Pools, paint, and the start of fall…

"By all these lovely tokens September days are here, With summer's best of weather And autumn's best of cheer."
-Helen Hunt Jackson

This was a short work week thanks to the Labor Day holiday and we spent the day at Nina and Papa’s to get what may be the last swim session in of the year as summer fades into Fall.  James spent most of his time with boats and bubbles, while Ashlyn kept us sucking in our breath as she did flips off the side of the pool and the diving rock. 

Despite the official start of Fall, summer wanted us to enjoy one last hot Saturday.  So instead of playing outside we stayed indoors to paint and make cookies.  That didn’t stop James from doing a little yard fishing though.

Isla is still in the stage where she is either sleeping, pooping, or crying.  Everyone loves her when she is asleep.  She gets passed around a lot when she’s awake.

The weather was much better on Sunday and Ashlyn was happy to show off her basketball skills to PePa.  She’s doing really well at it, which makes me think she did not get Daddy’s coordination.  James on the other hand may have inherited it, which is why he can’t run more than 3 feet without falling or running into something.

After nap it was time to get messy and play in the water.  This was followed up by going to straight to the bath.

Aggies and aquariums…

"Don't paint your bodies with your food!"
-Mom

There are certain phrases that you don’t expect to hear when you sign up for having children, and “Don’t paint your bodies with your food” is definitely on the list.  The admonishment was well deserved however, and I have the evidence to prove it.

I have little to say about this next group of pictures, other than Kitty does not like babies laying on her, James thinks boxes are funny, and both the kids are fruit-aholics.

Aggie football started this week!  The kids got all dressed up and we had some fun teaching James the proper way to “Gig’em”.  The mojo worked and the Fightin’ Texas Aggie handedly one their opener against #9 South Carolina.

As Isla reaches her 1 month anniversary on  planet Earth, she’s beginning to spend more time on the play mat.  This has resulted in an entertainment opportunity for the kids although it usually ends up with Isla fussing and Ashlyn shoving a binky in her mouth.  Still, it’s good bonding time for the three kids so I won’t complain.

We took the kids to an aquarium this weekends to get them out of the house and educate them a little bit on what lives in the the ocean.  The kids had a lot of fun with it, they especially liked the parts where you can stand on top of the glass and look down into the water.  Ashlyn also had a lot of fun in the play area, which was a special thing because it was the first time she ran up and down to the top floor of a play area.  In the past she’s been too shy to do it and it looks like she’s get braver as she gets older.  James was too small to climb up to the top, but that didn’t stop him from having fun on the bottom floor.

Babies, grandparents, and corn on the cob…

"If you want to do really important things in life and big things in life, you can't do anything by yourself. And your best teams are your friends and your siblings."
-Deepak Chopra

I expect the next few weeks worth of blog posts to be more pictures and less words, primarily because time and sleep are fleeting around here.

We haven’t seen any true regression yet from either kid, but that didn’t stop them from jumping in the baby seat and pretending to be the baby.

It’s hard to tell what’s going on as you look at these pictures of the kids eating corn on the cob.  Most people simply eat it, these kids look like they are attacking it.  I really don’t know what to tell you other than they really like corn on the cob.

The kids got to see all the grandparents this weekend, starting with PePa.  We ate breakfast, played outside, and Ashlyn helped make peanut butter cookies.

The kids swam in the morning and in the afternoon, despite the heat they were outside more than inside.

Grandma and Grandpa weren’t able to see the kids in person, but thanks to the wonders of modern technology they were able to chat with the kids on the tablet via Skype.  James loves Skype and always wants to chat with them on it.

Nina and Papa came came by in the evening and the kids had fun playing with the silly putty they brought over.

And after a fun weekend full of swimming, grandparents, and lots of baby diapers, it’s time to sleep.