Catching up on Summer

Well, summer is over.  We arrived back in Saudi on August 25th, two days after Tara's birthday.  School inservice days started today and it was good to be back and see our friends at school again.

As far as the rest of summer goes, we have taken you up to Billy and Ashley's wedding on July 21st.  The previous weekend was spent in Viroqua for the third year in a row so my Dad and I could compete in the Viroqua Sprint Triathlon.  We really like the race and it is a great opportunity to see my Uncle Pat and Aunt Terri, their kids and my wonderful grandmother.  My Dad won his age group and I did not, but I did beat him.  After the triathlon we drove up to Minneapolis to spend a day and a half with Seth who was in the area for a friends wedding that weekend.  We didn't think we would see him so it was a great opportunity to get together.  Later on in the summer we also were able to see our sister-in-law, Kelly, as she drove through Mauston with her family so we were able to see both of them!

My moral support

My little training partner

The duo

The weekend after Billy and Ashley's wedding we went up to Eau Claire to go to the wedding of our friend Emily.  She married a guy named Kent who we hadn't met, but if she chose him I'm sure he is a great guy.  We also were able to catch up with some other friends from college and church at the wedding which was nice.

The last few big activites of the summer was a trip to Medieval Times with Tara's cousins in the Chicago area, a half marathon, and a trip to Mount Olympus water park in Wisconsin Dells for Tara's birthday celebration.  All three were a lot of fun, and while I don't know if Medieval Times or Mount Olympus is on the list for next summer, I'm already trying to get Tara on board to run the half marathon again.

My Dad joined me for the half marathon.  We both ran well too, much faster than the time in the background.

Medieval Times!  Quite the dinning experience.

Oh, we traded in our van . . . just kidding.  Tara went for a spin in our friends corvette!

Aden taking a splash at the water park!

Well try and keep you up to date with what is going on in our neck of the woods at the school year kicks off next week.  

Jamie

Wedding!

The biggest event of our summer was the wedding of my little brother, Bill, to his wife, Ashlee.  We were so excited to be a part of their special day.  It ended up being a beautiful day in Southern Wisconsin.  Sorry, I don't have any pictures of the ceremony because I was focused on the reading I got to do and Jamie was busy keeping Aden from running around the sanctuary.  However, we got beautiful pictures out by Lake Geneva.  

 My new sister-in-law!  Isn't she gorgeous?

 Hanging out on the pier.

 This is my favorite picture.  Bill was opening a box that contained a cigar cutter he had gotten for his groomsmen, but it fell out and in between the slats of the pier.  This was everyone's reaction.  Don't worry, we were able to get a boy who was in the water nearby to get it (for $5).  

The reception was full of time to play with cousins and other family members.  There was a grass area right outside the reception hall where Aden spent a lot of time.  I don't think he stopped moving all night.

 Aden with cousin Rory.

The morning after the wedding, we had a gift opening for the newly weds.  It was nice to spend just a little more time with Bill, Ashlee, and Ashlee's family before we left.  Aden loved spending time with Uncle Bill and Aunt Ashlee.   

The week before the wedding did involve some wedding prep, but we had a lot of fun as well.  We stayed at the house of some good friends, Marla and Leroy Carlson.  They graciously opened their house to us plus my parents.  Carlson's have a beautiful shelty named Rillian who put up with Aden's affections very well.  Aden's favorite thing to do was throw Rillian's ball for him, but often threw it right at him.  

Having fun with Papa Don's cowboy boots.

A few days before the wedding, Bill came out to the house and brought his motorcycle.  Jamie got the opportunity ride it which got him dreaming about owning one of his own.  Aden was enjoying the bike until it got turned on.  At that point he wanted to be held and would not be put down.

One of the great things about staying at the Carlson's is that their daughter is my best friend.  She came up from Chicago one day to visit with us.  Her son, Asher, came with to play with Aden.  Asher is quite the talker and Aden only says a few words so it was interesting to see them interact.  They actually did a great job playing in the pool and both have an interest in cars/trucks.  

 Asher, Aden, and Jamie playing in the pool

To me, the best thing about the wedding week was spending time with my parents.  We usually go up to Canada to visit them, but decided that since they were coming down for the wedding we weren't going to go up.  It was so much fun having them play with Aden and see how much he has grown since they last saw him.  

Nana taught Aden how to put olives on his fingers and then eat them.

Since the wedding was in my home town, we were able to see a lot of things that brought back old memories.  One day we took Aden to Timber-lee, the camp that I pretty much grew up at.  My dad used to be the ranch director, which is where I spent a lot of time as well.  We took Aden to the petting farm there and it was so much fun seeing Aden enjoy the animals the way I used to.  

 Checking out the baby pigs with Nana!

 He wasn't so sure about the Alpaca.

 Not sure was this face was for but I love it!

Overall, it was a wonderful week.  Congratulations Bill and Ashlee!  Thank you again for including us in your special day.