Lost in my Camera

So as you can probably tell by my lack of recent posts, life has been really busy since school started. I haven't blogged in nearly a month and so I had to go back through my photos to see what pictures I have neglected and have been lost in my camera. After browsing through my photos, here's what I found:

IOWA STATE FAIR
We went to the fair on a Sunday morning with the August's and Murphy's. Although it was supposed to rain and be cloudy, it turned out to be a beautiful day! We had a great time looking at the animals, petting baby lambs, watching the kids talent show, walking through the midway, and of course, eating! Carter and Riley had fun together and I think they both had a great day!





CARY'S GUY'S WEEKEND
Every year, Cary and his best high school friends get together for a long weekend. In the past it has taken place at Lake of the Ozarks and LA. Since last year's trip was such a big one in California, Cary and I made a deal that he would take this year off. Well, somehow he found a way to get around our little deal. The location of this year's "Mancation" was Des Moines, Iowa with lodging at the Coppola house. Carter and I spent the weekend as nomads, staying at Bobbi and Joe's and my parents', while Cary and the guys had a fun time golfing, boating, going to an Iowa Cubs game, playing yard games, and visiting the bar. Here's a shot I took the night that I was their DD. These guys had a great time, as you can probably tell!


MADDOX CECIL'S BIRTHDAY PARTY
Our nephew Maddox turned 2 on August 19th and we celebrated it the following week. Holly and Joe had a HUGE brunch, complete with waffles, coffee cake, little smokies, egg casserole and about every other brunch food you could think of. The kids had a great time dancing in the living room and playing in the yard (although Carter was very crabby and just wanted to play outside most of the morning). Maddox received some great presents...which influenced us to make an afternoon trip to Toys R Us.


CARTER'S NEW SUMMER TRADITION
So after seeing all of Maddox's cool toys, we started feeling a little sympathetic for Carter. Don't get me wrong, we know that he gets SPOILED the week of Christmas with all of those birthday and Christmas presents combined. But by the time summer his here, his toys seem a little boring and outdated. So we decided that every summer we're going to take Carter to Toys R Us to pick out one new big toy - which will count as half of his birthday present from us. We figure we can get him a little less on his birthday, and he won't feel neglected since he'll have just received so many Christmas presents the day before. So for Carter's summer birthday present he got a Hot Wheels parking garage. And oh boy, does he love it! Honestly...it has been HOURS of entertainment for him!


GUTHRIE COUNTY FAIR
This past weekend, we attended the "World's Fair" - as Guthrie locals like to call it. Although I spent every Labor Day weekend at the fair as a kid, I don't think I'd been this excited about attending. I really looked forward to it for a couple of weeks. I just knew that Carter would love the parade, seeing the firetrucks, riding the rides, petting the animals, and just spending time with Katelyn. And I was right! The parade was a total hit. Other than the St. Patrick's Day parade last March, Carter hadn't been to another parade. And Cary informed us that he only remembers going to one parade his whole life...the 4th of July parade in Ely...and he was in it! So this parade thing was a new experience for our family! Carter was pretty timid at first, but by the end he was picking up candy like a champ! We went to my parents' for lunch and naps, and then headed to the fair during the afternoon and evening. Carter and Kate acted so old as they got on rides themselves, ran through the midway to find their next rides, and asked to go down the big slide again and again. The two of them had a ball together and it was so fun to watch them communicate with each other while riding the rides. Such great memories!!!












LABOR DAY WEEKEND
On Friday night we went to my very first Dowling football game! It was Dowling vs. Valley and was played at Drake Stadium. We went with Sean, Jess and Drew while Carter stayed home with a babysitter. What a fun night! And since we were spending time at the Guthrie parade and fair, we had to miss the National Softball Tournament in Marshalltown. Cary felt bad about that, but we were happy that we were able to spend a few hours with his family Monday afternoon. Kelly, Tony, Davis and Bennett were in town and so the boys played together for awhile. It's always fun to have all 5 of the kids together! And last night, as our long weekend came to an end, we had our very first family movie night - all three of us. The movie was "Finding Nemo" and our snacks were popcorn and apple juice/crystal light. It was so fun to have Carter old enough to do that and it was really the best way to end such a fun weekend!