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Nothing truly exciting is happening around here (sorry if some of you got excited from the title), but we do have some pictures! Now you’re glad you read this site, aren’t you?!
Asher has been really excited to talk on the phone lately. Gramma is his phone lady right now, but if anyone else wants to talk to him, I am sure he’d appreciate the call and the chance to chat.
He has also learned a very big boy thing…drinking out of a cup! I am happy to see another sippy cup phase done, for the most part. He does very well with using a regular cup, and he seems to be pretty proud of himself. He gets very dramatic about it, too…usually after he takes a big drink, he plunks his cup down, gets a big grin on his face, and lets out a very satisfying “Ahhhh!” like he’s just had the best ale of his life.
Yes, I realize these two photos are taken in the same location. I promise we don’t leave him in his chair all day. It probably is due to the fact that so much of our day is spent at the table, eating, that it’s a great place to take some pictures. I’ll try and vary my scenes from now on.
We have all been spending a lot of time outside lately, especially in the evening when Scott gets home from work. Summer is great to cook as much of the food outside as we can, and as Scott grilled the other night I took a few pictures.
The swing in our yard was one of the best toy ideas Scott had for the children (thank you honey!). They love it. Here they are, congregating in the “secret place” for a little meeting. Who knows what they were discussing…fairies in the pine cones? Turtles by the fence? Rabbits in the garden?
Summertime has also meant another fabulous perk to living in a neighborhood…the pool! The children have done great this year in the water, and I am very glad.
Who knew that both water wings and a ring were necessary for a queen to relax in the cool water?
Asher did really well in the pool, and after awhile he walked around by himself with just water wings on. He has also discovered splashing. Our new summer pool motto: it’s much more fun to splash unto others than it is to splash thyself.
Brave Ivy took off her water wings and practiced going underwater. This really surprised me, as the whole underwater adventure was all her own idea. I watched her like a hawk, but she did just great. We are thinking swimming lessons for next summer…?
Our friends Eli and Dawn built a house, and this past Saturday they had a “yay-we’re-finally-done!” party to celebrate all of their hard work.
Isn’t it pretty? Wish I had taken pictures of the inside…she has done a really fabulous job at decorating. Maybe next time we’re out there, I’ll bring my camera and ask if I can flash a few inside.
Here is sweet Meg with the girls…they had a good time pal-ing around together.
I spotted a small gaggle of girls down by the woods, and I heard afterwards that there were tales of a kitten having wandered in to the trees. A few minutes after this picture was taken, Ivy bravely ventured a few steps into the enchanted forest, but I quickly called her out: someone had just warned me that poison ivy lurks in the darkness down there.
There was, of course, some homemade music, and Asher drifted towards the group and stood there for quite some time.
A little while later, the group migrated, and Asher silently followed.
On a completely different note:
:: this is one of the best lists I have read in a very long time. A list of “things that don’t make sense to me.”
:: this is one of the grossest things I have seen in a long time. Emily sent it to me, and I agree with her comment: “sounds scandalous to me…but what if it’s really good?”
:: I somehow found this store online, Tea Collection, and oh man. They design and make the most fabulous children’s clothes. Unfortunately I cannot afford most of it, but the designs are sweet and simple; I think I could copy a lot of it if I found the right patterns. I like this, and this, and this. Oh man, and this. This last one’s even better because I think I could swing the price tag.
:: I found this book at the thrift store, and when we got home I discovered that someone had colored in it (taking three children to the thrift store right before lunch does not afford one the luxury of thumbing through books at their leisure), so we can’t use it. But, it was really great. I would love to teach the children some basic art skills, and I found the book on Amazon. Along with a companion book. I think I’ll get both and add it to our repertoire for schooling this fall.
Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend. I am off with three dear friends tomorrow, for a mommy-only trip to the beach. It’s a super short drive, and we’ll be there about 24 hours total, but all of us are really looking forward to it! I will try to remember my camera when we go.
Turn up your volume. This made me laugh for a long time.
So how do you take a picture of the wonderful ceiling light that your husband so quickly and wonderfully installed for you
without getting a small monster in your face?
We watched Natalie and Olivia over the weekend so that John and Emily could spend a quiet evening together, and we decided everyone would benefit from a walk up the street. Charlotte and Natalie are just a few months apart, and we are thinking they will be lifelong friends.
Ivy pushed Olivia in the stroller and was such a big girl, helping Mommy.
So, notice Asher’s shaggy hair. Here is a good example. I knew this day was coming, and I was loathe to see it, but I knew it had to happen. We cut the beautiful curls off! (gasp, sob) Things like hair-in-the-eyes and my-what-a-pretty-girl were starting to happen, so after encouragement from Scott we gave it a shot.
Mommy, are you really going to use scissors??
He sat very patiently, like a little man, and sang and babbled to us as Scott and I maneuvered around, trying to figure out what we were doing.
Fortunately his hair is wispy and curly, so it was very forgiving. After a few touch-ups here and there, I am pretty pleased with the results.
He loved having these pictures taken. He seemed to know just what Mommy was doing, and he kept trying different poses after I would take each picture.
Don’t you just love the back of a little boy’s head, where his hair meets his neck? Sigh. We enjoy our little guy so much.
So who else thinks he looks like Uncle Chad in these pictures?
We sure do love you, Daddy. Happy Father’s Day…you are wonderful!
(Just a note…every time we ask Asher to say “I love you” to anyone, he fills in the last two-thirds of the sentence with “Daddy!” We wanted to try to get it on camera…)
Hello! Happy Friday!
I updated some settings on my sidebar…there are some new blog links in there now. Another to-do checked off of my list. Soon I hope to have a sidebar with a list of our favorite books we are reading that month, but that is for another day. Thank you honey! Sigh…he’s handsome and he knows his way around on a computer.
These pictures look so blue and cool to me. Which is nice, because it is very hot here. And very dry. Plus we are getting lots of smoke from the eastern NC wildfires, so it’s hazy and smoky too. Three very uncomfortable combinations, so we are inside for now.
My beautiful girls (and boy)…
At the thrift store today, a lady stopped and asked me what bin I picked these children from, because they were so beautiful and she wanted some! She shopped near us for awhile and kept looking at the children. To make things even sweeter, the children started chiming “Mommy! I love you!” Even Asher got in on the game: “Ma-mee! La lu!”
This morning, as I was brushing Ivy’s hair and asking about her night and how she slept, she said, “Last night I talked to Jesus, and I asked him to give me some dreams in the night. And he did. And I had some in the morning, too!”
A couple weeks ago we met Daddy for a picnic lunch at the IBM park that is near his office. There’s a really nice pond there, and room to run, with lots of picnic tables and shade trees. Very nice.
Charlotte is trying to keep Asher from running away. This pose didn’t last long.
Because we have been inside so much the past few days, I have been trying to think of some fun crafty/inside things that we can do together to while away the hours. Lately the girls have been begging to help Mommy with some type of cooking. The most exciting part is wearing the Aunt-Gail-Aprons (pictured in this post), and it’s all very cute.
The girls made some pudding,
and Ivy helped me make a pizza for dinner a couple nights ago.
Goat cheese and pepper pizza! Our favorite!
She even swept up the escaped mozzarella cheese bits off the floor. Sweet girl.
I also thought it would be fun to try and make these, and after a few tries it turned out okay! We ended up filling our balloons with beans instead of flour (picture flour puffing all over the kitchen whenever someone squeezed a half-filled balloon. Yeah.) and they are really fun. Asher runs all over the house with one in each hand, throwing them whenever he gets the chance.
Today we had some quiet play, and it was so…unusual! Each one was doing their own quiet thing. It lasted about 5 minutes, but I sat and watched this little guy snooze on the couch the whole time and I think it was the best part of my day so far.
Ivy looked at library books on the floor,
and Queen Charlotte played dress-up upstairs.
The weekend is looking pretty good so far. I have a baby shower to attend tomorrow, for a sweet baby boy who is due next month. I whipped this up in about 30 minutes, and I’m pleased with how it turned out. All ready for playtime!
Here is a short little movie, starring Little Man, for your viewing pleasure. I was trying to get him to say “Mommy”, because he walks around ALL day saying it over and over and over again. But the second I turned on the camera, he got shy. Ah well, it’s cute just the same.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
We got back this week from a stay at Oma and Opa’s house (Scott’s parents’), and we had a really nice time.
Notice Opa’s fairy sticker on his shirt. He read them this book a few times during our stay; it was a book that his mother had sent to them when Scott and his siblings were young. The book is in Dutch, so Opa translated. A “special book” indeed!
There are some fun wooden shoes that are kid’s sizes too, brought back from a trip to Holland many years ago. Asher found a pair that fit him perfectly, and Mommy just wanted to eat him up.
We did a lot while we were there. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera on the day we went to their beautiful beach, Hunting Island State Park beach, but it’s incredible there. You know those movies where the ship wrecks and everyone is stranded on a beautiful, deserted beach? Pretty close. I found a few pictures on Flickr. This one is pretty, and so is this one.
But, we had fun apart from the beach. Playing games (not just of the video variety), and the girls had a go at Mario Kart.
We went to the park by the river to play for awhile, and walk along the water.
Park babes.
We miss you all, Moonen family! We had such a fun time during our visit.
On Monday, Scott and I left for an anniversary trip to Charleston for one night. We had a splendid time there, also. It was so nice to relax, walk around Charleston, eat great seafood, and sleep in the most comfortable bed on the face of the earth.
Happy 8th Anniversary, honey. I love you.
Thank you for taking me on a little vacation. I had a really good time with you. You are wonderful and I am so happy you took my hand 8 years ago.
Here’s the entrance to the Inn where we stayed. Charming, isn’t it?
Here’s one of the windows in our room. I am loving that beautiful brick wall.
And a plant growing in our room!
The children stayed in Beaufort for the rest of the week, and Scott and I drove home to enjoy some time together. We are also getting many things done that are easier to do with just two of us! It is very quiet here, though. We miss our wee babes and can’t wait until they come home tomorrow.
Here’s to 80 more years of wedded bliss.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
We love our new girly flip-flops, Aunt Gail!! Thank you! Perfect for summer.
Now summer can begin. Bring on those 100-degree days. Starting tomorrow, actually. Haha.
