July 2012

We love July and the summer fun!  Between the Independence Day festivities, the swim lessons, and the three birthdays (Daddy, Lizzie, and Mommy) we have a pretty exciting month!

The kids had a blast with the water games, face paint, and glow in the dark toys.  Unfortunately for them, the parents decided to get creative with the light sticks too....we had fun.

Swim lessons are always fun for my kids.  They aren't amazing swimmers, but they truly enjoy the water!  This summer we spent more time than usual in the pool--mostly because I got up enough guts to take four kids to the pool on my own, and because I had a partner in crime most of the time with her three kids (thanks Mandi!).

When Liz turned six she had a great day!  Her "butterfly garden" party was a big hit, and it was so fun to watch all the little butterflies fluttering around our back yard.  I have to admit--I kind of love summer birthday.  There is just some extra bonus fun involved with being outdoors and running around.

Lizzie was so happy to have Sophie, Kylie, Caitlyn, Kate, Marlee, Katelyn, and of course her siblings to celebrate with her.

June 2012

I hosted a party for absolutely no reason, and it was a BLAST!  I planned it with a friend of mine and we each invited just a few people.  I want to do it again with more people because it was so much fun! It was a favorite things party with a sit down dinner.  I hope the other ladies enjoyed it as much as I did!

The kids had a backyard camp out with their cousins and they had a BLAST!  I'm so glad that I have an incredible husband and that he is so happy to help make these fun memories with our kids!  He is the best Daddy ever!  They had fun and I think they felt like they achieved some grand thing because it was a pretty big deal to them.  That, and they didn't get locked out of the house (which was apparently a pretty big concern.) :)

We took a road trip to Las Vegas to celebrate Uncle Sam!  Tom's youngest brother, Sam, graduated from high school.  Being the quietly awesome guy that he is, he didn't want a big fuss about the graduation or the fact that he received his Eagle award that same weekend.  We all came to show them that no matter how much he plays it down, we all think he is pretty stinking awesome!

We also got to spend some quality time doing some fun stuff with Grammy, Grampy, Grandma Great, Uncles, Aunts, and cousins.  That was my kids' favorite part!  The train ride was a big hit, but the traditions of playing with flour (and making an absolute mess in kitchen) and the baby bath in the sink were pretty important too.

Highlights

Ok, so I knew I was behind in my blogging, but I didn't realize I was quite THIS far behind.  In an effort to catch up without completely losing my mind, I decided to do one month at a time.  It seems a lot less daunting than the one version per post option.  Here goes...

May 2012
This guys started eating (a little).  He has never been a huge eater, but we have had fun watching him try different things!

Liza's FIRST recital!  She was totally prepared and so excited!  My parents were going to be out of town again for the piano recital, so we had a "practice recital" before they left.  I was really grateful, because I think Tor had some major nerves after the recital in December 2011.