Magnifcent Monday

 

 We have had another awesome Monday!  I am hoping that we don't end the night at Urgent Care like the last time we had a really good Monday!  The weather is just about as perfect as it can be.  72 degrees with a ton of sunshine.  You know that kind of sunshine that just makes your skin feel warm to the touch, that is the sun we are dealing with today.  It is amazing!  We did find out on our picnic that if you are not in the sun, it is a bit chilly BUT we are not complaining...not one bit! 

Here are some snaps from our morning adventure.  I am so bummed that I didn't have our actual camera for the trip to the Capitol but I guess we will just have to go back!

Waiting for Mom is tough but it is easier with your brother right by your side!
(They were being SO patient while I got everything in the car for the zoo!)

Free train ride Monday at the zoo...we are in!  The boys enjoyed their snack on the train today and loved waving at all the people!  Hutchinson loves the fish and says "OH! WHOA! WOW!" when he is looking at them.  He is starting to be able to repeat colors, so it is fun to hear him say the color of the fish!  He also LOVES to drum!  I think he just likes making noise, so the new African exhibit is right up his alley!  Finnean spends his time spying animals and finds ones that I don't ever see.  He also is our tour guide.  Keeping an eye on the map, making sure we know what our next stop is. 

After the zoo we picked up Michael (he is not documented in the pictures BUT he was there!) and headed for a picnic lunch on the Capitol lawn.  It is one of my favorite places to be in Des Moines.  I just love how grand the building is and that you can see the little city skyline perfectly.  The boys seemed to enjoy it a great deal.  They are free to run as they please.  The grounds are beautiful right now-in full bloom.  If you need to get out and about in Des Moines, I totally recommend it hitting up the Capitol Complex for a walk!  I also recommend City Bakery in the East Village.  O my.  They have some tasty food and that is what Michael and I had for lunch!  It was a great little family date.  Here are some shots from the boys running amok.  I am still bummed that I didn't have the big camera...but these will do!

This boy.  I almost don't have words for how much this smile makes my heart smile!  He just loves to be outside and love to watch his "Bo-Bo" run around!

Exploring.
(Top left: Totally going down.  Unlike Finnean, he gets right back up and starts running again!)

Perfection.
These flowers are some of my favorite and I have no idea what they are called.  The are all over the grounds at the Capitol and their purple color just pops off all of the neutrals of the concrete.   They do attract some HUGE bees, which we had to watch out for.  

 

These boys.
Have you noticed that Hutchinson pictures outnumber Finnean pictures about 10 to 1?  There are two reasons: #1 Finnean is SO fast, he is hard to capture and #2 I have to stay closer to Hutchinson because I just don't quite trust him to run too far yet!

I feel kind of weird taking pictures of myself but I thought I should probably document what I look like too.  I love seeing pictures of my parents and grandparents when they were young, so I am trying to do that same for the boys...so they have something to look back on.  The will most definitely make fun of how big my glasses are I am sure :)