Summer Days!

I can't believe summer is half over! Where has the time gone?!?

This summer has been full of a variety of activities. In June, I painted our kitchen. . .like most projects it turned into a bigger project than I expected. However it is done and I love it. The color is beautiful and now I'm trying to find the perfect color for the living room and also the motivation to take on the HUGE job of painting the living area! I also have been busy with my 90-day Bible challenge and am leading a small group with that study. It's been a challenge, but we are past the halfway point and hopefully I'll be able to finish by the end of the 90 days!

The girls and I have been working on our tans- not on purpose but all three of us are definately have gotten darker! In the mornings, we have been running. The girls love the jogging stroller and are such troopers! Lately we have adding cycling which the girls also love since it is much faster! Some days we bike/run to the park and it is a win-win for all three of us! Our backyard kiddie pool has gotten its use, as well as the girls play cars and bikes. I love hanging out in our backyard with our big trees- it allows us to hang out outside when it is hot! I can't wait until next year when our grass is green and soft! Miss Pumpkin has been able to take gymnastics this summer. She LOVES it! She is such a good listener for her teachers and enjoys showing off her new moves when she comes home! I think we will skip soccer this fall and keep her in gymnastics!

We went to Monterey a few weeks ago (that blog will be coming), and our cousins from Kansas are currently visiting! We have a few more trips planned, more home projects, and swim parties! This last month of vacation is going to be busy, but fun!

Just wanted to post a quick update! Pictures and more detailed blogs on the way!

End of Year School Program

I don't feel I can call it graduation since neither of my girls are really graduating. . .they are just moving rooms at preschool! Whatever you call it, Miss Pumpkin was in a program at preschool. Her class has been practicing for a few months for this program and I was so excited to see her perform again! At Christmas she did so great during her program I was shocked! I was always so shy as a kid and here is my little girl on stage singing her heart out and signing away! I may have a stage kid on my hands. . .or maybe a budding musician! Who knows! I love seeing her experience these new things and am curious which way she is going to go as she gets older!

Her age group sang two songs- Audio Adrenaline's "Big House" and then a song called "The Bug Song." Both were adorable! This time we had her and her cousin Nenna together so it was easy to get pictures! Miss Pumpkin did the best with "Big House" and then was kind of quiet during the bug song. She had a big smile on her face once she was on stage and loved waving at Mommy, Sydney, and her grandparents! She knew all the hand movements for Big House and always tells me when she hears it on the radio that it is her song. For the bug song, the kids all put on little antennae's. Pumpkin didn't sing the beginning of the song, but once she got going she knew her favorite parts and the hand signs too! It was adorable to watch her and Nenna look at each other and giggle while singing. (You'll see in the pictures that Nenna has to look down to Pumpkin and Pumpkin has to look up to Nenna!) After her performance, her and her cousin received flowers for all their hard work and we treated them to frozen yogurt. Such sweet girls! I can't believe that next year she will really be graduating from preschool!

Yup! She's 4 already!

So I'm a little behind. . . better late than never!

Miss Pumpkin turned four in May. She was soooo excited for her birthday this year. She had to wait for her cousins birthdays, her sisters birthday, and even her daddy's birthday to pass before it was her special day! We counted down the days until her birthday and she was soooo excited! She proudly tells everyone that she is four.

The day before her real birthday I made cupcakes to take to school for her friends. She had a fun afternoon with her friends and loved her cupcake- just sprinkles, no icing!

Then came the fun! This was her first "friend" party- we picked a few of her school friends to be invited as well as all of her cousins. Her buddy "N" was the only one who was able to make it. She was sooo excited when he came in the yard! Her party had a balloons and bubble theme. We had balloons that the kids could play with, bubbles for them to blow, a bubble machine that KK and Sweet Pea loved to dance in, and a huge wading pool of bubble solution that we attempted to make bubbles big enough to put kids in! (That was quite the experiment. . .I'm hoping to try it again since now I have a little experience!). I made her cake and attempted my hand at decorating it with candy ballons!

A few months back I found a Barbie PowerWheels jeep on Craigslist. We kept it hidden until her birthday. At the end of her party we brought her out to see it! She was sooo excited! A few driving lessons from her daddy and she was quickly driving around the backyard. She prefers to sit in the passenger seat since it has a working seatbelt! I will have to remedy that this summer! She is now able to drive her sister around the yard and I trust her. .. a little! I'm usually right close by to help it turn or to make sure she stops!

I think it was a great day. . .I hope one that she will remember bits and pieces of in the years to come! Such a special day with so many memories of her sudden entrance into the world. Amazing my little 15 ounce baby is four years old. She is such a fun spirit and still a snuggly little girl who can curl up on our laps!

Miss Sweet Pea

Miss Sweet Pea and her first "teacher" Miss G

Miss Sweet Pea wearing Mommy's heels!

Thoughts for Tuesdays!

Yesterday I got to sit and relax and just enjoy watching my girls play.  I unfortunately had the stomach flu over the weekend and yesterday I was just recovering on the couch.  So yes today I have to clean up the mess that was made yesterday, but I got to watch the silliness created by my girls.  I've said it before- I never imagined my girls would enjoy playing together at such young ages.  I had hoped our kids would be close in age so they could play, but they have played together since Sweet Pea was able to crawl!  Pumpkin has loved her since she was born and always is watching out for her (although now she watches to make sure Sweet Pea isn't taking her stuff!). 

Yesterday they found some suction-cup balls left over from Pumpkin's birthday party and had a blast throwing them on the sliding door and watching them fall.  They were giggling and just being silly.  I loved it.  If I can figure out how to load a video, I'll upload a little clip!  (its never as cute once I get the camera out!).  Yes the door now has marks on it, but it was worth it to watch them play!

Miss Sweet Pea has become quite the follower, while Pumpkin has become quite the teacher (although sometimes unknowingly!).  Pumpking LOVES to wear Mommy's shoes. . now Sweet Pea also tries!  She's only been walking a few months, so tried to wear my shoes isn't always the best idea!  Pumpkin also loves her baby dolls.  She spends hours dressing them, wrapping them in blankets, putting on diapers, and making little beds for them.  Sweet Pea isn't able to do all of that yet, but does wrap her babies in blankets and also makes beds for her babies!  It's adorable!  They both are the cutest little mommies with their strollers! 

Last week we had a fun night of baths in the kitchen sink!!!  Don't you love that my four year old still fits!! haha (yes it is a deep sink!)

Loving her bath in the kitchen sink!!

Silly bubble girl!

Loves to play with the running water!

I think it is a bad hair day!!!  (yes she has a bit of a black eye)

Photo Shoot at 4 years!

Miss Pumpkin had her four year old pictures on her birthday.  A little over a year ago, my sister told me about a friend of a friend who had a photography business out of her house.  The price was great and I decided to give it a try.  My first photo shoot was maternity pictures and I fell in love!  The photographer was great, it was priced right, and we had lots of time to play and make sure we got good pictures.  I have gone there ever since!  The photographer and I have become good friends and it has been fun to go to her throughout the year for my girls pictures.  Check out her website! Photo Shoot Photography

This was the easiest photo shoot I've ever had with my kids.  Pumpkin was ready and so smiley!  I have so many pictures to choose from its going to be hard to choose a favorite!  Enjoy!

OKAY. . .I'm struggling to get the web album to load. .. .check back in a bit and hopefully I'll solve the problem.. .. . Update- still struggling with the album, but I created the collage above!  Hopefully I'll get the album up soon!