Annual Fire Department Picnic

A summertime must-happen here is the annual picnic that the fire department has for its volunteers and families. After an unGodly hot summer, it turned out to actually be a very nice day for this years event! As usual there was yummy food, games to play, face painting, rides in the ariel ladder and the big moment this year was that Beckett won the "Grand Prize" drawing of a brand new bike and helmet! Which was great timing as he was outgrowing his old bike. The helmet was a little big, but no worries--it fit Paxton perfectly!!

PFD Family Picnic

Each year, the fire department holds a picnic for the volunteers that serve the community and their families. Since Kurt is a member, we try to make it each year (hasn't always happened though!) They have kids games, rides on a truck, a waterslide, bingo for the adults and a yummy meal. Beckett played a duck game and Paxton did ring toss (and scored on his practice shot!) and balloon pop. The guys in charge of buying prizes do a great job--very age appropriate and a high enough quality to last beyond making it out of the park. Here are some random shots of the day before the passing storms ended it for us...

A New Park!

Well, to ME, anyhow. Paxton recongnized it right away! For our first picnic of the season, we drove to Eagle Point Park in Dubuque. It is a gorgeous, beautifully maintained piece of property well worth the $1 it costs to enter (for a carload). There are pavillions, multiple playgrounds, CLEAN restrooms, about a thousand picnic tables, a goldfish pond and more. The more is mostly made up of incredible views of the Mississippi, including Lock and Dam #11. We didn't see it in operation (HERE) is a link of the Lock and Dam, complete with a picture taken from this park. The pictures in this post are as much about the park as the boys--one of which (Paxton) didn't want me shooting him. Enjoy.