Gearing up

I dug out a few things to get into the spirit for this week's upcoming holiday. The girls sported some heels (still in their jammie's) and had a parade around the pool this morning. We are looking forward to more steamy weather for the week; and we've already been in the pool for hours on end the last 8 days.
Keep bringing the heat!

New headwear

We're hoping to avoid excessive green hair this summer, so we have some new headwear to sport :)

Technically, Regan just thought it would be cool and Sidney followed suit. I on the other hand would like to swim laps without getting tangled in hair not to mention avoid multiple dates with my curling iron on a daily basis.

Aren't we cute?

Man those things are tight!? We all looked a little silly. Regan wa the only one to keep it on all night. Well, until it popped off as Ryan tossed her from the diving board, but that's another story.

Best Friends

Twenty years ago I met the best friend a girl could ask for. And our friendship grows stronger each year. We've multiplied a bit, and getting together is often a bit louder and more chaotic than it used to be but I wouldn't change it for the world! 

This weekend, Kari and the kiddos came up for three days of fun! The kids couldn't wait to hop into the pool Friday morning, just begging even though it wasn't even 10am. Little did we realize just how easy it was going to be, and that by putting water wings on the youngest two, all of them were completely safe and independent floating around. 

Which meant we were left on the pool deck taking silly pictures of ourselves when we weren't in the pool playing around. 

Not to worry, we had 3 very attentive lifeguards watching over the kids while we acted like 15 year olds with a camera. 

William was NOT going to drown this weekend. Noodles, water wings and a kick board. Oh yea, and a floating shark...he was definitely safe!

Sidney was in and out a lot, as per her usual. She stole my sunglasses and made silly faces for the camera. I'll take whatever I can get out of this sweet-over-the-top-full-of-attitude 3 year old. 

The kids played in their pajamas all Saturday morning until they changed directly into swimsuits. They stood next to our fence, watching the neighbor play lacrosse/fetch with the dog.
Talk about cheap entertainment. 

But when you take 5 kids, mix in a lot of sun, 7+ hours in the pool each day, and no naps, you get a little drama. Especially from the girls who all managed to get themselves into break times this weekend. 

But when we were happy, we were all smiles, chatting away, stealing my lawn chair spot and having a wing-ding of a time. 

Boy o boy did we find some fun. From playing "mermaids" to "races" to practicing "diving", it was a full weekend. 

Oh yes, and let's not forget some fun water balloons! We quickly taught the kids to toss the balloons on the grass near their target which proved not only to be less deadly (fewer red welts on bellies), it also was more productive as they popped on contact. 

Come back any time guys!! We love having you!

Happy Father's Day 2012

Father's day 2012 started out with a relaxing trip to Lake Harriet for a picnic lunch and streetcar ride. I documented it via pictures of course, so here we go.

The girls just love to dance around inside the bandshell overlooking the lake. They were able to do just that before lunch when the band arrived to set up for their next show.

We laid out our blanket and hung out, taking in life around us. Thankfully, the girls are still at an age where it's "cool" to be seen with your parents :)

Sidney's expressions can tell a story. She shows happy and joy as quickly as she shows disappointment and fear. Today, she spotted a crane sitting near a duck and screamed "LOOK!! it's a huge duck!". She was sooooo excited!

Love her.

Her snuggles up close to Ryan were priceless. Lately, he has started to tell me "I think she finally likes me!". In all honesty, she has loved him all along, but her preference is mom. She's starting to warm up to him and one night even asked him to put her to bed....though a few minutes later asked me to go through the process again :) We'll take what we can get!



 I was so busy taking pictures of Ryan with the girls that when we boarded the streetcar, I finally asked for one of me with the girls.

 We hope he had a lovely Father's Day hanging out with us (and for the record, he golfed yesterday so he said he wanted to spend today with us....awww, what a nice guy!).



An afternoon with family

It was a fun afternoon hanging out with Ryan's family; I'll let the pictures tell the story: 

Finding fun

I took the girls to Como today in hopes of wearing them out, giving them some fun and having good girl bonding time. They've been struggling with getting along over the last several days and the dreary weather hasn't helped. I opted for a more structured day and my plan worked perfectly, until upon arriving at Como we discovered the ride area was having internet problems. Plan B, take in the Conservatory and Zoo first before heading to rides. 

What a wonderful day :)  

 (oh do I love the two pictures below. they really depict how the day went. just look at their expressions!). 

A few days at home

Our summer daycare program starts next week, so in the meantime, I've had some extra time to hang out with the girls. It's been a dreary few days which has bummed me out, but we're finding things to do. 

Every morning, Sidney wakes up and gets dressed up with heels and accessories. 

And when there was a break in the lighting, the girls headed outside (until we realized it wasn't exactly a break and the bright flash in the sky had us taking cover!).  

I've worked on a Pinterest hairdo with a lovely 4 foot model and absolutely love it! Now if only I could get it to stay put for greater than an hour.....more bobby pins I think. 

And tonight we were able to enjoy a night out with Paul while he was in town for unfortunate circumstances. I think you can tell by the look on Ryan's face how happy he was to see his buddy again. Boy we sure miss Paul and his family living in Germany.

Tomorrow brings more adventures, and hopefully some warm/dry weather. 

Heat, sun and humidity

It's been a lot of fun in the sun this weekend. Today was no different as we hung out, swam and soaked in the sun and humidity. We were joined with some great friends providing excellent company! 

We are minus the oldest in the picture below, sweet gal was camera shy. 

 I found some water balloons today and although it's a pain in the rear to fill them, the kids just LOVE them! I can't fill them fast enough....it's technically the tying that is most difficult. 

 The girls tend to get a little too close while throwing them at each other. Regan can toss it pretty hard and slap her sissy square in the face. Thankfully they both tend to have so much fun that no one notices! 

All in a day's adventures

Today is was mostly just me and the girls. So after a quick errand, we spent the rest of the day just soaking up the sun and in love with our time together. I took the girls to a local climbing park and watched them get all sweaty.....and then run through the misters! 

Sidney looked so adorable, not to mention skinny and with incredibly long legs, today in her one piece outfit. I just couldn't get over how long her legs have gotten. She's definitely hit a major growth spurt and outgrown not only some clothes, but also an entire shoe size! 

 Unfortunately, our sweet Sid was up early today and needed desperately to nap. So while she did that, I got some extra sun with Regan. She looks like she's 6 going on 26 in this picture below. 

 We invited her BFF over for a swim and this picture just makes me smile. These two simply love to spend time together and the sheer delight in their expression speaks volumes! 

 Eventually, I was feeling the heat throughout my body and I think the girls were too. We opted for painting and play dou as we rounded out the day. I can't wait for tomorrow, hopefully it will be more of the same! 

A peak into Kindergarten

When the girls were little, I would take weekly and monthly pictures of them. I even created little signs to set next to them. I caught some grief with all the pictures I took, but when I learned that Regan's Kindergarten class was doing a similar project, I think it proves what a great idea monthly pictures can be.

A twist on "taking" pictures, Regan and her friends drew pictures of themselves; self-portraits so to speak. Each month, lovely Mrs. C had the children draw a picture of themselves. I love how Regan draws, and this just shows the transformation over the last 9 months. I think my favorite part is that she sees herself as a happy, smily wonderful little girl.

Mrs C also had the children write their names each month. It's incredible to see how much she has improved with printing.

That's a wrap!

Today officially marks the end of the school year. 

We now have a first grader! 

How in the world did that happen so fast? 

I think the picture on the left tells a thousand emotions, just look at her nervous hands, her sweet innocent and apprehensive smile. 

As I wrote one last thank you message to her lovely teacher this afternoon, I teared up thinking how much I am going to miss kindergarten. You know, where everything is all lovely and cozy and wonderful. 

Today when Regan and I snuggled up and talked about her last day I asked her how she was feeling. Her response: "sad". I prompted her to continue and she said just what I was feeling: "I'm sad because I will miss  my teacher". 

She came home to this gigantic sign plastered against the garage door....yes, I got a little carried away with end of the year fun. 

 It was a wonderful June afternoon and to celebrate a few extra hours together, I took the kiddos into the pool... and watched Regan tip over countless times on this piranha.
Later she looked at the box, and said "hey mom, it says 'no-tip', but it should say 'it will tip'!! 

I love that this little girl can read now. Love love love it! 

 And she's pretty excited about all that she has learned too. Welcome to summer sweetie, you've earned it!