One Last Day

I'm not a huge fan of crowds (especially crowds of children). Nor am I fond of the heat and sun. So when Marci asked us to join her and her kids for an afternoon of romping around at a local splash park I initially said, "I don't think so." She attempted another approach by telling me how much my kids would love it...and I buckled. And I'm glad I did. Because my three hooligans certainly had F.U.N.

Curtis wasn't so sure.

Big sister tried to help.

But this is the closest he got.

As for Ellie...I really don't know.

Now wasn't that a great way to spend our last real summer day before school starts? Yes, yes it was.

Ahoy!

In yet another attempt to alleviate the summer boredom in our home we decided to throw together a Pirate Movie Party for Lindy and some of her friends. We started out by gathering all the kids together and turning them into proper pirates. This included eye patches, tattoos, and (of course) the selection of a pirate name.

Once we had ourselves a proper group of rough and tough pirates, we did a quick art project where we added wings onto our pirate parrot.

For the movie we watched Veggie Tales, the Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. It was quite fun and the kids enjoyed themselves. After the movie the kids followed a treasure map to locate a treasure (full of treat bags) in the back yard.

My kids make the most adorable pirates I've ever seen!

Ahoy!

The Zoo 2009

We packed up the kids and went to the zoo with our good friends, the Babcocks and the Browns.

Ah, the zoo...good times.

As always, we took a few moments to get slightly drenched by playing with the random ball-in-the-water thingy:

Lindy wanted to be grumpy with me for taking so many pictures. As you can see, it didn't quite work.

Here's Curtis sporting his newest head bruise.

Our favorite part of the zoo this time was the bird show. It was amazing. They had so many different birds and made us laugh. A lot.

It's possible that this particular part of the zoo was the part we visited most (which left me missing the pre-potty-trained days):

By the end of the day they didn't really have any energy left...even for smiles. That's when I know I've done my job. They'll sleep well tonight.

Bicycle Training: Take Two

When our three year-old began exhibiting some serious skill for bike riding Ian decided it was time to let her master one of her favorite hobbies. He borrowed a "handle" from a neighbor (we'd highly recommend it to anyone wanting to avoid the back-breaking work normally involved in such an endeavor) and went for it.

Curtis watched on with what I can only assume was envy.

He hated being left behind.

After a couple trips up and down the street, Ellie was doing fabulous!

The handle was soon removed and her little legs motored her throughout the neighborhood with ease. We're so proud of you, Ellie!

Last Day of School / Pool Party

It was the last day of school. My little kindergartener is officially done and onto her first "summer break". We started it off in style...with a pool party at Lindy's friend's house. Natalie's mom, Emily, is pretty much the kind of mom I wish I were. You know...the kind of relaxed mother who lets her kids have friends over to play in the pool. Oh, and has treats! Yeah...she's awesome.

The girls had a BLAST splashing around as their little brother and dad took a nap at home. (If I weren't hanging out with awesome Emily, I'd be jealous. Just a little.)

Side note: I took a picture of Lindy and her kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Kendall. But (because sometimes I don't pay attention) the picture didn't turn out. At all. She was wonderful and we wish her the best with her new little baby!