Summer is Officially Underway!!!

We are loving mornings outside...sleeping in...wearing out jammies til noon...

Isn't that some of the nicest parts about summer? We just get to a point where we don't want a schedule and we bask in the freedom of being able to be spontaneous and go where the wind blows! Here are just a couple of glimpses of the early days of summer! I love seeing the flowers bloom...Karys and Gracie were SOOO excited to get out and water the plants that our neighbor Dave planted for us last fall! It is so interesting just to see the new roles and activities that the girls are doing on their own. They are becoming more and more independent all of the time and just more capable of doing things themselves. It is interesting to see where I fit in that, they don't need me to do certain things for them anymore and they want to do them on their own...I am excited to see the new things we can find over the summer that they will want my help with and new discoveries that we will make together! Look at how big my baby is! I think that is her only pair of jammies that fit....and she just got them for her birthday last month!Addyson discovering the riding toys! Karys got a new bike...the other one we had found on a garage sale and one of the training wheels was so worn down that she was starting to ride crooked all the time...we thought if she was going to learn to ride correctly we better get her a bike that sat up evenly ;) She was super excited!The girls also loved the FREEZING cold water that often filled our little pool in the back yard. They had a great time splashing in it, washing all of their kitchen dishes and doing swimming lessons with their babies!The sprinkler provided lots of fun! They would run through the sprinkler then jump into the pool and splash around a little ;)It started to get pretty chilly after a while...But they were having TONS of fun doing it!Yay! for sunny days and fun with waterGrowing up, I always remember how much fun we would have with the sprinkler under the trampoline so I suggested it to the girls...they weren't quite so sure right away, but once they realized what it entailed....THEY LOVED IT!The girls had so much fun with the sprinkler and played for over an hour on the trampoline just laughing and bouncing around! I love the laughter of summer :)We also had TONS of fun at the pool!!! Addy loved just hanging in the shallow end, playing with toys, and splashing around!The girls LOVE the pool as well! They are just becoming so much more outgoing when it comes to playing with other friends and venturing out on their own!Tea party for everyone!!!Also took advantage of having the girls around and giving them jobs to help out with. They really do (most of the time ;) love to help out and it has been fun to find the jobs they like best and watch them get things done.Who knew emptying the dishwasher could be fun!

The Season We Are In...

After Addyson turned 1, I stopped nursing and she started on whole milk. With the girls drinking 2%, myself drinking skim and Addy on whole we are now a 3 types of milk family...Just a crazy though and a "season" that I wanted to document =)We are also in a season of having a 5 year old...that seems like such a distinct age to me...one last summer before she is off to Kindergarten and I lose her for 2/3 of the year. I happened to win a drawing at one of our last MOPS gathering for a free silhouette that a local photographer, Vanessa Bartels, was promoting. It was so perfect! What a great opportunity to capture Gracie at this age with her profile, her long hair...I LOVED IT!!!I am definitely thinking this will be a tradition I continue with the other girlies as well!She looks so grown up...has her own sense of style, her father's organization, and her momma's passion for her younger sisters. This little lady is a BLESSING to our family and I pray that we can enjoy the summer with her and delight in the little girl God is growing her to be!Karys wanted to get on the photo action too! She is a crack up and brings us SOOOO much JOY! She is feisty from time to time but has a zest and a fire for life. She is dramatic and filled with expression and tells AMAZING stories and engages an audience ;)

Olivia's Surprise Visit!

The Wednesday before Addyson's birthday we headed over to Meika (a girl in our youth group) grad party. I was so tired that day and I remember not dressing up much for it and wearing my glasses even...I was kind of spacing out, but as soon as I came in the door a blond blur came into the left side of my vision field and it was moving toward me at a very rapid rate. OMWord it was OLIVIA!!! She had come to surprise Meika for her graduation as well as to pop in and say hi to us! It was SOOO good to see her! She was even able to come and hang out for the afternoon during Addyson's birthday party and afterwards took the big girls to the park with Meika and myself ;)After the group picture was taken and people started to head out after Addy's party, Olivia and the girls ran back to the house to get ready to leave for the park!First stop--the swings!!! Babies and allGracie was so proud that she was standing on the wobbly platform and wiggling all by herself without falling over!The wooden park has some great spots to hide during hide and seek....found the ladies all cuddled together ;)Doing the wobbley-whoopsy together ;)Meika and Liv...the two are actually going to be reunited when Meika heads out to APU next fall!!! SO EXCITED for her to experience that!Peek-a-boo! I see an elephant looking at me!The girls loved having Olivia help then do everything! Especially taking turns going up the rope wall...first Gracie...Then Karys JOY...So happy to hang out again! WE MISSED HER!One last picture before we left the park....look at all the SMILES!That was not the end of the fun though! Olivia treated us to SLURPIES! The girls had never had them either so they were really excited!Gracie even gave Addyson a taste when we got homeAll of us with Olivia before she had to head out. I don't think we ever even got this picture all together when she was with us beforeThen it was time for her to go....Meika and Liv had more things on their to do list while she was here. So we gave kisses and hugs and talked of making plans to see each other again soon.Karys' turn for some kissesAddy jumps in for some cuddles, she looks so serious...But soon was full of laughter!!!
Thanks so much, Olivia for spending some time with us!!! It was SOOOO good to see you and just catch up! You were with us during a unique and busy season...but we were blessed by our time with you and love you lots!

Addy Grace is "1"!!!

We had a big birthday bash for Addyson on May 29th....the BIG 1!!!!! I was so happy with the cake that Sara Crane made for her and my friend Neleigh's sister made her the most adorable black and red tutu with matching hair bow! It was just so much fun! She got in her nap right before the party and actually woke up while ppl were starting to get their food....the timing was PERFECT! She dug into her cake more than Gracie did but not near as hard core as Karys :) Enjoy the pics from the day!All the little girlies gathered around for lunchAll set and ready to dig into the cake...not quite sure what that means though ;)Starting to catch on but Daddy thought she needed to really get involved!You know what is coming next don't you?!?!?!The "favorite playmate" of the day!!!! OLIVIA!The end result...Me and the birthday bug....she got the bow off already ;)Sweet chickie!Karys swooped in on that new baby so fast! She was definitely excited to see Addy get one of these ;)I'M ONE!Everyone all together...decked out in their red, black and white!