It Makes Me Happy When...

my kids chant for more "cooked carrots! cooked carrots!"

Adam counts.  It ususally goes like this- "1...2...3...4...5...14...15...14...15...30!"

Leah puts stuff in her carseat's "coupler".  (cupholder)

Adam asks to wear his "swim soup".

Leah says she likes my "tummy yaki chicken".

Leah and Adam play nicely together- 

even if Adam ends up looking like this!

Potholes

We went on a family adventure this weekend to a nearby river (stream?) that has a few waterfalls and potholes that have been carved out by the water.  It was a fantastic trip into nature- Leah had a blast climbing over rocks, exploring "caves", and looking at snakes, spiders, and tadpoles.

Adam, on the other hand, was perfectly content to sit and throw rocks into the water- a manly pasttime who's draw apparently doesn't diminish with age.

I was there, too.  My left hand is resting on the spot that the baby sister always pokes out her little heels.  Sometimes I have to push them back into place, for fear of them popping right out of my belly.

We came home dirty, happy, and with only one tick-looking bug firmly attached to Adam's back.  It was another great family adventure.

Rain

An early morning rainstorm turned our backyard into a lake yesterday, and the kids had a great time wading through the water.  After a morning of house-rattling thunder and two power outages, they were delighted to play outside.  Adam was concerned about the safety of the owl that had driven him in from the campout over the weekend, and Leah said, "A lake in our backyard!  Just what I've always wanted!"  Just another reminder that kids don't need toys to be happy!

Camping Out

Our first annual Father's Day campout.  Essential elements-

1. Rain

2. Smores

3. Fireflies

4. Tent time

No one actually spent the night outside. Adam was terrified of the owl he decided was in a nearby tree ("Owl.  Tree?  Sleep crib!") and Leah worried that a fox might claw it's way through the tent.  But overall, the night was still a fantastic success, and according to Jason, a new Father's Day tradition.

Nesting

It's really too soon to be called nesting- it's more list-making and fretting at this point.   How much longer do I have to pick out the perfect name?  Buy the perfect diaper bag? Contact my list of stand-bys in case we head to the hospital in the middle of the night?  Thankfully, the answer is that there is still plenty of time.  The clothes are out but not washed, the to-do list long enough to keep us all busy for the rest of the summer, and the name search a constant topic of conversation in our house.  Even Leah and Adam love to add their two cents about the perfect name for the baby sister.

They also love trying on her stuff.  Don't mind the nakedness- they look like that most evenings because we spend most afternoons doing this- 

staying cool by playing in the water.  The kids love making mud pies, mud lakes, running through the water and taking long drinks from the hose.  It makes for a lot of wet laundry at the end of the day, but we all love it.

Father's Day

After a rough night, Father's Day weekend started out all right after all.

City Bus

Adam asks daily if he can ride "Daddy school bus", and yesterday I finally said yes.  Although it is probably the least exciting time of Jason's day, the kids got a real kick out of waiting at the bus stop, waving the bus down, paying the fare, and picking the perfect seat.  And the no seat belts was a real plus for them.

Once we got to school, we surprised Jason with some cookies and explored his lab while we waited for him to finish up his work. Then we walked all over campus, checking out the fountains and sculptures before heading back home again.  $2 spent, and it was a complete success.

Deja vu- I knew this trip felt familiar... city bus, traveling around Father's Day, quite pregnant... always a hit.

Zoo

We have a fantastic little local zoo.  It's completely free and includes a petting zoo with goats, chickens, horses, llamas and a big fat pig, as well as more traditional zoo animals- monkeys, a porcupine, prarie dogs, otters, wallabys, kookaburras, a Galapagos Island tortoise, bald eagles, peacocks and a butterfly garden.  I like packing up a picnic lunch and taking the kids there a few times a month.  I've long since stopped taking the camera because we go so often, but Jason went with us today and dutifully took pictures of the kids and animals.

 That fuzzy little baby goat was born just last night!  Adam got a real kick out of the pregnant goats in the petting zoo.  And the wallaby mama below has a baby joey sticking out of her pouch!

Leah has been waiting all spring for the butterfly garden to open.  She wanted desperately to touch one of the butterflies.

This zoo is one of my very most favorite places in our town.

Robot

Adam's imagination has been  leaping and bounding lately.  He loves pretending he's a lizard, a bunny, a kitty cat, a doggy, a monkey, or, in this case, a robot.  He was walking around the kitchen with the trash can on his head, saying, "Robot! Bzzz!  Bzzzz!"

 It's a good thing I keep my trash can relatively clean.

He got another hair cut this week.  Unlike last time, I used the clippers and the scissors, and I'm much happier with the result.  Note to self- don't cut hair when tired!

All Day I Dream About Strawberries

We took Grandma Morales and Auntie Emily to pick strawberries the day after we got back from our trip.  Just like last year, the weather was ridiculously hot- we were grateful for the extra hands to help us pick our meager 17 pounds of tiny strawberries.  They were still just as delicious, but not the huge beauties we enjoyed last year.

We were still able to turn them into something tasty, though.  Strawberry jam, strawberry smoothies, strawberry waffles, and just plain strawberries by the handful have been gracing our menu this week. 

The best part is hearing everyone (especially Leah) say, "I just love your homemade strawberry jam and homemade bread".  Makes me feel quite domestic.

8

Into month number 8 and feeling, well maybe not great, but fine anyway.  Happy and terrified to be nearing the end. 

I had Jason take this picture around 11:00 at night.  It looks like I'm slouching, or need to go to the bathroom, but mostly I was just tired.

Washington DC

Mostly pictures, and a few thoughts- this trip was amazing!  We did so much, saw so much, ate so much, and just loved being together so, so much.  Washington DC is so rich with history, and we barely scratched the surface of all there was to see and do.  Everything looks so darn small on the map, but those buildings are all huge!  Our nation has a truly amazing capital.

First things first- we headed to the Washington Monument

 and the Lincoln Memorial.

 The first day concluded with visits to the WWII Monument, Arlington National Cemetery, and Iwa Jima.

 Day Two- The Smithsonian Castle, Museum of American History, White House, Ford Theater, Old Post Office, Smithsonian Portrait Gallery, and Union Station.

Slowing down already?!

Day Three- The Washington DC temple, visit with Linda and Richard Eyre, FDR and Jefferson Memorial.  We went to the temple and found out that Linda and Richard Eyre (the founders of Joy School and authors of several parenting books that are on my night stand right now) were going to be speaking at the visitors center that night.  We rearranged our plans and headed back up to the temple to hear them speak.  We got there early and had the chance to visit with them- I felt so goofy and star-struck, but I really admire them!

 Then we grabbed some ice cream and headed back into DC to see the monuments at night- that was a true child-free moment!  Out at night with no curfew!  Look out!

Day 4- Church, Mount Vernon, visits to old neighborhoods-this was the day I really started to slow down.  Mt. Vernon is beautiful, but huge!

 Day 5- Museum of Natural History, Bureau of Engraving and Printing, USDA, Air and Space Museum

We probably would have done things a bit differently had we realized that our flight left at 6:00 on Monday night, not Tuesday night like we were planning!  Talk about the ultimate moment of baby-brain.  We had a bit of a stressful evening repurchasing airline tickets and had to let go of our plans on the last day to visit the Capitol Building and Library of Congress.  We had saved the best for last, but now we'll just have to save them for next time!

Now we're home- exhausted, but so so grateful that we were able to take such a fun trip, just the two of us.  We can't say enough thank you's to Grandma Morales and Auntie Emily for caring for Leah and Adam while we were gone.  And now we're glad to be home for the summer.