St. Louis Trip

Labor Day weekend we took a family trip to St. Louis!  I had been telling Shane I wanted to do as much together as a family 1. before baby #2 arrives, and 2. before he deploys in December, so this was the perfect weekend to get away.  We also have some good friends stationed at an Air Force base there, so it was great to see them and get a personal tour of the zoo.  Though it was extremely hot the whole time we were there, we managed pretty well and found plenty to do!  I would recommend St. Louis to anyone looking for a fun, inexpensive family vacation.

Saturday morning we went to the zoo before it got too hot.  The zoo there is free, and really great!  I would highly recommend it, there were a lot of neat exhibits and animals.

Alex, Sara Beth, Shane and Matthew at the zoo!

Can you see how he is resting his head on Shane's?  It was adorable.



That afternoon we went to Cathedral Basilica of St Louis, which is known for its architecture and mosaic tiles.  It was beautiful, I have never seen mosaic tiles like this anywhere in America.

Working around naps in the car made this trip a little more difficult, but everything ended up working just fine.  Since Matthew was such a trooper skipping entire naps for zoo time, and tours we tried to let him sleep in between activities in the car as much as possible.  Which is why we didn't even get out of the car at the arch this trip, he was sound asleep in the back seat!  We just parked close by and took a few pictures while reminiscing of our last trip to St. Louis where we saw the arch for the first time.

Later that morning we headed to the Anheuser Busch factory.  A tour we were both very interested in, even though I am pregnant, it was still very cool!  The "campus" there was beautiful and historic, we even got to see the famous Budweiser Clydesdale's, and their stables.

The factory tour ended in a tasting room, where you could try several of the different beers and drinks Anheuser Busch makes.  Of course Matthew and I enjoyed the free pretzels and soft drinks as well!

August Update

August was a very busy month for us.  Not only did we move into a new house across post, Shane came home from Africa, we had a battalion ball, found out gender of baby #2, and my parents visited, all while still getting settled and unpacked.  It was a great month!

 

 

 Daddy's home!

 

 Matthew's first taste of ice cream!

Shane and Pawpaw went sailing!



 Swimming with my friend Hayden!

Fun times with Grammy and Pawpaw

Grammy found Matthew a tiny frog in our new backyard and he LOVED it!



Eleven Months!

{at 11 months Matthew...}

..."helped" mom move and unpack our house

...eats 3 real meals of table food daily
...went to daycare for the first time while mom and dad went to an ultrasound
...finally got his other front tooth, and has 6 teeth now
...snuggles a tiny bit, which is more than ever before
...is down to 2 naps most days
...signs please, all done, and more (most of the time!)
...loves to open and close drawers, doors, cabinets, etc.
...listens and obeys more and more everyday, but still chooses disobedience some
...makes unlimited "boy" noises all day
...drinks water very well from a sippy cup
...is still a speedy crawler, with no signs of wanting to walk
...loves bath time again in his (own) new deep bathtub
...thinks he is funny and the star all the time (which he is!)