Friday, August 7, 2009

Random Summer Fun Pics

Camping in the Master Bedroom:

Brant wanted to build at tent and it was getting pretty late, so Brian suggested building one in our bed. Brant and Brian pulled the sheets up over the head boards and had the inside stuffed with pillows and Brant climbed in to read with his flashlight. My heart melted when we went in to find him later fast asleep with the flashlight still in his hand. I kind of woke him up taking the picture, but could not resist.

Brant asleep in his tent.

Camp Devlin campsite



Lounging in our jammies and changing into jammies mid-afternoon is one of B's favorite things to do in the summer (and afterschool). His combos are sometimes questionable to mom, but I guess you have to have the fashion sense of a 6 year old boy to "get it".

Classic Claire moment: Laughing, Smiling and being LOUD!

The Popcorn Picnic:

The kids love to eat popcorn and they are so funny. Somehow they have decided that popcorn=picnic and they like to bust out the blankets in the breakfast area and eat their popcorn. Here is at little popcorn picnic post-swim.






The girls love to be tickled and their laughter is just music to my ears. I dread the day those toddler laughs are gone forever. I was trying to capture a few pictures to commerate the moment, but if you've ever tried to hold the camera still while tickling kids you know it's almost impossible. Here is one of the only decent ones.


Big Girl Panties:
Well, we finally went out and purchased lots of princess and Dora panties for the girls and they think they are the coolest. We also picked up a Pink Princess Musical Potty. I haven't really started training them yet, but sometimes when we are home in the afternoon I'll put on their panties and try to remind them to use the potty. They have been successful on a couple of occasions, but I think we will need to buckle between Brant going back to school and the girls starting back to preschool in the fall.

Showing off those panties . . .

Cate posing on the stairs.

Brant Earns His Orange Belt!

Brant has been taking Tae Kwan Do at Rick's Kicks for almost a year now and it has been a really good activity for him. He was asked to test for his orange belt last week, so the whole family went to the belt test. It was fun to see him doing all of the things he has learned in class. It is not easy for Brant to balance on one foot, so kicking the board in half took him a few tries, but he persevered and finally did it. We are all so proud of him earning his orange belt.






Hold Me Closer Tiny Dancers

Aunt Tracey sent the girls these adorable tutu outfits for Christmas and they are just starting to ask to wear them. Of course, there is the never-ended fight over who is going to get to wear the pink one, but I think they are so sweet that I could not resist taking some pictures. They even slept in them one night this week.

Cate posing out by the pool.

Cate showing off her ballet moves.

Playing in the living room.

Pouty face








Park Days . . .












The Flying Devlins

The kids love to be thrown in the pool and to jump off the wall and spa into the water. Claire and Brant are absolutely daredevils and Cate is starting to become more and more adventurous. It is so funny to watch them jump over and over.

Claire getting a lift from daddy.

Brant jumping off the high wall.

Cate being thrown by Brian.

Claire jumping off the spa.

Girls on the high wall getting ready to jump.

Brant heading down the slide . . . he is looking so big on that slide these days.

A smiling, happy B-ster.

Daddy being the shark and getting ready to chase the "purple fish". Brant is the red fish, Cate is the yellow fish and Claire is the purple fish. This is a game the kids love to play.

Zoo Trip with the Millers and Splash Day for Brant

We ended up having a cool-ER week at the end of July, so I wanted to try to get the kids out for a morning at the zoo before it got too hot. I took Cate and Claire and we met Mitzi and Reese and Collin at the zoo on Friday morning. We had a fun time as usual and the girls loved having Reese-y and Collie-e there to follow around. They love their big cousins. We saw a few animals, had a few snacks and then took a ride on the carousel before it was time to leave to go get Brant from camp.

The last day of camp at Oakhill they had a splash day, which all of the kids enjoyed. They wore their swimsuits and were able to slip n slide, throw water balloons and use the hoses to squirt each other. Sounded like a good time and Brant was ready to kick back when we got there to pick him up.

Arriving at the zoo . . . everybody was ready to go.

Everybody on the turtle sculpture

Checking out the elephants--I think they may be the kid's favorite.

Cate watching the otters swim


Cate insisted on holding Claire's hand and I thought it was so sweet. "Sissy hold my hand."

Hollywood! Wearing her oversized sunglasses.

Stroller sweeties

Cate and Collin getting and up close look at a gorilla. It is so cool when they are right up by the glass.

Riding the carousel--everyone's favorite part of the zoo trip!


Brant getting in the car after splash day

Kickin' back for the ride home. Ahhh--a morning of fun followed up by nap and rest time.