Summertime fun continues! Here's what the kids have been up to... Easy Bake!

Rainy day puzzles!

Being goofy.

Making pulleys (cat elevator).

Motorcycle ride with Uncle John! Thumbs up, dude!

Lighting floating lanterns.

Slip n Slide!

Tubing with dad at the lake in Uncle John's boat.

Watching mom go tubing (and totally wipe out)

Swimming in Grandma and Grandpa's pool.

A few days ago, Elsa asked to get her ears pierced. She'd previously been against the idea, so when she decided she was brave enough, we knew it was time. She chose her August birthstone, and was very proud that she didn't have any tears.

Happy Lila at 4 years old.

Late June we went to the Forest Lake farmers market on Kids Night. They had a band and free balloon animals for the kids. Lila got a kitty with a leash, Elsa got a monkey in a tree.

Our kittens are getting so big.

Here's a note from Elsa, letting me know where she'll be. It's vague, but I can assume it's whichever room of the house they're off to destroy next. :)

And this is where you can find me nearly every single night. Ahhhhhh.

Lila's 4th Birthday!

Today is Lila's 4th Birthday! Yesterday we had her party with family and she had a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who was there! Today we went to swimming lessons and used her new slip n slide. After Tim came home we went to Norman Quacks, the Forest Lake carnival, and the beach. Busy, fun, and HOT day. This year Lila requested a heart cake. Easy enough.

Lila wearing her new chef outfit to go along with her new Easy Bake Oven!

Lila ended up getting the same dress Avery was wearing! Not planned. (you can see her in the background).

Our annual tradition: the birthday pancake.

Technically she's two days old here, but look how tiny! This is the 4th of July, the day we came home from the hospital. We tried to hang out in the back yard for awhile but it was so hot. Luckily Tim had his guitar case out so I set her in that.

Sisters hanging out for the first time: "How long do I have to pose next to this thing?" :)

I know, lots of posts lately! That's summer for you. It's especially exciting and note-worthy being in the new house. Not to mention, this is probably the last summer/month/week/who knows, that I'll be home with the kids, so I'm taking lots of pictures.

We finally got the kids swing set over here from the other house. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Rieck! The girls missed it, and absolutely love being able to play on it again.
Lila: Woah, one handed! Woooaah! This is the first year she's wanted to go on a big-girl swing. She's slowly working on pumping her legs.
Seriously, look at this kid. She always takes the most gorgeous pictures when she's on the swings.

Check it out: a bird made a nest with 5 little eggs in my hanging basket! I don't know what kind of bird it is, but it'll be fun to get a chance to show the kids the babies when they hatch.

Love. I found the kids on my bed watching The Wizard of Oz, like this:

Turned the corner the other day and found this. I knew they were playing, but had no idea they were making such a mess... or that we had so many Barbies! We're apparently short on clothing, though.
Today I promised the kids a picnic at the park, but because of the rain we had a picnic on the floor instead. They liked it just as much, and after, we went and saw Madagascar 3 at the theater. They ate an entire bag of popcorn! I've never taken them to a movie by myself before. They're at a good age, so it worked out well and was really fun.

Summer has begun!

Elsa getting off the bus on her last day of Kindergarten!
I brought the kids to the all-school, end of year party. They had crazy hair, face painting, bouncy castles, dance party with dj, and tons of food and drinks, all free. The kids played in the playground for awhile, and I took a pic of the scene. This is just a quarter of it.
One of the things you could do was just... blow bubbles. They not only had bottles of bubbles, but a basket of bubble gum. Kinda different and simple, but the kids loved it.


Saturday was over 90 degrees, so we went to Rush City Water Park. We'd promised Lila we'd go once she stopped sucking on her fingers, and she has! I used that bitter nail polish, and to my surprise, it worked immediately. She had her fingers in her mouth about 80% of the time, so it was a huge habit to break. I never thought anything could break her of it, so it seems like a miracle! A very well-deserved day.
Elsa, Tim, and Lila in the little kid part of the water park. Special note to uncle John: the colorful cones on the right are the "cups that dump". :)

Here Elsa and I show off our muscles. The kids conquered the water slide! Lila was afraid at first, but by the end it's all they wanted to do.



Grandma and Grandpa went to Nebraska and got the girls some cute cowboy boots! They love them and wear them all the time, even in the 90 degree heat. Lila says,"It's too hot, I need a new dress!" I say,"No, you need to take off those boots!" :)

 


We went to a birthday party for friend Maddy on Memorial Day weekend. Lila took a swing at the pinata.

Candy chaos!

A good old-fashioned gunny sack race!



Cousin Avery came over last weekend and the kids danced and played.


Lila has gone from being afraid of the kitties, to being OBSESSED with them!


Here's a cute pic of Lila and George. He gets most of the love (and strangulation) because he seems to love it. Ringo is too smart and stays away. :)
 


Auntie Emma came over the other weekend and the kids showed her the kitties and played with water. We've had some HOT weekends recently.



We had a retaining wall that needed to be built since we moved in. The weather has finally cooperated and our awesome neighbor lent us his Bobcat, so here is the beginning. Tim took all the stones out of the foundation of the old barn last spring, and they've been lying in a pile ever since.

Here is the wall with the stones up close:

And here is the whole wall! I love it. The boys did an excellent job.


Elsa's other bottom tooth came out yesterday! Two teeth in less than a week. I'm hoping the new ones grow in soon, because the top two are loose, too! She's such a big kid now.

 Yesterday morning we went to the park in Osceola to have a birthday breakfast for Shane. The weather and food was great, and the river was beautiful. The kids liked wading in the water at the beach and got their clothes soaked. Afterward, we went back to grandma and grandpa's house and went swimming in the pool. It was such a fun weekend.
Cousins: Lila, Avery, and Elsa.

A visit from the Tooth Fairy

Monday night, Elsa lost her first tooth! She was working it all night, determined to get a visit from the tooth fairy so she could "get some cash"! Lila was very happy and proud and gave her a sweet hug.
Wasn't it just yesterday she got those bottom teeth?! The other one is super loose too, and will probably be gone within a couple weeks.