Future Farmers of America

It's that time of year...haying making! This week was suppose to be great weather so my dad aka grandpa was in full haying making mode. One of the fields he cuts is behind our house. The kids LOVE to watch him. We got home from daycare and headed straight to the play yard. Zach would go out and help if I would let him. I keep telling him...one day you will be old enough to help. They had a great time watching him go round and round and were quite disappointed when we had to come in for naps.
Might as well get comfy...
Every time he came around they would wave and be all excited.

Although I do not have pictures...they also watched the baling process. The did get a chance to see him rake a different field. I am telling you...these kids will be throwing bales before we know it!

Pool time!

Today Jeremy took the next step at putting up our pool. He began working on it last weekend, but had to take it easy with his back and it got too late to start the next step. So today we hadto get sand from my dad and level out the area. The kids had to nap so Jeremy worked with the first load and stopped working on the second load so the kids could helped as promised prior to nap. Zach was the first to wake. It took him only a moment to remember that there was sand to unload. He quickly put on his shoes and made a bee line for his daddy outside. Jeremy had to stop him from working so the other two would have some to do too.
Here is Zach...he loves to work...and he works very hard...
One shovel at a time...

Liz was the next one up...she also took a brief moment before remembering the sand...she may be a diva sometimes but she is also a hard worker...

Alex was last to wake and after putting his eye patch on, he headed out to help...

Daddy's little helpers...

After getting the sand down and leveled, it was time to lay out the pool. We started filling it and the first thing Liz asked was can we get in and swim...lol. Little did she know just how much water it was going to take to fill it. In sweet time, my little girl...there is plenty of time to go swimming. So, opening soon...the Lenzendorf Pool!

Creative Minds

The kids have really gotten into being creative when playing with their Playdoh. The really enjoy making things themselves. I am normally just the helper. So this morning as the kids were playing, I listened to them talking...telling each other what they are making. Soon I hear Alex telling me to come look at his giraffe. Normally the things they are making are not easily identified, so when I came to the table I expected to see something that vaguely resembled a giraffe. Well this is what Alex showed me. I was so surprised that it actually looked like a giraffe...actually took a double take, then tried to figure out if we had a cutout of a giraffe.
Proud of his creation! Way to go Alex!

He did continue to make more giraffes, all were a little more difficult to identfy as a giraffe...lol.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the daddy out there. A special Happy Father's Day to Jeremy...thank you for being such a great husband and father. We love you LOTS!
Actual Father's DAy did not go so well in our household but you'll have that with three 3 yr olds. We did the best we could for the day, but it will not go down in the books as a great day for daddy. We were not even able to give him the card and presents...that is how bad it was....yikes! So we did a take two on Monday which turned out a LOT better! And then finally finished celebrating on Tuesday (the second gift came in the mail that day, that one is my fault for ordering it late). I guess it fits that it would take three days to completely celebrate, right?!?! LOL
Sunday morning did start out good, with breakfast made by me and the kids goofying around...here is Zach using daddy as a jungle gym...
We won't discuss what happened after that except to saw the kids did help daddy cut the lawn. One of their favorite activities. I think Zach would cut the grass every day if he could...lol.

Monday evening the kids gave their daddy his card and a shirt. Tuesday was the gift I was more concerned about. It was not exactly what I initially dream of, but turned out just fine and is actually something useful. I gathered all the pics of Jeremy and the kids since last Father's Day and picked 20 of them to put on a mouse pad. The pictures include him doing different activities with the kids like planting a tree, brewing beer, reading, wrestling, rocking in his chair, playing catch, walking in the woods, doing puzzles, picking out the xmas tree, introducing them to Santa, being at the county fair and the zoo, carving pumpkins, helping with yard work, sitting on the pier by the lake and pictures from our staycation last year. There were so many picture to choose from and I just loved going back and looking thru them all. I also found a poem which I wrote up on some card stock and made a little frame for it for his desk at work. I have included that below.

Walk a Little Slower Daddy
Walk a little slower, Daddy.

said a child so small.

I'm following in your footsteps

and don't want to fall.

Sometimes your steps are very fast,

sometimes they're hard to see.

So walk a little slower Daddy,

for you are leading me.

Someday when I'm all grown up,

you're what I want to be.

Then I will have a little child

who'll want to follow me,

and I would want to lead just right,

and know that I was true.

So walk a little slower, Daddy,

for I must follow you!

Happy Father's Day honey! Thanks for leading our kids! You mean a lot to us all!

Love, Jen

To the zoo we go...

Today we had out 2nd annual trip to a zoo with Grover and Sarah. We started the tradition last year at the Madison Zoo. This year we went to the Milwaukee Zoo. The weather was suppose to be very humid and muggy and it turned out being a bit on the chilly side....no one was dressed appropriately...lol. Oh well didn't keep us from exploring. Today was also PBS Kids' Day at the zoo. So there were characters from some of the shows there. We have learned for past visits to the zoo (and knowing that we are going more times this year) to let the kids have a say in what they want to see. So with that in mond we set off to find Elmo.
We found him...although the kids did not seem to notice, mommy sure did...Elmo was having eye issues...lol, but the kids were happy to say hi to him and give high fives. Family photo op...
Abby Cadabby was near Elmo as well so Liz wanted to say hi to her and give her a hug...by the look on Liz' face you would think she was forced to do this...she was NOT, completely her choice.

Daddy pulling the princess in the wagon and Grover with Zach. As soon as we told the kids they could walk but needed a hand Zach immediately went for Grover's...they were buddy's the rest of the visit. Maybe Zach was prepping Grover...they are expecting their first baby in October...I cannot tell you how excited I am for them...can't wait!

There was a dinosaur exhibit open that was not open on our last trip, so we had to go check it out. All the dinos were robots and had sound effects. The kids enjoyed seeing them. Her Liz is checking out some little ones...just the right size.

Then we got to the biggest one and tried for a group picture...hard to do with so many things pulling at the kids' attention...

At the end there was a dinosaur that the kids could operate...here they are patiently waiting their turn with Grover...

Can you see the engineers in them???

One last spot for a photo op was a dino to sit on...I always get emotional when the bond between is put out there for all to see...they are best friends!

Taking a break...Alex did not want to cooperate for a nice picture...in fact he thought he was pretty darn funny...I will have to double check with my mom, but I am pretty sure he gets that from me...think I have been known to ruin a few pictures...so he does have a very little bit of me in him...lol.

Liz is almost always willing to give you a smile...cheesy or not!

Grover will be such a good daddy! The kids just love Grover and Sarah...All week long they talk abotu the going to the zoo with Grover and Sarah.

Zach is the first to show that he is happy daddy's back feels better...can you tell???

I was going to try to not put any of the animal pictures I took in this post but this one just HAD to be added...I have NEVER seen a peacock in a tree...I would have thought that the tail would be just too much to get em up there...well low and behold...they can fly...lol.

After lunch the kids got to see Bob the Builder...didn't realize he had a show on PBS...learn something new everyday I guess.

Not the greatest picture of Liz and Cookie Monster...some parents should learn to have more patience.

Big hug from Liz to the Cat in the Hat.

We realized on this trip that we can get rid of our double seater wagons...the kids wanted to walk and did just fine...don't worry we still have the standard coaster wagons.

We ended our trip with seeing SuperWhy...one of th kids' favorite shows. They will pick out letter on the screen...it is fun to watch them watch the show.

We then headed out of the zoo which made for one really upset little girl...she was not done yet...we did not see the zebras and the lions...but it was time, so they will be seen on our next trip. Mommy worked really hard to keep the kids awake for the ride home so they could crash in their beds and mommy and daddy could crash on the couch. Another successful trip to the "other" zoo. Big thanks to Grover and Sarah for meeting us there and spending the time with all of us. We love you guys!

Love, Jen

Some days...

So if you have been around me lately or are friends with me on Facebook, you know that I have had some rough days. Three is proving to be a very tough age...times three! To be perfectly honest, there are some days we just take it minute by minute. Some days are completely exhausting both mentally and emotionally. Some days I can't wait until bedtime. Some days it feels like all I do is put kids in timeouts or take away beloved possessions. No one said parenting was easy, right?!?! But even in those bad moments, I still treasure my children...love them with ever bit of my heart...know what a blessing they are...try to enjoy every moment as they will only be this young once. I try to learn from them and those moments. I try to not let those moment ruin a day. I have never regretted becoming a parent...it is the best thing I have ever done. The best thing is those not so great moments melt away with good moments. When the kids say they love me or ask for hugs and kisses or are affectionate towards each other or having them read to me or watching them use their imaginations and much more! One of the other great moments is cuddling! I LOVE it! There are not many pictures of me and kids (since I am behind the camera...lol), so I love it when we get a good one together. So to my three little testers...I love you more than life...try to take it easy on your momma!

Daddy's helpers

I could do a post like this weekly...whether it is an after work/supper project or a weekend project, these three kids LOVE to help their daddy. Even if they cannot help directly, they will play only a few feet from daddy. They will use whatever tools they can whether they are theirs or daddy's. They work well as a team.
Tonight Jeremy came home from work early, do to a massive migraine I was having. He took the kids out to work and play. The task was to remove some trees that were growing where we did not want them and taking one of them and planting it in the yard. I did start to feel better just in time to see the teamwork in progress. They are so proud of their work and that they get to help daddy. Love is an amazing thing to watch. One of many priceless moments of being a parent.

New haircut for new month

It was just a matter of time before one of the kids would give themselves (or their siblings) a haircut. It did not surprise me that the first to do it was Zach. With how he LOVES to explore things and how they work (he is so going to be an engineer!) it makes sense that he'd be the first.
Here is how it happened. The boys woke up from nap at the same time and before Liz. They asked if they could cut some paper and I am all for an activity that is quiet but "neat" enough to keep their attention for a bit. I was working in the kitchen and they were doing their activity on the table in their playarea. Each had their own paper and scissors. They were doing a great job. I found Zach sitting on the floor cutting a couple times in which he quickly moved to the table after being asked. We cleaned that activity up, then Liz got up and we went on with our afternoon playing outside. It was not until AFTER supper that I noticed it.
He cut two clumps of hair out. All the way to the scalp. With it being as short as it is and being so blond...the two little spot are hard to see. You can see the light spot on his head, almost straight up from his nose. Thank goodness Liz was sleeping, cuz I could see her being a victim of his curosity!