July Checklist #1

With two weeks of swimming lessons and two weeks out of town, our goal of completing our Summer Fun Checklist for July is a little lofty, but we're pressing forward toward the goal!  The first check on the list was going to the Bullock Texas State History Museum.  The moment we told Jake about the idea and museum, he was getting out his cowboy clothes.  Here's Jake ready to go to the museum...

 Here's the complete look with bandana and sheriff's badge...

 Luke and I stayed home for this adventure b/c we didn't think Luke was ready to appreciate the museum or the IMAX, so this was a day of Daddy/Jake fun...

Ready for the "Under the Sea" IMAX...

 Jake was quite the poser...

Wild Dogs 2014

Here are the 2014 Wild Dogs!!!  Holden, Zephaniah, Brody, Jackson, Trey, Austin, and Jake 

With our fearless leader, Coach Steve...

 Silly, Wild Dogs...

More t-ball action shots

Here are some more AMAZING pictures from one of the other t-ball moms who is also a professional photographer.  How lucky are we to have all these amazing pictures!?!  These first few she took when we were supposed to have our official team pictures.  Only 3 players showed up!  Fortunately, she took a full team picture on a different day so we could have one with everyone.  The posed shots...

 And the action shots...

 Daddy was helping out at first base for one game...

Hanging Out

With Jake in t-ball, the boys have been wanting to play baseball more in the front yard.  Luke is right in the midst of it.  One day, Jake had all his equipment out, and Luke picked up his helmet and took it to Kevin to put it on.  Kevin put it on and Luke was thrilled!  Here are the baseball boys (notice Luke has his helmet, glove and ball)... 

 Have you seen a cuter, happier face?

Ballgame

We were invited to go to a Round Rock Express game a few weeks back.  The invitee decided to have a BABY the day of the game, so unfortunately they missed it, but they graciously still offered us the amazing tickets.  Here's Jake and the guys...

 And I won't forget Luke...

Splash Pad fun

While we weren't working on checking things off our monthly fun list, we found other summer fun on our own Lawson checklist.  Here's our first splash pad visit of the summer.  We weren't sure how Luke would like it, but he seemed to be a fan.  Luke had fun playing with us and splashing in the water, while Jake quickly found some other kids he enjoyed playing with.  I guess it's a sign he's growing up.  The most important thing was we all had a great time!

 In between Jake's fun with his new friends, I was able to snap one shot of the two together...

World Cup Fun!

Kevin and Jake have been really enjoying following the World Cup.  It's also been a great opportunity to pull out the World map and teach Jake about all the different countries competing.  Kevin's done a great job of combining the fun sports element with also learning some geography and facts such as the country's flag.  Jake was really pumped about the first U.S. game and asked to paint his chest, so we did...

 The soccer fans of the house...

Summer Fun Reward

Our Summer Fun Checklist was definitely a hit for June.  We successfully checked off 5 adventures, so it was now time to redeem our prizes.  We all headed to Top Notch on Burnet so Jake could get his free kids meal.  We had never heard of Top Notch, but it was PACKED when we arrived for lunch and that's definitely a good sign.  We enjoyed some yummy burgers, fried chicken and french fries and now have a new local place to visit.  From Top Notch, we headed to Terra Toys where Jake got a free Grab Bag with some cool goodies.  All in all, the checklist did not disappoint and we will continue our adventures for the rest of the summer!

Checklist #5

Our final check of June was rollerskating!  First, I will admit, I am awful at rollerskating.  I went most recently in college, and found age did not improve my ability.  I knew Kevin was better, so he agreed to be the rollerskating parent.  I didn't want to miss it, so all 4 of us headed to the rink.  Unfortunately, I forgot our passes at home, so Kevin and Jake went ahead and started while Luke and I went back for the passes.  I missed Jake's very, very first attempt on the skates which was a little rocky.  Fortunately, the rink had these nifty helpers for small children to hold on to.  Jake soon got a helper and found his independence on the rink.  Here they are...

 Hanging out watching the races...

 Luke wanted in on the fun...

 Roller skating fun!!!

Checklist #4

Our next family adventure was probably my favorite, although it will definitely be better next time now that we've learned several things.  The list said, "take a hike along the Barton Creek Greenbelt" so I thought the adventure would be mostly hiking with a possibility of swimming in the creek.  Jake was the only one of us wearing a bathing suit and Luke was the only one wearing water shoes, and the moment we arrived I knew the kids were going to get very wet!  We were alongside the creek the entire time, and at some points even crossing it in order to keep hiking.  Again, Jake LOVED our adventure and immediately was asking when we could come back.  Our day reminded me how I truly appreciate living in the Austin area. It was a gorgeous hike, and it felt like we were in the middle of nowhere when we were actually in the middle of Austin.  What a treasure we have here!  Here's Luke enjoying the water... 

 And Jake posing in the middle of the creek...

 All the guys enjoying the beauty...

 As our hike began....