In the Good 'ol Summertime

Nothing better than spending a day and listening to giggles.

Hannah would get out of the bouncer to turn it off then she would race around to the front and hop back in while her and Hailey sunk to the ground while the air came out.  Once there was no air left she would reach over and turn the bouncer back on and they would lay there as it filled itself up again.  This went on for at least 15 minutes.

The girls spent most of the day in their swimsuits- I love these days!

The ice cream man has been making an appearance at least 1-2 times per week.  You can always count on him Sunday nights and tonight was no different.  The girls heard him from a few blocks away and started jumping up and down while screaming "Here he comes!".

They were pretty sad when I told them that I didn't have any cash but then cheered right up when daddy was able to save the day with a few dollars that he had in his wallet.

 

They sat and waited by the street until he made his way to our yard.

Easy choices for the girls tonight- Hannah chose a blue slushie and Hailey chose a rainbow snocone.

 

More Tails from the Monster

Every once in a while the Monster strikes.

It has been quite a while since we have had an instance that just makes you shake your head and wonder what this kid is thinking.  Of course she is three and she has an older sister so there are plenty of deep breaths taken and plenty of getting into trouble moments but those are to be expected.

I was working on the computer this morning and Hailey was playing quietly behind me.  Hannah was still sleeping so she had all of the toys to herself.  She was playing so nice and so quiet......that should have been my clue that something was up.  After about 10 minutes I turned around to tell Hailey how good she was being and right before the words came out I see that she has added a special touch to her Barbie car.....sigh.

Hero Day

Today Hannah was suppose to dress like her real life hero.

She picked me :-)

Of course she needed a chunky necklace, black and white stripes and sandals.  She even wore a little bit of make up and shared my spritz of perfume this morning.

When we were leaving for the day she instructed Brian that she needed a kiss on the lips today because she is mom.

When I asked why I was her real life hero she said "Because you are super special to me and do lots of nice things for me all the time."

To top it off I was putting Hailey to bed tonight and she wrapped her little arms around me and wouldn't let go.  When I tried to get away she hugged me tighter and said "I want you to stay.  I love you so much!"

We sure hit the jackpot with these little ladies!

All About ME!

Hannah and I have been working on her All About Me poster for the past few nights.

We finally finished last night and today she gets to bring it to school to hang up.

Fascinating Facts About Me

I am 5 1/2 years old

My birthday is September 9th

I am in Kindergarten (in the fall)

I get to school by mom and dad

These are the members of my family: Brian (dad), Amy (mom), and Hailey (sister)

When I grow up I would like to be a teacher artist

I show others I care by being really nice to them, loving them and saying thank you.

I am a star because I am very helpful and smile a lot

Three super-cool facts about me

I really like to help out

I have 5 aunts, 2 uncles (soon to be three), and 5 cousins.  2 cousins live in Ecuador

I have a super duper special mom and dad

A few of my favorite things

Color: Purple

Animal: colorful unicorn

Food: steak

Book: Dr Seuss books

Sport: T-ball

Thing to do in school:  color

Things to do at home:  go to cabin, scrapbook, watch TV, play on iPad

"It's raining, it's pouring"

We got the pool out tonight, just like we do every other night that it's hot enough to.

Brian was in control of the hose and had a few minutes of fun spraying the girls.

Of course they had to taunt him :-)

As he was spraying them Hailey started singing "It's raining, it's pouring, de ol man is noring.  Went to bed and bunked his head and he not wake up to morning!"

Hannah got called in to take a call from the boys.

Nico informed her that he has an agenda of a lot of things that he plans on teaching her this summer "Proper writing, swimming, soccer, Spanish, jump rope and how to draw better"

Oh yeah, no big deal.  Just hanging out on my mom's lap with an afro and toothless grin :-)

Can't wait until they are here!  2 more weeks!!!!

Friends

We were sitting on our blanket watching the kids and parents warm up at T-ball.

Hailey heard a car door shut, she turned to look and then sat up, pointed and shouted "Look mom!  It's my best friend!"

We got lucky tonight, our team was playing Lexy's brother's 'green team' so the girls would be able to hang out tonight.

The last time Hannah played T-ball there was a little guy name Jake on her team.  This little dude is GOOD.  Turns out his family has connections with the Minnesota Twins so he's had a little bit of exposure.

Hannah's team was up first and the green team was in the field.   Jake was on the green team this time and he was playing first.  When Hannah got up to bat he turned to the first base coach and says "Hey- that's my friend up to bat!"  When she got on first they chatted for a little bit and when she ran off to second he once again had to announce that 'Hannah is my friend".

It's so fun watching all of these kids interact :-)  Hope that making friends stays this easy for them!

My Computer Buddy

Grabbed my work notebook and headed to my meeting, sat down, opened my book to find the next empty page for note taking and this buy was smiling back at me.

Thanks Hailey Renee!  I love finding these little surprises!!

Runaway Boat

Ahhhh, what a beautiful morning.

The yard is still wet and thanks to the rain last night there are now puddles everywhere but it's wonderful looking down to the lake and seeing green everywhere.

WAIT!  Where is the new boat?!

My mom noticed it first- "the boat is gone!"

I encouraged her to put her glasses on and look again, the girls were snuggling on my lap and I didn't want to get excited and break this snugglefest just because she couldn't see.

She got her glasses and panicked again- 'the boat is gone!"

I turn around to get a look myself and sure enough, the boat is gone.

Hannah and I ran down to the dock to see if we could see anything.

The boat lift will still high but there was no boat on it.  Hmmm, if someone stole it, they not only lowered the boat to get it in the water but then they rose the lift to make it look like they didn't take it (that's a lot of work for a thief).  I looked to the left, no boat.  There were some boats on the shore but none of them were ours.  I looked to my right and nothing.

Although.....there was a boat in the middle of the lake by the island that wasn't moving.  It had a solid patch of color that maybe could have resembled a boat cover- we are going to need to get a closer look.  By this time Brian had been woken up and my mom was still pacing the cabin.  We grabbed a set of binoculars and confirmed that our boat had made a run for it and was floating out in the lake all by it's lonesome.

Apparently the rain last night rose the water just enough to release the boat into the wild.

My mom and Brian woke the neighbors and the boat rescue began.

By the time the neighbor got his boat and they made their way to the island the boat had moved and was found on shore, across the lake by the supper club.

Hope she had fun on her little adventure because I am pretty sure she is going to get tied and locked up from now on.

He did it again!

Hannah is right- 'her dad can fix anything!'

Remember the deck pictures from the lake that I posted last month?

Well, here it is today.  Still needs the front stairs and railings but we can once again let the kids out of the door without being nervous that they would be the one to fall through.

A good chunk of the deck was done by the time we got up here on Friday- still amazed that he lifted those boards alone- they are heavy!

Kim and I helped a little by lifting some of the boards onto to frame so that Bri could screw them down.  Kim tried her hand at the screw gun but after 3 screws and being able to declare that 'she built a deck' we decided to leave the real work to the expert and we would stick to what we do best- lifting boards and staying out of the way.  He is doing such a great job- THANKS HONEY!

It's been a rainy weekend so far.  Who am I kidding, it's been a rainy season so far....

The girls found these water guns in the pole barn and grandma got them some buckets to fill with water.  They squirted the yard, made fireworks by squirting in the air, got each other and washed the old pontoon (sitting in the yard waiting to be sold).  Hailey must have gotten tired of walking into the cabin for fresh water when her bucket was low.  I spotted her sucking the water up from this huge puddle and then squirting it into her bucket.  Pretty smart for a little one!

In the late afternoon mom and Tom's new pontoon was dropped off.

After dinner we decided to take her for a spin around the lake.

It was a little chilly but this new boat is very nice!

Lake Pokegema

YAY! Cabin time!

A few times this week Hailey has broke down crying saying "I want daddy!"

It makes me feel so bad that she misses her buddy.

Me: "Girls- are you excited to get to the cabin tonight?"

Hannah: "Yes!  I can't wait!"

Hailey:  "Yeah.  Then I don't have to say 'I want daddy, I want daddy' anymore."

Ohhh lookie here!   A dumpster.....someone's been busy!

Blue Team

Tonight was T-ball night.  I thought having T-ball two nights a week was going to be a pain but honestly, I love it.  We don't start until 7:00 so we aren't as stressed out about trying to get everyone fed and out of the house, it's nice to just sit outside and enjoy the weather, I love seeing all of the parents and families that come out each week- it's nice to feel part of the community and meet other people that have kids our same age.   The coaches that work with the kids are pretty much kids themselves.  They can't be much older than 20.  It's cool that these kids obviously don't have kids of their own playing T-ball but they have chosen to work with the kids and coach them- it's also nice to see all of the parents that come each week and get involved to help out.

Dinner with Kimmy

Hailey drew this picture for Kimmy- LOVE their drawings

Brian went up to the cabin this week to start working on the deck.  We will drive up to the lake on Friday to meet him.  

When I got off work tonight I called Kim to see if she wanted to join us for dinner.  We met at Buffalo Wild Wings in Coon Rapids, made a trip to Target and then had an evening treat at Cherry Berry.

The newest thing around are frozen yogurt bars.  Walls filled with self serve yogurt flavors and you end with a buffet of toppings- pretzels, nuts, nilla wafers, sprinkles, gummy bears, nerds, chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, coconut, strawberries, Butterfingers, Heath bars, peanut butter cups, pieces of cake, brownies, sunflower seeds, etc, etc, etc.  

This place is a gold mine!  Sure wish I could have been the one to come up with that idea!

"Tsszzzz"

Tonight in the bath when Hailey was getting washed up she wanted to have a contest with her friends,

Sara and Emma.  I filled her hand with soap and then gave some soap to Sara and Emma and instructed them all to soap up!

After a minute it was time to judge who had the soapiest hair, belly, and bottom.

Soapiest Hair goes to.....Hailey!

Soapiest Belly goes to....Sara!

Soapiest Bottom goes to.....Emma!

Hailey then turned her head to giggle and smile with her friends.

She gave them each a high five and then a ....well, a,,,,,sizzle.

It was more of a "oooohh, tsszzzz"

Home Sweet Stairs

LOL- tried to get downstairs today and found out I was intruding in the girls house.

Oopie!

Dada Day

I have not been doing a good job lately with taking pictures.

And today of all days....I would have loved to get a picture of the girls with their daddy.

Bummer....

This week at A+ Hannah brought home Father's Day project- I love that her teacher wrote what she heard....licorice store- sounds much better than liquor store.  

Wonder if she knew what Hannah really meant :-)

Or better yet, wonder if she knows how cool that HUGE beer cooler is, or if she knows that trips to the liquor store are quick or if she knows that every trip to the liquor store results in a sucker at the end of the trip.

Hailey came home this week with a Father's Day project too.

We spent the afternoon at Kim's celebrating with my dad.  

On the way there we heard 'Just Give me a Reason' by Pink.  It's a slower song and Hailey LOVES it.

She was sitting in the backseat singing and all of a sudden it stopped and the tears started to fall.

Me:  "Hailey!  What in the world happened?  Why are you crying?"

Hailey: "I miss dada! "

Poor thing....slow songs get her everytime

Happy Father's Day Brian (and everyone else)!

Summer is ON!

Hannah being the responsible big sister and lathering them both up in sunscreen

 It's about time!

We are finally starting to see some decent weather around here.  

Nice weather and sunshine brings swimsuits and swimming pools....and don't forget Brody!

 

Two wheel scooter

Two wheel scooters are the coolest things ever right now.

Hannah got one about a month ago and since then Hailey has been showing a little more interest each time she sees Hannah riding.  Tonight we decided to go out to eat and then make a stop at Target to get her her very own two-wheel-scooter.  After we paid she insisted on carrying the box to the car herself.  It was a little heavy and big for her but she was not giving it up to anyone.

As soon as she got in the car she yelled with excitement "Hurry up!"

The handle on this one adjusts so it fits her perfectly!

This kid is in heaven right now!

"Best. Day. Ever."

Today was Hannah's first day at Adventures Plus.

I have felt sick all week.  Excited for this day but also dreading it a little bit.

I was nervous.  REAL nervous.

I was not nervous about her.  I knew she was going to do great.

I am just nervous and worried about whether or not she will be safe, will she like it here, will she make friends, will she eat ok, will she know where the bathroom is, will she tell someone if she needs something....do I really need to go on?!

 

She was sad to leave Jackie's but she is SUPER excited to start doing her own thing.

She is super happy that her new daycare is at school and she is excited to be with kids her age.

We went to an open house last night and got the low-down.  Bring a change of clothes, sunscreen, water bottle, pillow, and blanket. They told us all about things they would plan to do and when, gave us the lunch menu, showed us how to check in and pick up and informed us about the daily schedule that would be available each day.  Nice to see each day- especially when you are getting ready to pick up, you can see where they plan to be and then plan accordingly.

Brian picked her up tonight and by the time I got home she was sitting on a chair in the driveway.

She didn't get up and come running over to the car like most days.  Nope- she just sat in the chair, perked up a little bit and gave me a smile "Hi momma'.

Me:  "Buddy!  How was your day?!"

Hannah:  "It was awesome (said with a little giggle/breath between each word).  Best. Day. Ever."

She was exhausted.

Tonight is also the 2nd night of T-ball.   Hannah is on the blue team this time.

Tonight the weather was perfect!  Hailey and I sat on a blanket watching Hannah and her new teammates warm up.  You can see from this picture how serious they all are about this game.  I kinda love that my kid is the only one is 'ready position' waiting for the ball.  I love her focus and interest.

 

They had their first 'game' tonight.

'Games' consist of all players batting, no one gets out, you can only run one base with each hit and the last batter is always a home run.  Tonight Hannah played first base their first time in the field.

 

I brought my MyChart workbook to read tonight.  I have my certification test in the morning and have not done any studying yet.  Hailey grabbed my book and started paging through it. Then she looked up at me and with the most serious face ever said "Mom, I don't want you to be a punch momma."

Me: "What?"

Hailey:  "I don't want you to be a punch momma.

Yep- that's what I heard....I started thinking in my head about what could possibly be going on.  Did a friend of hers tell her that her mom punches her?  Did she see another kid get punched by her mom? Better get some more information

Me: "Hailey, honey.  What is a punch momma?"

Hailey:  "I don't want you to learn punching.  Like here in your book."

LOL!!! Whew!

 During the game we noticed a little girl sitting near us with her mom.

Hailey started to wave to her and she waved back.

The next time I turned my head to see if the girl was paying attention to Hailey and to assess whether or not I should help this relationship along I see this....she had moved her chair closer and was facing us directly.

Hailey: "What's you name?"

Girl: "Lexy"

Hailey: "Hi Lexy"

Hailey: "Mom, how old is she?"

Me: "Lexy, how old are you?"

Lexy: "I'm three"

Hailey looks at me and in the sassiest way possible says "Is she free an a half?"

Lexy (overheard her asking me): "Yes!"

Hannah was up to bat so I stood up to get a picture (none turned out too good because she hit too soon and I was late to get a good shot) and when I turned to walk back to the blanket I see this...

 

How adorable!

Mom and Hannah day starts.......NOW!

 I took today off so that Hannah and I could spend a day together before she starts her new daycare tomorrow.  We started our day dropping off Hailey then heading to Cafe Donuts for breakfast.

Then a quick stop home so I could shower and plan our day.  The Main Event today would be a stop at Archivers for scrapbooking.  Before that we had a few errands to run and then planned to scrapbook after lunch.

We sent some pictures to Walgreen's to get printed so  Hannah would have something to work on and you can see just how excited she was after we picked them up.

 We had to make a stop at the mall to get Kiley a Birthday present and then drop off 3 car seats/boosters that I sold to employees that worked at St Johns.

Lucy is in the entrance of St Johns and on our way out I looked down to talk to Hannah and she wasn't there.  I turned around and found her posing next to her waiting for me to get a picture.

We had lunch in the mall at Panda Garden.  Hannah got her fortune cookie, opened it up and read it to me : "Mom- you have the best job ever cause you get to take care of kids and I hope one day I can be a great mom like you."

After lunch and errands we were finally on our way.

As we were leaving the hospital after our final drop off Hannah started yelling "Archivers!"

She was super super excited!

 

 I didn't bring anything to work on.  I knew I probably wouldn't get much done being that she would have a lot of questions and I figured she would want to walk around and wouldn't spend so much time sitting and working.  I didn't want to a) go through the work to get stuff prepared, lug it all there and then not even open it and b) get frustrated or disappointed because I wanted to work on something and wouldn't be able to.  So instead I planned to buy a few card kits- Archivers always has Bday card or Thank You card kits that you can buy and I always need those so I figured it would be a good project for me.  Trouble is.....nobody told me they don't sell them anymore :-(

So, now I am here at Archivers.  It's 1:00 and we will be here until 4:00...this could be a long afternoon.....

Right when we got there Hannah unpacked her stuff and started right in.  She knew exactly what picture she wanted to start with and had the paper picked out within seconds.   

 

I knew I couldn't sit here for the next three hours and do nothing so I found some pictures on my phone that I could print and bought a few things to make a page.

We need to do this more often :-)