I'm Obsessed with this Cute Boy!

 Adrian

We have had a lot of cute moments with this little stinker this week because everything he does is so cute! He plays with balloons, his sisters, Buttercup, and scatters all his toys around the house, and he even likes to sit next to me while I've been reading my book this past week. He did it multiple times! Chris taught him how to play with his lips and make a fun sound, and he loves to run to the door when Daddy comes home these days, which makes him so happy. It is such a happy time, but we had our first argument this morning during breakfast because he kept asking for the marshmallows from the Lucky Charms cereal, and I told him he had to eat his banana and regular cereal first, so he threw the banana on the floor and got mad at me.

All the Girls

We didn't do anything too fun or crazy this week, other than our normal trips to the park for lunches, so I didn't catch any pictures of my daughters (but my neighbors did!). They did go to a neighbor's birthday party yesterday, but Adrian was sleeping, so I sent them and didn't go myself. They had a lot of fun because they played with a water-spraying unicorn and did a piñata. We are now planning Claire's birthday party, and she has decided to do a mermaid birthday, so I let her pick some decorations with a budget, and she got some fun ones. Shay did have some fun with Buttercup, making her wear glasses, and I'm just happy that our little pup is so open to all the weird games my kids play. Usually, if someone is laughing, Buttercup thinks she needs to be involved, so she will come over to the area and try to help. Shay even woke up early enough with me one morning, and we rode our bikes to two different parks to get Buttercup exercise.

Enjoying the Summer

Summer Stuff

This week has been really fun at the park when we go for lunches because the girls keep seeing a new friend who is fun and makes games for them. I know her from singing in the stake Christmas choir and she comes to the park for her lunch break after spending all day with kids. There was also a 'birthday party' for the healthy lunch mascot, Westly, that made lunch on Friday even better. It is already their favorite day because of what they serve for the meal, and they get chocolate milk, but this one had prizes and a booth from one of the dentists in town, too. None of us won the raffle, but we clapped for the kids who won prizes, and Shay was only sad for like 30 seconds. Adrian was fascinated and kept pointing at the dragon, wanting to touch it, but was still a little cautious and wouldn't walk over by himself. I made the girls some dream catchers because Shay asked if we could go buy one so she could stop having bad dreams. They love them, and we put them near the window and door to make sure all the dreams that come into the room are filtered and only good dreams get through. 

Visiting

I had a girls' night this Friday and was able to host a wonderful party with some friends. Everyone brought a charcuterie board, and the theme I chose was s'mores. There were others like sushi, pulled pork sandwiches, fruit, sodas, and treats. We had friends come to town this weekend. I can't believe I didn't get any pictures, but they all played so many different games together, and we caught Claire telling their oldest son that she loves him! They were playing with a walkie-talkie, and he was trying to hide her saying it by putting his hand over it, but I know what I heard! Luckily, they are too young to know better, and it is all good that they get along. It was nice to be able to catch up with our friends, even with all the kids around, making it a very crazy house. We started dinner with most of them outside last night, and it was quiet for a good 10 minutes. 

Funeral and Home Improvements

 Funeral

The girls asked a lot of questions about heaven and death this Monday because we were attending Great Grandpa Bell's Funeral. It was a great week for the Come Follow Me lesson about heaven and where we go after this life. I felt bad for shutting down some of their questions at certain times, but I explained that there are certain times when there needs to be quite reverence. They were both happy to be included in singing Nearer, My God, To Thee during the funeral, and both had feelings of sadness, too, that we got to talk about. The girls also never wanted to leave because they were having so much fun with their cousins, but Chris had to be back at work, so we drove home after the family lunch. We made it home in time for unpacking and a little relaxing before bedtime. 

Cement

Our DIY home improvements can only go so far, and we have to hire people for certain things, like pouring and leveling a cement pad! We are lucky to have a friend with connections, though, so we got a great price for it, and he stayed to help put the kids' handprints in for memories. We also had to buy a kiddie pool to catch extra cement when they cleaned out the truck, so we now have it in the backyard so the kids can have a lot of fun. I'm glad it cleaned out so well, and the small hole that was punched in it was fixed with a heating tool and some of the extra plastic from the side of the pool. The girls were excited to bring every water toy we had to make it a party on Saturday morning and make Adrian's pool day super fun.

Fun

As for the rest of the pictures, we have some pretty cute and silly kids. Adrian likes to read books now in his own little chair and sometimes makes sounds trying to copy the sounds I make for the animals. He also plays with toys in a way that makes Claire and Shay laugh and want to copy him! The roller blades we ordered came in, so the girls have been wearing them around the house and wanting to bring them to the park and try the skate park. They aren't quite ready for that level of roller skating yet, though, so they have to wear their pads outside. Adrian also got his first haircut! I mostly got rid of a lot of the back and a little off the top because he kept trying to grab my hands when I would do the top. Now all his cute baby curls are gone and I'm still getting used to it.

Holiday's and Traveling

 Activities

This summer has been full of fun things for us, including going swimming at a friend's neighborhood pool with a play group. I've started hiding the things we do every day that are fun, because it's exciting to surprise them and see them get extra excited. They had their first time trying skating this past week when they went to a birthday party, and now they really want some of their own. I said if they kept trying and they were able to skate on their own without the little helper things, that they could get their own, so they worked hard! I was very impressed, and since they did better with blades than the skates, we have ordered some for them now. I most enjoy how Adrian learned to play at the park when we go to eat lunch every day. I bring his camp chair with the attachable plate so he stays put until we all eat, then he is used to running around while I follow, finding things he wants to do.

Independence Day

We had a full day of fun this 4th of July with a parade in the morning, a neighborhood BBQ, and fireworks with friends. There were more things to do because our town really celebrates that we could do in the future, but we were already exhausted after the day we had. This year, we chose to sit at the beginning of the parade, and it even started with an overcast, so it was cool until the sun came out. They handed out candy, necklaces, toys, and the frisbee I used as a fan during the second half of the parade. Adrian wasn't old enough to stand on the line, so he hung back in the stroller with Daddy, and I brought him a few treats every once in a while. Claire and Shay enjoyed the mini horses and seeing some people they knew in the parade, as well as all the candy. I loved that they shared candy with the people around them when it was thrown just in front of them. The BBQ had a blow-up obstacle course that was fun until some older kids started just sitting inside, and there were some arguments. Adrian played in the little blow-up water pad until we got to go to our friends' house. It is nice that other people buy fireworks, and we can just watch! I thought Adrian was getting tired, so we came home, and two different neighbors right in front of us had a ton of fireworks we got to watch. He was so tired but excited that he stayed up until 10 without freaking out, and then slept in really late the next morning.

 Activities

This summer has been full of fun things for us, including going swimming at a friend's neighborhood pool with a play group. I've started hiding the things we do every day that are fun, because it's exciting to surprise them and see them get extra excited. They had their first time trying skating this past week when they went to a birthday party, and now they really want some of their own. I said if they kept trying and they were able to skate on their own without the little helper things, that they could get their own, so they worked hard! I was very impressed, and since they did better with blades than the skates, we have ordered some for them now. I most enjoy how Adrian learned to play at the park when we go to eat lunch every day. I bring his camp chair with the attachable plate so he stays put until we all eat, then he is used to running around while I follow, finding things he wants to do.

Travel

A sad occasion has brought a lot of family together this weekend in Blackfoot. Great Grandpa Bell passed away, and the funeral is on Monday. Only a few family members weren't able to make it here for the weekend, and they were missed. But the Bell house is full, so our little family stayed in Grandma and Grandpa Bell's camping trailer. The backyard has been full of cousins having fun on the zipline, trampoline, swings, and treehouse. Adrian has found his groove, too, and only got upset a few times when I would leave him behind with all these strangers. It worries me for next month when he is going to nursery, but I'm sure things will go good because he is always so happy and playful (as long as they give him snacks). Feeding everyone for Sunday Dinner was the most stressful because it felt like even when we counted and planned, we were worried there wouldn't be enough food.