VACATION

The Boys and I were able to head west to Vegas and Idaho for a few weeks this summer . . . We had a blast, swam a lot, ate even more and just enjoyed family (oh and missed daddy lots too!) Here are a couple of fun pictures with cousins . . .

Chase and Cale are only 20 days apart. They had a great time together and were so fun to watch.

Most of the Leavitt cousins. We were able to swim a lot and it was fantastic. Seriously. Metz had such a great time with Rylee and Talin. Plus we finally got to meet little Logan. The best part of swimming all day . . .we slept like rocks.

Brittany and Cole are awesome. Metz has been missing them like crazy since we moved to WI. We had a week of fun with them. Metz even played Laser tag for the first time with Cole. He can't wait to get back to Idaho and play again.

These three kept busy in Vegas for sure . . . you can just see trouble!

Granny

This is how Granny makes up feel . . . Happy. We were able to sneak in a trip up to Cedar to visit.

Granny is so sweet she saved some tomatoes for Metz to pick. He was super excited. Funny thing was on the trip up Metz keep asking if Granny would have any sweet peas to eat. (I can't believe he remembers that from last year.) To bad they were already gone for the season.

The fruits of Granny's labor.

Metz and Granny. I hope to have many more pictures of these two. They are so close (she watched Metz from birth til we left for the island -15 months while I worked full time). They have a special bond and I am SOOOOO grateful for Granny.

Great Food

In Idaho we got to all sit around table to chat, eat and just enjoy each others company.

At the wedding Metz went crazy for the chocolate fountain!

Chase was our clean up crew. Any food left out was his to claim. I didn't get to the kids snack quick enough and found Chase enjoying TWO juice boxes and a plate of food. He cracks me up.

Apples

They are a favorite in the Leavitt house . . . but to be honest I hadn't thought to give them to Chase until . . .

Yup, this summer he decided he was ready, so he got one out of the fridge and started to enjoy.

I was pretty surprised and wondered why I hadn't given him one sooner. He loves them and they are a regular snack at our house. I'm starting to realize that once Chase see's Metz do something he thinks he is ready for it too . . .gotta keep my eye on this one.

4th of July

We spent 4th of July in good ol' Janesville with some friends and our sweet boys.

So handsome ready to go to church. This is the first time Chase has worn shorts to church. (Metz wore them the whole time we were in Dominica). They looked good :)

Our customary cookie picture . . . I love holidays it allows Metz and me to make sugar cookies . . . so good!

And Chase loves them too.

After a BBQ with some friends we headed to our house to light a few fireworks before the boys went to bed. Metz is becoming quite the pro. After lighting the firework he books it back to us to watch the action. So funny.

Chase and Mom just hanging out enjoying the show.

Fire Truck

So we have these awesome neighbors that have two boys . . . Carter is a month older than Metz and Sam is 3 months older than Chase . . .they have a blast playing together everyday and one of the favorites is . . .

The Fire Truck!! They ride it all around our block until the battery is dead. Chase is absolutely in love with this thing. If their garage is open you will find Chase playing on it.

Look at those smiles. . .priceless. The bummer they are moving at the end of the month :( so sad.

Strawberry picking . . .

It had been raining, raining and raining for a few days . . . once it cleared up I took the boys and a friend to Skelly's Patch. It was fun but messy . . . note to self don't go right after a huge rain storm even if it's all sunny and pretty outside.

Metz was in charge of finding the row and where we would pick!!!

Metz found a ton a strawberries and was great at picking them

Chase on the other hand was great at eating them. We couldn't pick them fast enough and he would let us know it. He also sat down on a few strawberries, got mud covered and walked through the rows!

We found lots of strawberries! Even with all the ones Chase ate we still ended up buying a few pounds.

Here is our patch and our sweet Metz. He was a great helper and loved strawberry picking.

Dirty hands and dirty kids . . .

means mission accomplished. Yes, that would be strawberries all over chase's face. Gotta love that face :)

Treats. Well earned. Don't worry I earned a donut and a pepsi. It was a fun experience but I'm excited strawberry picking time doesn't come around for another year.

Not a baby anymore :(

I had this seat sitting in Metz's room for a few months and a few weeks ago Chase was looking for a place to relax. Well he climb right in and settled into playing a game. I looked over and my first thought was "well, he's not my baby anymore". He is so BIG in this seat! They grow so fast.

Grandma and Grandpa Butler came to Visit!!!

My mom and dad came to visit for a week in May. It was awesome. We ran ourselves ragged between trips to Madison, Chicago and Milwaukee. Then the cooking, playing games, planting, painting, and putting things together it was just a busy week. We had a great time, the weather was perfect and I hope they make it a yearly tradition.

The minute one of my parents came up the stairs they were bombarded by the boys. They wanted to chat, help with their guns, and stories read. My favorite was when Chase did something once, my dad said "good job" and clapped, well for the next 45 minutes Chase would do something, look back at my dad and wait for his cheer. If grandpa didn't cheer he just sat there waiting for it. What a funny kid.

Metz and Grandpa worked on a few projects (just like when we lived in Rexburg) during the week. Grandpa took Metz to get a bird feeder and house to put together. They picked out the paints, the sander and brushes. I think the fact the colors are the same as Green Bay Packers is purely incidental. Metz got to paint and

do some of the hammering. It took a few day to finish and they had a great time working together.

We took a trip to Madison. We toured the downtown, did a Costco run, cruised the mall and went to the Zoo. Grandma made sure the Chase got to see all the animals too. It was very sweet.

Hi! This tiger was a little close for me but Metz loved it. We had a great day in Madsion and were completely spoiled.

Chicago -read it like a Mobster would say it ;)

Here it is . . . beautiful (really it is) Chicago. We went for a day visit with my parents and were able to take a river tour (more on that later in the post), walked Navy Pier and drove Michigan Avenue. It was a great day and since Cort was post call he got to spend it with us too. (YEA!)

We started out on Navy Pier. It is what is says and really cool huge Pier on Lake Michigan. A couple of shops, places to eat and a fun walk. Plus it was awesome to look back at the city skyline. Cort and I love a City so it was a great experience for us. This anchor is at the end of the pier and huge so why not take a family picture. Cheese.

Aaawww, Chasers. He spent 33% of his time in the stroller, 34% walking and the other 33% on dad shoulders. The pier was great because we could let the boys walk without worrying they had rails and there was a ton of walking space along the walkway.

Cort's first Chicago dog. Delicious.

Grandma and Grandpa Butler with the boys. I know I should've gotten a better shot but it was a busy area and the boys weren't really paying attention so here you go. Sorry mom and dad. But yea, Grandma and Grandpa took us to Chicago :)!!

Chicago in the background and my boys. So fun and don't they look handsome :)

Family :) Right before our river tour started. It was a great tour and I felt like we learned a lot about Chicago. It was much easier than walking and I felt like we got to see so much (thanks mom and dad).

Metz and Grandpa played A LOT of pool. They played almost daily while we lived with my parents so when Grandpa came it was a requirement to get in a lot of games. I think the second they walked in the door they had their first game. Metz was in heaven and I'm pretty sure Grandpa enjoyed it too.

Another must do was planting. Metz helped Grandma plant last year and was sad he missed out this year. Well thanks to some pots, soil and Blain's Farm and Fleet they had flowers to plant and plant and plant.

This is just round one of planting. We ended up with a long box and three more small pots for Metz's room. Our deck looks beautiful and Metz got some great time with Grandma. Also, notice the bird feeder and house hanging from our deck? We have a couple of beautiful birds that come everyday and enjoy the treats Metz sets out there for them. They always sing us a little "thank you" before they leave. Awesome.

Cort's New Ride

Well, Cort had a birthday (the big 30), knee surgery (no more running or basketball) and cause he is a great hubby and dad . . . this is his new toy :). He is all decked out from head to toe (thanks to his mom for the "bright" jersey - so everyone can see him- and padded shorts) and ready for the road. He has an app for his iphone that maps his ride, a speedometer from his mom so he knows how fast he is going and a helmet from me since i want him around for a while. He is loving his new sport and happily dragging any family or friend along with him. Happy birthday Cort! (yes, I know his birthday was over 2 months ago, oh well). btw, tyson this post if for you ;).

Soccer!!!

Metz started soccer a few weeks ago and this was he first time on a team. So fun. I have started my life of living on fields, running my kids around and planning dinners around all of it and I couldn't be more excited.

Oh no, Metz has Cort's flexibility or lack of I should say.

Metz had a blast his first day. He was a little nervous at first but luckily we got him on the same team as one of his buddies, Cayden, and he was really relieved and relaxed once he saw him.

They get together after every practice and yell "SOCCER" cute.

Metz was excited and exhausted once practice was over. He is great at it. He listens to his coaches and works so hard on the field. I'm your typical proud mom. What a great kid :)