Lightning Bugs

Last week we learned about our last bug- Fireflies/Lightning bugs. I am really glad to be done and moving on to something else. Tanner and Violet had a lot of fun making crafts, eating bugs type foods and reading lots of books, watching You tube clips and different cartoon shows that taught about bugs. It was fun and a lot of work. 

There really wasn't a lot of different information on Fireflies. We have a few of them down in Sanpete but not very many. Most of them are back East. They like the hummid areas. And since we don't have any in American Fork we made our own out of Easter eggs and craft stuff. They turned out cute and each bug got a battery powered light put in them so their butts would glow. 

 After it got dark Dan and I took turns hiding them for Tanner to find. Violet didn't get to find any because she was a sleep. 

Ally came over to help us find them too. After we had a great game of Flashlight Tag- you can see the other post for those pictures. 

Lightning bugs don't live very long. The eggs are laid on a twig or a log or a leave or something by the water. The eggs aren't very big either about the size as this period .  They hatch and drink the water and eat a bit, but as an adult Scientist haven't figured out what or if they even eat anything besides the water they drink. The worms that they are at the beginning of life produce a glow on each end as well. They are called glow worms. When they are adults it's just the back end that glows when the air mixes with the chemicals inside them - Bioluminescence.  It's a kind of cool and produces a cool type of light not a hot type like a light bulb. Fireflies are interesting and were fun to learn about. 

Summer Fun: Bee's Game

One of our Summer Traditions is going to the Bee's game with Dan's Uncle and Aunt - Scott and Shanna and their family. Tanner loves it. It's so relaxing just sitting on the grass and watching the game, eating great hotdogs, and visiting. When I was in Junior High I went to my first baseball game- The Salt Lake Buzz. It was exciting. It was fun to watch and it's so much better to watch it at the stadium then on TV. Dan used to go to the games as well. And now we get to take our kids. I love going with Scott and Shanna because we don't get to spend a lot of time with them and our kids are getting to know them better. 

 Violet, Dan and Tanner outside Smith Stadium by the Giant Bee sign

 Curtis- Chris's son and Scott and Shanna's Grandson. He's a great kid. So awesome and fun to be around and he plays great with Tanner and Violet. 

So last year when we went it was Fan appreciation night and we got blankets to sit on . This year they gave away Bees hats and some Salt Lake Gull t-shirts. It's always fun to get free stuff. 

 Dan said one of the best things at a Baseball game is the hotdogs. I got him the Nacho Dog- of course I had to special order it with out sour cream and tomatoes and the green peppers but Dan loved it. We might have spent a little bit of money on food. But you got to eat at the games. 

 Violet was a lot of fun to watch. She climbed on everyone and made friends with everyone around her. 

 Our family- Rach, Violet, Tanner and Dan- I love doing things together. 

 And of course I can't not get a picture of me with my Dan!  He puts up with me and lets me plan all sorts of fun family things. 

 Scott- in the back- Tanner and Dan- Tanner said " Take a picture of me with my Dad"  They get along so well. 

 Jane, Chris, Curtis, Scott, Violet- who is playing with Shanna's socks and kept trying to put them on her feet, Dan and Tanner

 Violet and Jane

 Tanner with his free hat and t-shirt and Dan let him buy a baseball bat and some wrist bands. Everything was buy one get one 50% off- so we got a great deal- spent almost 10 dollars. 

 So cute- I just love taking pictures of my kids

 The kids did so well on the grass- a baseball game that's 4 hours and they loved every minute of it. 

 Curtis was awesome to play with Violet and Tanner. They are throwing around a tooth that we got when a Bees Cheerleader came over and gave us a bunch of other free stuff. 

 I love Tanner's laugh and smile

Shanna and Racheal 

Violet kept saying "Bee"  and pointing so Jane took her over. She gave the Bee a high five but didn't want to get any closer for the picture or even let the Bee hold her. She's funny. 

 After the game they did fireworks- they were amazing. So big, and bright and loud. 

 Violet, Dan and Tanner

So tired at the end- Of course it was almost 11 pm when we got back to the car, but such a great evening. I'm glad we were able to go and be with family and enjoy the game.

Summer Fun: Croquet

Croquet - a summer past time. I ended up tending Tanner's friend Gilbert and Ally our neighbor this morning so we sent them outside for Croquet. You can't really go by the rules when you have 2  5 year old and a 4 year old, but at least they took turns. And of course there always has to be a winner no matter how many times you tell them it's just a game for fun. But I think they enjoyed it for at least the 20 minutes they played before they moved on to something else. 

 Gilbert, Tanner and Ally

 Gilbert and Tanner

 I think this might have been Violet's first time playing. She mostly walked around taking the spikes out of the ground. 

 Ally 

 Gilbert and Tanner

 Violet and Tanner

 Cheesy Face! 

Gilbert  

 Tanner

Ally, Tanner and Gilbert- a race to the finish. 

Summer Fun: Date Night with Dan

Last night Dan and I were able to finally go out on a date just us. It's been a long time since we've been out to dinner together without the kids. It was nice. We had a little bump at the beginning when we tried to go to Johnny Rockets and had to wait 20 minutes and still no server came to help us so we ended up eating at Zaxby's. It was pretty good. Neither of us had been there. We got chicken wings and fries and some toast. I even tried Peach flavored Sprite. It was alright but not my favorite. 

One of the reasons why I wanted to go to Johnny Rockets was because I took Tanner there a year ago and I bought a shake. I really liked it and wanted to get another one. I am glad that Zaxby's had a Chocolate cookie shake. It was pretty good. Dan and I just shared one and that was plenty. 

We had a great dinner together and I'm glad my Mom, Dad and Logan could tend the kids for a little while. They love going to Grandma and Grandpa's

Summer Fun: Cabelas

I took Tanner and Violet to Cabela's yesterday to see the big fish they have and all the dead animals. 

They liked it but I think they like Bean museum better. It was still fun. 

Tanner did like how big the fish were and this shark came right up to the glass. It's pretty big. 

Shark face

 Looking at the bears

Tanner lifted Violet up so she could see the animals over the railing. He's such a good big brother.