Friday, July 20, 2012

Little Cabin in the Woods

This will be a picture post, since we are about to leave for Chelan. This is me making an attempt to avoid the build-up of pictures, which inevitably results in more procrastination.

We went to the cabin last weekend and had a great time, despite many, many mosquitos and a little girl who didn't want to go to bed the first night (shocker).

The weekend in pictures from my phone, since I forgot the real camera:
































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And more phone pics from the week:


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And a couple from the big camera:




And now, we vacay!!!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Quotables

Stories and quotes from the girls that I just know I'll forget if I don't publish them somewhere...

Heard from downstairs as the girls were playing with playdough: "Austen, can I sit on your head?"

Every single time I get back from a run, Austen cocks her head to the side, puts on her scrunch-face and says in her high-pitched voice, "You go runnin'?" And, if I'm lucky, "You wearin' a hat? Don't you need a coat on?"



Kaitlyn has gotten more and more into her big sister (aka "mommy") role. If Austen is upset, K will go up to her and soothe her with "Kaitlyn's here, Kaitlyn's here. What do you need?" She often comforts Riley this way, too.

Austen, the day before we actually started getting sunshine: "Mama? Can I please have a sunny day?"

Kaitlyn, running past me on her way to the bathroom: "Mama your hair looks funny!" And that was it.



Kaitlyn: "Um Austen...I don't really want you to use this. It's kinda a big girl thing."

I went upstairs  to discover that Austen had "cleaned" the bathroom with the toilet brush (in a matter of minutes).
Me: Sigh...
Austen: "Austen Jean!!"
She took the words right outta my mouth ;)

"Mama, shadows don't smile." ~Kaitlyn



Overheard while Austen was taking care of her babies: "Baby, I love you so much."

Kaitlyn made Austen a card, and went up to give it to her: "Happy Father's Day, Austen. I love you." She was so proud. :)

Austen is very protective of her big sister (it doesn't stop her from giving her some good smacks here and there, but that doesn't count, apparently). She often can be heard calling K "my sister" or "my sissy." I'm not even sure where she got the Sissy name, but I like that she has come up (or someone else did, I'm sure) with a pet name. For example: "I need to go play with my sissy." Lame example, but others escape me right now -- trust me that it's adorable.

Kaitlyn is becoming quite the little artist (well, in the eyes of her admittedly biased parents, that is). The Magnadoodles continue to be the most popular toy in our house.

"Cat" and "Fish" for your viewing pleasure:




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We are headed up to the cabin in Index this weekend. I have endless treasured memories up there and can't wait to break it in for the girls and do the same for them. I spent a whole lot of my childhood up there, and it has since been a bit neglected for quite a few years. My parents have spent countless hours fixing it back up over the past year or so, and it's ready for us.

Over the river and through the woods...

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Summer Happenings

Soccer

Both of the girls are doing Lil' Kickers soccer this year. Kaitlyn did it last year, and we figured Austen would be into it by now. This is our Tuesday from 10:30-12:30, June through August. Papa comes with us and runs around with Kaitlyn while Austen and I are in class, then with Austen while Kaitlyn is in hers. Kaitlyn's is not a parent participation deal this year, and she's been little miss independent for the last two classes; doing everything on her own. Proud mama alert. :)

It's funny how a mom and dad notice the same exact changes in their kids, either together or seperate. Jeff had said to me a little while back how proud he was of Kaitlyn because someone at a gathering had asked her name, and after a pause, she answered herself. I had the same moment at her first soccer class when her coach went around asking names at the start.

This may seem silly, but Kaitlyn is our shy girl, and a few weeks ago was the first time either of us had ever heard her tell someone her name. We were both giddy over something that could seem very every-day to an observer. Proud mom AND dad alert. :)








Mariners game

Jeff worked an extra long day and instead of doing the responsible thing -- working for overtime the next day -- he took the day off with us (I encouraged it). It was such a beautiful day and he had been wanting to get his girls to a baseball game. We obliged.














Play dates and days with Mama

Edmonds Beach with Meagan:








LFP Civic Club







Kaitlyn came running over to me, arms crossed and crestfallen and said, "Those kids called me little." With my heart breaking just a little (okay, maybe a lot) in that "Oh yeah, I can't protect them from everything" way, I did my best to quickly console but mostly let her know that it wasn't nice, but that she should keep right on playing. She SO badly wanted to go across the monkey cars just like those big kids were. She eventually found a way that worked, and didn't stop smiling (or showing us) for 30 minutes.


Berry Picking

The girls were invited to go with their preschool to the berry farm to pick strawberries. How awesome is that? See, this is one of the many ways they show that they truly love these kids. The girls had a great time riding the school bus and seeing their friends again.


Fourth of July

Last year, Kaitlyn was so deathly afraid of fireworks that she would immediately break out in hives and become inconsolable every single time she heard one. We spent 4th of July night with a sobbing, white-knuckled toddler for four hours straight, and had to leave parks, etc. if any fireworks were set off (which is very common in our area for the entire month of July). It was awful for her and for us. This phobia ended up carrying over to fires as well. The crackling of a fire, then eventually just the sight of one, would send her into the same tizzy as fireworks.

Needless to say, we didn't know what to expect this year. Since fireworks start going off around here) about a week before the 4th, we didn't need to wait long. The verdict: Kaitlyn is still definitely on alert with the louder ones, but doesn't even really notice the little guys anymore. She has spent four nights in our bed in the past two weeks, but otherwise has done very well overall. One huge difference is that, as long as we are in the room with her with the big booms, she does fine -- no crying and no hives at all this year. Fourth of July night was harder on her with a little crying, but I'd say it was more "typical" of a kid scared of fireworks.

I wish I could say the same for Austen. :) She was fine with everything until she heard big sister talking about being scared. She is now cautious of going outside at all because "There are fireworks outside." She won't be out if there are any (tears), but I think we are on the tail end of the stretch.

Our next test will be fires with Kaitlyn, but I'm thinking positively...

For the 4th, we headed to a neighborhood BBQ with Makya's family (The girls' good buddy - in the picture above - from school.) It was so much fun for the kids -- they close off their culdesac and the kids ride bikes, run around, and play on the swingset. The girls retreated to the basement (this was on Makya's cousin's street, so their house was open to us) for movies once the show really started. However, we were thrilled that the loud ones in other neighborhoods did not bother either of them. Small victories!!








Our own backyard














Our everyday









It's shaping up to be a great summer!