June 2020

We got rid of wubbas (pacifier) almost a year ago, but she is going through a phase where she likes to pretend to be a baby. She stumbled upon a wubba and was all over it, to the point where she wanted to sleep with it and we were worried it was becoming more than a toy again. So I asked her if she would trade me the wubba for a toy at Target, she would get to pick out almost whatever and she went for it. So off we went to Target and were going up and down the toy aisles and she saw this set of twin baby dolls that each had their own pacifier. That's what she wanted. Could have gotten a Little People thing, scooter, pretty much anything under $50 and I would have gotten it for her. Wubba trade for twins! 

First time zipping her jacket on her own!

Lots of hikes in June, since we really don't go anywhere yet. Lockdowns are slowly easing up but that just means more dumb people potentially around to infect you. So we have been doing weekly hikes and planned our first cabin trip for the end of June with Mary, Hayden, and Sam.

COVID-19 is raging and slowly things are opening up, people are going back to work and economy kind of coming back. No mandatory mask orders, however, and case numbers keep climbing, so we are pretty anxious about it all. We really don't go anywhere except hiking, grocery store 1x week, and don't really have anyone over. Very lonely but I have the feeling we can't live like this forever.

Grandma and Grandpa Elsie did come for the weekend, which was pretty stressful for Spencer (he takes it a bit more cautiously than I). It was tons of fun, went on a couple bike rides and Elsie had lots of great times with them (she is OVER hanging out with us!)

Quarantine Hair-dos, and Elsie LOVES overalls with all the pockets and buttons. Can get in on all by herself!

Lots of backyard pool time, weather has been nice and hot!

Running through Gov. Nelson State Park.

Flowers + playdoh is the best! Lots of pretty bouquets with flowers from around the yard.

Elsie is really great at taking pictures of other things now. Our peonies came and went pretty fast, it was hot!

Loves loves loves the kitty cats, Olive is getting better about letting Elsie pet her.

Playing dress-up with Gma and Gpa R/E.

Driving back from Gma Elaine's funeral, this NEVER happens where she fell asleep while eating. The heat and finally being able to see Gma Melanie put her over the top.

Gma Elaine's funeral in Green Bay, WI. The gang all showed up!

Part of the Montessori approach is to "help your kid help themself" and Elsie took to this idea really quick! Got her a little wardrobe that has a bunch of her clothes hanging or in baskets and everything is in one spot that she can reach (the top has pull ups and swimsuits). She has such a great time dressing herself and picking out what she wears. And it is loads better than the old rickety dresser we had to fight with to open the drawers. She'll pick out an outfit, put it on all by herself and then look in the mirror. So far she likes to pick dresses, probably cuz they are hanging and easy to see. She also likes her overalls, but it has been pretty hot lately. One time she put a dress under her overalls :)

We took Gma and Gpa R/E to the farm near us to feed the baby goats and see all the animals. It's a good outdoor activity that is usually not too busy, so less risk of getting coronavirus.

Dress up with Gma and Gpa.

Father's Day! These are some cinnemon rolls she made all by herself! Didn't want me to take the picture though.

We got to meet baby Hayden for the first time at Spencer's cabin! 3.5 months!

Elsie was a great helper, super gentle, and loving to her new cousin.

Devils Lake State Park, WI

June 11 we headed to Devil's Lake State Park. Spencer and I had been there a couple of years ago (B.E.), and we remembered loving it, but it was soooo packed the day we went so we were nervous to go during coronavirus. We got there early enough that the crowds weren't too bad, but got bad by the time we left. And it was nice the bathrooms were open again, though I'm still a bit nervous about public bathrooms. 

We took the East Bluff trail, what S and I took last time, and it was a nice climb up to see beautiful lake views. Both of us were pretty nervous about Elsie climbing all over everything and possibly falling off a 100 foot cliff. And she needs to practice listening better. However, she had a blast and was jumping and climbing and exploring and looking for worms. It was a great time, and beautiful views, just like we remembered. One other thing I'll jot down for the memory book is we need to bring more change of clothes for Els, she had a couple accidents and we went through everything we had. 

Governor Nelson State Park, WI

This park is pretty close to home, so we went to check it out. It had a pretty nice lake and beach, and was completely empty so those were the bonuses. And there was a pretty cool overlook to downtown on the docks. Other than that, the bugs were pretty bad, it was super hot, and we chose to hike through the prairie, so there was no respite from either the former or the later. It certainly wasn't our favorite hike, though I was reading after the fact and it looks like there's a waterfall here that we may have to come back and try to find.