Our Little Ariel

Katie has been rehearsing for the "Princess and the Pea" recital and we've had a countdown for weeks for the big moment. Today was the day! She was Ariel and she danced her little heart out! After the recital we had a wonderful celebration at her favorite restaurant, Olive Garden, where we ran into lots of other performers celebrating with their families. Then she picked out a new Ariel doll at the Disney store and that evening we watched The Little Mermaid!
It was an Ariel day for us! A kiss for luck

Waiting in the wings for showtime!

Shake that sassy skirt!

Ta Da!! Take a bow!

We're so proud of you Katie!! Our sweet little dancer!

Wow, look at that huge cupcake! A BIG celebration for Katie!

Unfortunately for me, even though I had a front row seat, Katie danced directly behind one of the other girls so I didn't get very good pictures or video of the performance... story of my life... but when the beautiful dancers were being introduced I was ready! See the video below:

Visiting Gavin!

We had a nice day visiting our friends Becky and Gavin today! Every time we drive to their house in the big city, I get lost! Today Ryan commented that the directions I had printed didn't seem to be helping us find her house!

Once we got there, we had a fun time at their pool, even though the babies only wanted to walk in circles around the pool and Becky and I were the only ones in the water!

The babies passed sippy cups back and forth during lunch and we had fun watching Gavin throw food at Becky. He's going to be a famous baseball player one day and was getting an early start on his fast pitch.

Weekend with Pop Pop & Nana

We had a nice visit with Pop Pop and Nana this weekend. We didn't make it to DC for the fireworks on the 4th... I cannot even imagine going down there?! The weather was stormy for one thing, but also, the crowds are not kind to people on the metro with strollers (or tired screaming babies at midnight). We saw a nice display right here in our neighborhood in walking distance to the house. Very convenient for when Claire had had enough and needed an emergency exit. In addition to our trip to Luray, Ryan and Katie were very excited to show their grandparents everything they've been doing in Webkinz World! And we spent an afternoon in DC touring some museums while the guys got to golf. What a fun weekend!

A picnic at Luray Caverns.

Claire chilled out at dinner.

The kids enjoyed seeing the Lincoln Memorial downtown.

Luray Caverns

Today was our long-awaited day trip to Luray Caverns. On the way there we tried to explain what we would see, and describe how the rocks form stalactites and stalagmites, changing and "growing" 1 inch every 125 years. We got a lot of blank stares... Ryan and Katie liked looking at all the cool shapes and had great imaginations to describe what we were seeing. Katie immediately thought the rock formations were all upside down Christmas trees hanging from the ceiling. And we saw lots of monster teeth and alligator teeth. It was a fun afternoon exploring the cave!

Tents and Tunnels

Today our playgroup had so much fun! Everyone brought their tents and tunnels and we built a huge maze for the kids to crawl through. Claire really loved it! I knew she would, she's such a daredevil!

Mommy Brain

Thank you to the random guy at Target today who chased me down in the parking lot to give me my bags of stuff... imagine buying $50 of stuff and just walking away without taking it with you? Where is my brain?!

It's Kiki and Panda's Birthday!

Kiki and Panda celebrate their birthdays every other week or so, they must be about 80 years old by now. The kids are always making invitations or decorations or birthday cards for their pets. Once we even celebrated at Chuck E Cheese! Panda and Kiki loved that!

Cheers to Panda and Kiki! Happy Birthday and many happy returns!

Panda enjoyed riding in the monster truck at Chuck E Cheese.

Kiki and Katie love the Merry-G0-Round. I think Kiki had ballet class later that afternoon, so she wore her leotard.

Field of Flowers

We had the most fun adventure this morning with some friends at the Field of Flowers. It's like a farm, but without all the stinky animals (although we did meet 2 friendly pet pigs). And instead of growing corn or wheat, there are huge patches of every variety of flowers you can think of to pick your own bouquets. My hands still smell like lavendar! I can't wait to go back for another vase full of fresh beautiful summer flowers for the kitchen table!

First, we chased some butterflies before getting down to business.

Curly Girl!

Sometimes Katie likes to have "braves" put in her hair after a bath so the next day she can have curly hair.

Here she is before.... And After: Big Hair!

Claire wants to know, "When will I be able to have braves??"

The Wonderful World of Webkinz

Ryan and Katie have been introduced to the wonderful world of webkinz! If you don't know (yet), Webkinz are stuffed animals that also have an online world where kids can log in and interact with their pet. So Ryan has a little panda and Katie has a little pink poodle and they love going onto the website and checking on them, taking them to the vet, buying them food, playing games, doing jobs, and buying accessories to outfit their "room."

The money they spend is not real money (thank God!) but they earn points/money from answering questions or winning games on the webkinz site. So now in my "free time" ha ha, I'm finding myself sneaking onto the computer to play a quick game and try to earn some extra money so I don't have to hear Ryan lamenting, "I need to buy some more Bamboo Casserole for my panda" or Katie begging to buy Curly a new pink convertible.

It's interesting to see their different approaches to this concept. Ryan saves all his money, takes his pet to the vet every day, gives him a bath and is always worrying that he's hungry, tired, or sick. Katie on the other hand has no money saved up because she's shopping for all kinds of toys and treats for her pet.

Swinging!

Claire loves to swing!

She was so comfortable in the baby swings at Dinosaur Park,

she fell asleep while swinging!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

A few years ago, we made this moon cake and Daddy proclaimed it was his favorite and has asked for it every year for his birthday. It is super yummy, so we all look forward to gobbling it up. It's made with a chocolate mousse filling and cookies and cream icing (to look like moon rocks).

The moon is on fire!

Pool Day!

Claire loves the pool! She could spend the whole day splashing around!

Is this not a water fountain??

Another reason why EVERYONE needs a dog!!

Oh yes, everything about the loyalty and loving companionship is all true, but if you have a baby, you NEED a dog! Roxy saves us from so much sweeping/mopping every day and at the end of each meal,
Claire has her own personal face scrubber!

Claire Hits the Jackpot!!

Wow!! Look what Mommy found at Costco!

A giant can of chickpeas! Claire's favorite food!

She can't wait to crack this can open!

Happy Father's Day!

The kids helped make a delicious Father's Day breakfast in bed for Tim this morning! We made waffles and bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches!

And we let him sleep in until 9:00! We had lunch at Chuck E Cheese! He loves playing with the kids at their favorite place! Then Tim took the kids to the driving range and the pool. They were gone for hours, Father's Day turned into Mother's Day!

The Rubber Ducky Extravaganza!

Claire officially turned one (again) at her birthday party on Saturday.

We celebrated with our other baby friends that are the same age as Claire. It was great to see all the babies playing together!

She loved her birthday cake!

She licked all the frosting off the ducky too! YUM!!

Surf's Up!

Every year at the beach house Tim tries to get Ryan to try surfing, and he's always been enthusiastic right up until the last minute when he changes his mind and runs back up the beach to safety! This year he finally had the courage and he did great!


Check out Ryan's very first time surfing! He was so proud of himself! All that practice surfing on Daddy's back at home really helped him learn to balance himself!

Emerald Isle

We had a week of fun in the sun at a beautiful beach house in Emerald Isle, NC. We've been coming here with Tim's family for a few years and always have such a great time!

The kids on the dunes right in front of our house...
beside the "Do not Climb on the Dunes" sign

This water tastes weird!

Don't think for a second that I'm keeping this hat on my head!

Cool! I love shoes! Will my feet ever be this big?

Katie loved digging in the sand! Our neighbors (behind Katie) lost their beach access... we're wondering if we rent the same house next year will our stairs also be washed away?

Trying to get a family picture with all 5 of us looking in the same direction? Are we crazy? This was MUCH easier!

The Ashburn Sharks

Go Sharks!!

Ryan had his last soccer game and Coach Daddy gave out medals to all the players and we all enjoyed yummy soccer cupcakes to celebrate the season.

Happy 1st Birthday Claire!

I'm Claire, and I'm officially a toddler today!

Here are some of my favorite things to do:

• I love to wander around and around the kitchen island testing out all the cabinets. Sometimes I get lucky and they aren't locked.


• I love to dump out all the tupperware containers and slide the shelves in and out of the cabinets.


• I love to open the pantry and pull out all the food on the bottom shelf, especially the large bottle of olive oil that is as big as me!


• I like to take things from one cabinet and move them to another cabinet for a fun surprise for Mommy and Daddy.
  
• I like to roll over and make a quick getaway right in the middle of a diaper change!


• If the fridge is open, I love to climb right inside!


• I will NOT wear a bib anymore, I pull them right off, or choke myself trying!


• I love playing in water- any water will do- Roxy's bowl, the sprinkler, the pool, the toilet, the ocean, I love water!


• I'm really speedy on the stairs, and sometimes I get all the way to the top without anyone noticing... I'm a little sneaky one!


• I love wrestling with Ryan and Katie, they are so much fun to climb on and roll around with.


• I love throwing the ball for Roxy! I scream and flap my little arms around.


• I lunge at mommy and daddy and give them the best slobbery wet kisses! They love that the most!
  
• I love it when mommy says, "I'm gonna get you!" and chases me around the house. I am almost running when she chases me!


• I make the cutest fishy face with my cheeks sucked in!


• My favorite toys are shoes, the remote control, and mommy's keys. In fact, I hardly ever play with my own toys.


• I love my rubber ducks! I'm going to have a rubber duck birthday party soon with all my friends!

Something OLD... something blue

Tim said, "Wow, after 10 years look at my double chins... "

Nicole said, "Well I can't zip up my dress so we're even."