Monday, August 29, 2011

Sparkling Fourth

July was crazy hot around here.  We tried to keep cool while visiting family in Virginia for the fourth of July.
Thanks to some friends we were able to enjoy a less populated beach with mild waves for the little ones.
O was more daring in the water. W went in, but didn't go too far. He was happier playing in the sand.

The kids enjoyed building sandcastles, splashing, and of course, eating.
First time in sleeping bags. 
They were very excited about the whole experience. It took over 2 hours to go to sleep the first night!
This is how we found them a few hours later.
Another night.
They're getting better. At least they're sleeping on or under their sleeping bag.
A morning at the zoo with Daddy.
The dads took all the boys to the zoo on the same day the heat index topped 311...a scorcher.
Getting cool with little fountains.
On the same day, the dads then took the girls to the zoo. They got to play in larger fountains.
Talk about cooling off!
Uncle E swung the girls through the fountains.
Woo-hoo!
A lot of spraying going on at the zoo.
We were greeted with a massive thunderstorm shortly before fireworks. What was once a jam packed viewing area for fireworks, quickly became deserted. We were one of the few families who stuck it out, sat in wet chairs and had a great view over the water. It was chilly, but we had a fun time. The kids especially enjoyed flying their flags, marching around, and singing the same song over and over again.
America! America!
People slowly started to come back as we were waiting for the fireworks. After dusk, another thunderstorm rolled towards us.
We were hoping they would start the fireworks early before people cleared out again.
The sky grumbled and rain began to fall. They decided to start the show early. Awesome.
The bright colors shot into the air from over the water and it was fabulous. Short, but fabulous.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Three Year Old Gorilla

Can you believe it? The 'baby' of the family is now three years old; however, he's off the charts for height and weight. He's the size of the average four year old. He's only a few pounds shy of E, who is going on six! His shoe size is an eleven! He's a big guy, but his heart and mind are still very little. Life can be hard...to say the least.
 I should have trimmed his hair before all the pictures.
 He requested a dump truck cake with dirt (a serious passion of his). I try to please.
 Amazingly, he blew out all three candles in his first blow.
 He was very pleased with himself. Hey, we were all impressed and cheered for him.
 He loved his cake and couldn't wait to dig into that dirt.
 He licked his plate clean within a few minutes. This boy can seriously eat. I don't think he chews.
 Whoa...what a bunch of piggies. The cake was a hit.
 Surprising Big O with his gift of a work bench and tools.
He was excited before he even saw it!
 He loves it. All the kids love it. We definitely knew they would!
The next morning, O discovered the cupcakes that I had made along with his cake. He knew he shouldn't, but just as we were saying his name, he devoured the whole thing as quickly as he could.
Little monkey...I mean gorilla.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Show Time!

Before bedtime, E often performs her shows for us.
Miss E is spotlighting herself as she speaks into a phonics phone. She's welcoming us to the show and makes the following announcement: Um, welcome to the show. We have a great show planned for you. Before we get started, I want to tell you that there is no flash photography. If you do, the dancers will fall off the stage and get hurt. You can take pictures of me though. Everybody turn off your phones. We don't want any noises. Here's some flowers (passes them out) to throw at the dancers when the show is done. Enjoy the show!
Starting with dramatic dialog.
Disagreement with another character.
Break into song and dance.
The folks over on the side balcony are up close and personal.
A little ribbon dancing for affect.
Comic relief.
Intense dancing which evokes many emotions.
This is drama.
This was a good show.
As my brother in law would say...It was much better than CATS.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

We Love Daddy


Walkin' the Neighborhood

We've been walking the neighborhood more recently. At times, it's a leisurely stroll. Sometimes it's a power walk for exercise and lately we've let all three kids ride their bikes, which means a little of both.

Never ending fascination with storm drains.
Races around the court.
Look at that fierce power walk.
Readjusting shoes that are too small for his enormous Flinstone feet.
Miss E loves our walks.
She's gaining confidence on her bike. She will actually ride farther ahead and the hills don't worry her anymore.
She loves going around the neighborhood for her exercise, discoveries, and for using her imagination.
King of the mountain!