Summer Fun Part 2

Another great part of summer is taking trips to see Nana and Papa! The kids enjoy trips to Cherry Berry and Kiddie Park, visiting Grandad, and playing with their cousins.

Nana and Papa also came to our house for a visit! The kids love having them here and soak up every minute. Nana always brings fun things like beads and snake bubbles!

We spent quite a bit of time in the water! We played in the baby pool and sprinkler and met friends at the splash pad and Trophy Club pool.

 Summer afternoons are perfect for tea parties :)

 Tink got to visit the American Girl cafe with her friend, S! They had a great time and Tink has been busy planning her 5th birthday party :)

Tink also tackled swim lessons - this was a challenge for her for the last two summers, and the teachers at Carroll Aquatics Center took extra time to work with her. She made great strides and we were really proud of her and thankful for their extra time and effort.

 Summer toes :)

 Around here, it doesn't get much better than spending the day in your PJs and turning up the music!

Now that Bug is potty trained, he is convinced that pants are overrated (which could have something to do with making the bathroom process more complicated, but he is a boy, so it could be personal preference). Either way, rain boots are a must!

R and I have made an effort lately to bring one of the kids along on evening or weekend errands, and they love spending time with us one-on-one. Tink and I happened to pass a snow ball stand one afternoon, and couldn't resist. Such a fun Mommy Daughter treat!

Summer Fun Part 1

We had such a wonderful summer! I didn't capture as much on camera as I hoped, but here are some of the highlights:

One of our favorite summer days was "kids' choice day" - we woke up one Saturday with no plans and decided that it would be fun to let the kids call the shots for the day. We started with breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts, continued to Founders Plaza to see some airplanes, visited the crocodile at Rainforest Cafe, got drinks at Sonic, had pizza for lunch, and grilled hot dogs for dinner before playing in the water in the backyard... such simple requests for such a great family day :)

One of Tink's milestones this summer was saving her own money to buy a Squinkies set! She earns money by cleaning sinks and occasionally gets money from her grandparents, and was very proud to make the purchase on her own.

 We beat the Texas heat by making several Slurpee runs - I'll admit that this was mostly my idea :)

One of Bug's major milestones this summer was sleeping in a toddler bed! We had a few hiccups, but overall, he has done great.

We also beat the Texas heat with lots of trips to the library - both of my kids could sit forever with a pile of books, and who am I to deprive them?

We had a very special and unexpected visit from the fire department one afternoon! The firemen came by to check on a fire hydrant, and Bug and I decided to go outside to watch. After they were finished, they came into our driveway to invite us to see the inside of the truck. Bug and Tink happily explored the inside of the truck, and the firemen sent them away with hats, coloring books, and stickers - such a fun surprise!

We took advantage of the member appreciation morings at the zoo, arriving an hour before they opened to the public. Mommy didn't last long, but the kids were great and enjoyed the time we were able to be there. As long as we saw the crocodile and the snakes, they were happy :)

We watched quite a bit of the Olympics! We had fun pointing out the flags and clothing of the athletes from different countries, learned about different sports, and even did some fun "Olympic O" (Fruit Loop) activities. When R asked Tink what olympic sport she might like to try, she responded, "Remember at the beginning when those kids were jumping on the beds? I want to do that one."

While getting things together for the local consignment sale, I asked R to get our baby gear out of the attic. Bug was really interested in everything and had fun pulling things out and asking what they were for. A few hours later, I heard him calling for help and found him in the bassinet! He looked WAY too big squeezed in the bed that I remember him sleeping in not so long ago...

Another of Bug's summer milestones - potty training! I resisted the idea at first, but R convinced me that having only one kid in diapers was worth a try. He did AMAZINGLY well, and was having a celebratory "clean and dry all day" ice cream cone on the fourth day!

One of Tink's favorite things this summer was spending time with her Daddy outside. She often came in with flowers for me, and was excited to learn that a hibiscus fit perfectly behind her ear :)

On the Farm

Some of R's favorite memories growing up are time spent at his grandparents' house. Now that his parents live there, he has the pleasure of sharing those things with our kids.

 Taking a ride on one of PaPa's tractors

 We let the kids stay up late one night just to catch fireflies - they still talk about it!

 A frequent request - riding around on the golf cart

The kids also like to play "restaurant" in the playhouse - PaPa's orders keep them in stitches!

 Checking out a caterpillar Daddy found in the garden

 Another highlight of the summer - picking (and eating) peaches!

Speaking of highlight, one of my favorite parts of the summer was bringing home fruits and veggies from the garden! We brought home WAY more than any one family could eat on more than one occasion, and I was very proud to learn how to can. I have my Granny's pressure cooker, and I could almost feel her smiling down on me as I pulled each batch out of the water. So far, I have canned green beans, salsa, spaghetti, stewed tomatoes, and pickled peaches (at Ryan's Dad's request). I also froze squash and zucchini. I am hooked and can't wait to get my hands on some apples :)

Oh, Canada!

When deciding on our summer vacation, R's first suggestion was Florida. Ummm, five months pregnant? Not exactly what I had in mind. Canada, where we have friends and the weather is bearable, sounded MUCH better :) As the trip grew closer, I knew we made the right choice. The kids were SUPER excited to fly on an airplane (Bug's first flight and passport stamp), and were great travelers. We MIGHT have been those people on the flight with a two-year-old yelling, "3, 2, 1 BLASTOFF!" twenty times before takeoff. In all fairness, he was pretty quiet once the highly anticipated takeoff actually occured. I wish I could have videoed his face as we lifted into the air - priceless. The other great memory from our flight was when Tink told R she had to go to the bathroom. He began to unbuckle her seatbelt and I told her I would take her. She looked out the window and asked, "Are we stopping?" She was very impressed to find the onboard bathroom :)

We arrived quite late, but the kids woke up the next morning to find that they would be sleeping in a tent! (Yes, we had the most FUN hosts imaginable.) This was a highlight of their trip, and they still tell people about it.

 Another highlight, of course, was Tim Horton's. A trip to Canada just isn't complete without Timbits and hot chocolate. I will save us from the embarrassement of how many times we actually visited in the week we were there...

We spent the first day shopping, and, of course, T made it worthwhile for the kids with a ride on the carousel!

 The next day, we rode the train downtown and walked to Prince's Island Park. The weather was beautiful, and we enjoyed being outside for the day.

 What day at the park is complete without ice cream?

Lucky for us, our trip included celebrating Canada Day! We donned our new maple leaf attire and headed for Heritage Park, where we started the day with free pancakes, the kids rode rides, and we explored the historical village. We rode a train, sat in a one room school house, and enjoyed some great music (except for the Native drums and dancing, which completely sent Bug over the edge - he talked about the scary "Chicken Dance" for days).

                                     
 On Monday, we headed into the mountains! The drive was beautiful, and of course, the weather was fabulous. We started at Lake Louise, and pictures don't even begin to do it justice. I've never seen water this turquoise in my life! We walked around the lake for a bit before continuing our drive.

 Our next stop was the Banff Gondola! The kids were almost as excited about this as they were the ride on the airplane. When we got to the top, we ate lunch in a restaurant with the perfect view, and took some great pictures on the observation deck.

 After spending the night in Banff, we continued our drive to the Columbian Icefields, where we rode an ice explorer onto a glacier! We actually got a late start because I drug everyone around the city looking for an extra layer for the kids (who knew we would need fleece in July?) We got to fill our water bottles with the cleanest, coldest water any of us has ever tasted, and took some fun pictures before riding back down for some hot chocolate.

                                         
Our drive home was just as beautiful as our arrival, but we saw two bears and a Rocky Mountain rainbow - the perfect end to a wonderful week.
                                    

Thank you, M and T for opening your home to us, being such wonderful tour guides and for making our kids feel so loved! We had the perfect week away, truly enjoyed your company, and fell even more in love with beautiful Canada. We can't to visit again soon!