A trip to Auntie Jenny's...

Emily constantly asks me is she can go stay at Auntie Jenny's house.  Bryan has never been too big on the idea of the kids staying away at night because he misses them so much since he works such long hours. We attempted it one time this spring but I was the one who quickly fell apart and begged Bryan to drive down to Fall City where we surprised her.  Needless to say Emily was not impressed at all and told us to go home.  Eventually she realized that we were not leaving and made the best of it.

Our trip to the zoo was in the process of being cancelled due to my lack of energy when Auntie Jenny came up with the brilliant idea of taking Emily for two days so that she could still go.  I was pretty hesitant at first but ultimately decided that I was being selfish and that Emily would have so much fun.  So I packed her up last Tuesday, drove her and Grandma Emily Lynnwood to meet Auntie Jenny and loaded them into her car.  I have to admit I was a bit tearful on the way home and tried to focus on the one on one time I would get to spend with Jack.

The weather on Tuesday ended up a bit lousy so Auntie Jenny decided that they needed to go to the movie theater to watch Toy Story 3.  This was Emily's first time to the movies and she apparently just loved it! Later they went to the pet store and bought some new fishes for the pond and worms to feed the chickens.

"Naughty chickens..."

"She told me I look like a monster..."

"Chicka chicka bock bock..."

On Wednesday they headed straight to The Wooldland Park Zoo...

I love this shot Jenny got of the giraffe.  It wasn't until I was previewing this post that I caught that it was releasing itself a little...

Emily came home with two new "pets" from the gift store, a snake named Jake and a pink penguin named Emily.  Who would have guessed that these were her two favorite animals from the zoo...

One of the first things Emily called me and told me about were the bears.  She loved how they were playing "chase" at the zoo...

Then it was off to the carousel horses...

And a little face painting...

Then it was back to a few more animals and the petting zoo...

After a long day at the zoo they headed back to Auntie Jenny's for a swim in the hot tub, some delicious corn on the cob and then for some reason Emily decided to feed the chickens in her underpants...

"Crunchie.."

"Ouchie..."

One more week and counting...

Things are starting to slow down around here before the craziness really begins.  We took some time this last week to spend some quality time together as a family of four after Emily returned from a two day trip to Auntie Jenny's (more ot come on that later).  The weather finally perked up a bit and the pool  finally made it outside...

A good friend of mine came over for a mommy/daughter playdate.  Emily and Olivia get along so well together and had a lot of fun playing ring-around-the-rosie in the backyard...

Jack spent a lot of time snuggling with daddy on the couch after their showers.  Bryan is still working so any time Jack can be with him he is.

If you look closely you will see about four or five vehicles clenched tightly in his hands.  This is how Jack rolls ALL day long.  One of these days I will get a shot of him falling asleep, trucks and all...

This past weekend we decided to take one last big outing as a family and headed to Fall City to celebrate summer with Auntie Jenny and Uncle Zach.  My dad and Patti were already planning on taking their motorhome or "house on wheels" as Emily would say, so we called them up and hitched a ride. 

Jack literally ran to the motorhome as soon as we pulled up, climbed up the stairs with his "man purse" in tote and headed for Grandpa Jim's seat...

Emily found a snuggly spot on the seat and settled in for the ride...

The idea of being "free" while driving was fascinating for Jack but a lot more work for Bryan and I.  He didn't seem to understand that even though there were no seat belts or car seats you can't run around while we were moving...

When we finally arrived at Auntie Jenny's and Uncle Zach's we were in awe of the transformation of their backyard.  We had heard about it but you really can't appreciate how beautiful it actually is until you see it for yourself.

My personal favorite was the new chicken coupe for "Jen's Hens."  It was decorated so nicely and the chickies seemed pretty content inside...

The guys found it particularly impressive that the chicken coupe came well equiped with an outdoor bathroom/urinal for the men...

In the opposite back corner they upgraded their fish pond and added new super comfy outdoor furniture and a bar...

and some more comfy furniture on the deck...

Zach even had his outdoor cooler personalized...

Once some guests arrived Emily decided that she needed to show off "her" chickens...

Then it was off to the yard for some serious fun with Auntie Jenny and Grandpa Jim...

It didn't take long for the tree house to get filled with some of Jenny and Zach's friends.  With a bucket full of beer on a rope there was no need for them to come down until the wee hours of the morning and I think that is exactly what they did...

We had a fabulous last weekend out and enjoyed every minute together as a family.  With just a week left I am feeling more and more anxious and have definitely started my "nesting" mode.  All the lists are complete, the house is all organized and I am craving neatness and order with everything.  We have lots of help heading our way over the next few weeks and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of this precious little baby growing in my tummy.  It has definitely been a long road and we are feeling so incredibly grateful knowing that in just a short time this little guy will be with us.

I hope we know what we are in for...3 kids in 4 years...I hope we are ready to transition from man-to-man to zone...

Fathers Day...

Celebrating Fathers Day this year was so much fun we had to spread it out over two days.

On Saturday we got up early and headed over to my Grandpa's retirement center for some delicious breakfast and a magic show.  The kids had a lot of fun running around with Cousin Grace and popping the decorative balloons.  While we were there I snapped a few shots of our four generations...

On Sunday we headed up to Nooksack to celebrate Fathers Day, Auntie Jen's birthday and Cousin Gracie's birthday.  The kids played hard as usual and enjoyed some cousin bonding time...

Emily has been asking for a scooter for some time now so we had her test out Cousin Jake's just to make sure she really wants one as much as she says she does...

 

 Where ever Jack goes he has at least 3 cars, trucks, tractors (you name it) in hand.  One of these nights I am going to take a picture of him falling to sleep with all of his vehicles piled in his arms...

 

 Jack used to be so good at sharing but lately he is very possessive over his trucks.  Right when I thought he was going to do a good job playing with Grace he knocked her on the head with a truck.  Poor Gracie!

 Max did a great job holding baby Vinnie...

 Grandma Jones gave the kids some Otter Pops to eat outside.  Jack didn't want one but he ran right over, posed and began yelling cheese when he saw my camera...

 The birthday girls blew out their candles on some delicious strawberry short cake...

 ...while Jack helped daddy with his...

Finally the kids started to settle down a bit and had some "quieter" time inside...

Happy Father's Day...

to the most caring

thoughtful

funfilled

dad

We love you!