A Whole Lot of Fun!

The lack of posting last week has probably clued you in to the fact that we've been busy busy busy again.  So, here's 2 weeks of catching up, filled with tons of fun and adventure!!!

 

Two weeks back, we spent tons of time outside, as we have been doing whenever weather allows.  Our little blondes are browning and we're all developing tan lines already. We've been keeping busy with yard work and plenty of play.  We also had our first official outdoor picnic :)

 We got to spend some time with Great Grandma a couple of times over the past two weeks.  Two Saturdays back, we spent the morning doing yard work for her, splitting plants, landscaping and planting.  While Alex, Jay, Grandma and I worked, Great Grandma got to spend time with the girls.  Then, later the next week, the girls and I went to Great Grandma's again to play.  We walked the barn yard, looked at all of the animals including the new baby turkeys and Bantam chicks, the cows and the pig.  The pig frightened Ezri quite a bit when it jumped up onto the fence to check us out up close.  While he was quite contained and we were quite safe, Ezri was very fearful :(  We also had plenty of fun with the cats and the swingset!

 

 A few weeks back, I was fortunate to find an adorable pair of white cowboy boots in Alora's size at a garage sale for $1 - and they looked brand new!  Alora just loves them!!!  She insists on wearing them all around the house and is very proud to wear them to church, where she gets so many compliments and smiles. 



We finally convinced Ezri to put hers on as well, and the three of us gals wore our boots together a few Sundays back :)

As this Sunday followed the outing of the guys to see the new Star Trek movie (for free thanks to some tickets I won!) the night before, 3D glasses were a fun new thing for the girls and Alora was especially enjoying them :)

 Love that sweet little ham!

 We've pulled the pool out and the girls have been enjoying themselves in the water quite a bit over the past couple of weeks...  The trouble, now, is that Alora wants to climb in every time we are outside, and we've had a few occasions where we've had a fully clothed baby soaked and splashing her heart out.

 The water has been a high point for the girls.  Washing cars, sprinklers or pools - it's all water and all fun!  And Ezri has found a preference with her two bathing suits, wanting the "zucchini" (bikini) in stead of the "long one" :)

 Alora is quickly learning to use a spoon to feed herself!  She has a good grasp of the idea and is quite proud of her new skill.

 Last week was Oma's birthday.  The girls were busy making cards that morning and Ezri surprised us all with her letter writing abilities.  With only a little help or guidance, she wrote almost all of the letters herself, writing O, A, P and H all by herself!

That night we had dinner with Opa and Oma to celebrate.  Afterward, we spent some time at their house where the girls got a bath.  Soon, Ezri was occupied in the kitchen with Oma, baking a cake and thrilled to be helping :)



Little sis kept herself occupied entertaining everyone else :)

 

All of the activity paired with some restless nights found a very tired little girl at lunch one day - she could barely keep her eyes open to eat!

 Last Friday afternoon, we packed up and headed North to Lake Michigan Camp in Pentwater.  Some good friends Nick and Jacci (and their three children) have just begun living there as camp director, and we were thrilled to have the chance to see them again and to spend some time helping with some work around camp as well as give the girls a chance to play with their kids.  We camped with Jay, Andy and the Rollandini family as well.  It was quite cold, and we were glad we could plug in a space heater to warm our tent.

Ezri was plenty busy playing in the sand, exploring, riding her bike and playing with her friends.

 And she spent plenty of time riding around or driving her friends' power wheels.

 Alora, not to be left out, made sure she also got in some ride time!

While there, the guys were able to help hang some drywall in a new building.

 Sarah, Jacci and myself were busy planting flowers and landscaping around camp signs and the lodge as well.

 The kids and dogs did really well as we worked.  Tucker made friends with Nick and Jacci's puppy, Ellie as well as the Rollandini's dogs Smiley and Hazel.  It was nice for him to have other dogs to get along with!  Ellie was quite the attraction for our girls, both because of the snacks they were often covered with and because Ellie was so tiny and cute to the girls.

 The tire swing in the camp was one of the favorite spots for the kids.  It was no big surprise to find 4 of our kids on the swing together!

 And Ezri was seldom willing to get off, she enjoyed it so much...

 No matter who she was with :)

 We were able to share a few meals together, which was always an adventure with so many little mouths and such a range in age, from 10 years to 15 months.

On Sunday, the Rollandini family left in the morning, so Ezri found herself with a few less friends to play with.  She noticed for a bit when she kept thinking she saw Lainey, Faith or West at the playground, but she soon forgot and was busy trying new things, like sliding down the pole in the ark (with Daddy's help).

Or climbing up the ramp as fast as she could!

 Which was soon a task for Alora to complete as well.

 Alex and Jay found some time to play a game of chess, with the help of some little girls...

We explored a labyrinth maze together...

A little down time for the kids in the form of a cartoon after a meal...

 

And then it was back to more Power Wheels rides!

 And more fun on the tire swing!

Our sweet girls swinging and giggling together!

Ezri and Uncle Andy

Ezri, Lexi and Bella



And then, while this Mommy finally got her turn on the tire swing, the girls had some fun bouncing on a tree! 

We made sure we took some time to visit the beach for a few hours in the afternoon.  This was Alora's first visit to Lake Michigan, and Ezri's second (the first when she was a few months old), so it was lots of fun to watch the kids.  The water was cold, but that did not deter the girls from wading in for a bit.

 Then Ezri got busy building a sand castle with Daddy...

 While Alora did some exploring of the sand, digging and playing.

 Tucker enjoyed himself as well, soaking up the warm sun and relaxing.

 It was such fun to watch Alora explore this new environment, her only other experience with sand being in the sand box.  She thoroughly enjoyed herself!

 As did the rest of us!

 And, of course, Ezri was full of adventure, exploring and playing, her imagination running wild!

 So much fun!

 And it provided Ezri with a long awaited opportunity to "walk" Tucker with his leash :)

 Back at camp, we relaxed around the campfire as the cool air settled back in.

 And we enjoyed some S'Mores!  What a sticky mess the kids were, but boy did they enjoy their snack!

After some more work on Monday, with the guys chopping trees with Nick, we found ourselves saying goodbye to our friends and heading home late in the day.  The girls where exhausted!

Though much of our Memorial Day weekend was spent working, we really enjoyed ourselves, the camping, the friends and the environment.  I suspect we'll find ourselves back in Pentwater again this summer to help and camp some more!

 

Back at home this past week, we tried to gear down a bit after such a high action weekend.  We had a couple of play dates with some friends from MOPS on Tuesday and Thursday.  We also finished planting our garden after visiting a local greenhouse to get the remainder of our veggie plants.  We now have Peas, Beans, Pumpkins, Watermelon, Tomatoes, Peppers, Cucumbers, Brussels Sprouts, Cauliflower and Broccoli in addition to our permanent Strawberries, Red and Black Raspberries and Asparagus that we can harvest next year after our 3 year wait.  So excited for the fresh goodies from our garden this year!

 

The girls also reached another month of age, with Ezri now at 39 Months...

The latest Ezri laugh came about as Daddy took her to the bathroom at a restaurant.  She immediately noticed it was the Men's bathroom and pointed it out to Daddy who convinced her to follow him in.  She refused to go potty, however, knowing it was not right.  When she came back to the table, she asked me to take her to the Women's bathroom.  On our way, she shared with me, "Mommy, I went in the boy's bathroom with Daddy.  He didn't sit down.  Mommy, we need to teach Daddy!" 

 

And Alora at 16 Months

Little miss chatter box who is learning a new word or more each day and has just recently added, "bubbles", "car", "puppy", "and so much more!  I can't even count the words this child knows - no slowing her down!

Whew!!!!  All that activity makes this Mommy ready for a nap!