gone in 60 seconds

i thought it would be fun to start the weekend with some of these...

which took WAY longer to fill than to throw!
in fact, there were lots more in the bowl,
but ben started throwing them so fast i was lucky to get a picture before they were all gone.

it was fun!

we've been so excited to have visits with aunt lindsey and cousin abel this week.
i can't believe how much that little guy has grown -
so fun spend time with them.

and this is how ben feels about having not just one, but TWO babies in the house!

hope you have a wonderful weekend!
we are looking forward more time with family,
and the upcoming holiday week.

cheers!

sitting up

not to be confused with spitting up!
which, thank goodness, we have a lot less of these days.
julia has been sitting so well lately -
not completely without wobbles,
but pretty close.

t-ball

since i posted about ben's swimming class,
i thought i should share a few more pictures from his t-ball clinic.
his last "practice" was last tuesday.
not only was it HOT it was also WINDY.
and you know - we do live in "western" kansas,
so i think we all felt like we were covered with a nice layer of dirt and sand when we left the fields.
 
i think ben enjoyed looking for rocks and inspecting the dirt as much as any of it!

he is also wearing his "cowboy hat" - guess we'd better find him a real one!

pretty sure jake is trying to get ben's attention in this one.

 and this is how ben spent the last 10 minutes of practice...

he was done.

trying to stay cool

holy cow it is HOT here!
we're doing our best to stay cool -
maybe some pictures from swimming lessons will help.

ben had summer swim lessons last week -
and can you believe it was his fourth time?
four summers. really?
big stuff for sure.

the last day is always a fun day -
and the big slide is going.

a quick look back...

summer 2011

summer 2010

summer 2009

 

summer bucket

i never got around to making an easter basket for ben,
or a may basket.
so i made him a "summer bucket".

it contained an eclectic mix...
a book of catholic prayers for kids (intended for easter),
a connect the dot book (intended for may basket),
a set of angry bird space stickers,
a large paint brush for painting outside with water,
and two water squirters...

family photos

more than a month ago we had new family photos taken.
it was a hot, muggy, buggy evening.
this did not create a very good mood among us,
but our wonderful photographer was patient and kind,
and we still managed to pull it together for a few quick clicks.
since i finally got around to placing the order for family and friends,
i decided to share a few of my favorites in this post.

and because in "real life" things are not always "picture perfect"...

thanks stacie!
see you again in the fall.

father's day

it was still a busy day for us,
but we did our best to give dad a day of relaxing, time with family,
and most importantly - no "honey do projects".

we made jake's favorite breakfast - biscuits & sausage gravy.
then we surprised him with some favorite treats and a special gift from ben.

i copied this idea from pinterest,
and it's really special to read what ben thinks about his dad.

happy father's day!

 we love you.

relaxing by the pool

the past several years when it was just me and ben in the summer,
we frequently ate our lunch, packed our snacks, towels, and sunscreen,
and headed to the wading pool (it's free here! and there are two of them!)
it was fun and relaxing.
well lately i kept planning that we would go, but our days have been super full
and i feel like packing up ben and julia for a hour at the wading pool is a bit much.
so jake and i talked about it.
you see - he isn't so crazy about a large percentage of our yard being decorated with plastic "stuff",
but he kindly decided to go along with the purchase anyway.  :) 
so sunday morning ben and jake headed to walmart in the old truck.
ben spent the afternoon and some of the evening playing, playing, playing.

it was so fun to watch him!
we about had to drag him out for supper,
and he could barely stay awake to eat a hot dog,
but he still managed to go back out to the pool for another hour or so.
and miss julia tried out her new swimwear too!

ben came in the house at about seven, rinsed off, put on his pjs,
and sat on the couch watching aladdin.
he was asleep within five minutes.
this kid was TIRED!

as much as i like to take the kids places and give them experiences,
i am also very happy to stay at home and keep things simple.
so this summer you will probably find us where the snacks, bathrooms, diapers, towels, band-aids, air-conditioning, and sunscreen are easy to find.
just relaxing by our pool.