Fun Weekend

CAMP WEEKEND:
We spent a glorious few days at camp over the holiday weekend. Too bad the weather wasn't so "glorious." Memorial Day weekend is the annual clean up day and meeting day for our camp association. Jim is tied up for much of the weekend with those two tasks plus he is usually pretty busy cleaning up the yard and preparing to get the boat in the water. This year things were slightly off for us. Our dock got hit by an iceberg and will need to be repaired before we can put the boat in. For now, we just drive down the road to the next bay and launch from there.

My friend came up for the day on Saturday with her two girls. The kids had a fantastic time playing at the beach and around the house. The weather was pretty yucky, but somehow rain storms are just so much fun when at camp! Thanks for coming to visit Julie!! We had a great time. It was total let down when you left- we were so lonesome! Can't wait until you the girls and Shawn can come back. Boat rides and BBQ.

We had a lot of fun with camp neighbors this weekend too. Play dates with the camp kids is always fun. I can't wait to watch all of these "camp kids" grow up together.

I got fried on the boat on Monday. It was the only day that we had constant sun and no threat of storms. I plastered sunscreen on the girls but decided that I didn't need it since we wouldn't be out long. Ha! Not so much. I am now as red as a lobster and in serious pain. Silly me!

We finally got an area rug for under the dining table at camp. I am ordering counter stools tomorrow and we have a few other things to get in order to make life at camp more comfortable. I plan to spend a lot of time there with the girls this summer. I hope to have friends visit with us there too!

The girls were completely exhausted when we got home last night. Neither of them nap when we are at camp. I will have to change that policy when I am there over the summer. They need their sleep! Needless to say, they were super grouchy today and both took a long long nap.

SAWYER:
Sawyer continues to rock the potty training! She is totally trained now. Dry undies at night too! That is what prompted me to start this whole process (besides being sick of diapers). She was continually waking up in the morning with a dry diaper. Less than a week and she was potty trained. She is actually much better at holding it than Sydney. I guess Sydney inherited my bladder!

SYDNEY:
Sydney has been doing really well with her speech therapist. I know we made the right choice for her. I was listening to she and the therapist today as they were chit chatting back and forth. So sweet. She continually talks about her birthday coming up and that she wants a party. I am actually really excited to do something for her. She doesn't ask for much so I think I will go all out in party planning.

ME: I am down 16 lbs. I seem to be at a stand still right now with the weight loss thing, but I certainly feel so much better.

I will download pictures soon and get them posted.

We were outside playing at 8:15 this morning! Finally! Some nice weather!!!
Daddy surprised Beanie Baby with a "new" bike. We had been laughing at how silly she looks on a trike because she is just so tall. Daddy drives by a sports store every day on his way to work and saw this used bike for several days. He surprised her with it last night! She is pretty good already! She tends to put the brakes on a lot and can't always get herself started, but I am impressed.

Memory Lane - Sawyer addition

Look at my chubby baby! This was our first season at camp after construction was finished. I can only imagine the happy times they will continue to have there.

Graduation Day

My little girl "graduated" 3 year old preschool yesterday. She and her classmates sang songs for their families at graduation. Syd was so excited. Words cannot express how proud I am of this little girl. She has the most amazing personality. Sweet, mild mannered and oh so loving.

Here is a picture of my little {and very nervous} love bug on her first day of school in September 2010...
and here is a picture of her on her last day of school this May 2011...

What a difference such a few short months can make in a child's life. From nervous little lady to proud little lady. She was so excited for "graduation day."

Sink Bath

Impromptu sink baths always make my girls smile. I think the girls were outside playing and some newly potty trained little girl didn't make it to the potty on time. So I tossed her in the sink. Then some other little girl wanted a turn too! Sink baths are a lot of work, but they sure do make my girls happy!

Down memory lane...

I was backing up files again to the external hard drive and looked though early Syd photos.

Always one of my favorites...baby acne and all!

Tomorrow is a walk down memory lane with a few more early photos of Soybean.

Randomness

Not many pictures of Sawyer this week. She spends most of her days bare bottomed while we are home potty training. She is a ROCKSTAR potty trainer!!! I thought she would be stubborn, but she is SO ready for this. She has a few accidents here and there, but otherwise, she can catch herself and run to the potty on time. Even long outings have proven to be easy for her (the potty stays in the back of the truck). A trip to the market, library and to pick Syd up from school was a breeze for her. Not a single accident- and we were out of the house for hours!! I am so proud of her!!!

Speaking of Sawyer, this is what she did yesterday. Our house is pretty wide opened. Our kitchen is opened to the family room and our family room is connected to the living room (playroom) by a large opening. Instead of taking advantage of the space, Sawyer piled all of her strollers and carts in a pile between the kitchen and dining room entrance. I had to walk around the pile to go retrieve my camera, just to get a photo of the chaos that ensues when we can't be outside. Darn this rain!

Why does a perfectly adorable picture get ruined by a nose pick?? Ah, I guess it is cute too.

A princess and her cape.

Birthday wishes...

Sydney knows that her birthday is in a few short weeks and she is insisting on having a party. I have never said anything to her about a party. She says she wants her friends to come to a party for her birthday. Too cute. Guess that means I need to plan something for she and a few of her friends.

Ms Ashley E. D., if you are reading this...I need your party planning skills! Maybe my event planning sister can pitch in too!

Some little girl is giddy with excitement over her new haircut. We just got back late this morning and she can't stop talking about it!

On another Sydney note, late Friday afternoon I got a phone call from a speech pathologist. She is going to start speech with Sydney on Tuesday! I am so excited. I have made countless phone calls to many therapist and they were all booked. I was getting discouraged because I didn't want to waste time in getting her started. Syd will be eligible through the end of June and then has to go off in the summertime. She will be eligible again in the fall until they deem that she is caught up. We had her evaluated a few months ago and thought that she would not be eligible because she scored only just below average. I explained the social issues I see in her and I think that is what pushed them to get her through. What I mean by social issues is that I most often have to interpret for Sydney and as she has gotten older, she is starting to notice that people don't always understand her. When we are in social settings, she often doesn't talk very much. This has impacted her performance at school too. When we are at home with her, she talks non stop. Most of the time we understand her, but some things are certainly less clear than they should be. I can't wait to see how she responds to the therapy and hope that it will give her the confidence she needs!

The new haircut!

Been a little busy lately...

I am behind on the blog but that is a good thing. Life has taken over in a good way. Memory cards are full of everything but personal photos. The girls are doing well and enjoying the nice weather (except this raining week is going to suck!). We had a fun day over the weekend. I had two photo appointments and then we headed to toys r us for a doctor kit and a few outdoor toys for the girls. Dinner out was peaceful and then a trip to the mall for summer clothes for Syd.

Potty training Sawyer is going far better than I expected. She has a stubborn personality so I expected her to be a bit bullheaded about it. But she has proven me wrong!! M&M's are doing the trick! She is peeing and pooping like a champ. Accidents are a daily occurance, but that is to be expected since we just started. The other night while we were at the mall her diaper leaked. I didn't have diapers with me but I had undies and a change of clothes. She had to use a public potty once but remained dry for the rest of the outting and the long drive home!! So proud of her. Maybe this process will be quick, but I have learned with Sawyer, she will do this when she is ready. I plan not to push.

Jim has been fishing the last few days without success. Sydney really wants him to catch a fish so we can have it for dinner. I told him yesterday morning that if he didn't come home with one that afternoon, he would have to run to the market to pick up a filet so Syd wouldn't be dissapointed!

We are going to get Sydney's hair chopped off today. I figured the process to start growing out her bangs should start now...although, maybe the summer isn't the best idea as it will likely be in her face a lot! Oh well. It will grow back. She is very excited. As I write this, I hear her telling Sawyer about getting her hair cut.

13 lbs down and many many more to go. I started the process just a few weeks ago and the weight has flown off. I am happy to say that the diet changes really are enjoyable. I have always loved meat and veggies and fruit but my sweet tooth always destroyed my success before. Cutting out all sweets and bad carbs has been easier than I anticipated. I don't crave the sweets as much as I thought I would. I hope I can keep it up because I feel so much better.

Pictures will appear on the blog again after I clear the memory cards off. I need to do lots of backing up of files so maybe I will post some more baby/infant pix of the girls.

Emma

Back to camp for the season!

We finally made it to camp! The girls had such a blast and fell right back into the "camp routine." It was pretty overcast and chilly and very very very buggy! Yuck. We (mostly me) got really fed up with the bugs so we had to leave the beach sooner than we wanted. Sydney put her feet in the water while the dogs swam. Crazy girl. I can only imagine how freezing that water is. Last year when we visited camp in spring time Sydney fell face first into the icy cold water. She got up, sputtered and then giggled! I recall that she asked to go swimming more. I reminded her that the water was icy cold and she couldn't swim. She hiked home in her undies. This year she didn't fall in but she took FOREVER to hike back up the hill because she wanted to find treasures. I was getting annoyed at how long it was taking them to walk back up the hill because the bugs were attacking us! It was a good laugh. They love it there.

The picture below cracks me up. I believe the girls were fighting over a glitter pen and Sawyer made the most hysterical face!
Sawyer was smart to not put he feet in the water. She quietly sat on the chair and watched Sydney and Remi dog play in the water.

Hiking back up the hill.

Soybean loved the puddles.

Playing with glitter pens.

Sydy used to love riding her trike all around the house. This is now Sawyer's favorite activity.

The girls enjoy their secret hideout in their bedroom. The chalet style house looks like a small cape in the front so both bedrooms upstairs have a knee wall (I think that is what they are called). The secret hideout is a small "attic" space behind the wall. I had the contractor finish off the space, add lighting and paint. I envision the girls playing in their hideout for years to come. I can't wait to decorate the walls and add more fun things for them to do in there. Sawyer was enjoying a good book in her hideout.

We are so excited for the season to begin. I think the girls and I will spend several days a week up there and Daddy can meet us there after the work week ends.

Some before Emma shots

The anxious soon to be Daddy.

Pap Pap and Soybean.

The girls meeting Emma

Words cannot express how sweet it was for me to watch my girls meet their new baby cousin. They love her so much and they were so gentle with her. They made me so proud!

Skateboarding

Jared has really taken to skateboarding. It is fun to watch him try some tricks. We intended to find a cool background to do some photos, but we ran out of time. Patio skateboarding pictures will have to do, I guess.

The girls spent a lot of time outside playing with Jared at Nana and Pap Pap's house. Thanks for keeping them so entertained Jared! They also love to wrestle with him!

That time of year again

We spent as much time outside last night and today as we possibly could!!! Too bad the rain is coming again.