Lovin' Summer

Lest you think I've simply gone crazy with this quantity of pictures, (which is suppose is a possibility anyway), let me explain. Last Saturday at Grandma & Grandpa Wade's, they decided to pull out the kiddie pool! Lizzie didn't have her swimsuit with her, but David & Sadie had some extra swimmers diapers on hand. For Case, it was a perfect photo op, which resulted in over one hundred pictures! It was difficult to narrow it down to 46 on our desktop, and even harder to further narrow it down for the blog. Enjoy!

This kid is so unbelievably expressive!

When Lizzie first got in, although nervous and cold, she was happy to give it a try, experimenting with a splash here and there...

...until Carson wanted to experiment by seeing what would happen if he gave a little push...

Lizzie was not pleased.

At least Carson got that little pool to himself for just a little while. :)

Splash!

Carson seemed to enjoy his swim shirt sticking to his belly. He also liked to look for his belly button under it.

Lizzie's expression is clearly communicating to everyone else, "Mom got water in Carson's eyes!"

Busted!

It was just a love tap, Mom!

Hooray for the kiddie pool!

Congratulations, Abby!

We got to attend Abby's graduation this week, which she attended with high honors! We're all so proud of how hard she's worked! Case, of course, documented the entire event as always: :)









Maybe Abby was a little nervous...




...but she did great!


just a flip of the tassle...


...and she had that diploma in hand!














Loving siblings! Maggie had to tickle Case to smile!






P.S. for those who I don't see very often, I got a hair cut a month or so ago... :) No more Lizzie trying to use it as her personal floss!




The entertainment.






I love how Case actually captured Carson mid-run here. That kid seriously never stops running!

Remodel!

I'm sorry for the long break in posts...it's been a hectic past few weeks of wrapping up the school year. Part of the chaos included our first home improvement project: replacing the nasty worn carpet with wood laminate in the living room! Here are the before/after shots:





It has really lightened up our home, and in a small living space, that really makes an impact! Another bonus is that we don't have to keep scooting the rug around to hide horrible, continually resurfacing stains. One interesting discovery through this project was finding out how upset Lizzie gets by change. When the floor was first finished, she wouldn't walk onto it from another room, and if we set her down on it and walked away, she would shriek in terror. She warmed up to it after a couple days, but I have a feeling this will not be the end of our run-ins with her aversion to change.

Babysitting and Exploring Outside

From time to time, Sadie and David give us the pleasure of being able to slightly repay them for all they do for us in watching Lizzie while I teach by asking us to babysit Carson. This last time, we took them outside to play on the grass. As long as he got to play with a ball, Carson was content, but he got bored pretty fast. My hypothesis is that he prefers being on the cement where he can happily get himself all scuffed up. I love seeing the stark contrast of Lizzie's dainty girliness with Carson's rough housing.












Also, here are a couple of photos from when we went to a cousin's wedding in Salt Lake yesterday. I'm excited to get one of these framed and mounted in our house! The Salt Lake temple is just so lovely.

Birthday Girl!

A year ago, I was marveling at my darling daughter's tiny perfection. I clearly recall conversations with Case about being unable to even fathom Lizzie walking around and growing up. However, despite all my efforts to enjoy every moment, Lizzie's first year has flown by. And although I sorrow at saying goodbye to her babyhood, I love watching Lizzie's new discoveries. Now an official one-year old toddler, Lizzie waddles around with one hand clutching her sippy cup of milk, and her other hand on her hip, ready to boss Daddy around. She loves to dress up, tease, and attempt to put on her own shoes. She relishes in pulling out every single toy a dozen times a day, and she enjoys rearranging furniture. When she feels like it, she even moo's and baa's when prompted. Here are some photos memorializing her very first birthday:


The phone was apparently far more interesting than the birthday cupcake.



Lizzie loves her little princess piano. Especially the button that plays "Be Our Guest" from Beauty & the Beast. Repeatedly.


Dress up!


Adorable shorts from Sadie.



Yes, yes that is a Victoria's Secret bag. Gotta love the resourceful aunts! :)


She was pretty unsure about her cupcake. Not only did she end up eating just a little bit, but she attempted to chuck it off the high chair. I discovered a few days later that she does like Snickers though. I guess that will be her birthday treat next year.