Firehouse

We've been enjoying the lazy days of summer. Ben and I went out to a movie the other night (Super 8...we enjoyed it), the girls have been working on the library's summer reading program and we saw a fun program at the library today. I've been purging bags and bags of STUFF in my constant effort to stay organized in our small space.

We toured the firehouse on Wednesday for playgroup. The girls liked climbing into the truck and Elsa was very disappointed that she never got to see the truck pull out for an emergency.




(I think these girls looked a little too dainty to be firefighters.)


(Amelia refused to open her eyes because it was too bright.)

Bowling

We took advantage of free bowling for kids on Monday and had fun bowling with some friends.





(Elsa spent most of her time watching for the balls to pop back up.)


(Oliver just wanted to be held the whole time.)

Sunday Evening Stroll

Our Sunday evening stroll was at Huntley Meadows. We never seem to grow tired of this place. Each visit always feels different. The landscape changes so much and we never know which animals we'll spot. It was so green on Sunday and the weather was beautiful. And we were nearly the only people there.













We saw a snake, a LOT of huge frogs, a few turtles, and several muskrats:

Dance Recital

Amelia had fun performing in her first dance recital Saturday evening. She did an amazing job. Judging by the reaction of the audience when her class came on stage, I'm pretty sure it was just about the cutest thing they had seen in their entire lives. We were really proud of her for having no fear and doing so well. We all enjoyed a post-dance recital trip to Dairy Queen for ice cream.

Backstage during rehearsal Friday afternoon:




Waiting during rehearsal (we were SO happy that they were #2 on the LONG list of dances):


Practicing the "end of the show" bow (and leaving a trail of pink feathers everywhere):




And a really poor quality video I took during the rehearsal. Amelia is second from the left.



Her official dance portrait (with cast):


She had been telling me that she didn't want to take dance again next year and I was kind of happy about that. (I don't think she liked going to class after a long day of school.) But after the recital she said she wanted to do it again. I guess we'll see what happens in the Fall...

Spray Park

Amelia's friend Kaylee had a fun birthday party at the spray park last Friday.













Oliver wore himself out that day and fell asleep on the living room floor, grasping spider. Will spider be the new camel?

Cast Away

Amelia got her cast off last Wednesday. It actually wasn't too scary under there. I think all that time in the pool kept things fairly clean. The guy taking off her cast jokingly told her not to smile, knowing that the saw was ticklish. Amelia, always wanting to follow the rules, looked like she was in pain trying not to smile. Afterward she told me how hard it was not to smile.

We're all happy we don't have to get whacked with that cast anymore.




She said we should keep the cast in our attic so she can show it to her kids someday. Hmmmm...

Amelia turns 6!

I never thought Amelia would get to celebrate her June 20th birthday at school. But she just made it this year. Monday was a half day of school so we showed up at the end and brought treats for her class.


(Mrs. Murphy talked about Amelia's first 6 years and the class sang to her.)


(Playing "say it fast" with the dice.)


(Amelia was really excited about making and handing out treat bags for her class.)

After we got home from school, Amelia planned the rest of the day. Her first request was a trip to the zoo.












(Elsa pouted through most of the zoo and was super cranky the whole evening...because she wanted to see penguins at the zoo and didn't believe us that the national zoo doesn't have penguins. It's kind of a national disgrace.)

Amelia's birthday dinner request was Chinese takeout. After dinner we opened presents and had cake.






(She requested a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and white writing.)


It was a pretty simple day but she declared it her "best birthday!" She loved getting phone calls from family and friends and having lots of attention all day. She is an amazing girl who is creative, smart, and fun and we're so lucky to have her!

Father's Day

Father's Day was mostly about food. And celebrating the awesomeness that is Ben.

French toast kebabs for breakfast:


For dinner: french dip sandwiches, stuffed bleu cheese potatoes, corn on the cob, watermelon, and Brazilian lemonade. All of the recipes came from Our Best Bites and they were delicious.






We ate WAY too much. Our post-dinner walk around the neighborhood helped a little but we just couldn't manage dessert. So we saved our cookie sundaes for later. The girls presented Ben with homemade gifts and a video tribute. They pretty much think he's the coolest.