Corpus Christi

We went to Sam's parents house for the Memorial weekend and it seemed a little like camp without the rules. Sam's Dad had surgery last week due to his lung cancer, so he tried to lay low, but managed to encourage late bedtimes and popsicles before dinner. We had long, relaxing days spent entirely in our swim suits, just how I like to spend a summer weekend.

Visit from Lovie

My mom came for almost 2 weeks to help out and get some time in with the girls. It's always a happy day when we get to pick up Lovie from the airport. We all love our time together!
We also had a great visit with Gigi!

Big big slide

Sam got the play pool (that Grace has called the big big slide since she was 2) down from the attic for the first swim of the summer. It always makes the weekend entertainment easy.

9 months

Charlotte loves to smile and laugh. She does her best to keep up with her sisters, and is a tough and patient girl, putting up with a lot of noise and rough play for a 9 month old. She now has 4 teeth and a healthy appetite. Her crawling is getting stronger and faster, and she is starting to pull up to her feet. I love holding my happy, squishy baby!

Log Cabin Village

We went to the historic Log Cabin Village today. The girls dressed in bonnets and aprons for a story about Laura Ingalls and they learned to make pew dolls in a schoolhouse. Each cabin in the village is set up museum-style as if a pioneer currently lives there, with the exception of one, where the visitors are encouraged to play. Thankfully I brought a picnic lunch, because Grace and Madeline ended up playing there half the day. Madeline really liked bringing the wooden eggs from the caged chicken coop into the kitchen and pretending to cook them. Grace was doing her best to grind coffee by hand and turn a basketful of wool and cotton into yarn.

New zucchini

I recently bought Grace a few new swim suits, and one of them is a 2-piece. As we were leaving the store, she told me she was really happy to have her new suit with the boobie-holder. I laughed and told her it's called a "bikini." The first warm day after that, when it was time for cooling off in the hose, she ran out in her new "zucchini!" I thought it was so cute I didn't correct her, so we'll see how long she calls it that.

Happy Birthday Madeline

Madeline turned 2 today, and all I kept thinking about all day was that she JUST turned 1! We invited a few of her friends to her backyard party, and with all their siblings, we ended up with 13 children and 9 adults at her party. Despite the rain forecast, we had perfect weather. Pin-the-nose-on-the-lion, the pinata, glazing animal cookies, the bounce house, and sandbox kept them occupied...and most important, Madeline had a lot of fun!