Family Reunion

On Sunday we attended our Kromm family reunion (maternal grandmother's family). The reunion is usually held at a park in a nearby community, but this year they decided to have it on the Kromm family farm that has been in the family for generations. It was such a beautiful day, and we had a wonderful time. I don't know about anyone else, but Darrin and I thought it was much more enjoyable at the farm, so we're hoping they stick to the tradition (but I can totally understand if our hosts were overwhelmed with the lot of us - about 100 people or so, I'm guessing).

I didn't take too many pictures, but here is a quick smile box with the few I did get.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Henry loved being on the farm. He loved everything about it. The horses, the cows, the empty barn, playing in the yard with Papa, petting the dog, etc. I need to get a card made and sent out to (cousin) Peter and (wife) Diane to thank them for hosting. Watch for it on my craft blog this week!

I have some pictures to show you from our trip to the Greenville Zoo too, so I'll get those loaded in the next day or two. I need to space things out so I don't run out of stuff to talk about over here! ;)

Oshkosh Zoo

A few things you might not know about Henry:

1.) Every day he has to wear something with a dog on it.
2.) Every day he has to go to the zoo.

We live about three blocks from the main park in town, and within that park is a small (free) zoo. We have been there just about every day this summer as long as it wasn't raining (heat and humidity don't stop us, much to my dismay) or super busy (think Sawdust Days for those familiar with the area). He LOVES the zoo. There are a few exotic animals there (lion, monkey, Coati, some little thing he thinks is a rabbit, but it's not - lol!) and then also typical petting zoo type animals - cows, pig, llamas, goats, and ducks, as well as two large exhibits of animals native to Wisconsin - elk and wolves.

Here's a typical conversation each morning:


H: Brrrrrooom? (remember we use more sounds than words still)
Me: You want to go for a ride?
H: Heh. (his version of "yeah")
Me: Where do you want to go?
H: Rawr!
Me: You want to go see the lion?
H: Heh.

So we go. I could say no, but why? It's free, and it's close, and it makes him happy... so we do it. Every day. Sometimes twice a day.

We went on Friday, and the lion was restless. She is a rescue animal, and is kept in a fairly small cage (though zoo personnel has informed me that she will be transferred after the zoo closes in September to a place with more space and more big cats to mingle with). She was prowling around the cage, batting her basketball around, and growling. It scared the bejeebers out of Henry! It really was pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, but now he won't even go near the fence that sits back about three feet from the cage. Then we took him to the Greenville Special Memories Zoo yesterday, and he didn't want anything to do with any of it - and especially not the lions! Yikes! I'm wondering if my zoo days are over. In a way, it would be nice, but on the other hand I think I'd actually miss it.

Here's a picture of the lion that will be leaving in September:



99% of the time, this is how we find her. Just chillin' out, without a care in the world. :o)

If anyone reading this is familiar with the zoo, I've also been told they are re-doing the whole thing so that they will no longer have any exotics (what will we do with the monkey cage? That has been there all of my life! *sniff*). They will be stocking the zoo with animals that are all native to Wisconsin, and the exhibits will all be more like the elk and wolf exhibits. This fall they are starting an Otter exhibit where the cows are now, and I'm assuming the cows will move over to the area vacated by the lion. She said the farm animals will eventually all be over on that side of the lake.

And yes, we are there so often that the entire staff knows us. lol. (sort of).

Blessings for Bee

We had Jack (a.k.a. "bee") baptized on Sunday. Here's a picture of the fam. On the left are Jack's godparents - my Mom's cousin (does that make her my second cousin?) Debbie and her husband Tod, and then Darrin and I are on the right and the babes are in arms. ;o)

It was a hot and sticky day, and our church is having some financial issues so the a/c was cut off. It was soooo sticky in church. They are also having blended services in the summer, so it was half traditional and half contemporary. The baptismal song was Creed's "With Arms Wide Open", and video clips from Mean Girls and RV were shown during the sermon. Yeah. Not sure I'm feelin' all of that, but oh well. Tod had to restrain himself from breaking into song while Creed was playing. It was pretty funny, but you probably had to be there. :o) After the baptism, we went to a local restaurant for brunch and chit chat. We didn't get too many pictures of the baptism because of the heat... and those we did get were taken by a kid who was standing around near us. Yeah - bad idea. Of the five he took, only two turned out. This is the "good" one (you can see how fuzzy it is). Hopefully we can get some copies from Debbie and Tod, or Henry's godparents who were also present. And then we had to stand off to the side for the photos because the beautiful backdrop of the alter was blocked by the big screen they had set up to show the movie clips. *grumble*

Ok, it's late, and I'm rambling aimlessly. I'm off to bed now. This coming weekend is our annual family reunion, so stay tuned for more pics from that. It's being held on the family farm this year for the first time, so it should be interesting!

Henry's New Ride

My Mom bought this Radio Flyer Sport Coupe for Henry for his birthday. I *finally* got it put together yesterday - almost a month later. Yes, I'm in charge of assembly here. He just loves the car. His favorite thing to do is get into the car... and then get out... and then get back in. He's done this for hours both yesterday and today. So far the car hasn't made it out of the house! He kind of gets cranky when I try to push him in it, so for now we're just letting him enjoy the whole enter/exit experience. :)

New 'do

I went to Jacinda's Spa and Salon last night and got a new 'do! Highlights, lowlights, and a cut. It's the first time I'd ever been there - in fact, I didn't even know it existed. Apparently it has been there over two years now! Seriously... no idea. It is VERY trendy, but still comfortable. There were some very trendy people there while I was there. I'm talkin' people that surely must have been implants from another city. I just sat there looking at them and wondering where in Oshkosh they could possibly be going/working/living looking like that. It just was not right. LOL! I LOVED my stylist though. Very friendly, easy going, and she had AMAZING attention to detail. If you decide to check the place out, be sure to ask for Sandra and tell her I sent you!

Anyhow, here's a pic of the new cut. I needed it in a big way. I think it's been about six months since I've been in for any kind of cut or color. I had some major rootage going on. Tomorrow we are going to a bridal shower for my cousin's fiance, and then Sunday is Jack's baptism, so it was good timing!

A Day at the Zoo

Well, we made it to the zoo! We were intending to go to the NEW Zoo in Green Bay, but were still waffling on it until 11pm Saturday night. Then we heard they might have some showers up there, so Sunday morning we opted to go South instead and headed for the Milwaukee Zoo (one of my top five all time favorite places to be) instead. Jack started to cry about 20 minutes into the (1 hr 45 min) trip, so we almost gave up. Thankfully his Grandma is expert in baby calming though, so we were able to get all the way there without having to stop for anything.

Henry just loved it. The Dairy Farm area was his favorite - I think because you could get closer to the animals. You could even go right in with the goats (of course we have no pictures of that - *sigh*). And the cows were HUGE. Seriously, some of the biggest cows I've ever seen in my entire life. They were MASSIVE.

Here's a Smilebox from the day:

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Rock On - SHAZAM!

Ok, check this out. I have Photoshop Elements. Why, you ask? Because all of my friends do. Duh. ;o) That would be my online toddler mom friends, in case you're living in Wisconsin and thinking, "nuh-uh." tee hee. Anyhow, back to the point. Despite having and loving my PSE, I really haven't the foggiest idea how to use it to its fullest potential. Well, thank the good Lord for the internet! Tonight I learned this little "shaZAM" technique (lol - that name cracks me up!).

This is the before picture - straight out of camera, with PSE's "Auto Smart Fix" color enhancement...

And here's the shaZAM!


Cool, no?! What a difference!

Ok, I suppose now you want to know how to do it too! Well, head over to this blog post for all the deets. And I highly recommend browsing her blog - it looks like there is a TON of info on there for us beginners! I also have to give a shout out to Susanna Boyd over at Card of the Week, which is where I initially saw the blog link.

And finally, a word to "Uncle" Chris... this pic's totally for you. Do you not love the shirt? I totally thought of you when I bought it for him. If I can get a better pic of the words (Rock On), I'll send a copy for the fridge. ;)

We're Having a Heatwave

...a tropical heatwave.... Sorry, I was stuck on a Bing Crosby kick for a minute there. ;o)

Yeah. It has been hot. Or "hot like Africa" as my friend Pam and I like to say. lol. I'm sure to all the CA and TX girls reading this, we probably sound like wimps but whatever! If I'm sweating, it's too hot for me. That's my litmus.

Life is pretty tame these days. We went to the fourth of July parade last Friday. It runs right down the street at the end of our block, so it's nice and handy to just walk down. It was hot though, and we were late, so we ended up right in the sun. We ended up leaving early, but still managed to see quite a bit.

Here's a picture of Mom and Henry at the parade. We stood near a photographer from our local newspaper, and she snapped a picture of Henry as well.... and it ended up being on the front page of the paper the next day! Papa was so proud! We bought three copies. :o)

And, "how hot is it?" you say? Well, here's a clue:

LOL! It's nekkid baby hot! ;o) Isn't that the cutest picture? He really is wearing a diaper under there, but it sure looks like he's nekkid. And look at those rolls! Makes you want to pinch him, doesn't it?

Not too much else to report on the family front these days. I think we might try to go visit the zoo this weekend (the big zoo in GB, not the little zoo at the park that we go to EVERY day), and then Monday Darrin's Aunt and cousin are stopping for a visit on their way from IL to MN. I'll have more pictures soon!

Hugs,
Sarah

Sawdust Days

We took Henry to Sawdust Days yesterday. For those who aren't familiar, Sawdust Days is a huge carnival held in town over the fourth of July holiday every year. It's at the park about two blocks from home (which is also where they shoot the fireworks off on the 4th). We walked around and stopped so Henry could play the ducky game. Who doesn't love to pick a duck!? I remember doing it myself as a kid!

We'll be back there today to walk through the flea market. We never find anything, but for some reason always feel compelled to go. I guess it's tradition (insert Deb giving her best Tevye impersonation here ;o) LOL!).

What do you think of my new blog? I made that banner up there myself (not bad for a first try, eh?) but the more I look at it, the more I want to change it, so don't be surprised if you come back and see something different!

Enjoy the fourth!
Sarah

Under Construction

Bear with me while I get this new family blog set up! Meanwhile, visit my craft blog at The Scrampin' Mama!