We have had a really fun, but busy summer. It is so much fun discovering all the new things Madison enjoys doing now that she is older this summer. We decided that we would try Madison in swim lessons this summer since she really enjoyed the pool last summer. She had a great time, most of the time anyway. It was difficult as the class was held in the evening so we had to rush supper for Madison and bring her pajamas with us as she goes to bed pretty early. We made it all work though and hope to maybe do it again this winter.
This is from our trip to the Nevada at the Little Tikes swim. I took Madison down the water slide. I think she liked it, but would have definitely like it more if I hadn't put her life jacket it on! She was pouting the whole time!
Another fun thing we discovered this summer was gymnastics. I took Madison to Triad in Ankeny for an open play time to see if she would enjoy it. She loved it! She had an absolute blast! She actually like the trampoline the best. I think we spent most of the hour playing on the trampoline. She was giggling and smiling the whole time! It was so much fun watching her have so much fun! I even put her up to the uneven bars and she hung on for a few seconds. She also really enjoyed just running around on the big open mats. They also had a little play thing with a slide on it and she was able to climb up on it and slide down. I think we will be making a few more trips back there.
We've also had many fun times at the park with friends. These are some pictures from a picnic play date with our friends Adeline, Lilly and Carter. Madison got a hold of my cell phone and ran around the park "talking" on it. Her newest thing is to hold it straight up to her mouth and say "hello" in it. She also holds it up to her neck and leans her head over. I guess she has seen Mommy multi-task a few too many times while talking on the phone!
We have also discovered how much fun it is to ride in the bike trailer. We received this as a hand me down gift and have really enjoyed using it. I'll admit it was really difficult on me to begin with. Man, I'm really out of shape! Pulling a trailer with a 22 lb child in the back didn't exactly help! Madison enjoys reading books in there and just relaxing. Ben left the instruction manuel in there and for some reason Madison thinks that is the best book to read! On one of our outings she was so sleepy she fell asleep in there. Of course when Ben went to get the camera she started peeking a little, but still wasn't quite ready to get up!
Madison has also recently discovered the sprinkler. She never acted liked she liked the sprinkler or any cold water for that matter. She likes to be in the pool, but really wanted nothing to do with the wading pool or anything. One day she started pulling on the sprinkler Ben had left out so I thought ok we'll give it a try. I brought her in the house and changed her into a suit and gave it a try. I was so surprised that she actually really enjoyed it. She liked putting her hand in and touching the water and putting a bucket over it and especially liked taking the hose and washing off her slide and trying to drink the water from the hose.
Another fun thing Madison has discovered is the joy of popsicles! I have made her some yogurt popsicles and she loves them! It makes a huge mess, but I don't mind. It's something good for her and she enjoys them.
We took Madison to the State Fair this year for the first time. She was still trying to get over a cold so wasn't feeling the greatest, but I think she still enjoyed it. She had fun looking at all the animals and really enjoyed doing the Little Hands on the Farm activity. She got to carry a basket around (her favorite thing!) and gather different things from the farm, ride a pedal tractor and then buy something at the store after she had completed her task. She didn't want to give her basket back at the end. That was clearly her favorite part! She also really enjoyed running over the bridge outside the agriculture building. She did that multiple times. We also gave her, her first corn dog. She seemed to really like it and probably would have eaten more if she was feeling a little bit better. We've had so many fun experiences this summer and can't wait for more fun things to come this fall!
