Eleanor thumbing through a few books before daycare
Styling in a her sweatshirt and dress
Family evening picnic at Lake Manawa
Someone swindled dad out of the last of his steelhead trout melt
Des exploring the “two-story” tire ladder at the dream playground. There may come a day where throwing rocks into the lake wins the toddler poll
With the weather near 80 today, it was the perfect afternoon for a picnic at Lake Manawa
Rocks and sticks and water? Des was onboard.
Ella was content just to hang in the shade
Yummy picnic, sans blanket dad forgot
Someone was ECSTATIC to finally wear his short-sleeve “rocket ship!” pajama top since it was finally warm enough. Note the day-old glow stick from aunt Kellie- after a day in the freezer, still going strong.
With the rain subsiding and cool temperatures remaining, it was a good morning for a family hike. Hiking with a toddler is a non-linear cycle: sprint, wander, backtrack, plead to resume forward motion, saying good-bye to all living and non-living creatures. Repeat.
Helping open the envelope to see if he’ll have a new baby brother or sister…
Not sure if it was the recent rains and temperatures, but just an unusual amount of snails alongside the trail and crawling atop the grass. Des had quite the keen eye for new snails
Jump in the puddles? Sure, why not.
With all the sprinting, zig-zagging and backtracking, it’s no wonder why he was ready for a piggyback ride
At Judd & Alicia’s with friends to watch the fireworks
Early Saturday morning shenanigans. With that much energy, everything is entertaining
On the big kid swings with mom
Des stepping into the lake for the good splashes
Des patiently waiting his turn for a sip of the mom’s shake
Mom wasn’t feeling too well, so it was a boys adventure for the evening. We grabbed some sandwiches and headed to Lake Manawa.
Everything tastes better when you’re sitting at a picnic table
Des the Explorer
After a later start to a hot day than we were hoping, got down to Manawa and geared up. An unexpected construction detour for the connector towards the Wabash Trace meant we ended up riding west out of the park and north into town along the levees. It was a good stretch of the legs at 12 miles over almost two hours with a few stops and a notable return headwind. Des slept a fair amount of the trip, though certainly just chilled at times and watched the world roll on by.
Des and mom relaxing under a tree after the ride, still all smiles with his water bottle
What’s a summer trip to Council Bluffs without a stop at Christy Creme? Dad was telling Des about how he’d walk down there while on a break from life-guarding at the Cabana Swim Club 16-some odd years ago. Mom and dad even reminisced about the first time they stopped in for an ice cream cone when dad’s first house was just over the hill to the west.
Oreo super shake, fries and ketchup on a hot day–it doesn’t get much better. They even have veggie burgers now.
Des and his first french fry.
First hike down to the Missouri river
Followed shortly by the first nap whilst hiking
