Making the most of our Summer!

We have been having lots of fun this summer!  Though we live in a small community (accentuated even more when the students are gone) , there is still a lot going on with various festivals and events!  The library has their big reading program going on.  There are free movies on a weekly basis at the theater downtown.  We have done it all and continue to play and play.

This is just a portion of the activities we have participated in this week:  We went to an activity hosted by the local professional baseball team, the State College Spikes.  Lucas talked with the players, played with water balloons, and colored a picture.

We made our weekly trek to the library and attended storytime.  Went to the theater and saw, "How to Train your Dragon" (Yes we own the movie, but Lucas loves going to the movie theater!), and then back to the library the next day to see a puppet show, which was so entertaining and fun!

Went to the 47th annual peanut festival, where you buy a bag of peanuts and use them either as payment to play a game or as the part of the games themselves and toss them through loops or what not to get treats!  Though Lucas is small he does have quite an arm on him and we were impressed with his throws.  He did struggle to get it through the actual holes, but he could toss it pretty far.

The pigs are pretty scary looking.  More like they're attacking you than inviting you to play a game.

We ended the week by dragging Lucas to the dreaded mall, where I had him try on a variety of clothes for next summer, but he was rewarded with a hamburger and ice cream, and then got to attend a birthday party!  What a week!

Goodbye James Family!!!

Our really good friends have abandoned us.  We have lived across the street from them for the past six years!  Two years in Utah and four years in Pennsylvania.  Lucas has known them his entire life.  Their two kids, Cooper and Sadie are his best friends, and are more like siblings then friends.  We have been everywhere and done everything with them!  Lucas would go anywhere with them in a heartbeat.  He has been known to get in the car and want to ride home with them rather than his own parents.

I have been prepping Lucas for their departure for the past week, trying to explain to him that they are moving to a new house far away, but in a few months we will get on a plane and go see them and their new house.  When they were packing I took him over there so he could see the boxes and the moving truck.  When their apartment was completely cleared out we went over there and I explained it to him again.   At one point I told him that he will get to go to preschool in the fall and meet new friends. Lucas responded by asking me if Cooper and Sadie were going to preschool, and I said that were going to a different preschool, far away.  He said, "I don't want to make new friends."  How do you answer that when you are feeling the same way you don't want to make new friends either.  I have had the nursery leaders at our church telling me how they don't know what Lucas is going to do without Sadie in nursery, they walk to nursery together and then they are pretty much inseperable during nursery.  Though it was tough and is still tough, a day doesn't go by without Lucas mentioning them.  "Where is Sadie and Cooper?", "Will Sadie and Cooper be there?"  "Is Sadie and Cooper eating dinner?"  Sadie and Cooper wear underwear and go potty."  "I went potty like Cooper."  We have been making a great effort to continue to take him to different activities in the community and with church members and he is doing great, though we think of and miss our friends, dearly!

People's Choice Festival

The same week of the Arts Fest, Boalsburg holds their annual People's Choice Festival.  They also have some fun things for kids to do and we don't have to mess with parking because it is within walking distance.  We fed the baby animals, which was a little traumatizing for Lucas since the animals literally maul you.  Lucas was unfortunately bit by the pony, but he managed to enjoy the experience, though he preferred petting the big horses over being bit.

They had a tent set up with different hands-on things kids could do, Lucas seemed to enjoy that!  To help him have a memorable experience, despite the animal attack, I let him ride the train.  I couldn't bring myself to let him ride the horses, it was too expensive and not worth it, especially when he has had opportunities in the past to ride a horse for free!  He loved the train, and rode it all by himself, without any hesitation.

Hill Cumorah Pagent

We throughly enjoyed the first time at the pageant and really wanted to see it one last time, but weren't sure when to go.  We thought that Lucas would enjoy the costumes and pyrotechnics, so when our really good friends were heading up for the last time, before they moved away the very next day, we decided to go with them.  It was all somewhat last minute.  We drove up the day of pageant, watched the pageant, and then headed home.  Yes, that is right, we made drove the four hours homes that same night arriving home at about three in the morning.  Was it worth it yes?  Lucas seemed to enjoy himself and the time he was able to spend with his friends.  So I would say yes.

This pageant is amazing and there is such an incredible feeling present during the production!  We also have some ward members in the pageant which adds to the excitement and fun!  Would we ever attempt to do it all in one day?  Probably not.  That was exhausting and I have to admit being seven and half months pregnant did not make it easy to sit in a car that long.  The ride up is quite beautiful, and we drove along lake Seneca for about 40 miles.  There are several vineyards along the way, and little tourists towns.  Very picturesque!

Arts Fest Children's Day

Arts Fest is a huge festival where thousands of people visit downtown State College.  They have music and hundreds of booths set up with crafts and art for sale. The first day of Arts Fest is kids day. They have booths set of with kids selling items that they have created. The University, along with businesses and organizations in the community, have booths with different activities for kids to do and see. We have attended this annually and this year was no different. In the past we have just stayed in the city and not made it up to campus, but this year we headed up there and it was lots of fun.  They had several booths set up with educational activities from several of the departments on campus. One of my favorites was headed by a lady in our church. It was entitled "Lava Lamps". They took a tube, filled it with canola oil added a few drops of water and a tablet that is similar to Alka Seltzer, but with color, the end result is similar to a lava lamp, and she also said it looks cool in the dark. It was pretty neat.

They also had booths were you could hammer holes into paper and make a constellation, use balloons to make a carbon molecule, make your own torch for the Summer Olympic Games and get a gold medal in kicking a soccer ball, and making ice cream with nitroglycerin.  They also an area set up with these buckets hanging up, filling with water and then dumping onto the kids.  Lucas really liked the this, and didn't seem intimidated by the crowd of children, though I kept holding my breath, as he scurried in and out and around the area.  It was hot and a long day, but I think Lucas had lots of fun!

Why?

Lucas has been a very inquisitive little guy lately.  I have been getting the, "why?" questions non-stop for days!  I usually have an answer for the first question, but after several "why's" I quickly run out.  Instead of saying 'I don't know'.  I say, "Why do you think Lucas?", or "What do you think?"  That seems to be working, but it doesn't completely stop him from asking, "why?" to another question.

Fireworks!

For those of you who are unaware State College has the 3rd largest fireworks show in the US.  The fireworks are the culmination to the 4th of July celebration.  In the past we have watched them in a neighborhood cudi-sac, with a clear shot looking towards the football stadium.  You can see everything pretty well, except for the VIP ground fire-works (you have to pay money to sit in the VIP viewing area).  My really good friend decided that she wanted to see them up close, and to feel the boom!  I have hesitated doing this in the past, because I have heard it is a real mess trying to get out after the fireworks, and also because we would need to go several hours in advance to get a good spot.  I love my friend and she is one of my closest and dearest friends so, though I thought she was a little crazy, I decided she was worth any extra hassle.

As usual when we want to do something I tell Craig what I want to do, and he comes up with the plan.  So Craig disappeared into his cave (office) and emerged later with a plan and we went for it.  I must note they also have a carnival, kids stuff, live music, races and several other things going on before the fireworks, so it is quite an event with thousands of people.  Things went well, and we even found free parking!!!  Craig found a prime spot, though I doubted him, because three hours before the fireworks, nobody was over there or had blankets set up.  Lets be honest, if you were in Utah you would have had your blanket set up early that morning, and showed up hours before the event, but fortunately we are not in Utah and State College doesn't run that way.  They are much more relaxed and ho-hum.  After Craig reassured me numerous times, literally pointing to the fireworks sitting in on the ground a mere 100 yards from where we were set up, and showing me the VIP sitting area, that was not far from us, I was convinced.

Our spot was in the back corner of the baseball field, but to get into the field you could not bring in food or water.  They were inspecting bags, but our friend said if you told them it was for your kids they would let you in.  My friend and I had three of the kids, while the husbands were in staking out our spot.  She sat with them while they finished up their hot dogs and I went to relieve the boys.  I told the guy that I knew he had to inspect my bag, but the food was for the kids, and I pointed at the kids, he looked me up and down, noting that I was obviously pregnant and said, "I am not going to mess with that, I will let it slide, you go right a head....and congratulations!"  I couldn't help but laugh, if I was in Utah there would be no way he would have let me in, pregnant or not, because he would have had to do the same thing for all the other pregnant women.  This town does have it perks, it is just not common to be pregnant.

The fireworks we amazing!!!!  You could definitely hear them!!!!  It was the best I have every seen, and seeing them that close definitely makes a difference!!!  Lucas was scared at the beginning, he hid behind our friend because she was sitting the farthest back.  He had a look of pure fear on his face, but slowly warmed up and soon he was next to Craig commenting on how pretty and cool they were.  He is still talking about them and all the colors we saw.

To round out our 4th of July celebration, we had also gone to Greenwood Furnace for swimming that morning and hung out.  It was way fun!  A long and hot, but fun day!!!