Summer Fun

I wanted to share a few fun pictures of our sweet ones enjoying their summer.

Z and B went out to our planter in the backyard to do a little work. Z decided that wearing a hat would be a great idea. So little B had to get a hat too of course! She marched herself into her room and came out with this one! The boys' mom had made it for her last winter. It is an adorable hat, but maybe not the best one to wear on a warm summer day. She wore it nonetheless.

A sometimes lets his imagination go completely wild. He is known for digging through his disguise drawer to see what character he can be next. This is my favorite of the summer. Instead of having a parrot on his shoulder, he settled for the next best thing! His other favorite costume is his new Superman cape with an orange "super hero" mask that we made out of an old t-shirt. He has written "SC" on the front which stands for Super C - the name of the super hero that he is pretending to be at the moment. Unfortunately, Super C does not like to have his picture taken so I have none to show you. Maybe I will be able to sneak one one of these days. :)

Another favorite activity for all three of our munchkins is bike riding! They were all out riding the other day. B thought that she was pretty big to be riding on the road (with Mommy right by her side). All of a sudden, B pulled her bike over to lay on its side. I was really confused until I looked at the driveway and saw that Z had also set his bike on its side to run inside for a quick drink. Little B was just doing what her Bubba did! Too cute!

Little B is in the middle of potty training. It is not a fun task for this mommy. I struggle with being too lax about it and then being uptight and not relaxed enough. She is showing signs of being ready, but then she doesn't! It might take us a while. I have been reading up on it and EVERYONE has a different opinion. I will let you know how that goes too! :)

Six Flags or Bust!

We had an absolutely amazing time at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom! There was something there for everyone!

Z enjoyed the "scary" rides. His motto was "The more times that I go upside down the better!" It cracked me up. His personality is very reserved and cautious, but take him to an amusement park and he goes crazy! :) He couldn't wait to be whipped around and flipped upside down. And of course mommy went with him on all of the rides. Daddy did too!

Our more cautious A did not want to go upside down. "Never in my life," he said! He also said that about a couple of fast roller coasters - no upside down parts, just fast! On the second day he decided to be brave and try one. My poor little man was VERY nervous (especially when we were next in line), but he did it! And he loved it! He was so proud of himself for going on a "big" roller coaster.

Little B loved everything! When we could see the roller coasters from outside the park she would yell, "There it is!" She loved the animals, the choo-choo train, the sand box, the butterflies, the swings, and the list goes on and on! She especially like being there with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle J, Auntie W, cousin K, cousin K, and baby I. She would go through the list several times each day! :)

M and I enjoyed ourselves so much! As a parent, there is nothing better than to watch your children have an absolute ball!

Now, we have one week at home and then we all go in separate directions. M is heading to Mexico with the high school group from church. They are going down to serve at an orphanage and he is really looking forward to it. Z and A have decided to stay at First Mommy's while B and I are heading to Oregon to visit Great Grandma and Grandpa. We will be splitting our time between Eugene and Brookings. I am really looking forward to this trip! We will update you when we all return!

Back to Normal?

What a crazy week! Little B had her surgery last Thursday and has just bounced right back! (I wanted to include a picture from right before her surgery. You will notice the wagon in the background that she VERY happily was wheeled away in.) Her voice is much higher and she is talking twice as much, but other than that things seem to be back to normal. What is normal anyway? :)

Today the kids were playing and playing and playing. We are so desperately trying to conserve gas, so we decided to stay home all day - except for a bikeride to Daddy's store to take him a homemade lunch. So, my children came up with ALL sorts of fun for themselves:

While I was sweeping and mopping, we put all of our chairs and stools in the entryway...hey, wouldn't that be a perfect place to set up a fort for our club? Z read the agenda for the day, "And today at 11 o'clock we will be celebrating National Nap Appreciation Day." Yes, he was making it up as he went along.

While I was giving B her "yucky" medicine, she decided to sticker herself and make funny faces. The boys followed her lead and made their own funny faces.

We played with cars, trains, bikes, and baseballs. Can you believe that we only had a few squabbles? And that was all over a few train pieces. Z was not willing to share (I didn't blame him) and B thought that it was nice to share! :)

We even had a dance party! I will attempt to post the video...what a kick in the pants! I realize that I say each of the kids' names on the video...I just choose to not have them in print. :)

On our bike ride, I had to stop rather abruptly at one point. My sweet A usually rides pretty close to me because we are "bike buddies" and bike buddies stick together A always says! Anyway, after we stopped A said, "Wow! I did not know that you were going to stop so suddenly!" Then he paused for a bit, "That was completely unexpected!" Another pause, "Well, I guess life is like that!" I love to experience A's serious conversations!



While doing all of these fun activities, we were also potty training! Little B went potty on the toilet many times throughout the day...she even went poo poo in the potty! (Her first time!) I do have to add that she also went potty on the floor a few times...not fun, but part of the process, right?



My amazing husband missed out on all of this fun because he was working hard for our family at the store. I am a blessed woman! When he arrived home this evening, we greeted him in the driveway, arms waving, voices shouting! Then we had to show him our dance party video! He was very impressed.

Independence Day

Another BBQ Potluck has come and gone. What a fun reason to celebrate and spend time with friends! The weather was absolutely gorgeous and we had a day without smoke too! We had about 40 people over to eat, play, fellowship, and eat some more! I wish that I had taken some more pictures, but I was too busy! :) After our celebration, we headed to a local park to watch the fireworks with friends from church. We played and played and played as we waited for the show...the fireworks finally started at 11pm! The kids thought that it was well worth the wait...little B was mesmerized by the pretty show. Yes, she stayed awake to watch them...she did fall asleep moments after getting into the car for the ride home. :)

The next day, my parents, sister, brother-in-law, and three ADORABLE nephews came to Chico for a play day! We had WAY too much fun! The picture is of little B feeding her youngest cousin. She thought that it was much better than feeding her dolls (although she loves to do that too)!

We pray that you all had a wonderful Fourth of July too!