Summer Time and the Living is Good

Oh me oh my oh how I love summer! Something about the sunshine and the warmth, the freedom to run and play outside, soak yourself with sprinkler water, eat under the shade tree, stay up way past bedtime, lick up popcicles... yes, dear southern friends, I know you get to enjoy these blessings year round, and oh how I would love to join you. But in the meantime, I will celebrate the blessing of the season of summer, and thank the Lord for his kindness and praise Him for his brilliance as the creator.

Here are some shots, most of them taken on my new camera (thank you dear hubby and sweet children, for my wonderful mother's day gifts!) so some of them turned out better than others, as I'm playing with settings and learning the ins and outs.

isn't this part of what being a child is all about? eating lunch in the fort? clearly, my kids think so.

and owies. or, "owdies" as xander calls them. he's full of them. particularly on his legs and feet. praise the Lord we've managed to avoid black eyes and stitches (i know, these are coming) but we've gotten scratches and bruises and blisters and scrapes. xander loooves talking about his owdies, and if you ask him about owdies, he'll show you his right knee, the location of his first scrape, his first skinned knee (with blood even!), despite the fact that it's been all healed up for a couple of weeks. he also requests medicine for this owdie (neosporin is his medicine of choice) at least every other day.

our summer evenings have been chalk full of outside fun and entertainment, and the joy of playing with our friends and neighbors. donovan (or dah-dah, depending on who is calling his name) is a lot of fun. and his incredibly cool parents allow playing in the back of the truck, which is so novel i don't know if standing back there will ever be not fun.
**note libb's outfit, which is pretty horrid, perhaps one of her worst, and has been referred to as an 80s workout video gone wrong. yes, that shirt is outgrown and those are headbands in her hair. but the girl was in a rush to choose an outfit to replace her soaked swimming suit that was suitable for play. yes libby, i don't mind if you play in that getup, though i'd prefer if it were in the privacy of our own home.**

me and my baby-baby

josh takes xand on his first bike ride, and d, who has loaned his bike and helmet to his young friend, scoots along on libb's trike.

i have so many cute pics of my kids that i have to post this one. oh my how sweet they were that day in the mall. libby holding xander's hand, guiding him along and talking to him in her sweeter than honey voice. he's holding their puppy, and is just thrilled to have his big sister caring for him. they turned heads time and again as they cooed to one another, giggled, walked along behind me in all their cuteness. but then, i got out the camera. and something entirely disgusting happens to xander's face. he puts on his camera smile. it's hilarious. and ruinous. but, i post anyway. :)

playing with sepia, sipping on refreshment

giving a shout-out to nalgene. if you don't have a nalgene sippy for your kids, you're missing out on one of the greatest products we own. no break, no leak, any exceptions and they'll throw a replacement in the mail the next day. i only wish they offered more colors, because we need more nalgenes in this house. oh, and yes, they're bpa free.

a girl who gets to bake cookies then put on her swimming suit for outdoor delight just might find herself in a suit-snapping sort of mood.

and may even have to do some twirling round the kitchen

faith, libby and gracie enjoying the scenery. yes, faith is there, swallowed up by the big blue chair

there you are girls! blinded by the sun...

baby-baby loooves his blankie and his milk. and lately, he loves laying with them on the kitchen floor. whatev.

some kids have a natural fear of danger, such as heights. not this one. when i put xander at the bottom of the stairs, i anticipated him climbing up to the first or second landing, and taking the respective slide back down to ground level. friad not. little man hiked straight up to the top of the gym, and joined the big boys at the big slide. he liked the middle (bumpy) slide so much that he ran straight back for more and decided on this, his second attempt, that he's go for the swervy slide on the left. he's fun to watch.

oh but life's not all action-packed ups and downs. my kids know the joy of a relaxing afternoon in the swings. libby doesn't typically stand for swings of this "baby" variety, but because i needed to be here by xander she joined him. she lasted a few moments past my attempt to get a cute pic of them swinging together and then ran off to put her feet in the sand. xander, however, continued to swing alongside his friend joshie dooders for at least 20 minutes. the two of them watched each other and reminded one another that "weeeeeeeeeeeee". i think x would swing all day if i had the energy to stand there next to him. in fact, even when i retreat to sit and rest, he is content to chill in his swing, motionless, for several minutes before he calls to me, "all done!"


okay, so that's all for now. but i'll have more. it's SUMMERTIME!!!!!! YAY!