the chapel we went to see the bookstore. 

What a great view from the basement of the library.

Next we spent some time at the playground while Daddy visited the bookstore.  

This was a great place to run off some energy after several hours in the car.

Road Trip

The girls like to play games on the iphone occasionally.  I think the like the camera even more.

Tuscora Park - Amusement Park Rides & Plaground

 After two days of rain it was a treat to get outside and find this park nearby.  

Sadie smile!

Cana enjoyed the carousel

 Simeon likes cars and trucks

Adley loved the rollercoaster

The swing ride and the ferris wheel were firsts!

And then we went out for pizza.  Win-win!

OHIO!

 Family vacation to eastern Ohio for a visit with friends Chris and Megan and family.  Together, we rented a hundred year old house that was renovated and large enough for both of our families.  Despite lots of rain the first day we had a fantastic time.  The kids bonded and formed a kids club designed to keep the adults from knowing what they were up to.  

Kids club doing their exercises on the front porch.

A view of the living room just before we had to leave.

Train Museum of Dennison, Ohio

Simeon, Cana, Caris, Adley, Sadie

Chris and Jared scouted out this train museum just a couple of miles from where we were staying. 

Beginning the museum with a few glass cases and instructions to follow the scavenger hunt clues. 

The kids quickly found the hands-on activities and are experiencing coal.

Mazes are Cana's favorite.  This station also let them fill out their own luggage tags to attach to the suitcases ready for the train. 

Magazine stand with cash register, soda bottles and sample magazines from the 1940's.

The entire museum was in train cars that were right along the tracks of current trains.  Simeon sat in the renovated car and watched out the window and LOVED it.

Ticket booth with ticketmaster vest, stamp, tickets and chalkboard train schedule.

Sadie sells some soda. 

The dining car was an all-out favorite.  The table could be set with real dishes, the kitchen cupboards were full of serving dishes and there was enough food to go around. 

 At the end of the museum Simeon found Bing, the mascot for the Dennison Company in WWI and now the museum.  Most of the museum focused on railroad canteen that was formed out of necessity during WWII. From museum notes: "During WWII, 1.3 Million service members were served free food by 4,000 working volunteers at the Dennison Depot Salvation Army Servicemen’s Canteen. These service men and women traveled by troop train along the National Defense Strategic Railway and stopped at the Depot as they were going off to fight in the war."