Chicago

It's now been four wonderful years since Travis and I tied the knot! We celebrated by spending our anniversary weekend in Chicago.

We spent most of our time on Navy Pier and from there, went on a scenic boat tour that let us see the Chicago skyline. It was a lot of fun, and the weather was perfect!

Rainbow!

Once the boat docked, we raced down towards Millennium Park to see the iconic Cloud Gate, aka "Bean".

We underestimated how long it would take to walk there from the pier, and we knew we wouldn't make it back to Navy Pier in time to see our Cirque Shanghai performance. So after some panicking, Travis hailed a taxi and we got there just in time! It was a fantastic performance. Even Jaxon liked it. I kept having to turn my head away because I was afraid some of those acrobats would fall!

After the show, we went on the Ferris Wheel and got a beautiful look at all the city lights in the night sky. Being on the Ferris Wheel reminded me of one of my college history classes, where the whole class was about the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. It felt so nice to actually be there after learning so much about it.

The next morning, Brady invited us over for a yummy breakfast. It was a whirlwind weekend, but maybe that's appropriate for a visit to the "windy city". :)

Pioneer Day, Wisconsin Style

Even though we're in Wisconsin, we decided to celebrate our own Pioneer Day, but in Wisconsin style! We went to the park and grilled brats (aka bratwurst), and even got some root beer to go with the occasion. Not exactly the traditional drink that goes with brats, but we put a Mormon twist to it. :)

They were so yummy!

Mississippi River Walk

On Saturday, we drove to Dubuque, Iowa and strolled along the Mississippi River Walk. The weather was nice and cool, and Jaxon had fun watching the cargo and river boats pass by. It was a lot of fun! Travis and I decided that one day we'd kayak down the whole Mississippi.

On our way home, we stopped by a highly recommended ice cream shop and got some very yummy and very unhealthy ice cream. See for yourselves!

Governor Dodge State Park

We live a short drive from Governor Dodge State Park, so that's where we spent our Saturday morning. We had the lake all to ourselves and the water was so warm! Perfect for swimming. We're definitely going back again soon.

In other news, Jaxon got his first real hair cut. I think he looks like such a little boy now. We can't wait to celebrate his first birthday next month!

Fun in the Sun

This summer has been a hot one! I thought Wisconsin would be a little cooler than Utah, and from what I hear it usually is, but this heat wave (plus the humidity!) has mostly kept us inside enjoying our AC. However, we did enjoy some fun in the sun this past weekend and for the Fourth of July.

On Saturday, we met up with Brady and JaNae's family at a fun community pool in Galena. Jaxon rode his first water slide! It was kind of a slow one, and Travis held him up before hitting the pool at the bottom. He seemed to like it, and so did we, so we rode it over and over again.

For the Fourth, we had a fun branch activity in the morning where we ate a yummy breakfast and took a U.S. history trivia quiz, which I won! (I don't know...maybe it was a little unfair for me to play. ;)) The prize was a gift card to Culvers, a popular restaurant out here. Which is great, because we've been meaning to try it since we moved here.

In the evening, we were invited to a barbecue with friends from the branch where we had yummy food and hilarious conversations. We've really enjoyed our branch and appreciate how much they've reached out to us since we've been here. Jaxon was also able to watch his first fireworks. He was fine for all of it except the last one, which surprised all of us! Sparks were flying everywhere, and it was very loud. Jaxon started crying, poor little guy! But all in all, it was a successful Fourth of July. :)