June

We have been doing a lot of outdoor things lately.  It's been a nice summer so far, hot but not blazing.  It's been 80's and low 90's.  Sunny or rainy, but really nice out!  I've been running outside a lot more since Cody has been home for summer.  It's nice to get breakfast going and go run while it's not too hot out.  I've seen tons of animals out lately due to the rains and it's been a good reminder that this Earth is full of tiny creatures.  We have also been doing a ton of outside projects.  We needed to do them last summer, but it was too hot with Paige being a newborn.  So we have years and years of stuff to do.  We started with a new firepit in the backyard which we thought would be a simple projects.  However leveling and rocks took a long time.  It looks great though and now we have a permanent place to sit and eat smores!  While I was painting the wood, I started shaking the black paint and it wasn't shut.  It went everywhere outside on the rocks and it was a huge mess.  It took me hours to clean up.  I tried washing the rocks off but that just sprayed paint on the house.  So then I just had to shovel all the painted rocks up and get rid of them, shovel more rocks in their place, and clean all the paint off the house.  It was horrible!  We spent the next week cleaning out the patio and moving stuff around.  We got the patio cleaned off so we have more room for chairs and the grills.  Then, we got rid of all the trash that was by the master bedroom and built a patio out of bricks for the golf cart.  While we were doing that we moved the doghouse and found 4 big frogs living under it and we moved the water wall and found a birds nest in the water can.  After that, we started a huge project with the front landscaping and sidewalk.  We pulled up the bricks and now we need to landscape and put down a new sidewalk.  At the end of June, the pears were finally ready to be picked and we spent a few hours getting as many as we could.  We picked 6 tall buckets worth of pears, which was about 600.  We took them to everyone we knew but we still had a ton leftover. 

These two have enjoyed playing together all summer!  They are beginning to sleep in this summer.  Paige until about 7 and Harper until 7:30.  It's also nice because we can stay out until 8 or 8:30 instead of rushing home at 7:30.  Sometimes in the mornings, Harper wakes first, comes in to say hi, and then goes into Paige's room when she wakes up to play with her.  They laugh and read books and Harper climbs in.  And Cody and I get to slowly wake up instead.  It's glorious.  

This girl is such a crazy eater.  She loves condiments and usually just licks them off of her foods.  We have had to stop giving her ketchup because she doesn't actually eat the meat with it, just the ketchup.  She usually will eat half of her food and beg to get down, where she just continues eating off your plate instead.  She is constantly asking for a "biiiite, big biiiite."  She eats half my cereal in the mornings - she loves frosted mini wheats.  She wants anything Harper has and most of the time, if Harper drinks her water she copies and drinks hers too.  She does like to take out her straw and dump water on her tray to play with.  She's kind of a mess. 

Carleigh came to visit and my girls had the best two days.  My sisters are always way more fun than me!  They got to play in a fort and read a million books and they didn't fuss or fight all day.  Carleigh even bought her a new headband that is so cute!  We love when we have visitors!

My girls have done so good about going to the gym with me a few times a week.  They love their friends there and the childcare workers love my girls.  

Play date after effects

It's the summer of babies!  And mostly boys!  Kristi had Eli, Lauren had Mae (the only girl so far!), and Emily had Morris all in May.  Lorna had Marcus and Stephney had Anson in June.  Christa is due in August and Erica in November.  It's babies everywhere and almost all boys!  When Marcus was born, I took Reagan and Presley back to the hospital after dance class.  We stopped and got him Birth Day cupcakes and then went to snuggle this sweet boy.  He came quick but he is perfect!  Lorna is great and some of the babies are meeting at dance class this summer!  Stephney, Lauren and I had coffee one morning and then she texted later that day that she was having contractions!  She was set to be induced the next day so she went in.  They helped her along and after a looong time, she finally had Anson the next day.  He is also pretty perfect!  

This man showed up at Harper's birthday party.  I don't know who put it there, but I'd put money on Brian McCool.  I have decided to leave him there.  He has become a part of the decor.  

This girl has had a rough month.  She finally started getting her molars.  She got a double ear infection with the first two up top.  When I took her back two weeks later, she had cut two more teeth on bottom.  She got another ear infection but she only has one tooth left of the bad ones.  She has been miserable and whiney and you can tell she doesn't feel good.  She is constantly biting things and chewing on her finger.  We let her have the paci all the time because we feel so bad for her.  Thankfully Lipscomb told us just to keep him hopped up on tylenol.  One night we gave her a frozen waffle and we thought she would gnaw on it for a while.  But nope, she just chewed it up and ate it in about 5 minutes.  I'm sure it still made her teeth feel better!

This girl loves that her dad is home for summer.  She doesn't like that it's so hot, but she loves to swim and she loves having no school.  She likes that he makes her peanut butter and jelly mixed up.  He plays with her a nap time.  He lets her drive the golf cart.  He watches funny videos with her.  He laughs at all her jokes whether they are funny or not!  And he does a good job of helping her pick out her clothes.

This girl has hit a new phase and it's not super pretty.  She is stuck on mama, like no one else can do anything.  Especially dad.  When I need a break, she will go with him on a golf cart ride but that's about it.  She cries alot and we have had to start being firm with her about not fussing.  She has also hit the stage where she thinks she knows what she wants and she will not have it any other way.  She wants it now!  It's been hard for her, because we don't just cater to her every whim.  She does have Harper who is better, but even she tells me she is tired of the whining sometimes too.  I know it's just a phase but it's pointing to a tough toddler stage and even worse teenage stage!