On my birthday we went out to the Hartland Orchard again to get more peaches and also raspberries this time. This has got to be one of my favorite things to do. It is beautiful scenery, the kids enjoy it, and we get fresh produce! Here are some pictures from our recent trip.
Hallie turned 3 on August 13th. It was a wonderful day and I hope she remembers it. We had 11 of her friends come over for a party. We played outside, ate pizza and cake and ice cream, colored an activity, and opened presents. It was pure craziness and awesomeness. I love seeing the look of happiness on her face. It makes me smile!
I love my little Hallie more than she will ever know. She is bossy and demanding but she is also sweet, and oh so caring. She sincerely worries when someone is hurt or sick. She likes to cheer people up and she loves to laugh. She can write several letters now, including H (her fave because her name begins with it), A, O, T, X, B, C, L, I, Q. She loves playing pretend and demands I play it constantly with her. We live in a Cinderella and little people world. She says she likes the wind in her face and doesn’t ever want me to do her hair because of it. She dresses herself, opens her own car door and buckles herself in (all except the bottom buckle). She also pours her own cereal and milk in the morning. One of my friends commented that Hallie could live in an apartment all by herself and survive. While she can take care of herself (or so she thinks) she would not handle the alone factor. This girl needs people. She may have only turned 3 but she acts like she is 15.
*Hallie asked me to teach her to drive one day and I told her not until she is 16. She responded “Well my dad is teaching me how to drive and I’m only 2!”
*Hallie picked a mosquito bite on her leg so we covered it with a band aid. The next day she told the babysitter she fell down the stairs.
*We have had to teach her about lying a lot lately. She will blame something on Kyle until she is blue in the face.
*Ben asked Hallie to do him a favor and she responded, “oh I don’t have enough energy” haha I guess she hears that one from me.
*She hurt herself on the kitchen table and in agony said “son of a beaver!” haha I think that may be the funniest thing she has ever said.
For the past 14 weeks I have been training for a Ragnar Race. A Ragnar is a race where you team up with friends and split up the miles. We have 12 women and we will run 200 total miles in 24 hours. Crazy I know! We begin in Cumberland Maryland and end in DC at the monuments. When I first started training I went from no exercise really at all (I hadn’t started after having Kyle-terrible I know) to running 4 times a week. It has taken over my life it seems. Most days I hate the time commitment but then after I run the feeling is such a high that it keeps me loving it. I am so proud and grateful for my body. So often I criticize and critique my body when really that is the last thing I should do. It is good and strong and can do amazing things. The summer after I had Hallie I did a couple 5k’s which were a big deal for me. Now I eat 5k’s for breakfast haha. I can comfortably run 6 miles at this point in training and I’m getting fast. I love it! I never thought I’d be able to do this and I feel proud after each run. That is a feeling I miss since leaving the world and becoming a stay at home mom. Feeling like I rock! lol I am so glad my friend Molly thought of doing this race and asked me to join her. I have learned a lot about myself and it has given me something to achieve. It is now safe to say that I am a runner. 🙂
p.s. I will be running about 16 miles divided up into 3 different legs.
Last Saturday while Ben had a Scout day camp the kids and I took our friends out to Hartland Orchard to pick peaches. We had so much fun. The kids loved picking the peaches and then eating them. So far we have made peach jam and a peach pie. I bought a pressure cooker so we plan on going back next week to get some more. Best peaches ever! Yum!!
I love little adventures like this!
We just can’t get enough. We would go everyday if given the opportunity. To say we love it is an understatement. 🙂
Eating corn on the cob.
Chaperoning at Youth Conference. I got mistaken for a youth several times by other leaders and some young men. haha (We went to Mount Vernon and had a Stake dance. It was wonderful!)
Shopping…
Shopping…
And more shopping.
Reading books at the library.
Coloring pictures.(And yes that is ALL Hallie. She did it during quiet time.)
Going to parks and riding on merri-go-rounds…
And trains.
This summer is going by way too fast!
Our kids will usually only sleep in ONE place and that is their beds. However, the other night Hallie was throwing a fit and feel asleep like this:
Without any further adew I reveal to you our new house…..
It is a charming little house sitting on a little hill in the middle on a cul-de-sac. It has two bedrooms and one bath up stairs and the main level has a kitchen, dining room, living room, bathroom and bedroom. (All very small of course.) We love it! We have done so much remodeling on it that any one who saw it before would be stunned. (I will post before and after pictures when I take the ‘after’ pictures.)
The backyard is really what sold us on the house. We want our kids to grow up being adventurous and imaginative. Two things that we believe are best produced by playing outside uninhibited and worry free (rather than inside playing video games). So far the kids love it. I have a feeling that next summer I will be able to read a lot of books out there while the kids play together. So looking forward to that! The only down side is mowing the lawn. I know this because I did it last week. Yikes!
I couldn’t get one picture with the whole backyard in it so you will have to imagine it.
Hooray for our new house! Now if we could just get get all unpacked! 🙂
Kyle’s first birthday was July 9th. I have neglected blogging about it until now because of the move. We kept things very simple (due to the move). Poor Kyle got short changed. Good news-he won’t remember. Bad news-it was his first birthday for crying out loud! We moved everything from our townhouse into our new house the day before and the day of his birthday so it was a little crazy to say the least. During the day I would try to take a moment and snuggle him to soak in the fact that he is one already. He is my sweetheart! He is just so stinkin cute I kiss his little cheeks off most days! haha I’m so glad he doesn’t mind. (If anyone else kisses him the way I do he gets mad. I love it! lol)
Some things about Kyle:
*He loves to walk along the wall or furniture, but isn’t brave enough to do more than 4 or 5 steps alone.
*He always wants the toy his big sister has and visa versa.
*He hates being in a room by himself.
*He now prefers his dad to me. He gets so excited every day when Ben gets home from work. Ben loves it!!!
*His favorite toys are balls. I know people say all boys love balls but this kid can play catch already. You toss it to him he catches it and throws it back. You have to see it to believe it. He will also just chase a ball around the house for hours.
* We haven’t found a food he doesn’t like. He will eat and eat and eat!
* He randomly comes up and gives you big hugs.
* He has four teeth.
* He says “mama, dada, baba”
* He has recently thrown a couple fits that involve biting a toy or the floor.
* He does the cutest bashful look when I am holding him and he sees someone new. He gives a sly smile and rests his head against my shoulder.
* He loves books and my cell phone.
* Weight: 21 lbs (26%)
* Height: 29 3/4 inches (18%)
This past year has been our happiest!