Bye Bye Baby

My little girl is officially into toddlerhood. Of course she had no clue about what was so great that day, but we still tried to make it fun. I had to visit teach that morning so J took the kids out for burgers for lunch. After nap we went to the pool. Fefe loves swimming so I thought it would be fun for her. We went to a different aquatic center this time and it was a terrible experience. Halfway through the toddler pool was closed because a kid pooped in it. Plus there was the usual 10 minute on the hour, everybody out of the pool routine. I don't know why they do that. It was terrible because I got in the pool with Fefe and 30 seconds later had to get out for that. The slide was fun, but they closed that 20 minutes before the free swim was up. I'm never going there again.

Fefe was in stuffed animal heaven when she opened all her presents. I've never seen a child so in love with stuffed animals (and other animals). Yesterday a dog was barking down the block and she really wanted to just go find it. We watched the Abyss last night and her favorite scenes were with the rat.

I copped out and made quick cupcakes for the treat. I don't know why I did that since no one in this house likes them. Fefe enjoyed the mike and ikes I put in the top though.

The following day we pulled out the toddler bed and took down the crib. She was excited to play in it, but when it came time for nap she was extremely upset. She cried through half of her first nap. Last night she protested a bit, but she finally just laid down without screaming, progress.

Double Occupancy

Last week our house was bursting at the seams with the visit of Uncle I, Aunt S and kids. It was a jam-packed week with no major mishaps :) During the week we managed to visit the zoo, Children's Museum, beach, eat Japanese, go to Out of this World and play at the park. S also ran with me in the morning. It was great to have a running buddy.

Uncle I loved the backdrop of the railroad tracks for some picture taking. I think this is the only publishable one I took:

The cousins:

We spotted this squirrel while waiting for the zoo train. Click on the picture for full effect, this squirrel definitely fits the obese category:

Everybody loves this part of Out of this World:

Extreme merry go rounding:

The sharks gathered around Aunt S for food:

Cute Baby:

Portrait of a Lady

Isn't she beautiful?

Loofa's Big Accomplishment

Look how happy he is!

The New Park

The kids have loved the new park in town. It isn't huge, but it has some unique structures I've never seen before. We took my niece with us when she came to visit. It was a really fun visit. Ephant was especially happy since we so rarely see her.

A Fabulous Fefe Summer

There were ups and there were downs.

She knows enough to put the strap around her wrist, but that is about it:

The results of falling backwards in a chair:

Bananas make some pretty funny faces:

I just thought this picture was funny:

Life Preservers

Some pictures from swimming lessons:

The last day of lessons the kids were able to do some fun games:

Fefe has a new fascination with walking around in the lifejacket:

Hagg Lake

Back at the end of June I took the kids to Hagg Lake for lunch and a swim. The mud there is really pretty gross, but the kids enjoyed sticking their hands it. Fefe didn't care much for the hosing off afterwards.

Fefe didn't care for how the mud tasted. It's amazing how oral she still is:

I wish I had taken this picture one second earlier when Brother B had his arm around Loofa:

I Know

It's been awhile since I've posted, but I haven't felt like it so I didn't force it. This'll be short and sweet.

A Spaghettio Nap

I've been neglecting the yard pretty heavily the last couple weeks because of the heat wave we are just coming out of. While mowing I noticed that the blackberries were finally ripening up. I had to clear the path behind the fence so the kids could get to them. Fefe was eating lunch when I went out, but it must have taken me longer than I though because when I came back in, this is what we found. She had sauce smeared all over the side of her face. She was not a happy camper when I had to clean her up. She was pretty happy when I finally laid her in her crib.

The hottest day it got up to 106. We had a grand total of 4 days over 100 degrees. The window units made it possible to sleep at night, but it would get up to about 80 degrees inside by nighttime. I'm glad to have it back in the 80's now. I used the oven for the first time in a week last night. It was great to have a good home cooked meal again. Before that we were either eating out or having cool foods like pasta.

We haven't been doing a whole ton otherwise. Last week we went to Jenn's pool and swam for a bit. She was kind enough to even feed us dinner. She made my favorite, garmie (grape) salad. It was delicious! Later than week she took me out for a birthday dinner to an Indian restaurant. I've been craving it for so long and it was yummy. Afterwards we went back to her house and watched Twilight. I enjoyed it much more the second time around because I was able to dampen down my expectations more.

The kids are in the middle of swim lessons right now. Loofa has a fabulous teacher right now, but Ephant and Brother B's isn't so great. I wish I could complain. She spends the whole criticizing without ever complimenting. It is a pretty negative experience. Regardless, they are getting pretty good. I'll post some pictures later.