Life Lately

Life lately, has been ... busy.

Samantha recently commented that we didn't really go anywhere "big" as a family this summer.  And that's true.  It's not easy yet at the age that Jimmy is to plan long trips outside of town or even to go camping.  He still takes a morning nap and an afternoon nap, and while I had predicted that he would have dropped that morning nap by now, he hasn't.  We've skipped it a few times this summer when it wasn't convenient for us, but by noon (i.e. LUNCHTIME!), he is grumpy/crying/miserable and downright difficult to deal with.

So, I reminded her that while we haven't done anything BIG, we've managed to do a lot of other small (and fun!) things.  We've gone down to the beach almost every single day, we've gone to parks, ate lunch outside, had sleepovers, movie nights, crafted more items than I can count and done lots of other things in between.

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Celebrating Aunt Deb's birthday at our house, in the garage addition.  It's safe to say that we have used that addition more than we ever imagined in the (less than) year that it has been finished.

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Ice cream cones ... we upgraded to sugar cones this year now that the kids are a little older and can appreciate a nicer cone.  Maybe next year, we'll up the ante to waffle cones -- Momma's favorite!

The humidity has been high this summer and Sophia's hair has been SO curly!

James took a few licks of mine, but has yet to appreciate the longtime summer tradition.

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Samantha was inspired to make paper mache' at the start of summer.  I knew that the project would be quite labor-intensive and wanted to wait a while before we took on the task.  But ... Steve was insistent on helping them the very first weekend that she suggested it.

And so ... the inflated balloons with dried newspaper hung for a couple of weeks in our garage before I finally had the time to tackle them with the kids.

Samantha turned hers into an owl.

Sophia designed a penguin.

And Jack wanted a dinosaur.  Huh?

How was I going to help turn an oval into a dinosaur?  I mean, I do like being creative, but this was really stretching it.  So, I asked him if he would like to make his a DINOSAUR EGG and then I would draw a dinosaur hatching out of it.

He was sold.

The final masterpieces, which are hanging in their bedrooms!

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I signed Jack up for a camp at his preschool for three mornings this summer and he absolutely loved it.  In fact, I signed him up for one more session next week!

The theme for this session was camping and they had so much fun painting campfires, eating s'mores, building forts, collecting bugs and earning "badges" for their vests.

The bug jar (that he helped drill holes in), ready to collect bugs ... and later, a huge toad at our house!

There were four boys in the camp session and they were happy to show off their vests with the first badges that they earned.

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We've been trying out some new hairstyles and painting fingernails and toenails quite a bit this summer.  I have a lot more to learn, but the girls are excited with the options.

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Our garden is coming along nicely.  We have already harvested a few green peppers, some tomatoes and a Hungarian Wax Pepper (spicy!).  I have a feeling that we are going to have A LOT of tomatoes and cucumbers in the next week or so!

The first green pepper of the harvest:

Look at how tall those tomato plants and the sunflowers have gotten!  I predict that the sunflowers will reach almost to the roof of the garage before they stop growing.

Almost ready to begin harvesting:

Lots of cherry tomatoes for the kids in a few days ...

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Steve took on a MAJOR wood project this summer and our little lumberjack was more than willing to assist every chance that he got.  He helped in splitting, stacking and even cleaning up the mess.

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We have been painting quite a bit this summer, and especially outside whenever we can.  The kids love this activity and I am grateful for an activity that keeps them entertained ... and me too!

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Celebrating Papa's 69th birthday at our house this month:

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An idea that I saw online in honor of Shark Week:

Gluing the teeth on the shark:

Concentrating on getting the eyes glued in place:

The final creations (in front of the massive pile of wood):

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In less than a month, the kids will return back to school (and me back to teaching a few nights a week), so we are soaking up the last remaining days of our break.  We are relishing the later nights and lazy mornings, while also planning our back-to-school shopping and book-bag washings.  It seems like the summer has just passed us by, but when I look back on these memories, I am happy that we were able to do so much.

4th of July - 2017

Every year, our neighborhood hosts a HUGE 4th of July celebration; it is probably one of my most favorite things about this place.  The community and the neighbors are so wonderful.

The day begins with a parade to the park that the kids have always chosen to partake in, followed by refreshments and activities.  Later, there is a potluck at the park and fabulous fireworks over the lake.

This year was a little different for us because the girls had a sleepover at Aunt Deb's house the night before.  So, Steve quickly picked them up at 9:00 am and rushed home so that they could change and be ready for the parade.  It was kind of a rushed affair for us because it was unclear which of the kids actually wanted to partake this year.  Sam was undecided (it IS a long walk) and if nothing else, we could just join in as the parade went past our house and follow them to the park.

I threw a few streamers onto bikes/scooters/the wagon (again, less preparation than any years in the past), snapped a picture of the kids, lubed everyone with sunscreen ... and we were off!

Look at those blue eyes!

Two sisters, two years apart in age and worlds apart in their personalities.

Ready to go!

Sophia and Jack went on ahead of us and joined in the parade.  Eventually they caught back up with us, and Jack was quick to inform me that the horn on the fire truck was way too loud!  It was.

While we were waiting for the middle kids, Sam took a quick patriotic picture for me.

Here comes Sophia!

And Jack!

Even Jimmy was riding in style ...

At the park, the girls met up with our neighbor.

A favorite activity every year is the cupcake decorating.  I think that Sophia consumed at least three of them while we were there.

Face-painting and tattoos.

I couldn't imagine that Jimmy would sit still long enough for the face-painting, so he got a sticker instead.  And then he found Sam's sunglasses.  Cutest thing ever.

Jack was rarely in one spot long enough for me to take his picture, but he had just as much fun with the face-painting, cupcake decorating, water games and sand castle building.

Jimmy's favorite thing though was the balloons; he confiscated them early on and managed to only pop one the whole time that we were down there.

Eventually, James and I headed back home for a rest (Jimmy, not me), but not before I managed to take a quick selfie of us together.  I couldn't love this little boy any more than I do.

Happy birthday, America!

James is Seventeen Months Old

James is 17 months old today and is in full "toddler tornado"mode.  He is quick as lightening and moves from one mess to another ... keeping me completely on my toes.  We often remarked that Jack was a handful (after going from two girls to a boy), but Jimmy has him beat!  He watches his older brother and attempts to do everything that he does and he is doing it at an even younger age.  He doesn't ever intend to be troublesome; he just has a busy and inquisitive (and fearless) personality.

His shirt says it all:  He does run things.

His consistent two-nap-a-day schedule limits us on many activities and his short attention span right now prevents us from staying at any one store for too long.  If we eat out at a restaurant, I try to make it one where we can order our food and receive it quickly because he expects to eat once he is in his high chair.


We have spent quite a lot of time at the beach this summer, but only short trips at a time.  An hour is about all Jimmy is good for and then he quite literally starts heading for home.  He's not very subtle.

He only ventures into the water about a foot or so ... a little more, if coaxed.  And I am grateful for that.  The rest of the time, he spends sitting in the sand, playing with beach toys and wandering over to the playground.  Next year, he will be in a life-jacket exclusively.

We have put the stroller up high on a shelf in the garage and rarely (if ever) use it anymore.  Jimmy LOVES this wagon (best investment ever from last summer) and obediently remains in it whenever we take it for walks.  And we do that often!  It folds up and rides with us in the van too.

Jimmy is both a momma's and a daddy's boy.  He loves his momma for anything inside-related (getting him snacks, rocking him, etc), but if his daddy is around, he knows that Steve will take him outside and let him do all of the rough-and-tough things that he likes.  He definitely says, "daaa-deee" more than "momma."

Jimmy's hair is so blonde and his eyes are so blue.  Many people have asked me if he is our only blond-haired child and I laugh because ... Sophia and Jack were just as blonde when they were little (and Steve was too!).