CAT Family Day

Two weeks ago we drove to Peoria, IL and visited Pete and Kelli. The proving grounds that Pete works at had their family day and so we, along with Andy's parents, made the trip out. We got to tour the buildings, walk around the yards, and get pretty close to some big equipment. The boys were in awe. CAT had all sorts of machines out for viewing and even had a demo show for guests to watch. Adam really liked the show--he was full of "oh's" "ah's" and "ooo's" that had most of the crowd around us chuckling. Since we have all the construction around us, the boys know their equipment, so they had a blast getting to get in and around some of the equipment they watch on a daily basis. Interestingly, the thing that kept grabbing Alex's attention was a video they showed in one of the sheds. CAT was testing a wheel loader by pushing it over down a slope to make it tumble over and over. The cab is meant to protect the driver for a roll or two, but not to the extent this test went. The dummy driver didn't make it. But Alex was completely captivated by it tumbling over and over and eventually mangled at the bottom of the hill. We had to pull him away! We had a great time and the boys really enjoyed being at Pete and Kelli's house too. We look forward to next year and another CAT family day!

You got a prize if you could hit a golf ball into the back of a dump truck. I didn't put Andy's picture on here....his form is horrible!

Alex and Pete are "bowling" in a mini excavator.

Adam's birthday

We hosted our sunday school classes fall retreat at our house on the weekend of Adam's birthday, so we shipped the boys off to the Jackson's for the weekend. We drove up on Sunday, which was Adam's actually birthday, and had a little party at the lake. The Rummel's met us there and we had a picnic lunch, opened presents, and toured the house.

Mom brought apple gourds the other day. You paint them red and they're suppose to look like apples. I dont know how realistic they look, but the boys sure had fun!

They closed our road this week. Since there wasn't much traffic we stood out in the middle of the road and watch the bulldozer, excavator and the dump trucks. Our road will swing out and meet the new SR 25 at an intersection. So this is the beginning of our road's makeover.

Labor Day Weekend

We've had a busy weekend! Phil came for a visit and brought his girlfriend, Chelsey. Nana, Papa, and Stu came too. We got a swingset. And Mimi and Pop came for a visit. We had record breaking heat on Saturday, which is the same day the boys (ie. men) went and moved the swingset. One of Andy's coworkers was looking to get rid of theirs and we gladly paid the price. The boys love their new play set. I think I will be spending the week (or 2...or 3..) monitoring the ladder and slide. :) But nothing compares to the "house" in the bottom of the playset. Alex was all over it the minute we got the thing upright!
We had a very nice visit with the Jackson family and got to finally meet Chelsey. She fits right into the family and the boys were thrilled with their new playmate. Too bad it'll be Christmas before we see them again.
Mimi and Pop came on Monday for a short visit. I dont really have any pictures, but most of the time was spent on the playset and in the sand. It's 40 degrees cooler than it was 2 days ago, so it actually feels good to be in the sunshine!

our kittens

The boys like to make this their "drive thru windows". You can order food and they'll run and get it!

Happy Birthday Stu! (He wont be around when we actually celebrate his and Adam's bday) As you can see, Adam just wants to eat it (although he didn't). Alex already has his finger in the frosting.

Chelsey riding the horse at Mom and Dad's

Putting the swing set together

Dad sent me a couple pics of the house. It looks so good in red!