The Sunniest Side of Summer

Wow... are we already halfway through July?!  Feel like just yesterday I was buying the girls' swimsuits and now Harper's already planning her Halloween costume- TIME SLOW DOWN!!

Well this big sister has been keepin' busy for sure!  We decided to keep her in preschool through the summer... she loves it so much and keeping in our routine WORKS for this kid- and yes... this very scheduled Mommy enjoys it as well;).  In addition to her fun days she's been rockin' it at soccer and also enjoying her pool time more and more...

This is our second summer season doing swimming lessons with Ms. Donna and my jaw dropped when Harper went right in the water and started blowing her bubbles.  Gone are the days of trying to peel a swimsuited-Harper from my leg and encourage her to just get her legs in the water.  She seems much more comfortable in the water this year and now we're beginning to tackle her skills in the pool.  

I sing your praises, Ms. Donna.  My child truly adores you and this momma is in awe of your everlasting patience with the little ones.

The Learndates continue and although sadly we missed Ms. Beth teaching all about the weather due to our St. Louis trip we were back at it, firefighter style, this week!

Evelyn was soaking it all in- loved listening to the firefighters talk;)

What a great tour of the Rogers Fire Station!!  The firefighters were incredibly patient with so many little ones, and the fire chief had a little girl named Harper attached to his hip the whole time- she was full of questions and he patiently answered every one- it was wonderful!!  When we got home, she couldn't wait to share all she learned with Daddy.  The chief even sent the kiddos home with fire safety homework and Harper made sure she and her sisters were fire-safe before bed last night... will she always be such a good student?! HA!

The hubs and I were able to fit in yet another date night in June... ya, can you believe it?!  We were able to see Colbie Calliat here in Arkansas- it was SUCH a great show and you better believe I was the nerd taping her singing my favorite song 'Try' for Harper to hear- haha!  It also was a great chance for me to get to know some of the wonderful people Pete works with... such a kind group of people for sure!

 

Passing on the green thumb...

Some of the best conversations Pete and I have had are centered around the interesting things he learned through the years from his grandparents.  Some of his most fond memories are of working in the garden with his grandfather as he learned all about the various fruits and vegetables.  Pete has spoke for years about beginning a garden of his own we just never had the right space.  I'm such a softy for tradition... this year sadly, his grandfather passed away and it clicked within Pete that this would be the year to start a garden.  Death is never an easy thing, but I have found such beauty in watching Pete carry on Grandpa Lee's legacy in trying his hand at gardening... teaching Harper the whole way through.  I know I keep posting pictures of all the craziness of the garden, but it really has been so special to watch those two chattin' away about their tomatoes and pickles- so sweet!

 

...and the yummy vegetables we have actually been able to harvest and eat are an added bonus!!  

Speaking of sweetness, I'll probably be commenting forever on how much it makes me melt to watch the girls 'playing' together.

Maggie is rolling and army-crawling her way through this summer!  We are so excited she is moving so much- you can't take your eyes off of her for long though- there's no tellin' where she could scoot off to!!

 

...and yes we like to leave the shoes inside...drag out the picnic blanket and yard toys and enjoy the summer nights outside.  Seriously, with how hot its been its about the only time we can enjoy the Arkansas out of doors;)!

... and ya.... dress up like a cow, get free Chick-fil-A meal- we were SO THERE... cow tails and all- hehe!

 

...and last but not least, the littlest sister is 4 months old!  She is also taking notes from her big sister and rolling around.  She can lift her head, roll around, chatter, and smile like the best of them but still does NOT like to be left alone.  She is the loudest of the 3 and knows how to wear her momma out... when is she going to sleep through the night again?!?!

All in all summer is treating us well.  It is my favorite time of year, but it always seems to go by far to quickly- even more so with kiddos!  Here's to a few more shoeless, Popsicle face, warm summer nights;)!!

A Little STL + Palooza Fun!!

Last week we crossed our fingers and hoped for the best as we packed up our family of five and headed for good 'ol St. Louis and Indy!  The trip went so smoothly and we arrived in St. Louis for a round of appointments with Ms. Maggie.

Here we ALL are in the waiting room... LOVE that Pete is playing with the kid friendly toys :) and Harper is rummaging through the diaper bag with the sour look on her face...HA!

Her tune TOTALLY changed when she got down to the Sibling Playroom at the hospital.  These two incredible Child Life Specialists have spent many a day with Harper and I kid you not- she gets Disney World excited just to spend the day playing with them- so sweet and such a blessing for parents!!

So all in all Ms. Maggie is doing so well!  The Neurologist was thrilled with her progress and as always, is helping us navigate therapies and the extra special needs of having a little one with Cerebral Palsy.  She actually 'graduated' from the NICU team this visit, although we couldn't cut ties quite yet- hard to say good bye to the doctor who swooped up our baby from Arkansas and brought her to St. Louis- let alone the countless times she saved Maggie's life.  We will see Dr. Stephani one last time before we bridge over to the CP clinic for some tearful hugs I'm sure.  All in all the visit went so well and we just can't say enough about the incredible human beings that make up that hospital- they mean the world to us and are true angels on earth.

 

After the appointments we packed up the hotel, took off our thinking caps for a bit, and settled into party mode for a couple days as we helped my youngest sister ring in her 21st birthday!

My incredible art-teacher sister and thoughtful mother put together an itinerary of events spanning three days to keep the family time rollin'.  What fun we had playing games, eating fun food, catching up, and enjoying some grown-up drinks ALL with a medical twist perfect for the newly 21 nursing student!

 

...and it was the very FIRST time the grand dog, Fig was able to join the family in Indy!  My brother's dog was the perfect addition to the family- super sweet boy with the best manners of all the grandkids- ha!

We brought a little Arkansas to the party... nothin' like draggin' the lawn chairs to the front yard and poppin' a squat with the kiddos and playing games and chattin' while the cars drive by- haha!

 

This is how meal time goes when you have us ALL under one roof- line 'er up buffet style!

Our family thrives on competition so of course there were games... Harper LOVED the pinata and PB Pong- haha!

And on the last night, we were able to head downtown for a incredible dinner complete with some wine sampling for the 21 year old.  Such a fun night.

Happy 21st to my littlest sister!  What a fantastic weekend celebrating you- you're one amazing person and it was so great to spend LOTS of time chatting and enjoying all that you are!  Cheers!!

Birthday Week, Parade, Fireworks, OH MY!

This year, my amazing husband changed my birthday from ONE DAY to SIX DAYS OF FUN!  I am not bragging at ALL, but I have to say- the hubs was on point as we rang in July- birthday style!  On Sunday he went out for a couple hours, then was rustling around upstairs a bit...came down and laid out this group of presents to open each day and decorated for the 4th- all by himself.  I was trying to act cool but my grin from ear to ear after I realized what he was doing gave me away- I felt pretty dang special.. 

A HUGE thank you, hubs and our girls for making this Momma feel like a rockstar for 6 straight days!!

 

During the birthday... I mean holiday;) week Harper's school put on an adorable patriotic parade.  All the children and teachers were decked out in their red, white, and blue proudly showing their love for our country.  Not only did Harper have fun decorating herself- ha- and parading around, she really did learn some cool stuff about the good 'ol USA... Little Evelyn and I were lovin' it!

Then, on Thursday evening we got a visit from the Grandparents!  The girls (and Pete and I:)) were so excited to enjoy the holiday weekend with them!  In true Harper fashion she had them up at the crack of dawn and kept the party going all day long... she was wearin' us all out- ha!  We enjoyed them so much and appreciate all the fun...

 

Daddy even got in on the family fun and broke out the canner he received from Christmas (AMAZING gift, Mom & Dad;))... Tom showed him the ropes of canning pickles and making homemade strawberry jam... it really was so sweet watching them work away in the kitchen together and I have to say- that jam is ROCKIN'!!

On the actual 4th we invited a few family friends over and enjoyed a good 'ol fashioned cook out with LOTS of yummy food...

...and fantastic patriotic drinks complete with frozen fruit as the 'ice cubes'

Shannon~ thank you for thinking of it all with the yummy cocktails- amazing!

 

Then the mommies and the kiddos settled in to watch the daddies light things on fire (ever so safely of course- hehe)

What a beautiful fun night full of good food and drinks, great friends, fireworks, music, and ya...a little driveway dancing;)... a birthday for the memory books for sure!!

Thank you friends for all the patriotic love and fun!!!  It was fun to cheers to another year of blessings and also congratulate my sister on her first wedding anniversary- a day of good times for sure!