Fun in the Sun: The Pool and The Gardens

The other day the kids and I got out of the house while my husband worked a little more on our kitchen redo project.  We headed over to my parents' pool for a little fun in the sun, though it took a lot of cajoling to even get Baylor into his swim trunks.  Mollie, however, was chomping at the bit to don her strawberry swimsuit.

She got to enjoy some dried cherries in the sun and her day, swimming, laughing, and counting lounge chairs, was complete.

Baylor eventually got in the water and even wore his puddle jumper for a while.  Sadly we didn't get a picture of it.

After a nice lunch ...

... I took the kids home for a nap.

After dinner, we decided it was too nice an evening to stay at home, so we headed on over to the Frederik Meijer Gardens.  Mollie had a good grip on her dad as we walked toward the entrance.

Once we got our tickets, we checked out the art exhibit (kinda weird, if you ask me ... and Baylor was totally freaked out and wanted to leave ASAP) briefly and then headed outside to the children's garden.  The little water feature just inside the gates was too appealing to pass up, and both kids stopped to enjoy it.  Mollie would stick her hand in the stream of water then try to shake it dry.  It was quite cute.

Baylor got in on the action, too.

But it was Mollie who really explored it in depth.  Just as this picture was being taken she shrieked with delight at her adventures.  *sigh*  What an adorable girl she is!

Soon she decided it would be a good idea to sit down.  So she did.

And, my, was she proud of herself!

Such joy over a little spray of water!

Thank goodness the weather was warm because she was totally soaked!

Once she'd had her fill of the first water attraction, we headed over to the Great Lakes play pools and she got to splash around a little more.  Though most of the time she just kept her eye on the other kids.

Baylor got into it, though, and pushed his little boat over the waterfall.

And Mollie clung to me like it was her job.

Unfortunately for Baylor, there weren't many good places to try out this little water wheel he found.  Such a bummer, little dude!

The little boy in the yellow shorts startled Mollie, and she froze for a moment just so she could keep an eye on him.

It was finally time to go ride the elevator, but on our way out Baylor asked if Daddy could lift him up to reach a chime ... situated atop an estimated twenty-foot pole.  Needless to say, Bryson could not oblige the little man.

Baylor was pretty geeked about getting to ride the elevator ... could you tell?

If you're ever in town or live here and haven't checked this out, I highly recommend taking your kiddos to the Lena Meijer Children's Garden.  It is a delightful place, so full of warmth and wonderment.

And to you, have a wonderful day!