Carlson Corner: Summer 2013

It was a busy summer! Since it's already almost time for the holidays, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

First taste of strawberry shortcake! Verdict: loves the shortcake, but not so sure about the strawberries.

Papa Paul's Corvette is cool!

I went to my first Twins game at the end of June with Novus Media. What a view of the skyline!

Jesper and Grace playing at the splashpad

Jesper loves to splash in the water! And he usually finds a friend or two at the park.

Riding on the old lawnmower with Dad. Afterwards, I asked if it was fun or kind of scary. "Kinda scary" Jesper said.

First weekend without Mom and Dad. Jesper went to hang out with Nissa and Brian while Josh and I visited Chris and Lara.

Big wheel = hours and hours of fun. Most of the summer was spent on this toy.

Enjoying the sunshine with Dad on 4th of July. We washed cars and played with the water hoses.

The Edina 4th of July parade. Jesper was as enthralled with some of the small dogs around us as he was with the parade.

Jesper moved into his "big boy bed" in early July. He wasn't so sure when we started talking about the idea, but he climbed right into it on his first night and adjusted right away. However, it took him about a month before he realized he could get out of it by himself. :) Then we had a few midnight visits when he would walk into our room at 2am and say "Hi Guys."

We had a big storm in early August that knocked down trees, power lines, and even blew a hole in our neighbor's fence. Thankfully, we didn't have any major damage in our yard.

Playing trains

"I look like Daddy!"

We had a great time when Lucas and Lindsay Bucl and their boys Carter and Jackson came to visit. Jesper had a blast playing with the boys! In this picture, Carter and Jesper are watching some cartoons on the iPad.

Visiting the Minnesota Zoo with Becky and Ben Pitzl and Lindsay, Carter and Jackson Bucl. The farm was Jesper's favorite part. He got to go into the goat pen and play on the tractors.

Driving tractor at the MN Zoo

Splashpad at the MN Zoo. Probably the last year we can do this in a swim diaper, huh?

On our way to Minnehaha Falls. The train was out of order at our stop, so we were able to take a bus and a train down to the park. The three little boys with us were pretty excited about the public transportation.

The Bucls - Lucas, Lindsay, Carter & Jackson

Family picture at Minnehaha Falls

We visited Joe and Becky Pitzl's family cabin in Glenwood, MN in mid-August. Jesper and his friend Ben Pitzl are ready for breakfast and a fun day!

Sarah, Brandon, and Sam Jones joined us on Friday. We spent lots of time on the boat.

Becky and Ben Pitzl

Dinner at a lakeside restaurant with the whole gang

Josh and Jesper in Grandma Millie's apartment pool. Grandma Millie was moved to a nursing home in mid-August because she was no longer able to care for herself.

Papa Paul and Grandma Gail came to visit at the end of August and we took another trip down to Windom, MN. Jesper and his 2nd cousin, Henrick, saw some older boys with a remote controlled race car and watched, fascinated, for about 20 minutes.