A mattress and ducks…

"If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, we have at least to consider the possibility that we have a small aquatic bird of the family anatidae on our hands."
-Douglas Adams

The older mattress that was going to be used in Isla’s room after she graduates from the crib was getting old and a new one was purchased.  As we expected, as soon as the mattress was on the floor it became a temporary trampoline.  Only one child was injured (temporarily) and we got some fun pictures out of it.  It is now in Isla’s room waiting for her as soon as she’s ready.

Ashlyn’s Kiwi crate arrived and this month it was a water wheel that pulls a boat.  The kids had fun putting it together and enjoyed watching it work when they poured water down the wheel.

We took a trip to Bedford Boys Ranch Saturday morning before it got too hot after we learned there were a crazy amount of ducks hanging out.  The reports were very accurate, there were ducks everywhere and they had very little fear of humans.  James wanted to take his fishing pole so we got to practice casting for a bit in preparation of the time we put on a real hook.

These next pictures make me happy.  Ashlyn was practicing hand stands and wanted to put on a leotard.  Isla wanted to practice like her big sister and it turns out she’s just now big enough to wear Ashlyn’s first leotard.  It’s natural for some kids to show a little jealousy when their younger siblings begin using things once theirs, but that wasn’t the case here.  Ashlyn though it was great and the two sisters enjoyed some quality time together.

Parties and bears…

"In a world gone bad, a bear - even a bear standing on its head - is a comforting,
uncomplicated, dependable hunk of sanity."
-Pam Brown

Its birthday season apparently as both the kids got invites to a birthday party at Parr park this weekend.  Luckily it was for the same party so both the kids got to run around the park playing with their friends while the parents did their best to stay in the shade.  It’s hot!

Isla is at that stage where she’s developing rapidly.  We always though she was saying more than we can understand, but now she’s stringing together 7-8 word sentences fairly regularly with enough pronunciation to make out the words.  She’s also becoming much more assertive.  One morning this week she decided that she simply could not leave the house without her posse.  She organized them, selected the best candidates for the trip, and then made a final selection of mostly teddy bears.

We have a budding photographer in the house.  Can you guess who it is?

Getting ready for school is normally a crazy, non-stop, and rushed activity.  Every now and then the world gets quiet and siblings enjoy each other company over a bowl of cereal.  It doesn’t last long of course but you have to enjoy it while it happens!

A quiet week and a birthday…

"Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability."
-Sam Keen

This was a slow week for pictures.  Pokémon Go has invaded our house and we made several forays into parks and shopping areas to hunt down Pokémon.  Ashlyn and James are both hooked, and I suppose I can’t complain since it has them interested in getting outside and exploring areas they wouldn’t have otherwise gone to.  When the heat got too much, the kids were inside making forts and playing with Playdoh. 

Papa’s birthday is Monday so we stopped by to wish him a happy birthday and so the kids could work out some energy in the swimming pool.  Papa bought some remote control boats which the kids had fun with, then we swam, ate pizza, made fruit salad, and generally had a fun time.  Happy birthday Papa!

A weekend of parties…

"When everything is going really well, every day is like I'm at a birthday party."
-Kirstie Alley

It was a weekend of birthdays, the most important of which was Nina’s.  We visited on Saturday to wish her a happy birthday and to let the kids swim for a bit.  A storm warning ended the swimming a little earlier than the kids would have liked, but they made the best of it by giving Nina cards and presents they had made for her.  Happy Birthday Nina!!

Ashlyn went to a birthday party for a friend at a trampoline park and had a great time bouncing on the walls and into the foam pit.  We may need to make a trip out there with James and Ashlyn at some point as it seemed to be fun for the kids and worked out some energy.

As a break from all the swimming and festivities we decided to break out the inflatable pool in the backyard and cut up some watermelon.  It was good we had a pool handy because they all needed to be rinsed off after the watermelon.

Happy 4th of July!

"Somehow the Fourth had its quiet moments, too, even for little feet and childish voices, and small hands stole into each other as we sat looking at our fire-works with a sense that independence was a fine thing to declare."
-Lucy C. Lillie

The two girls have become more helpful in recent weeks.  The younger likes to help because she hasn’t learned it’s not fun to do chores yet.  The older has learned the art of bargaining, as in “If I fold and sort this laundry can I have a pony?  No?  I’ll do you a favor and fold this laundry for a candy making set then”.  James will participate for approximately 30 seconds and then wander off to make a mess somewhere.

It was a special 4th of July weekend this year because Uncle Scott was in town.  We headed over to Nina and Papa’s Saturday afternoon and swam with the family.  The kids crashed pretty hard after a day filled with swimming, hot dogs, fruit salad, and chasing Uncle Scott around.

We woke up the next morning to something unexpected and a little unsettling:  Papa in white tights.  It turns out it was part of a red, white, and blue outfit but it took a few moments to process.  Once we got past it we had a great time in the neighborhood parade where the kids got to pet animals and eat popsicles.

Back at the house the kids still had more energy so we bought some paint and encouraged them to make some 4th of July drawings.  Instead, they decided to paint Isla.

Happy 4th of July everyone!