"Loons!"

A few weekends ago, we made a return trip to a fun local summer event we discovered last year...a hot-air balloon festival. The weather here was weird that week: some rain, but way more distant rumbles of thunder which seemed harmless, but apparently are potentially threatening enough to require the evacuation of the Y's swimming pool (booo!) and keep hot-air balloons grounded. So, unfortunately the planned balloon ascension we'd hoped to see didn't happen, but the weather cleared in time for the parachuters to jump and the balloons to inflate that evening for the glow. It was a slightly soggy but fun time! You'll notice I'm sharing way more photos of the girls than the balloons, because the balloons didn't get going til dusk/dark and the girls are way cuter, anyway!

AG and LL surveying the scene just after we arrived


We brought along some sandwiches and snacks, which turned out to be a fun diversion since we had a little extra time to wait before they started inflating the balloons. T had come home from a grocery trip with these huge cheese puffs, and the girls, usually deprived of such things, gobbled them up!




The "firey" noise of the balloons inflating scared LL a little at first...she's always been bothered by weird noises. Thankfully there was a Daddy there to happily comfort her! She's gotten so tall this summer, steadily closing the height gap between her and AG.


Me and my girls, and a peek at (part of) the 28 week tummy!


A few of the many balloons glowing at twilight. The girls' favorite was the "twinkle burn" when the balloons all randomly flicker like a pinball machine. Since then we've had a lot of countdowns ending with "tinka burn!!!" squealed by SJ.

Raleigh Getaway

Last Thursday SJ and I flew to Raleigh, NC, for a few days with my friend, E, and her family. E and her husband J have a 13 year old daughter and a newly-turned 2 year old, and they are such a fun and sweet family. We had a great time hanging out at their house while the little ones played and exploring a few of Raleigh's kid-friendly outings. I am sad that I didn't get a family photo of them or even one of me and E...but when you see some of pictures I did take, you'll know why...we had a busy pair of toddlers on our hands!

The afternoon we arrived we made a stop for lunch and a quick trip into the grocery store, complete with a cart the girls could "drive" and balloons to take home!


The second day we took a morning walk around a lake and spent lots of time watching and feeding the DUCKS! SJ was fascinated with them, but probably just as much with tearing off pieces of bread and dropping them of the bridge.



Saturday we went to Pullen Park to ride the train,

have an ice cream treat,

explore nature, (E examining a caterpillar with the girls)

consider future career paths,

take a little swing,

and ride the carousel. Whew!

Sunday morning we left Raleigh on an early flight, then got delayed in Baltimore for about 1.5 hours. We had boarded before learning that weather issues prevented our takeoff, so it was an interesting little endeavor to keep SJ busy for that long in such a cramped little area. Thankfully we were on the front row and she could sit on the floor to play and color. Just before takeoff, she had sat on my lap, turned toward me and said, "Snuggle Mommy" then fell fast asleep and napped the whole first half of the flight! Since she almost never sleeps anywhere but her bed, certainly not ON me, this special treat for me made the delay worthwhile!


We made it back and were greeted at the airport by T, AG, LL, Nana and Grandpa. It's great to go on adventures, and it's great to come back home!

Carousel and Ice Cream

After swim lessons, the girls and I happened upon a fun event that we ended up getting to enjoy a few weeks in a row: Mondays at the mall for free carousel rides and ice cream! It took me a few times to figure out how to easily situate all of them on the carousel, but the last time we went I remembered to take along my camera and even managed to take a few pictures!

Visiting at Mimi and PawPaw's

A few weeks ago we had a Saturday visit with Mimi and PawPaw. The girls had a great time playing with the familiar toys, reading with Mimi and PawPaw, having lunch, and catching up with Aunt Nanoo. It was a fun day!

AG tries on all 10 of the cute finger puppets Nanoo gave the girls...


PawPaw and LL reading an Ariel story together...


AG always loves to read with Mimi...


A sleepy SJ cuddles with Nanoo...

Singing and Snowcones

For the last few months, the big girls often ask to get into the crib with SJ after she wakes up. I've been letting AG and LL take turns doing this and it usually surprises me how long and how happily they play together in such a confined space.
One day LL and SJ decided to do a crib concert together.


We went to get snowcones a few weeks ago. AG and LL sharing a taste...


SJ enjoyed her first snowcone ever (no surprise!).

Little Fish

Last Thursday, AG and LL finished a two week session of swim lessons. After dropping them off and having to find other things to keep us entertained for the first 7 days, finally on the last day SJ and I got to watch them in the pool! They both learned alot and it was fun to see them do some "real" swimming, jumping in the deep water and making it to their teachers, and floating on their backs. I didn't get any good action photos but here are a few "poolside".




And waiting patiently out in the heat, the future fish...


Now when we go swimming all together LL will not keep her face out of the water for more than 3 seconds between her dives forward into the water to practice her swimming moves. She's doing pretty well, but the sheer number of times she does it wears me out just watching and we keep saying, "Let's take a break for a minute LL and just play..." to which she replies, "I want to practice...I love it!"

The other big news is that we have another little swimmer who joined our family last week...and he (she?) has his own little "pool" right on our kitchen counter. That's right, it's a real live betta fish, our first family pet. "Swimmy" was given to AG somewhat unexpectedly but has become a welcome addition to our household over the last 10 days. The girls have done well remembering to feed him daily, so if I can remember to change his water and keep SJ from grabbing his bowl, he may have a chance! We can hope...

Second Saturday

Last weekend we finally checked out an event I'd been hearing about for a while... a monthly day especially for kids at the art museum downtown. We've done so little exploring since we got here (unbelievably, almost 3 years ago!) that it was almost like a mini-vacation to a totally new place!

We started out with the face painting station. We thought we'd skip it for SJ, but after painting LL and AG's faces, one of the artists offered to paint SJ's hands. As you can see, she was fascinated and thrilled with the results!




With at least a dozen possibilities, there was still no real debate for the big sisters; they both chose to be princesses. LL decided on blue and AG purple to accent the essential pink.


Then it was off (or up, since we were in a 6 story building) to storytime. My favorite part was sitting behind the girls as they listened together!


We went up to the top floor, where there is a really nice restaurant with an outdoor seating area. Not a bad view of the river and bridge! I may be trying to persuade T to go there for a special occasion sometime...although that will take some work since it's a sushi place :).


AG and LL painted and glittered doctor's caps. I think they would have spent hours on this if we'd let them!


Afterward, we walked to the nearby old state capitol building, which we'd not been to before. It is really interesting and unique from the outside, and beautiful inside with a huge spiral staircase in the center and lots of stained glass. Here are the girls in either the House or Senate chamber. LL went up to the podium and said, "Now I'm going to preach!"


Gorgeous stained glass rotunda!


A fun day...we hope to make it a regular outing in coming months and to do some more nearby exploring!

More July Fun

We're in our 5th week of schooling at home, and so far I've been encouraged by how the girls have responded and how it has fit into (and helpfully restructured, in some ways) our days. Here's AG writing letters in cornmeal...a fun alternative to pencil and paper!


Our sweet friend and occasional babysitter, K, has accompanied us to the (free summer kids') movies twice in the last month! First we saw Kitt Kittredge and then the Veggie Tales pirate movie. The girls actually all made it through both, and since it's a theater full of kids (and babies) and parents with no financial investment in the experience, the occasional commentary from SJ fit right in! We all love getting to hang out with K!


PopPop and Gran came to visit on the 4th of July. We spent the morning playing around the house and doing some reading...



and that night we went downtown to watch the fireworks over the river. The show was worth a pretty long walk and the heat!

July Catch-Up Begins

Hard to believe how fast the summer is flying by! We've been home the whole time, and though it seems we haven't been overly busy, our days have been filled just enough that we are certainly not bored! The intense heat has made playing outside difficult, so our daily mid-morning outings to run errands, go to the library, or (for the last two weeks) go to AG and LL's swimming lessons have been a nice break from our new school "routine".

Here are a few pics, mostly of SJ, from the last few weeks.
LL likes to "read" to SJ.


SJ got her second "real" haircut a few weeks ago. This is the expression she had on her face the whole time, and she sat in the seat by herself and didn't move a muscle or make a peep. It's like that cape freezes her. Hmmmm...maybe we could start bringing her into church if we get our own!


Again, the reading. Just in a smaller rocker. The balance it takes to pull this off is pretty impressive.


SJ got herself ready for an outing, which I think I mentioned in the last post. Only the essentials!


Another day, another purse! She likes to wear her sunglasses upside down...


More to come!