July in Pictures

Between the Beaches, Hikes, and Amusement Parks, we also managed to find some time to go fruit picking, where we got some peaches and plums from The Farmer's Daughter U-pick in Brentwood (it's one of the very few pesticide-free places in Brentwood - organic just isn't available there from what we could find.).  RJ loved picking the fruit. 

Logan loved picking up the spoiled fruit off the ground and trying to throw it in our bucket, and running away from us in the orchard.

My big accomplishment of the month was finally getting on a regular exercise schedule.  It's not ideal, but I get about a mile jog in on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  I take Logan in the stroller, right after dropping RJ at preschool, before it gets too hot.  I jog the mile, which leads us to a park in the next neighborhood over.  This park also has a fitness course, so I stop at the stations leading up to the playground and get some stretching and sit-ups in.  Then Logan gets out and does his up the stairs, down the slide repetitions, while I drink my water and do a little more stretching while he's at the safe parts of his circuit.  When he's had enough and is getting hungry for snack, he goes back in the stroller with his snack and I finish the fitness course and do some sprints/walking on the way home.
I've tried to do this with RJ on his Skuut bike too and he loves the fitness stations, but I don't get a good cardio workout that way.  At least it's a way to get a little more active more often.  The kids do really like that park.

Also, I finally got my bike fixed (the handlebars were on backwards somehow), and hooked up the bike trailer to it, so that me and the boys could explore some playgrounds a little further afield while I sneak in a little more exercise.  They like the bike trailer and the variety in playgrounds and I like getting more active.

We ended the month with Hannah's First Birthday Party (where RJ wouldn't go inside the giant bubble, but his friend Madeline did).

This same birthday party inspired me to finally take our smoker out of its box (after getting it 6 years ago and moving it twice).  So we've been smoking meat the last few weekends!

For more candid pictures of the kids, click here