Nelson Family Adventures

Going to make the blog private

2010-12-10T14:04:00.002-05:00

Hey few and faithful - I've decided to make the blog private/password protected (or whatever it is that Blogger does). I'm going to do my best to invite those of you who follow my blog, but if you don't get an email let me know.

2010-12-09T17:23:00.001-05:00

Ella ice skating

2010-10-30T15:29:00.001-04:00

2010-10-21T08:09:00.001-04:00

jack being silly

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2010-10-02T17:30:00.001-04:00

Pony ride

2010-09-13T19:39:00.001-04:00

Enjoying rita's ice

2010-08-13T08:03:00.001-04:00

Jack in his balloon football helmet with baloon football

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2010-08-12T18:51:00.000-04:00

Princess night at chick fil a

Busy July!

2010-08-10T21:59:00.002-04:00

We've been busy! Here's the short version of our July:

-Picnic and 4th of July fireworks in our backyard, compliments of Bill
-Dutch Wonderland
-Gymnastics class for Ella
-Idlewild
-2nd trip to Lancaster which included swimming, a trip to an adventure farm, playing with the neighbor kids and a trip to the fair

Here's a very short video of Ella at gymnastics:

Yes, we really did that all in July. August has been a little bit calmer (and unfortunately filled with illness as the kids have been/are under the weather this week). Ella enjoyed vacation bible school last week and Jack and I took the opportunity to hang out - I think our favorite evening together was when we took a walk around the neighborhood and collected rocks :)

Enjoy the new photos!

2010-07-27T10:10:00.001-04:00

Jack & Grandpa Ray watching Clifford

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2010-07-25T11:43:00.001-04:00

Bill enjoying glutony at The Gathering Place in Mount Joy

2010-07-24T11:53:00.001-04:00

Ella painting Bill's face and head at the Hands on House children's museum

2010-07-22T14:59:00.001-04:00

Motorcycles at Idlewild

Jack: "mom I'm home from

2010-07-19T18:16:00.001-04:00

Jack: "mom I'm home from work"
me: "what did you do today?"
Jack: "surgery"

2010-07-17T08:54:00.001-04:00

Jack's new haircut

2010-07-08T17:01:00.001-04:00

The result of a fun day at Dutch Wonderland

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Jack was laughing at Ella

2010-06-23T08:20:00.001-04:00

Jack was laughing at Ella who was getting in trouble. I told him that was not ok. He said "can I laugh in my room?"

Summer fun

2010-06-17T16:14:00.005-04:00

We've had a very busy, fun June so far. At the beginning of the month we attended an event called "Touch a Truck" - it's exactly how it sounds. The kids got to touch and climb inside all sorts of trucks. Firetrucks, swat team trucks, backhoes, army trucks - you name it, it was there. The kids were very excited and had trouble deciding which way to go first.

We also made a trip to the zoo recently. It wasn't too hot or cold so we were able to enjoy lots of animals and lots of playtime in the "Kids Kingdom" part of the park. They had the sprinklers on in Kids Kingdom, and the kids loved getting soaked.

Today we made our way over to one of the newer "spray parks" in the city. Despite overcast skies, cool temperatures and low humidity the kids loved it. All the fun of the pool without the hassle! We will definitely be visiting this park again soon. Bill: "Jack, are you cold?" (while holding out a towel) Jack: "Yes" (followed by him running off to get wet and cold again)

Beach!

2010-06-02T22:18:00.002-04:00

We were very fortunate this year to take a real family vacation (instead of our usual "staycation" with daytrips/activities). Destination? Fenwick Island, Delaware (minutes north of Ocean City, Maryland). Bill's dad and my mom were also able to join us.

The kids LOVED the beach. Since it was only the end of May, temps didn't get too much above the mid 70's but the kids could've cared less. Bill practically had to drag them out of the water, despite shivering and slightly blue lips. We spent lots of time digging in the sand (and burying Bill), building sand castles and flying kites. The kids even tried boogie boarding, modified (Bill drug/skimmed them across the wet sand and water).

We also enjoyed non-beach activities. The kids got to enjoy two different indoor activity centers; Ella got to play mini-golf three times; we rented a bike surrey for six (with Bill and I doing most of the work pedaling!) and we enjoyed a few nights playing the arcades with the kids. And we enjoyed lots and lots of yummy seafood! Bill and I even managed to sneak off one night for an ocean view dinner.

Mostly we just enjoyed a laid-back week together. The kids (for the most part) did well and the adults enjoyed reading, playing games, a few bottles of wine :) and lots of video games.

Jack's favorite activity of the week was trying to run away from us on the beach :) Good thing he is cute because he is a little stinker...

Ella's favorite activity was being on the beach (so she says).

And last but not least (and unrelated to the beach) my favorite everyday kid-snippet of recent memory was after Jack got sick at the grocery store - he looked to the nearest shopper and said "Hey lady, I puked."

Enjoy the pictures.

End of year preschool program

2010-06-02T21:57:00.003-04:00

About a week before the end of preschool, we were treated to a wonderful end-of-year program by Ella's class. For approximately 20 minutes (no lie!) the children sang a medley of songs for us, complete with props and hand motions. To say it was adorable was a complete understatement. And since Ella loves to sing, it was very easy to hear her during each song.

We will definitely miss Ella's preschool class, but look forward to her starting a new year in the fall!

Springhouse

2010-04-28T20:41:00.001-04:00

This week we had the chance to tour a dairy farm. (http://www.springhousemarket.com/) Ella was less than impressed with the smell - in fact, I thought we might have to leave she was so disgusted by it. But I convinced her to stick it out til she got used to it and soon she forgot all about it. Ella had the chance to help milk a cow, and both Jack and Ella had a chance to feed a bottle of milk to a calf. Jack liked the tour, but was equally impressed with the mud and rocks on the ground. Ella was totally enthralled with the tour (after getting past the smell, that is). She kept telling me how "cool" it is. After the tour, we headed to the market to see how they bottle milk and then finally to get a free sample of ice cream. The kids were definitely disappointed when we had to leave - the outdoor picnic area was filled with giant slides, tires, animals and much more. I'm sure we'll be planning a return trip soon.

Happy Easter!

2010-04-06T21:18:00.006-04:00

We enjoyed our Easter weekend by coloring eggs, having an egg hunt, going to church and having an Easter feast. Even better was the fact that Bill had the day off on Easter Sunday.

Ella was really good at coloring eggs this year. She carefully chose colors and handled the eggs just right so they wouldn't crack. Unfortunately, we did not make it all the way to the end of the egg coloring process without a spill - Jack's craziness at the table led to a major spill all over Ella, resulting in a blue dyed dress and tummy. (fortunately the dress stain washed out). Jack loved the eggs, but needed lots of help. He seemed to think they were balls and liked to drop them into the different colors. And of course he had to do things "all by himself" and reach for the color he wanted, causing spillage everywhere. But he did have fun, and we laughed a lot, and we didn't get the carpet stained. So I'd say it was a success.

We staged a back yard egg hunt for the kids this year, and I think we found all but 2 plastic eggs (if I counted right). Ella was even kind enough to leave some of the easier-to-find eggs for Jack.

Easter morning equaled lots of Easter baskets from various relatives. Somehow, we all scaled back on the amount of chocolate this year and we have a reasonable pile of goodies as opposed to the usual giant mound of sugar (for which I was thankful!) The kids enjoyed going through their various goodies and have been revisiting their stash daily.

Unfortunately the kids were reluctant to cooperate at the same time, so the Easter picture wasn't the best. Jack sported a vest and tie and Ella wore a white eyelet dress that Bill's mom made. In case you were wondering, I wore a linen skirt and lime green top that I decided on 30 minutes before heading out the door :)

Bill demonstrating how to take a post dinner nap

A finally, I leave you with a Jack sound-bite:
Jack climbs up on my lap and says to me "I'm cuddling with my beautiful mommy!"

Enjoying Rita's

2010-03-20T12:17:00.001-04:00

Ella pushes Jack

2010-03-19T17:52:00.001-04:00

first backyard swingset play of the year

2010-03-16T16:45:00.000-04:00