Jackson is 9 months old!

Last weekend we got Jackson's 9 month pictures taken. Dylan got in on some of the action too!
Because I have a brother, I have a friend for life.

Soccer Camp!

Dylan started soccer camp today. I'm so excited for him. He was pretty shy at first, but eventually played with a couple of the boys (as long as I was within 6 feet of him!) We signed up for this particular camp knowing that his friends from school, Grant and Jacob, would be there. It was fun to see them interact with each other. We are usually at work while they are playing together at school. The boys had a great time playing, and were tired and sweaty when camp was over! Here's Jacob chasing Dylan.
The three tired, sweaty boys on a water break.When it was time to go the boys decided to pour water over their heads!After camp we stopped by the playground for a very quick play session. Jackson loved his first time swinging!As always, Dylan loved the slide.Great picture of Scott and Jackson. I'm framing this one!

That shirt is too little!

Apparently Dylan's shirt got dirty or wet at school, so they changed him into one of the extra shirts in his book bag. I also had an extra outfit or two for Jackson in the book bag, and the teacher put one of Jackson's shirts on Dylan! Don't you think that she would have noticed this shirt was a little small for Dylan when she put it on him??? He wore it all day at school, and it is a 6-9 months shirt! (You would think a 6-9 month shirt would actually look a lot smaller on him, but it's still obvious that it's too small.) Silly teacher.

Final Stop...Iowa!

After Chicago we headed to Dubuque, Iowa for Todd and Erin's wedding. Friday night was the rehearsal picnic. It was at Eagle Point Park (I think that's the name of it!), which was beautiful. Then Saturday was the wedding, which was also at Eagle Point Park. Here's my dad, my sister (Kassi), my brother (Mike) and I at the rehearsal dinner. The boys stayed behind at the hotel to get some much needed rest.
Dad and Marie before the wedding.Jackson and I hanging out before the wedding.
Kassi and Jackson.
Mike and Jackson
Here comes the bride!
Their first dance! As self proclaimed horrible dancers, Todd and Erin decided to play a first song for everyone instead of doing a first dance. They are very talented, and the song was beautiful.
Good thing Jackson picked the right bottle!Dylan and I. :)Turns out we have a dancer on our hands! Dylan was having a blast dancing! It was hard to get his moves on camera b/c he was moving around so much!Congrats Todd and Erin!

Next stop...Chicago!

After Indiana Dunes we headed to Chicago to see our friends Molly and Gaz! Wednesday night we headed to the baseball game, White Sox vs. Angels. Jackson's first baseball game! We had fabulous tickets. Row 4, almost directly behind home plate! There was a 2 1/2 hour rain delay though, so the game didn't even start until 9:30. We stayed for 2 innings before the kids had decided it was time to head home. I was impressed they made it that long! A little Haarmann trivia for you...Dylan's first game was White Sox vs. Angels at Cellular also. :) The first pitch was thrown out, right before it started raining, by this dude from The Deadliest Catch. He's Captain Phil's son. I know Captain Phil had 2 sons on his boat, Jake and another one. I think this was the other one, but I can't remember his name.
Dylan, very patiently waiting for it to stop raining.
Play ball! This is the view from our seats.
Dylan trying to make Scott watch the game! He was really into it!Jackson and I hanging out.The next day we headed to Shedd Aquarium. Dylan was super excited to see everything there. It was hard to keep up with him! It's hard to get good pictures inside the aquarium b/c you can't use the flash. I tried though! Here's some coral reef.
Flying penguin Dylan!Jackson, eating his feet. Totally normal. ;)Dylan got to touch a starfish. Mommy whale and her baby.After the aquarium we had dinner and hung out with Molly and Gaz for awhile. They are expecting a baby this September, and I think we may have done a little child proofing for them! LOL! Thanks for such a fun visit!

View from their apartment. I don't think this would ever get old.View from the other side of their apartment.

Michigan and Indiana Dunes

We had a fabulous family vacation last week. It was very busy, but well worth it. We started out in Michigan at Lost Dunes Golf Club for a family reunion. The course was beautiful. Dylan had a great time swimming, looking for fish in the ponds, and playing with Uncle Kevin's dog! Jackson loved all the attention he received from all my cousins!
Dylan had fun looking for tees on the course when everyone was done playing golf.After Michigan we headed to Indiana Dunes. We weren't sure what to expect, and we totally lucked out. It was gorgeous. There were 5 public beaches, and one of the park rangers suggested we go to Sand Dunes Beach, so that's where we headed. What he failed to mention was that there was a long, sandy, hilly hike to get to the beach. Scott and I were miserable! We were each carrying a kid plus either the big beach bag, or the stroller, wearing Adidas sandals. It was not an easy task for us! I don't recommend that particular beach if you have kids! I would aim for one that much easier to access! Here's a picture of the hike. Very pretty. I was very impressed over all though with Indiana Dunes and hope we go back there some day to spend more time there. If we do, we'll make sure we are better prepared for any unexpected hikes!
The sign, about half way through the hike. Would have been nice if they had it at the beginning of the trail!The view made it all worth it!Playing in the rocks.Chilling in the sand.More vacation pictures later!