Fun Outside

While it's certainly warming up here in Texas, we still have some nice mornings that have allowed us to get outside to play.

I guess it hasn't been all play. Grandpa had some trees that needed to be cut back, so we went to help. Micah was an enthusiastic helper!

Eli and Grandpa make a great team!

Joshua stayed inside most of the time and loved this singing/dancing bear.

 Last week, we met some friends at a spray park.  Eli and Micah had a great time before everyone showed up! (Check out the video at the end of this post.)

Eli really liked spraying this horse.

 Thankfully there were two horses to spray.

 Eli quickly learned that if you try to spray Momma and Joshua, the water shuts off. Good for me!

 Micah had to try it out, too.

 After the spray park, we all changed to dry clothes and played on the playground until lunch time. Here, our friends are admiring Joshua.

We made a second trip out to pick blackberries.

 This time, I tried to get a picture of Joshua feeling the leaves, but I guess I got him too close! Thankfully, we were picking the thorn-less bushes.

Eli had been asking for another nature walk. We decided to explore a different park and trails this time. Even with almost 2 hours of walking, we had a great time!

Our first stop was to explore some roly polies.

Eli

 Micah

 When the boys stopped to look at this brown cricket on a brown leaf, Paul gave a "mini lecture" about camouflage.

 Joshua got a break from his car seat when Eli and Micah played on the playground.

 Micah was very interested in this goose's eyes.

 Just like Daddy.

 On our way back to the car, Paul saved us from hearing a lot of whining by starting a game of "I Spy." As soon as they would find whatever Paul was looking at, they would say, "Okay, spy something else, Daddy!" It was so fun!

Here are some video clips I've taken of our outdoor playtime and a game the boys came up with to use their library books in a whole new way.