Digging the library

 The girls & I went to check out the big diggers at the library last week.  It was seriously hot in the sun but pretty cool to see them so up close!

Library Science

 Our library has a great summer reading program.  This year's schedule of events isn't quite as impressive as in the past & we've missed a few we were most interested in due to timing with baby Sarah.  But, we were able to go to our first event a couple of weeks ago all surrounding the Magic Tree House books.  All three of our big kids love them!  Then we attended this science show the following week.  Really nothing spectacular, but it was interesting & all the kids were able to volunteer to be helpers.

 Andrew was able to help make this floe volcano.  Rebecca helped build stalactites & stalagmites (out of Velcro tennis balls).

 And Teresa was able to fill up this balloon with helium & give it to the librarian.

The biggest hit, though, was the crazy exploding volcano finale.  When he said back up, I wish I would have backed up farther!  All that baking soda & vinegar shot into the grass to cover the stroller.  :P  Lots of fun!

T -8

Tractors. They are a big thrill around here!
We checked out the university's tractor museum which has a good number of antique tractors you can sit on. Right outside is where they still do lots of tractor testing during the school year. Uncle Fr. Jon joined us, so that definitely added to the thrill.
"Can I do just one more? I HAVE to sit on this one for Red Grandpa."

Rebecca was much more interested in the kitty: Allis Chalmers.

They also had displays of much older farming tools & equipment. Andrew was fascinated by all of these "pointy tools". He was a little nervous to stand with his back to them, though! Since it was a quick tour, we burnt a little time at the Dairy Store. Gotta love ice cream before 10:30 a.m.! Thanks, Uncle Jon.

Then we went to redeem some free burger coupons at Burger King. Teresa enjoyed a few fries.

Andrew DEVOURED his burger. Why doesn't he eat them like that at home? * He pulled a sesame seed off of the bun & said,

"If we take this home & plant it, then we'll get a hamburger tree!"

Rebecca was just excited to have her own cup for ketchup. ;P

The Burger King

The Burger Princess

We finished off the day with a *HOT* night out at the Saltdogs game. Woohoo for free tickets!

Aren't they cute?

Teresa wasn't too interested in the game, but loved playing with this water bottle.

The clouds on the way home were amazing!

Rebecca was chatting it up in the car,

"When I get big, I'm going to be a doctor. Call me Dr. Furasek Becca. What are you be when you get big, Mom?"

"Huppy, luppy, they rhyme!"

Make a Splash!

We enjoyed a few more summer reading activities in the last few weeks. Above, the Kokyo Taiko Japanese drummers were super cool. It was pretty loud, so I was a little nervous about the girls freaking out. But they did great! Rebecca & Andrew were "drumming" right along with their hands on their legs. Teresa just kept clapping & squealing with delight. Their favorite part was when they were supposed to shout, "Heh!" at the end of the song. They talked about a drum large enough for eight men to play at once... Andrew asked if we could get one. ;) I love to see them sitting together so rapt with attention.
Jeff Quinn magician was fun, too. He had a LOT of varying scarf & disappearing water tricks but the kids didn't seem to notice the repitition. Andrew did catch on to the water ones though after we learned so much at Splish Splash Science. He asked,
"Does he have that stuff from Teresa's diapers in there?"
I'm assuming he meant the polymers...
The most fun was going to see Oscar Rios perform. We were in foreign language methods classes together 10 years ago & I've been impressed by him ever since. He's the leader of a band called Kusi Taki that plays Andean folk music. He brought along a few unique instruments to show, explain, & teach how to play. Here's Rebecca with the zamponas & Andrew with the chajchas that we have at our house. The charango was a cool little guitar that was made out of an armadillo's back! (Maybe Fr. Jon will bring me one back from Peru?)

At the end he asked questions about the instruments he had brought & Andrew answered correctly to win the CD he's so proudly holding. The instrument he identified was an Andean flute called a quena.
"Like the Wedding at Cana!"
he said to me. So THAT'S how he remembered it's name. :)

Summertime Adventures

All of this summer "quality time" together has us on the lookout for summertime adventures.

We had a popcorn-filled picnic enjoying the music downtown with Daddy on a lunchbreak. Our library summer reading program is AWESOME. Besides the great reading, there are also excellent activities you can attend for free. This one was full of animals from all over the world... in the library!

I can't believe they touched an alligator. We've also enjoyed presentations on fishing in Nebraska, fun water-related science projects, & games/balloons/facepainting to kick it all off. We are always excited to go to the library.

Always good tunes at Jazz in June. We tried the "super sleuth" scavenger hunt supposedly for kids in the art museum beforehand... not for these kids yet! Maybe in about 3 years. They gave us a cool magnetic puzzle for a prize, even though we gave up after only answering 4 questions. Almost one month gone already. Bring on the summer adventures!

Summer Reading Fun

The library is a favorite stop for me & the kids. We usually try to go for "Toddler Time", get some books & movies, color a picture, & enjoy our library buddies. Our hometown has an excellent summer reading program. There are lots of special activities & presentations throughout the summer. If the kids complete 10 hours of reading/listening, 10 related activities, & 4 library visits, they earn some awesome prizes! I'm not talking hippo shaped erasers & stale bubble gum . . . these are free train rides at the zoo, admission to the fair & children's museum, meals from local restaurants . . . awesome stuff. One perk is a free ticket to a Saltdogs baseball game. We're not huge baseball fans, so this is usually our one game of the season. It's a great time!
We've shied away from the bounce houses & games in the past thinking they would be expensive, but found out they are just a quarter! So, this year they were able to enjoy a little extra fun.
Lots of friends were at the game as well, some who joined us for a tasty pre-game potluck, too. Here's Andrew enjoying a little game of tag with one of his best buddies.

There were also weiner dog races, a playground, free prizes, & oh yeah . . . a baseball game to watch. ; ) Are you a baseball fan? What's your favorite part?